The upside of Twitter is that everybody knows your business. The downside is that you look like an idiot when all you post about is eating, drinking, and reality television.
Are You Tweeting Away Prospects? has more thoughts on the subject.
As always feel free to post comments below...
My friend Celeste just me info a cool contest that a radio station in Memphis is doing for backstage passes to New Kids on the Block...
As you probably know, this group has been around about 20 years, so a lot of their fans have been with them for a while. The contest is for people to send in old photos, showing they were into the group way back when.
Pretty funny contest and definitely one that shows how loyal NKOTB fans are, when you consider how embarrassing a photo like this is!
Perhaps you can do something similar?
Thanks to Celeste for passing this one along to me. Please vote for her and help her win those tickets! :)
The massive $1.9 million fine imposed by a federal jury yesterday in the retrial of a Minnesota woman accused of pirating 24 songs may could end up hurting the Recording Industry Association of America's anti-piracy campaign more than anything else, a leading copyright lawyer said.
Read the entire article and post your thoughts below...
Ever wonder what 80s hits by bands such as Journey and Bon Jovi would sound like if they were written around the turn of the century, at the height of the ragtime piano era? Probably not, but NYC pianist Scott Bradlee did and the video below has helped draw attention to his music with over 77,000 views on YouTube...
The Music Marketing [com] Podcast has a new time. We're on every Wednesday at 9pm Eastern (6pm Pacific).
You can listen live at MusicMarketingPodcast.com or call (347) 637-2654 if you want to talk to me.
This is a lo-fi way for me to personally connect with indie musicians and songwriters on a regular basis, since my schedule is full and I rarely take on new clients.
So if you want my advice on your music marketing... Call me Wednesdays at 9pm Eastern (6pm Pacific) at (347) 637-2654.
It happens every week, so mark it on your calendar now!
If you missed getting the .com domain of your band name, you know what a pain it is. Same for Twitter...and Gmail...and every big online property.
This morning at 12:01am, Facebook added the ability for you to have a "username" which will take people to your profile. Visit http://www.facebook.com/username to claim yours now.
While you're there, before to follow me... http://www.facebook.com/musicmarketing
As always keep sending in examples of people doing cool stuff with music videos...
Went to check out Jennings last night. Show was running late and I didn't care about the opening band, so the guy I was with and I took off to grab some food. As we were walking down the street, a couple of people approached us and asked, "Do you want to come see a free movie screening?"
I'm in Nashville, the buckle of the Bible Belt, so I assumed it was something Christian...maybe a "Hell House" type of thing, where the people scare you into accepting Jesus with images of gay men with handlebar mustaches, abortions, heavy metal music, radical Muslims, and eternal damnation to Hell. It wasn't.
As it turns out, these guys were fans of a movie called Troll 2. And that's all they were. They're not associated with it financially or anything else like that. They're not in it. They're just really big fans. So big that they're putting on a local screening and working to get the film in a larger, more established theater.
I'm always interested in what makes people do something like this, so I struck up a conversation with them. Believe it or not, there are people doing something similar all over the world, as is explained in this documentary...
This post isn't about Troll 2, it's about how to start a movement...
If you've been online in the last couple of weeks, you may have seen this video, which I think does a good job of explaining how it's done.
It seems simple, but in the end, this is all there is to it... Find out "superfan" who will go out and motivate others to join him.
I could write an entire book, and have, on how to get people to take action (a.k.a. BUY IN) on something. The bottom line is spreading your enthusiasm in a way which they can relate.
I'm in broadcast media and also work a lot in direct marketing via postal mail, web, and email. That stuff is great, but it's nowhere near as effective as somebody with a passion sitting down with another person and sharing his story...and that is something you can do right now, without any money or other resources.
To take this thing full circle, let's look at Christianity. Christians are definitely reaching a lot of people with mass media images of gay men with handlebar mustaches, abortions, heavy metal music, radical Muslims, and eternal damnation to Hell, but the most effective way is more similar to how the movement was started, with 12 "superfans" and a strong leader to encourage and motivate them.
Questions for you:
1. Are you a strong leader who can motivate people and help get them excited about what you're doing?
2. What are you doing to encourage "superfans" to spread the word about your music?
Share your stories below...
Interesting report on podcasting...
Highlights:
If you're not doing something with podcasting, you're missing out on a great opportunity. Not only is it a great way to get your music heard, it's also a great way for you to really connect with your audience on a personal level.
Even if you have "traditional" distribution, such a broadcast radio, television, or print, podcasting is still worth looking at. I just started a new music business podcast, which is weekly and lets people, like YOU, call in and talk to me directly. I did this even though my syndicated radio show, Music Business Radio, is also available via podcast. The main reason I did this is speed. The secondary reason, which is why we also podcast the broadcast radio show, is distribution.
Podcasting, much like this blog, takes out the distribution and speed limitations of traditional media. You can be "on the air" within minutes and the content you produce can be as easily consumed on the other side of the world as it is in your city. That it a huge advantage that broadcast radio or print media doesn't have.
Of course, there are plenty of other reasons why you should take advantage of podcasting... Get the full report (and audio commentary) here.
Yesterday, I got notice that Performing Songwriter magazine is shutting its doors. Over the years, I've started (and ended) dozens of big projects, companies, and relationships, so I can totally relate to the emotions she mentions. Even when it's time to move on, and doing so is a very clear decision, it's never black and white.
Of course, quitting isn't really an end to things; it's a opportunity for something new.
For more thoughts on the subject, check out 10 Signs It's Time to Quit Your Band.
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