Are Musicians Using "All" Of Their Creative Talents When Promoting And Marketing?

I was looking at a new Comic Book released by a Major artist the other day,
and started asking myself the question…

Why do so many independent artists limit their online promotional
activities to spamming Facebook and peoples email addresses with links
and postings that simply say: “hey check out my new track!”

Is that really the boundary of their creative marketing ideas?

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Pitching Your Band

If you were presented with the opportunity to pitch your band directly to the Chief A&R representative for Capital Records, what would you say? If there was a venture capitalist looking to invest into the dreams of one band, how would you convince them to choose you? If your favorite band was in town and looking for an opener, what would you tell the promoter about your act?

Being able to pitch your band is one of the most important steps in being able to book shows, secure sponsorships, get a booking agent/manager, receive press, and even to getting on a label. It’s also one of the areas that I see independent musicians struggling with the most. Even though I have a disclaimer on LastStopBooking.com that we are not accepting submissions, I still receive about 50-100 EPK submissions and query letters per week. 90% of these sound the same: the band describes themselves as having “great music,” and they almost always say they are different than other artists because they are “hardworking.”

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Music Without Labels Seeking Submissions for New Web Series!

Hello Everyone!

I am the spokesperson for Music Without Labels & Beat-Play LLC.  MWL is an umbrella for many music projects, ideas and conversation. The MWL Live just wrapped up a on a 15,000 mile cross-country video tour covering the hottest summer musicians and artists across the country. We featured several great bands such as Portugal. The Man, Datsik, The Lonely Forest, Yann Tiersen, Carina Round, Vintage Trouble, Dry the River, Washed Out, Gardens & Villa, Fun. and many more! Check out the MWL Live Tour 2012 videos here. 

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Paina B Music Marketing is asking Indie Artists and Indie Labels….Who handles your marketing?

Music Marketing Company looking for new clients to “Promote to the next level”

(ATLANTA, GA), August 1, 2012 – Paina B Music Marketing is launching a new campaign “Who handles your marketing?” in hopes to recruit indie artists and labels to promote to the next level. This company is looking to take on new clients to provide quality marketing services to them in hopes gain exposure in the entertainment industry. Launched in December 2010, Paina B has worked with pop, rap, and R&B artists in providing ways to enhance their brand according to the artists’/label’s goals and objectives.

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SoundCloud Powered Résumé for Music Professionals

Music professionals often find traditional résumés inadequately showcase their talents, instead having to link to content across the web to show off their skills. But now with professional networking site Zerply they can connect their SoundCloud audio tracks to their digital profiles to create an audio portfolio alongside their résumé.

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And the award goes to…….

Celebrating the small wins

All artists want to be recognized for their craft/art. And recognition can come in many forms. The main forms of recognition, that artists often go after, generally falls under the categories of awards, high sales, popular media exposure, and other opportunities/offers within the entertainment industry. However, some artists will not get these on large scales.  If you find yourself in the latter scenario then don’t hesitate to celebrate the small wins/recognitions. Since the world isn’t making a big deal about it….YOU should make a big deal about it. Get people involved and get them to care about what you’ve accomplished. Hey you worked hard to earn it….why not brag about it?!?!

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Jammio - An Online Community For Music Collaboration and Marketing.

(Dallas, TX) June 20, 2012 - Jammio, LLC. is launching Jammio.com (Beta): An online collaboration tool for musicians to both market their services and securely request the services of other like-minded artists.

Jammio.com provides community profiles and a marketplace that showcases artists’ current works and helps them to develop unique future works. The social website provides a basis for artists to collaborate free of political borders and financial hindrances. No matter the vision of the artist, there is a place for them on Jammio.com.

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How Can I Get A Record Deal?

. There have been more than enough bands and artists that have “made” it by grinding the old-fashion way and that’s ‘hustle’, pure and simple. Don’t overcomplicate this exercise. You don’t need a business plan or a LLC. You don’t even need financing. If you live in a large town play the local clubs for a fee, donations, or a part of the door receipts or whatever you can bargain for. If you live in a small town hold shows in the local bar, park or even in your garage and charge a fee to attend. Once you make enough money, produce your own record

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LinksWeaver - a service for anyone in the creative industries

A new service launches soon that brings together creative people from all backgrounds, creating partnerships and teams to help complete the great ideas and amazing projects that users come up with. Think Filmmaker needing a soundtrack or effects for his film, or someone with a great idea for an Ipad game needing skilled people to help them build it. Whatever your idea might be, LinksWeaver can help.

