Photo by Zan on Unsplash

“LUNCH AND LEARN”

I was pretty nervous walking into the Bella Vita Ristorante for the first time with my band’s promo pack. I was a new bandleader and didn’t really know how to book shows or even lead my band that well honestly.

But this particular day was my first official trip to try and pitch us. So, I remember they opened at 10:00am, so I thought going in around 12:00pm or so would give them time to “get open” and I could talk to the guy who booked the bands.

It was one of the few places in town that had a regular rotation of r&b/soul/dance bands so I at least knew we’d be a good fit musically. Unfortunately, being my very first attempt at booking my band — let’s just say, it didn’t go very well. 

The main reason? 

They were indeed a restaurant more so than a music venue, and 12 noon was the height of their lunch rush. It seems so obvious now, but basically that translates to the absolute worst possible time to sit down and talk business!

Lesson learned.

++ How to Book A Gig on Gigmor

As a musician and bandleader, your professionalism will be judged off stage as much as your time onstage. And since I don’t want you to feel any more nervous than you might be already, here are some things to consider before you reach out to a venue…

5 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU COLD-CALL A VENUE

⁠⠀

1. Audit YOUR social media. You already know the first place they’re going to look once you do get in contact with them. They’re going to check your social media accounts. The first thing you should do — and be doing on an ongoing basis — is focusing on your engagement.

Are there things on social that should be taken down? Is there enough actually on your page to paint a good picture of the band? I’ve seen a ton of bands sending out links to their Facebook page asking for booking, only to visit the page and can’t find any music or video.

👉🏼 Put yourself in a booking agent or club’s shoes and ask: “would YOU hire YOU?”

2. Audit THEIR social media. Here, you’re looking for a few things. You’ll want to observe what other bands have played there and if you can see signs of the crowd. Almost as importantly too, you’ll want to observe how much they promote their current shows. If their promotional efforts are non-existent already, chances are that probably won’t change for you.

👉🏼 Check their events tab for any past music nights as well as the videos tab. These will be good indicators of their involvement.

3. Find the rules and follow them. Stalk the club’s website and find their preferred (or most engaged) method of submitting music or press kits. Does the venue have a website form? Can you tell if they accept inquiries through Facebook messenger? Maybe they’re old school and prefer you drop-off a cd or thumb drive?

👉🏼Anticipate it all. Meaning, when creating your press kit, make it available in all formats — a page on your website you can link to, a downloadable PDF, a flash drive, a print out, etc.

4. Attend a live show: Yes. Go there if it’s at all possible. Attend a show on a night you are anticipating playing there (i.e. weekend or weeknight). Observe the vibe, the crowd, the service, and spend some money on drinks and food. This will give you a chance and a reason to talk to the bar staff and find out what bands they like (and why). 

It may not seem like it, but you’re actually “interviewing” the club as much as they are you! 

👉🏼If you do make it out on a scouting trip, don’t try to talk business if they’re busy (see lunch and learn above). 

5. Check their schedule. Assuming your research has provided some good info and you’re all set to book, one final tip. Check their schedule and already have at least one date that matches up with a whole in their calendar.

Of course, sometimes the booker or club owner is more up to date than the website, so do try to have a few dates available that would work for both of your schedules.

👉🏼 Be realistic about your pitch. It’s one thing to “feel confident” you could get people out, it’s another to have a track record you can rely on. 

As far as the Bella Vita goes, the good news is that I eventually met with the club’s booker and our band eventually got in a regular monthly rotation. 

In terms of booking, I found that the more prepared I was, the less nervous I was about my meetings with venues. That’s what I want for you!

So whether or not you found the venue on your own, or through opportunities with the 2000+ venues on Gigmor, just know that a little research and a well planned reconnaissance mission can go a long way. You got this. ⁠

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Leonard Patterson is an avid fan of all things New Edition, an indie-focused booking agent, a frequent hi-fiver, and a certified digital marketer (yes, in that order). Since stepping off stage as a band manager/front man of a 6-figure party band, he launched Indie Band Coach with a mission to help indie bands reach more fans and book more gigs. When he’s not working, he’s most likely at a live music event, analyzing Marvel movies, or soaking up vitamin D at the beach with his wife and son. 

Want more fanbase and booking tips? Subscribe to the Indie Band Coach YouTube Channel.

HOW FAMILIAR DOES THIS SOUND?

Book a gig.

Create a Facebook Event.

Share it on social media.

Post it on your website.

Share it on social again….

Book another gig.

Create another Facebook Event.

(you get the idea).

For most of us, by default, that’s our entire promo strategy. Honestly, that’s all we have time to do in a given week. In some ways, we’re so conditioned to think because there are so many people on social media, that should be enough!

According to a study done by MusicWatch, 90% of the 3.7 billion social media users engage with music or musicians – by viewing videos or posts featuring musicians, liking or sharing a musician’s post, discovering music or sharing music.

Unfortunately, we are not living in the classic film “Field of Dreams.” No matter how awesome our music is or great our stage presence, just because we build it, does not mean they will come.

