Online instrument sales and rising prices have made it harder than ever for independent music stores to stand out and find customers.
That’s why it’s vital to advertise your music shop in interesting and unique ways that showcase your personality, local connections, and expertise.
Not sure where to start? We can help. Get inspired and tune up your marketing with these nine practical music store advertisement ideas.
Let’s dive in.
Coming up with music store advertising ideas is not a one-time activity, but something you need to do regularly to attract new customers and keep old customers coming back.
When you’re running a music store, marketing might seem low on your list of tasks — but a consistent and well-thought-out advertising strategy pays off.
By implementing effective music store advertising, you can:
Remember: Good advertising isn’t simply shoving deals in front of people’s faces. It’s a chance to tell your unique story and connect directly with people in your community who are just as passionate about music as you are.
Many people associate advertisements with flashy posters and sales pitches. But when it’s done well, advertising can be so much more.
Here are nine advertising ideas and tips you can implement today to boost sales, build trust, and connect with your community.
No two music shops are the same. Some specialize in niche instruments or services, some offer an assortment of used instruments, and others cater to particular markets. Taking a one-size-fits-all approach to your advertising flattens your image and makes you seem generic at best and out of touch at worst.
Instead, create advertising that highlights the unique differences that draw people to your store in the first place. Just like conducting market analysis for a music shop business plan, consider your customers’ demographics and interests, along with competition, when developing your marketing strategy.
For example, if you own a guitar store, customers tend to be more experienced (around 30 years old) and knowledgeable. So, when advertising, you want to focus on showing off your expertise, selection of popular brands, and customer service.
On the other hand, a music store catering to school rentals needs to take a vastly different approach — geared toward parents and emphasizing the variety of instruments available, rental plans, and lessons.
Ultimately, don’t imitate what other music shops are doing — tune in to what makes yours great and amp it up.
Once you know your general audience, it’s time to dive into your specific customers. With a modern point of sale (POS) system, you can use the sales and customer loyalty data to understand the buying habits of your customers and tailor offers that are meaningful to them.
Here are a few examples to get your gears turning:
Experts agree that targeted offers are much more effective than general, impersonal discounts. In other words, the more meaningful and personalized an advertisement is, the more likely it is to bring customers back.
Almost half of all Google searches are for local information, and about 90% of people find new businesses online.
The bottom line is, if your music store doesn’t have a strong online presence, most customers don’t even know it exists.
To offer online sales, create a user-friendly website with up-to-date information about your store, services, and products. Then, you can optimize your store for search engine optimization (SEO).
SEO refers to the various processes used to optimize a website’s content to increase visibility on search engines like Google.
There are many ins and outs of SEO, but here are some tips to get you started:
For more music store SEO tips, watch our free on-demand music store SEO webinar.
Describing a musical performance is one thing, experiencing it is another. Similarly, you’re missing out if you’re advertising musical instruments without ways to see and hear them.
Take videos of your staff and customers playing instruments and post them on your website to showcase your expertise, passion, customer experience, and stock.
Videos and short clips are an extremely effective way to advertise on social media, too. Instead of announcing a new product arrival or seasonal sale with a picture, post a video of it in action.
Smartphones and basic microphones you can buy online make it easy and cost-effective to capture high-quality audio and video. Try collaborating with local performers and music influencers to play in your music shop or host events.
Remember: Don’t just tell people about your passion, show them.
Related Read: 9 Ways To Build a Music Store Website With Users in Mind
Music isn’t only about the instruments, it’s about the people playing them — that personal touch is something that online stores can’t offer. Give people hands-on experiences by holding in-store events, lessons, and workshops to put your store at the center of your local music community.
There are many types of events you can host, including:
Pair your events with promotional pricing or discount codes. Then, use the reports on your POS system to see if there was an uptick in sales. You can also track how many people used the discount code to measure your event’s return on investment (ROI).
