Music Marketing [dot] com

2-Year Old Smarter Than Average Musician

Or...why musicians send out press kits to a ton of people without doing research.

A really good topic.

I'm sure there are a ton of reasons, but the #1 seems to be that licking a bunch of envelopes is brain-dead work which makes people feel like they're getting a lot accomplished.

It takes absolutely no thought to go through (insert music directory here), copy dozens (or even hundreds) of addresses, pack a bunch of envelopes with CDs, and throw everything in the mail.

It's a lot more work to do research, make a few cold calls, get rejected, pick yourself up, make a few more cold calls, get rejected again, etc.

Any kid can understand this is what it takes to make things happen and that is obvious when you watch one learning how to walk.

But somehow embracing rejection and failure like that got lost along the way and we go for something a little more anonymous, like never seeing a press kit get thrown away...assuming it ever gets opened.

Music Business Lessons from Donald Trump

Still in Las Vegas and just got done with my “Music Business Brainstorm” seminar. I’ve been out here for ten days and one of the great things about being on the road like this is I actually get a ton of stuff done because I don’t have the day-to-day issues that I do when I’m working from Nashville.

In fact, I’ve been so productive that I’ve actually had a chance to watch a couple of episodes of the first season of NBC’s the Apprentice with Donald Trump. I’m not a huge fan of television, but have heard from more than a few people whom I do business with that the lessons taught within the show are excellent, so I had Netflix send me a DVD.

If you’ve got the opportunity to check this thing out, you definitely should. And if you’ve already seen it, I think it’s definitely worth watching again.

I’ll try to hit the highlights here, so check back often. Alternatively, you can syndicate this site via RSS and watch from a page like my.yahoo.com or any RSS reader.

TLC Reality Show - Open Casting Call

The new reality TV Show, "R U The Girl," which seeks to find a new member for TLC, is currently looking for new singers and rappers to feature.

With this project, T-Boz and Chilli are ready to launch the next phase of their careers after the tragic death of group member Left Eye in 2002. T-Boz and Chilli stated, "We want to find someone with the right chemistry and magic to work with us. We have been blessed with great success and this is a chance for our fans to join us as we give someone a once in a lifetime opportunity to fulfill their dream."

T-Boz & Chilli from TLC are looking for talented female singers, all ethnicities, 18 and over to join them to record and perform live.

More Information...

Free Audio Book - 14 Qualties for Musicians, Songwriters, and Music Business Professionals

Still in Las Vegas and the lastest spinoff of 2NMC, my "Music Business Brainstorm."

But if you're reading this, chances are that you're not here with me. Sorry about that. You'll be missing a lot.

So here's what I want to do for you.

I have a new audio book, "14 Qualties for Musicians, Songwriters, and Music Business Professionals," that I just released. It's going for $39.95 on Amazon and the demand was so great that we sold out the first pressing of it in a single day.

I've got another shipment waiting for me back in Nashville and, because you're reading my blog, I'd like to send you on as my gift to you...as thanks for being here with me.

What's the catch? There isn't one. But if you get the CD and like it, please do me a favor and drop by Amazon to post a review.

Italian DJ Fined 1.4 Mln Euros for Music Piracy

ROME (Reuters) - An Italian DJ has been fined a record 1.4 million euros ($1.8 million) for using thousands of pirate music files in a nightclub near Rome, police said on Wednesday.

Police in the town of Rieti, near Rome, said they raided a popular nightclub earlier this week as part of a crackdown on piracy and seized 500 illegally copied music videos and more than 2,000 MP3 music files.

Police said the files belonged to a "well-known" Italian DJ.

"For the MP3 files, which were kept on the DJ's personal computer, the DJ has received a fine of 1.4 million euros," Rieti finance police said in a statement.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) said the fine was the biggest ever slapped on an individual for unlawful music copying and the use of copyrighted music in the MP3 format.

More than 7,000 legal actions have been launched against alleged uploaders in the United States, Canada and countries in Europe as the music industry fights to stop piracy which it blames for a decline over a number of years in CD sales.

More Than 1 In 10 U.S. Adults Have An IPod

More than 22 million U.S. adults have an iPod or an MP3 player, with men more likely than women to be carrying the digital music devices, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

The number amounts to 11 percent of the U.S. adult population that's 18 years old or older, the research firm said in a report released this week. Taking teenagers into account and it's safe to say there are several million more people carrying the popular iPod from Apple Computer Inc. or a competing MP3 player.

