So, I found a link to a music promotion course that features a long bit of sales copy stating much of what I preach. Now, I’m not endorsing this course; mainly because I haven’t actually taken it, but I think the copy is worth a read.

If there’s one thing I’ve noticed it is that people seem to like a second opinion. If this helps to sway you to the dark side then so much the better. The point here is that
you need to understand the paradigm shift that’s going on and get in the position to take advantage of it. While I’m not fan of sensational clams (yet another reason I’m not endorsing this program), there is still a message that you need to her. So check out the copy and think it over.

…and if you do buy this course and there’s something to it let me know and I’ll look into it.

Disclosure/Update

As you can see from the comments section, I did in fact receive access to this course and several other courses on Mark Joyner’s Simpleology site, which are still available to me to this day.  I have not received any further compensation beyond access to these courses from Mr. Joyner or his associated companies.  While I have reviewed the course personally, I have no intention of posting any further coverage of the course on this site.  Please note that I DID NOT receive access to these courses prior to writing the original post and the original post was merely a link to the product’s ad copy, which contains comments about the music industry and Independent music that I happen to agree with. The course, however is not endorsed by myself or RockStar Machine, LLC.

This is a great service because if you have a professional looking setup (ie. a website, a press kit, a record, etc.), you’ll be able to project your band as a serious act and maybe get some coverage in the music media.

The reason I stress being professional is that the people that receive these releases get several of them all the time. Services like this make it easy for anyone to send them anything that they want and the majority of what that they get is unprofessional crap.

You need to distinguish yourself and the best way to do this is to put your best face on when you make contact. You should only send out a press release if you have something news worthy to promote. If you’re touring, releasing a record or have something else to publicize you can and should issue a press release. You shouldn’t send one out if you just finished a demo or formed a new band – this is bush league and the people that are neck deep in the business don’t have the time.

In running a music related site I can tell you that there are people out there that don’t much care where they’re sending things, they just send them. If you’re reading this site, you probably know that it is a music promotion site, yet I get countless form e-mails from musicians that ask for reviews or stories about their new demo. Besides having these e-mails sent to me with less than a thought about who they were actually sending them to, they failed to send out anything worth writing about. No one who can do anything about a great undiscovered band has the time to seek out every undiscovered band to see if they’re great. You need to impress them or you’re wasting your time.

If you’re having trouble figuring out what to release, think about the bands that you see covered in the music press. Not the Amy Whinehouse-tabloid end, but the business side. They get coverage for all of the business end stuff.

As for writing the release, you can also have them write it for you if you’re not up to it. This is probably best if you aren’t much of a writer or if you don’t know anyone who can write. The press release is written much like a news story and can look amateurish if not done well. There are many books on the subject, but if you need to get your release done and out it’s worth checking out their writing service.

So if you have your act together, and you have something worthwhile to promote, check out Beat Wire.

In a band or music sense, network and community is essentially what it’s all about, when it comes time to share your music around.

You or your band writes, performs, and records music true, but unless you’re a real purist, and enjoy your music for yourself, for the music, for your own CD rack at home alone then, at some point in time you may want to let others know about your band, your performances, and your music.

We know we are a band, and we know that we want to share our music. What you need next is Exposure.

It’s no good lining your best coat with your CD’s to wander the streets and flash passers by, as this only gives you limited exposure, except in the case that you are not wearing anything underneath your coat, in which case, there is too much exposure of the wrong kind.

You have to expose yourself to people that are receptive to what your exposing them to. Remember, I know you, you know me. I don’t know what’s under your coat!

Your friends and community is the best place to start presenting your offering. These are the people you can start exposing yourself to that will give you the best response!

Hey hang on a second; We are a band, we do want to share our music, we are willing to expose ourselves, but we do not really have a community apart from Jim’s girlfriend, and the guy over the fence who keeps complaining that the noise is too loud when we jam!

Get your own community. It’s not as hard as it may sound, especially these days with the abundance of communication power at your finger tips in the Internet. You can use the internet to reach out and communicate with millions upon millions of people all over the planet with the click of a button.

Click.

“Hey you! This is me and this is what I have got!”
“Hey back! This is me, and I like what you’ve got!”
“Hey you! – Come join my community and we can talk”

There are plenty of web based community sites out there well worth exploring, and you should join more than one! This is because there is not just one single community web site out there that will reach everyone. Your best chances in exposure is to have your presence, music and community groups all happening in a few of them. Once you have done that then you can link them all up together to get the best coverage.

In all of these existing web based communities, the best potentials for maximum exposure take time. You have to build your name and community size.

The likes of Myspace in my opinion are good, and worth while having a presence in, but it will take time to get noticed in amongst the millions of other exposure seekers. It’s a hard nut to crack. There are simply so many other people trying to expose themselves that you get lost in the wash of those who are already established, and it is difficult to get noticed.

