Whether you’re just starting out as a musician or have been playing for a while and know it’s time to upgrade your online presence, you probably want to know what to have on a music website.
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This comprehensive guide will show you how to create an effective music website that will impress your fans and industry professionals alike, helping to grow your fan base as your music career expands.
Here’s how to make a music website:
1. Choose a music website template 2. Add a header image 3. Choose your colors and fonts 4. Set up your website navigation 5. Create your music website pages 6. Add an EPK 7. Choose a domain name 8. Optimize your website for SEO
The first step in creating a music website is just the beginning. You may feel like you are beyond your ability to map the content and create a nice layout. This guide is meant to help you every step of the way.
1. Choose a music website template
First, choose a music website template that suits your needs. your sound. A website template can be as flexible as you’d like it to be, but it also gives you the freedom to choose an attractive, modern design and fill it with your music, photos, and text.
Consider your brand
If you’ve already established an artist brand, find a music template that flows well with your style. That could mean something simple and clean, with room for black and white images, or a template with room for a large logo.
Menu layout and positioning
Your music website menu should contain 5-8 pages. Your menu is ideally set up above, below, or to the left of your main image, where your visitors will instantly search to locate you. A horizontal menu is common, but a vertical sidebar menu also offers a creative touch.
If you build your website to include more pages over time, such as discography pages or fan subscriptions, you’ll want to use a template with a horizontal menu. This allows subpages to be neatly cascaded below the main page elements.
Think About Content
If you plan to add a lot of content to your website (bios of all your bandmates, or your back catalog of music, for example) choose a template that offers a simple content area.
This will give you space to create aesthetically pleasing layouts, page by page, for your images and text. To give your pages a spacious look, choose a template that includes a full-width content option.
Mobile Website Template
Templates in general they are perfect for musicians to create a website because they adapt to mobile devices without problems, without the need for additional coding. A mobile-friendly template will also help optimize the SEO of your website.
One-Page Websites
You’ll also want to decide early on whether you plan to create a multi-page site or set up a one-page website. . One-page sites are modern and sleek, with content scrolling down a single page as menu options are clicked.
If you decide to build a one-page website, choose a template with a large content area and the ability to add sections and section background images to give your site some dynamic flow.
2. Add a Header Image
Your artist image is a great way to instantly connect with your visitors, providing an idea of what your music sounds like. Take full advantage of this by getting a high-quality image to use in the header area of your website template.
Show who you are
Don’t underestimate images as the first impression to convey who you are and what you do. Your main image can be what tells visitors they’re in the right place to get more involved with your music and learn about your band. Use that to your advantage to establish a lasting connection by selecting an image that tells your story at a glance.
Optimal Image Size
The optimal image is landscape style, with space around the edges of the subject. This will give you the most flexibility when choosing a website template and will ensure that your image adapts well to mobile devices. Use a high-quality image so it can be cropped if necessary.
Header Text and Logo
If you don’t already have a high-quality image image of the artist, okay. You can still create a music website with a large text headline or logo at the top of the page to draw attention and use images throughout the content.
Example of music website: OCEANDVST
3. Choose your colors and fonts
To customize your website design to fit to your image, you’ll want to consider your font and color choices.To make it easy, we’ve included several preset color palettes with coordinated fonts and moods (sombre, playful, bold, etc.) for many music genres.
You can also customize the colors and fonts of your website template to match your artist image and tailor your website design to your brand.
Stick to a few main colors
The emphasis of your website should be on you and your music. To avoid distractions from this approach, choose a few main colors. colors and use them consistently throughout your website. If you’re just starting out with a music website, choose a neutral palette and let your images offer additional color. If you have a header image with different color options to match your style, add those colors to your sections, titles, and buttons.
Easy to read
After setting up your site’s colors, double-check that the text on each page and in each section is easy to read. An example of classic contrast is black text on a white background, or vice versa. You’ll want to make sure your content is easy to read, your songs are easy to listen to, and your show information is easy to access.
Simple font choice
Also, keep the typography on your website consistent. Choose a content source and use that same source on all of your pages. This is especially important if you are using different font colors in your sections. Try using a simple serif font for content font throughout your website for clarity.
