INFLUENCE Music Marketing Meets Social Influencers COVERFEATURE
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06-07 Tools Kombie 08-09 Campaigns YACHT, Radiohead, James Blake 10-14 Behind The Campaign Aurora MAY 18 2016 sandboxMUSIC MARKETING FOR THE DIGITAL ERA ISSUE 157 UNDER THE INFLUENCE music marketing meets social influencers COVERFEATURE In the old days, there were a handful of gatekeepers – press, TV and radio – and getting music in front of them was hard, UNDER THE INFLUENCE but not impossible. Today, traditional media still holds significant power, but the number of influencers out there has shot up exponentially with the explosion of social media in general and YouTube in particular. While the world’s largest video service might be under fire over its (low) royalty rates, the music industry is well aware that its biggest stars offer a direct route to the exact audiences they want their music to reach. We look at who these influencers are, how they can be worked with and the things that will make them back or blank you. etting your act heard used to be, if not exactly easy, then at least relatively Gstraightforward for the music business: you’d schmooze the radio playlist heads, take journalists out to a gig and pray for some TV coverage, all while splashing out on magazine and billboard advertising. The digital era – and especially social media – have shaken this all up. Yes, traditional media is still important; but to this you can add a sometimes bewildering list of “social influencers”, famous faces on platforms like YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram, plus vloggers, Viners and the music marketing meets rest, all of whom (for now) wield an uncanny power over youthful audiences. social influencers Brands, on the whole, have realised this and are now lining up to throw money at 2 | sandbox | ISSUE 157 | 18.05.16 COVERFEATURE this new wave of influencers, not always influencers are not a billboard, so it has to successfully: several YouTubers were ticked feel like native advertising where the ad is in off by the Advertising Standards Authority the ‘show’.” in the UK in 2014 after not making it clear Universal’s decision to work with the that their participation in an Oreo Lick Race YouTubers proved a success: four months was, in fact, paid advertising. It’s not all an on, Brohave’s video has more than 106,000 easy play. views, while Sofia’s has 78,000. “It resulted in a wide reach as well as helping to build Troye Finding the influencer Sivan’s relatability for a Danish audience, who with the right influence were also encouraged by Rasmus and Julia to buy the album,” Foltmar says. It also helped But what about the music industry? in a more concrete fashion: Foltmar claims There have, it is true, been attempts that the tracking links posted with these to sign YouTube sensations to YouTube videos – both videos have buy links record label deals, usually with in their descriptions – contributed to 77.5% of limited success. But this is a very the overall traffic to Sivan’s album. different thing to working with Little wonder, then, that Universal these social influencers to promote opportunities compared to, say, the film Denmark has expanded its work with these your existing acts. Is the next wave of studios. “The film industry is doing an awful social influencers: Julia Sofia recently hosted digital music marketing going to involve lot more of this stuff,” he explains. “You’ve a live stream on the label’s Facebook page cosying up to well-known YouTubers, then? got Caspar Lee interviewing Kevin Hart and from Denmark’s Zulu Awards, while Universal And if so, how do you do it? Will Ferrell. The music industry should be Denmark has launched a new music channel Nic Yeeles is the founder and CEO of doing a lot more of this.” on YouTube called REPEAT, which is hosted peg.co, a young company whose lofty One music executive with experience of by YouTube influencers including Brohave. ambition is “to improve the way brands and this new approach is Samantha Foltmar, In the previous sandbox, Tove Blum, YouTubers collaborate” and whose clients social media strategist at Universal promotion manager (local) at Sony Music include Universal Music. In 2013, before Denmark. In 2015, she worked with Entertainment Sweden, explained how she Peg launched, Yeeles worked with Syco Rasmus Brohave and Julia Sofia , two worked with local YouTuber Antonia to on setting up You Generation, a YouTube of Denmark’s most popular YouTubers, to help promote The Royal Concept (above channel that aimed to find new talent online build interest around Australian singer Troye left), traveling to New York to interview and pair traditional music stars such as One Sivan’s Blue Neighbourhood album, after the fairly traditional fashion, while Sofia set him them and posting the results on her social Direction and Ariana Grande with well- more traditional media in Denmark