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Microphone Marketing

A microphone is actually a miniature speaker. It works like the human ear; it “listens” for sound waves, then translates and reproduces the signal to send it to the brain (or sound system). Until a microphone is used to magnify a person’s voice, it is just a speaker. A microphone is great for certain applications: events where a speaker or singer need to be heard or for grabbing someone’s attention. The problem is that unless it is a message that a person is listening for or wants to hear (such as a concert that the person has paid for), the message can get tuned out just like all of the other noise in our lives.

Think for a moment about the messages you hear when you fly somewhere. Every two minutes in the airport terminal, a voice interrupts the music playing overhead to announce a “high priority security alert,” only to tell you that it is important to watch your bags. These messages tend to get ignored. When you board the plane, flight attendants ask for everyone’s full attention while they go through life-dependent emergency procedures (they even ask for you to follow along in the safety guide). However, if you look around the plane, you’ll see that hardly anyone is listening – people are reading, listening to music, or distracting themselves with little games. Even though our lives may depend on knowing these procedures, our eyes tend to glaze over and we think “I’ve heard it all before.” Yet, we music marketers kid ourselves into thinking that certain ads will be given the attention we hope simply because it’s being broadcasted.

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I'm your #1 Fan....what would you call me?

We’ve all heard of the “Beliebers”, “Barbies”, “Armies”, “Angels”, and “Navies”, if you haven’t, these names represent a musician’s fans/fan club. Have you ever thought about putting a fan club or group together? If not, then maybe you should start. Nothing will get your fans more riled up to come out and support than placing a “brand” on them as well. This will also help you to stand out and continue the awareness for yourself in this industry.

When looking to name the brand of your fans, find something that is creative and that coincides with your image and/or stage name. This will make it easier for media, potential fans, and industry professionals connect you with your fan club/group. Also, look for a logo that is similar to your own (if you have one) to place on merchandise, social media pages, and your website. Start creating the buzz about your group by reaching out to your fans first. Thank them for their support and congratulate them on being the first members of your fan group.

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Music Mobile Marketing

Mobile marketing is a relatively new field in marketing that many artists and brands haven’t really adopted yet. With the vast majority of the American population owning a mobile phone, its surprising that many brands have yet to start using this medium as an option to reach consumers.

Mobile marketing is a great way for artists to keep in touch with their fans and notify them of when they are coming into their city. Since, mobile marketing is an addition to the many forms of marketing which are currently available in today’s landscape, it’s important that the mobile marketing doesn’t come off as a nuisance to the consumer. Musicians should carefully plan how they will utilize each form of marketing to reach consumers, and make sure that they don’t overlap, or else it could lead to bombarding the consumer through different marketing mediums.

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Bad Press...Take It of Leave It (from BRASH! - A Music Marketing Blog)

“People gonna talk about you ’til the day you die; and there ain’t nothing you can do about it.” This is one of my favorite Madea movie quotes because this is true.  Especially in the entertainment industry where artists are constantly being watched, attacked, and ridiculed for making life’s mistakes or even for things that are blown out of the water by the press. A few artists escape the daily bashing by flying under the radar and keeping a simple private life.  While others feed on the bad press to stay relevant and/or capture attention towards their latest project.  But is exposure for your music REALLY worth the negative press?

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Take this Idea – The Buy One, Give One Album

I have always been fascinated by the buy one, give one model of doing business. As far as I know, it was pioneered by Tom’s Shoes and it’s brilliantly simple. When you buy a pair of Tom’s shoes for yourself, another pair is given to someone in need. It works because people like doing nice things for people, especially if they don’t have to make any additional effort. So I was thinking recently how this model might apply to music. While it’s no secret that I think emerging artists should not charge for their music, I had an idea for those who are either not ready for that idea or who are already selling enough that they don’t have to give anything away. It’s simple – the “Buy One, Give One” album.

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