Every DIY musician should have a mailing list but have you ever tried using a ‘Welcome Message’ function? This facility enables you to send out a message (or series of messages) whenever a newbie joins your list.

Why should you care?  Well, you can use this message or messages as a way of bringing new fans ‘up to speed’ with your musical career.  Use a welcome email to point them to a playlist containing all your best songs. You could even send them an email containing all your best music videos.

You can use text to give an overview of your story so far or you can you can even give them an exclusive video which does the same job.

Most mailing list providers such as Mailchimp allow you to send a welcome message to new subscribers.

‘Feeding’ your new subscribers this information is a great way of educating them and will help kick start the art-fan relationship.

Here’s how you can set up a welcome message in Mailchimp.