The very best opportunities come when you can get into communities at the start. Be the first in. Get a great foot hold. Get your own name. Be active, and get the exposure that you are after.

You want attention, go to where you will be easily noticed!

Mobzing is another name to explore. The new beast on the block web based community site. Sure, the exposure may not yet be in line with Myspace, but when it grows, when it builds as it is and surely will, you will be established as one of the founding members and be getting all of the attention.

As I said, to get maximum exposure you have to be involved in a few community sites, then link them all together. Here is a short list in my opinion of a few worth while web based contenders to start with, to network in, and to check out.

http://www.myspace.com
http://www.mobzing.com
http://www.friendster.com

Sign up. Get exposed. “Hey I know you!…. Check this out!”

You know me. I know you. You know someone else. I know someone different. We all know each other. These are our networks and communities. In a band or music sense, network and community is essentially what it’s all about, when it comes time to share your music around.

About The Author

Mason Clay provides regular commentary on the communications and technology industry. To get a free ringtone for your cell phone please visit http://www.hiptonez.com.

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Chingo Bling is an independent rap artist, who describes his core audience as The Taco Circuit, a scene that exists, as the article puts it, “where ever there are Mexicans.” By focusing on Mexicans as his target market, Chingo Bling’s Big Chile Entertainment has been able to carve out its own niche and develop a successful independent record label.

His label, started in 2001, has been growing steadily since its founding. Chingo Bling, born Pedro Herrera III, started out selling mix tapes out of the back of his truck. In 2004, he released Tamale Kingpin, selling 17,000 copies of the record according to SoundScan.

They can’t Deport Us All, released August 14^th of this year, has already sold 6000 copies; an impressive amount when you consider that Paris Hilton, with all of her money and star power, only managed to sell 7500 copies of her album. They Can’t debuted at number 11 on Billboard’s hip-hop chart, and number 4 on their Heatseekers chart.

While They can’t Deport Us All has gotten Chingo Bling national attention, it is also made him the target of conservative journalists and bloggers. It seems that his decision to incorporate immigration related themes into the marketing of his new album has also gotten him some unwanted attention. According to Wikipedia, Chingo Bling alleges that his family’s good and taco truck has been shot at, vandalized and was eventually stolen. He also says that he’s received racist death threats.

Despite the negative attention he has received, Chingo Bling is enjoying growing success. He has signed a new distribution deal with Warner/Asylum that lets him distribute to a wider market while still retaining ownership of his masters. He has also gotten a lot of media coverage, including articles in The Source, XXL, Complex and appearances on MTV. He is also recognized by many hip hop artists with mainstream success, like Nelly, Paul Wall and Chamillionaire.

We’re posting this because it’s an example of how an artist can manage their own career and get the type of exposure that they need to be successful. To sum it up, here’s a quote from the article in which Chingo Bling talks about his approach:

“It’s very fundamental,” he says with a laugh. “My theory is, you can’t worry about the finish line. It’s like basketball: Instead of worrying about winning, you should worry about dribbling the basketball. A lot of kids worry about getting signed instead of worrying about posting your blog, getting on YouTube, putting up posters on poles, passing out fliers. I’m not above that. I have no shame.”

If you ready yesterday’s post on alternatives to terrestrial radio, you caught the part about satellite radio’s unsigned artist programs. Well, here is a post about exactly how to submit to XM’s unsigned artist channel, XMU 43.

The first thing that you need to do is download the submission form from here (pdf document). Fill it out the form clearly and be sure to fill out the part at the end about which two songs they should evaluate for on-air consideration. Do not list more than two songs and make sure that these songs are your best two songs – ask friends if they agree with your selection as you are a bit biased about this.

Send your submissions to Billy Zero, program director for XMU:

Billy Zero
Program Director, XMU
XM Satellite Radio

1500 Eckington Place NE
Washington, DC

20002

Here’s the submission guidelines that XMU requires:

1. - Submissions must be in CD-format.
2. - All submissions are non-returnable.
3. - By submitting your music, you give consent to have your music played on XM Satellite Radio.
4. - XM Radio, in its sole discretion, shall decide whether or not to play a song.
5. - Please make a notation of the tracks you recommend for airplay.
6. - If a submission is selected for airplay, XM Radio will report all spins to ASCAP/SESAC/BMI and Sound Exchange. Artists who are members of these performing rights societies will be eligible for royalties.
7. - Please, no phone calls or emails regarding the receipt and/or airplay of submissions. If your music is selected for airplay, you will be contacted by Billy Zero.

XM also recommends that you copyright your music before you send it (a suggestion that we here at RSM happen to agree with).

