Take the work out of networking…now.

unnamed(1)I hope you are having a beautiful Saturday. It is absolutely GORGEOUS here in the NYC and I’m ready to a great day outdoors. How about you?

 

This week I challenged myself to get out and do more during the week outside of work, ultimately not saying no to any invites. I took on the persona of a ‘Yes Man’. This ended me up at having friends of a friend who were visiting for the first time in NYC crash at my place, sharing cabs from New Jersey, trying new restaurants, going to a concert and the one thing I wasn’t looking forward to, a networking event.

 

I wasn’t completely dreading it, but I just didn’t feel good at that sort of thing. Meeting, talking about what you do and promoting yourself to a group of strangers. But I had promised myself to go out and say yes to every opportunity. And I remembered, I’m not going to meet new possible friends or be able to access new ideas staying back at work.

 

Something amazing happened the second I switched my mindset and started going in and introducing myself. I met people interested in similar industries, freelancers, musicians and even younger students looking for career advice. It was thrilling! And it was really great to get a feel for the words of what I do – a musician’s virtual assistant.

 

After that night, I made a new friend and freelancer connection, a student looking for virtual business advice, and a band in need of support. Three substantial connections that would not have happened if I had stayed home.

 

Why am I telling you this story? Well it got me thinking of my clients and if or when they do networking as well and if they have any struggles with putting themselves out there. The truth is, YES! Musicians have to network just as much as the next person to gain followers and spread their music. You have to do it to keep people coming to your shows.

 

It’d be impossible for you to have a successful career, thousands of listeners and do what you love if you’re hiding in the studio or hiding behind the laptop. You have to get out there! It is just as important as practicing, performing, recording, etc. all the other parts of your career.

 

I have a client who has been in the recording business for over 40 years, so when I do go to events or conferences with him, I’m really seeing a master at someone who selflessly promotes. And I believe it is because the ‘why’ behind his promotion is so strong. He has a clear vision of why he wants to share his latest album or his latest project with the person in front of him. And I don’t see him as a person being an annoying pusher on his music, but I see him as the hardest working artist in the business.

 

Self-promotion is a necessary component to your career, so here are some key tips that might help you step out of the door.

 

1) Just say yes – Say yes to the next networking event you can go to. The people you meet in person and share your story/music with in person is so much more effective than a tweet or a post.

 

2) Remember your ‘why’ – Remember why you are sharing your music. Is it because your music can help others? Is it therapy for them? Is it because you love playing to packed shows?

 

3) Get to know the other person – Make sure you ask questions and find out about the person your chatting with, too.

 

4) Stay humble, but be confident – Set any pride you might have and remember why you want to grow your career, why you want to connect with this person.

 

5) Follow up – When you talk to the person, promise to email them a song. And then do it! Contact them within 24 hours, stay fresh in their minds and send them a gift and ask them if you can add them to your mailing list.

 

I hope this helps you to say YES to more things and to not be afraid any more of the ‘hate’ people have for musicians who self-promote. Now go out there and connect!

 

Have a great rest of your Saturday and I’ll see you next time!

 

Cheers,

Blog / Business Tips - 09/27/2014

Solve your biggest struggles as a musician.

This week through a conversation with a previous colleague and good friend, we dived into our current struggles we were having. For me, I was realizing that even though I was really enjoying being a virtual assistant to my clients, I admittedly still had things to work on that could bring me to my highest possible self in my position. I also talked about what my clients struggle with – what musicians struggle with – and what I could possible do outside of the box to assist them, since I do love being able to help. Even if we’re in a position where we are doing what we love, there are still struggles that come with the day-to-day grind. There’s no formula that says when you reach your goal the struggles stop. They just are on a different level or area.

After our conversation, I was inspired to focus in on what are the top struggles for a performing musician, or rather, any musician, and give small steps they can take to help lighten the pervasiveness of these struggles.

I wrote a list of everything I could think of that musicians struggle with. Pain, fatigue, boredom, burnout, stress, anxiety, relationship difficulties, no time, artistic skills…the list goes on. And then I went digging online to compare my list with others, to see if anyone else is talking about this – because it needs to be talked about! We need to know our struggles and address them in order to improve, correct?

