Tag: Concert Booking

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How To Get A Booking Agent [Video]

booking agent

Every successful musician has a great booking agent, and today, we’re helping you find the right agent to further your career.

Booking agents do not make the world go round. Instead, they make artists go around the world. Every successful artist needs a great booking agent. These professionals can take bands playing gigs in DIY spaces and get them club dates. They can take a club headliner and make them a theater act. A great booking agent can take someone’s career to the next level, and that is what we want for you and your music.

But there’s a catch. Every artist wants a booking agent, and there are far more talented musicians than skilled booking agents. The competition for attention is tough. So much so that many will spend months or even years looking for an agent who can help their career. 

If you Google advice ‘booking agent advice,’ the internet will offer thousands of articles with tips and tricks for finding the right person to elevate your career. Most of that information is false or incomplete. There are only four things you need to do to land a booking agent, and they are as follows:

  1. Your career needs to be in good standing with strong branding, an active social media presence, a devout following, and a successful track record with live performances. It doesn’t matter if you’ve played ten shows or two hundred. All people need to know is what happened at these performances. Did you sell out? Did people come to see you? Are people buying merch? Would someone unfamiliar with your music walk away from the show, itching to see you again? If so, let’s continue.
  2. Have good relationships within the live music industry. Booking agents will ultimately do all the talking, but you want promoters and other live industry professionals to think highly of you. Being liked is an easy way to get opportunities. Be nice, treat people with respect, and do whatever you can to help others. You never know who will be in a position to impact your career down the line. 
  3. Research booking agents and agencies. There are hundreds of booking agents in America, but only a few are right for you. Spend some time researching local, regional, and national booking agents to understand who may be interested in working with you. From there, build a list of potential agents and learn everything you can about them. The more you know, the better.
  4. Make contact. Once you’ve narrowed down a list of potential booking agents, reach out and invite those individuals to an upcoming performance. Please give the recipient(s) everything they need to walk into that show, ready to sign you. Be sure to include the venue location, show date, and set time. You should also include links to your website, social media pages, and Spotify.

In the latest Music Biz update, James Shotwell walks you through the process of finding and securing a booking agent. He offers insight into the four-step process above, as well as the importance of each. He also provides an outline for outreach emails. Check it out:

Music Biz is brought to you by Haulix, the music industry’s leading promotional distribution platform. Start your one-month free trial today and gain instant access to the same promotional tools used by BMG, Concord, Rise Records, Pure Noise Records, and hundreds more. Visit http://haulix.com/signup for details.

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Industry News News

Can Prism save live music booking?

The ‘end-to-end’ solution for live entertainment booking recently raised millions to further their cause.

Austin-based music promoter software company Prism has secured a new round of funding from angel investors. As DigitalMusicNews revealed, the business raised more than $2.2 million from a number of different investors, including Mario Fighali of Sparefoot, Bill Babel of Capital Factory, Kip McClanahan of Pershing, and Jay Jensen of Clasen Quality Coatings.

Prism promotes itself as an ‘end-to-end’ solution to the live music booking. According to the company website, that means offering calendar management, one-click integrations with ticketing platforms, offer generation, budgeting, forecasting, revenue tracking, settlement, task management systems, and financial reporting in one package. By combining all these workflows into one system, Prism hopes to offer a time-saving and efficient tool for live music management and promotion. You can view a quick overview of the platform below:

Some prominent adopters include Brooklyn Bowl (NY), Ad Hoc (NY), PopGun Presents (NY), MOKB Presents (IL), Noise Pop (SF), McMenamin’s (OR), and Laramir Lounge (CO).

The timing of Prism’s rise could not be better for the startup. A study from Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) released in October 2018 predicts live music revenue will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.3% heading into 2022. This includes ticket sales and sponsorship. That means the total revenue for the live music industry should reach $31 billion over the next four years, with $24 billion being contributed by ticket sales.

