Band Marketing Power

When you are about to get onstage or perform your music for anyone...
Why do you do it?

If you don't know that, then...
What do you feel like doing first?

Understanding what drives you will give you the perfect reason why you can improve and where to focus 90% of all your energy in order to deliver something incredibly powerful for your audience to enjoy. This will make you better and help you build a stronger, larger, more passionate Fan following.

Whether it's gracing overpriced T-shirts or iconic drumheads, being furtively carved into classroom desktops or intricately inked on the bodies of the most dedicated fans, a band's logo can be just as memorable as its biggest single....

Please check out the Logos and article at the following link. This is well worth your time:

http://www.spinner.com/2008/02/15/best-band-logos-no-25/

If you are serious about making it to the top, then it is critical that you take the time to do things right with your Band. And you can do them as you go. You don't have to do them all at once or before you start working. Build your Band's identity, brand, and business through time, so you can enjoy doing what you love - Playing music.

KISS had makeup and costumes. David Bowie had a distinct sound and style. Dolly Parton had her look and still keeps it up.

Knowing what certain elements are part of your image and identity are your choice to make, however realize that your audience does find you and identify with you quicker and easier if you stick with your look and identity. Remember this... If you keep changing your package, it makes it hard for your audience/Fans to find you and follow you.

Enjoy this entertaining clip of Dolly Parton speaking about discovering and maintaining her image and identity and let it start you thinking of all the ways Bands and Musicians you like present their Identity... And what would happen if they changed it?

Making a song recording to help market and develop your audience/Fan base can be easier today than it has ever been before. How?

With all of the FREE or easily accessed Community based sites online, anyone can create either a simple audio or video recording of their song and showcase it online to see how people react. If they react negatively, oh well, no loss. If they react positively... You can increase you Fan Base larger than you ever thought possible.

How can this help? Well... If you increase your Fan Base and Fame, it will increase the chances of you being able to sell some of your songs or merchandise online easier to them. Also, if you have enough of those Fans living in areas you are performing, you can announce your shows to them and Fill the House almost every time you do a show. Venues will love you and ask you back (especially if your Audience is ideal for their business Venue).

So take advantage of those easy-to-use software packages that come standard on most computers now and upload what you have to websites that let others view and comment on your song. Take the Opportunity and make yourself Famous.

(Note: By getting instant feedback, you also have a better chance of improving your song writing skill and building an amazing set of music to showcase at your next live performance.)

A good example of what can be done at home is seen below by Julia Nunes singing her song, Into the Sunshine. Julia made a simple recording at home on her computer and uploaded it to YouTube on January 18, 2008. It is now February 1st 2008. So, in Fourteen Days, her Homemade Song Video has been Viewed and listened to 185,188 Times and she has 1,502 Comments.

Have you exposed yourself to an Audience that large yet? Until very recently, people would be willing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars and even millions to get that kind of exposure in the market. Now you can get it for FREE or Dirt Cheap! Use it. Benefit from it. Live your dream and take action to increase your chances for success today.

I know you can do it, and the tools are already available to you. I look forward to see and hear you.

Watch the Video Julia Nunes made below:

There are many things that compete in the new world of music entertainment. Below is an example of an animated video made by a company that makes music entertainment for the television. It is used successfully as background visuals along with recorded music played at parties and social gatherings. This style of music entertainment is a competitor to the live musician, however can never replace the "Power" of a live musician.

Granted, the creations are very entertaining, and they do have their place in the market. It is critical for you, the live musician, to realize what you individually have to bring to any performance you do.

There is nothing like the live performance of music and watching and feeling the performers give their life energy to you (as an audience). This is valuable and special. It is the gift you have to give and share anytime you perform live. Realize its value. Sell it properly to people when you are booking gigs/shows. Know what you have to bring to the stage/live show that identifies you so you can explain it in three words to the person booking you.

Yes, the world of music entertainment is changing, however that just means that the live performer is in an even more specialized market niche. And... Specialists make more money than non-specialists.

