Are you chasing that elusive creature called success in the music industry? Do you spend hundreds of dollars on getting CD's of your bands latest album or traveling to perform at your next gig only to find you have boxes of unsold CD's to pack up at the end of every show and just enough profit to pay for your dinner on the road? Are you tired of this routine yet?
If so, you are probably ready to quit being a hobbyist and start being a career musician, you
just haven't found the secrets to that cross over yet. I can help you by sharing one of the most important secrets of successful musicians.
One of the biggest things most musicians miss when they are trying to make the change from the proud but broke owner of a music hobby to the successful career of the professional musician is music marketing. Right now, I need you to stop everything else. Sit quietly and read the next few sentences.
Music is a business. Just like any other business, we have a product that we sell, our music. In the same way that other businesses must use some form of advertising to sell their products, the music business demands that you do a bit of marketing to be successful.
Did you catch the message in those three sentences? If you haven't been seeing the success you want to have, then you haven't been marketing your music in the right way. To help you succeed in marketing your music, I have put together a few tips and at the end of this article, I will share a resource with you that will help you take your music to the next level.
Tip #1 - Get the attention of your audience
If you have ever been to a carnival, you have seen what they call a "barker". This is the guy who sits along the sides of the main travel route and loudly yells to the passerby about the game or show they are hosting. You know the game is there but this guy feels the need to yell it across the road at you. Why? Experience has shown them that sometimes people see right thru things with a sort of tunnel vision. We are focused on the Ferris wheel or the concession stand and we walk right past everything else to get there. The barkers job is to get your attention, even if just for a moment, and try to redirect you to his booth.
Does your music career feel that way sometimes? You know that people have heard of your band but it seems they pass you by to go to the bigger shows. Why? Because you aren't catching their attention. While you can't send a barker out to draw people into your shows, there are things you can do to get the attention focused on your band. Try performing at a couple of charity gigs. Get your current fans to spread the word about your next gig to their friends. Arrange to open for a few popular bands. Try anything and everything that will show your band in a good light and gain the attention of as many people as possible.
Tip #2- Invest a little bit.
Whether it's your time or your money, you need to put a little investment into marketing your music. Investing money is the simple one. You can buy business cards, put up billboards, pay
people to promote your music and any number of other things in the name of music marketing.
Investing your time, however, requires a little more thought. Time is precious and you don't want to waste it on things that don't work so here's a few music marketing investments you should be putting your time into:
- Online Forums - The forums are a great place to market your music to people with similar interest. Find several good music forums and be a regular participant.
- Press Releases - Everyone loves a good story. If your band is playing at a charity event to benefit kids with cancer or the animals effected by the BP oil spill, then write a press release about it and distribute it to the media.
- CD Release Parties and other fan functions- People like to feel close to the musicians they like. Make yourself available to your fans and you will find that they grow in numbers and your merchandise sales will skyrocket.
Marketing your music doesn't have to be difficult. These are just two tips for helping your music make the leap from hobby to career. If you really want to know the most closely guarded secrets of successful musicians in the industry, you need to check out the New
Music Economy at this link: http://www.promusicrecords.com/index.html
I was able to see what I wanted to do, I could see the opportunity, even when others could not, and I stay committed to doing it and doing it well, no matter what. - Magic Johnson
P.S. If you aren't satisfied with just having a music hobby and you want to be a successful musician, you need tocheck out the New Music Economy NOW!