How do you promote your gigs?

Averatu

It seems our little industry is rather scattered and disconnected, and this is one aspect that is always neglected. The other SA music sites I've looked at has no action to speak of, tumble weed, 2 months later, the same news, same gigs. Any suggestions?

(old forum) Poll Results: In the 90 we'd put up posters EVERYWHERE, we'd fax Barney Simon who would read it on air in his gig guide slot. These days its all over the place, but I'm yet to find an up to date online go-to gig guide when I wanna get out. How would the active bands ou

Flyers and Posters: 4
Facebook: 15
Gig guide web site: 1
Word of mouth rent a crowd.: 10
Print media, mag or news paper.: 1
Promotion is the promoters problem: 2
I dont play in a band: 2

Mannoroth

Applying some market research techniques I see..... I like it! ?

Jack-Flash-Jr

YourLMG for Cape Town does a good job of keeping up to date online and venue owners usually put our gigs in the print edition. FB and word o' mo as well. Some venues put up posters (done by them). A lot of the places have a built in crowd and if they like us they're back the next gig.

Manfred-Klose

you would think that with all this technology more people will be informed, but with facebook everyone just ingnores events.

i miss the old days of putting up poster at shops, talking to random strangers, its was loads of fun, and something to do.
i am still young, but was lucky enough to make use of the old system when i could.

The only modern marketing thing that i have noticed that work, is to sign up to a bands mailing list.
i prefer this way, then you get emails saying where the band is playing.

if you are a new band, well thats one of the hardest things you can do is to start a band.

if i talk to most of the bands i work with, i ask them what is their form of marketing, facebook seems to be the only reply i get. when i mention about going to a place where you might find like minded people and hand out flyers, they look at me like i am from a different planet. i only know of a handful of bands that still do the flyer thing, and the only ones that seem to be pulling new people to their gigs, and then i not talking about rock bands, this is metal bands doing marketing.....

there is alot of FREE or inexpensive marketing techniques out there, you just need to think outside of the box.

.........oh and if the music or band suck, dont even try to market that.......

Averatu

Problem is, if you're not connected to a band on FB, you'll never find out about their events, where as with a decent gig guide you see on the list for the week/month that 'Frikkie Van Tonder" will be playing at 'The Hell Hole' on friday, and you've head of him, so you might go. People probably ignore the FB events because its overloaded with out dated crud. I know many people who abandon e-mail addresses on a regular basis because its too much unwanted info, a weekly e-mail from this and that and the next band adds up quick.

I only heard last night that Tori Amos played here last week, never saw anything about it anywhere, same goes for Alphaville. Would have gone, but I dont actively follow them.

No one polling then?? Or are we going to be typical selfish SA musos and hold our cards to our chests until its game over?

Jack-Flash-Jr

You'll only let us choose two. No fair. ?

Manfred-Klose

...........well i just received a free ticket in my email for a gig on saturday, with two of my favourite local bands, i didn't even know they were playing on saturday.

Averatu

The settings only allow 2 votes?

Averatu

Jack Flash Jr wrote: YourLMG for Cape Town does a good job of keeping up to date online and venue owners usually put our gigs in the print edition. FB and word o' mo as well. Some venues put up posters (done by them). A lot of the places have a built in crowd and if they like us they're back the next gig.

That site is pretty jacked, and slick, and in true JHB fashion, not one listing for Jozi, clicked thru the whole week. Cape Town on the other hand is another story.

Mannoroth

I think a combination of channels needs to be used to generate a following. The problem for me, like I mentioned in a previous post, I have to promote a metal band but I don't know where to find the metal heads (target market).

If someone walked into a room and handed out flyers for a metal gig chances are that they would not even bother to give me one, coz I'm disguised as a yuppie but in actual fact a die-hard metal fan beneath the surface. It’s not like ppl walk around with a label "metal head" on their forehead. As also mentioned in said post, the metal heads aren't at the metal gigs... they are scattered all over the place. Step 1 is thus to identify the best place to reach your target market - this will most likely be the most difficult and time consuming part, and is something that can only be generated over time.

Secondly, I believe one has to apply a Direct Marketing approach in order to promote an artist or group - this entails creating a database of potential fans / target audience and continually communicating with them and forming a "relationship". I'm not talking about a mailing list where you're just spamming them with info, it goes far beyond that - If you're serious about it you need to personalise the communication. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_marketing.

The more you know about your target, the better you can customise your message.

