How Musicians Can Make Money Online [8 Online Music Business Ideas]

6 minute read

In this blog post, we'll share our eight music business ideas to make money online, so you can leverage your musical skills to create an additional income stream.

Wherever your musical talents lie: if you are a vocalist, instrumentalist, composer, or any other type of musician, these online business ideas for musicians will help you monetize your talent and create a successful entrepreneurial venture online.

So what are the best business ideas for musicians to make money online? Let's dive in!

8 Business Ideas for Musicians to Make Money Online

Create and Sell an Online Course

Sharing your musical knowledge and expertise with others can be both fulfilling and profitable.

Consider creating an online course where you can teach aspiring musicians, music enthusiasts, or individuals looking to explore their musical abilities.

Online courses are an incredibly flexible and cost-effective business model, whether you are a music teacher or someone who has a passion for music!

All you need is an online course platform like Heights Platform, that lets you design, structure, and deliver your course to a global audience.

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In your music school, you can teach a variety of topics, such as music theory, instrument mastery, composition techniques, writing songs, music production and more.

In this article, we cover how you can create your music online course step by step: How to Teach a Musical Instrument Online: Create a Music Online Course

If you want to monetize your music knowledge and start an online course business - but are not sure how - we have many articles diving into how to build your online course.

Here are some blog posts that you might find interesting:

We interviewed two music teachers who use Heights Platforms to sell online courses about how to play the Hammered Dulcimer.

Mary Lynn Michal and Laurie McCarriar are the founders of HD Homeland. Ever since the launch, HD Homeland has been a huge success: Laurie and Mary Lynn managed to reach $50,000 (and counting) in revenue from their online courses.

Wondering how these two passionate musicians managed to build such a successful course around these unusual musical instruments?

Keep reading the story of the journey that brought them here: Success with hyper-niche music courses: How this pair of creators found success teaching the hammered dulcimer.

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Sell Digital Products Online

Digital products in the music industry can include music samples, loops, sound effects, sheet music, or even custom compositions tailored to specific needs.

In today's digital age, these kinds of products are in high demand, and platforms like Heights Platform can help you set up an online store where you can showcase and sell your digital creations to a global audience.

Oftentimes creators who run an online business like to combine these digital offerings and sell everything under one roof. For example, if you are interested in building a music online course, you could add digital products to your music business offerings.

Digital products are a great way to gain new customers and introduce them to your "bigger" products, such as a flagship online course, your coaching session or more.

Here are more articles about creating and selling digital products that you might like:

Create a Membership Site

Building a membership site can be an excellent way to cultivate a loyal community of music enthusiasts while generating recurring revenue from your music business.

A membership site offers exclusive content and benefits to its members in exchange for a monthly or annual fee.

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As a musician, you can give your members access to premium music lessons, behind-the-scenes content, live performances, or personalized feedback.

Heights Platform also allows you to create a membership site tailored to your need as a musician, allowing you to foster engagement, offer ongoing value, and establish a reliable income stream.

Learn more about building a membership site: Online Course vs Membership Site. Which Info Product is Best For You?

Build a Community of Musicians

Online communities are growing in popularity in our digital age, where human connection - even if virtual - is an added value to any business, as well as in the music industry.

Communities allow creators and their customers to connect with fellow music lovers and build a strong network.

Establishing your own branded community offers numerous advantages, including positioning yourself as an authority in your field, gathering valuable feedback, and boosting website traffic, leads, and sales.

You can use your online community to encourage discussions around specific topics, organize virtual jam sessions or masterclasses, and provide a platform for musicians to connect, collaborate, and grow together.

With Heights Platform, you can create a personalized community space that allows your customers to interact with one another, share ideas, and form meaningful connections.

As we mentioned before, it is a good idea to combine all of these business ideas and offer a learning platform where musicians can learn through an online course, purchase digital products, and access a private community.

If you want to learn all about creating your online community, check out these articles from our blog:

Start an Online Coaching Business

Among the best music business ideas is online coaching. Music coaching involves training others one-on-one or in a group setting, and helping clients to develop and polish certain performance abilities.

You can provide one-on-one music lessons or coaching sessions through virtual platforms like Zoom or Skype.

Vocal coaching, in particular, is one of the most popular coaching practices in the music industry.

As the coach, you act as an advisor, guiding the artistic and technical choices of your clients, and giving them personalized feedback.

More resources about starting your online coaching business:

We recently interviewed a very successful voice coach in our podcast, The Creator's Adventure: Arthur Samuel Joseph.

Founder and chairman of the Vocal Awareness Institute, Arthur Samuel Joseph, is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost communication strategists and authorities on the human voice. A renowned teacher/mentor, Mr. Joseph’s mission is to Change the World through Voice.

He coached musicians such as Tom Chapin, Carol Lawrence and actors, including Angelina Jolie and Arnold Schwarzenegger!

Watch our interview with Arthur Samuel Joseph here:

Coaching can be a lucrative endeavor, and it allows you to share your expertise, help students improve their skills, and offer personalized guidance to aspiring musicians.

Sell Licensed Music to Brands

Brands and businesses are always seeking captivating and unique music to enhance their products, advertisements, promotional materials, background music and more.

As a musician, you can create original compositions or license your existing music to brands for commercial use.

Partnering with brands can not only provide exposure but also establish mutually beneficial partnerships.

You can explore opportunities to collaborate with brands in your niche or reach out to creative agencies that specialize in music licensing.

Licensing your music to brands can open doors to exciting opportunities and create a new revenue stream for your musical career.

Make Your Music Available for Streaming

Major streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music get the vast majority of listeners today.

This means that making your songs or your music available on these platforms for streaming is essential to reach your current fans and potential new fans.

While your streaming revenue will be only a few pennies per stream, it can add up to become a significant revenue source over time and a valuable way to get new exposure and promote your music.

Sell Branded Merchandising

Many artists make money online by selling merchandising items such as t-shirts, clothing accessories, limited edition vinyl, posters, and books.

Branded band merch can be a great way to build a relationship with your fans, as it allows people to physically hold on to a reminder of your brand and your music.

While Heights Platform is a great way for artists to sell digital products like courses, coaching, and community access, Shopify is a popular option for selling physical products.

You can use tools like Shopify to build an e-commerce store where fans can purchase your merch. If you do not want to go through the hassle of producing the items yourself, you can use a print-on-demand service to personalize common merchandising items.

Grow a YouTube Channel and Monetize It

YouTube has become a powerful platform for musicians to showcase their talent, engage with an audience, and monetize their content.

You can start and grow a YouTube channel where you can share your musical performances through music videos, tutorials, or behind-the-scenes footage.

You can grow your channel and unlock monetization options by consistently posting engaging videos, optimizing your content for YouTube's algorithms, and actively engaging with your audience.

Through the YouTube Partner Program, you can earn money from advertisements and sponsorships, or by using your YouTube channel to promote your main products or services.

Learn more about growing your YouTube channel:

Conclusion: Start Your Online Music Business Today

As a musician, your creativity knows no bounds, and with the help of online platforms like Heights Platform, you can turn your musical passion into a thriving online business.

The profitable music business ideas discussed in this article will help you bring your talent online and leverage new income streams.

Whether you choose to create online courses, sell digital products, build a community, start a music coaching business, license your music to brands, or grow a YouTube channel (and more awesome music businesses!), there are abundant opportunities to monetize your musical talent and build a sustainable business in the music industry.

Create Your Online Course Today

Post Topics: Build and Promote Your Course