Grindstop Blog

So you have a show and you want to promote it. Many artists take this pretty simply. They post on their website, announce it on Myspace, share it on Facebook, sometimes list it on Craigslist and then maybe send it to a local music magazine. There is this idea that people will just make the effort to find out about you. Now in some cases that can be true, but with each gig and show it is much more effective to pull those that already know you, reach out to those that might be some what familiar with you and connect with people that have never heard of you before.

When you take the approach of announcing a gig where you are reaching out to every one possible for that show but also keeping in mind you are continuing to work on your overall promotion for other shows to come as well as your awareness in that given town or city, you are taking the most effective path. So use the three-way effect when you announce a gig. Make that announcement, work for your existing fans, then the ones that might have heard your name and the people that have never heard of you before. Ads, posters, fliers or what ever that are designed that way are designed for the optimal effect.

Who, What, When Where, Why, How (much) Detail = good

Give people the information they need to see you. Do not assume you are that well known, even if you are. You can always attract new fans, new customers and a bigger audience. Make sure in the release about the show or the event posting you cover the who, what, when, where why and how much scenario. Give them all the information they need so they will come to see you. Too many people go too simple. Remember the economy is bad, people are going out less or they are going out to see their favorites. What can you add to your listing, announcement or release to inspire a new fan to check you out?

Don’t just list the venue, give the address, give a phone number and a website and add the bands site as well. Draw them in with information. In an over saturated world of music right now, the more information you can deliver, the better results you will have at some one looking at you as not just being another band in the blur of the hundreds of bands playing every night.

This goes for the poster too.

Make sure your poster is easy to read, clear with your logo, your tag line, the date, the venue, the address and all the other pertinent information so that the potential person walking by that has never seen you might take a second look and then maybe even show up. Put some more effort in to the posters and use them to attract those that know you but also those that might have heard of you and especially those that have no idea who you are.

Web, Magazines, Radio, TV, Newspapers

With your announcement that has all the information one would need to have a basic idea of what you are about as well as where they can find out more, the show, the location and the rest of the basics, you need to get it out to for the best most productive effect.

Remember, when you are posting online or sending out a release or announcement, it is about that show of course but it is also about bringing attention to your group, your music and why you are interesting as a whole. The more the word is out about you and what you are up to, the more chance some of these sites might look to doing a story, a feature or a review on you. Yes, you want people to come to the show, but if you are advertising the show, while building your marketing, your name recognition and your promotion, then you are getting the most opportunities out of a single action.

Where to post

Of course post to your websites and your networking sites but shoot for other places too. Set up a database of contacts of websites, magazines, radio stations, newspapers and TV stations. Collect emails and information so that each gig you have, it can be easier. Make sure to individualize the email and send to the right people. Do not spam or you will set up a bad reputation for your name. Give a good subject header and address the email to the right person.

This can include colleges and local show reviewers. Entertainment bloggers and any one else that has a pulse on the music industry in that given area just reach out and make that list. Now this is a list you are not going to want to over abuse if you have the weekly gig. Personally, I think an artist should not be playing in a given area too often but if you are going to, then choose the best show every six to 8 weeks and do the full scale send outs for that. Do not overly hit the list too much or you become the option to maybe go see instead of the must see. Again, I don’t think you should play a given 25 mile radius more than once every six to eight weeks and spend the time working to play elsewhere instead of over saturating a scene, then in turn build up the excitement for the show.

When to post

By starting to send out four weeks or so early, you are also adding to the chances about getting a story or some build up in one of the papers, magazines or websites to have an interview, feature or some kind of additional review for your coming show. It also clears all deadlines for getting posted in as many places as possible.

This does not need to be done all in one day either. The most effective way to promote is to do the large announcement and then once a day, continue to work that list you build up. Just spend five minutes a day sending to reviewers, bloggers, writers, editors, posting websites, event listing sites. This will build more possible listings as well as more contacts and more optimization across the scene, city or area you are playing in.

As you build up the list, find out when the best times are to send information and how they prefer it formatted. The more you can specify the information to how the specific media outlet or media person wants it, the more that person or outlet will recognize you both as professional and potentially as story or listing worthy. Some places are going to want announcements or releases a few weeks out while some radio stations may want the information the day before for some calendar listings. Find out and send accordingly.