Useful links:

U.S. Copyright office

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)

SESAC

BMI

Sound Exchange

XMU – XM 43 Music Submission Information

XMU Submission Form – pdf

Radio has always been a huge part of the music industry, yet in recent years the landscape has changed.  With the iPod replacing the Walkman and the growing field of alternatives to terrestrial radio, you need to rethink your radio strategy.

In the golden age of terrestrial radio, stations would reach tens of thousands (or more) in their local market.  If you got played on one of these stations, you would have had gotten your music in the ears of a lot of people.  That said, there generally wasn’t much that could be done in the sense of targeting your audience; your music was played with whatever broad genre it fell under.  These stations tried to appeal to the masses, so they stuck to safe “proven” hits and rarely took a chance on any new music.  For those with selective tastes this steady stream of top 40 genre music was hard to swallow.  Fans of classic songs, for instance, would have to sit through “new” music to hear the songs that they wanted and fans of newer hits had to sit through classics that might not be so classic to them.

Now radio has many faces and most of them don’t even appear on the AM/FM dials.  College and independent radio stations have always been friendly to unsigned musicians and can really be considered the only terrestral radio venues worth trying to get on.  Internet radio is also a great place for indies.  Heather McDonald, About.com’s Guide to Music Careers, wrote this article about how unsigned artists get much more exposure on internet radio than terrestrial radio.  Then there’s podcasts, which cover all types of music and music scenes.  There’s also satellite radio, which supports independant and unsigned musicians as well.  Both XM and Sirius have programs for unsigned artists and genre specific stations that, in many cases play music from indiependant labels.

As you can see, there are now many places for you to get you music played.  While it’s a lot of work to research and contact so many different broadcast outlets, it is much easier to get your music played on them and much more effective as well.

These days you can target your specific sub-genre and reach more potential fans.  By specifically targeting fans of your genre you are limiting the exposure that you get, but you’re concentrating the exposure you are getting to people that are more inclined to appreciate what they hear.  It’s better to reach 100 potential fans than 10,000 people who’d rather listen to something completely different.

So do your research, find the stations and podcasts that play your genre of music and contact them… oh yeah, and have something to send to them.

Promoting a band can be a full time job. This is why record labels have huge promotions and marketing department. While most independent artists go it alone, there is an advantage that some bands can exploit to make promotion much easier. Delegation.

Bands have more than one member; all of whom are personally invested in the success of their band, which means that the promotional duties can be split up. Splitting up tasks can result in more being done in less time or increased results in the same amount of time.

Say, for instance the typical promotion plan for a band consists of booking shows, flyering, online promotion and merchandising. Well, these four tasks can easily be split between 3-4 band members. As a result, the members responsible for each will get better at handling their tasks and the time spent on them will decrease while the results increase.

If you are constantly contacting clubs for gigs, you’ll begin to learn the ins and out of booking and start to develop a technique or pitch. Progressively you’ll begin to get better and as you’re skill increases, you’ll begin to book better shows at better venues. The same is true for all other aspects of promotion.

If your only responsibility, outside of playing, is to master a specific marketing technique, your learning curve decreases dramatically and you get very good very fast.

Of course, there is always the plague of bands that makes this technique a bit less cut and dry as it may seem – musicians have a higher probability of being flaky. This is a common thing, which is why most bands have a clear leader as far as the business is concerned. Needless to say, if you’re reading this right now, you’re probably the leader (or at least one of the responsible ones).

Don’t let this technique cause problems within the band. If you have a member or members that aren’t very responsible, don’t delegate tasks of vital or even moderate importance. Delegation works best when people are given tasks that play to their strengths.

While this idea is meant to help make your marketing efforts more productive, causing unnecessary tension will cause the opposite. Use your judgment and give it a try.

There are several benefits to this that may not be immediately recognizable. For instance, you could invite people that haven’t yet heard your band yet, which lets them check you out for free on a night when they probably don’t have any plans. It takes the pressure off of them having to make it out to see a band that they’ve never heard just because they know one or more of the members. Now, when you have a show, they already know what you sound like and would feel more comfortable inviting friends of theirs to come with them.

Open practices also encourage a social scene around your band. If you invite people that don’t know each other they can meet and become familiar. Now, when they see each other at shows, they aren’t strangers.

If you make your practices open you also get the benefits that we often encourage on this site: experience playing in front of people and a chance to get feedback from the people that are there. These practices are not formal shows, so you don’t need to worry about messing up, or entertaining those who come. They know it’s a practice, so after you finish a song, you can ask them what they thought.

Many bands already do this, and it does work. They generally keep most of their practices open and occasionally have closed practices to write, work on ideas, or work on their weak areas. Typically arrange these ahead of time so that no one invites people on those days. When they do have open practices, everyone usually hangs out afterward. It’s really a good time.