Sure enough, I found a woman who created a survey asking exactly what I wanted to know (The internet is great, I’m telling you) and shared her results. What she discovered were the top 3 struggles creative and performing musicians have, and they are:

1. Time Management
2. Worry/Anxiety/Fear
3. Pain issues

Can you relate to these? I’m sure we all can, and I believe it’s on point with what full time musicians struggle with or stress about. So what can you do to alleviate some of the pressure from these common problem areas?

Pain Issues

This issue coming up reminded me of the days when I was part of a summer chamber music festival, and we had intensive rehearsal days. We only a month to learn 4 new pieces with 3 other people you’ve never performed or played with. Your body goes through so much especially when your heart and mind is determined to write that song, perfect that phrase or make it the best performance of your life.

But, you can’t have the best performance of your life if you aren’t taking care of yourself. If you know that you are in for a long day of rehearsals or a marathon of songwriting, schedule some time to relax in a way that works for you. Take a hot bath, get a massage (or ask a friend for one), take a few minutes in the sauna – whatever your options are, choose one and stick to it. Your body and your playing will thank you.

Worry/Anxiety/Fear

The thing to remember with having worry or anxiety is that you are NOT alone. Even if you are winning Grammys, there will be moments of worry that can take over. It is not forever.

The best thing you can do is release your worry to a friend or support group. Share your struggles, share your fears, and you will find others who will help you through it. Be reassured that you are not the only one and it can lighten the worry for you.

If you are having intense anxiety, you will want to seek a professional to help ease the tension you have. It’s important again, to take care of yourself. You cannot do everything you need to do with anxiety in your mind.

Time Management

Even though we all have the same hours in the day as Beyonce, there’s a second part of that line that we all forget. Beyonce has a TEAM behind her that build all the pillars required to reach her goals. No musician who is successful gets there or stays there alone.

Time management is what I do for my clients as a virtual assistant. If you don’t have an assistant on your team, I wrote a few posts on time management, why it’s important and ways to keep yourself organized with daily tasks. Check out the posts below:

-Don’t Let It Slide (Keep Yourself Organized)
-How Musicians Waste Time (Coordinate a rehearsal faster)
-5 Benefits of a Virtual Assistant

What’s a small step that can help you quickly change that way you manage your time? Take the first 30 minutes of the day to plan your day with a to-do list and by each tasks, specify how much time you will spend on that task. Stick to it and your day will be structured and more productive.

I’m interested, can you relate to these three common struggles musicians face? What do you do to help yourself and keep yourself productive? Come over to my blog and let me know. Maybe you have a special trick that everyone could use!

I really hope that if you are feeling pain, worry or stress about time management that what I’ve shared will help you along your journey. There’s no joy in doing what you love if you are struggling the entire way. Address the struggles and you can find the freedom in doing what you love!

Have a wonderful rest of your weekend and Happy Labor Day.

Cheers,

Blog / Business Tips / Life - 08/29/2014

Where Youtube could be headed and where you can go instead (for Indie Musicians)

I hope all is well in your world and that you had a wonderful holiday weekend last week. I had a great weekend with my newly adopted dog and friends, making the trek to Prospect Park and spending the day BBQ’ing. Summer is in high gear and I’m loving it.I’m also going to be taking a trip soon to visit my 90 year old grandfather in Germany! This year for me has been about taking the time to see the ones I love, so I’m very excited to be able to go and see a part of my family that I haven’t seen in about 5 or 6 years.

 

Okay, back to business and why I’m here writing to you today. If you’ve been following the news, you know that YouTube recently announced they are going to be rolling out a new paid service – said to be called YouTube Music Pass – and be fully launched by the end of the year. For music videos, labels (both major and indie) will have to agree to licensing terms which apparently are not in the independent musician’s favor.

 

Ever since that announcement and their decision to ultimately force all labels to sign this deal, there’s been a hugh uproar and controversy to what YouTube is doing. Indie labels and the like have spoken against the move, and as a result, YouTube has postponed the move, but as this article says, I’m only wondering: for how long?

 

Every advancement in the music industry has been an uphill struggle with everyone (the advancement of radio, recordings, mp3s, streaming, all of it!), so I think yes, let’s let YouTube know that it’s unfair and that indie musicians aren’t getting the good end of the deal, but realize that we have alternatives – they may not be run by Google, but it doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to put your music videos out there for discovery or enjoyment.

