5 Tools To Reshape Your Music Career

While things like instruments or even social media ads are some of the more obvious tools in a DIY artists arsenal, we here look at some of the less well known but still incredibly valuable tools which an artist should utilize.

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Guest post by Angela Mastrogiacomo of the Symphonic Blog

We all know the power of tools like production equipment, Facebook ads, or a solid set of instruments can make a huge difference in your music career—in fact, without them, most of us wouldn’t be able to function! But what about those lesser-known tools that, while they might not be at the forefront of our minds, might have the power to completely transform everything for us?

You know, the tools that have us saying “how did I ever live without this?!”

Here are 5 Awesome Tools to Transform your Music Career:

Planoly

Social media is important—you know this. But it can feel so daunting to have to get on IG every day and think of something clever to say. That’s why batching is key. When you can sit down and spend 2-4 hours writing out content for the week or even the month, then just set it and forget it—life is going to get so much easier.

Enter, Planoly. With a perfectly robust and useable free version (as well as paid if you want to take it up a notch) Planoly let’s you schedule your IG posts so that all you have to do is post them via the prompt at the scheduled time (or if you’re a business account, it will auto-post for you.) You can also use it to create unique stories including those neat frames and fonts you always see professionals using.

Want to sharpen your skills even more?

5 Courses to Level Up Your Social Media Game

5 Time-Saving Social Media Content Creation Tips

Canva

Canva is your secret weapon to creating beautiful graphics. Here you can create compelling show flyers, your new Facebook cover photo, the icons for your IG highlights, or even IG story content. There are pre-made templates to draw inspiration from (and to alleviate the aggravating process of trying to get the sizing exactly right), and tons (and I mean tons) of fonts, photos, and design elements. Trust me, I am a disaster when it comes to design but I LOVE and swear by Canva.

The pro version is worth investing in here, as it gives you access to tons of stock photos and fonts, but the free version is truly packed with a ton of incredible features as well.

Asana

Everyone needs a little help with organization, and Asana is perfect for just that. With this, you can virtually compile your to-do list for all your major (or minor) tasks.

All you have to do is list out what you need to do and when you need to do it. For instance, if you’re releasing an album in October, you can easily list out what you need to do to prepare for it in say, July, Aug, and Sep, and then how to continue on in Oct/Nov. That way, you make sure you never miss a thing. Plus, it works with teams, so the whole band can get on board.

Check off each task when it’s completed and watch it disappear (and give a well-deserved sigh of relief). Voila! Complete satisfaction and accountability.

Pexels

Everyone should have a few stock photos in their back pocket. While I wouldn’t rely too heavily on stock photos and would instead rely on your own promo or behind the scenes photos, I think it’s always good to have a few of these in handy for social media posts here and there or even show flyers. With Pexels, there are a ton of really amazing selections, so you’ll have plenty to work with.

Mailerlite

I love Mailerlite, and like the rest of these tools, there’s a fantastic free version! Look, you know you need a mailing list right, so why not work with something that’s incredibly intuitive and robust?

Mailerlite does it all, including the ability to test performance on different subject lines, set up an automation series (like say if you want to offer a free song to new subscribers and then automatically have them get a new email from you every week to nurture them in, before being added to the main mailing list), and it’s super-duper user friendly.

Once you start to implement these into your every day, you’ll start to feel a wave of relief wash over you simply because they’re going to make those seemingly mundane or overwhelming tasks so much more manageable.

We’re just getting started! If you’re looking for tips on increasing fan engagement then join me for my free Masterclass ‘How to gain your next 1,000 fans. 3 simple steps that lead to higher engagement, sold-out shows, and life-changing opportunities’.

Angela Mastrogiacomo is the founder and CEO of Muddy Paw PR, where her artists have seen placement on Alternative Press, Noisey, Substream, and more. She’s also the owner of music blog Infectious Magazine.. She loves baked goods, a good book, and hanging with her dog Sawyer.