Have you ever noticed as your walking down the street that it would seem a hydrogen bomb made up of paper flyers went off next to every Live Music Venue in the city covering the street from sidewalk to lamp post in a barrage of Band Flyers?
There is a better way to promote your live shows for all you ground pounders that make up the wonderful and much appreciated street teams other than pasting show flyers on every available space you come across including the backs of each passing pedestrian, try an audible flyer. Just think about it from your own perspective, are you going to pay more attention to a bands up coming show if you were handed the average show flyer we see everyday which doesn?t give you a clue to who the band is or what they sound like, or a Audible Flyer CD with 1-3 songs and a couple press photos of the band that you can check out in the car or at home on the computer? Put together a basic and cheap CD with photos and music from your band and on the case or sleeve of the CD have info on your upcoming show so that when the person listens to your music and likes what they hear they then can come see you play Live and that is all there is to a simple and effective alternative for your outdated Flyers.
It is very important as a musician to heave a well put together press kit that will help steam roll your path to success in the music industry. Press kits are also commonly called ?media kits? and ?artist bio? but they all used for the same thing which is to help with Music Promotion, Music Publicity, Booking Agents and Band Promotion. There are a lot of bands out there all gunning for the same venues, radio play and magazine interviews which is why you are more likely to successfully snag all of these opportunities with the Press kit I?m going to help you build.
Lets get started with the basics and go from there:
COVER- A first impression is a lasting impression so make sure this aspect of your press kit really shines, let this be the part that introduces you to the venues, radio stations and magazines. Include what genre of music you play, your band logo (eye catching) and your contact information for the band (Myspace, Website, Phone numbers and email).
ARTIST INTRO PAGE (Bio)- Start off by introducing your group followed by the band members (if any), follow that with the style of music you play and list any genres you may have. Go into naming some quality venues, clubs etc. you have played at in the past and which cities or regions they were in. Also list important equipment you may have such as amps, PA, Microphones, lights, etc. and any personal you may have that runs the production for your shows. Talk about your fan base, include the size of it and how you communicate with them. List any street team supporters you may have and where they are located. Make sure to differentiate between original music or cover music depending on which one relates to your style and also if you?re an acoustic or electric act. List any promoting techniques you may use to help bring people to your shows seeing how this is the only way to make any money at live venues it is a very important part to getting venues to book your show. List any websites, social networking sites and or flyers you use for promoting shows and music presence. One way to get started is to attend open mic. Nights and leave your press kits with venue managers after the show in hopes of getting a gig in the future.
ARTIST PHOTOS- Lets take a look at why it is so very important to have good photos before we talk about how to acquire them. Take a look around at today?s communication behaviors and you will quickly notice that visual imagery is king in the world?s communication. You see it no matter where you are and it would seem that almost everyday new technology comes out that even furthers how we view this media on a day to day basis. This should be setting off a little red alarm in you head telling you that if this is true then it must be vital the way people are viewing you which brings us back to your photos. First impressions are lasting impressions so if you really want to have those in the industry and amongst the music community to take you seriously you will want to get some Professional 8x10?s taken of your music group or single act. Be resourceful in about getting your photos, be sure to shop around and maybe ask friends and family if they know of anyone that can help you out. There isn?t really any need to spend a fortune here if you take your time and do some research first. Have fun with this as well, use your imagination and come up with some fun ways to accurately portray your music.
Booking Information - This is the section of your press kit that contains all of your Booking Information such as the best way to contact you, preferences in types of shows and areas you can travel to perform. It is important to have your contact info in multiple places through out your Press Kit so go ahead and add your phone number and address again in this section as well.
Demo CD You are rarely going to run across a club or venue that will agree to have you come play before they have heard your music and the best way to have them take is a listen is to create a Demo CD. The Demo CD should consist of 2-4 songs each being the best of your material, this is the time to really show them your good stuff. Once again add your contact info to the label that will be placed on this Demo CD which should also include your band name and the list of songs on it. All of this is to help ensure that even if the person or venue you gave the press kit to looses the kit, there might be a good chance that your CD could still be floating around along with how to contact you for gigs. Spend some time into a nice looking CD Cover and label so that who ever sees it will know that you are serious about your music.
SONGS LINEUP Put together a list of your songs that your band might play on a average basis including the best of any cover songs you might add in with your original work. If you might be wanting to do anything else such as a light show or some sort of skit on stage this would be the place to add that in as well.
SHOWS SHEET Your bands shows sheet should include any past gigs you have played and any future ones that you have already lined up to perform at.
