What’s This? Even Rockstars Struggle With Building Engagement Via Social Media?

I had to chuckle at reading this article from Billboard which ponders why Lil Wayne gets more interaction on Facebook than Akon does:

“Lil Wayne was sending out short little posts – it could be ‘hi’ or ‘go Green Bay Packers,'” RootMusic’s doctor of pages, Matt Conn, said at the NARM panel “Social Music, Marketing and Monetization.” “Those things were his personality. Akon’s page would be posting three or four line paragraphs with no new pictures  and they were usually about new shows being announced or songs.”

So Lil Wayne is actually trying to connect with his fans, while Akon is trying to promote to his.  And we are somehow surprised that one Rockstar has an engagement level that’s 3 times that of the other?

And here’s the article’s takeaway: “The conclusion? Facebook updates need snappy text, high-resolution photographs and items that the artist asks fans to share. The focus in building fan bases has shifted in the last two years from the collecting of email addresses and sending out blasts to accumulating valuable “likes” on Facebook where an artist interacts with fans.”

No, Facebook updates need to be real.  So does your communication on all Social Media channels.  Want to know a big reason why Rockstars like Amanda Palmer and Lady Gaga are so popular on Social Media sites?  Because they share themselves as much or MORE than they promote themselves.  They snap pictures getting ready backstage, they show you pictures after their concerts with them out partying with their friends.  Even when they do promote themselves, they are honest about why they want you to support them and what it means to them.

Recently, there’s been a few articles claiming that companies are dumping their blogging efforts for Twitter and especially Facebook,because they feel they can get more ‘engagement’ on these sites.  A Like or ReTweet is only great if it leads to some other action.  People want to engage with companies they trust, companies that are real.  That means sometimes you have to forego promoting yourself for instead sharing content that helps your audience.

BTW for the cynics out there that wonder how you monetize this whole ‘being real’ stuff, and how Rockstars can make money off trading jokes on Twitter with their fans, there’s this:  On May 1st, Amanda Palmer started a page on Kickstarter trying to raise $100,000 to fund her new record and a tour to support that record.  She was hoping to raise $100,000 from her fans by May 31st.

Today is May the 14th, and she’s currently raised over $600,000 from over 12,000 fans.  By the time her funding window ends on May 31st, she will have likely raised over a million dollars for this project.

Not a bad return on ‘being real’ on Twitter.  Be straight and honest with people, don’t BS them, and you’ll be amazed at how much more ‘engaged’ they’ll be with you.  And you might even find out that they’ll give you their business, as well.

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