You’re a Rockstar, well almost…
Technology, gadgets,
internet yadda yadda yadda. I wanna rock! Most musicians spend enough time
writing rehearsing and polishing up their material to have any time left for
promoting and marketing. The sad truth is unless you’ve got a huge fan base,
you cannot make a buzz in the industry without promotion and marketing. My
musician buddies have no idea of the internet music-world that exists outside
the rehearsal room. They seem to think that your material will magically get
radio play and the fans will crawl out of the woodwork. Thus the need for a quick little marketing
primer!
Promoting your band has no
real rules. It’s whatever works. The bottom line is to build a buzz. A band
website is a good idea, but lots of website visitors really means nothing if
you don’t have a product or a show to announce. Although getting a record deal
still seems like a quest for the holy grail, the rules of that game have
changed as well.
Create a buzz, build a
following, sell product, make an impact so that you have a bargaining chip in a
record deal. Actually, now, record deals have changed drastically. Think about
it like this – if you are selling your own product on itunes, or napster,
snocap, or where ever, why do you need a record deal? You obviously have a
completed cd. Old school record deals consisted of a sort a loan of types for
recording, studio time, producers, engineers, record pressing, and promotion.
If you already have the product, all you need is promo and marketing. This really
is called a distribution deal. That is what you are after. You cannot compete
with the might of the record industry’s distribution network unless you have a
lot of money. Their network has been built over several decades and they have
the market locked up tight as a drum. You can utilize their resources with a
distro deal. Enough about record deals. Back top basics. You need to promote
your band, use the power of the internet! Here are some up and coming companies
you should really check out;
Youlicense - The
Online Music Licensing Marketplace
YouLicense has developed a platform which enables artists and those seeking
musical content to conduct business directly with one another in a safe and
secure environment. Their unique search engine and standardized contracts allow
for a quick and easy process.
Zooped - Business, Music and Personal Blogging Social Network
With Zooped you can connect with old friends, make new friends and connect with
local businesses. Build your own play list up to 15 songs for your profile
page, musicians can share up to 10 songs with their fans. Zooped is compatible
with any MSRS, customize your profiles easily.
Ripple9 - Mobile Promotion for Musicians
Ripple9's mission is to enable musicians to reach the broadest audience
possible, and to be appropriately rewarded. Ripple9 helps you promote your
music as effectively as possible in a digital world: get your music in your
fans pants, remind fans to come to your gigs, accelerate and manage the growth
of your fan list. The service takes advantage of the fact that every one your
fans, or fans-to-be has a mobile phone in their pocket , and that they know how
to send and receive text and picture messages.
Criticalmetrics - Music Recommendations Across all Media
Every week, artists, DJs, music tv networks, newspapers, magazines, retailers,
and bloggers recommend hundreds of their favorite new songs. Critical Metrics
keeps track of recommendations and playlists across all media so you can easily
find, try, and buy the best new music.
Grooveshark - Discover New Music
Grooveshark is an online service that rewards you for sharing, reviewing, and
discovering new music. Get rewarded for sharing your songs and music; Keep all
of your current songs and import your own playlists; Discover music and receive
personalized recommendations; Sync your library with any player from iPods to
iRivers
Bandbuzz.com Get the Buzz on New and unknown Bands
BandBUZZ was developed to enable millions of internet users to discover new,
independent music without the intervention of slick marketing reps or data
analysts. You won’t find any algorithms here trying to mimic your taste while
secretly collecting your preferences to sell to record companies. You won’t be
solicited by corporations posing as teenage girls in bikinis who want to be
your friend. And, most importantly, as an artist, you retain the rights to your
music. BandBUZZ puts the power back in your hands.
ijigg - Discover
New Music
If you consider your self as a music artist and would like to expose your
creation to the world, you should try iJigg. You'll be able to easily upload
your music files and share it with others on the site itself or via emails,
blog/site embed and even post it to your facebook account. This great site is
not just for artists. It is for every one who like to listen to music and
discover good new songs.
snocap - SNOCAP your Tracks
SNOCAP has a vision for the digital music marketplace: to bring more music to
more people through more outlets. Through the SNOCAP proprietary Digital
Registry, artists and labels are empowered to easily promote and sell their
music through digital retailers or through their own unique artist store. In
turn, these retailers have a growing inventory, offering more music to more
music fans.
projectopus - Supporting Bands, Fans and Local Music Everywhere
Project Opus is an online music community designed to support artists, fans and
local music. It is a single point of contact for discovery of new music.
Amie.st -
Your Independent Music Fix
destination for buying and selling independent music, a place where fans and
artists are in control. Amie
Street uses a community based pricing model for
selling music: All songs start free and go up in price the more they are
purchased. Artists take home 70%, they are not required to sell exclusively on Amie Street, and Amie Street does
not take any ownership of their music.
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