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I recently update a club’s website (www.northsideclub.com) after they came under new management. Now I did the old version of their website (you can see this on the from page of marketingmusician.com) but it was literally one of the first sites I ever did, and it looked like it. The owner was very cheap and never wanted to update it.

The new owners aren’t quite so frugal. In talking with them they were going to keep live music, but probably change the menu (to what they are not sure), etc. So they need to figure out exactly what they want to be (its hard to hit a moving target). None the less I did some research on the club and found that a few websites had reviewed them, and I took those and made the front page filled with testimonials.

I think the same applies for musicians. What if you don’t have any gigs? No schedule? Then ask yourself what sets you apart from other musicians? My band had 7 people in it (we had a horn section). Most bands playing the same clubs had about 4 or 5 people. We started pointing that out, “Come hear Akron’s most entertaining seven piece party band.” Then we had a list of all the musicians with a picture.

Is there something that sets you apart from other bands? Exploit it and embrace it.

Always open for feedback.

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This show originates at www.musicianscooler.com

Today I talk about a video that has has 2,565,069 in a WEEK. With this in mind, you should ALWAYS be on your best behavior as this one musician is now getting NATIONAL attention with his complaint about how  an airline broke his Taylor guitar.  For more information check out www.davecarrollmusic.com

With this in mind we as musicians should ALWAYS be professional at the gig. Don’t argue. Don’t “accidentally” punch the lead singer in the face. People have phone with cameras able to shoot pics and video (just ask “Kramer” from Seinfeld).  You don’t want your band being featured on youtube 22 million times in a week as the idiots of the week.

Check out Dave’s Book “Get Your Band Out of the Basement”at www.musicianlibrary.com

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This information comes from www.musicianscooler.com Show #185

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Today we got an eamil from Mike at www.mikeshardish.com about how a band asked him to consider playing their music. He went nad listened and the audio quality (in Mike’s opinion) was poor. He offered some suggestions to make it sound better, and said he would be willing to hear more in the future if they improved their sound. He said to take it as constructive criticism.

The band e-mailed him back explaining how they would make it without MIke’s support, they used sarcasm, they took it as an insult, and said they woudn’t be contact him in the future. It was far from professional. So lets state the obvious:

Not everyone will like your music. Deal with it now.

The same person that thinks you can do no wrong, should be listened to as much as the person who hates everything you do. Go for the overall consensus.

Also, if your podcast is called "Mike’s Hot Dish" you might want to use the podcaster’s name when you email them (go ahead and guess what the name of the Podcaster is of MIKE’s Hot Dish).

Tip Sheets and Song Submission Sites Part I
Paul from Mesa Sand Productions (www.mesasand.com ) gives us installment  #1 on submitting your music to tip sheets and services. Today he talks about preparation. Get your songs ready. There is a ton of places that need your music.

1. You need to own the song, the publishing. and the recorded masters.
2. You should be part of a perfoming rights societies (ASCAP, SESAC, BMI) so if you get placed a song in a tv show, the royalties come through these companies. Next week we will talk about Taxi.

If you are worried about losing your recordings check out this video I did for Carbonite. Its very cool and only 50 bucks a year. I’m using it, and I love it. It’s soooo easy.

Creative Performance Ideas
I was at a Casting Crowns show and they had a paitner come out and paint a painting LIVE during a song. It fit in with the music. The painting didn’t "make sense" till the end. It was a cool effect.

They also partnered with a cause (www.worldvision.org) because they believe in it. Now they have an organization’s publicity machine working for them, and consequently they are leading people to the organization. If you sponsored a child (like www.alanalex.com my child) you got a free CD. This lead to me going and buying their entire back catalog. Do you have a cause you feel strongly about? IT seems to be working for Bono.

Looking to Join a Community? check out www.big-boards.com

Support This Show
Check out Dave’s Book "Get Your Band Out of the Basement And Keep them Out of the Asylum" available at www.musicianlibrary.com

Check out the free chapter "Promoting your band with podcasting" www.promotingwithpodcasting.com

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