proved a “humming challenge”, typical of the tests channels. “This was all done as a way to known YouTubers, including ThatcherJoe and slow to pick up on the artist. “Troye was the she sets her interviewees. promote the band as traditional media Zoella. The experience convinced him of the perfect artist, with an audience fitting for Foltmar says that it was critical to wasn’t accessible,” Blum said. It served to promotional worth for the music industry this type of promotion, being a YouTuber give the two YouTubers creative freedom, alert Swedish of working with YouTube stars. “When you himself,” she says. “Both Rasmus and rather than trying to box them into existing TV and press match up traditional artists with YouTube Julia had been following him for years and, marketing plans. “It’s important that the to the band creators then you get these crazy spikes [in therefore, it was a credible endorsement of music industry acknowledges and embraces and they were viewing figures],” he says. “These people are his brand and music.” these social influencers and their platforms able to secure super powerful.” Both Brohave and Sofia were given the on their premises – whether it’s YouTube, appearances And yet he believes that the music freedom to work with Sivan in any way they Instagram or Snapchat,” she says. “Creative and get industry has yet to really grasp these saw fit: Brohave interviewed the singer in a freedom is very important to success; these coverage that 3 | sandbox | ISSUE 157 | 18.05.16 COVERFEATURE plans, avoiding heavy-handed commercial messages in favour of content that feels “tactile and like your friend could have made it”, according to Foltmar. WHY YOUTUBE The other issue with working with these Social influencers live on social influencers is how to find them. This many different platforms, might seem easy in an age where video so why does influencer views and follower numbers are open for marketing tend, for the everyone to see; but with marketing budgets moment, to concentrate on in the music industry dwarfed by the bigger YouTube stars? Nic Yeeles, brands, labels may struggle to afford the very founder and CEO of peg.co , top level of YouTube stars. gives three reasons. Nikoo Sadr, until recently music:)ally’s head of digital training, explains, “Since the 1) YouTube is far more advanced in terms of its ecosystem. Many music industry is a smaller industry and not more creators are making a living from YouTube than something as much money flows compared to brands, like Snapchat. And more companies are cropping up managing we need to find more niche creators and the these people. was previously out of their grasp. “If you amazing at building sustainable audiences, ones that are just on the verge of becoming 2) YouTube is a much more mature market all in: more advanced want to reach the 14-25 demographic, who they connect daily with on an emotional big,” she says. “One of the things in creators, data and APIs. you have to reach out to YouTubers or level. In a way that’s much more reliable and people often bring up in training, 3) We are in the dangerous situation in our society where 99% vloggers,” she argued. “They don’t watch genuine than many brands and bands on and rightfully so, is that the biggest of people hate advertising. But advertising funds our favourite TV or listen to the radio that much. They social media,” she says. YouTubers cost loads.” content and tools. So we need to get into a position where are also listening to music mostly on Yeeles disagrees. He believes that the people love advertising. For me, longer-form video, when YouTube. More than on Spotify.” Don’t expect cash to music industry actually has an advantage executed well, can be a great way of doing that. When you’re Foltmar says that the shift to social influence influencers over the the bigger corporate brands when it limited to a six-second Vine or static photo this can often lead media has changed the way consumers comes to YouTuber partnerships, due to the to gimmicky shite like simple product placements. Longer form see brands, with influencer partnerships That’s good news for brands looking to tap personal power of music stars. “The biggest video gives more breathing room for greater quality content. “the evolution of word-of-mouth into a young audience. But it also means mistake you can make is that you forget that marketing”. “Consumers want personality they have to be cautious in their marketing these people [YouTubers] are human beings,” and close relationships with the media he says. “A lot of people think that money and, therefore, these self-made content will solve everything in this industry – but it creators or ‘social influencers’ have become really doesn’t.” the new ‘stars’ or ‘authorities’ due to YouTubers, he adds, have generally their personal and narrative storytelling spent years building up their audiences online, on a peer-to-peer level,” she says.