Conclusion

Stupid simple….Advertise, market and promote your shows the right way. Work to bring people through the doors for the night you are playing but also keep in mind how sending out announcements, releases and information for shows can help for future shows and other media opportunities. Work smarter not longer or harder. Make every minute you are working on the promotion count so you can spend more time with the music.

For 99.9% of the bands out there their goal is to sign with a record label. Call it an acknowledgement of the hard work, a badge of pride for the years of sacrifice, gutting it out on the road, a platform for personal expression , delusions of money, whatever – the goal is to get signed. The truth is, getting signed is pretty damn hard on one hand and incredible easy on the other. Easy because in today’s industry there are hundreds of thousands of bush league labels and so called “label executives” looking to nickel and dime you. Assuming you have good judgment, stay away from these clowns. As for the beneficial situations, getting signed to a record label is pretty damn hard. There are layers upon layers of gatekeepers to push past in order to eventually, hopefully, sit down with the right person, the decision maker, in order to make your 10 minute pitch. If you can make it this far God bless you; but remember you need to deliver something different to standout because there are thousands of potential replacements waiting outside the door. If you can get in the door I’ll reveal the tricks to stay. Unfortunately in today’s industry, and you can argue with me until you’re blue in the face, but your actual music isn’t the dealmaker. Here are the 4 things executives will be secretly evaluating besides your music. Arm yourself with these tricks and impress the decision makers while increasing the chances you’ll get signed:

1. Be Marketable

Immediately walk in the door and tell the executive why you’re marketable. Not your demographic, not your market appeal, and not where your music sells, but WHY you’re marketable. You need to ooze cross over appeal, cross promotions, and non-traditional retail potential. Most bands make the mistake by wasting their 10 minute pitch telling the stories behind lyrics (boring) and/or their particular market demographics who attend the shows. These are all good things to discuss, but discuss them if you get a second meeting. An executive is looking past your music in to other avenues that can make money and help push your music. Being “marketable” or better yet how to “appear marketable” is a difficult thing to do and will be covered in depth in a later post; however be fully aware this is an essential element once you’re in the door.

2. Have a Gimmick

I’m not suggesting to do something stupid like have a pacifier in your mouth for all shows, but you do need a gimmick. A gimmick doesn’t have to be something cheesy, rather something consistent, a common factor between personal style, performance, and shows. I’m not here to tell you what that gimmick is because that should be left up to the artist’s creative mind. I will tell you what a gimmick translates into in the mind of an executive: product. You got a gimmick and a marketing department will have a field day creating product to couple your music. So if you’re meeting with an executive and you’ve got a gimmick, make it immediately known and point out the potential for spill over products.

3. Have Some Business Arrogance

Be very careful in how you interpret this, as arrogance may cut your own throat. Musicians who walk in the door armed with a business plan, musicians who carry a “we don’t need the label because we have a secondary plan” attitude will hit a homerun with executives. Why? A smart businessman will be attracted to this professionalism and see you’re ready to play ball. More importantly they’ll be intrigued that you may know something they don’t. Surprised by the fact you may be able to advance your career better than they can. This works. More importantly this separates you from the thousands of bands willing to lay on their backs for the labels.

4. Remain Flexible:

Bands get discouraged and offended when someone makes suggestions to elevate their career. Rightfully so, I would get offended to if some jackass floated out advice that has no merit; but be professional and choose your battles. If you’re sitting in an office of a record executive, in reality you’re lucky to have the opportunity, so be a sponge and soak up the knowledge. Executives, in most cases, have seen it all, done it all, and analyzed ever way to increase record sales through a variety of markets and avenues. Pay attention, as you can only learn.

For some the pursuit of success in the music business is nothing more than a quick dollar hustle. For others it’s more about fame and notoriety than art or financial independence. Some just like to express themselves through music and would love nothing more than to make enough money to do it full time. Others, while having respect for the culture of music are driven by the entrepreneurial opportunities available and see themselves creating and owning the next Universal Records. Maybe it’s a combination of all the above. No matter which description fits your situation the best, success in meeting your objectives will largely depend on how you answer the following two questions which are:

•1 How many people know your product/service exists?

•2 How many people care enough about your product/service to invest?

