Today, iTunes, Spotify and YouTube are popular ways to find music online. However, a quality music blog helps to;
- Stay updated with emerging artist and new music
- Provides information on upcoming music events
- Know more about new music technologies and trends
- Gives important insights to musicians for starting a music business
- Provides information on upcoming releases
If you have the passion and interest in music then this article will help you start a music blog. The first step for starting a music blog will be identifying a unique angle. The music niche that will help you connect with like-minded people and spread your message.
4 Steps on How to Start a Music Blog
Step 1 – Choose Micro Niches To Start A Music Blog
#1. Based on Genre
- Indie rock
- Metal
- Experimental music
- Electronic
- Pop
- Hip-hop
- Dance
- Country
- EDM
#2. Local Music
- Local artist
- Local venues
- Local event listing
- Local music reviews
#3. Music business blog
- Record labels
- Artist managers
- Recording studios
#4. Live music blog
- Review of live shows & festivals
- What to take to a festival
- How to meet your favorite band
#5. Music education blogs
- How to learn an instrument
- How to start a band
- How to find a recording studio
Step 2 – Choose Domain Name For Your Music Blog
There is no fixed rule as far as choosing the domain name is concerned for a music blog. Music blogs have totally unrelated domain names like “Brooklyn Vegan” and “My Old Kentucky Blog”.
I definitely agree that finding a single word, a music-related domain name is difficult and costly. But, decent two-word domain names are a better choice. Take a clue from the top music blogs in your niche. For example, music blogs have a domain name – “Pitch Fork” and “Hype Bot”.
Try finding them two-word domain names. You can use the domain name finding tool Leandomainsearch.com to get domain name ideas.
For example, the tool returned the following domain name suggestion for the word “Tune”.
If you find them connecting, you can definitely have them, before anyone does. But you should try to find a word relatable to your music micro-niche.
If you are still not able to find a suitable domain name then you can start with any domain name.
I too started my blog with the domain name “wisebaniya”, then I changed it to “moneysparkle” but still I was missing the connection.
Finally, I got the right combination in the domain name “CashOverflow”.
The other things which you should keep in mind before finalizing the domain name are:
- Pick a .com extension: If a domain of your choice isn’t available with .com extension then you should go for any other extension.
- For a country-specific audience, you should go for that country’s extension. For example, for blog audiences in India go for .in extension and likewise for a US-based audience you should choose a .us extension.
- Avoid domain names with hyphens and special characters, because your audiences may find it difficult to spell and remember.
- Avoid words that are difficult to spell and hard to remember.
Step 3 – Get a Hosting
You should avoid free hosting because in free hosting you do not own the site.
You are given a subdomain like “mysite.yourmusicblog.com”, which looks unprofessional.
In free hosting space, you do not have access to the control panel. On top of that, the server speed slows down with time.
There will be NO help and support options. To make things worse, free hosting does not give you the flexibility to design your website and has limited functions.
A good idea is to buy hosting space from the safe and reliable hosting service provider having quality customer care.
I would suggest you to pick hosting services from Siteground hosting.
Siteground gives you a safe hosting space on their high-speed servers. Your website loads faster on their solid-state drives (SSD) and free content delivery networks (CDN).
All the shared hosting plans from Siteground are protected from hackers and brute force attacks using HTTP/2 tech and AI security bots.
You get a free SSL “Lets Encrypt” certificate and quality customer support.
Special discounted link to buy Siterground Hosting
Steps To Buy Hosting From Siteground
Step 1: Go to Siteground website and select “Web Hosting”
By purchasing web hosting you get hosting services for your blog on the Siteground’s shared servers.
Step 2: Select GrowBig Plan
GrowBig plan is for starting level growing websites. You get enough resources for starting a growing blog, like;
- Hosting more than one website
- Having 20GB of webspace
- At a time, the plan can handle up to 25K visitors
On the other hand, you can host only one website on StartUp Plan having limited resources.
The GoGeek Plan has higher resources and is best suited to high traffic websites or to support the portfolio of growing websites.
Step 3: Register OR Enter Domain Name
You should not get a domain name registered from your hosting service provider for the following reason:
- In case of website transfer, you may want to shift the domain registrar also which can be confusing.
- For a portfolio of websites, managing domain at the registrar is better.
- For added security.
Name Cheap is a good option for registering a domain name.
Step 4: Select Plan Period and Complete Purchase
Here you can select the hosting plan period from 12, 24 or 36 months. Siteground GrowBig plan has a fixed transparent price of $5.95 per month irrespective of the plan period.
Next, you will require a WordPress setup to see your blog live on the internet.
