BTTV BLOG

First in a series of stories from bands who’ve done well and not so well.

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In the years before we started our band, I watched several friends venture out into the deep, mysterious waters of the music world only to be sucked in and spat out the other side a couple of years later. Penniless, they’d return home from tour for the last time, finally admitting grim defeat. In the idle months that followed, their grief would turn to anger, as the gallons of bile they’d been repressing finally spurted out of their mouths, directed at the “industry” they’d once so highly praised.

Then came the stories, all the odd moments they’d tried to ignore at the time, because they so desperately wanted everything to work out. A hilarious anecdote for their memoir rather than the second everything went wrong. One friend told me how at the height of his band’s hype a desperate A&R had led them into his plush office, and presented them with “The Rule Book” – a copy of the Yellow Pages adapted for the purpose – which he attempted to rip up. Sadly, the significance of the gesture was marred by the fact that phone books are practically indestructible. As my friend’s sniggers grew, so did the A&R’s pink-faced embarrassment.

Read more @ The Guardian

Doing your own PR/Publicity for your band. There are a few things you should know to get cookin’. Nice interview over at MC with a seasoned pro. A little tidbit is below, then jump over for more. If you can’t tour right now, do some PR.

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When you’re an artist, there are a lot of pitfalls involved with doing your own press or even hiring someone you don’t know directly. What else should people be aware of when doing their own press or hiring a publicist for the first time?

AM:

I think the best thing is to know what your goals are, and what you want out of it, other than getting into Rolling Stone. You have to be realistic and aware that people at magazines and websites and any outlet are very limited with the space they have. They’re being pitched by tons of publicists every day on multiple projects. You really have to be on the same page as your publicist about what you want to get out of it. You want to hire someone that specializes in what you do and that has the time to really focus. I think a big mistake a lot of publicists make is taking on too many things. Choosing your publicist wisely as an artist is knowing who you’re hiring, the kind of time they have for you/that they will make you a priority and that you will both have the same expectations. As a publicist, my job is never done. There’s always another outlet, someone else to pitch, someone else to follow up with, especially in the online world. It’s endless. Knowing you have someone that is really going to work for you and with whom you have the same goals is really important and will make you a good team.

Read more @  Musician Coaching.

It’s all about getting your show dates into as many hands as possible. SongKick, who is also picking up people from Google left and right, now has a Facebook App to jack those show dates into your band’s Page.

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If your group is smart, you have been making sure that Songkick has your concert dates up to date. Whether it is to raise awareness or make sure that your Bandcamp page has dates you should always make sure Songkick has your dates. Another great reason to do it is they now have an awesome App for Facebook that will show your concert listings. In the above pic you can see them. Simply search Facebook for the Songkick App and get started!

via Musformation.

Here’s a whole lot of confusion for you.

So when we switched over to the new site everyone’s profiles just kind of became HOST PROFILES. That means if you had your band set up as your profile on the old site, it is now a host profile. That totally makes sense right? I’m sure it doesn’t. Our bad.

Simply put: If you used BTTV in the past and have a band PLEASE log in and set up your band w/ a BAND PROFILE. This is different from a HOST PROFILE.

Yes, confusing but when someone searches for bands in another city YOUR BAND WON’T SHOW UP if you don’t set up a BAND PROFILE.

Ok, enough with the capital letters.

Thanks for dealing. Now go update some stuff.

A little guest post from the boys at Bandzoogle. We’ve got 3 “ways to impress” right here and 2 more if you jump over to Bandzoogle. Some good common sense ideas coming from someone who spent 5 years dealing with bands like yours.

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I spent three years as program director for two venues here in my home city of Montreal, overseeing 500 shows during that time. Here are 5 ways that you can impress venue bookers and give yourself the best chance to get more gigs:

1. Think 3-4 months in advance

Many venues are booked at least 3 months in advance, and the more popular a venue, the further in advance you should contact them. This is especially true if you’re looking to play on a Friday or Saturday night. So be sure to contact the booker at least 3-4 months in advance.

2. Be patient

Bookers are very busy people, so be patient. If you didn’t get a response right away, it doesn’t mean that they’re not interested in booking you. Chances are, they just haven’t had time to evaluate your music yet. Follow-up politely to see if your e-mail/message has been received, but whatever you do, don’t try to rush them or sound annoyed that they haven’t gotten back to you. Be persistent, but always be polite.

