I’ve been emailing with a few up and coming artists about their summer and fall plans. In every exchange, I make it a point to ask artists what they’d like to be doing in the three months, six months, and one year from the end of our conversation. I don’t expect a detailed answer, but whenever someone tells me their goals without mentioning their audience, I get worried.
There are a limitless number of paths to success in life and music, but if you are thinking about the future without first considering the demands of your audience, you are a blind captain steering a lost ship. We live in the age of on-demand entertainment for every taste, meaning there is always something to meet the needs of consumers. To build the following you need to make a career out of music, you need to be taking the demands of your audience into account.
Is there enough demand to support a tour through the midwest? What should our setlist be? Should we continue pursuing this new sound? What kind of merchandise should we be printing? If we were to sign with a label, what label rosters would be a good fit for us?
All of these questions are important decisions, and they should not be made without considering what you audiences wants/expects from you.
Social media has made gauging your audience’s interest easier than ever before. On Twitter, for example, you can run custom polls asking your audience to weigh in on virtually anything.
You don’t have to do what your audience demands. Your music is an expression of yourself, and only you can determine what that means for your craft. If you need to make a bold change, do so with confidence. Your audience will believe in you as long as you believe in yourself.
That said, where business is concerned, the smart plays are always in listening to those still invested in your product. The people who love your music have heard it and talked about it as much – if not more – than you have, and they know a thing or two about it. Listen to them.
James Shotwell is the Director of Customer Engagement for Haulix.
Despite the variety of sounds they create in the name of art, all musicians are united by a single desire: To be heard.
Today it is both easier and more difficult than ever before to be heard. On the one hand, music is now digital, which makes accessing millions of songs and albums incredibly simple no matter where you happen to be. At the same time, however, there are more artists vying for the attention of music fans and professionals than at any other point in recorded history.
This is the ultimate catch-22 in the streaming age: Music is incredibly easy to access pretty much anywhere around the globe, but influencing people to listen to something they don’t already know is as hard – if not harder – than it was when you had to mail physical promotional copies of new releases to press, labels, etc.
Some artists may take comfort in knowing every other aspiring talent is facing this exact challenge, but if that is not enough to soothe your worried mind we have some advice that may help you get ahead of the competition:
Start by saying hello
You would not believe the number of artists who blindly send links to new/unreleased music to hundreds of industry professionals every single day without as much as an introductory email. These releases, by and large, go unheard. Industry professionals are always looking for the next big thing, but if an artist cannot be bothered to introduce themselves before seeking a deal/exposure then many in the music business take that as a sign the artist may not be that professional after all. People prefer to work with people they know and believe in, so make yourself known and give them a reason to believe in you.
Never attach song files to an email
The average industry influencer receives well over 100 emails a day, and those working specifically in artist discovery tend to receive many more. As a result, inbox space is very limited. The only thing attaching song files to an email will do is guarantee your letter has a one-way ticket to the recipient’s trash can.
Comparisons can be enticing
Artists like to believe they are the only person/group on the planet making the kind of music they create. While that may be true to an extent there are undoubtedly a number of other, more popular artists who sound similar enough that people who enjoy those acts may enjoy what you — the new artist/group — has to offer. By using smart comparisons you make it quicker for industry professionals to understand the type of music you’re creating and whether or not it may be something their audience/customers would be interested in.
Use a promotional distribution platform
There are a number of ways to send music to industry professionals. You can use file-sharing services or streaming platforms, but if you want to present your art in a way customized to reflect who you are as creator then you need a company a promotional distribution service.
Haulix offers a secure way to share streams and downloads of your latest release through email invitations and promotional webpages customized to reflect your talent. Not only will you be sharing your music using a service that is recognized and praised throughout the industry, but you will be doing so in a way that places the focus squarely on your talent. Your promotional page will have no third party ads and minimal Haulix branding. You can add cover art, background images, embedded videos, tour dates, bios, and more – all while ensuring your music is protected from piracy with Haulix’s unique watermarking system.
You can try Haulix for an entire month right now for free. Follow this link and start getting your music in front of the industry’s leading influencers and decisions makers today.
