How to Promote Your Music Onstage

How to Promote your Music Onstage

How to Promote Your Music Onstage - 3 Keys

Knowing how to promote your music doesn't just come down to the marketing you do before and after your shows. 

There are important and very effective actions you should be taking onstage if you really want to promote your music successfully.

 

How to Promote your Music by Telling them Your Name

I don't know about you, but I've list count of the amount of times I've gone into a bar or club and seen an act onstage without any idea who it was I was watching. Don't make the same mistake these kind of bands make. make sure every person in every crowd you play to is in no doubt who you are.

You can do this via a large flag/poster at the back of the stage, a bass drum skin with your name on,  or band flyers or business cards scattered round the venue. Also, don't not be afraid to tell people who you are on mic. Remind them of your name at least once per set. At the start and end of sets are obvious opportunities for this.

 

How to Promote Your music by Selling it

OK, so you're onstage and people know the name of your band or act. How are you going to translate this into selling your music and converting some of tonight's gig crowd into fans?

You need to make sure an enthusiastic gig crowd can get hold of their own copies of your material.  Always try to agree at least  the availability of a small table somewhere at the gig venue where you can sell your CDs and other merchandise which will help promote your music.

Tell the crowd on mic, where this table is. More than once - but obviously don't overdo it.

Make sure your music is available as mp3s for purchase online on your website and social media. If you haven't done this you can try these guys

 

 

How to Promote Your Music by Playing Great Shows

Of course neither telling people who you are or where they can buy your songs and merchandise will help you promote your music if you disappoint onstage. You've got to compel them to take action and become fans by playing gigs they'll remember - and for the right reasons.

Rehearsing until you could play your material in your sleep, crafting and using set-lists with highs in all the right places, looking like your enjoying yourselves onstage and crucially - interacting with your audience will all set you apart the dime a dozen bands and acts out there.

More on how to promote your music onstage here

The Best Live Bands and Band Booking Covers

Do the Best Live Bands  play covers?

Whether you play original or covers, when you're one of the best live bands in your area - you know how to get your music heard.  

Sometimes, despite the criticism I get from some quarters for suggesting it, this can involve original bands playing covers.


There. I said it.

Again....


A recent survey of Gig-Getter readers and subscribers revealed that over 50% of the best live bands (ie those that gigged most frequently) as semi-pro and amateurs play both covers and original material at their gigs.

Not only that, but you're pursuing super-stardom for your band, think of some of the biggest pro bands on earth that you know. How many of them included a cover or two in their original sets and maybe their first album? More than a few.
Here's what I've learnt from some of the best live bands around the world I've worked with about band bookings and covers:

Why some of the Best Live Bands play Covers (at least to start off)

1. Playing covers AND original material will increase the number of gigs you can get

2. Even the most anti-covers band mate can get creative with a cover song by adding their own identity to the version  your band does.

Finally, and this is something some of  even the very best live bands miss out on- you don't need to pick an era to focus on. In fact the more band bookings you want to be playing, the wider your choice of material should be. If you want to be "out" regularly and frequently you'll need to have a lot of songs in your "portfolio" and you could for instance, consider having a 60's set, 70's, 80's, right up to present day.

 

Best Live Bands - Covers Only

For those of you actually in covers bands, again the very best live bands like to have dedicated genre sets for certain places. Classic rock, punk or whatever. You can and of course mix these sets up when the type of venue or occasion calls for it. This way, providing all band members are too precious about what they play, you can be ady available for any type of booking...

More about how to get your music heard despite playing covers

Below is a posting from Harmony central about the most marketable era or type of covers for bands to play when they want to maximize gig numbers.

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2077423