There is a lot of value to capturing someones email. When someone willingly gives you there email address, in exchange for a song or some exclusive offer, you now have the ultimate marketing tool! Email marketing to an audience can produce the highest sales in just about any type of marketing online.

It will be important that you do not just go out and collect email addresses from anywhere, we all hate spam. You can actually violate federal laws if you spam and get yourself into some trouble. Play it safe and use a mailing list service like Aweber, Constant Contact or MailChimp. Those services Handle the management of your list and leave the marketing up to you. People can subscribe and unsubscribe safely. It will cost you for the service, but be well worth the money.

One of the easiest ways to get an email address from a visitor to you website is to offer a free song, a couple of exclusive only tracks, or exclusive members only area. Here are a Couple of ideas on how you can increase the likely hood that someone will wAnt to share their email address with you.

1.) Free Exclusive Track – make this only available from your website, if someone wants a specific track, make it only available for their email address. Play the song at one of your shows, and let people know that they can get the track for free from your website. You can then send requests for them to join your mailing list.

2.) Members only area – this is used all of them time where you can offer a members only section, and they will get exclusive tracks that are only available to members. If you have a large fan base, this will be too tempting for them not to share their email with you. You will then have that powerful email to market to them again and again.

3.) Start a Street Team – Do you have those fans of your music that are will do anything they can to help you market and promote your band? These individuals can be invaluable, they are consistently promoting your music when you are not. Usually these individuals need a little guidance on where and how to promote your music. That’s why it is important to have have a street team. You can make a sign up section on your website, collect their valuable data, then put them on a exclusive mailing list that will keep them up on ways that they can help you, and how they can help direct people to you website to join a mailing list.

4.) ReverbNation – This website creates sqeeze pages and mailing lists for independent artist. This is a must have for anyone who has any musical project, it can assist you in collecting email, and you can create a page that will feature your music and other goodies for the user in return. I have found this to be rather effective with younger fans/audiences. Create an account at Reverb Nation

5.) NoiseTrade – This website is a great marketing tool. Many artist will give away their entire album before it is released in exchange for a facebook post, a tweet and a email address. This gives them a marketing tool in exchange for their music. Smart artists and musicians will work to make the money on the band end through merchandise and live performances. NoiseTrade

The most important thing to keep in mind when it comes to marketing your music, is that you need a controlled focused way to get the word out about all of your music, merchandise, and live performances. Email marketing is still one the most effect ways to market your music. If you offer someone something that is free and cool, the rewards of having that opt-in email address will pay it forward ten times over.