Say what you will about how the age of streaming has decluttered the life of music fans by doing away with the need for physical releases, but ask someone to use those same services to learn the lyrics of their new favorite song and your question will be met with silence. Between Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, Rdio, and Tidal there is not a single platform that allows users to follow along with a song by reading the track’s lyrics. Those wishing to do that music first open an internet browser, Google a few keywords, and then-9 times out of 10-they will find a non-artist owned site to read from. Any ad money generated from this activity goes to the owner of the site that posted the lyrics and not the artists who wrote the lyrics in the first place.
This was rarely the case when CDs were popular. People talk about holding the album in their hands and how the presence of a physical product gave more value to the fact money was being spent, but for me the best part of owning any record was pouring over the lyrics contained within the meticulously crafted booklet included with each album. When I bought a record and no words were within, I was upset. With enough spins you can learn the words to pretty much any song, but there is something far more meaningful about being able to read and understand them from the first or second listen. It frees the mind to focus more on the music as a whole, allowing listening the chance to properly experience each rise and fall as the artist intended, which in turn gives more meaning to the lyrics.
Regardless of how famous or unknown they may be, every artist should make it a point to post their lyrics online through a site or page they control. If not for the sake of controlling the conversation around your content online, then for the sake of fans new and old. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve discovered a promising new band online, only to become instantly discouraged when there was no place for me to read and decipher the content of their music. Fans want to be able to sing along with the songs they love, regardless of whether or not the words are easy to learn (I’m looking at you, Korean Migos), and when artists do not take the responsibility to educate fans about their art it either gets posted by a third party who then profits for no good reason, or it goes uncovered, as is the case for many smaller bands.
Platforms like Purevolume and Bandcamp offer the ability to add lyrics to streams. They understand that part of the music discovery experience is learning to sing along. They know that once someone finds an artist they feel a connection to they will immediately want to know everything they can about that talent, starting with the words behind the music. They want to see what it is about the words that connect with their life, or what it is about the hook that makes them feel inspired. When no lyrics are immediately available, there is a high risk of quick burnout from new new listeners. An artist’s music may be strong, but in an age as flooded with quality artist as today’s music market it requires a lot more than sheer talent to hold the attention the average music consumer. There needs to be a real emotional connection, and while that may begin with the music, it’s often sealed with the words themselves.
Start today. Don’t wait another minute. Chances are high if you’re an artist reading this now you already have some, if not all of your lyrics stored somewhere on your computer or mobile device. Log onto you numerous streaming accounts, as well as your personal website, and post those lyrics as soon as you are able. Afterwards, promote the presence of these lyrics and invite fans to learn the words before your next show. You can also use this approach for regional marketing, challenging various cities to sing along to singles louder than other cities, or simply encouraging a quick refresher of what’s in store before your big show. Whatever you do, get those lyrics online. Please.
The following post is the latest in our ongoing content collaboration series with the fine folks at Sonicbids. Enjoy!
“Citing artistic differences, the band broke up in May,” sings songwriter/pianist Ben Folds. Then he recounts how the band reformed without him and changed their name. This event is far from extraordinary in the world of music and illustrates how far creative people will go just to avoid having confrontations with their bandmates. Bands are like families, but the love and comradeship between you and your musical friends can suddenly become a burden when things aren’t going well.
How do you proceed when you’ve got people with different ideas, and no middle ground presents itself? You don’t want to damage friendships or bruise people’s feelings. But there are ways to keep your artistic integrity and protect those critical relationships. By borrowing techniques from business managers, sports coaches, and psychologists, you can steer through artistic difficulties and come out stronger on the other side. Here are a few proven techniques.
1. Talk in an informal setting
The Boston Red Sox are not a band, but any band would love to parallel their success. Manager Terry Francona, now with the Cleveland Indians, won two World Series titles with the Sox, in large part because he managed the egos and big personalities in his dugout without contributing any additional drama. Francona famously eschewed calling formal team meetings to sort things out, believing that such measures put people on edge and made them defensive, shutting down meaningful dialogue. Instead, team members with grudges or problems would drop into Francona’s office and talk things out informally, one on one, often over a board game or a cup of tea.
Band problems deserve a similar airing. Band meetings should be reserved for figuring out who’s working what gig for the band or deciding on cover art for a new CD. It’s often more productive to sit down in a diner or talk in the car on a drive than to bring everyone together for a formal band meeting. After all, it’s most likely two individuals who are at the heart of the matter. Wouldn’t it be great if those two could be on the same page before bringing it up with the whole group?
