Take on gigs at parties, clubs and concerts to showcase your skills as a deejay or rapper. As the maker of a mix tape, you have to work to build your credibility as an artist. Your name is your brand. By building your name, you build your brand. And by building your brand, you generate hype for your work and create a demand for your product. To be noticed and to grow your reputation, you have to hone your skills and demonstrate your talent. This “pounding the pavement” groundwork is fundamental for any mix tape marketing strategy.
Promote your mix tape. Anytime you do a gig, make sure your mix tapes are available to the audience for purchase. Be sure to clear this promotion with the manager in charge of the venue you’re playing ahead of time. Actively seek out interviews with online and college radio stations that cater to your market, as well as underground hip hop journalists and bloggers. Whenever you are interviewed, be sure to highlight where people can sample and purchase a copy of your latest mix tape.
Pass on free copies of your mix tape to underground hip hop journalists and bloggers in order to let them sample your product. If they like it, they’ll hopefully hype it and spread the word to new audiences.
Assemble an army of retailers. Persuade known mix tape vendors at independent record stores and street vendors at flea markets to listen to and carry your mix tape in their inventories. If you’ve put together a tape that stands out and that vendors judge could be a potential hot seller, they likely will do a lot to promote the tape for you. They may, for example, play your mix tape at their outlets as a tool to attract customers. And chances are that they’ll recommend your tape when customers ask for what’s new and good.
Set up a website. Use the website to display your bio, list your upcoming events and host downloads of your mix tapes. Create accounts with social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter as a tool to develop a larger following. Interlink your website and all of your social media outlets. Your entire mix tape, as well as samples, should be easily available for download online. It’s more practical to direct a person to go to a website to find your product than it is to direct them to a local retailer.