Gaining a placement in a commercial is a difficult task, but the rewards can be immense. A single placement could result in a lot of money, royalties, and potentially huge exposure. To maximize your chances of success, consider partnering with a 3rd party licensing company to act as a middleman to help get your music in front of the right people.
With that said, here are five tips to help you get your song on commercials:
1. Find a Project Where Your Song Might Be a Good Fit
Before sending your music to a creative director or supervisor, you must understand the project you are pitching for. Is it a movie, commercial, or advertisement? Are there certain lyrics or production styles that are needed? If you get help from a licensing company, they can direct you on the right track. Do your research first and don’t rush it.
Research sites can show you a list of different commercials for various brands. YouTube can also provide you with ad playlists. Take some time to study the commercials and the type of music used for the different brands. As for TV shows, look at the music used episode to episode and season to season. If you have enough time, you can create a new piece of music tailored to the project to fit the requirements.
2. Build a Strong and Extensive Network
Building a strong network is essential to succeeding in the music industry. Connecting with people in the industry can increase your chances of getting referred or headhunted for a job. Additionally, having a wide network gives you access to important people who can help you pitch your music for various projects. Establishing relationships with music supervisors, creative directors, and other industry players is an important step in building a successful career in the music industry.
3. Increase Your Social Media Following
The size of one’s fan base can impact whether their music is chosen for a commercial. Music supervisors may prefer to collaborate with a musician that has a large following, as it gives them access to their audience. People in the music industry, like marketers and scouts, use online platforms to find musicians to work with. You can increase your fan base using platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music, social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and YouTube, and by having a website displaying your music and profile.
4. License Your Music
Collaborating with a well-known music licensing company is a good way to get your music heard by the right people. Find music providers for TV commercials, and they can provide you with a network of potential customers.
5. Produce High-Quality Music
Ensuring the music you create is of the highest quality is crucial. Invest in professional-level composition, mastering, and mixing to ensure your music meets commercial standards. It should also contain dynamic production that can carry a scene without compromising quality. If you’re working on a project requiring an instrumental, ensure it is of high quality. This will give you a better chance of being short-listed and make it easier for creative directors and editors to use your track for their projects.
Conclusion
Following the five tips outlined can help an artist get their song on commercials. Through these tips, an artist can increase the chances of their song being considered for a commercial. Although there is no guarantee that a song will be chosen, following these can help artists put their best foot forward and create more opportunities for their music to be heard.
Promoly is the easiest way to market your music to your email list, social network, and direct contacts. We are the platform that gets your audio content noticed. If you want to know more about how to sell music for commercials, we can help. Get in touch with us today!
