Once you understand how the traditional music business evolved, as well as why you don't need a major record label deal-you've begun to understand the landscape for the modern music business. A brave new-artist centric career model-which can now be accessed, driven, monitored, and grown with little more than a connected smartphone.

The new-or more precisely-modern music business was the breeding grounds for the artists revolution, the turn of the tide, the transition and role reversal between gatekeepers and independent musicians who've since reclaimed control and majority share of our industry, and our careers.

Further, by so doing independent artists and musicians have also accepted the additional responsibilities for enjoying the additional opportunities available to us in our new economy.

The biggest responsibility as well as opportunity for independent artists centers around managing the growth and engagement with the fans and patrons that support us doing the work we love. This brings us to the core principle of Modern Music Marketing... The Fan Engagement Cycle.

The Fan Engagement Cycle

The Fan Engagement Cycle-for all intents and purposes is one complete development cycle-or measurable unit of interaction and experience that a fan or potential fan has with an artists content.

Let me tell you how It works…

You see, every time you meet or interact with your fans-each and every one of them, there is an important thing that unfortunately-for most artists that come to me-is not happening. The cycle is incomplete, and an opportunity is wasted-as they do not know-or have never learned this principle. The loss-due to not understanding the Fan Engagement Cycle is doing both you AND your fans a disservice.

The solution comes down to a simple matter of follow through and a little bit of prep work on the front end. The key is to understand that each interaction you have with your fans should be treated like a constantly developing and mutually interesting conversation. In other words, it should be an engaging and progressive dialog, not a one sided monologue.

Instead of just meeting with, sharing a drink, playing a song for, or swapping a couple stories or small talk with an audience of fans, potential fans or partners, you want to add the missing steps-to complete the engagement cycle and further the relationship to it’s next natural place…

Just like dating, there is a sequential equation of appropriate progression that is organic and logical…

Take the conversation and experience to it’s next appropriate level based on both YOU and where you're comfortable with leading them (i.e. with your FEE Structure), as well as based on THEM, and where they are interested in going to engage with you next.

Just as this is the unwritten yet obvious, natural, and accepted game we play as humans when it comes to mating, dating, and most other forms of relationship… From now on I want you to see it as the unwritten but obvious game you are playing with your fans and potential fans…

As summed up in the Key Principle of Rule #6 the Fan Engagement Cycle can be remembered by the following core principle.

Focus on the CORE!

Modern Musicians Focus on the C.O.R.E.

At the CORE of the new Game, from ground zero, Level 0 (Possible Fan) on up-is what we call the Fan Engagement Cycle. This is the process of relationship development and interaction with your fans, it represents the ongoing experience between your content and your fans-at different levels of engagement.

In addition to focusing on the CORE elements of your music business workflow and productivity including your Main Moves, what we are specifically talking about with regards to the Fan Engagement Cycle is the CORE focus which breaks down the four steps or key impact points of each Engagement Cycle through the acronym for Connect, Over-deliver, Receive, and Elevate the Engagement CORE.

Allow me to illustrate this further.

Connect

First and foremost we must CONNECT with the individual or audience. Without it, we don’t have their attention. We're still just noise. Whether On stage, on twitter, on Facebook, on the street corner… It’s not enough to just show up, our first job is to make sure we connect. If you didn’t connect with your audience or the one person you played to, you do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars. You’ll have to go home, regroup, and either try it again, or try something different. In any case, you cannot move on until you have been able to truly CONNECT.

Over-Deliver

Secondly, we deliver the goods. Step 2 is where you have to bring the goods. Whether a performance, a pitch, a presentation, a freebie gift on your website to get them to sign up for your mailing list. You have to OVER-deliver. Wow them with what you have for them.

Receive

Third, and this is a critical part of getting this equation right and being able to move on to the next step and continue to repeat the cycle at the next level… Step 3 is where you need to give THEM a chance to RECIPROCATE. You’ve already connected, you’ve over-delivered valuable content to them…

People, for the most part want to build mutually interesting/valuable relationships on some level. If you’ve connected with them, and already overdelivered something valuable to them, then it’s important for you to give them a chance to reciprocate. Maybe it’s their email address along with permission to start or build the relationship. Could be just a shout out or personal recommendation to their audience, maybe it’s a social share, maybe an offer to purchase something from you. If you don’t receive, and they don’t reciprocate-than the cycle is incomplete. People want to complete this cycle so long as you can complete step 4 which is…

Elevate

To Elevate the relationship to the next level of engagement or experience with you. Finally, after all three steps have been completed step 4 takes the experience or level of engagement a fan has with you to the next phase, stage, or status. To what level, to what degree, how creative you want to be with this-is up to each artist and how they setup their FEE structure. (a term hopefully you are starting to get familiar with)

Fan Experience Pathways - Modern Music Businesses are in the business of delivering  unique experiences to their fans and patrons.

You are really a provider of experiences. Provide a great experience, always seek to improve it, and rinse and repeat steps 1-4. The great news is that much of this can benefit from a do the work upfront once, and then let automation technology work for you over and over and over again like clockwork. Experiences can be delivered digitally, or via a combination of digital and live experience with a range of physical performance elements and audience interactivity as well. The sky really is the limit nowadays. And one of the principles of becoming a modern musician is developing what we call a mindful, creative, and technological fluidity… Doesn’t mean you have to learn to become a technical type person or even understand the technology, but to at least expand your understanding of what new tools you can add into your arsenal of creative expression and fan engagement.

Utilizing technology in a creative way, we can now automate a lot of this process of the Fan Engagement Cycle: Connect, Over-deliver, Receive, Elevate, by designing authentic Fan Experience Pathways (illustrated below) that introduce us, tell our story, deliver new content, and then offer new levels of Engagement as they move up your Fan Experience Elevator.

But tech or no tech, Independent of any channel, online or offline, given you have something you feel proud enough to share and gift us with, always come back to the CORE.

THE FAN ENGAGEMENT CYCLE.

From the stage, from your online platform, face-to-face, or on the street corner-just remember to focus on the C.O.R.E.

Connect

Over-deliver

Receive

Elevate

In Summary

In Modern Music Marketing all your fans will fall into one or more categories for precise grouping and status along the spectrum of what we call the Fan Lifecycle.

The Fan Engagement Cycle is the core principle of Modern Music Marketing. Conceptually, it is one end to end Fan Experience Pathway (aka one Engagement Sequence) that delivers the content and the access or experience that an artist develops for their fans and potentials at a given Engagement Level-depending upon how they have configured their unique FEE Structure. (Aka Fan Engagement Elevator)