2. Be willing to let problem songs go
Creative types are all familiar with the problem piece. It could be a book, a song, a poem, or a sculpture, but the common element is that this one just isn’t coming together. Sometimes it’s just time to set the work down and move on to another project. Writers call this piece a “trunk novel,” something that stopped being fun or just stopped progressing and got locked away in a trunk to be finished later… or never.
When two musicians can’t see a song in the same way, it’s a good time to play the trunk card. It’s not worth having a falling out over four minutes of music in a two-hour set, is it?
3. Pay close attention during the audition process
In business, you’ll often hear about the 80/20 rule. It comes up in all different contexts: 80 percent of your business comes from 20 percent of your clients. 80 percent of work is completed by 20 percent of your employees. And of course, 80 percent of problems are caused by 20 percent of the people in your organization. In any population, drama, backbiting, and resentment seem to emanate from the same handful of people, whether it be a middle school classroom, police barracks, or nuclear submarine. For this reason, it’s incredibly important to be really careful who gets into your band in the first place.
You can use a handful of interactions to extrapolate what someone’s actually like on a daily basis. For example, if someone’s late to the audition and the first two rehearsals, expect to be waiting around for that person on a consistent basis, even if (or especially if) he swears that he’s “not usually like this.” It’s amazing how often the always-late bandmate is also the one who starts arguments about songs and always asks people to buy him lunch. What if that guy just wasn’t in your band?
4. Recognize a “break”
You might be an amazing punk-rock drummer. You’re comfortable with metal and hard rock, too. Maybe you can even play a 6/8 blues. But what if somebody suddenly called a swing tune, or wanted a rockabilly beat? Everybody has something they don’t know how to play, or at least don’t know how yet. This often happens when a songwriter tries something new, when a band plays a radically different feel, or when somebody creates a part in a strange time signature. At these times, musicians often “break” and can’t seem to play the part with the appropriate feel, speed, or technique.
This might be a good time to see item number two on this list and let that song float away… or at least table it long enough for people to practice a little. It’s also good to understand that sometimes people just don’t have the feel to play certain material, and that’s totally okay.Nobody asks Ozzy Osborne to sing “Good Morning, Heartache.” Don’t show up your bandmates by giving them a hard time about it.
5. Find the win-win situation
Everybody says they’re willing to compromise. But are they? How many people view a compromise as giving up what they want? The fact that others also lost doesn’t make this pill any easier to swallow. When you’re an artist with a creative vision, something almost like the vision in your head may not feel good enough. The bandmate who’s standing in your way most likely feels the same.
But in music, anything is possible. Is there a way to let both people win, or to find another option that’s even better than what you both have in mind? After all, you must have moments when one musician expands on and advances the ideas of another, making the music better. Use that collective genius to try new things until everybody feels like they got the win. That magic solution is out there in the universe somewhere. Try to capture it.
6. Try not playing the role you’ve settled into
Psychologists note that family groups and other conglomerations of people tend to fall into established roles. In your band, maybe your bass player always complains about long road trips. Your guitarist always wants to stay at the club for one more drink, but the keyboard player works an early day job and always wants to take off immediately after the show. We all get locked into these roles. If there’s strife and drama in your band, try to identify your role, and stop playing it.
If you’re the one who always tries to mediate between people who argue, try stepping back and just letting them hash it out. If people unconsciously try to push you back into your usual box, that’s a good sign that the role you’re playing could be burdensome and unhelpful, meaning that you’re onto something!
In the end, nearly all of us got into music because it was fun. Let’s not allow creative differences to get in the way.
Jesse Sterling Harrison is an author, recording artist, and part-time farmer. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife, three daughters, and a herd of ducks.
Gaining the attention of blogs and their readers is no easy feat, especially for unsigned talent with little-to-no history. You can write the best songs and have the nicest videos, but if you do not know how to network and pitch yourselves no one will ever learn about your talent. Once they do however, there will only be a small window of time for you to capitalize on having won a moment of their attention, and this afternoon we’re going to learn what you should do in the hours after first receiving media attention.