Know what you bring to a live show. Sell it. And charge appropriately. Just because everyone else is doing it a certain way, or because 'they' (the booking person) only pay, everyone else, a certain amount for doing shows... doesn't mean you have to do it that way. The more specialized you can be and focus your Band's offering, the more money you will make and the more referrals you will get from people. Your Fans will be more powerful as a unified group and will be more passionate about you.

So, for now... Enjoy the Music Video Entertainment below, and while you are watching it, think about all of the things you have to offer that are different to people paying for the Music Entertainment. Maybe even get a piece of paper out and write them down.

Who says that you have to know exactly what you want to do with your Band right now?

Sometimes, all you know is that you want to perform or record with your Band. You might want to experiment with a certain style or sound of music or maybe with a show presentation style. Go for it!

If you don’t know exactly what you want from your Band right now, however you know that you want to have one and you want it to be the profit center for your life, than just start doing whatever comes to mind.

Try out different Band member combinations. Try out different costumes, music approaches or anything else you think of… Interact with your audience in different ways.

The key to this effort is to see what works when you do it. What works for you and what works for your audience? When you find out these things, then you found your Band success combination. Then use it to have fun and make more money.

Many times, I share information in these Article Blog entries, about the importance of knowing the ‘purpose’ of your Band. Well, I thought I would share that sometimes that purpose is more temporary than long-term.

Sometimes a Band is organized and united for a very temporary goal. This kind of Band is focused on a Project. Instead of planning and developing things for the Band to last through a career length of time, the Band work and effort is targeted on accomplishing an event or show.

I have worked with Bands that were simply pulled together to help raise funds or to play for a run of shows that are designed with a particular format and character.

You can create a Band to operate like this. You might have a show in mind that you want to do, however don’t want the Band to last more than just that run of shows or maybe just for that one show.

A structure to your music career might be to set up more of an entertainment company that creates a series of themed shows. Therefore, a Band is created for each performance run and dissolved afterward. Like creating a series of different show episodes for Television… you can create a Music Entertainment Company that can create a series of different performances that people get to watch; each performance has a new Band to excite the audience and to give you variety.

They key is to have a purpose for creating these different shows for your audience. What are you saying or sharing with them that would make them think, “Wow! I want to come see that company’s performances again and again.”

To see how simple it can be to make some basic Guitar TABs of songs, check out these at Guitar-Music-TABs.com:

http://www.guitar-music-tabs.com/keane-tabs/

Writing down guitar TABS of your own music and songs, can be these simple and you can then offer them to your Fans. Keep your Fans learning about your music and about what you are working on.

If you have an idea for a new Riff, or if you are working on some new music, maybe even offer what you have as TABS on your site or send them out to your Fan-base via email to see if anyone can add to them and refine them into something better than you could do on your own.

Interaction with your Fans can build a stronger relationship with them a more responsive one.

Imagine writing a new song that your Fans were part of the process on… Do you think they would want to see, hear and feel you play it live or get a copy of the song when you offer it for sale?

Bands are, primarily, built by the members onstage. There are critical members of the Band that work in the background offstage, however without the onstage people, there is no Band. Many times, the onstage people have strong personalities and carry strong Egos. I think that is okay and wonderful, yet it does bring about the chance for conflict.

Without the Ego, there wouldn’t be a sense of confidence that is required to stand onstage and present your own ideas and feel good about it. It takes passion and belief in your own needs and identity. When you mix a handful of these strong passionate people together though, you can have a tension built on the difference of opinions.

Beware of the conflict that comes from this and respect it. This energy, many times, is the same thing that makes your Band ‘tick’. Sometimes it is the conflicting interests and desires that bring an exciting energy to the performance and experience your audience enjoys.

It is a challenge to keep the Band together when Egos battle. Realize this and make it a goal to work through the challenges you have together.

Do you think that there are strong and conflicting Egos on a professional Basketball or Football team? Well… There are, and without the continued efforts of the coach and the team members, working together on a unified goal like a championship title, then the team would fall apart and the championship would only be an unattainable dream.

What do you think is one of the biggest challenges a Band faces? When you think of Bands you see or ones that start touring, what happens to them? Does the word Fight come to mind?

