By Mark Grove
The Musicians Mob Report On The Music Business:
Ya know, I called this article The Mob Report because it's imperative that all musicians take it upon your selves to do what you need to sell your material. If not you deserve the lot you get from doing nothing as a musician. That's why you need to do "stuff" and not get hit in the head or worse financially from not working hard at gigs and marketing your material.
Starting Locally:
First of all you need to start by going to jam sessions and getting known.Then start practicing your ass off and developing your band's chops. Then, start asking well known local bands who play regularly if they are looking for a band to open for them.
Keep on developing your band's story by writing your own bios, or use our press kit writing service for your band. Then see if you can get a local college music journalist to interview your band. College media usually are more in tune to the music industry than major newspapers who are only doing interviews for the numbers that will read certain artist interviews.
Also, use college radio and college TV stations rather than print media exclusively. People want to see the real you, not just text written about a band. Use college media in your region like a banshee.Concentrate your media and band bookings on a 2 hour driving limit at the most.
These days you have to watch how much your band will spend on gas, lodging, food and other essentials as a band. Chances are if you're playing two gigs on consecutive nights, the venue will pay for a hotel. If they won't at least pay for a hotel room you can drive home, but it may cost you in gas driving back home and then back to the gig even if you live 2 hours away.
You're better off paying for a hotel. If you're a member of a well known automobile association you can usually get great deals on hotel room packages.In Canada it's the Canadian Automobile Association--but I'm not sure what it is in the USA. Your band should also use an American Express Gold Card to build points galore for lodging and transportation freebies. Just make sure to pay your bills and the Amex card can be beneficial if your band even uses rental vans or the train for 2 man gigs.
If bands think the way to band riches is huge national tours,think again.
For what it costs to tour even regionally, watch what your band spends, and work your band as a business. Write off legitimate music business expenses to save money already spent, and start a corporation to cut the actual taxes paid to your government. It doesn't matter whether it's it's Uncle Sam in the USA, or where ever you live as a working musician.
Online Promotion:
I'll keep this post short and to the point. You also need a presence on the internet with either a blog or website. Just a bio of the band kept short and entertaining along with at one article that reviews your material and a recent show. Do interviews with your own band and have other members of the band interview each other.
Like I keep saying in my articles on promoting your band, use a student music journalist and offer them free tickets to your shows, free CD's and barter for his services by offering free guitar lessons. Also include free MP3's from an upcoming release. Also include a recording of a track in the studio done in real time with a good video recorder. That way your fans become a bigger part of the process.
You can also use video streaming software that's free from the internet. A lot of big name internet marketers use free software that's great for this, and it's called USTREAM.TV. It would be well worth it to use it.
http://www.ustream.tv
Start generating articles on different aspects of the music industry along with interviewing local bands who play your type of music. This makes your band more valuable economically and to other bands you may be able to open for or be the head liner for. You can even joint venture with other bands which can end up in money making tours, and your bands CDs be more valuable to sell if you're hooked up with a well known band even opening for them.
There are many ways to promote your band and you also need to generate a list of fans who sign up at your gigs and online at your website. Offer free MP3's and free tickets if they buy one at regular price.
Offer strong 5 or 8 song EP's at 5 bucks a shot and still make money. If you're a blues artist selling singles won't be a part of the equation unfortunately. Offer Q and A sessions with your fans at gigs and online as well. Use UStream.TV for online seminars with other musicians, and basically have a round table discussion on different aspects of music and ways to make money in this financial crisis.
Make sure you send fans on your list emails on these online happenings with your band.
This is just a small sample of what your band needs to do to be very resourceful in these trying times. The combination of the internet and off-line, meaning gigs will have your band benefit more than from just one profit source.
You can have great success as a musician.
Peace,
Mark
The Musicians Mob Report On The Music Business:
Ya know, I called this article The Mob Report because it's imperative that all musicians take it upon your selves to do what you need to sell your material. If not you deserve the lot you get from doing nothing as a musician. That's why you need to do "stuff" and not get hit in the head or worse financially from not working hard at gigs and marketing your material.
Starting Locally:
First of all you need to start by going to jam sessions and getting known.Then start practicing your ass off and developing your band's chops. Then, start asking well known local bands who play regularly if they are looking for a band to open for them.
Keep on developing your band's story by writing your own bios, or use our press kit writing service for your band. Then see if you can get a local college music journalist to interview your band. College media usually are more in tune to the music industry than major newspapers who are only doing interviews for the numbers that will read certain artist interviews.
Also, use college radio and college TV stations rather than print media exclusively. People want to see the real you, not just text written about a band. Use college media in your region like a banshee.Concentrate your media and band bookings on a 2 hour driving limit at the most.
These days you have to watch how much your band will spend on gas, lodging, food and other essentials as a band. Chances are if you're playing two gigs on consecutive nights, the venue will pay for a hotel. If they won't at least pay for a hotel room you can drive home, but it may cost you in gas driving back home and then back to the gig even if you live 2 hours away.
You're better off paying for a hotel. If you're a member of a well known automobile association you can usually get great deals on hotel room packages.In Canada it's the Canadian Automobile Association--but I'm not sure what it is in the USA. Your band should also use an American Express Gold Card to build points galore for lodging and transportation freebies. Just make sure to pay your bills and the Amex card can be beneficial if your band even uses rental vans or the train for 2 man gigs.
If bands think the way to band riches is huge national tours,think again.
For what it costs to tour even regionally, watch what your band spends, and work your band as a business. Write off legitimate music business expenses to save money already spent, and start a corporation to cut the actual taxes paid to your government. It doesn't matter whether it's it's Uncle Sam in the USA, or where ever you live as a working musician.
Online Promotion:
I'll keep this post short and to the point. You also need a presence on the internet with either a blog or website. Just a bio of the band kept short and entertaining along with at one article that reviews your material and a recent show. Do interviews with your own band and have other members of the band interview each other.
Like I keep saying in my articles on promoting your band, use a student music journalist and offer them free tickets to your shows, free CD's and barter for his services by offering free guitar lessons. Also include free MP3's from an upcoming release. Also include a recording of a track in the studio done in real time with a good video recorder. That way your fans become a bigger part of the process.
You can also use video streaming software that's free from the internet. A lot of big name internet marketers use free software that's great for this, and it's called USTREAM.TV. It would be well worth it to use it.
http://www.ustream.tv
Start generating articles on different aspects of the music industry along with interviewing local bands who play your type of music. This makes your band more valuable economically and to other bands you may be able to open for or be the head liner for. You can even joint venture with other bands which can end up in money making tours, and your bands CDs be more valuable to sell if you're hooked up with a well known band even opening for them.
There are many ways to promote your band and you also need to generate a list of fans who sign up at your gigs and online at your website. Offer free MP3's and free tickets if they buy one at regular price.
Offer strong 5 or 8 song EP's at 5 bucks a shot and still make money. If you're a blues artist selling singles won't be a part of the equation unfortunately. Offer Q and A sessions with your fans at gigs and online as well. Use UStream.TV for online seminars with other musicians, and basically have a round table discussion on different aspects of music and ways to make money in this financial crisis.
Make sure you send fans on your list emails on these online happenings with your band.
This is just a small sample of what your band needs to do to be very resourceful in these trying times. The combination of the internet and off-line, meaning gigs will have your band benefit more than from just one profit source.
You can have great success as a musician.
Peace,
Mark
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