Mega Music Talent

Posts Tagged ‘music business’

In actuality the principles of marketing a band and getting to the point of making actual money from shows don’t really differ that much from running a business. Just so happens that this business is music.

You probably heard the old saying that goes something like “build it and they will come”. Maybe can tell it’s an old saying because in today’s world it should read “build it, MARKET IT… and they will come”. Don’t believe me? I’m sure you know very talented people you have come across that made incredible music in their basement that never made it out of their house. It is like they’re waiting for somebody to come to their house and say “I was just passing through the neighborhood with a briefcase full of money and wanted to see if you have a great song available”. It is not going to happen, but there are things you can do to get your music marketed and we will be discussing this in the following article.

Let’s first establish what we are looking to do. What we need to do is promote the band while at the same time making some money or at least not losing too much on the marketing costs, all this while making sure that our efforts will be rewarded if done right.

Traditional Marketing

Here we have buttons, t-shirts, stickers and any other solid tangible goods that represents the band/artist. Obviously CDs enter the picture and so do DVDs. With Zazzle and other similar services you can sell your merchandise without ever seeing it or stocking it. You simply create your design online and when it sells they will print your design onto the shirt and ship it out. The quality is very good, but as with anything that helps make your life a bit easier, it takes from your profits.

These things will earn you back money while promoting your music/band. After all, some dude dressed with your t-shirt is like having a walking billboard. Here are some rules to keep in mind:

1.       Easy to read, clear and relatively big logo. If you ‘re into twisted letters and squiggly lines you would do well to stay away from that. It doesn’t mean that your design has to be bland and boring, but stay away from stuff that you need to spend time and effort to discern.  If you’ve ever seen a shirt for a black metal band you’ll know what I mean. You want the masses to be able to read your name fast and easy. Same goes for logos. McDonalds has the yellow arches. Nike, Adidas and Mercedes are well known for their logos. Note the logos are based on simple forms/graphics.

2.       Make sure to put your contact info on everything. The more contact details the better. A phone nr is really great and so is an e-mail address. I know some things, like t-shirts for example, do not lend themselves easily to this end, but there’s no reason why the webpage cannot be present on absolutely everything.

3.       Entice people to give you their e-mail address in any way shape or form possible so that you can start to build your e-mail list.

Non-Traditional

Here are some ideas for non-traditional marketing that will give you the most bang for your buck.

1.       Clubcards or postcards. Now, before you run out and do these yourself try to find a sponsorship to pay for them. Here’s how it works: Find a business that is somehow tied into the scene you’re trying to reach. If, for example, you’re a band/artist, a tattoo parlor or a fashionable clothing shop might do the trick. You can get five thousand cards made for about 200 bucks. Pitch the idea as five thousand cards distributed as promo at your show for two hundred, with your band on one side and their business on the other. Don’t say stuff like you’re offering the back of the card, because in all reality the card has NO back, it has two faces. They get five thousand cards printed and distributed to people that are in their market and you get your card FREE! Works out for everybody.

2.       If you know other active bands or artists putting out albums then work together and place little footers on each other’s posters.  Your poster will feature a small footer with releases /gigs of five other artists let’s say… Each of those artists will in turn feature a small footer of your release/gig on their poster. You reach 5 times more people on average without any extra expense.

3.       Sometimes sponsorships may be a bit hard to come by until you get a footing in your market. Sponsors look for bands/artists with a following. However, if you’ve started to build a following then you can definitely try to approach companies for a sponsorship. Offer space on all your promotional materials as well as advertising for the sponsor at your gigs.

Good luck and I hope this article has given you some ideas about how to market your band.

With lots of experience from producing to playing alternative rock music and managing artists, Stan Oldman has always been thoroughly involved in the music business. The current nyc band he manages is RED i CLAN. http://www.rediclan.com

Article Source: http://bb-articles.com

Views from newly discovered artist.

I am one of the new instrumental music artists with material signed to leading U.K. independent label AD Music during 2008. This was a year that saw a number of advancements for me in my musical aspirations and also where I am now heading on my particular musical journey that only really started in earnest some 2 years ago. I have been a music lover from an early age, I was fortunate enough to have private lessons and reach a fairly high standard before the age of 10 in both the practical and theoretical aspects of music, pushing things further in early teens before stopping everything to concentrate on exams and being a teenager. Electronic music was always my first passion, my first exposure to it in 1977 being Donna Summer’s iconic “I Feel Love” driven by Giorgio Moroder’s pumping Moog basslines. From there I discovered Tangerine Dream, Isao Tomita and The Human League. Then along came Jean Michel Jarre who turned everything upside down in the most positive way possible. Once away from the confines of school education and private music tutors, I allowed my wings to spread a little in the early to mid 1980′s playing in a succession of bands of all sorts of styles, including time in a country band!!! Whilst not my cup of tea musically, it was fun.