Well… Successfully working as a team is a big challenge. How many Bands do you know of (or maybe you’ve been a part of) that break up even after they have a few good shows? If fact, it happens many times after the Band starts seeing good results that the Band breaks up.

What are the reasons?

• Conflicting Egos
• Someone else wants to be the ‘front man’
• Conflicting ideas of musical style and energy
• The bad habits of one or more band members (drinking, drugs, tardiness, etc)
• Girl friends or boy friends
• And on, and on…

The reason sometimes is good enough for change. However, a Band needs to know that difficulties, conflicts, and arguments will come up. It is critical to have your purpose for being a Band more valuable than any of the arguments though.

A Band is a united group of people that are suppose to be working on the same goal. If you are not working toward the same goal, than don’t work together. Don’t become a Band.

When you join each other, write down a unified goal you are all working toward. That will help keep you focused when the hard times come up. Just as a sports team has a goal to be champions in their league, or a military group has a mission to accomplish, you need to have the same. And it has to be important to you all otherwise you won’t stick it out.

It is sad to see a Band get all the way to spotlight of radio stations and televisions only to ‘disband’ because of internal conflict or differences of opinion.

What holds your Band together? What is big enough and important enough that you will stick together as a Band even when fights do break out?

Find your goal.

It’s amazing how some things are so easy and so obvious that we don’t do them.

Okay, collecting Fans is critical to your development as a Band. This is your following, your market, your customers for future shows and sales. Your Fans are your reason for developing a Band. So… Are you collecting them?

The easiest place to collect them is at your shows. And a simple, proven method to collect them is to have an ‘Email Signup Sheet’ available for new interested audience members to:

• Keep in touch with you
• Find out about your next shows
• Find your website
• Know what CDs you have for sale
• Know what other products you have for sale

Scot Alexander, Bass player from Dishwalla, said in an email exchange with me, “Bands can put so much of the picture together themselves these days (myspace/CDBaby/iTunes) and potentially make far more money on their own rather than signing with some label, all the while retaining full ownership of masters and publishing to further put more money in their pockets with libraries and soundtracks.” You have this power. And… if you have the Fans, you can offer them what they want, the music, image, and products from your Band.

So, are you collecting them? Are you collecting them at your shows?

Make sure that at every show you have someone helping you with this simple little task. It adds incredible value to the purpose of your shows.

Have a person sit at a table in an easy to see area, someplace where the majority of people traffic passes, and have the following:

• A sign showing the name of your Band, even if it is just on paper
• A piece of paper titled “Email List Signup”, including a column for name, email address, and regular address or at least zip code (If they put their regular address or zip code down, you can track the locations you have Fans. This helps with future gig planning and bookings)
• Any product you want to sell
• And, Consider having a Free give-away for those that signup on your Email List

Make it a goal to collect at least ten new Fan email addresses at each show (many times you can collect a lot more). If you have ten shows, then you will have at least one-hundred Fan email addresses to contact about upcoming shows, new Music or product you have for sale. Many times, each Fan will have around two friends they tell about you, so you can triple your email list or Fan-base fairly rapidly.

Fans are your Band’s Lifeblood. Collect them and treat them like they deserve to be treated… like your best friends.

Remember This: Your Fans help you become who you want to be and you help them become what they want to be. You won’t be a Band for very long if you don’t have Fans. Your Fans are helping you accomplish your goals. Respect this relationship and share with your Fans and care about your Fans. They care about you and share their time, money, and energy with you.

A question that I’d like to ask you is, “Why do you have a Band?” The following sentences are going to be a series of questions to trigger your thoughts:

Have you ever thought about this? Do you know why you want to have a Band in the first place? Have you let yourself enjoy visions of what you see yourself doing with your Band? Can you hear exactly the tone of your music that you play to your audience and the echoed response they share with you? Can you feel what you are giving and enjoying while you are onstage or playing for others, and what type of energy your audience of loving Fans are giving back to you?

Can you imagine not getting the response you want from your audience?

Are you enjoying your purpose while you play for your audience during your shows?