Men are more likely have a music player than women, 14 percent versus 9 percent, respectively; and nearly 1 in 5 people under 30 have the devices, Pew found. Fourteen percent of adults between the ages of 30 to 48 had music players.

The devices were mostly for the well to do. A quarter of the devices were owned by people in households earning more than $75,000, with 10 percent living in households earning $30,000 to $75,000. Households making less than $30,000 accounted for only 6 percent of the devices.

Broadband access was strongly associated with ownership of the players. Some 23 percent of people with broadband at home have iPods/MP3 players, compared to 9 percent of those who have dialup connections. Almost a third of people with broadband access at home and work had the devices.

The Pew research was based on a nationwide phone survey involving 2,201 people and has a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points.

Cutting Out the Middleman

I love to hear stories about how bands, musicians, and songwriters are cutting out the middleman and going directly to fans.

And I love it when "superfans" come together to organize a show (or even an tour) from their favorite artists. These folks go way beyond the usual fan clubs to help get the money together, book the venue, promote the show, and make it happen. It's also a great when fans come together to fund album production.

Check out the Rik Emmett Network for a great example of how to organize and motivate these fans to get them actively involved in your career, while adding another stream of income for your act at the same time.

According to the site...

Rik Emmett Network members are the elite band of Rik Emmett fans. Joining the Rik Emmett Network entitles you to a number of great exclusives that you will not find anywhere else.

Network members get access to such things as extended video and audio clips, advance previews of upcoming releases, exclusive free clips of guitar lessons from Rik himself, and access to Members Only forums where Rik regularly jumps in and takes part in conversations with his fans.

Now you're thinking about cost right? Joining the Rik Emmett Network, with all its exclusive and privileged access to a whole assortment of downloadable goodies, access to Rik himself, and much more, is available for only $35/year. Only $35 for the whole year! That's a great deal.

Continue on to sign up for the Rik Emmett Network, you won't regret it!

Norway Proposes New Digital Copyright Law

By DOUG MELLGREN

The government on Friday proposed a new copyright law to make it illegal for Norwegians to copy songs from their own CDs onto MP3 players, but legal to do so for making a CD duplicate. The proposal, intended to bring Norway's law in line with European Union rules, drew immediate praise from the music and film industry as well as criticism from opponents.

Even though Norway is has remained outside the EU, it is bound by most of the bloc's directives through the European Economic Area Agreement. The new proposal would allow fines and a maximum penalty of three years in prison for violating copyrights and engaging in computer piracy. The amendment, which requires parliament's approval, would make it illegal to crack security codes on DVD and CDs or to provide software or hardware for doing so, a news release said. It would still be legal for a person to make a copy of their own CD or DVD for private use, even if that means cracking the code, as long as it was being copied onto the same digital medium and not onto another one.

"For example, a CD's (security code) could be cracked to play a recording on a car stereo, since a CD-player would be seen as an appropriate medium," the news release said. "But the security code could not be cracked to copy the recording onto an MP-3 player, since such a device would not be seen as an appropriate for a CD."

Gisle Hannemyr, of the University of Oslo's Department of Informatics, said the law was unclear and unenforceable. "We are going to be a nation of lawbreakers if this law is passed in its current form," he said on the state radio network NRK.

For his part, Hannemyr said he has already copied an appropriate song for his own MP-3 player: Radiohead's "Hail to the Thief." The industry organization, ICT-Norway, on the other hand, lauded the proposal as visionary.

"The Norwegian government has shown a broad vision that is unique in Europe," said the group's secretary general Per Morten Hoff. He praised the law for recognizing the industry's right to protect copyrighted material.

Last year, Norwegian Jon Lech Johansen, also known as DVD-Jon, won an important test case when a court acquitted him of violating computer piracy laws by writing and using a program called DeCSS to crack security codes on DVD films.

He posted the codes on the Internet in 1999 and became a folk hero among computer hackers. However, Norwegian courts ruled that he could not be convicted for making or using a tool to break into his own property, in form of films that he had legally purchased.

The parliament is expected to review the proposed law during the spring term and, if passed, it could go into force as early as July 1, the Norwegian news agency NTB reported.

Effective Use Of Street Teams

By Keith Holzman

The marketing of music for independent labels has become considerably more difficult during the last few years due to increased competition and because the major labels have driven up the cost and reduced access to most general and music media.

MusicDish Network Sponsor

So what's an indie label with limited resources to do?

