The Art of The Gig-A Multi-Part Series: Part 5 PROMOTE PROMOTE PROMOTE

January 31, 2008 at 11:07 AM

So everything is in place. The gigs booked. You got an opening slot on an off night to show the club owner what you can do. This will usually be a Monday,Tuesday or Wednesday depending on your location. Here comes the age old battle. How do i get people to my show?? Well think about it…If its 9pm on a Wednesday night, you may face a bit of an uphill battle. Most people go out on Friday or Saturdays because they have to work or got to school. Let’s say the average person in the band is 20, now you have another issue. Most clubs will make an exception to let you play, however unless it’s an all ages room, your friends won’t be able to get in. Now what??? Your left with a small portion of your friends who are 21 and family members. Remember friends and family will come out here and there, but you are preaching to the converted. Ideally you want “real” fans that like your music and will come see you and buy your merchandise. Let’s figure out how to get the “other” people out. Lets start with some simple promotion. It’s always good to start promoting a show 3-4 weeks in advance, especially if you’re going to try and get some sort of press. So first things first. Figure out who are the local papers. Find the entertainment or local section. See who writes the articles on music or entertainment. Send that person your press kit. Send it in an odd shaped envelope or something with odd colors. Remember this writer will probably get 100’s of press kits per month. A lot of them will be from national touring acts. The writer may only have 1 shot a week to write unless you are in a bigger market. So you want to stand out. Everyone will send their things in a manila envelope or a fed ex envelope. Send yours in a pink or something wacky. Stick out in the crowd. If you don’t get a feature, you may get a small blurb or at least a listing. All are important. Sooner or later you will get your shot. Same goes for radio. Chances of getting on the big corporate controlled station are slim. Find out which station has a local music hour. Could be weekly or daily. It probably will be the local college station. Find the contact and get them your stuff. They may play your stuff; they may have you for an interview or maybe just a mention on their concert calendar. Again if not this time maybe next. Keep at it!.
Now make up flyers, get them printed at your local Staples, Office Depot etc. Hit the town with them. Hang them in the club. Hang them near the club. Hang them in the local coffee shops, record stores, malls or places where people hang out that may like your music. Hit the parking lots of local colleges. Also, when a big concert is in town that is similar music style wise, go hang in the parking lot. Talk with people at the show and tell them about your band and give them a flyer. Get some friends to help out. Build a street team!
The Internet. Get your email list together. Send out an email once a week until the show. Join other networking sites (joegig,myspace,etc). Remember, anyway you promote to include your websites etc. Other options for promotion can cost a bit of loot. If you have it, spend it. Take an ad out in the paper. Get a bunch of bumper stickers or t-shirts printed. If you don’t have loot, with the exception of the cost of postage and printing flyers, all of the promoting we discussed is free!
You need to spread the word!
Next time we discuss how the gig went.
~Earl Smith