So, why do you have a Band? Are you interested in being pure entertainment, or do you have a message you want to share? Are you a blend of both?

I have seen many different types of Bands out there and there is not one type that is better than another, in general however, knowing what your purpose for having a Band is, remains critical for understanding what you want to do with it.

Some people want a Band simply to just have fun, never make it a lifestyle and only to meet the opposite sex because they have trouble reaching out any other way. Then, there are people that focus in on the effort to make it a lifestyle, make the music addictive, and sell it to everyone they know and meet. You can see quite a few of these types of artists showing off their “Cribs” on MTV, VH1 or elsewhere on TV. I even know some artists that have a passion for getting their music out to as many people as possible because they have so much fun making it that they think others like them, need to have access to it.

Whatever your reason for making music and forming a Band, understand it more. Than, share it with others for that reason alone. This will be your quickest way to building a bigger more influential Band. It will also make it more fun for you.

I only live about an hour and a half away from the ocean, and when I can, I love to “escape” there to relax and feel connected again (at least that’s what I say to myself). I finished a performance on Saturday evening, and felt like I have been going and going before that. I wanted just a little break from my pattern, so I decided to hop in the car and drive to the coast just to stay over night, because I had to be back by the following afternoon.

Just being there helps me relax and change gear. Hearing the ocean waves soothes me and helps me think of what I like and where I want to go next with my work.

This is the same experience I get when I go to see a band, go to a concert, show or any other type of entertainment environment I like.

This is what a Band offers to its Fans, an escape.

A Band brings an environment that helps its Fans escape from their regular life pattern. It helps them feel connected to their community. It helps them connect with themselves and realign with their passionate goal path. Many times a good band helps them speak and radiate the emotional and mental energy the Fan hides away the rest of their day. Then, at the Band’s show, the Fan can let loose, relax, and feel like someone else shares the same feelings or thoughts that they do. This is why a Fan wants to listen to the music over and over when they go through their day, and why they love to get to the show when they hear of show tickets going on sale.

Imagine the example of a someone who is very angry with the way people treat them through their day, they have to wear clothes that they don’t like for their ‘job’, or they have to work under abusive conditions. Then, they get to go out at night and see a hard-edged Band that screams out lyrics that sympathize with their emotions and thoughts. They can crazily bounce around and sweat out their energy. It helps them cope and fall asleep better.

Now, imagine a person who works in a fast paced environment, loves what they do however feels like they are moving at warp speed every second of their day. Then, at night, they get to go out and listen to a Band play a mellow dream-like musical show. Everything about it helps them slow down and process what they are doing now in their lives and what they want to do next. This person goes home and sleeps much better.

Next time either one of these people need to escape from their day, they will remember the benefits that they got from 'that Band' last time and get excited when they see that they are playing again. And… They most likely will take some of their friends (similar to them) that they already told about the Band last time they enjoyed their show.

What type of environment do you offer your fans? What do your lyrics say for them? What kind of energy does your music help them release or enjoy?

What kind of people like what you have to offer? These are your potential Fans or already your Fans.

Are you aware of what you offer to your audience? Do you let people know this when they ask: “How would you describe your band?”

We all have incredible experiences that we can share with each other. Within each of these experiences are stories that show methods for us to follow to accomplish similar kinds of good results.

Today, Richard Chilleri, of Austin, Texas wrote:

I was blessed to have opened up for Ray Charles in Belgium, Holland and Germany. I have been playing the drums for many years. I moved to Austin to see if I could get further in my musical career. I started out on 6th street in Austin, Texas and then a few years later I was on stage opening for Ray Charles in front of 15-18K people, so needless to say it was an awesome experience. What made it great was when I asked the road manager for Mr. Charles if I could set up Mr. Charles piano stool for him each night and he said yes, so that was cool to do in front of all those people waiting for Ray...

Richard Chilleri
Apartments NOW Manager
Email: Rich@ausapts.com
Cell: 512.656.FREE
Toll Free: 800.530.5832
http://www.austinapartmenthelp.com

"Serving Austin renters FREE with a Smile for over a Decade"

** Keep In Mind: Moving to a location where you are in the center of the Music Business, like Austin, Texas – “The Live Music Capital of the World”, makes it easier for you to connect with incredible people and opportunities.