BAND / MUSIC REVIEWS To show credibility of your bands music it is very important to include any Music Reviews or news paper clippings on your band into your press kit. If you do not have any of those items then you might want to start getting your music out to resources that can do a review for you such as local newspapers and organizations like www.LocalProMoConnect.com
BUSINESS CARDS- Were not saying that you have to present your self as some corporation only aimed at making money but we are saying that you need to treat your music as a base line business which means you will need a card to pass around at every show you go to. You can include your Independent acts business card in the mix of your press kit as well as always keeping a few on you at all times in case you run into the right person that will be able to help you out. You can make your own business cards at almost any copy store for a relatively good deal seeing how they are only made up of paper and ink. And almost every word program comes with a few templates you can use at home and have printed on card stock paper or even just very thick regular paper. Make sure to include your bands Name, Phone, Contact Name, Websites, Email, and any logos you might have to represent your act. You might want to make up a small batch of high quality cards to pass around to industry reps and a bigger batch of average business cards to pass around to the common person but it is up to you and your budget to determine how and when this is all possible.
ENVELOPE- Depending on who your planning to receive your press kit you might want to come up with two very different designs for the envelope it will be going into. Your going to want to stand out in a pile of many envelopes so be sure to use a load color and unique design that captures the attention of the beholder to ensure your press kit wont be overlooked on the desk or in the file cabinet of a venue owner or booking agent. On the other hand you will want to be a bit more settle when it comes to sending your press kit out to record labels or industry reps so try to think of a design that is appealing to the eye but not to distracting. Just be sure to have both styles ready to go on a moments notice in case you have to send them out or hand them off to any and everyone that might be able to help further your musical career. Thanks you for following along with us on successfully building your press kit and we hope all the best to your near future and utilizing these tools.
Don?t underestimate your local music community and their interest in discovering new talent right out of their own backyard because most radio stations, news papers, promoters etc. love to add your upcoming show to their listings. Start gathering a list of contacts from your community that might be able to help promote your show via the Internet or even a phone book, it might take a couple phone calls, emails and probably even a couple NOs before you have some numbers and names of those willing to help out but you never will know unless you try. The next time you have a show coming up and have a couple weeks to promote it, call up those contacts with the details of your show so they can list it and you are sure to have more music goers attend.
The last thing you should be thinking about your fellow musicians, are that they are a rival to compete with. When you think the term ?Battle of the Bands? you might think that bands are competing against each other but that shouldn?t be the case, after all isn?t all about the music and not about winning? Ok so maybe you don?t necessarily like everyone out there in the world of music, in fact in a lot of ways being involved in your local music community as an artist can bee similar to high school all over again. All that he said she said unnecessary talk about each others music and performances can get old real quick and benefits no one. Instead of fighting over gigs and refusing to play with one another you should be more concentrated on cooperating and networking together to make ideas such as a local music festival come true.
When it comes to getting your lineup together think Quality over Quantity, all it takes anymore to really get your music career rolling is just one good song and then of course the rest is up to you to from there. Although it is still important to keep the creativity flowing by always working on new material, just be sure not to make every new project part of you line up because lets face it no is going to want to come out and see you play when it sounds like you gave your instruments to a class of 6th graders all with A.D.D. and couldn?t make up their mind which 3-90 songs they liked the best.
Great, so you have collected enough musicians to start your own rock band and put together a lineup that is sure to rock the socks off of anyone listening?but where do you find the listeners?
One of the first things any newly formed band can do to help get their rock stardom off the ground and moving forward is to start building your loyal fan base, this doesn?t mean litter the streets with flyers or painting your bands name over billboards but rather starting with those who love you for who you are already Yes I am talking about your family! Once you have your first show in place be sure to give an invite out to everyone one you know already such as friends and family, these are the fans that will make it out to every show and give you support that otherwise might not be found from the 10 strangers you practically kidnapped off the streets and dragged into the venue kicking and screaming. Give it a shot and the next thing you know they will be telling their friends that your music is worth coming out to see live on a Friday night and over the course of a year or two your loyal fan base will have been created?depending whether or not your music doesn?t sound like someone scraping a chalk board with their finger nails but HEY even some people like the sound of that as well.
Have you ever thought about how many new bands you are introduced to on a weekly, monthly or even yearly basis? That? right more than you can remember which is exactly our point.
Promoting your music online can be down right frustrating and even discouraging at times which is why we encourage bands always to try and work together rather on their own. A lot of work goes into promoting your band on the internet and is simply just too much for any one band to do on their own and for those of you that don? have helping hands to run your bands Myspace page and webpage it is even more difficult. Try contacting a couple different bands that have a similar sound to yours and ask them to swap banners with you, the chances are that if someone likes their music they will no doubt enjoy yours as well and to bring us back to our opening comment we always have room for one more new band.
How can you effectively measure your bands success in the music world unless you set some goals and a timeline to achieve them by? The answer is you can?t not with out putting them down on paper and discussing them with every member of the band. First you have got to get together and seriously discuss what you would like to get out of being in a band and where you would like to take it. After finding out what you would like to do the next step is to develop a plan on how to get there. Set a date on when you would like to reach each goal and then find out how you can research and gain knowledge on each topic. Try to set up appointments with those who have already gone through this process and see what advice they may have to offer. This may not solve all your problems or get you to the music status you would like to be right away but you will know what needs to be worked on and at least have a plan of action on how to get there.