Well, one of the best methods is to form and make considerable use of street teams. They are a great way to get your music to the most likely consumer, but the majors are even now appropriating this marketing aid as well.

I was surprised to read an article in the NY Times of November 8 that was headlined "Proctor & Gamble Now Promoting Music." The web version of Proctor & Gamble Now Promoting Music (free subscription required) is titled "The Next Hit Song? Ask P&G" It's the same piece -- just a different title.

The gist of the article is that the EMI Group has retained Proctor & Gamble to "test and distribute new music through a special division that uses a network of teenagers to promote products. As part of the arrangement, EMI's record labels plan to send early copies of forthcoming CDs and promotional materials like stickers to the network's young members in an effort to build word-of-mouth publicity. Music executives also expect to survey the network members to determine which of an artist's new singles should be promoted to radio programmers or video channels.

"The network, run by a company unit called Tremor, includes more than 200,000 teenagers and young adults and has pushed products for a variety of outside clients in addition to P&G's own lines, which include cosmetics, shampoos and other consumer goods. The company says its network's members even helped choose the T-shirt design for the punk-leaning Warped Tour.

"Still, Tremor does not have nearly as much experience marketing music, particularly compared with the coterie of small firms that specialize in 'street' marketing for the music industry."

What is a street team you might ask?

A street team is a group of devoted fans and volunteers that work together to spread the word about their favorite music or artist. A street team tries to increase a band or artist's presence in a local community and on the Internet, and aids in increasing music sales. A person joining such a team will have access to the source for the latest official music, videos, pictures, breaking news, etc. He or she may receive free promotional items like stickers, magnets, buttons, advance music, concert tickets or backstage passes, just for doing the things that fans do naturally -- like requesting songs at radio, requesting music videos, posting flyers at local hangouts, creating a buzz on the Internet, and sending emails to friends and family. In short, they increase an artist's visibility.

Street teams can be useful for labels with repertoire that warrants the concept -- which tends to be alternative rock, hip-hop, rap, and such. They're like fan clubs, consisting of friends or lovers of the artist's music who are willing to help out. They may promote, market, and sell records on high school or college campuses or elsewhere in their hometowns. Or they might put up flyers that help promote artist performances. They could also pass out promotional CDs and "fluff" at concerts of similar musicians. Fluff consists of such free materials as stickers, patches, and other inexpensive promotional items that the label supplies to team members.

The teams work at the direction and coordination of someone on your marketing staff, and may be located throughout the country if you're striving for a national marketing campaign. Street team members are not usually paid, although they might receive a modest commission. They do it for the fun and experience, and for free CDs, concert tickets, clothing such as T-shirts, advance "inside" information, and the satisfaction of being involved in something personally worthwhile.

You can get people interested in joining your street team effort by posting a notice on your web site or other appropriate Internet newsgroup. For example, in July 2001, a message was posted in the Lost Highway Yahoo! Newsgroup about Lucinda Williams' newest release, persuading her fans to get conversations going in various other newsgroups and message forums. Also e-cards promoting the CD were made available to fans to send to their friends. Each participant in this street effort was requested to initiate ten contacts on the topic and to forward their postings to a Lost Highway moderator as proof of their work. A group of winners was selected at random and given free tickets to Lucinda Williams' next performances. The total cost to the label was a few tickets and a bit of effort.

Some street team members help artists get concert bookings in their hometowns, and when the artist is performing there they let their friends know about the gigs, put up posters and distribute flyers, and help sell CDs at the venue. They frequently get attendees email addresses for news of future performances by the artist or other artists from the label. This assists in the label's attempt at viral marketing.

Team members might also participate in special label or artist chat rooms and message boards. They are the secret weapon in the battle against boring or out-of-place advertising campaigns thought up by people out of touch with what's really happening in youth culture. Street teams originally came about as a way for fans to promote their favorite recording artists, particularly ones who didn't have big labels marketing for them. Now, marketing and advertising agencies have begun to realize that hiring street teams is one of the most effective forms of youth marketing available.

Street team members may receive weekly newsletters with all the information they might need including the latest news about the artist including performance dates and local performances, plus multimedia links for photos and music. Street teams are not paid for their services, but they might get free CDs, artists' autographs, and other freebies such as T-shirts, posters, stickers, etc., and more important, be put on the guest list for shows at which the artist is performing.

Labels should also do special things, particularly for team members who've worked particularly hard. Artists might mention their names at the end of a performance, or do other things to praise them and make them feel they've contributed to the overall effort.