Now, I am writing this entry to share something simple and fun… I will not say that the movie “Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny” is a deep film, however I will say that hidden in the simplicity are powerful tips that can be used by anyone to improve their band’s success.

FIRST:
I went and saw the film. I enjoyed it. It was a touch of the Who’s “Tommy” mixed with Twisted Sister’s music video from the 1980’s for the song, “I Wanna Rock”, mixed with Alice in Wonderland, mixed with Ben Stiller’s “Zoolander”. I’m a sucker for fun silliness, especially if it is mixed with music.

Wrapped into this movie are pure truth tips about what a band can do to improve their stage show and performance power. You will see the importance of having a team working together for stage power, practicing how to perform in front of a difficult audience, practicing stage choreography and moves, having a good introduction by someone else before you enter the stage, going off stage before you enter to start your show, being passionate when you sing and play your songs in front of others, being committed to what you are doing onstage in front of others, the importance of finding a fan that is passionate about your band and supportive, and performing your music and message as good entertainment for your audience.

KEEP IN MIND:
Jack Black and Kyle Gass of Tenacious D (who acted, wrote, and produced much of the show) have been around and performed music professionally since 1994 and have played large venues POWERFULLY since year 2000. They are great first hand source of the right things to do onstage to be great (even though they are comic in their presentation).

It’s amazing the information you can get from movies like this. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes the idea of building a Rock Band. Watch for the inside secrets they share in their goofy adventure story.

Other goofy movies share similar insights, like “Spinal Tap”, however that is a future BLOG entry.

More about the movie:
http://www.tenaciousdmovie.com

More about Tenacious D:
http://www.tenaciousd.com

A stronger Bio about Tenacious D:
http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/tenacious_d/bio.jhtml

The drummer from the band Greenlander asked me if I could think of an easy way for his band to get gigs. I gave him the following response:

If Greenlander (or any band) wants to get more gigs quickly and easily, they can accomplish that by EXPANDING their Band.

What do I mean by that? Well, think of the word BAND. In this context, it means, “A group of people united together.” Greenlander is a BAND of people bound to each other for a unified goal of creating, performing, and making a living as a BAND. By EXPANDING their BAND, they can increase the amount of people that are always together helping each other accomplish their goal.

This is a proven and practiced method. Teams unite to achieve goals in sports and business all the time. A Band is a business, unless you only play for free or never play in a club or public place. If you want more, you are in business together. Think of the teammates that a business uses to win: representatives, technical people, marketers, sales people, assistants, and more. What kind of new Band members could you find useful? Not every Band member is ONSTAGE.

Greenlander can find a New Band Member that will be passionate about getting gigs for the Band. The drummer needs to be passionate about being onstage being a drummer, the guitarist – a guitarist on stage, the singer – a singer onstage, etc… The New member would be passionately focused on being the Greenlander Gig Booking Agent.

This new member of the “Band” wouldn’t be onstage performing. They would be offstage promoting, selling, and booking gigs for the “Band”.

There is someone around you that loves your Band, is passionate about music, is terrified of being onstage playing music, however would love to be part of the “Band”. And this person is passionate enough to learn how to excel at booking the Band for shows. They most likely already have networking talents, or sales skills. They would love to be the Band Star, in a different way. In a hidden behind the scenes way, however knowing confidently they are part of the Band and a very important part of the Band.

Think of how many people are a part of the creation of a movie… How many are happy to be On Camera? And how many are happy to be the ones who did the makeup, the sets, the costumes, the directing, the producing, the camera work, the cinematography plan, the food during scene shots, the truck driving for the movie making equipment, etc… All of these people are happy and proud to have worked on the movie to make it a success. These people are happy to have done the role they did especially knowing that their special talents or skills were used to make it happen. A Band Succeeding is no different. The movie production team is everyone who worked on the film. The Band is everyone who is part of the Band working to get it to the unified goal.

