Marketing to the Masses

Sorry for lack of updates.

This may not be the cheapest route, but it is one of the most successful ways to market yourself. Yes, the internet is a good way to get to people who have the internet and are familiar with the websites you use. However, there's one undeniable way to achieve getting people to listen your music: providing free demo CD's.

The first step is to record the album. Check out my article on Finding the Right Studio. You want to get a decent sound, it doesn't have to be great but at least understandable. The CD and its packaging should look relatively nice too, so hire a decent artist. You don't need anything fancy so something like a CD Jacket or a 2-sided insert should be good enough. Remember, if it doesn't look good, it has a higher chance of ending up in the trash.

At this point, you know you lost money and you will have to accept the fact that you're going to lose more money. That's the cost of marketing though, and every business knows this. Go to shows in your area with music in the same genre. Try to find shows with music that you think is similar to a point where people would like your band. Here's where you have to make another sacrifice: Before the show ends, run outside and wait for the masses to come out. Hand out as many CD's as you can. Why not during the show? Well with a lot music, people dance, mosh, or whatever and have the opportunity of ruining the CD or losing it. When you're handing out your CD's, you won't have a chance to say hi or anything, so don't worry about mannerisms but be pleasant if someone talks to you. If you have a friend or ten, have them help out too.

People will almost always listen to a CD if they're given one just out of curiosity. If you have a good enough band, people will like you and potentially tell their friends about you. Furthermore, if their friends like it, they have the opportunity of burning it to a CD-R, or uploading it to a website of theirs. This could lead to more people listening to you. Who knows? Maybe one of them could run a record a company. Just remember, at this point you're considered indie (Indepedent). The more people that show up to your show, the more money you can make, which could actually return your investment in to producing the CD in the first place.

Transporting the equipment

Transporting your equipment around is more of a daunting task than you could ever imagine. The cheap way to start out by hauling equipment is by using separate cars. If you have an SUV, it will come in handy. Or even one of those box-on-wheels (Scions).

But when it comes to touring or traveling a good distance to each venue forget about this method. You will spend a lot on gas and you will be losing money in the long run. You’ll want to simplify and fit all members in one vehicle and equipment in another. There are 2 methods you need to know.

Method 1: The Touring Van

• Find a van on craigslist, at an auction, or even at used car dealer. You don’t want to spend too much but you want to get a van with the least amount of miles as possible. You can probably get a good deal for under $2000. Do some research and get one with the best MPG (Miles Per Gallon) you can find too.
• Get an enclosed trailer to haul your equipment. Sometimes these can go as much or even more than a van. With some luck though, you should be able to find one for about $500 or so.
• Make sure you get a good measurement of how much room you need. Try grouping all of your equipment in as little space as possible in your practice space (or anywhere really) and measure it. Then add about 2-5 sq. feet on the trailer size you want just in case you forgot how you stacked everything or you buy more equipment in the future.

Method 2: The Touring Bus

• If you can afford a bus or an RV, go for it. I am not talking about a Volkswagon Bus from the 1970s, but a bus similar to what your local transportation uses (in America it’s Greyhound). Make sure you find one that is comfortable, has low mileage on it and has storage room underneath for your equipment.
• A shower or a bathroom would probably be a good option too. But don’t use the toilet unless you absolutely need to! Try to stop instead.

Some tips:

• If you can find a roadie that’s a mechanic, bring them!
• You will breakdown! Be sure you bring some mechanic books and mechanical tools just in case.
• Stop frequently. You may get sick of each other. It’s also nice to stretch your legs. It can get very cramped and aggravating traveling all the time.
• Try to eat healthy. Junk food has an impact on your attitude (not to mention weight).
• Most importantly, have fun!

Trademarking your name

It's typically a good idea to trademark your name as soon as you choose one. Names get picked up really fast and so do good webpages (like yourname.com or myspace.com/yourname).

So why should you trademark your band name?

Imagine that there are two bands with your name floating around. Let's pretend your band gets popular and you sell some CD's, and the other band plans to sue you for trademark infringement. Here's the problem: they own the trademark to your name. Now you have to pay this band with your same name all the royalties. Doesn't sound fun does it? Imagine if you were on the other side of the ball. That sounds like more fun doesn't it?