 

I’m on the side of the conclusion of this article in Buzzfeed, stating:

So far, the streaming services that have been the most widely adopted and long-lasting are the ones that have treated all copyright owners fairly. And until better data is available on who is streaming what and how often, any service that plays favorites based on an old paradigm is gambling with its own life. For once, the great equalizer here may just be the free market.

 

“If you look at the services that are really making an impact, they haven’t pushed independents off to the side of the business,” said Caldas. “They’re putting independent artists right next to any other type of artist and letting people listen to and discover them based on the merits. That’s the future.”

 

While we can’t predict the future, I think it’s important to remember that there are alternative and an audience on other platforms that you can start building right now.

 

What are your alternatives? View below:

 

Vimeo
Free to register, can opt for paid account, third largest video site in the world. The Pro account allows you to choose pay per view option.

DailyMotion
Free to register, familiar layout, second largest video site in the world. You can earn money by signing up for their OpenVOD program.

Vube
Completely free to register and upload. Just launched last year and quickly grew to the top 100 visited sites. I see that they are building contests on the site to encourage higher quality contenct and no pay per view options are available (yet). Could be the one to watch.

 

What are your thoughts? What do you think the best alternative is? I’d love to hear from you, comment below!

 

Business Tips / Social Media - 07/12/2014

Hiring your own Virtual Assistant? Know what to ask in the interview.

Happy Saturday! Saturday mornings are my absolute favorite time of the week.You can sleep in and still have a day ahead of you, or you can wake up early and be the most productive you can be. It’s up to you and that feels wonderful to me. Personally, I like to use this time to sip on the biggest and slowest cup of coffee and read up on the industry, news and more. Making some time for yourself during the week really makes a difference.

 

I’m hoping all of you are able to make time for yourself during the week to relax, meditate, do your favorite hobbies, see friends or just veg out. Since starting my own venture, I’ve seen how badly it can go if you don’t take a moment to rest – sickness, overwhelm, burn out, even outright quit. And that’s why I feel it’s even more important for people who do have a lot of their plates (aka you busy musicians), to be able to delegate some of those tasks to someone they trust.

 

I believe this idea is starting to take hold of musicians trying to do it all by themselves. Gone is the romantic notion to say that you hustled and bustled to the top with no ones help. In my eyes, that’s simply not true. You have influences, mentors, coaches, leaders and assistants set up to assist you and help you reach your goals.

 

The top three questions I get when I talk about what I do are:

 

“What does a VA do for a musician?”
“Where do I find a VA for a musician?”
and
“What questions should I ask when interviewing a VA?”

I’ve shared every week what a VA does for a musician, and also have shared resources on where you can start your search for your own (check out and read through my blog for those posts here), but I have yet to brush the subject on what to ask when interviewing a potential VA for yourself.I believe that you want some passionate about the industry itself, but also has the balance of knowing how to keep a musician balanced and organized.

Here are a few questions to include in your interview to find the best candidate for you.

 

1) Tell me a little bit about yourself and why you want to be a Virtual Assistant for a musician?
I’d like to know this because this is where they have the opportunity to express passion for music or interest in what the industry is about. A little spark in their response is really good.

 

2) What music platforms do you have experience with? Reverbnation, Bandcamp, CD Baby, (fill in any sites that you like to use on the regular).
They are going to have to have a good idea of what needs to be managed on a day to day basis. If they don’t have experience, ask them if they have heard of it or if they feel they could learn it quickly.

 

3) Have you ever worked with a musician before? If so, what did you do for them? If not, why do you want to work with a musician?
Find out if they have experience working with a musician. Also, you can ask about the genre the musician was in, considering a hip hop artist will need a different sort of skill set from their assistant than from a bluegrass singer.

 

4) What is one way you went above and beyond for someone you’ve worked for? In what way to you exceed what was expected of you when assigned a task?
This will tell you how driven and how much of a go-getter they are. In this industry, it’s constantly changing and it’s not easy. You’ll need someone on your side pushing along with you.

 

5) What can you do to help me stay organized and on schedule?
You’re hiring this person to help you keep organized and keep you on track. Find out more about how they work and if it would work well with you.