Team members also have a responsibility to the label and the artists to be friendly, helpful, but businesslike. They shouldn't post stickers or posters on other people's stores or signs or do something illegal that might result in fines, or worse.

You can form your own street team by placing a box on your web site soliciting team participation, or by hiring firms specializing in the building, maintaining, and supervising of team activity. I suggest, however, that you get your feet wet by starting and managing your very own street team. This keeps your costs down and gives you the opportunity to get a sense on how it functions and to increase your "hands on" experience.

Increase your label's marketing effectiveness by forming a street team campaign for the next artist whose performance and music warrant it.

Provided by the MusicDish Network. Copyright © Tag It 2005 - Republished with Permission

Booking Tips and Advice

By Jay Flanzbaum

Jay Flanzbaum of Onlinegigs got his start as a booking agent putting together national and regional tours for independent bands. Those years running a boutique agency inspired the creation of Onlinegigs, an incredibly powerful booking and promotional tool for independent bands and agents. Jay shared with the Connector the topics he thought were most important to putting an unproven act on the road in today's music industry.

To be able to book gigs successfully you'll need a ton of persistence and even better organization. Whether you are booking locally, regionally or nationally you will essentially need the same skills and tools to be effective. Independent bands and agents, by definition, tend to lack the nationwide connections necessary to make the idea of booking an extended tour possible. As a result the ones that are most successful are generally the same ones that understand how to gather, and effectively manage, all of their business related contacts. We've all seen some pretty lousy bands with some damn good gigs, so talent isn't always the main issue.

Data Collection

If you haven't already, you are going to have to start collecting contact information for the people that can help you achieve your goals. If your goal is to have a touring career in the music industry then you better find some venues, colleges, festivals, record companies, managers, record stores and media contacts, to do business with. It is never too early to start this process. You should start today even if your CD won't be ready for another 3 years and you don't have a full time drummer yet. Every person you meet and every possible gig that you hear about will need to be recalled at a later date. There are many sources that a beginner, or even a veteran, can turn to for gathering this type of information.

Printed music industry directories like the "Indie Contact Bible" or "Musician's Guide to Touring" can have an incredible amount of information to get you started. Alternative news weeklies like the Village Voice or the Boston Phoenix are a great source of local music venues, festivals and college listings. Most major markets in the country have an independent weekly publication; some of them can be found online at www.awn.org. Online music communities like Jambase or Onlinegigs are also an ideal place to find where bands of a similar style are playing.

Data Management

Once you start gleaning contact information from printed directories, online communities, newspapers and other bands, you will soon realize that you need a good way to organize and access all of this data. You most likely have pages full of notes, emails with venue referrals and spreadsheets covered with names and numbers. The key now is to be able to effectively organize all of your new found contacts in a way that maximizes your opportunity with each one of them.

MusicDish Network Sponsor

Software or web based contact managers like Outlook, Act, Maximizer or Onlinegigs, are all efforts to help you centralize your business related messages, tasks and contact information. It doesn't make sense to dig thru multiple email boxes on different computers to find important messages. Anymore than it would to be unable to find an important phone number because you left your address book in Spokane, WA. Whatever application or method you choose, be sure to get as many of the following features as would apply to your specific needs.

- Complete and total access to all of your important contact and business information in one location
- Multiple, archived backups of your information in case of data loss or equipment failure
- Reminder system for upcoming activities and tasks
- Integrated email & fax messaging with message tracking and searching
- Customizable for your specific industry
- Remotely accessible from any internet connection
- Ability to easily share information with others

Importance of Contracts

After a few months of working your task list religiously and following up on every CD in a consistent and professional manner, you should be ready to start booking some gigs. After all the work you have just gone through to find contacts and reach out to each one of them, it would be a shame to lose out on a gig at the last minute. Admittedly, last minute cancellations and double bookings can and will occur. The story usually goes like this:

You sent out your CD in January; to finally book a gig in April for your upcoming August tour. It's just a Tuesday night for 100% of the door, rooms and food; but it's a needed stop-over between Colorado and Nevada. You call a week before the gig from somewhere in Texas and the club has never heard of you. What's worse, there is another band booked on that night and the other band has a confirmed written agreement. In a toss up situation between the band with no proof and the band with a contract, the band with the contract usually wins.