1. Take time to celebrate, but realize there is still a lot left to accomplish.
I was never in a band that became popular enough to appear on sites like Absolutepunk or the like, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t spend many nights wishing one of the influential tastemakers of the scene mentioned my efforts in their publication. If your music/video/album gets mentioned, celebrate! You’ve taken yet another step towards your goal of a career in music, and while it’s certainly not enough to pay the bills it does serve as a strong reminder other people in the world care about your art. Don’t take that for granted.
2. Tell everyone in the world about the news (and ask them to share it).
This one probably goes without saying, but the unwritten rule of exposure on music outlets is that the band featured will publicly share and/or promote the publication’s content once its live. Don’t just share link to stories with fans, but ask them to share it as well, and don’t be afraid to request they comment on the post if time allows. Sites that see a bump in traffic or discussions from coverage of your band are likely to cover your band again in the future because they believe there is a value to your content that other unsigned acts cannot provide. In order to show them that value you will need the help of your fans, and its up to you to sell them on sharing your work.
3. Engage the comments section, but don’t antagonize them.
If the reason you’re reading this post is because the first article about your music just went live, you need to understand the response in the comments section may be very slow at first. As much as sites love to help expose young talent, people are not always quick to comment (especially in a positive sense) about something they are unfamiliar with. A great way to combat this is to actively participate in discussions taking place in the comments section of articles about your band. Answer questions for people, offer insight into your creative process, and generally speaking do whatever you can to be a decent human being that is open to criticism. It’s not that difficult, but it can make a world of difference in how quickly people become engaged with your art.
4. Say “thank you” and/or support the publication that wrote about you.
You would not believe the power the phrases “please” and “thank you” have in the music industry. From labels, to bands, publicists, and everyone in between you would be hard pressed to find anyone who thinks they hear either of those phrases too often. People tend to do as they please and take what they want without giving much though to the process behind it all, but you can stand out from the countless unsigned artists of the world by voicing your appreciation to the sites that give you space on their front page. It does not have to be anything formal, but it should be sincere. People remember those who are kind to them, and they’re far more likely to want to work with you again in the future as a result.
5. Don’t be afraid to begin teasing your next announcement.
Once people learn about your art it’s very likely they will want to know everything they can about your current efforts. Using social media and the comments sections on posts about your work, take a moment to tell people about everything else you have going on while your name is still fresh on their minds. They might not buy the album or see the tour you’re trying to promote, but at least they’ll know of it and will have the ability to share that information with others if such opportunities present themselves.
The following post is the latest in our ongoing content collaboration with the fine folks at Sonicbids.
When you’re a musician, there’s a lot you need to worry about. Staying relevant on social media,booking shows, giving it your all onstage, finding ways to make a few extra bucks so you can pay the bills, and then actually creating music (of course). Now, I don’t want to add anything to your already-full plate, but there’s one more thing you should consider: becoming a company.
There are a lot of reasons why you should create an LLC (a limited liability corporation) that are essentially just related to your musical endeavors, and though this might be the first you’re hearing of such a thing, hear me out.
1. It’s easier than you think
Many musicians get nervous the minute business is brought up, and I understand that hesitation. If it isn’t your specialty, delving into something like “forming a company” can be intimidating. It sounds like it will be a complicated, treacherous process, but don’t let this misconception scare you from actually doing this for yourself!
There are really only a few steps involved in officially creating a company in a legal sense, and you can read more about that here. Think about it – there are currently hundreds of thousands of LLCs in this country, and there have been millions in the past. With that many companies, it’s not probable that the government would make it incredibly difficult to create one.
2. You look more professional
The music industry, and musicians in general, aren’t known for being the most professional bunch, even though this is a business. The smartest and the best artists out there know how to be both a fun, crazy performer on stage, and a boss in the boardroom (which is just a saying – you probably don’t have to actually sit in a boardroom anytime soon).
“Looking professional” isn’t about wearing suits and having a proper resume – it’s about showing people that they need to respect you and treat you as somebody who is making a living. If anybody approaches you as a solo artist with a business proposition, it might look very different than if they approach you as a company. It starts the conversation from a very different place, and that should be to your benefit. Don’t underestimate making a professional first impression, especially if the deal you’re looking at could end up being lucrative.
3. Legal protection
Operating as an LLC offers certain legal protections, and that’s something you’ll need to think about, even if you don’t want to. Hopefully you never have to worry about this, and many musicians don’t, but it never hurts to be prepared.
