Musicians are often told that they need to be everywhere- all the time. But can you really be expected to manage an effective presence on every social network? Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, Tumblr, Bebo, BuzzNet, Foursquare, Google, Last.fm, LinkedIn, MySpace, Mog, SumbleUpon, PureVolume, a hundred others and Habbo Hotel—Exhausted yet?

For musicians new to social networks and social music marketing, I recommend you test the waters first; get in the shallow end and wade around for a while. Forget about being everywhere. Just concentrate on the basics. For all you social media gurus out there, this article ain’t for you. But if you want a brief overview of how to effectively share your music and promote your music career online, here goes:

1. Start a blog-

Your website is your central “hub,” the place where you can create content that is pushed out to the social networks, or “house” content that is pulled in. For instance, your music videos will be uploaded to YouTube, but then you can use YouTube’s embed codes to share the videos on your blog. Conversely, you can write a blog post about your day in the recording studio and then share that on Facebook and Twitter. CD Baby’s sister company HostBaby can easily help you take your first important steps in the blogging world, and help you with anything after that too!

2. Use YouTube-

We all know and love YouTube, but did you know it’s quickly becoming one of the world’s most popular search engines? And music discovery is a big part of that. Now with CD Baby’s sync-licensing partnership with Rumblefish, we’re making sure you get paid for every time your music is used on YouTube. Check out The DIY Musician’s Complete Guide to Promoting Your Music on YouTube.

3. The facts about Facebook-

While some musicians find Facebook’s interface frustrating for the purposes of music marketing, if done right, the world’s most popular social network can be an important tool in your promotion efforts. Plus, with CD Baby’s MusicStore for Facebook, we’ve made it easy to sell, share, and stream your music right from your band’s Facebook page.  Also, download CD Baby’s Complete Guide to Selling More Music with Facebook. It’s FREE!

4. The truth about Twitter-

… is that it’s great for music promotion, ONCE YOU GET USED TO IT! It takes time to figure Twitter out, though. And many people get frustrated or overwhelmed before they reach the point where it all clicks. The Musician’s Roadmap to Facebook and Twitter offers some great tips for getting started on Twitter. Also, this very blog has been known to post some friendly pointers once in a while.

5. What the heck is StumbleUpon? –

It’s like crack, only you get smarter and there’s no negative effect on your body. StumbleUpon is FUN! So if you create content that is fun to share, you could be a big hit in the StumbleUpon community. Check out our article on How to Use StumbleUpon to Get Exposure for Your Music.

For any social media beginners out there, I hope you found this basic checklist useful. Please check out those links and guides for the real nitty-gritty details on using Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, blogs, and StumbleUpon to spread the word about your music!

-Chris R. at CD Baby

Sell, share, and stream your music on Facebook!