Use a fun font for accents
You can show your creativity by using larger, more intricate fonts sparingly at focus points. This will draw attention to specific areas and provide visual points of interest on all pages of your website. This could be in your EPK page titles, for example, or album names on a discography page.
4. Set up website navigation
A clear goal when creating a music website should be for your visitors to be able to easily interact with the content, allowing them the opportunity to connect further. To make your experience as seamless as possible, make your website navigation clear and concise.
Make your menu stand out
This may be the first time many of your visitors have come to your website. Adding a menu that is quick to locate is essential to making your website encouraging to navigate. A horizontal page-spanning list or a vertical side menu are ideal locations for your website navigation.
Limit to 8 pages or less
As a thumb rule, limit your pages to 8 or fewer to avoid making your menu cluttered or offering too many options right away. If you have additional content, add subpages that flow from the “main” website page to keep things tidy.
Choose clear page names
Use simple page names that accurately describe the focus of each page in your menu. This helps your visitors quickly discover your content, and it also helps with the SEO of your band’s website, making it easier for Google to know (and index!) what’s on each page.
5. Create Your Music Website Pages
Once you have your template, layout, and page structure in place, you’re ready to create the pages for your music website.
Don’t feel overwhelmed; If you have a lot of content and music to share, break it down page by page to create an organized, professional music website that showcases your current career or project.
Make a music website mobile-ready music with just a few clicks. Build your website with Bandzoogle today!
Example music website music: Cara Louise
Home Page
An effective website home page should give give visitors an idea of who you are and what you are currently doing. Use a large main image to introduce yourself, then place additional content on the page for context.
Start by adding a relevant call-to-action to buy your latest album, book you for a show, or watch your latest video. Then add some content that will remain constant on your home page. This could include your musician bio, a mailing list signup form, your social media and streaming links, and some leads.
Your home page is the most visited page on your website , so you’ll want to choose your content carefully and update it regularly.
About Page
The About page is an important place for users to new potential fans get to know you. reading his full story. It’s also a good place for people in the industry and the media to learn about your background and accomplishments.
You can include multiple versions of your musician bio on this page. Conferences, festivals and the media have different requirements for artist information – make it easy for them to copy and paste the details they need.It’s also a good place to add a photo of yourself or your band that’s different from the one on your home page
Music page
A part Central to a musician’s website is the music page. Treat it as a main hub for everything there is to know about his music. When posting an album, add a detailed description as well as the places where it can be streamed. Include some context along with your songs. Be sure to add options to buy your music on this page as well.
To learn more about setting up your music page, see How to Create a Perfect Selling Music Page on Your Website.
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Shop Page
A tangible way for fans to support their favorite artists is to purchase merchandise directly from their website, commission-free. Your dedicated shop page is the place to do just that. You can sell anything you want on your own music website, from t-shirts to mugs and stickers, or digital options including lyric books, sheet music, PDFs, lessons, and more.
For merchandising ideas and More For more information on setting up your online store, check out The Ultimate Guide to Selling Band Merchandise Online.
Photo Page
No It’s no secret that fans love showing off in photos of their favorite bands. If you include a Photos page, it will keep fans browsing your website for longer. This is also a good opportunity to show different angles of your personality and show that you are an active musician.
To keep your photos organized, create separate galleries showing your promo photos, live shows, studio photos or musical collaborations.
Video Page
Instead of sending your fans to YouTube, embed videos on a video page to keep viewers attentive. your music website. This allows you to select which videos people watch and gives you more control over how your band is represented online.
Place your most recent or most popular videos at the top of the video page and rotate them regularly to keep the content fresh. Show 6-8 videos on this page max, to make sure your visitors aren’t overwhelmed with options or left with an endless scrolling page on mobile.
Show the page
If you’re a musician, another essential element on your music website is an Events or Shows page. This dedicated page makes it easy for fans to find out about your upcoming gigs, with details on show times, cover charges, opening bands and venue. You can also sell tickets directly to your shows on this page.