Some people worry and say, “Well I can’t pay for someone to give that kind of help.” Well, this New Band Member gets paid their share of the profits as the Band makes money, just as each Onstage Band Member does. If no one in the Band is making money right now, then ‘no one’ gets paid. If the Band is earning money, then the Band Members get paid what you have all agreed upon. This is the same as building a new startup business bootstrap-style (Undertaken or accomplished with minimal outside help).

The question now is… How many more members do you think your Band can benefit from having? Could you imagine seeing a Band perform that had a costumer, a lighting person, a personal sound man, a gig/show booking person, a business manager, an event planner, a publicist, a recording expert, an Artistic Director, etc… What kind of show would that “Band” be able to produce? What kind of show do you want to produce?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Eric Christian Smith is a recognized authority on business and the entertainment industry. His web site, http://www.HowToBand.com, provides a wealth of informative articles and resources on everything you'll ever need to know about making money as an unsigned band or musician. His book, “How To Make BIG MONEY with Your BAND” is a great resource for increasing your cash flow. You can easily buy a copy of the book, available in Paperback or eBook form, online through http://www.howtoband.com (The book is also available through Amazon.com, Borders.com and other bookstores)

To learn more about Greenlander, visit MySpace URL: http://www.myspace.com/greenlandermusic

The following article was originally posted Nov 17, 2003, 14:51 PST on GetSigned.com, seen at: http://www.getsigned.com/minihan1.html

Can’t find a gig? Get out on the street!
by Kevin Minihan
Nov 17, 2003, 14:51 PST
©2003 Kevin Minihan. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Advice: Playing Live
Can’t find a gig? Get out on the street! by Kevin Minihan
[Nov 17, 2003, 14:51 PST]

Rule number one for aspiring musicians is what? Anyone? Practice makes perfect? Well… yes, but what kind of practice? I’ll spell it out for you. You need to… no; you MUST practice playing live, in front of an audience! I know this sounds obvious and many people before me have preached this truth so… why aren’t you doing it? I can hear the frustrated moans of many of you saying, “I can’t get a gig to use as practice!” Well my friends, this is simply not true. If this is your excuse, then I want to take this opportunity to crush it once and for all. There is a way you can get a gig any day of the week. It is the underutilized practice of performing on the ‘streets’.

No more excuses!
Any person, or band, can play on the street. True, it is easier if you are a solo acoustic performer, but with the advancement of battery powered amplifiers (and even PA’s) the old excuses of, “But I play electric guitar” or “What about our bass player?” just don’t hold any weight anymore. I would suggest that your band play an acoustic set (just for the ease of set up) but, if you must play electric, get yourself battery powered immediately (also, small gas powered electric generators are very quiet and inexpensive these days).

Where should I play?
The options here are endless. Really, anywhere there are a large number of people! The best spots, however, seemed to be areas where people are seeking entertainment and have money in their pockets. If your town has a cool entertainment district or just an area where the popular clubs and restaurants are located, by all means pick a corner there. If there is a part of town that has outdoor cafes, set up within ear shot of them. In my town, for example, there is a commercial development that has a movie theater right next to row of bars, restaurants and shops. People in these types of areas will be more open to listening to your music, plus they will have money in their pockets which, hopefully, they will use to tip you or to purchase your CD (which you WILL have prominently displayed next to you). You can even set up on a corner next to an arena where a national band (that fits your genre of music) is playing and swipe some of their fans. There are hundreds of possibilities; use your head and come up with some new ideas. Where do you hang out? Where do your potential fans hang out?

What to watch out for
Two things you need to be wary of; cops and criminals. Call your local police department or city hall to check on the city’s laws for street performances. For example, some cities do not allow performers on certain types of city owned property, etc. Although they would probably just ask you to leave, you don’t want to risk getting a ticket. You also need to be careful and avoid the ‘shadier’ parts of town. Don’t tempt some crook into taking your hard earned tip money. Stay in well lit areas. Play only in high traffic locations. Use your common sense here. You don’t want to be standing by yourself, late at night, on a dark street with $100 in small bills lying at your feet. Don’t make yourself an easy target for a robbery.