 

6) Tell me a time that you weren’t sure how to complete a task that was given to you. How did you handle it and did you get it done?
Get a sense of what they would do or say if you gave them a task they had no idea how to do. See if they would take the extra effort to research and find the answer on their own, or just turn to you for answers. You’ll want someone who will try to figure things out on their own and THEN come to you with questions if they are still unsure. This shows drive and the extra effort they would make while working for you.

 

And then, be sure to take this extra step: Find a couple scenarios you know that will happen on the job and ask them what they would do or suggest in that situation. For example, you would like them to send an email to a few presenters introducing yourself and interest in their venue/festival, so ask for a writing example of that very scenario and see what they send back.

 

These questions will help you learn more about the person, how they work, why they want to work with you and will give you a better sense of if you will work well with them.

 

Remember, all new team members will have a learning curve, however, you want the V.A. that will give their best effort, whole heartedly. After all, this is your career and life that you are working so hard to enjoy!

 

Go out there and ask the right questions to find the right V.A. for you.

 

Business Tips - 06/14/2014

It’s summertime and I’m already thinking about the holidays.

I hope you are doing fine this Saturday! It is hot hot hot in New York City, and all I can say is FINALLY! I’ve been missing the feeling of being able to slip into a dress and flip flops and head out the door. There’s a freedom that comes with not have to wear layers and coats.

As an assistant, I continuously have to think ahead for my clients. They are busy CEO’s of their own companies, trying to run their career, run their personal lives and on top of that, keep on creating. A lot happens daily for them, so as their assistant, it’s my job to plan ahead and foresee “disaster”. I remember when I was starting out, I spoke with an assistant to a HUGE name (think Grammy and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame kind of name) and she said to me, “We’re such worriers. It’s what we do.” And it’s true!

While we aren’t worriers in the typical sense of sitting on the coach with a frown, we learn about what our clients are doing and when planning, try to think of everything that they will need to know about to make it as seamless as possible.

It’s not easy to think of everything that might go wrong or what you will need during your next project, but that’s why CEO’s hire assistants so that they can free their valuable time to more important, revenue making tasks and leave the planning to us.

You might remember that last December, I went on the road for the first time as tour manager for a nationwide Christmas show tour, with a tour bus and all. As you probably know, that didn’t just come together a few weeks beforehand. It took MONTHS of communication and planning.

Which is why, I’m making June the first official month to start planning the tour. Sure, we’ve secured the performers in January right after the last tour was over, and the management has been booking dates since 2013. However, some slight changes and confirmations to the band personnel means its onwards to start organizing everything we will need for the tour.

What I start out with is very basic – but EXTREMELY essential if you are planning out a tour of your own with a band.

IMPORTANT INFO THAT YOU NEED FROM YOUR BAND

 

Once you’ve confirmed availability and talent (and if you want to work with them) with your band, here’s what you should have documented to make the beginning stages of planning the tour go smoothly and quickly.

1) Full Name, exactly as on their ID. (for flights and payments)
2) Scan of the front and back of their ID. (if you or some of the band members are driving a tour van, you’re going to need scans of their drivers license to rent the van.)
3) Birthday. (for flights, and maybe their birthday is during the tour. Hello, cake on the bus!)
4) Departure City – (When booking flights, where are they flying from for the first show?)
5) Returning City – (Where are they headed to after the last show?)
6) W9 – assuming you, the lead, are paying your band members more than $600 for the tour, you’ll need their mailing address / social security number, so get both with a W9 Form.
7) Frequent Flyer Miles numbers. (Especially if they are flying. Saves the hassle of them going into the reservation and adding it afterwards!)

These six important information points can be organized and ‘stored’ in a spreadsheet for you to reference when making reservations, planning routing and make things go quickly without having to constantly email and track down the band members.

So, now that June is around the corner, what future tours, launches or projects are you looking forward to plan for in 2014? What are you going to do to take one step closer to preparing for that said tour, launch or project?

Comment below and put it out in the universe and make it happen!

Enjoy the last day of May, friends!

Business Tips / Tour - 05/30/2014

Sorting through licensing companies?