With that amount of traffic online also comes a hefty competition for people’s attention. So while you should definitely have a social media strategy on social, don’t underestimate the power of search engines. 

The ability to be where your fans (and potential new fans) will be looking for entertainment this weekend should also be an important part of your marketing tool box. 

Mobile searches for “things to do/activities” + “near me” saw a 6X increase over the last 2 years.

++ “Live Music Near You” Alerts via Gigmor

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

As I mentioned last week in my interview, my band hit the scene prior to Facebook and social media really being “a thing.” We were forced to be creative in how we promote shows. Some of that included offline tactics, while others included finding out where live music and other shows were already being listed. 

Here’s the thing: Your live show and your music need to be heard and there are fans out there waiting to be entertained and inspired by exactly what you have to offer. 

Let’s take a minute to explore some sites — other than Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter — that you should consider adding to your promotional strategy. Before we dive in though, a quick Q&A. 

Q: Should you try to use all of these sites? 

A: Probably not. Some of them might even aggregate into one another, so take some time to look into that.

Q: Should you do a little research, especially on your local level to see what sites list live local music? 

A: Yes. Again, this is not to replace your social strategy, but to expand it. If you don’t have time to do anything other than a Facebook event, that’s fine. Create the event, then delegate to a band member or family member to transpose that info to one of the following sites.

7 PLACES TO PROMOTE SHOWS

Here are 7 places to promote your shows/create events that aren’t social media…

1. AllEvents.in – A widely-popular event aggregation platform
2. Eventbrite.com – High-traffic ticketing website that seamlessly integrates with Facebook, Instagram, and Spotify
3. Eventful.com – boasts the world’s most comprehensive selection of local entertainment content
4. EventsNearHere.com – is designed to help people find or promote shows.
5. Evvnt.com – a growing event marketing automation platform aggregating to 4,500+ event listing sites
6. Nextdoor.com – considered the neighborhood hub for the exchange of helpful information, goods, services, and local events.
7. Meetup.com – a platform for finding and building local communities

EVENTBRITE

Some of the event sites will allow you to add tags or keywords to help fans find you. We’ll use Eventbrite.com as an example. It’s one of Google’s most trusted websites, and has the highest domain authority of any ticketing site. You can also sync your Eventbrite gigs to Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, YouTube, and more.

You will have 10 tags you can add when creating your event – use them! Here are some examples to spark ideas.

• Things to do in [your city]
• [Your city] events (or concerts)
• Things to do near me
• Live music this weekend
• Live music near me
• Things to do tonight
• [Your genre] music this weekend
• [Your genre] concerts this weekend
• [Your city] [your genre] near me 
• What to do this weekend (or tonight)

Want even more ideas for tags to use? Consider predictive keywords to get ideas and find the most commonly searched terms in your area.

You can see this full post on our Instagram

Ticketing and event sites like Eventbrite help your event rank higher in Google searches. They can be a great way to promote shows online without spending money on paid ads on Facebook. 

Just be sure to research their fee structure. Several of the sites will be free to join, but will take a % of ticket sales, or perhaps add on a processing fee. 

Eventbrite Fees (US)

• Essential Package: 2% + $0.79 per sold ticket

• Professional Package: 3.5% + $1.59 per sold ticket

• Premium package: contact the Eventbrite sales team

• Eventbrite Organizer tickets at the door: $1 per sold ticket

• Eventbrite Payment Processing Fee: 2.5% per order

They also include a payment calculator. Put in your ticket price, choose your package, and pass on fees or absorb them. Then see how the ticket price changes.

Most sites will not charge if you have a free event and just want to get the word out. Just be sure to look under the hood before you spend time incorporating this into your promo plans.

PARTNER WITH YOUR VENUES

Lastly, don’t forget to partner with your venue. Ask the talent buyers, club owners, promoters where they list their events and entertainment. If they don’t, then you’ll still come off looking like a professional by asking the right questions.

Best case scenario you find out the specific local newspapers, community boards, or local radio stations they advertise with already.

++ How to Partner With Your Venue and Promote Like a Pro

++ Booking Bands on Gigmor with Your Talent Seeker Account

Even after you use Gigmor to book a great show with one of the 2000+ venues, your work has only begun. Now is the time to think (i.e. promote) outside the box. It’s already hard enough getting people to shows, don’t ALSO make them work to find the details. Obviously, you want to take care of the basics — your website, your socials, and your email list. 

Once you’ve got those bases covered though, think about where your fans will already be looking for live music and entertainment — and be there when they get there!

———————-

Leonard is an avid fan of all things New Edition, an indie-focused booking agent, a frequent hi-fiver, and a certified digital marketer  (yes, in that order). Since stepping off stage as a band manager/front man of a 6-figure party band, he launched Indie Band Coach with a mission to help indie bands reach more fans and book more gigs. When he’s not working, he’s most likely at a live music event, analyzing Marvel movies, or soaking up vitamin D at the beach with his wife and son. 

Are you in LA/Southern CA? Join Indie Band Coach at an upcoming live marketing workshop.