Get out there and enjoy the secret benefit
Beside the obvious benefits of earning tip money, making CD sales and getting valuable ‘live’ practice, there is another benefit that will surprise you. That is the incredible boost in self confidence you get after your first street performance. Let’s face it; playing out in an ‘unknown’ environment may seem a little frightening at first. But once you sing that first note and get that first tip you will be on cloud nine! Once you’ve mastered playing on the street, you will be able to play anywhere with complete confidence. Now, get out there and play!

About the Author:
Kevin Minihan is a musician, writer, jack of all trades (master of none!) residing in the questionable outskirts of Dallas, TX. He plays in 3 bands and never gets enough sleep. When he is not playing music, he is writing about it. He enjoys sharing his experience and knowledge with other musicians. Along with writing articles for this and other websites, Kevin plans to write a series of books in order to help others achieve their dreams of success in the music business.

You can get powerful tips from watching this video on the focus, decisions, goals, and vision that it can take to succeed with your band – Indie, Signed, or just gigging around.

The video is VH1’s docudrama (or Rockumentary) movie, “Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story.” Made in 2001. Get it from Netflix, Amazon.com, catch it viewing on VH1 sometime, or wherever else you can find it… it is well worth it.

Get Professional Insider Tips from VH1 Video - Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story

A key point I enjoyed in the film was when the lead singer, Joe Elliott, first joined forces with his fellow bandmates, he had sketches already of his dream band name with various future artifacts to represent achieved goal points. Examples of this are a mock ticket of a ‘SOLD OUT’ show, a poster, an advertisement, and more.

Learn from the professionals. Read articles and books about them, watch videos and movies about them, and learn from what they did right to help launch them forward. Role Models are critical to making your path to the top quick and easy.

I was talking to a drummer yesterday. He asked me if I could think of an easy way for his band, Greenlander (MySpace URL: http://www.myspace.com/greenlandermusic ) - to get gigs. He asked if I knew of any Agents. I gave him the following response:

Greenlander

If Greenlander wants to get more gigs, they can get that quicker and easier by Expanding their Band. What do I mean by that? Well, think of the word band. In this context, it means, “A group of people united together.” As Greenlander the band is a group of people bound to each other for a unified purpose, a goal. So, by expanding their Band, they can add to the people that are always together helping each other.

To expand the band members, Greenlander can find a new member that will be passionate about getting gigs for the band. The drummer needs to be passionate about being onstage being a drummer, the guitarist – a guitarist on stage, the singer – a singer onstage, etc… The New member would be passionately focused on being the Greenlander Gig Booking Agent.

This new member of the “Band” wouldn’t be onstage performing. They would be offstage promoting, selling, and booking gigs for the “Band”.

There is someone around you that loves Greenlander, is passionate about music, is terrified of being onstage playing music, however would love to be part of the “Band”. And this person is passionate enough to learn how to excel at booking the band for shows. They most likely already have networking talents, or sales skills. They would love to be the Band Star, in a different way. In a hidden behind the scenes way, however knowing confidently they are part of the Band and a very important part of the Band.

Greenlander can simplify and increase gig bookings quickest by adding a New Band member. Think of how many people are part of the creation of a movie… How many are happy to be On Camera? And how many are happy to be the ones who did the makeup, the sets, the costumes, the directing, the producing, the camera work, the cinematography plan, the food during scene shots, the truck driving for the movie making equipment, etc… All of these people are happy and proud to have worked on the movie to make it a success. These people are happy to have done the role they did especially knowing that their special talents or skills were used to make it happen. A Band Succeeding is no different. The movie production team is everyone who worked on the film. The Band is everyone who is part of the Band working to get it to the unified goal.

The question now is… How many more members do you think your Band can benefit from having? Could you imagine seeing a band perform who had a costumer, a lighting person, a personal sound man, a gig/show booking person, a business manager, an event planner, a publicist, a recording expert, an Artistic Director, etc… What kind of show would that “Band” be able to produce?

Go get them Greenlander.
And – Have fun and make money.

- Eric