Posted by Ann Bernard

RerverbNation is far from being a new kid on the block…launched in 2006 to respond to the changing music business paradigm.  The folks at ReverbNation believe: 

Nothing is more important to Artists than the relationship with their Fans. All of an artist's financial success comes down to the strength and breadth of the relationships they have with their fans. It is from those relationships that artists can earn a living selling music, tickets and merchandise. It is our mission to provide the tools artists need to create, nurture, and strengthen fan relationships. We call the total value of these relationships an artist's Band Equity™, and it is our mission to help artists maximize this.

Active Fans are the best promoters of music on the web. Fan attention has become fragmented across the web in a way that mass marketing no longer makes financial sense (see the demise of radio, music TV). Today is the age of social networks. Artists cannot be everywhere they need to be at once, so they need to focus on activating their most rabid fans to promote them in every corner of the web.

A Music Community is more valuable if includes all of the members of the community. We believe that fans, labels, venues, and other folks all deserve a voice in the community if it is going to be representative of the entire music ecosystem. At ReverbNation, we invite all members of the community to take part.

Those are pretty powerful beliefs and sentiments. 

ReverbNation was ahead of its time when it launched and they introduced widgets to musicians and fans.  They design the site/network with the ability to spread information across the web…taking what fans are looking for to them.

ReverbNation Street Team – Join and Get Off the Sidlines
Pretty catchy guilt embedded slogan they have going on and solid methods of implementation. 

Artists who join ReverbNation have the option to enable their Street Team feature.  The feature is built around the concept of “missions” which are assigned to you – the fans.  Examples of missions are:

• Spread Music
• Promote Shows
• Recruit New Fans
• Drive Traffic
• Offline Involvement
• Custom

Once an artist/band launches a mission…the mission is tracked in real-time and progress is displayed in a “Leaderboard” that both you and the artist can see.

The real cool part is that there is a blog for each Street Team mission for the artists to interact with their fans.  The artist also sets what the reward(s) and prize(s) will be for the winner(s).

Joining and Participating in a Street Team

You need to have an account on ReverbNation to join a Street Team but once you’re a member it’s really easy to join.  Find your favorite band on ReverbNation and look for the Street Team Tab…that’s where you join.

Ideally, your favorite bands already have active missions going on that you can get involved in right away, but if they don’t – you can join their Street Team and you’ll be automatically contacted when a mission is launched.

Also be on the lookout for this widget on your favorite bands’ online profiles:

I would think the coolest part of being on a Street Team is that the artist(s) you are helping out knows you are helping them out and it opens a great line of communication between you and your favorite artist(s).

Not Interested in a Street Team – What else can you do?
ReverbNation gives you a lot of options to promote your favorite artist(s).  You can promote their music, videos, upcoming shows, and latest press information through a selection of widgets and applications.

Find out more about what ReverbNation has to offer Fans. 

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Posted by Ann Bernard

I left you with the question “Do you really think you can afford to not communicate with your fans?” in my first write-up on this topic of talking with your fans not to your fans. 

If you haven’t answered that question for yourself yet, consider this:

The internet has drastically changed and improved communication and interaction between people.

The internet has made a large world smaller and people in it more accessible.

Word of mouth exchange (recommendations, reviews, opinions) are on steroids within a person’s social network because of the size and accessibility of online social networks.

The internet has increased our requirements for immediate gratification.

The internet has increased our desires to be connected and in the know.

The internet has increased our human need to belong.

The internet has increased our ability to get away and take part of other worlds.

The internet has mostly definitely changed your fans expectations. 

We’re having this conversation because of how much the internet has changed things.

Do You Care About Your Fans?
A fan is an ardent devotee; an enthusiast.  A fan is someone dedicating their time, interest, passion and love towards YOU and your work/product.  Fans have a curiosity and interest in you.

The days of not being able to communicate with someone who is a fan (per the above description) are long gone.

Since communication is so much easier and simpler due to the internet: What signal do you think you send out when you can’t be bothered to communicate and engage with your fans?

Talking With Your Fans
Aren’t you curious about who your fans are? Aren’t you interested in what your fans have to say?

Talking with your fans is creating connections, personal interaction, exchanging information, recommendations and feedback.

Talking with your fans is building rapport and facilitating relationships. 

Engaging with your fans is showing you care about them.

Engaging with your fans is adding value to what they care and are passionate about.

“Do you really think you can afford to not communicate with your fans?”

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