Being an LLC is sort of like having insurance – it’s the thing you never need until you reallyneed it. If someone were to sue you, the resulting lawsuit could ruin you as a person for a very long time, but it’s different when they have to sue an LLC. Companies are only responsible for so much, and even if you lose in court, it probably won’t follow you around forever. It seems silly, but that’s the way the law works. (Why do you think big companies get away with so much?)
4. Tax breaks!
Taxes are difficult as a musician, because they can be pretty complicated when you’re self-employed and when you have money coming in from many different places. Between record and single sales, streaming revenues, concert tickets, merch sales, and so on, you may have a hard enough time tracking down where your cash came from, and that’s supposed to be the easy part of taxes. Oh, and we’re talking about taxes, and taxes pretty much suck no matter what.
When you’re an LLC, there are a lot of different things you can write off on your taxes, and that benefits you quite a bit. The basic rule is the more you can write off, the better you’ll be after tax season is through. Everything from the costs to “get started” as a company (which can be loosely interpreted into things like instruments and recording equipment, potentially) to travel expenses and even the “location” of your business, which I’m willing to bet is just your apartment. These are all things that you will likely get to write off your taxes, whereas the same can’t be said if you were filing taxes as any regular old person. This is one of the biggest benefits of being an LLC, and it’s easy to see why.
Hugh McIntyre is a freelance pop music journalist in NYC by way of Boston. He has written forBillboard, The Hollywood Reporter, and MTV, as well as various magazines and blogs around the world. He is also the founder and editor-in-chief of the blog Pop! Bang! Boom! which is dedicated to the genre of pop in all of its glory.
The following post was originally written by California based singer-songwriter Stormy Strong, who is currently being represented by the awesome team at Muddy Paw PR. We believe Stormy has an amazing future in music ahead, and I think there is something artists at every level can learn from their experience. Enjoy!
My name is Stormy Strong (yes, that’s my real name) and I am a saltwater rock singer-songwriter from Santa Cruz CA. As an artist, I have longed to spread my music as far and wide as possible, and I’m constantly trying to figure out how can I get it out there with all the competition of record labels and bazillion other forms of entertainment vying for people’s attention. The problem is, I simply don’t have the bank account of some of those larger entities. One way I’ve found to stand out without spending a ton of money is producing story based music videos.
Every musician should have a strategy for video releases. Continually creating and releasing content will keep your band relevant and current. When creating your next music video consider the following:
1. Song
I pick songs that I love and that I have a gut feeling are strong representations of who I am as a singer-songwriter and accurately represent the sound of my band. The song that embodies the vision of my musical journey. You can do this yourself.
2. Concept or Vision
I first come up with an idea around the song we’re working on either with collaborators or by myself, looking for themes that fit the song and my musical vision. I’m always sure to incorporate my personal brand, which in this case has strong nautical ties. My songs tend to involve storytelling but there are no hard and fast rules. Write a script or find someone to help you. Then create story boards (you can Google for tips on creating both) Keep iterating on it, you can do this yourself but it’s always good to have people you really trust with your art give feedback.
3. Budget
Set a minimum budget (what you hope it will cost based on research of what you will need) and a maximum budget (what you can afford). Then double the maximum budget (“disaster scenario”) and ask yourself, if it ends up costing me this this amount, will it be a total loss? Example: I want to make a video for $500 best case scenario (minimum). I could get $1000 if I had to (maximum) … BUT if disaster strikes and we lose all the footage because my friend dropped the camera off the boat then we’re looking at $2k, disaster scenario. Always make sure that your crew are paid—if not monetarily then in another agreed upon method.
Some costs to consider:
Talent
Crew
Props
Permits
Gear and rental equipment
Food and water for crew
Location
Insurance (for shoot and or gear)
Talent can make up a lot for lack of high end gear. I’d argue someone with the knack for filming and editing could make a very compelling video and give the pros a run for their money. In fact Talent > Gear.
4. Team
Collaboration makes it more fun and will result in a stronger final product. Try to find people who you trust, that are excited about the music and the concept, and have talent in the areas you’re looking for. Don’t be afraid to exchange services and if it makes sense, show them your budget so they can see where you’re coming from. No one likes being taken advantage of, so whatever you do, don’t burn bridges.