For example, there's a major difference between:

Example 1) "Hi there, band X jamming at Venue Y on such and such date - please check us out"

Example 2) "Hi John, we know that you like to have a cold <insert his favourite brand of beer> and chill with great friends like <insert names of his friends>. Why not grab a few buds and come check out band X at <insert favorite venue> jamming with <Insert some of his favourite local acts> on such and such date..."

The 2nd approach is much more likely to lead to a response me thinks...

Finally, keep them interested by sharing band news, photos, demos, t-shirts and even asking for their inputs and opinions to your music.

Averatu

Mannoroth wrote: I think a combination of channels needs to be used to generate a following. The problem for me, like I mentioned in a previous post, I have to promote a metal band but I don't know where to find the metal heads (target market).

If someone walked into a room and handed out flyers for a metal gig chances are that they would not even bother to give me one, coz I'm disguised as a yuppie but in actual fact a die-hard metal fan beneath the surface. It’s not like ppl walk around with a label "metal head" on their forehead. As also mentioned in said post, the metal heads aren't at the metal gigs... they are scattered all over the place. Step 1 is thus to identify the best place to reach your target market - this will most likely be the most difficult and time consuming part, and is something that can only be generated over time.

Secondly, I believe one has to apply a Direct Marketing approach in order to promote an artist or group - this entails creating a database of potential fans / target audience and continually communicating with them and forming a "relationship". I'm not talking about a mailing list where you're just spamming them with info, it goes far beyond that - If you're serious about it you need to personalise the communication. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_marketing.

The more you know about your target, the better you can customise your message.

For example, there's a major difference between:

Example 1) "Hi there, band X jamming at Venue Y on such and such date - please check us out"

Example 2) "Hi John, we know that you like to have a cold <insert his favourite brand of beer> and chill with great friends like <insert names of his friends>. Why not grab a few buds and come check out band X at <insert favorite venue> jamming with <Insert some of his favourite local acts> on such and such date..."

The 2nd approach is much more likely to lead to a response me thinks...

Finally, keep them interested by sharing band news, photos, demos, t-shirts and even asking for their inputs and opinions to your music.

You obviously fall in the 'metal yuppie super nerd' category, where as I fall in the 'metal semi nerd smart ass' part of the pie chart.

Averatu

Caught in the act of BUMPING.

Airguitar

I have tried to use electronic media, but cannot comment on how successful it is because Facebook IS rent-a-crowd.
It's all your buddies who get the info, just a new way of getting it to them.
Promoting a single gig is not my area of expertize, however if you're talking about a long-term gig, my way of doing it takes some time, but the results are lasting.

Actually it's more self-promotion than gig promotion...

Show up early and set up early enough to start on time.
Tune up.
Make sure all your gear works, have backups of essential items.
Be nice to the Management and staff.
Be nice to the customers. Take a genuine interest in them, learn a few of their names.
Play to the audience, not to yourself, that's just masturbating in public.
Don't drink too much. (You don't play as well as you THINK when hammered)
Take breaks but not too long. I like 45 min sets with a 15 min breaks but this depends on if you know more than 20 songs....
Tune up... again...
Don't practice on the gig.

Don't be surprised if they ask you to come back, and don't be surprised when the crowd starts calling their mates to join them at YOUR gig.

I know this isn't really what you were asking, but it works..

Mannoroth

Airguitar wrote: Be nice to the Management and staff.

Good tips - especially being nice to management - be nice to the sound guy! We've seen a prominent local metal band get totally screwed by the soun man coz they had a k*k attitude and started kicking stuff around - there were some technical difficulties on the night... Sound was fine when the other bands played...

I agree that the approach needs to be professional, I dunno how ppl can jam guitar when they are drunk - it only takes 1 or two beers to start affecting your coordination, even if only slightly, it is noticable.

Averatu

"Play to the audience, not to yourself, that's just masturbating in public."

That is BRILLIANT!!!!!

Averatu

Bumper cars are cool.

Averatu

Averatu wrote: Caught in the act of BUMPING.

Damned, did it again.

Manfred-Klose

you should maby ad an extra option, do you play in a band ?

there is alot of people on the forum that dont play in a band, so they never needed to do marketing for something like gigs before.

.......thats maby why you aren't getting the answers you are looking for.

Averatu

Manfred Klose wrote: you should maby ad an extra option, do you play in a band ?

there is alot of people on the forum that dont play in a band, so they never needed to do marketing for something like gigs before.

.......thats maby why you aren't getting the answers you are looking for.

Good idea.

Averatu

Updated poll. But we can still use the insights of non banded players, why also attend gigs, how do you come to know about it.
Our new drummer's other band is playing a gig at the Bo this Thursday. I did not know they still had week day gigs at the Bo until he told us last night.