Keep in mind when I use the term ‘investment’ I’m not only referring to the corporate level but also the consumer level. In 2009 fans spend money on music because they want to, NOT because they have to. Matter of fact due to the recent emergence of free legal music streaming platforms (You Tube, Myspace Music, Imeem, Spotify, etc…) the consumer only has to invest their time and pay with their eyeballs, instead of their wallets. The popular phase ‘time is money’ couldn’t hold more weight in today’s Internet Age.

For example Oprah Winfrey built her empire off of millions of watchers paying not in dollars, but attention to her – which in turn allowed the TV network to charge corporations for ACCESS to her audience (to advertise their products). This ‘attention pool’ also affords her the opportunity to expand her revenue potential into film, print, radio and other media formats. With attention comes influence and that’s where true value lays…in the ability to help shape one’s perspective of what life means to them. How many people are paying attention to what you bring to the table?

Until recently music as a stand-alone product held a certain value due to the limited access one had to it. You either heard it on your local radio station or saw it on MTV/BET. Song rotations were limited on purpose so the record labels could profit off of massive attention (millions of listeners/viewers) but limited product exposure (15-20 song radio/video rotation). In order to listen to your favorite music on-demand you had to purchase the album. This scenario resulted in historic album sales, million dollar video budgets and 8 figure JV deals…until the Silicon Valley mob changed the game.

Once the Internet Age kicked in the consumer now had almost unlimited access to music/entertainment from thousands of online destinations. Because of this the scarcity value has now switched from the music to people’s attention and that (not online piracy) is the primary cause for the decline in album sales as the business model switches from ownership to ACCESS. The war all content creators are in is for market share of the collective MINDSHARE.

Finding the correct equilibrium between attention and scarcity will be a crucial part in the overall outcome of your efforts. Tipping the scales too far in either direction can have an adverse effect. For example spamming people (who never gave you their email address to begin with) or creating a false hype with manufactured beef in search of attention may only erode your brand credibility and turn people off. On the other hand keeping your product completely out of the market for too long in an attempt to retain a scarcity value may stall any momentum you’ve built and allow for the competition to fill the void.

For today’s music professional in search of sustainable success it’s important to understand that perceived value is often tied into scarcity. In other words you have to be able to offer something the next person can’t easily obtain (or create) and then capitalize off the access to that commodity. Then you need enough people exposed to your product/service so you can build a potential customer base and hopefully grow. As with anything worth the trouble your preservation and execution will determine how many crops you yield off the harvest.

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We’ve located quite a few ways to promote our independent record label, new released music and new artists. Having your business information available to your targeted audiences is the central key. There has to be visibility!

One of the perfect ways to make your business information visible and available, is to connect with others who are already visible and available! That is right, seek and search out other websites that will allow you to become linked to their website …it works! For every individual who comes in contact with a website you’re connected to, will definitely elevate the occasions of your website being viewed additionally.

I found that by asking various web site owners permission to link their web site to yours will ofttimes time cause a web site link ex change to take place… wonderful deal huh? You bet it is! Just remember this, it is all about visibility! You will be surprised how a lot of other web site owners are willing to ex change links.

So let’s get on board and start seeking out friendly website owners who want the same accomplishments for their website as you want for yours. But make sure you be careful of those who will ex change links and then remove your link from their website. Go back and check their website every so again and again.

Your artwork is the gateway to your music

You only get one chance to make a good first impression. Why put your worst foot forward with amateur album art? Far too many independent artists put 110% into their music and production, only to slack on the other details surrounding their “product.” Imagine you’re in a super market and trying to choose a breakfast cereal. Brand X may be the greatest tasting thing since the invention of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but you’re never going to try it if it comes in a bland box with a washed out, pixilated photograph on the front. Now imagine Brand X comes in a blank white box with Sharpie magic marker writing on the front. (Yes, we get CDs like that at CD Baby all the time). Chances are you’d assume the FDA should be notified, and quickly.

When it comes to artwork (the first impression many people will get of you and your music), don’t leave the design in the hands of a well-meaning friend unless they’ve got skills. Look at professionally-made albums in record stores. Notice how most of the artwork doesn’t look like it was whipped up in 5 minutes? Neither should yours.

So how do you avoid amateurism in your album art?

Don’t make a quick snapshot your album cover. People can tell it’s a snapshot and they will think you just don’t care.

Don’t put random pictures of animals next to pictures of people. You’d be surprised how many people do this, and it always looks ridiculous.

Don’t use a low-res digital picture. When it’s on a 4×5 CD cover, your image should at least be 300dpi.

