Thursday, March 15, 2012

Performers & Promoters: Help Yourselves! - Essay

The essay below is a re-posting from my monthly column on the California Bluegrass Association's Welcome Page, which appeared on Tuesday.  I look forward to your comments here and on the forums.

My job, as a blogger, depends on my ability to obtain up-to-date information about bands and people in bluegrass music. A major feature of the blog is to provide previews of events we're going to be covering. Usually I post a preview about two weeks before an event in the hope it will energize people planning to attend, inform them about ways to enjoy the festival more, and encourage other people to attend. Generally, I have no idea whether the blog entries have any influence in building attendance at festivals and concerts, but promoters and artists seem to like having me write them.

Recently, I was preparing a preview of an upcoming event in which a featured band we've only seen once was performing and whose photos were lost in a computer crash. I therefore turned to my next best source, the Internet. The band's web site featured a band photo still showing former members of the group. Their Facebook page was a moribund place containing no information and hadn't been updated in months. They still have a MySpace page, but the most recent comment is a year old and their “shows” page says they have no current appearances scheduled. In other words, they've done nothing to help promote themselves. Yet wherever we go, I hear bands bemoan the difficulty of getting gigs, the competitiveness of the work, and the expense of traveling. Some promoters still rely on printed fliers distributed at festivals as their major source of advertising. Meanwhile, the largest demographic in my online readership is people between the ages of 55 – 65 and the most desirable group to attract to events because they have money is people between the ages of 18 and 49, a group who are Internet savvy and rely upon it for information and planning.

The Internet in general and social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) in particular have become an increasingly powerful way to let current and potential bluegrass fans know who's who and what's happening where. Relying on advertising for their income, most social media sites are free to users, relatively simple to use, and allow the people who use them to focus their efforts in places with the greatest potential for making a return. More than two years ago, Internet guru Ariel Hyatt posted an article called “The Top Seven Reasons Artists Resist Social Media” filled with the arguments against social media use many musicians have given to me and debunking them. Nevertheless, musicians say they'd much rather practice their instrument and perform than spend time developing their careers. Nevertheless, it's the plain truth that jobs don't just come to a band because they're good. Jobs develop, at least partially, because performers have learned how to sell their product and do so persistently and frequently.

“Lou Reid & Carolina are really hot right now,” a friend commented the other day. What's happened that a performer who's played with signature band The Seldom Scene for eighteen years in two stints and been touring with his own band for twenty years has suddenly seen a jump in business and popularity? The band has been putting out solid new recordings regularly. They are welcoming and energetic on stage and available at their merchandise table. They respond quickly and warmly to requests for interviews. And they're active on Facebook...very active. Both Lou and Christy Reid have Facebook pages that draw their “friends” into their lives. Lou makes frequent humorous, even silly, remarks about the antics of their two daughters. Christy is saucy and fun on line, just like she is in person. They post about their daily lives as well as about their music and appearances. They encourage people to come to see and hear them, but it's never a hard sell. And their popularity has been growing by leaps and bounds. They humanize themselves and reach out to the public using social media. Could this have anything to do with their burgeoning popularity?

The Gibson Brothers last seven CD's have reached number one on the Bluegrass Unlimited charts. In the past two years, they've been showered with awards at both IBMA and SPBGMA. They are not huge self-publicists and, generally speaking, they prefer to let their work do their talking for them. But their popularity around the nation has grown spectacularly in the past two years. Could this have anything to do with their presence on Facebook? I think so. Eric has commented that he can post material about a new song or a performance, and there's relatively little response. But when he comments about the joy he feels in attending one of his son Kieran's games or seeing his other son Kelley write new material on the mandolin, he gets dozens of “Like”s and comments. The Gibson Brothers are one of the busiest bands on the bluegrass circuit, having resurrected what had, for a while, become a career that seemed stuck, despite the success of their recordings.

Four bands I can think of have actively promoted fan clubs. The Gary Waldrep Band, Nothin' Fancy, Lorraine Jordan & Carolina Road, and, of course, Rhonda Vincent & the Rage have each, over the years, cultivated active fan clubs. The clubs appear to stand alone with officers and membership chairs and work hard to promote the appearances of the bands they're devoted to. Members receive regular e-newsletters and notices about when the band will be performing in their area. Officers of the fan clubs are given recognition, but, I understand, serve for the love of the bands they follow. Promoters tell me that bands with active fan bases put “butts in the seats” at their events, a necessary component to getting good bookings.

A few weeks ago, Archie Warnock and Betty Wheeler, both knowledgeable about he Internet and part-time bluegrass promoters, posted some ideas for bands and promoters on the IBMA Members e-mail list, about how to use web sites more effectively. Here's what they wrote:

Archie, writing advice to bands said:
1.  Don't make me click an "Enter here" link to get to the site.  I'm at the site because I already *want* to enter.
2.  You must, must, must have a "Press Kit" link.
3.  Your "Press Kit" page must have a direct link to download a current photo that you want to see staring back at you when you come to our site
4.  Never, ever use “Flash” for displaying photos for promo purposes. They can't be downloaded and stored for use in the event promotion.

Overall, the easier you make it for me to make you look good, the better you'll look.

Betty, adding some thoughts for promoters, commented:
1. Check out the artist's press kit page for current and approved photos (and current bios). Use those instead of some random image served up by Google.
2. If you last presented the artist in, say, 1998, don't recycle the photo and bio from that appearance.
3. Make sure the band members you mention didn't leave the band 3 years ago...
4. If you create an eblast that features or includes the artist, be sure to use the "create a web version" option so that the artist can share your eblast on Facebook, Twitter, artist website, in his or her own eblast, etc.
5. Make sure your publicity identifies the location - or at least drops big hints (the state?).
6. Make it easy for people to find key info: especially how to buy tickets, directions.