Step 4 – Technical Steps To Setup Your Music Blog
Installing WordPress, themes and essential plugins make your music blog go live and functional.
Install WordPress
You can create beautiful websites by installing the free content management system of WordPress.
You just need to go to the control panel and click on “Install WordPress” in order to create a blog.
Some hosting services provide a pre-installed WordPress, but that entirely depends upon your hosting provider.
WordPress is used to create web pages, posts and add images. Further, WordPress lets you install themes & plugins, to help you customize and change the appearance of your blog. I would suggest you to use SEO optimised wordpress theme for your music blog.
Setting Themes
Themes include layout, style elements and color schemes. Themes provide the overall look and feel of the website.
The next section contains a list of the best WordPress themes for music blogs. You can check and choose the theme which fits your music niche.
However, when starting a blog you should not waste precious time in finalizing the theme.
Instead, you should pick up a free theme or any reasonably priced theme and focus more on other important things like content & growing your blog.
Make sure that whatever theme you choose, the website should;
- Have a responsive design
- Open with the help of any browser
- Be easy to navigate
- Give a professional look and have a proper structure
Steps to Install a Free Theme
You need to go to the dashboard> “Appearance” menu and select the option theme.
Next, you can select one from the list of themes and click on add new.
Steps to Install a Paid Theme
- Download the theme file from the theme website
- Click on upload theme
- Choose the theme file
- Click on install
Once the theme is installed, click on the “Activate” button to make the theme functional.
Installing Necessary Plugins
Plugins give you the much needed additional features. They are helpful for having extended functionality. For example protection against spamming, incorporating SEO features, creating an e-store and many more.
Further, as you grow you may require advanced plugins like email marketing or affiliate marketing plugins.
In the initial phase, you can start by installing only necessary plugins, the list of which is as under
- Akismet
- JetPack
- Yoast SEO
- TinyMCE Advanced
- WP Smush
- Shortcodes Ultimate
Best WordPress Themes For Music Blogs
- Wayfarer
- StereoClub
- Harmony Music
- Musika
- Steve Cadey
- Musos
- Amplify
- Hammer
- Music
- Rock Star
- Musicsong
- Music Club Lite
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10 Different Ways To Earn Money From Music Blog
#1. E-shop
You can create an Eshop on your blog using the WooCommerce plugin.
The Eshop can be used to sell your own music recordings, vinyl, other music recordings, music production software and events/concert tickets.
#2. Collaboration
New music companies and businesses look for music blogs to connect with the audience. The collaboration will be a long-term commitment requiring you to create brand awareness.
Collaboration helps you build and strengthen your network. Through campaigns, you can help businesses launch new products and events.
Before collaborating, make sure that the music products support your genre and is in line with your blog’s message. Do not promote totally unrelated products and services.
#3. Reviews
You can review albums, live events, music festivals, bands, music recording, editing & production software on your blog.
The reviews bring out the best of the music and music-related products for your audience to select and buy.
Check out – How to start sports blog
#4. Sponsorship
You can launch specific music-related content for music companies that are relevant to the audiences.
Music sponsorship will help your audience find new music and products. The music companies benefit by getting a new market of music lovers.
The only thing you need to ensure is that the sponsored products are helpful to your audiences and are in line with your music micro-niche.
#5. Space for Radio & Music Broadcasting
You can give space on your blog for radio and music broadcasting companies to stream out live music and related content.
Which will help your audience play music directly without the need for apps.
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#6. Promoting new talent
Fresh singers, music composers and writers need a platform to launch their skills. Your music blog can be the place to promote new talents and help you generate revenue.
The promotion packages can be divided into tiers. The basic tier can have support one singer with limited release. The higher packages can allow more singers and unlimited music releases.
#7. Consultation
After you have experience setting your music blog. You can offer your expertise to other aspiring music bloggers in starting a music blog.
If you have worked in the music industry or have expertise then you can provide consultation for selecting technology & music related software.
#8. Subscription Site
An interactive music community can be started for a subscription fee.
The site will help connect like-minded music lovers. You can add value by providing insights, selling premium music tracks, offering a regular newsletter with premium music content.
#9. Affiliate Marketing
The blog can be an affiliate for a host of music products, gadgets and production houses. Apart from music products, you can be an affiliate to yearly music events and festivals.
You should promote music products that match your music niche because promoting unrelated music products will not get engagement from the audience. You may also lose your credibility.
#10. Selling Playlist
By creating and selling your favorite playlist will not earn much, but it still is a method to earn. You can expect to earn $1 to $6 per track view.
For example, platforms like “PlaylistPush” allows Spotify users to earn while creating a playlist.
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