Don’t use a piece of clip art. Again, this reveals a lack of creativity

Don’t make your album cover just text on a white page. It’s boring and people will think you don’t care about presentation.

Do hire a professional to design the cover art. Yes, it costs money, but if you want to be a real contender, every part of your album’s creation must be done right. After all the hours and energy you’ve devoted to the songs, why would you skimp on something that could turn people off before they even give your music a try?

Do brainstorm a bunch of ideas first. Think about your favorite album art of all time. What do you like about those covers? Is there a theme? A thread that connects them? Shoot for that aesthetic.

Do make sure your band name and album titles are clear and striking. Gothic fonts may fit your sound, but they’re really hard to read.

Remember, you do NOT have to be on your album cover. If you’re photogenic and attractive then appearing on the cover could help you sell some music. But if you’re camera shy, don’t feel like you need to force it. Hundreds of millions of albums have sold without any sign of a band member on the cover (Back in Black, Dark Side of the Moon, etc.)

We’re in the middle of “Banned Book Week” and this quote just came across my desk…

“Don’t join the book burners. Don’t think you’re going to conceal faults by concealing evidence that they ever existed. Don’t be afraid to go to your library and read every book…” – Dwight D. Eisenhower

This got me thinking about the music business and how some of the “powers that be” are handling the issue of new technology. Rather than look at the good it can do, they see the problems– file sharing, piracy, etc.

You don’t have to agree with something to learn from it. And denying it’s a problem will only delay your ability to turn that problem into an opportunity.

For every “problem” file sharing has caused, there have been multiple opportunities…

Let’s take a look at basic distribution to press outlets, for example…

How much did it used to cost to get somebody a quality copy of your music? How long did it take? How many trees, pieces of plastic, and people were involved to make it happen?

File sharing changed the way the game is played and made distribution better. For example, let’s say I’m doing a last minute interview for Music Business Radio and need to get some broadcast quality music and more info on the act I’m talking to be prepared for it…

Current technology will let that happen within minutes…not hours or even days. And this opens up a lot of opportunity to do things, where there might not have been time before.

And taking that same concept of a “digital copy” that can be sent anywhere, almost instantly, think about how you connect with fans. In the old days, you’d have to go through a writer, who would have to deal with an editor, who would have to deal with a printing deadline, and then work with the postal service to get your message to your fans. Not only would it take a while, you’d also have the limitations of space, with only so much paper and ink available to you.

These days, it’s not a problem. You can set up a web page, or go on Twitter, or do any number of things which will get your message out, as you intend it, almost instantly. And since it’s in a digital format, you don’t have the “lack of space” issues you once had. Just keep typing until you run out of things to say…

Or post an audio clip, so people can hear what you’re saying and really get a sense for the emotion behind it. Or maybe video is more your style…

And think of how much less this new method costs?

Bottom line is that there is good in everything. Focus on the opportunities and make the technology work for you. Learn about it, even the “bad” stuff like file sharing, so you can use it to your advantage. If you don’t you’re going to be left behind by somebody who is.

How are you using technology to advance your music business career? Post thoughts below…

I’m not a TV person, so I’m a bit behind on this, but a friend of mine just turned me onto a show called “Shark Tank” (watch on Hulu) and I think it’s worth a mention here.

The show is based on a BBC/CBC series called “Dragon’s Den” and features entrepreneurs with big ideas, but not enough money to make them happen. Each episode, a group of self-made millionaires from all corners of the business world take their own money and offer some to these entrepreneurs for a piece of their businesses…assuming the idea is any good and everything is in order.

As I was watching, I noticed some similarities between the entrepreneurs on the show and upcoming musicians.

Here are some “big ideas” that you may find helpful in your music business pursuit, since overlooking these will likely kill your music career before it gets off the ground:

1. Attachment is Deadly
This is important!! It happens in business, relationships, and all aspects of life and rarely does it end up well.

The best example of this is the “Monkey Trap” used in Africa. Like the aspects of life “attachment” affects, there are several versions of this trap.

How it works…

The trap consists of a container with a hole cut into it just wide enough for a monkey to stick its empty hand into. The container is baited with something attractive to the monkey, such as a nut.

The monkey reaches for bait. The monkey can’t take its hand out of the trap as long it’s holding the nut.