There's much more to say about how to use social media to help yourself do better at being a bluegrass professional. The first step, though, is to recognize that just being a good musician isn't good enough. You need to work to get your name out and keep it out. Doing so appears to get results, and, for most people, only takes a few hours a week, several minutes a day to keep your name up and your site responsive to your fans. It's also worth noting that the annual World of Bluegrass conference put on by IBMA has been offering seminars dealing with these topics each year. These meetings provide band members and leaders with golden opportunities to discuss with their peers approaches to promotion and development. They are crucial to helping bands improve their professional position. IBMA also sponsors regularly scheduled webinars where such topics are discussed in real time on line for those who may not be able to get to meetings. Growing your band or your event takes hard work and attention to detail. Bands who take advantage of all the tools available to them, taking the time to learn how to use them and exercising them with taste and regularity will certainly see positive results from these efforts.

7 comments:

  1. Thanks, Ted. There was actually also a context for my remarks to bands about their web sites. I was in the process of putting together the web site for this year's Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival (shameless plug - www.delawarevalleybluegrass.org). Bands line up at the Gig Fair every year to pitch themselves to us to play. And we've been at it now for over 40 years. You'd think that it would be easy to do something as fundamental as getting a picture of each band we've hired so that we can promote their appearance. After all, they want so badly for us to hire them. But no...

    In spite of the apparent interest in playing the festival, I can go to an artist web site and find myself unable to download a simple promo photo - there may not actually be a photo available at all, or it might be wrapped up in a Flash display so I can't download it, or I might be directed to send an email to the artist or their agent to ask for a photo to use.

    Sorry - those are too much effort for us to undertake in order to make YOU look good. Make it easy for us, and we'll promote you to the best of our ability. Make it hard for us and next time, we may just hire someone else.

    -- Archie

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  2. Ted,
    Astute and erudite observations as always. I have countless friends and fans that reference one or another Facebook post I made when I interact with them in person. When I "crowd sourced" some of the funding for my solo project last year, I gave an interview to WAMU's Bluegrass Country, in which I made te following point: bluegrass is a genre in which traditionally, there have been very few barriers between artists and fans. It is one of the features of this community that drew me to it. I have always viewed social media as a modern extension of that same ethos. Connect directly with the consumers of your product, make them emotionally invested in what you have to offer, and it will pay dividends. Keep up the good work, my friend!

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  3. Thanks Ted, I agree with alot of what you are saying however it appears to me that unless you are one of the Top Professional Bands you won't get much assistance from Bloggers such as you or the media regardless of whether you spend significant time updating your websites/social media sites (in our case several). So there are two sides to every story IMHO and yep it can be frustrating for all.

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  4. Speedster - One of the commitments I've tried to maintain with my blog is to cover all the bands and make sure I use pictures of the side men as well as the stars. I think folks notice it and appreciate it. On the other hand, when I write previews, I have a harder time getting solid information about local and regional bands, even those who are seeking to widen their reach. It may be a double bind: they can't get wider attention unless they improve their outreach, but they have difficulty building the kind of sites that help them reach the next level.

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  5. Thanks for the insights Ted! We've had great success connecting with our Kickin Grass Band fanbase through our official website, online newsletter, Facebook and ReverbNation, and everything you wrote rings as true for us as it does for the Gibson Brothers or Rhonda Vincent or the Carolina Road Band. It's hard to find to the time to do it all and still practice/write/play music, but current internet and social media tools have made it much easier to connect with folks and distribute information. We rely on all the band members to keep up with things online, and it seems nowadays the trick is stay current with all changing resources and tools available to us! But an abundance of resources is a good problem to have.

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  6. Thanks, Ted, for including this essay in your blog; I'm one of those who would never have read it in the CBA posting.

    My reaction to your post, and to the helpful comments, is to come away with a sense of "well, sure..." It seems so obvious, so elementary, for a blue grass group to engage in marketing. If it's not the skill of one of the artist's, then certainly there is someone who could pick up the slack and do it, e.g. Lorraine Jordan and Carolina Roads.

    I mean, c'mon, this isn't brain surgery (or whatever the current metaphor might be).

    As for those who persistently refuse to engage in such simple actions as getting a Facebook account or sending pictures to the promoters, I can't wring my hands over their dalliance. Let them hide in the shadows of obscurity.

    It also occurs to me that the most successful groups, by any measure, are those who not only love their music but also love their audiences. That, over time, will show in the work they do, and that's a sad reality.

    It's too bad you have to write a thoughtful essay about such a self-evident topic, but I'm glad you did.

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  7. Ted, you as usual hit the nail on the head. The music business, like most businesses, is about building relationships. Using social media to help build these relationships seems like a natural to me. But it does take a lot of "work" and "commitment" and there is the rub. The playing music part of music is fun, the business side of music is "work". So many musicians are just not willing to put in the time and effort. It has somewhat to do with talent of course but once you have the talent it is the "work" of networking, connecting with the fans and staying connected is what will put bread on the table. I always floors me when bands/artists aren't willing to do the "work" and wonder why they can't get gigs, fans, etc. How many artists sit down and make a mission statement, a 5 year business plan complete with goals and milestone and develop their path to achieving these milestones. I enjoyed reading your thoughts Ted and I for one agree 100% :) Your songwriting fool...er...friend. Brink

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