You can complete your show page with performance photos, press quotes or a live video.
Page Contact Page
Be sure to include a contact page on your music website. Placing this page as the last item on your menu makes it easy for site visitors to get in touch with you.
To create your contact page, include information on the best way to contact you for reservations, booking inquiries, media, and fan correspondence. Use a custom form with fields that request specific information to be filled in, collecting the details in a neat email sent directly to you.
You can also add your social media links and a mailing list signup form to your contact page, giving fans additional ways to connect with you.
Other Pages
If you build a music website with the pages above, you’ll end up with a complete professional site. However, you absolutely can add more pages to complete your online presence. An example of this would be landing pages to measure your music marketing campaigns. If that’s something you want to achieve, check out How to Use a Music Landing Page on Your Website.
Make sure all the content on your page stays fresh and engages your fans, building a community on around their music and marketing efforts. .
Music Website Example: The Brothers Blue
6. Add an EPK
Another essential page on your music website is your EPK, or Electronic Press kit. If you’re actively promoting a new album, gathering press for your music, or looking to book more gigs, create an EPK to centralize information for media and bookers.
Here’s what should be in your artist EPK:
Artist Bio: Include both a short version and a long version of your biography in your EPK. That way, venues or promoters can easily use the bio that works best for them.
Photos: Include a selection of your most recent promotional photos, with vertical and horizontal options . You can also add your album art for music reviewers if you want to get press for a new release.
Music: Make your latest music available in your EPK, with links to Spotify or Apple Music so fans can also listen to your music on their preferred streaming platform. In case a reviewer wants to download your full album, include clear information about who they can contact to get a copy.
Video: Insert one or two of your best videos. If your goal with an EPK is to get more shows, add high-quality live video to give programmers an idea of what they can expect your live show to be like. If you’re looking for press or reviews of your music, insert your most popular music video or the video for your latest single.
Press/reviews: Include relevant quotes about you and your music, with links to your best reviews and interviews. This makes it easy for presenters and the media to get a citation referencing your music.
Notable achievements or recent highlights: If you’ve won any awards, had success on social media platforms, transmission. , your songs have been placed in movies/TV/advertisements, or performed at notable festivals or conferences, please include this information in your EPK.
Contact: Include detailed information on how to obtain contact you, your publicist or booking agent. You can also add your social media links so programmers and the media can quickly access your social profiles.
Book more shows with a professional digital press kit built right into your own website. Create your EPK with Bandzoogle now!
Music website example: Simba Sax
7. Choose a domain name
Once you have created your music website, complete with design, pages and content, you will need to choose the website address or domain name. Having a custom domain name means owning a small slice of the Internet for your music and your brand, so choose your name carefully.
Even with other domain extensions available, registering a ”.com” is still the standard. Ideally, you can find yourbandname.com, but if that’s not available, consider yourbandnamemusic.com or yourbandnameband.com for brand consistency.
If you already own a domain name, you can always keep it. one and direct it to your music website through your band’s website host. You can also create a custom band email address with your domain name for an extra professional touch.
Once your domain name is set up and your content is more or less in place, You can submit a sitemap to Google, which essentially tells the search engine what is available on your website to be indexed.
8. Optimize your website for SEO
To help drive traffic to your website, you need to make sure it’s easy to find. This is where SEO (Search Engine Optimization) comes in.
SEO is free and is a highly effective tool used by millions of businesses to drive traffic to their websites. For musicians, it’s a great way to engage more fans, listen to their music, and explore their content.
To promote your website, post your URL on all your social media profiles, the sites of the venues you play, and on your business cards. This helps position your website as the leading online hub for your music and builds the knowledge panel that appears on Google.
Optimizing your website for SEO isn’t as complicated as it sounds. Check out this quick checklist to try it out with your website: Comprehensive SEO Checklist for Musicians
Music website example: Wolfmother
From teaching music lessons to releasing singles, selling past albums, applying for festivals or grants, a professional website is a must for any musician. We hope this guide to creating a music website will help you through the steps to create a website that showcases your brand and music online. Please let us know if we can help you along the way.
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