3. Be honest

Whatever you do, don’t lie about your draw. You’re better off being honest with a booker about what your draw really is rather than stretching the truth and disappointing them. If you tell a booker that you can pack the place and only your mom shows up, chances are you won’t be booked at that venue again. But if you were honest about what your draw realistically is and you match or surpass it, then the booker will no doubt want to book you again.

Read more @ Bandzoogle

If you’re driving people to your Facebook page then this is for you. It’s all about keeping them on that thing and it’s not just voodoo that does it. A few good tips backed up with some stats. Get on it.

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Though this report clearly is shared to attract attention to their services, the sharing of such data in this form is exceptionally useful for music marketers who want to move beyond hunches and what’s worked so far. This report focuses on engagement rates based on considering “fan base size” in relationship to the number of comments and the number of “likes”.

Some of the findings with an emphasis on industries most relevant to music marketers:

• Shorter posts increased engagement. 27% higher engagement was seen for posts between 1 and 80 characters.
• Full-length URLs trumped shortened URLs. Engagement was 3 times higher for posts using full-length URLs.
• Posts outside of regular business hours, identified as 10 am to 4 pm EST in this study, saw engagement rates 20% higher than the overall average.
• Engagement with posts peaked on Thursday and Friday however peak usage also varied by industry.

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2011/04/how-to-increase-engagement-in-your-facebook-wall-posts.html

This is big news for musicians. It’s going to add a whole new dimension to your online presence. Think about all of the possibilities. YouTube is already the site for streaming video, so your fans already know how to find you on it. Here’s a few ideas I came up with on how to utilize the live streaming when it becomes available to you.

Stream a practice every once in a while. Be engaging while doing it. Make your fans feel like they’re hanging out with you in your basement or wherever you practice. It’d be a good chance to throw out some new song ideas and get feedback, or just show your fans that your just as normal (or weird) as they are behind closed doors.

Stream a recording session in the studio. Give a glimpse into your life in the studio. Dish out a few snippets or raw recordings. I mean, when’s the last time you watched your favorite band record? It’s usually something experienced only by the artists and the producer. Make the fans feel like they’re important, too.

Stream a show. Not everyone can make it out to a show. Don’t let time or distance keep your fans from enjoying the live concert experience. Of course it’s not the same as being there, but it would beat watching someone’s out of focus camera phone clips the next day. Have someone shoot from backstage, side stage, or even the crowd.

Stream on the road. Whenever WiFi is available, show people where you are and what you’re doing. Talk about where you’ve been and where you’re going. Let fans know how excited you are to come to their city. All of the time between shows is something usually left unseen. Bring it to life.

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Depending on the status of your account, you may have to play the waiting game for a while. According to the announcement, YouTube plans to begin with a slow rollout of the feature to select YouTube partner accounts that are in good standing. After that, they’ll continue to make YouTube Live available “incrementally over time.” No specific dates are mentioned.

Translation: This option will not be available to the average YouTube user in the immediate future. So, for the time being, your best bet for live streaming continues to be Ustream or Justin.tv.

via DIY Musician

Really interesting piece from NPR about the price of concert tix, where the money goes and how much bands can expect to make. Plus a few interesting stories on how much it takes to actually quit the day job and pull off touring/playing full time. A little taste is below but definitely pull into NPR for the full story.

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“At club level, many [bands] can’t even generate enough to cover basic expenses,” Bongiovanni wrote. “From a club or promoter perspective, the act is only worth part of what it can dependably bring in the door. The stronger the draw, the safer the risk, and thus the artist can command more of the money. At this level it really is eat what you kill.”

Dawn Barger, who manages indie bands – some of whom still play small clubs and some of whom, like The National or The Antlers, have moved on to larger venues – says that’s about right.

“If you look at the finances of having a band on the road at the small club level … you’re barely covering costs in a lot of cases,” Barger says.

For bands at this level, every ticket really does count. Smaller venues – in an effort to compensate fairly – often poll audience members at the door, and pay each band on the bill the portion of the total receipts that corresponds to the number of fans who said they came to see that band play. For groups starting out in this situation, Barger paints a lifestyle ruled by modest expectations.

“I mean, if you’re selling out every night, you’re probably supporting yourself and you’re able to quit your job,” Barger says, “but you certainly have roommates, you’re barely getting by, you’re watching how many hotel rooms you get each night.”

Read more @ NPR