If not yourself, you’ll need someone to shoot and edit the video, as well as someone to do color grading if possible. Everything else will be talent: people helping with sets or lighting, props, etc.
5. Network
Everyone one has friends, colleagues, family, acquaintances, etc.—this is the time to call on those people. Ask around when you are looking for something you need. It’s amazing how helpful people can be and all of my videos are the result of leveraging my networks and extended networks heavily. Some people might hear about what you’re doing and want to work just for credit, or to play around with a piece of gear they’ve been eyeing. Some people LOVE doing certain things that rhyme with what you are doing… you just have to find them!
Once you have a script and storyboards in place you’ll be ready to start planning for the days of shoots. Make a list of all the people involved with their phone and email addresses (Google docs works well for this, as well as for sharing the script and storyboard for collaboration). You may be able to shoot the whole video in one long day depending on the number of locations and complexity, but the better you plan the more likely you won’t need to do pick-up shots (these are shots you have to later re-shoot). You’ll have to do a lot of hard work getting props, scheduling shoots, and keeping in touch with people to make sure they arrive at their scheduled times. If you have someone that wants to help with this (a band member perhaps) that’s optimal.
Always go with your gut on the set and be professional. It’s your video so you will need to exercise patience, and compassion, while being efficient and keeping things moving. Make sure you have a solid relationship with the crew and never be afraid to tell them what you want. That being said, a lot of great ideas come from collaboration, so try to remain open to alternatives. Often weather and sick crew or talent will be your biggest hurdles. Always have a backup plan.
If you don’t mind hard work, and are patient, then you can make yourself one hell of a music video without a huge budget. It’s an extension of your music and I guarantee after your first video you’ll be itching to create more.
Santa Cruz, CA based alternative “saltwater” rock leviathan Stormy Strong formed in 2006 and has been sweeping the globe atop a tsunami of salty melodic anthems ever since. Unrelenting rock hooks sink unforgettably deep in his music, giving way to honest lyrics soaked in raw emotion that splice seamlessly with award winning song-writing. His songs will leave you cast adrift, melodies swimming around inside of your head long after the show is over. You can view his latest music video, “Sail Away” HERE and keep an eye out for the premiere of the “Holiday” music video later this year.
Can you be like Radiohead and delete your social media profiles leading up to an album release? Probably not, but the concept makes sense. In the frantic, hurried 24/7 world we live in, the norm is updates around the clock. What did Radiohead do? Eh, they deleted everything. They’re living in opposite world, apparently.
One thing you can do is care a bit more than the 2,093,234 bands out there who are blasting out updates ever 12 seconds with new shows, album updates, and latte’ art pics. Stick with some general rules here:
Auto-posting from Instagram means your fans on Twitter have to click another link in order to see your images. Sure, it saves you the time of having to open Twitter and upload the photo, but it passes the time investment onto your fan. And plenty of bands are posting their photos right to Twitter, and those appear right next to your Tweets, and might entice your fan to check out that other band.
You can’t be a regular in every coffee shop. Love Twitter and loathe Facebook? Then don’t use Facebook. Half-assed efforts on any social media network (like auto-posting from Instagram to several other platforms) looks cheap, and you ain’t cheap. Connect with fans by being sincere while everyone else is content to automate as many marketing bullet points as they can every single day.
Case in point; those “I uploaded a video to YouTube” links are garbage. Unpaid interns can do that, but you’re a band on the road, with songs that touch hearts. Your albums become the soundtrack for summer, so treat your social media messaging with some revernce. That means more than just “CHECK OUT R NEW VIDEO!” Put 12 seconds of thought into your messeging. Tell a short story about taping the video, thank the producer, or send out some behind the scenes pics. Remember, you’re competing with canned “I uploaded a video” copy – it doesn’t take much effort to do better than that.
Instead of Tweeting every single date of your upcoming tour to people who can’t make the 56 hour drive to your gig in Woonsocket, RI, put your dates in one place and link to it (like Corrioson of Conformity does here):
When you do this you can monitor traffic from Twitter, which then gives you a good idea of how effective your social media efforts are. You know you can do that, right?