It’s unclear if larger live event companies such as Live Nation will consider adapting Prism, but anything is possible. Larger companies tend to rely on older software because it’s easier to stick with what works than to train thousands of employees to use a new service. If Prism’s software is as easy to use as the company claims there is a chance they could change the live music industry as a whole in the years ahead.

Interested in trying Prism for your business? Click here and sign up today.

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News

How to Make the Most of a Crappy Turnout at Your Gig

This post is the latest in our ongoing content collaboration series with the fine folks at Sonicbids.

It’s probably one of your biggest fears as a musician. You’re pumped for your upcoming gig, you’re ready to hear some noise, but when you make it onto the stage, your heart drops as you see the audience is practically empty. For any number of reasons (weird weekday, bad weather), you have a crappy turnout. Your first instinct may be to jump off the stage and run out of the venue, hoping in vain that no one even notices you were there, but pause for a second, and ignore this urge.

It’s too late to get more people to the show, but as long as you do have an audience, you need to play for them. At worst, it’s still a practice opportunity, and at best, you might make a few more diehard fans who greatly appreciate the effort you put in despite the circumstances. Just because there’s a bad turnout doesn’t mean it has to be a bad show, so here are some tips for making the most of a crappy turnout.

Use it as an opportunity to have more personal interactions with the audience

One of the few upsides to a small turnout is that you can see the individuals in your audience better and personalize the show more than you typically could. Make the show intimate. Treat the few people that are there like they’re a group of your friends, and make them feel special for coming out. If you see a funny shirt, comment on it. Ask someone else what the best bar in town is. Ask if anyone who knows your music has any song requests. The specifics don’t matter – it’s much more about letting your audience know their presence is noticed and valuable. This is a great way to create fans who want to see you again (and maybe bring a few friends next time!).

Take advantage of the low-risk atmosphere to try out something new

Another pro to playing for a small crowd is that if anything you do isn’t received well or just falls flat, you haven’t screwed up in front of hundreds of people, and you can calibrate your act for future, larger shows. It’s actually the perfect space for getting honest feedback without alienating too many people. Now, the content of this “new thing” is entirely up to you. It can be a brand new song you just finished up and haven’t gotten any feedback on yet. It can be a personal story you’ve thought about incorporating in your show. Whatever you do, be honest with the audience members that this is the first time you’ve done it. They’ll feel extra special that they’re the ones getting the sneak peek, which will make them compassionate even if it doesn’t pan out.

Give it 110 percent

It might seem counterintuitive, and you may not be in the right mood given the state of the crowd, but you should actually try and go above and beyond when you’re playing for small turnouts. They deserve your best effort anyway, but even more importantly, everyone in that audience is perceptive enough to know you must be bummed due to the turnout, so if they get a truly kickass show anyway, your attitude and performance will blow their expectations out of the water. Rise above the circumstances and show the crowd – all nine people that may be in it – that absolutely nothing gets you down, and you put your heart and soul into your music no matter who’s watching. This is how you leave a lasting impression. People love talking about a great experience that they and only a few others were a part of, so you may be surprised how the word spreads.

Stick around until every single person has left

This goes beyond just working the merch table after the show is over (though you should definitely still be doing that). This is the point of the night where you can solidify a lasting connection with the concertgoers. If you’ve successfully implemented all the tips above, then you should be catching your listeners in very high spirits, which you can capitalize on. Ask people how they’re doing, what they liked about the show, and what they didn’t like. Exchange as much contact information as you can, and let them know how they can interact with you in the future. If you’re financially comfortable enough to part with a shirt or EP for free, use that to “seal the deal,” as giving away free merch is a sign of gratitude that will continuously remind them of you. Ultimately, show how grateful you are that they gave you your time, and convey that this is the kind of musician you are all the time.

Playing to only a few people is not on many musicians’ bucket lists once they’ve gotten used to bigger crowds. This is still no excuse to not give it your all. If you’re ever in this situation, take a deep breath and use everything in your arsenal to make it a great night. You’ll be amazed by how meaningful that small show might become.

Katarina Underwood is an editorial intern for Sonicbids.

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