How about this scenario? You own the trademark to your band name, but there's already a website and a myspace page with your name with a band declaring their name as yours. Well, now you can fight for both pages!

You may not actually need a lawyer at all in the cases mentioned above. In almost all cases, as soon as you mention you own the trademark, they will work with you to dispute it before the law gets involved. A good example of this happening is the drummer of my current band. His previous band owned a trademark to a band name and there was another band with the same name. As soon as they talked about, my drummer's band ended up getting free gear in exchange for the name.

So where do you go now?

http://www.uspto.gov/main/trademarks.htm

This only applies for bands in America though. If you're from another nation, check with your government's website and check for trademarks and patents.

You may also want to check out http://www.bandname.com/ to see if your band name is taken or not (legally).

Naming your band

When you finally form a band, it's generally a good idea to give it a name. Here's what the name should contain:

• Represents you - You don't want a band name like "The Lollipop Guild" if you're a death metal band. It may sound funny, but in the long run some people will reject your band all together just because of the name, causing you to loose some fans.
• Easy to spell - I can't emphasis this one enough. I shouldn't be asking "how do you spell that?" when you pronounce your bands name at a concert. If you're a good band that I want to check out, I'll want to go home and search for it online. If I can't spell it, what use it is? It certainly doesn't help if somone wants to find your album in a store either.
• Don't make your name too long. The shorter it is, the easier it is to remember. Try keeping your name down to one or two words instead of a sentence.
• And most importantly, it can't be taken!

There are several ways of coming up with a good name, but here's some ideas:

• A dictionary - Open up to random pages and choose random words. Find one that fits your style of music or the subjects to your lyrics.
• A thesaurus - If the dictionary doesn't work, think of a word that matches what your band is about. Look it up in the thesaurus and find synonyms, or even antonyms.
• A book - Books are still used these days. Does your favorite book have a name of someone that represents your band? What about a fake town name? Even the book title works! (Ex: Amon Amarth is an alternative name for Mount Doom based off the Lord of the Rings series)
• A movie - Same as a book. Just don't call your band "The Matrix", Star Wars or anything ridiculous or I swear I will punch you in the stomach. (Ex: 36 Crazy Fists is named after a Jackie Chan movie)
• A video game - I haven't heard of this happening yet, but I am sure it exists. Try naming your band after a video game or even a character or location in the game.
• Song name - Some bands have a group of songs before they name their band. What about using a song name? What about a band that influenced your band, you can use one of their song names? (Ex: Carnal Forge is named after a song by Carcass).
• Lyrics - Maybe your favorite line in yours or someone else's lyrics are a good band name. (Panic! At the Disco was named after the song Panic by Name Taken)
• Sometimes a name of a historical figure or town is good. (Ex: Abigail Williams is named after one of the girls involved in the Salem witch trials)
• Mythological creatures also work, but they're almost all taken. (Ex: Chimaira is named after a greek mythological beast)
• Dead languages - There's a lot of extinct languages. Think of a word that describes your band and see if there's a translation of it in a language. Latin is a good place to start. (Ex: Dimmu Borgir means Dark Castle in Norse. The language is very well alive though).
• Astrology - There's a lot of stars and constellations in space. Try naming your band after these.

I hope this article helps you start you creative muscles.

Starting the Band

There's a lot of ways to really approach starting a band. The best way, from my experiences is by talking to friends who have similar tastes. Just hope that they know how to play the instruments you need, or are atleast willing to learn fast. If that doesn't seem to work to well, maybe they have a friend that knows how to play whatever instrument you need and they're looking to play music in the same genre.

Most music stores have a billboard somewhere in the store. Posting an ad on these billboards are another great method for finding local musicians. Just be sure you include the style of music you're looking at, some of your influences, and the musicians you need. Most importantly, be sure to include your name and phone number or a method of contact!

The most modern and popular method of finding musicians is using craigslist. I wouldn't recommend this method for the pure fact that there's a lot of flakes out there. If you do, be sure you post enough information that makes them want to be in a band with you.

Question's you may want to answer in your ads:

• Is this a cover band?
• Who are your influences?
• What musicians do you need (guitarist, drummer, singer, bassist, keyboards, etc)?
• Is this just for fun or is this for real?
• Do you want a record deal or will you go indie?
• Do you want to tour?
• What time and days do you prefer to practice?
• How many shows do you want to play a month?