So some of you have been seeing me criticizing the way local bands promote and market themselves. Yes, a lot of them really DO suck at it, and that’s just MY opinion. If you don’t like it? You don’t have to read it. Hell, there might be even plenty out there that may agree with me. If you don’t, that’s cool too, ’cause the truth needs to be said. I still stand by it, that this area is absolutely horrible when it comes to marketing. There are very few that know what they’re doing and very good at it, but most musicians around here are amateurs, when it comes to marketing.

Here’s how… a full explanation…

• They only rely on the internet for promoting – Not everyone uses the internet. You must do a lot more. Make ad flyers, post ’em up all over town at bulletin boards. Almost every where you look in town, there are bulletin boards with people advertising all kinds of events in your local town. Do yourself a favor and do that. There are bulletin boards in almost every store, restaurants, diners, gyms, liquor stores, etc. Also, go to block party events and go to other band shows, pass out flyer people. It works. You may also want to tell everyone as much as possible about your show. Tell all your friends, and as much people as possible. I do this stuff all the time whenever I got a gig. You can’t just rely on the internet.
• There’s not enough info on the show flyers, graphic art not eye catching enough – I’m seeing a lot of show flyers online, and they don’t put a lot of info on there. Sure, they do a good job naming the venue, pricing, the time the show starts, bands on the bill, etc. There must be more. How about a link of each band on the show ad? That way it’ll be much easier for people to look up the other bands playing on the bill. You may also want to make your graphic art as eye catching as possible. Get people interested. Show a picture of each band on the bill. Not just just the so called, “headliner” act. There are too many show ads, where the headliner is all over it, and the other acts, don’t get lesser recognition on the ad. If you want people to be interested in the show, give each performer the spotlight on the flyer too. Leave your ego at the door, please. I made my own flyers before, and would try to make it like this as best as possible. Also, make sure the ad flyer is not offensive or too sexual. Don’t do the middle finger or don’t grab your crotch. Some might find that stuff offensive and will throw your flyer in the trash.
• Social media promotion – Okay, I know social media like Facebook which is the most popular for bands these days is a favorite for promoting your band, but you must take that seriously too. 1) Don’t over promote 2) Don’t spam people 3) You only need to post your show invite once (you post your show invite like 10 times a day, it’ll turn people off). Speaking of show invites in Facebook, you must put in as much information about your show as possible. I see a lot of bands leave out so much important information. Mostly the time the show is at, and mostly the price admission. Fans are always asking bands what time the show is at or how much it costs, it’s important to put that stuff on there. In the show invite, name all the bands and artists on the bill with a link of each performer. That way fans can go to their websites and check ’em out.
• Don’t rely on social media promotion – A lot of bands & artists around here make the mistake that they see Facebook as their official website, so I see a lot of them use that only. You see, if you want to get somewhere with your music, YOU MUST DO MORE! Again, not everyone uses facebook people! This is why! Some avoid facebook like the plague. Start up an official website (name here.com), start up a twitter, instagram, pinterest, etc. Everywhere as much as possible. I don’t have an instagram yet, but that’s because I don’t have an Iphone or something like that yet, but I’m hoping to soon. You can even advertise on craigslist and local music websites like CRUMBS for example. Most of all, start up a blog too. This is part of the reason I blog for, ’cause it’s a good promoting tool with my music. All this entertainment blogging is just secondary to me. I’ve had plenty people come out to my gigs over the years ’cause they’ve seen me promoting it on my blog. It works!
• Advertise gigs through your local papers – Get out your wallet and throw in a couple of bucks to get your show ad printed in the papers. I’ve done it before. This works too. You don’t see bands promoting themselves in the papers anymore. You can’t just advertise in the Metroland.
• Have your own youtube channel – Youtube is an excellent way to promote your projects, shows, etc. It’s also a great way to showcase your talent. Videotape yourself performing at home, at a live gig, or just do videoblog. I see bands do videoblogs of them recording in the studio and they film a lot of backstage stuff. You should consider doing the same. Youtube is great. There’s not a lot of local bands around here who have their own youtube channel. Some do! But there needs to be more! I have my own.
• Let the music speak on it’s own – One great promoting tool is letting the music speak on it’s own. Don’t be so demanding. Instead of begging people to come out to your gig, ask. Instead of begging people to like your songs, wait for the positive feedback to come on it’s own. People will go to your show if they like your music, there’s no other way around it. Just put your music out there, and just see what happens. If people hate your music, don’t be defensive. Just focus on the fans who support your music. Replying to the haters is just a childish and unprofessional thing to do, I see bands do this all the time.
• Let fans hear music for free – If you want more respect, a great promoting tool is letting people hear your music for free. What pisses me off is that some bands would force fans to hear small clips of certain songs from an upcoming album of theirs. Or worse, they would release one song a week until the album release. Pretty stupid, and egotistical, in my opinion. It’s also a pretty cruel thing to do your fanbase. Let ’em stream all your music for free. I also hate those artists that forces fans to pay them to see live web shows like StageIt and things like that. There are plenty of free live webcasts. You don’t need to force fans to pay anything. There are too many money hungry bands & artists out there. Shouldn’t be about the money, in my opinion. Just my opinion, so don’t take this the wrong way. I understand bands want to make money to cover studio time, band equipment, travel expenses, etc. but you make that money from the gigs and merchandise sales.
• Socialize in the music community – Go to all kinds of local music events. Go to other band shows other than your own. Go to open mics. Songwriting workshops. Interact with other musicians in the scene and be a part of everything. Be at the center of everyone’s attention. Sometimes a bit of ego is good. You don’t see bands and musicians doing much of this stuff.

That’s about all I can think of for now. If I come up with more, I’ll add it in.

Kev