Phil Chard Presents Promoting Zimbabwe's Music Sector in the Digital Space for UNESCO And The Artist Accelerator
A few months back, I had the pleasure of presenting at a UNESCO workshop about "Promoting Zimbabwe's Music Sector in the Digital Space” to some of the country's most talented artists and music professionals
I gave a presentation called "Tips and Tools for the 21st Century Creator: Music 101 in the Digital Space”, which is self-explanatory
The workshop also launched a new report commissioned by UNESCO and the National Arts Council to understand the role digital channels play in the value chain and how they can be leveraged.
My Key Takeaways from the presentation and the report
Zimbabwe’s Digital footprint is incredibly small
Only 34% of the population have access to the internet
Only 1.5 million Zimbabweans are on social media (not including WhatsApp)
To maximise reach an artist still has to use traditional media and marketing
We live in Meta’s World
The top 3 social media platforms in Zimbabwe are all run by Meta. WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram. Build your strategy around those channels
Build relationships with fans.
Collect names and emails, not followers!
The money is in the metadata
Invest in Your Skills and understand each platform uses and updates
I have been working on a more fleshed-out educational resource for artists titled The African Accelerator. If you are an artist keen to learn more about the skills you need to increase your earning potential, please start by joining our WhatsApp community here
Link to report: