How to make video content work for your music without burning out
Video creation and ‘content’ can often feel like a losing game. You come up with ideas, pour your heart and soul into creating them, and quickly burn out when you find it’s not performing as well as you’d like it to.
I find that when you reduce your video creation down to a ‘content strategy’, the amount of likes, comments and shares you receive feels much more important than it actually is.
Instead, I’d encourage you to treat it like your own personal world, being built incrementally with each of your releases. Every video you create, from vlogs to music videos, all play into an overarching narrative that builds a lasting impression on a new listener.
So, with that in mind, I’ve used my personal experience as an indie music fan to whittle a new listener’s journey down into just 4 stages, and identified how video fits into each of them.
Brand new listeners
Music videos • performances • lyric videos
Someone who is finding you for the first time is going to be quickly looking for signs that they’ll like your music, and in the age of websites and social media, they’ll be taking visual cues first.
This is where music videos, performance footage and lyric videos come in. If you have a strong creative direction supporting your visuals, new fans can immediately identify things like what genre you fall into, your personality, and what you stand for. If one or more of these aligns with them, they’re more likely to click into your YouTube video or reel and listen to your music.
Bonus points if you’re creating your own music videos and lyric videos - audiences are very forgiving, and some actually prefer, a slightly clumsy looking video. With AI infiltrating our lives, we are connecting more now with art made with personality instead of something too polished.
💡Ready to try your hand at creating your very first lyric video? - feel free to check out these budget friendly DIY lyric video ideas I’ve put together to get you started.
A growing fan
Interviews • BTS on shoots and sessions • vlogs • process videos • new single promo clips
If someone likes the sound of your music, they’ll likely look at your other social profiles to find out more about you. This is where having a backlog of video content can really help, as it allows people to do a deep dive into your world. The types of videos that can strengthen that connection to new fans, are ones that have a bit more vulnerability about them. People love relating to other people, so let your personality shine with things like BTS videos, vlogs, short promo clips, interviews and a view into your creative process.
If you’ve been regularly uploading by this point, you’ve likely also been responding to comments and interacting with fans as you form your core fanbase. You can tell a lot about an artist from the culture they’ve cultivated with their fans, and it’s so much easier to join a warm, welcoming fanbase than it is to join a disconnected one.
A core fan
Video messages • looping or animated visualisers • animated posters • fan involvement
Once someone has bought into your music, your journey, and you as a performer, they’re going to be much more receptive to exclusive content.
This can mean different things to different artists; private Instagram stories or broadcast channels, Discord, newsletters, intimate events etc, but one thing that links it all is video.
Using quick, unedited clips to update your core fanbase is a great way to not only stay connected, but also learn more about what they’d like to see from you as you shape your artist brand.
If you take time and care into building your community, you’ll create a community that tends to be a lot more loyal and will want to see you succeed - especially if they can have a part to play in that.
So adding that personal touch can go a long way, and there are a few ways you can do it.
Fan events - schedule some invite-only events, film a short video in your private channels to promote it, and create a vlog / highlight video from the event to create some buzz. If you don’t have a videographer, you can film bits and pieces yourself and even get some fan footage too!
Use video to share some fun facts about your recent release. Share the story behind certain lyrics, behind the choice of imagery, share your inspiration and any drama or unexpected moments that fed into your creative process. Treat it like you’re FaceTiming your friends and keep it super candid.
Use a video loop or animation to create a visualiser for all of your tracks. This keeps your music accessible on video sites such as YouTube and doesn’t require people to sit and watch, making it perfect to put on in the background!
Having video content closely tied to your brand can add a lot of trust and credibility, but the quality of the content is still much more important than the quantity. Have an overarching plan for your creative direction, and use that as a way to anchor your creative decisions - this will not only keep everything consistent, but it will also make idea-generation a lot easier and give you confidence.
💡Check out this blog post to learn more about how creative direction can help with your video strategy.
I’m sharing a link to British girl group XO’s YouTube channel, who I think are nailing their video strategy. Have a look through their channel, and their other social media, and see if anything sparks some inspiration.
🍏 Need help putting together some visuals for your release? Get in touch below and see how I can help turn your ideas into music videos, lyric videos, short‑form visuals, and release‑ready content.
