27 engaging Twitter tips for musicians

How to network successfully via Twitter

Tom Porter, Wed 6 May 2009, 5:18 pm BST

Being a musician, you have one fantastic advantage over everyone else: you can make music. And if people take time out to listen, jam with you or even shell-out to watch you doing it in a dingy venue, how hard can it really be to attract an audience on Twitter?

Loudmouth rockstars have had a platform to gob-off since time began. The birth of the internet made it easier, blogs made it easier still and now, Twitter is the latest icing on the cake for communicating. In 140 characters or less, of course.

But while @britneyspears' record label can Tweet about 'shopping trips to Coral Gables for purses and sunglasses' (yay!) and still attract 362,781 followers (and counting), the average bedroom beatmaker is going to have to try a bit harder.

We've put together the 27 tips you'll need for successful music Twittering – from basic etiquette to chart-domination and every Tweet in-between. If you make music and you're not on Twitter: start here. If you're already a member: STOP, and start again from here...

27 engaging Twitter tips for musicians

1. Have an objective

What do you want to achieve? If you want to widen your fanbase by building a Twitter community around yourself, talk about making music and eventually try to take over the world, you've come to the right place. Knowing what you want is half the battle, stick to the following and you've a great chance of achieving it…

2. Be descriptive

Choose an appropriate username, don't call yourself @TheDarkKnight if your band is called Loose Change. Provide as much information in the bio section as you can – believe it or not, people will read it, as you should read theirs…

3. Get to know your audience

People fill their bios in for a reason – read them, see what they're into and talk about it. That way you will…

4. Engage with your followers

The golden rule. Don't just talk about yourself, take an interest in everyone else. Reply to messages and be as personal as possible. If it's good enough for Trent Reznor…

5. ENGAGE WITH YOUR FOLLOWERS

Seriously, it's that important. More of how to do it effectively below.

6. Learn from the pros

@stephenfry has a gazillion Twitter followers for a reason. Keep an eye on the top Twitter users and learn from the masters. Here are 21 musician Twitters to get you started.

7. Get noticed, make headlines

John Mayer makes the news merely by Tweeting about going to the toilet. He's an international celebrity bed-hopping superstar, however, so we'll have to try harder. Paul Smith was an unknown blogger from Newcastle, UK, before mutating into the headline-grabbing @twitchhiker. His faithful followers offer him accommodation and choose his next round-the-world destination. So do the musicians' equivalent…