Being in a band, your time is very important. If you are an indie musician your day-to-day can possibly consist of a day job or school, then you need to make time for songwriting, recording, Myspace-ing, Tweeting, booking shows, editing video and fending off e-mails and other online networks. Knowing that your time is important, it is easy to brush off the fans, especially the ones that you do not see everyday, week, month, year or even, ever. That does not mean that they are not important.

Now more than even your fans are vital to your success. They are the ones that dictate your income. You NEED to keep them happy. There is no excuse, no communication gaps or barriers stopping you from developing relationships with every fan that wants one.

The key to keeping all your fans happy is having a clear line and process for communication. I would be lying if I said you had to reply to every e-mail, Myspace message or comment that comes your way. I would also be lying if I told you not to try.

The way that you manage the workload and keep these raving fans happy is to streamline your communications and leverage tools that make it easy to communicate with the masses.

Step 1

Set-up auto-messages. This can be done in a few ways. My personal favorite is using GMail and their Canned Responses. In this feature you can send pre-written responses to similar emails. General fan mail, booking requests and other emails that you receive on a regular basis can be sent a canned response. Take a look at GMail’s Canned Responses here. The 2nd way that works great is having pre-written responses that you can copy and paste wherever you need it. This works wonders for Myspace requests and other social networks that have built in mail and message features.

Step 2

Direct them to ways that they can interact with you. In your canned responses or pre-written emails, direct them to a good place to communicate with you and your band. If you are on Twitter every night from 7-9, tell them that that is a good place to start a discussion with you. The automated response is just to give your fans immediate attention and to address them when they can get the info they want from you, but you still need to dedicate a time and place for your fans.

Step 3

Leverage online tools that enable on demand communication. My favorite platform for this type of engagement is UStream. With UStream you can set up your own channel and get in front of a webcam. You fans can sign on and ask you questions, interact with each other and see you in the comfort of their own computers.

A second tool that works great is Meebo. Meebo is an Instant Messaging widget that you can plop on your website, Myspace page, blog, etc and can conduct a live chat with your fans. The video element is missing, but it is still a strong connection that you can make with your fans and keep them happy.

A third site that enables conversation with your fans is Twitter. Many bands are taking to Twitter to meet fans, engage with them, point them to links and be shown what else is happening outside of the band’s world. When using Twitter I suggest using a Twitter client such as Tweet Deck to manage replies, messages and other keywords that are important to you. You can also group fans that you chat with into groups so you remember who they are amidst your entire Twitter stream.

If you can listen to your fans, you are well on your way to keeping them happy. The more times that you can interact with them, the more frequent you are in their minds and will help your music cut through their filter.

I’d love to hear how you are using these tools to create community and trust with your fans.

(This post was written by Greg Rollett from Gen-Y Rock Stars, a community built around helping musicians, bands and artists with their music marketing and promotion through online tactics and tools. Download his free Rock Star Tool Kit here.)