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Musician Press Kits (Some Suggestions to Get Them Opened)

Wonder where all those packages you send are going? The majority end up in the landfill. Worse yet, they end up in a landfill...unopened!

The first step to creating a good press kit is to package what you've got in a way that it will be opened. I've gotten some pretty "extreme" packages over the years, and those work, but there are also more subtle ways to stand out, which is what I'll be looking at here.

(Click on the images below to see a full size version.)

Nothing extremely fancy about this one from Dan Garnett, but it stands out for a few reasons...

For one, there are some tickets attached to it. It's an image music business people would be familiar with, but not in this context, so that will get attention. Plus, it opens curiosity...

Who are the tickets for? I did an interview with Mat Kearney a couple of years ago. Did this guy know? Was it just a coincidence? Regardless, it's something that would make me take a closer look.

Then, there is the uniqueness of the package. Who's the old guy on the front? What's inside when I open it a certain way?

The answer, by the way, is a one-of-a-kind, collage-style "poster" that says, "Music is worth the wait, deep, mystifying, soul-stirring, its own, real, inside us. It's about the heart, time, the pain, surreal meaning, creatvitity, the pain, passion, feeling love, dreams, and escape."

Here is another from Micah Zumar...

This one is pretty simple. Just a basic envelope, but it came from Canada and has a customs form on it, which makes it stand out and appear to be a little more valuable. If you're shipping something out of your home country, don't discount this.

Same goes for unique stamps people may not have seen. These are just holiday stamps and have nothing to do with the package successfully getting to me, but they're still something you'd notice standing out from a big pile of brown/yellow envelopes, which is what most people send their stuff in.

Have something that stands out?

Send it to me. I'll play and review your music on Music Business Radio and, if it's really good, write about it here.

Here is the address to send a CD to:

Tuned In Broadcasting, Inc.
ATTN: Music Business Radio
1310 Clinton St. Suite 200
Nashville, TN 37203

500,000,000 Downloads

Angry Birds is pretty much everywhere these days. The characters were popular Halloween costumes, there is a board game, there are t-shirts, and the game has been referenced in American television shows such as Conan O'Brien, Jon Stewart, and The Simpaons.

The franchise has had over 500,000,000 downloads.

So now what?

Obviously, people are searching for "Angry Birds" in Apple's App Store and elsewhere. And obviously, people love the game... So why not take advantage of the momentum?

That's exactly what Wisconsin-based musician, Mr. Billy, decided to do.

But taking the idea one step further, he recorded everything on an iPhone!

I contacted Billy for a quick interview and got the story of how it all came together...

What's your background?

My family has been in the music business for four generations. I started playing and writing at age nine. I spent about 20 years playing and touring with my own bands. In the late 90s, I retired to start a marketing business using the skills I learned from keeping my bands employed and selling CDs and merch.

Why music for kids?

When my son turned five, he took me to show-and-tell, but I didn't know any kids' songs, so I just sang some classic rock songs. To my surprise, his teacher suggested I could do kids music for a living.

So I did some research and found that, at that time, there were a few kids' folk musicians in my area, but no kids' rock singers. So I decided to create a new niche locally and it just took off.

Where did you get the idea for a song about Angry Birds?

When I got the new GarageBand app for my iPhone, I started messing around and it sounded so good that I decided to write a "real" song and put it on iTunes over the weekend.

I've been following the success of bands like Pomplamoose using current pop culture as a marketing tool and realized that my target audience (kids and parents) are really into Angry Birds. I actually wear Angry Birds t-shirts to my gigs!

Angry Birds and iPhone also seemed like a good match and potential headline for press. 

Talk more about your writing and recording process...

The song took an hour to write, including researching Angry Birds on the web.

I recorded it on eight tracks using only GarageBand sounds, the sampler (that's my voice doing the bird and pig sounds), and loops. I played guitar into the GarageBand amp models and sang directly into the phone (no mics).

I sent it to my computer, had my son draw some angry birds, drew myself in cartoon form, uploaded the whole thing to CD Baby, and ta-da!

Any advice for musicians breaking into the children's music market?