The monkey could leave at any time simply by opening its hand, but it wants the bait so badly, it will literally stay at the trap and be captured (or clubbed over the head) rather than let go.

It’s easy to think, “What a stupid monkey,” but we humans do similar things all the time and “Shark Tank” is a great example of this…over and over again.

The best “music business” example I can think of is being attached to songs. They’re like babies and we don’t want to change them of give them to somebody else, even though that might mean a better life.

I know a guy who had a great song that caught the attention of an upcoming artist. He had the option of getting it cut and released or holding on it and working it as an artist himself.

He chose that latter…which turned out to be a big mistake, since the “upcoming artist” was Garth Brooks.

In all fairness, nobody knew Garth would be as big as he is, but even an “upcoming artist” cutting and releasing his song was a sure thing; his record deal was not.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose… Still holding onto an idea (or anything) too tightly will kill it. 100% of zero is zero.

2. Know Your Numbers

What would the Super Bowl be like if nobody was keeping score?

What would gambling be like if no money was involved?

Keep score! If you don’t know how much your albums, live shows, and other expenses are costing your, or how much they’re making you, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. Without metrics, you could be losing a fortune and not even know it…or making a fortune and not know you need to do more of that to make even more money.

This works on many different levels… A club owner isn’t going to book you without knowing how many people you’re going to bring. A bank isn’t going to loan you money with your publishing catalog as collateral without knowing its value.

Keep track of your numbers. Know where you’re making money and where you’re losing it. Do more of what makes you money and less (or none) of what doesn’t.

3. Prove the Concept

Think you’ve got a great album? Think your band has what it takes to go national?

Numbers (see above) don’t lie and “measurement eliminates argument.” Prove your stuff is good by showing it on a small scale.

Why small?

For the sake of argument, let’s say you only have $1000 to spend. It’s much more effective for you to spend it all in once place, hitting the same people again and again, than spread it out over several places.

Think of it in terms of “flyers.” If you’ve only got 1000 flyers to hand out, you’ll make a much bigger impact on the guy who sees 10 of them than the guy who only sees one. One flyer, unfortunately for you, isn’t enough to do anything. Put some muscle behind it by focusing your marketing efforts on one area and hitting it hard.

Keep this in mind… If you can do it in one place, you can do it several places.

Humans like to think that we’re all different, but the reality is that we’ve got a lot more in common than not. If 1000 people make a certain decision, such as buying your music, it’s likely that 5000 people will make that same decision, if you do the same thing 5x bigger. Because of this, it’s easy to get a feel for how your music, your marketing, or anything else will do on a massive scale by testing it on a smaller one.

So go “small” to prove what you’ve got works. The people you’re wanting to get the attention of will get this since nobody in business is going to spend a ton of cash “testing” something on a national audience. They know a better option is to have less risk by working with a smaller audience, so they’ll understand.

4. Having Options Means More Money

In business, having more demand than supply is synonymous with getting the most money for what you’ve got. When there is only once product (you) and more than one person interested in buying it, the price always goes up.

Do what you can to get more than one person/company interested in what you’re doing and you’ll get a better deal. In the music business, this is knowing as a “bidding war.”

How do you make a bidding war happen? Prove the concept and know your numbers.

5. Play Big

The difference between the average musician and the ones who make a ton of cash is how they play the game. Successful musicians go balls out and take chances. They don’t wait to be discovered, they make discovery happen.

If you watch one of these shows, you’ll also see the investment made is based on the person behind the idea, not the idea itself. The difference between a “good idea” and a successful business is the person (or people) behind it.

Most musicians are like hitch hikers. They go to the highway with some idea of where they should be going, but not really, they just know where they are right now isn’t working for them. So they wait around for somebody and do things according on somebody else’s schedule and plan.

Successful musicians take risks and control their own situations. They’re the ones driving the car. It it crashes, they take responsibility, but the car goes exactly where they want, not just in the general direction. And like driving a car, they’re constantly evaluating where they are and recalibrating, based on where they want to go.

Ask yourself this question:

Are you just trying to get a little father away from where you are now or are you going somewhere specific?

6. Bet Everything

You don’t get big results by having a “Plan B.” Having something to fall back on gives you an excuse not to work as hard.

If you’re really certain of your music business success, why have a backup plan?

Uncertainty is what causes failure. Is this you? If so, all is not lost… The solution is to work so that you make your success inevitable.

