Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Band Promotion


Getting the word out about shows is rough. I've attended many a show of a great band to an empty room. If you have an early time slot, it is especially difficult to get people to your shows. Band promotion is no easy game even if you are awesome. Here are some band promotion tips I have picked up from my years of working in music merchandising:

1. Have great merch!
Coming from a music merchandise world influenced fashion blog of course you are going to hear this. Trust me, you will sell more merch if you are in tune with your audience. For instance, do some research on the shirt styles, colors, and designs that your audience would like. Focus group maybe? I've seen many a great band have trouble selling merch to their fans who desperately want to support the band but HATE the merch. Example: Don't have all your shirts be heavy duty thick old style tshirts if your fans would normally wear thin fitted shirts like American Apparel styles. The more merch you sell, the more people will see your name when your fans sport your merch. Clever merch items like necklaces, sunglasses, etc also can sell amazingly if you are in tune with your audience's taste!

NOW on to the free stuff:

2. Get your music on Pandora!
Yes, even unsigned bands can get their music on Pandora if they play their cards right. I'm not saying it's easy but it can be done. The exciting news is that it is FREE to submit your music to Pandora. Your music must be available on Amazon though. So get cracking with getting that done. Once you have your music on Amazon you can submit it to Pandora. Once your music is on Pandora you will be heard by countless new music fans so at least give it a try. You can submit HERE.

3. Promote Your Shows!
I'm going to make this really easy for you! I know it's hard to get people to your shows. You are probably posting the flyers to your next show everywhere as I type this. I'm going to save you some time with this process. Post your flyers on Peel Post, a great FREE band promotion website. This site allows you to get the word out about your shows. You just have to post your flyer once and then with the click of your mouse you can share your show information on over 300 sites without having to repost over and over again.

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