If you’re in America, I hope your grill is heating up, you’re shades are on and you’re gearing up for the first weekend of summer. It’s amazing how fast the year has gone, isn’t it? This weekend I’m taking a step out of the city into New Jersey to visit me and my boyfriend’s friends – rumor has it, (and vegetarians, including me, prepare yourself) they ordered a roast pig as the main meal for the day. Oh yeah, we take it seriously here!

 

I’ve had a really fun week working on various projects, being a part of a few live events and also rolling out my new website. So many advancements with my company and brand, as well as my clients!

 

In today’s industry, it’s quite common for independent artists to look for music licensing companies to a) create a revenue source and b) breakthrough with an amazing deal on say, a commercial. It’s like a licensing deal with a big name brand or company is the new record deal.

 

Most of the time, these licensing companies are searching for independent artists, like yourself perhaps. They are looking for a new sound, a new voice or new face for these companies looking to feature music in their marketing that will excite people – aka not necessarily the music that is already on the radio.

 

My clients do get emails from licensing companies seeking to work with them. My clients are looking to get their music licensed. But what happens when they are too busy recording a new album, going on tour, or sticking to a writing or composition deadline? These opportunities get lost.

 

Don’t lose opportunities to expand your music. This is where an assistant steps in and can take the hours of research from the musician to help them determine the best fit for them. Here’s how.

 

1) Forward the email requests you’ve gotten that you would consider to work with to your assistant. Forward all of the emails you’ve gotten from companies saying they want to license your song(s), as well as forward companies you know of that you’d be interested in working with.

 

2) Ask your assistant to research licensing companies that would be a good fit for you. This would require your assistant to know your music and listen to what you’ve released. Ask them and be sure they’ve listened to your music, give them a list of similar artists to you, and they can return with a list of companies that have licensed similar genres. Better yet, they can sniff out companies that don’t have what you have to offer so they would be more interested in including you in their roster. This happened recently in an inquiry where a company was looking for a sound that my client offered.

 

3) Build an easy to read spreadsheet. Have your assistant keep this research organized. Below is what you should include. Some are self explanatory, but others are very important.

Build a spreadsheet that lists:
Company Name
Company Website
Contact Name
Contact Email
Contact Phone
Artists they have licensed – Get an idea of their roster to find if you compliment the other artists. If you were a songwriter, you wouldn’t go for a licensing company that works mainly with rappers.
Companies they have licensed to – See what level the company is at. Do they have connections to brands that will help you break through? Do they impress you?
Non-exclusive or Exclusive Agreement –  Are you going to be able to license your music to other companies or opportunities with that certain company? Some won’t allow you to. You have to decide if this is important to you, or it’s worth putting all of your eggs in one basket.
Payment terms – How much do you get and how much do they get if a deal goes through? Do you have to pay any fees upfront? Find out exactly where the money comes in or goes out.
Summarization – Ask your assistant to summarize and say if they think it’s a good fit or not and why. Having this discussion can help a decision happen faster and easier.

 

4) The contract – Once you’ve evaluated your choices, the next step is looking over a contract and a package from the company to help you get started. While an assistant can assist in looking over a contract, you should really find a lawyer to go over the agreement to make sure your music and yourself are protected to your interests. A few sites to find a lawyer are Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts or Avvo.com.

 

Go ahead, go back to your songwriting cave. Your assistant has this. Once you return to take care of business, your assistant can have a clear explanation of the best licensing company for you.

 

I hope you found this helpful, whether you have an assistant helping you find the licensing company for you, or if you are doing this all on your own.

 

Have any questions for me on this? Head over to my blog here to comment with your question. Or, just hit reply with your question and I just might answer your question in the next newsletter.

 

Have a great Memorial Day weekend,

Business Tips - 05/24/2014

How I set up a video shoot in less than 24 hours.

I get asked quite a bit what goes on in my day as an assistant to a musician. I find it hard to fully explain, but I CAN tell you, it’s never dull and I learn something new every week. This makes it highly rewarding and exciting with a dash of the good stress. The stress that pushes you to blow your own mind and do something you didn’t think was possible.

 
Here’s an example.
 
Last year, one of my clients had a very exciting new CD/DVD release. It was definitely an album that included a concept never done before, so everyone on the team AND the public were excited for it to be released.
 