What are the things you have to have in place to make your music business goals happen?

7. Get Realistic

If you’re not honest with yourself and able to get a realistic opinion of where you are now, you’ll never be able to improve.

As I mentioned earlier, “Measurement eliminates argument.”

Where do you start? If I were talking about weight loss, it would be for you to get on a scale.

What is the “scale” for the music business? Number of gigs you’re playing? Amount of people on your mailing list? Number of albums sold? Probably all of the above…and then some.

If you really want to do this, you need to know this information and work to improve it.

The harsh reality…

If you don’t have numbers, aren’t really committed to this, or have no idea if your “big idea” works, give up the thought of ever really doing this on a big level. There are too many people who have these things in order and that is who investors, labels, publishing companies, and fans always go with.

Why settle for anything less? It’s doubtful you do coming at it as a music fan.

Regardless of the economy, the state of the record business, or anything else, there is ALWAYS room for great artists and people will ALWAYS pay for it.

People want art. More importantly, they want a break from their day-to-day lives and they’re looking for somebody to provide it. This can be you, but you’ve got to do the work to make it happen.

We’ve located quite a few ways to promote our independent record label, new released music and new artists. Having your business information available to your targeted audiences is the central key. There has to be visibility!

One of the perfect ways to make your business information visible and available, is to connect with others who are already visible and available! That is right, seek and search out other websites that will allow you to become linked to their website …it works! For every individual who comes in contact with a website you’re connected to, will definitely elevate the occasions of your website being viewed additionally.

I found that by asking various web site owners permission to link their web site to yours will ofttimes time cause a web site link ex change to take place… wonderful deal huh? You bet it is! Just remember this, it is all about visibility! You will be surprised how a lot of other web site owners are willing to ex change links.

So let’s get on board and start seeking out friendly website owners who want the same accomplishments for their website as you want for yours. But make sure you be careful of those who will ex change links and then remove your link from their website. Go back and check their website every so again and again.

My inbox receives a continual stream of junk mail that assures me that the one thing that is most lacking in my life is the condition of my resume, and that, if I will only pay them $29.99 a month, they will help me redo my resume, get a better job and save my loathsome existence. To which I say: delete, delete, delete.

As musicians we know that traditional resume techniques used by workers seeking office jobs, and the junk mail that touts them, are not relevant to our needs. Moreover, we’ve probably at least reflected on the idea that, in general, resumes might not be useful at all in getting work. So what’s the truth?….

Independent musicians quickly come to realize that commercial radio exposure is an unlikely prospect, and instead concentrate their efforts on online radio stations. Their audiences may be smaller, but they are generally more open to independent music. But like their commercial counterparts, most of them get plenty of material from new artists and they have a lot to choose from. Though the competition can still be tough, there are things you can do to improve your chances.

Step 1

Visit an online radio station database website to search for stations compatible with your music. Live 365 offers links to over 6000 stations. You can search by genre and each listing will have contact information as well as a link to the station’s website.

Step 2

Study the websites of those stations that interest you, and read their play lists. If you can see your music sitting comfortably alongside the names on the play lists, then put the station on your submission shortlist.

Step 3

Send emails to the contact persons of the stations on your list, politely asking if you can send them your music for airplay consideration. Be sure to address them by name, and let them know that you’re familiar with their format. This will show that you’ve done a little homework, and aren’t just sending out blanket emails to every station out there.
Step 4

Promptly mail your CD to any station that responds favorably to your query. Mail it in a padded envelope marked “Requested Material” along with a brief bio, photo and one-sheet. The one-sheet should be a basic overview of your CD with track names and their running times, along with a word or two about any standout tracks. Include a brief, personalized cover letter and remind them of your previous correspondence.

Step 5

Keep records of all submissions so you can send follow-up emails and keep track of your airplay. Remember these stations will have multiple submissions to review, so wait a couple of weeks before getting in touch again. When you do, be brief and courteous, and ask if the CD arrived and if there are any plans to add it to the rotation.

Step 6

Monitor the playlists of all stations that you submit your music to. It’s up to you to keep track of any airtime you receive.

Step 7

After airplay, thank the station for their support, and ask if there’s anything you can do to support the station. Whether it’s playing at a benefit show, or sending extra CDs for use as giveaways during fundraisers, anything that furthers the relationship will bode well for future airplay.