I just want to say that since shifting from rock to kids rock, I have done just about everything I dreamed of my whole life... I play all originals, I only do covers if I want to, and I play to people that actually come to see me. I'm the center of attention, which is what I've always wanted to be, I've been on TV, I've been on radio, I do interviews, I've won several awards, and I've been flown to shows... You name it. 

As far as advice... Kids music is great, but you have to actually like kids, period. Know what they like and what the parents love and try to find a common ground. I was lucky, I never changed my musical style or performance style... Just the words are different and there is no swearing at the show!

I do 200+ gigs a year at libraries, schools, and concert events. I write and record songs specific to each of my markets. In 10 years I have released 15 albums and various singles like Angry Birds.

Make music that people actually want to buy and listen to... stuff they NEED...and you will succeed. 

Download Angry BIrds (the song) now!

Visit Mr. Billy online.

Promote Your Band (with an iPhone App)

This is a kick ass idea by Starbucks that would be perfect for a band...

Instead of using a cup to activate it, use a CD or an image on your website. And instead of having cartoon characters, use the members of your band.

Need somebody to program your app? Try Elance.

Is Your Video This Good?

I haven't seen your video, but I'm going to guess no...

What it takes to make something like this...

22 months
1357 hours
30 people
2 ladders
1 still camera
288,000 jelly beans 

How it was made...

Want to Sell More Stuff? Steal This Idea!

I subscribe to a lot of magazines, because I'm old school. Unfortunately for magazine publishers, not everybody is like me. In fact, most people aren't like me.

So what's the solution? Increase your subscriber base by getting the people who buy (in other words, the biggest fans) to give away free subscriptions in hope of winning other people over.

Example is below...

It works for big magazine publishers and it will work for you. CDs are cheap, so you could do the exact same deal on your music. $10 for a CD, plus two additional CDs for the buyer to give to friends.

Look, people who want to share your music have nothing to stop them from making copies, so you might as well give those people the "official" version of what you do and encourage word-of mouth around it.

Or try this technique with tickets to your next gig... The more people in the audience, the more likely those people will have a good time. And it's more opportunities for you to win over new fans.

An Offer You Can't Refuse

Well, maybe you can refuse it, but 1,000,000 people felt otherwise when it came to this offer from LivingSocial...

Everybody has a deal like this...even you.

One of the great things about the music business is the high perceived value of something like a CD or DVD. You can press either for under $1/each and most people, even with piracy and a lot of customers switching to downloadable product, still wouldn't flinch if you told them the value was $10.

That's a 10x margin to work with. Take advantage of it.

Time to Expand Your Music Business?

Jack Daniel's is the best-selling whiskey in the world. Because of this, we all know the "square" bottle, the black/white label, and all about Lynchburg [Pop.361], Tennessee.

Did you know Lynchburg is in "dry" country? Sure you did.

Did you know, since they can't serve whiskey in Lynchburg, you're served lemonade when you tour the distillery? Sure you did.

So why is Jack Daniel's doing "non-whiskey" things like this?

And this?

Because people who like Jack Daniel's whiskey also like meat! And if they're going to get meat anyway, it might as well be from Jack Daniel...

Even if you've got a hot product that sells a lot, it can be a good idea to expand to other things.

So what do fans of your music like and they'd buy from you, if you were to offer it to them? If they're the same type of people who like Jack Daniel's, perhaps your own brand of hot sauce would be a good place to start.

Making Gigs Special

Always on the lookout for interesting ways bring people out to shows and just found this from NYC-based artist Jennings, which I think is worth posting here as an example of turning "just another gig" into something special for fans...

Did Your Music Get Trashed? Probably...

Got a great letter in my email box regarding some suggestions I made about how to get attention for a press kit or music submission you send via mail...

Just about everything you have suggested is totally opposite what they are teaching in songwriting seminars and classes.

In thse seminars they tell you to:

1) Be business professional - you are commincating with a business and therefore should show respect by being business-like.

2) Use typed address labels  - not handwritter labels - again for the business appearance.

3) NEVER use regular "live" stamps - as a business your postage should appear as business like as possible.

4) Only use the manila colored envelopes - the days of the purple "Martina McBride" eye catching envelope will just get it thrown in the watse basket.