Instead of waiting for customers to come to you, why not go directly to your customers? Partnering with local businesses, schools, or events is a great way to connect more closely with potential customers and build business relationships.
Most music stores often have a very specific niche (e.g. guitar stores, piano stores) that doesn’t put them in direct competition with other music stores. Reach out to other niche shops to encourage referrals and advertising. This can increase brand visibility for both of your businesses.
If your primary business comes from schools and instrument rentals, consider sponsoring a band program, donating instruments, or offering private lessons (or lesson space). You can even reach out directly to local music teachers to see what services are most useful.
To connect more with your community and boost brand visibility, you can also sponsor local music festivals and charity events.
Related Read: 7 Retail Customer Service Tips for Music Stores
Imagine you see ads for a local restaurant. The food looks great, the location is great, and the ads create a friendly first impression. But before you go, you look them up online to see their reviews are sitting at 3.5 stars — does it make you rethink your visit?
Online reviews play an incredibly important role in driving business to your shop (or away from it). Positive reviews help build trust with customers before they set foot in your business and can even lead to more sales.
One way to encourage reviews is to offer a discount for customers who leave feedback. Give it selectively to customers at checkout, or promote it through your newsletter or social media.
Pro tip: Keep an eye on reviews and consistently respond to them. Not only does this show your dedication to customer service, it gives you a chance to proactively address any negative feedback as well.
Additionally, you can start a referral program. Use your POS system to track customer history, so you can verify any referrals. Then, you can offer a small discount to the new customer and some freebies or cash for the customer who referred them.
The goal of a music store advertisement isn’t just to bring in new customers, but to bring back old ones. Retaining existing customers is invaluable for building a brand reputation and earning recurring revenue on smaller purchases and services.
One of the most effective methods for retaining customers is to start a customer loyalty program. The most basic form of loyalty program allows customers to earn points for every dollar spent, which can be redeemed for discounts or freebies.
Many modern POS systems include customizable customer loyalty programs, so get creative! Arguably, the most important part of a loyalty program is the customer information you collect.
Reach out directly to loyalty members to advertise seasonal promotions, limited-time discounts, and new products. You can also look at member purchase history to see the types of items your frequent customers buy together to improve your product selection and store layout.
Share your musical expertise and opinions on a blog. Blogs are a great way to show off your industry knowledge and build trust with customers. Regularly updating your blog is an effective strategy to climb the ranks in local searches online, too.
You can also try email marketing with a newsletter. Email marketing, despite seeming a bit old fashioned, actually has a relatively high ROI for small businesses. Use your newsletter to share information about upcoming events, promotions, product launches, and announcements.
The key is to post regularly. This makes it easier for you to manage and isn’t as sporadic for customers. If you’re new to blogs, aim for one to two posts a week to start. For a newsletter, send once a week or every two weeks.
Many music retailers have a combination of a website, social media, blog, and newsletter. For the best results, make sure they all link to each other. In other words, include links for your blog and website on your social media profile, and put social media buttons at the bottom of your website and blog.
The more chances people have to interact with your business, the better.
There’s no one right way to create a music store advertisement, but we do have one crucial piece of advice: Show off your personality. Compared to big online retailers, it’s difficult to compete on price alone.
To clarify, don’t just advertise the instruments you carry — advertise your expertise, personality, and sense of community to stand above the crowd.
The right technology not only makes it easier to manage your music store, it also gives you the specialized tools and insights you need to craft effective marketing and provide exceptional customer experiences.
With Music Shop 360, our all-in-one POS software designed specifically for music stores, you can access the best-in-class store management tools. In addition, it gives you customizable customer loyalty, email marketing tools, in-depth reports, e-commerce capabilities, and seamless integrations with software like My Music Staff.
Not sure if Music Shop 360 is the right fit for you? It’s important to us that you feel confident in your choice of music shop software. Check out our free buyers’ guide to learn more about key features and how to evaluate music shop software.