For gigs that are low-dough or no-dough deals, you should still send a written agreement. A written agreement is your only line of defense after all of the work you have gone thru to secure the gig, not to mention the work you will need to do for properly promoting it. Email is the easiest method because you can easily send the same message over and over until you get confirmation. Faxing is also relatively easy, however having to send a snail mail agreement over and over can be a pretty big hassle. Your goal here is to constantly remind the talent buyer of your agreement and put all of the details in front of them. The higher the dollar value on the agreement the more diligent you should be about insisting on a signed, hard-copy version of the agreement.

Getting Ready for the Road

Putting a group of people on the road for any amount of time comes with responsibilities. There are many people who will need detailed information about your schedule in order for your tour to be effective, safe and organized. Band members and their families, your manager, a publicist and even your fans all need to have access to different information about your trip. At a minimum all of your shows should be listed on your website as soon as they are confirmed. Ideally you would also list set times, the venue's address, phone number, website and any other bands on the bill with you.

The Tour Itinerary however is really the best way to be sure your trip is error free. Everyone on your team should have a chronological listing of each of your tour dates with as much or as little detail as they need. But the master itinerary for you and your band members should list all of the contact info for each venue, set times, payment details, venue capacity, ticket price, age limits and step by step directions from one gig to the next. This is your bible for the trip and the more copies you make the less likely you will be lost in Lincoln, Nebraska without the buyer's phone number or any sense of direction.

The Tour Itinerary is also a crucial tool in satisfying your greatest responsibility as a touring band: Advancing Your Shows. If you want your journey to free of surprises, then you will advance all of your shows. This simply means contacting the venue a week or so before the gig to confirm performance details, get important load in information and find out about any last minute changes. Out of your entire organization of band members, managers, agents, tour managers and interns, there needs to be one person who can assume this role.

Properly Promoting Your Shows

If you have never played before in a particular market, then most likely nobody in that town has any idea who you are. And why would anyone come out to see you play if they have no idea that you are even playing. What you really need is some press or at a minimum just a listing with the local radio and print music calendars.

Your first step is to put together all of the contact names, fax numbers, email addresses etc. for the local media outlets in a 30-60 mile radius of each of your gigs. Then you will have to prepare a professional and concise press release. A good release should be able to convey all of the pertinent information on one page. Radio stations and newspapers get flooded everyday with hundreds of releases, they do not have time to read numerous pages that outline your band's Zen philosophy or each of your bass player's numerous influences. Keep it to the point or they will not read it all. Keep your layout clean; do not use multiple fonts and font sizes or too many colors and graphics.

Make sure your release has a section with the performance details that is easy to pick out and includes: Performance Date, Band Name, Venue Name, Full Address, Phone, Website, Ticket Price, Set Times, Age Limit and any other bands on the bill. Also be sure to include your personal contact information: Contact Name, Phone, Email, and Website. If someone needs to get in touch for a photo or an interview, you will want them to be able to track you down quickly and easily.

Here is where your Contact Management program really comes in handy. You could take the time to create numerous, personalized press releases for each press contact you have found. This would probably take you days depending on the size of the market. If we are talking about New York City, it could take you months. But if you have the proper tools like I mentioned in the section above, you should be able to create one template and send personally addressed releases, by fax or email to hundreds of media contacts all at once.

Putting It All Together

There isn't any service, software application or magic pill that can guaranty success in the music industry. But being organized and professional certainly can't hurt. There are many tools and resources that can help you take control of your career and everybody finds different ones that work better for them. The key is committing to treat your music career as the serious business that it is. You also need to realize that the hard work is never over, even if you reach a level to warrant working with a bigger agent, manager or record company. You will still need to be organized, you will still need to remember names and phone numbers and you will still need to let everyone know when you are gigging. As a registered Jambase user, you are entitled to a free trial month of Onlinegigs. Use referral code 100045 when you sign up at: http://www.onlinegigs.com/v3/register.asp

"The whole thing had me blown away." Alex Steininger - CD Baby

Onlinegigs gives musicians, agents, managers and record companies the only One Button solution to taking control of their music careers. With the click of just one button members can:
- automatically issue a performance contract by fax or email
- automatically update any website with the new tour date information
- automatically generate a tour itinerary with driving directions from one gig to the next
- automatically send a press release to the local media in any market in the country
- automatically notify and remind fans about upcoming shows in their area

With access to over 10,000 industry contacts and powerful contact and tour management tools, Onlinegigs is the only answer for the indie music community. You can sign up for free to OnlineGigs' monthly newsletter covering booking, touring and promotion.

Provided by the MusicDish Network. Copyright © Tag It 2005 - Republished with Permission