It’s like out-running a bear, you only have to run faster than your friends. Plenty of artists are putting in minimal effort on social media networks and expecting maximum return. You don’t skimp on musical equipment, song writing, booking tours, and paying artists to create shirt and album artwork, so don’t short change yourself on your own DIY online marketing efforts.
Seth Werkheiser is the quiz master of metal trivia at Skulltoaster. He’s also the founder of some music sites you may have heard of, including Noise Creep (2009) + Buzzgrinder (2001). He’s anti-Facebook, anti-clickbait, and anti-growth hacking. You should most definitely follow him on Twitter. Yes, right now.
The following post is the latest in our ongoing content collaboration series with the fine folks at Sonicbids.
There are some types of hateful screwing over that are pretty unavoidable. There are terrible people who’ll screw others over regardless of what securities are in place to prevent that. When it comes to poor treatment by a venue, though, the truly rotten aren’t the cause of most horror stories. Usually, it’s a misunderstanding that’s to blame.
Those situations are still totally infuriating, of course. These five aspects of every show are easily the most susceptible to going terribly awry due to poor communication. Make sure you’ve got them all covered in advance to better your chances of a problem-free gig.
1. Talk about money
If you’re expecting to get paid at the end of the show, then you better have discussed it beforehand. If not, you shouldn’t be expecting any payment whatsoever. The amount you make – if any at all – depends on the venue policy.
Maybe they only book bands for free on weeknights, and it so happens that you’re playing on a Wednesday. It’s possible you were added to an existing bill with a budget that’s already mostly exhausted, so they’re not planning to pay you more than $50. It could be that you get a percentage of the door. There are several different ways to work out payment, so you can’t assume anything until you’ve confirmed the logistics with whoever booked you.
It’s not gauche or taboo by any stretch to discuss how money will work when you’re a booking at a venue (or through a talent buyer), by the way. Do not be shy about it for any reason. You’ve got to hammer out the specifics of the deal before committing to anything. They won’t be surprised you asked – but they will likely be perturbed if you never ask, and then raise hell about it after the show.
2. Will they help with promo?
Bands sometimes complain that venues don’t support them in promoting the event, that they didn’t push it hard enough on social media, or didn’t have a visible poster hanging weeks in advance. Thing is, not every venue’s the same in that department. Sometimes they’ve got a public relations or social media person on that job, and sometimes they’re doing it all (like, everything) themselves.
Discuss the promo effort ahead of time. Who’s putting up the Facebook event, the band or the venue? If it’s them, can you pay them to sponsor a post? Can you do anything to help? Like, say, remind them to share your event if it hasn’t been pushed enough? How else do they normally advertise shows? Do they print posters for shows or should you provide your own? What about flyers? Not only does planning out promo with a venue or talent buyer help ensure they’re supporting you to the degree you expect, but also helps you map out your own strategy more thoroughly.
3. Is it okay to sell merch?
Most venues will say yes, no strings attached, but some charge a fee. It’s not that often that they do, but why not just ask? Avoid any potential problems by simply mentioning you’ll be bringing merch, and asking if there’s anything you should know. Here’s when they’ll alert you of whatever fee or percentage, if any.
Plus, some venues have a designated area for merch, while others set up a table – now’s a good time to ask about that. Maybe they even have a spare you can use so don’t have to lug your own.
4. Confirm all things sound-related
Don’t miss your soundcheck by waiting until the day of a show to ask when it is. (Folks are busy, you know, and they might not see your email until it’s too late.) Ask where to load in, when and how long you’ll get for soundcheck, and with whom. If your sound isn’t what you hoped for, make sure it’s not because you didn’t make good use of that chance to work out any kinks and fine-tune.
Additionally, don’t assume they’ve got a full backline. Not every venue does. Don’t show up with only cymbals and snare because you thought they had a kit, only to find out they don’t.
5. If you’re in a new city, ask around
For those touring through a city for the first time with no local contacts: do some research. Obviously, you don’t want to book at a venue that’s notorious for its poor treatment of musicians. Don’t just book the first venue you like – find one that’s appropriate for your show, first of all, then look into it a bit.
If you don’t know anybody in that particular town, try asking for insight in a subreddit or a public Facebook group. Local music coverage, whether via blogs or the culture section of a news outlet, can be good indicators of the venue landscape, too.