If they can make it work, you can too. Just remember that you are still there to practice. Don’t let the people that you invite distract you from actually practicing. This can be a problem as well, but a little discipline should keep things on track. If you find that the people you invite are too much of a distraction, you should have more closed practices and less open ones.

Give it a try. Order a pizza, buy a six pack and have at it. Even if it doesn’t work, at least you can have a little fun while trying something new.

There are, however times when you can and should skip rehearsals for something more important – like to play a show. Besides the obvious benefits of playing a show (i.e. exposure, possible payment, etc.), any pro will tell you that playing live is one of the best ways to improve your playing, both as an individual and as a band.

There really is no way to practice that truly simulates playing live. You have to be on, because it’s for real and getting used to that pressure is essential to performing at your best. It builds confidence and gives you the experience that you need to get better. By playing more shows instead of practicing, you can see where you need work and concentrate on those areas; thus when you practice you’re more productive.

These are pretty much the only reasons to make practice a top priority:

• - You’re a new band and aren’t nearly as tight as you should be.
• - You have a new song (or songs) that you need to work on.
• - You’ve booked a tour and you need to work on your total performance.
• - One of the members is new, or is having a hard time with some of the songs.
• - You haven’t played in a while (shame on you).
• - You’ve identified a weak area that you need to improve on.

These are about the only reasons that you should forgo a show for more practice, but you shouldn’t make it a habit. Other valid reasons may come up as well, so you really need to use good judgment when they come up. Still, you shouldn’t let there be too much of a lapse in live performances, as they are your bread and butter. Get through these delays in as short a time as possible and move on.

Again, experience is the best training there is.

What do you do when something goes wrong? Any number of things can happen up there and how you deal with them is an important part of your total show. Screw-ups happen, it’s a fact of life and you need to accept that and move on. When something goes wrong in the middle of a performance you have to be at a place where you can recover quickly and forget it happened.

The only way to do this is to go out and play. Don’t let practice be an excuse for not getting experience.

What you need to understand about MySpace music is that your profile is, in fact, a website. If you were to hire a web designer to build a site for your band, you’d want a quality site that looked good and worked well. Why then would you put up a profile that barely works and looks awful?

Since you don’t need to be a great web designer to customize your MySpace profile, many people will go about tweaking their profiles with MySpace profile editors. They are, for the most part, easy to use in that you usually tell the editor what you want and it generates code that you stick into your profile. Now here’s the thing, these editors are a dime a dozen. They don’t really do much besides generate some simple HTML that MySpace interprets and applies to the profile that it’s included in, so people looking to generate traffic for their sites or promote something will put up these editors in hopes of luring MySpacers to their sites. They often don’t put much thought into these code generators, and as a result they spit out bad code.

Besides all that, people then go through and embed all sorts of silly things into their profiles that result in pages that take about 5 minutes to load (and I have a cable connection).

If you’re using MySpace music to promote your music, here’s a list of things that you should do to make your profile fit your personality without turning people away:

Use a good MySpace profile editor – Go to the top ranking music profiles and see what they’re doing. Notice that the profiles are usually well designed, well proportioned and actually work like they’re supposed to. Chances are you’ll find a link to a good editor in one of the profiles toward the top of the rankings. Use these editors for better results.

Check your profile on as many internet browsers as you can – the two most popular browsers are Internet Explorer and FireFox. Check your profile on these and see how it loads. If it doesn’t look right, try to regenerate the code from the editor and reinsert it. If that doesn’t work, use a different editor. (I put a button on the bottom of this post that leads to the download for FireFox if you don’t already have it)

Don’t go crazy with the background image. Avoid super colorful images to put up as a background on your profile. If the image that you use contains the same colors as your text, you’ll camouflage the text and make your site a nightmare to read. For example, if you’re using black text, don’t use a background image with black all over it. The text should contrast with the background; dark text, light colored background/ light text, dark colored background. And no, a lighter or darker shade of the same color is not OK.

Make sure that your profile interface lines up – the whole point of these profiles is to promote social interaction by adding friends, sending messages and so on. Editing the interface that this is done through so that it looks good does nothing if it doesn’t work properly. If someone wants to add you as a friend, they should be able to click the <add> button without having to search for it or be sent to, say, the message section.

Your profile is for your band – it is not a personal profile that just happens to feature your band. Keep all graphics from other bands on your personal profile if you must have them. Any graphics on your band’s profile should be for or of your band.

If you must post a bunch of pictures, do it in your profile’s blog. Keep the main profile page free of unnecessary things so that it will load quickly and not cause problems for your viewer.

In short, keep it simple. MySpace Music offers everything that you need from the start. Customizing it does make it more unique, but remember that these profiles are not for you, they’re for your fans. Be creative with your music, and let your profile deliver it.