Your Brand’s Digital Identity

What Does Your Search Look Like?

I’m sure at some point in your life you’ve looked up your own name. Whatever search engine you used (Google, probably), it had a lot of information to give you. It probably spat out your social media, or social media of another person who shared your name. I can also probably guess it scared you a little bit when it pulled up obscure information that you didn’t know was on the internet. For me, I found out that there’s an article out there that documented my 5th grade experience in the DARE program, and the fact that I won the poetry contest for it.

Now, I want you to try looking up your artist or band name. What comes up? Do you happen to share a name with another artist or music group? Are you in the same search for something completely different? This is the start of your search engine marketing and figuring out how to get yourself on the first page of any search engine.

Search Engines: The Know-It-All

When it comes to marketing, search engines are like really good gossipers. If you ask it who sells the best shoes, or where the best place is to eat, Google will tell you exactly what it’s been hearing across the vast landscape of the internet. It knows everything about everyone, but there’s a catch – Google only knows what exactly has been said on the internet. If your digital content is generic and nonspecific, Google won’t really know who to share that to, so you’ll probably be the last person they’ll talk about. However, if you learn the language of the people that ask Google the questions, you can use that to your advantage. That’s where search engine optimization comes in.

Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization is basically making your brand and digital content “search friendly.” When people look for a product or service, they use specific language in order to have the most accurate results. The companies that use “search friendly” language in their website, online marketing, and social media are typically going to be the first to show up in the search. You’re probably thinking, “well how do I know what language to use?” Let me put it into perspective for you.

Think about having a dating profile. Let’s say you love playing video games and you have a cute dog. Using ambiguous words like “pet owner” or “gamer” might end up getting you matches with crazy cat ladies that love tabletop games. I mean, if that’s what you wanted then good for you, I guess. But you can be more specific and use words that you’d think your potential match would want to see. “Loves playing video games” and “dog parent” are terms that can increase your chances to get your profile in front of people who are attracted to at least one of those things.

How Do You Want to Be Found?

Using words that you want people to use when they try to find you is what search engine marketing is all about. For you independent artists, it could be things like the genre you’re in (remember my post about your marketing strategy?), or your location if you play live music. Search engine language might be overwhelming, but putting yourself in the shoes of your potential buyers can help you figure out what words they’re using to look for new artists or bands in their area. At the end of the day, being known by people is already a great start; word of mouth is a pretty reliable source nowadays. However, being known by the internet gives you an extra boost in the digital space. Share your brand to it and it’ll bring you the people who’ve been looking all over for you.

References

Scott, D. M. (2022). The new rules of marketing & PR : how to use content marketing, podcasting, social media, AI, live video, and newsjacking to reach buyers directly (Eighth Edition). Wiley.