If a venue’s truly bad news, you won’t have to poke around much to hear about it. And if all else fails, check Yelp, where the angriest of people go to scream under the guise of warning others.
Jhoni Jackson is an Atlanta-bred music journalist currently based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she juggles owning a venue called Club 77, freelance writing and, of course, going to the beach as often as possible.
Social media is more important for brands and bands now than at any other point in its existence. The vast majority of conversations and consumer engagement taking place online today happens across the numerous social media platforms that have risen to popularity over the last decade, and those numbers are likely to increase in the years ahead. If newspapers and town halls were the hubs of community and discussion one-hundred years ago, Facebook and Twitter are their modern replacements. You probably have several social media accounts right now, and you probably feel a slight shiver run down your spine every time a new service begins gaining a lot of popularity. We feel the same, and while we never want you to feel like you need or even can be everywhere at once we do feel you need to position yourself to handle whatever the quickly changing digital landscape throws your way. The following tips should help any person or group familiar with these services improve their digital marketing efforts, but only if you make them your own. Find what works best with your audience and use that knowledge to build a community around your art.
Real-time posting is for people who can afford to spend hours online every single day. Schedule your content in advance and lose the need to be constantly connected.
Manually posting updates to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and the like in 2016 is the digital equivalent to rubbing two sticks together in hopes of creating fire in the new millennium. Both approaches eventually get the job done, but they are far from the easiest way to handle your business. Services like Hootsuite and similar social-delivery systems allow you to schedule your content several days, sometimes even weeks, in advance. You can set your latest song premiere to hit your blog at a specific time, as well as set all your social networks to link to the track, all long before the day of the premiere arrives. This allows you more time to work on outreach to publications, songwriting, or anything else you desire without having to sacrifice an ounce of your marketing efforts. You should still log on to see how people react to your news, of course, but you can do that whenever time allows instead of creating space in your already crowded schedule to dedicate to sitting on social networks hoping for engagement.
Incorporate concert listings wherever possible
Every artists hopes that by making their music easy to find online that they will be discovered by the masses in time, but history tells us there is no faster way to build a relationship with music fans than by getting them to see you perform in person. To do this, setup an account with Bandsintown or a similar concert listing application and connect it to all relevant social media networks. Services like Bandsintown will maintain your concert listings, as well as tweet out relevant performance information in advance of your gigs. Like the scheduling tools listed above, these services cut down on the total amount of time artists need to spend focusing on things outside their music, which in turn allows for more creativity.
Want more engagement? Ask questions.
Only a fool would approach their digital presence with the belief people online a looking for one-sided conversations. As much as fans may follows your accounts in hopes of hearing what you have to say, the real reason anyone follows anyone online is the hope that a deeper connection may be formed. Fans don’t want to simply hear about your career, they want to know about you as a person, and they hope you want to know about them as well. The quickest way to appease this desire and raise engagement for your digital presence is to pose questions to your audience. Who has the new album? What is everyone’s favorite song? What tracks do they want to see you perform on tour? Who else are they listening to? These questions and more can help you not only retain fans through engagement, but they can also help you understand your audience in ways the simplify future promotions efforts. If your fans like Song A more than Song B, play Song A last. If they keep comparing you to another band at the same level in their career, consider touring with that group so that you can both help one another by sharing listeners. Again, it all comes back to building and retaining a community around your art.
Update your profile as often as you do laundry
Most profiles have an incredibly short shelf life in terms of offering unique information or media. When was the last time you changed your profile picture? How about the link in your Instagram profile? Have you updated your bio in the last year, or ever? Making small changes to your profiles on a regular basis can give the appearance of being busy even when you’re scraping together change to get to your next gig. Profile updates tell fans there is a reason to continue checking your pages and activity because you’re being active and working toward the future. Stagnate pages give the illusion of death, and you definitely do not want that kind of attention.
Try new tools and platforms as they become available, but only stick with what works for you
Have you tried Facebook Live yet? What about Periscope? Have you created a geofilter on Snapchat so fans can brag about being at your next gig? There are new tools, tricks, and platforms to help raise awareness for your efforts going public every week. We do not support attempting to use all in addition to your current channels, but we do encourage you to try everything that makes sense for your band. If you try something and see no results, delete your presence and move on. When you find something your fans enjoy, add it to your ongoing marketing efforts.
