Getting signed- is it worth it?

Whilst trailing the web I came across this.

The original source is http://coriestories.wordpress.com/2008/06/21/how-to-get-your-band-signed-without-getting-screwed/

This blog is pretty good but i thought this was pretty relevant to us at the moment. Hopefully it well offer some decent advice to up coming bands.

How to Get Your Band Signed without Getting Screwed

I had a very interesting conversation today with a CEO of a company that focuses on Digital Distribution and Music Management. He asked me “What do you think an Artist wants in a Record Label? And how do you not “turn them off” when you tell them the realities of the Industry?” I started to laugh. I have been asked this question more times than I know and yet, it still doesn’t get old. I answered without hesitation, “They want Fame and they want it NOW! When you tell them that it doesn’t work that way, they will ask someone else until they get the answer that they WANT to hear. However, once they live the truth, they ultimately come back with those famous words “You were right”.”

Artists are brainwashed into believing that “getting signed” is synonymous with being “rich and successful” and that it can literally “fall into your lap” by emailing and submitting to A&R reps all day long. (You just gotta find one to say yes, right??) I contribute this popular delusion to when million dollar record deals were inked and stories of the “rags to riches” artist were broadcasted across the country on MTV. Those days are long gone and are never coming back.

Nowadays, to get signed, an artist must go back to the grass-roots of earning fans. (You know, how it was ALWAYS done prior MTV.) The problem is, many artists are too lazy to do the work necessary and in reality, it’s not as impossible as you may think. The main key of getting a great record deal lies within the hands of the Artist and their Manager. Your band needs to be talented, have excellent guidance and enough clout (and following) to negotiate successfully. Getting to that point is the main challenge however, if you can get into the position where the label wants to work for you and not the other way around, your band will be golden. I am going to give you the best lesson ever; it’s called “Corie’s 101: How to Get Your Band Signed without Getting Screwed!”

STEP ONE: Make sure your band doesn’t suck. Seriously! This is the most important step and if you are wrong, none of the rest will matter. Sucking = Bad.

STEP TWO: Buy a van or a gutted school bus that can hold your band as well as a decent trailer that can haul your gear. Treat it well because you just purchased your new home -Congratulations!!!

STEP THREE: Book shows in every dive that you can find. (Five shows per week for six weeks is ideal for starters.) Keep the shows within 3 to 5 hours of each other, city to city. Ask for gas money (typically $150-$200 bucks a show) and if you’re lucky, they may throw you a pizza! Do not ask to play for beer -Your van will not run on beer and neither will you! The talent Buyers will take you much more seriously when they see that you consider touring a job and not a “rolling bachelor party”.

STEP FOUR: Ramen Noodles are the food of Rock Stars! Stock Up and learn to eat them crunchy! It builds character and fits into your budget! Do not stop at Mc Donald’s and Burger King for food, you will go broke. Stop at a grocery store and remember – you need to eat to live, not live to eat!

STEP FIVE: Play for 5 people the way you would play for 5,000. NEVER underestimate a SINGLE fan! Perform as if this show decides your fate and in reality, it does! If you play like you’re disappointed, the audience will pick up on that quickly. You MUST win the crowd! Take pictures with them and tell them that you are going to post the pictures on your website. Tell them where they can find you and how much you appreciate their support so they will come back the next time you come through.

STEP SIX: You have returned home and it is six weeks later. You are still broke however; you have met hundreds of new people across the map. Now, there is only one thing to do…REPEAT STEPS 3-5! (Isn’t this FUN???) It’s time to go back out and hit the same clubs and/or vicinities. Email and/or call those lovely people you met and let them know you’re headed their way because you haven’t seen them in over a month! Have them tell their friends and bring them out! If you didn’t overestimate Step #1, then more people will be at these shows this go-around.

After repeating Steps 3-6 three or four times, you should be able to branch out to nearby cities that are new but close enough for your new found fan base to come see you along the route! (Oh look – You have a following!!) Yes Yes, I know – you are super skinny from the “Ramen Noodles and Water Diet”, but chicks dig that! Once you are drawing some screaming fans, the girls will be offering the band to sleep and shower at their homes instead of using the Truck Stops! (Wow, you are slowly becoming a Rock Star!) Before you know it, you will no longer be the opening band, but the Headliner! You will be paid more and drawing a fan base that is loyal as well as NOTICEABLE!

