E urope - Parent Directory

might need different info to decide if you interest them. A record label
wants to know you have it all together: music, business, a fan base,
songwriting, etc. A club agent is mostly concerned with whether you
have a following that will bring paying business to his club.
12. Do make absolutely sure you have your address and phone number
(and your e-mail and website URL, if applicable) listed prominently.
This goes for all items in your press kit. Name, address, and number
on EVERYTHING. (Demo tape included!)
13. Read other bands’ bios. Compare and rewrite. Have other people read
and comment on what you write. Make sure it is grammatically
correct, with no typos. If you really feel yourself lacking in this area,
consider hiring someone to write your bio for you. A good bio is part
of the press kit that forms the first impression of your band. Don’t
mess it up.
Suzanne Glass is the founder of Indie-Music.com, an online magazine that
reviews dozens of independent artists each month, includes music chart s ,
audio & internet radio, and how-to-succeed articles for musicians, all at
no cost. A paid members option gets your music in rotation with stre a m i n g
audio, radio, multimedia advertising AND full access to our DIY music
i n d u s t ry database with over 7000 venues.
w w w. i n d i e - m u s i c . c o m
HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR FAN LIST
by Mark Brooks, Fanbridge
© 2009 All Rights Reserved. Used By Permission
Tips for your fan list
♦
1. Communicate Regularly
Some of our clients are able to write great newsletters each week for their
fans. They aren’t particularly long, but fans like hearing from the band and
it keeps the band fresh in each fan’s mind. Even if you can’t find the time
to do a weekly newsletter, you absolutely must send something, at the very
least, once per month. If you wait longer than a month between messages,
you are not going to maintain as strong a bond between the artist and fan as
you could.
2. Encourage Interaction
Many of our clients write their newsletters in a very ‘one way’ f a s h i o n .
This is not a newspaper, it’s the internet! Use the technology available and
ask questions of your fans. Do surveys! Maybe pick a winner out of all the
responses and give them a small token prize. Encourage your fans to
interact and they will look forward to your email each week/month. T h e y
will want to open your message and be the first to reply. It will become an
important event instead of just an afterthought.
3. Include Links to Places You Want Fans to Go
This one seems obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many bands do not
include a link to their website in each message. Not only should you be
including a link to your website, but you should have a link to your
MySpace/Facebook/etc. profile, your merch store, a place where they can
download your music, your tourdates, and anything else that’s important.
You’ll be surprised how much more traffic you get when you start
including links.
4. C reate a Special Event in Each Message
This one ties in with #2. If you can create a special event in each message,
fans will learn that your messages are important, and will not want to miss
any message from you. Examples of special events could be: a limited time
sale on CDs or other merchandise items, posting a list of upcoming
tourdates just for newsletter subscribers before they are released to the
general public, secret special downloads of live recordings or unreleased
material, contests to win backstage passes or signed merchandise, or any
other kind of special things your fans would crave.
5. Ask for H e l p
Fans signed up for your list because they want to hear from you and that
indicates a level of devotion to the band. Because of this, don’t be afraid to
ask for their help. Ask them to forward the newsletter on to their friends
(we automatically include a forward to a friend link in the footer of each
email you send). You can also ask for help with street teaming (putting up
posters in a town before a show), promoting online, looking for places to
sleep, ideas of other bands to tour with, ideas of venues to play in a city
you’ve never been to, and just about anything else. Your fans want to see
you succeed, so let them help you!
We hope you think about these 5 simple tips and incorporate them into
your fan communication strategy. They’ve worked for other artists, now
start making them work for you!
FanBridge.com is the world leader in fan list management for bands. The
company provides advanced email list and mobile messaging tools to
bands, saving valuable time and effort for musicians. With advanced
scheduling and targeting capabilities, the FanBridge platform enables
bands to send relevant and timely communications to their fans, ending the
ineffective practice of just blasting everyone at once. For more information
or to signup for free, please visit www. F a n B r i d g e . c o m
THE “T” IN TOUR MERCHANDISE STANDS FOR
T- S H I R T
by Gigi Swanson, M.G. Incentives Inc.
© 2009 All Rights Reserved. Used By Permission
♦
When you think of tour merchandise you might envision major label artists
playing large arenas and selling everything from tie-dye t-shirts, bumper
stickers, embroidered baseball caps and in the case of the Rolling Stone’s
famed Voodoo Lounge tour—a custom motorcycle.
But even if you are an independent artist you can run your business
like the big acts by utilizing an added revenue stream source—custom
merchandise. As an artist/performer you are selling an experience and fans
will buy a souvenir of that experience in the form of a CD, clothing,
buttons, posters, etc. As music fans we have all come home with something
more tangible than a ticket stub and it’s usually something we can wear.
The custom wearables market has plenty to choose from, but let’s
focus on the long held wardrobe staple—-the t-shirt. What better
promotion is there than a walking billboard to advertise who you are and
what you do. It’s generally inexpensive to produce and if made with goodquality
materials it can last a very long time. But better than that, there is a
healthy margin of profit in the sales of wearables, which can at least off s e t
or even cover your travel expenses.
You can package CDs with a T –shirt for an “added value” sales
incentive such as offering them “half off” with a CD purchase. You can use
them as door prizes or as a thank you for the sound guy or the waitress at
the clubs you play. The same applies for coffeehouse, church and house
concert gigs. Even when you play for free you can earn money and build
goodwill and name recognition.
D o n ’t think selling T- shirts is for more visible and established acts. If
you are playing out and selling CDs you can sell shirts. But before you
jump in, here are a few pointers to make your promotional dollars work for
y o u .
The most popular T- shirt is the basic crew neck. Not only is it low in
cost, it’s a style people are familiar with. As far as color options are
concerned, the sky is the limit with the least expensive being the standard
white, then the heathers/naturals, and then the darker colors. Besides the
basic tee, you can branch out with different styles such as ‘70s retro ringer
tees, baseball raglan tees and new styles made for women such as scoop
necks, baby-doll tees, and the new layered looks.
I prefer 100% cotton heavyweight Tees in the 6.0 oz range for long
term durability. Brands such as Gildan, Hanes, and Jerzees have been
common favorites for years. Heavier fabric is knitted tighter which enables
a better screen print, especially when using detail and four color process.
Plus they are typically cut larger and hold up better with multiple washings.
But you must think of the tastes of the end user and the image you are
trying to promote. T h a t ’s where fashion often comes in. Knowing your
audience is key.
For example, one of my Rap group clients goes for the extra large size
heavier weight tees, whereas a rock group client sells mostly light weight,
The Indie Bible – 10 th Edition www.indiebible.com