As a 20-something hopeful back in the 1980′s, I had a lot of very big dreams and aspirations with regard to my ambitions in the music business. I wanted to be on Top Of The Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test (showing my age there!!!), The Tube (and again!!!) and Saturday Superstore (and yet again!!!)!!! I wanted a number one song that I had written, I wanted to play arenas, travel in a limo, have my very own recording studio and write my own column in music magazines of the time. Did I get there? Nope. What I did achieve however, was becoming something of a legend in my own bedroom, the greatest keyboard player ever to exist – in my mind. And so life moved on, the passion was dampened by the unexpected things in life as in jobs, losing jobs, getting married, having kids, you know what I’m saying, the same old excuses to cover every reason why I didn’t make it back then. So what changed? Well, quite a few things actually, if you want to consider the facts of no longer being married, kids growing up fast, new line of work, new relationship, new home in a new town etc etc etc. But the really big change was the determination to find a forward pathway in the music business. And the biggest change of all? I got older and wiser.

Okay, I’ve thrown a few bones into the arena here, let’s start putting some flesh on them.

My determination seems to be in the process of paying off, my first album was picked up by a reputable independent label, I’ve garnered genuine support and friendship of people within the business, I’ve played a live gig as support act to a well known electronic music artist and I have found myself being a part of the label who signed my first album. To carry this on, I have opportunities to potentially play live alongside some of the leading lights in modern electronic music, I have people contacting me asking for advice on equipment and my little album seems to have enjoyed a few sales and positive reviews as well. Not bad going for someone starting out in their 40′s!!!

How did this happen? Well, there have been a number of factors at play, not least the element of a little bit of good luck and a touch of positive judgment. When my marriage failed and I found myself living alone, seeing my two kids at the weekend and out of work through ill health, I took the step back to music which had been my first true love. I bought an old Yamaha keyboard, a MIDI interface and a cut down version of Cubase called Cubasis. I took the time to learn about the recording process and with the help of a friend from Germany, set about writing songs and pieces of music. I found the latter to be easier and having always loved electronic music in it’s different forms, the combination of the two seemed to work. So that was the first thing on my little road to proportional success – I learned how to use the tools of the trade at my disposal. Within a year or so, the first version of “The Garden” was complete, my German friend and I had a small collection of tunes ready to unleash on the world at large, which we duly did using on-line distribution. I also took a look at a couple of social networking websites, MySpace and Soundclick, up-loaded a few tracks and took it from there.

MySpace proved to be something of a gem. Within a short time I had contact with a few like-minded musos from around the world and then it started. I came across a small podcast radio show based in the West Midlands of the U.K. called Robo Cast Radio. The man behind Robo Cast Radio was Ian Price, an electronic musician himself and he was looking for new music to play and so I sent along a couple of tracks ? the response was quite something as it brought in new people who hadn’t heard my music before and new contacts who guided me in the direction of an independent local radio station in Leicestershire called Harborough FM, in particular a Saturday night program called “Hawke’s Chill-out Sessions” hosted by the venerable Terry Hawke, a long time fan of the electronic music genre. I sent along a copy of the first release of “The Garden” and a couple of tracks were played, more people found me out on MySpace and within a couple of weeks, I did a live interview on Terry’s show. From that interview, the pathway of the Geigertek project changed. I received an e-mail from Terry Hawke and also a chap called Steve Ruby who lives in the U.S., both of whom told me of a label called AD Music, run by the leading U.K. electronic music composer, David Wright. I knew of AD Music and David through my own love of electronic music ? I had several albums by David Wright, Robert Fox, Code Indigo and Bekki Williams.

I checked out the AD Music website, looked at the criteria of what they were looking for and how they operated, all of which sounded good to me, And so I prepared my Jiffy Bag with the CD and a covering letter that had a couple of photographs I had done of myself and when I came to put the address on the package, I got a surprise. What I didn’t realise was that AD Music was based in a small Suffolk town called Bungay which is only a 20 minute drive from where I live ? I had a good feeling about this, but being a “feet on the floor” type of person when it comes to the music business, I sent off my package thought no more of it. What happened next? Well it’s more than just a little surprising – find out more in part 2: “Expectations”.

Author Bio: Neil Fellows ‘Geigertek’, is based in Norwich and his debut album “The Garden” is available from AD Music Neil’s music is also available from Music Downloads for Free

In theory a band should be judged entirely on their musical ability. The reality, though, is that musicians are often judged on their overall image. A young band is put in the unfortunate position of trying to perfect their sound, and at the same time, appeal to their community. Here are some ways that you can improve your image-both onstage and of-and increase your recognition.

1. Be a copycat-in your own unique way.

Go find local bands that have already become successful and watch what they are doing. Poke around on their website, see their show, and talk to people about them to find out what makes them so popular. Depending on how approachable they are, you may even want to contact them and build a mentoring relationship, or at the very least ask if you can take them out for a beer and pick their brains. You’re not looking to reproduce another band’s success step by step, but you are trying to come up with a plan for establishing yourself based on tried and true methods. Look at what has already worked and see if there are variations you can adopt in your own band.