Once you have hit this point, the A&R guys have heard about you and are sitting somewhere in the audience. If your pull is strong enough, (which is determined from how well you did steps 1-6), your manager will be in a position to get you the record deal you deserve and more. Maintaining the upper hand is critical; bands that do not, get quickly shelved after being signed! (Not sure what that means? Well, I will cover that next month.) Until then – Go shopping for your new home and let me know when you will be on the road. If you come to Atlanta, come see me! (I will even let you eat my stock of ramen noodles and save you a few bucks!) Just remember – being a Rock Star is work! If you aren’t willing to invest the time, no one else will either. So evaluate what you want and if being a musician is it, then get ready because the road is the only path to stardom.

Ideas on Marketing a Metal Band!

This is another one of those “how to promote your band” articles I do every couple of months; I generally stumble across a lot of info like this on the web. Mainly because I’m obsessed with the whole marketing thang but more importantly it helps us, as a band, put together a strategy for really pushing us hear and letting people find what we do.

As a band we work and meet with a lot at other bands and artists in search of getting that lucrative deal because let’s face it everyone wants to be able to tell their boss to fuck off and go on tour with the likes of Slayer, Machine Head and Def Leppard, don’t they?

Ok maybe the last one is just me, but doesn’t it all break down into marketing anyway, and how we allow other people and industry moguls/ Mongols to find our music.

How many times have we heard a band in an empty pub/club playing to 1 person and his mate?You could be the best band in the world but if you don’t tell anyone how will anyone know? Don’t rely on your promoter 9/10 he/she doesn’t give a shit!

“Many companies invest 35% to 65% or more of their profits back into
marketing and advertisements every year. Becoming and remaining number one
requires a lot of work. Advancing to more and more new customers not only
requires more and more marketing but keeping the old ones happy! “

This is a great quote, I found it at.

http://www.articlecity.com/articles/music_and_movies/article_641.shtml

But it makes sense, ok as unsigned musicians, we don’t have a lot of cash to throw about, but it does show were our priorities as a band (or company) should lie.

Promoting a band these days consists of either a myspace page or Twitter, get a CD and sell T-shirts, right?

Wrong!

Promotion of a company uses email, giveaways, Competitions, mini DVD discs promo’s, cold calling, internet marketing etc. You must do at least 3 forms of promoting to get a response out of your audience. The newsiest one for bands is musicmp3 ringtones and Video Games. So why don’t we adopt this strategy when developing our B(r)and.

Here’s a few alternative ways to promote I stole from another site:

• Great item that I have seen so far are mini DVD discs called pocket reels. GOTO www.pocketreels.com for more info on how to pick them up. These mini DVDs can go a far way just think what people would do if you handed them a mini DVD. They go crazy and they are super impressed! Place a nice video of your band on it and see how many new customers you receive at your next show!



• Having a photograph (Like Kuroii) or a videographer at your shows (Like Tim Johnson) to help promote your band is a good thing. They can take pictures and or videos and upload the images or videos to your website which can boost mailing lists and a fan club! And then they may be compelled to come to your next show and bring more friends or soak in the opportunities for fame and the live music experience itself.



• That brings us to a mailing list, each visitor to your website you should be collecting their email address so you can send them useful information like when your next show is going to be.



• Promoting your band is not easy so do yourself a favor and get a good publicist to promote your band. A good one can get you in 3 to 4 magazines and newspapers in one month for free, of course you have to pay the publicist but it will be well worth it. It can range from £400 to £2000. Note you can do this part yourself if you know how to negotiate with editors. 5. Promote your band by creating a really cool website! You’ve found ours but look into ways of finding a page to call home and use all the Social Networking sites to direct traffic to it.



• NB make sure you can edit content on your site without a third party, this is a common mistake a lot of businesses & bands make, you’ll need your update your special offers, gigs, and shows of course.



• Make a professional music video for your band or gig. This will help with promoting your band. High quality Video can be found at many locations for a crew with experience. for people who want an affordable video in the Southport & Northwest area please contact Tim 7. Saving the best for last.



• Another great way to promote your band is by making a mp3 ringtone, or polyphonic ringtone for example you can download a nickelback ringtone and wow free advertising everytime someone calls that person and bam there is a song on your phone. You need help making your own mp3 or polyphonic ringtone please go to A-FREE-RINGTONE.COM By making a ringtone like nickelback you can have your song ringing all over the world!

Your goal is to continue to reach more and more locals. Develop more ways to attract people’s attention. Always have something on you to promote yourself with.

Hope this helps

Till next time!!!
\m/