I’ve recently discovered Stereogum’s site, and found they had a great article wherein Trent Reznor talks about good things to do when you’re creating your band’s site and marketing your upcoming record. Among other things, he mentions the benefits of giving away free downloads of your music as a way of building your fanbase and email list, and that you should understand and take advantage of all the social media sites you can.
There was one thing in particular which is worth restating when it comes to bands’ sites:
…Have your MySpace page, but get a site outside MySpace – it’s dying and reads as cheap / generic. Remove all Flash from your website. Remove all stupid intros and load-times. MAKE IT SIMPLE TO NAVIGATE AND EASY TO FIND AND HEAR MUSIC (but don’t autoplay). Constantly update your site with content – pictures, blogs, whatever. Give people a reason to return to your site all the time.
The whole article’s really worth a read, especially if you’re an indie musician who’s trying to get their music out to everyone.