5) No handwritten notes - a business cover letter is expected.

6) No handwriting on the CD-R label  - with CD printers these days a type written label shows respect and professionalism.

Agree that anything you send needs to be professional. Like the Supreme Court feels about pornography though, what is considered professional will differ depending on who is getting your package.

Three things to keep in mind...

1. The worst result of mailing a package isn't being considered unprofessional, but being ignored.

2. Typing something and sending it in a plain envelope doesn't necessarily mean that it's professional.

3. Writing something by hand doesn't necessarily mean a package is unprofessional.

So my advice is to focus on getting your package opened (since none of this matters if that doesn't happen), connecting with the person that opens it through written communication, and backing up your opportunity with quality music that drives the connection home.

How to do it...

If you're trying to cut through the noise and stand out among tons of other packages to get the attention of a creative type, which most people in the music business are, this will probably get you better results than a manila envelope with a typed label and meter postage...

And a cover letter like this will help to drive home the "personality" and develop the connection with the recipient that you're trying to get across better than black text on white paper using a font like Times New Roman...

It's not typed, but it works because it's personal and it shows the guy has done his research on where it will end up and put some effort into sending it.

It also makes the recipient feel like he's getting something unique, which is a quality that will get people to dig deeper into what you're sending. That's much harder when the package is a manila envelope, with a typed label, and meter postage. While a package like that might be a one-of-a-kind, it doesn't appear that way.

When you get a CD case like this, there is no doubt that you're holding something that hasn't been sent everywhere...

Another thing I loved about this package is that he had fun with it. Check out the photos...

He shows his professionalism through researching where the package is going then backed that up by showing he's not stiff and his job is to entertain people. That's the kind of act people are looking for.

To top off the package, he included a cool "gimmick" that I thought was especially brilliant, since putting it together requires people to get their hands dirty and this gets them involved with the package even more. 

You see this trick in direct mail pieces all the time, many times with solicitations that try to get you to subscribe to a magazine. The most common form of it is placing a "YES!" sticker on a postcard before you send it back. Even more common is a form where you have to check a "YES!" box.

But this takes it to the next level... 

Getting people involved in the process gets results! 

For example... This package was sent to me via Music Business Radio. The show prep for the music we play is done by our production coordinator, Karisa. When I got to the studio that day, she had the pieces of the clock on her desk and was trying to put it together!

We get hundreds of packages every year.  Which package will Karisa remember? Which package cut through the noise and is getting mentioned here? 

You can't do these kinds of things with a plain package.

The artist that sent this package is Andrew Varner from Columbus, OH, by the way.

Charging Money for "Free" Stuff

Just booked a flight on Air Canada. Once I had paid for the ticket, I was given the opportunity to select my seat, which included this upsell...

I think this is brilliant and here is why...

1. Just because something is (or was) "free" doesn't mean it's not worth paying for.

I'm 6'3". The comfort that comes from having a little extra leg room is worth $20 to me and I'm happy to pay it. In fact, I'd rather have the option of paying for it than getting it for free, since $20 takes a lot of my competition for the seat out of the running and gives me a better opportunity to actually get it.

"Competition" in this case is the 5' lady who booked two months ago. She'd probably take the seat for free, because extra room is always nice, but it's not worth $20 to her.

So everybody is happy... I get more leg room, the 5' lady gets her needs met, and Air Canada makes more money.

2. It's money on the table.

The downside for airlines is that airplane exit rows are required by law. Air Canada, like other airlines, has no choice whether to have them or not. The cost cannot be eliminated.

The upside is that people actually like sitting in an exit row.

So why not charge people for the privilege?

If you've got something for sale in limited quantity, even if it's something you've been giving away for free, charging something for it will not only benefit you, it may also benefit your customers.

You've also got fixed costs of running your music business, like recording costs, that could be offset by allowing people to participate in them. Music Producers Institute is a great example of this.

I encourage you to look at what you currently consider "free" to see it charging for it might actually be a benefit to you and your customers. In addition, take a look at fixed costs within your business, because many of them can be offset through options such as what Air Canada is doing with seats in exit rows.