During a meeting a few months before the release with our publicist, she suggested that we create a video press release – a visually exciting video that would showcase the release and highlight it’s importance and what makes it so different than any other album anyone has ever done.
 
The problem was, my client was traveling constantly for other performances months before this needed to be completed. Even when he was back in the office, other activities were already scheduled. I was stuck trying to figure out when this could be created since I knew my client wanted to make this happen, if at all possible.
 
I saw an opportunity. My client had one day free, and our team member who specialized in videography was also in town. I emailed them both saying, “If we’re going to do this, we should do this tomorrow.” So without delay, they responded with a yes, let’s go for it, and the countdown began.

While we had the manpower and we had the space (an apartment), we didn’t have the proper video equipment available. This had to result in a high quality and professional video to be able to release to the worldwide press, so we needed top-notch video cameras and lighting.
 
Believe it or not, a company in New York accepted rental inquiries and fulfilled them within 6-8 hours. I struck gold! After quick approval from our videographer, I put in the rental order and gave them all the requirements (scanned IDs, Credit Card Scans, Insurance forms, etc.). I went to bed thinking, “The impossible has been done!”
 
Once the rental store opening up in the morning, I went straight to the store and easily picked up my video equipment. In a matter of hours, they put together a video camera, memory card, stand, light stands, blubs and reflectors for me to take away to the apartment. It was on!
 
I hopped in a cab, carrying more bags of equipment than I had hands, but somehow handling it all and headed to the apartment. Once I got there, the videographer and I got to setting up.
 
While the camera was being tested, my client approached me with a list of questions for me to ask him that he put together the day before so he could easily and comfortably talk about his new release. It was brilliant and effective. He could speak to me, someone he was comfortable with, to be able to say what he wanted to say about them album in the video. It wouldn’t have the effect of him talking AT the screen.
 
Then, we thought it was all over. We turned the lights on in the room, and not 15 seconds later, half of the place lost power. We blew a fuse! We all looked at each other and literally cursed. My client wasn’t sure where the fuse box even was. We started looking and found it behind a bookcase that was mounted on the wall. (I cannot make this up!). So, we got unscrewing and unloading books from the case so we can access the fuse box. Minutes later, we opened it up and reset the fuse. Success! I also moved the lamps to the other outlets in the apartment so that it wouldn’t happen again. 🙂
 
With that fiasco out of the way, we set the stage with a nice background, focus and got to the ‘interview’. Not even an hour later, we had some great footage and we all felt great about the look and feel of the video results.

Can you believe it? In less than 24 hours, we had footage for a video press release. Just the day before, I didn’t even know if it would happen.
 
That is a moment that I feel highly rewarded for staying persistent and making a goal happen. Most people might have given up and said, “Oh, we should have planned this better,” or “It wasn’t meant to be this time around.” But our team knew that for this release, it was important for this video to be created.

The key to take away here was that the team worked together to make it happen. You might have the will yourself, but you are going to need the support to help you see it through.
 

The result? Well, see for yourself!


Hope you enjoyed my story and that it inspires YOU to build your team so you can keep pushing toward the goals you have. 

Have a great weekend,

Album Release / Business Tips / Life - 05/10/2014

Make your next album release stand out to your fans.

Lately, I haven’t been feeling so well, so I’m trying to take it easy with lots of tea and rest. I think with the season changing, I’m also getting a little bit of a spring cold. Nevertheless, things are moving along here for me with a website being built, a DIY Tour Packet being written and my clients are creating exciting new products! Recently, I celebrated with my client who just finished off the recording and mixing of his new album. I am really excited for him and cannot wait for it to hit the stands. I’ve been listening to it nonstop these past few days!
 
One of the many reasons I love working with musicians is being able to be part of the process of all that goes behind releasing a new album. A part of me is amazed at the entire process and I admire musicians for pouring their hearts into an album and allowing just about anyone come into their world for a listen. It’s even more amazing to allow fans to peek into that process, because I know they are so interested in how the music happens!
 
This release was special in that we involved the fans more than usual in the process. We feel the music from this album is going to be a real crowd-pleaser for his fans, so we wanted to make them feel a part of the process!
 
