Collective Soul - Collective Brilliance In Music and Marketing

For any artist that's new to the social media and technology scene, may I suggest that you take a few lessons from a band that totally "gets it"?

Just how important is it to stay in touch with all of your fans? Collective Soul would tell you it's very near the top of their list as being one of the golden (or should I say platinum?) keys to their huge success.

Of course, the absolute number one most important criteria for any artist to achieve success in the business, is in having exceptional talent and music - but even creating great music doesn't guarantee you'll break through to the top. Not if your fans don't know the first thing about you, or where they can find you on tour, or when they can buy your music.

Collective Soul understood that Platinum Rule from day one, and in using that knowledge, they've become one of the most successful groups anywhere. Having scored seven multi-platinum records in the US, they also boast seven #1 hits, and they've gone multi-platinum 18 times in Canada. Those numbers are impressive by anyone's standards, but they're nowhere near done adding to that set of accomplishments yet.

In the wake of a failing economy, now more than ever, it's critically essential to utilize every possible means of free advertising made available to every artist on the internet. Simply put, the ability to mass market yourself is quite literally at your fingertips.

What better way is there, than to have your loyal fans advertise every step of your career for you? Where and how do you find these most willing loyal fans? The answer is just as simple. You must first and foremost be loyal to them. Here's how Collective Soul shows that level of loyalty to their fans.

You can find and follow them on Twitter to interact with them directly. If you clicked on that link I provided you with to get to their Twitter page, you should immediately notice a difference between their profile and most "celebrity" sites. Collective Soul have over 18,000 followers so far, but that's not the surprising part.

These guys have taken the time to follow more than 20,000 other people, including (and most importantly), each and every one of the fans that follow them. They've used their Twitter account as a means of two-way communication, in order to answer questions and comments on a daily basis. That's right folks, they interact with their fans personally - and here's why.

In an article they shared with us recently, titled "A celebrity that gets social media? I know shocking…", the reasons for following fans were thoroughly explained. This article should be required reading for every music marketing agency in the world.

It shows just how quickly an artist (or anyone with a need for massive advertisement) can instantly share an announcement with their target audience, all at once. The example used in the article shows how one music celebrity increased her Twitter followers to over a million by returning the follow to her fans. Here's a quick excerpt from the article, but you should read it in its entirety to understand the full effect following fans in return can have.

With the competition brutal due to Twitter going mainstream, celebrities are starting to clamor for more follows to be ranked higher in the overall Twitter follower rankings. When looking at the column data it is from left to right: Date, Followers, Following.

You can see the incremental amounts that were increased from a mere 1,000 people that the Britney Spears account was following to three days later an additional 9,000. The action of following an additional 9,000 people resulted in a follower jump of 23,837. However, the biggest monumental jump was when an additional 58,000 people were followed which increased the people following the Britney Spears account by 581,000 additional followers.

Now that's impressive indeed. Can you imagine being able to Tweet the name of your new album, or single, or give your tour dates and venues to millions of people all at once? Not only can Collective Soul imagine doing all of that for their fans, they're well on their way to achieving that million mark goal for themselves.

Their claim to fame doesn't end with just using their Twitter account as a means to broadcast news of their newest releases and tour dates. Instead, they utilize that marketing tool by holding different contests between their fans. Offering prizes that range from free tickets and backstage passes to autographed guitars, makes for some stiff competition and brings out the absolute best in advertising from those fans who choose to compete.

The most current contest is a for bloggers and ends on June 15th. Who knows? They might even find a professional writer or two willing to offer their praises in a blog. You can visit the article posted above for details on how to get in on the action. Just by offering ways for their fans to make even the smallest measure of difference toward their success, they now have over 18,000 followers currently vying for their attention by blogging their love of Collective Soul.

Marketing genius. (there's more to the story after this musical interlude)


These guys (or whoever represents them technologically speaking) are the quintessential definition of marketing professionalism. The Twitter account is just one example of how a tech savvy marketing team can advertise your goods, without spending anything more than some time. If you go to Collective Soul's Website for NEWS, or follow them via THEIR BLOG, you'll see what I mean.

Their website boasts different sections - all geared toward satisfying the fans need for news and merchandise, and all located at the same place. They have sections listing Tour Dates, a Media space for sharing their behind the scene (aka vlog) videos. That's just another way they add the personal touch to make fans feel like they're truly an important part of their lives.

There's a message board (aka fan forum) where fans can discuss the latest events and offer their opinions. You'll also find an online store where you can purchase their most recent merchandise, like Collective Soul Dog Tags, and T-shirts, and CD's, etc. Still more sections feature their Discography, Biography, Photos...and yes, they even have a special place reserved for their Fan Club.

To a certain degree, Collective Soul are collectors themselves. Right now, they're collecting fans, MySpace Friends, Twitter followers, Audioacrobat.com phone callers, and selling out tour dates by posting news of their tour far enough in advance that their fans can plan an entire vacation around seeing them live. I already know which concert I'll be attending. If you're not certain what cities and dates to reserve, let me give you a hint where to find that TOUR INFORMATION.

By the way, that neat little widget in the midst of the page that's playing Collective Soul music was also offered at their official website. You should visit there now to get yours. To do that, just click on their picture at the top of the widget. While you're visiting their website, you might also notice they have a new album called Rabbit coming out on August 25th of this year. The classic sound will still rock you down to your Collective Soul. Their new single "Staring Down" from that album was one of the most requested songs at AOL's Tweet Requests radio and rightfully so.

Collective Soul are collective geniuses as far as I'm concerned. If they're collecting fans that hold them in the highest esteem, now they've collected me.