2. Play

There are hundreds of local events every year that you can support by volunteering to play. Treat these like genuine gigs, even if you aren’t making any money off of them. This is an opportunity to reach an audience you might never see in the normal club scene, and it will gain you an enormous amount of recognition-especially if you play and support organizations or events that have some real meaning in the community. Is there an annual 10k race that raises money for your local shelter? What about an art auction that raises money for the local museum? Most of these events have social gatherings where people meet before and after for drinks and networking-and you can volunteer to perform for attendees. Your community will see you as a contributor and supporter, not just a rock band.

3. Web Presence

The internet is the single most important marketing tool in this day and age. That means you need to have a real web presence. There are about a million bands on MySpace Music-and yes, you should be on there, too. But don’t underestimate the need to have your own website with your own domain name. You also want to take advantage of Web 2.0-that is, social networking and building relationships on the internet between individuals and websites. If you know anyone with a website, ask them to link to your band’s page. Set up a message board, or join and participate in a message board for musicians. Get a blog and update it weekly at the bare minimum. Keep your website updated with band info, photos, show dates, and audio or video snippets. You may even offer free MP3 downloads of your tunes to generate web traffic.

4. Watch a video of yourself

It is next to impossible to get an objective view of yourself and your performance without watching a video of your own performance. Have a friend take a standard VHS recorder to your show and take footage of the band for you to view later. When you sit down to watch the video, make sure you have some non-band members there to give you a balanced perspective-and as you watch, resist the urge to make comments or discuss things until the whole show is finished. Take notes and plan to have a formal band meeting directly following the video to discuss what you’ve seen. Be as objective as possible, and if you’re commenting on other people make sure you are sensitive to their feelings. Discuss what you liked and what you think needs improvement, and when you are done schedule a second meeting with the band after about a week. During that time, ask everyone to come up with constructive ways to address the issues that need improvement. Try to do this on a semi-regular basis-a couple times a year at the least.

5. Invest

You’re not going to be rolling in the dough when you first start out. Money is going to be tight-and that’s just the way it is. But any money that you do earn as a band should be immediately reinvested back. There is no end to what you can spend your money on, so have a list of things to buy that everyone agrees on ? equipment, website design, t-shirts, recording fees. You are probably going to have to invest your own money in to some of these things, too. You may feel like skimping on your band’s needs, especially when you’ve had macaroni and cheese for the third night in a row; but don’t let yourself be distracted from your ultimate goal.

6. Take care of what you already have

You may not have the world’s best equipment, or all the fancy bells and whistles that other bands have-but that’s no reason to trash what you do have. Take care of your stuff-make the most of what you have and show respect for your existing resources. People will recognize the care you give your whole image, even if it isn’t sparkly and new. No one expects you to have it all-but they will recognize if you don’t care enough about your stuff (and your career) enough to take care of it.

7. Talk to a stylist

You won’t have the budget for a full-time stylist, but it can’t hurt to talk to someone about your look. No, you don’t want a manufactured appearance, but again, it is hard to be objective about yourself. Simply asking someone to look at your overall style (or lack thereof) and offer suggestions will give you some feedback about how the average person views you. You can make your own style choices once you have a clear view of how you look to your audience.

8. Find a good photographer

You may not want a cheesy band poster (a la NKOTB), but you do need a couple shots that you can use for your publicity. Find a photographer who you can talk to about your band’s overall vision and ask them to be a creative collaborator with you on some pictures that capture who you really are. Brainstorm on some great locations or cool poses, and make your photo shoot fun. Encourage the band to let their personalities come out. Your photo may be someone’s very first impression of you-so try to capture the whole concept of your band in just one picture.

9. Design a bitchin’ t-shirt

T-shirts are walking billboards, advertising you to the world. Put some effort into creating a shirt that people will wear again and again, and that other people will instantly be drawn to. Then, even if you plan to sell them, set some aside to give out to friends and family and make them promise to wear them frequently. When you design your shirt, remember that your artwork is going to reflect your band’s music and vision.

10. Be nice.

This may seem self-evident, but don’t be fooled in to thinking you don’t need your fans. You aren’t some elite god of rock-you are a musician and an artist-and people want to feel a connection with you. Don’t finish your show and go sit in a corner with your beer or run out of the club. Spend some time schmoozing the people who have showed up to support you. Even if you’re not performing, keep your charm on when you’re out and about wearing your band t-shirt or promoting your upcoming show. Respond to fans when they email you, too. Even if it’s something simple like, “Thanks for your support!” or “See you at the next show!” You cannot underestimate how far a smile and a little appreciation for your fans will go in building an image that lasts.

Author Bio: Music marketing expert David Hooper is host of the syndicated radio show, Music Business Radio. Visit Music Marketing [dot] com for more information on David and additional music business advice.