Setting up the schedule for rehearsals and recordings was quite the task. This album was particularly special in that it involved many duos and collaborations. I had to coordinate with several different musicians to find time for rehearsal and recording for both my client and the studio. It took focus, but keeping a Google Calendar kept me organized. I also would check in each week with the studio to make sure all times were right. Weekly emails to the musicians was also necessary to avoid any confusion – being on a deadline, we didn’t have time to waste from people not showing up!
 
Because these rehearsals were happening months in advance to the release, we thought it would be a perfect idea to videotape the duos and release them one by one before the actual CD release! We knew fans would love to see the collaborations and the recording studio; plus it was a neat way to get them excited for the new music and see some of behind the scenes while also hearing a preview. We released 6 videos, spaced out every few weeks, each of them easily gaining 1000 views the first day they posted.

Don’t have the budget to video tape? Create videos on your phone with clips of recordings and messages to your fans and post on Vine or Instagram!
 
While the rehearsals and recordings were being scheduled and happening, we had our wonderful graphic designer create some options for the CD cover.  To involve fans, we actually posted options of covers on Facebook and let the fans tell US which cover they liked best. That was a lot of fun to hear their comments and suggestions; I highly suggest it for your next album! You might get some ideas you wouldn’t think of on your own or with your team.

Take this idea to the next level and invite fans to vote on their favorite cover. As incentive, offer a free download of a new single from the album! Your fans will really appreciate that.
 
After my client mixed the audio and the master’s were created, we decided to upload the audio to SoundCloud, letting people stream the music and simply, just get to hear the music. Fans love free, especially when it’s a high quality product. Now we have the ability to share the album before they can buy and they can decide if they would like to have their own copy. Once it’s available for download, we’ll make it available for purchase, but having the previews available is a nice way to welcome your close fans to your new piece of work.

Don’t want to make the entire album available? Just choose 3-4 songs that you think represent the album the best. You want fans listening and excited to hear more!

What are your favorite ways to promote an upcoming album? What unique ways have you involved your fans in an album release? Did you notice better sales from it? Send me a message, I’d love to hear your experience!
 
I hope you all have a wonderful day, wherever you are.

Album Release / Business Tips - 04/25/2014

Do you know your value?

So you may have noticed these past few emails of me mentioning a tour packet that I’m working on. Yes, it’s true! I’m working hard every day to put together a DIY Tour Packet to be released with my new website for independent musicians to reference while planning a tour!  Essentially, it’s going to be for musicians who need direction and organization when planning for their next tour, especially if they don’t have a tour manager or assistant to help them. I’m really excited about this and it’s just going to be FULL of information (and photos!) that I’ve learned personally, first-hand, on the road and over the years as an assistant.

There are a load of logistics and check lists for any tour, but the first step is initially booking the dates. Maybe you have an agent organizing your tour, or maybe you are doing it yourself. Either way, you want to get yourself organized and prepared before you start making those calls to save time and frustration. Getting clear about your fees will make booking quicker and easier for everyone!

Here are some tips to creating your rate sheet.

1. Determine your fee
Determining your fee as a musician is not straightforward, so definitely take some time and care into finding what works for you. Here is a wonderful article on how to determine your hourly rate and then from there, buckle down your flat rate. Things to consider is not only the amount of time you play per set, but also the travel time. Travel costs come in step 3.

2. Paying your Bandmates
If you are a solo artist, then you don’t have to worry about this. However, if you have a band to pay, determine their rates and add it onto your solo rate to determine the band rate so you can ensure to earn your fair share. Also, be sure to include in this amount you have to pay your band to rehearse, not just perform.

3. Travel & Hospitality costs
Most of my clients keep travel fees separate from their performance fee, which I think is your best option. Putting this statement on your rate sheet will make it clear:

Arrangements for travel & hospitality costs are additional and are to be specified at the time when an agreement is made between the Hirer and the Musician

So when you have a lead, determine if you will charge for driving, flying, train, etc. and hotel for the duration of your stay. And be sure to say ‘in addition’ to your performance fee!

4. Create a clean, easy to read rate sheet with a chart
Keep it simple and include a chart at the top with your rates, clearly stated and number any additional statements, including the travel and hospitality costs, below the chart.

Even if you aren’t going on a tour and just looking to book shows when you are available, this rate sheet will help save your precious time and energy when negotiating an offer.

Thanks for reading!

Business Tips - 04/08/2014
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