7 Ways to Destroy Your Music Career - The Video

Tired of experts who always put a positive spin on everything? Great. Here are seven simple steps you can take right now to completely ruin your music career!



This is a brand new video version of a 7 Ways to Destroy Your Music Career blog post I ran about a year and a half ago. If you want to read (and pass along) that text version, you'll find it here.

What do YOU think of my seven tongue-in-cheek steps to failure? What would you add to the list? I welcome your comments.

-Bob

A New Buzz Factor Bestseller

Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook

129 Free and Low-Cost Ways to Promote and Sell Your Music on the Internet

Learn More ...

The Jonathan Coulton, Amanda Hocking Success Formula

These two simple sentences from Bob Lefsetz really drive home a vitally important point:

"Only the best and the brightest, the top of the elite, make it in the democratic Web/self-publishing world. Without all the marketing, without all the hype, all you've got is the naked product -- and it had better be damn good."

Brilliant!

What inspired Lefsetz was a New York Times article on 26-year-old author Amanda Hocking. Over the last several months she's become the poster child for self-publishing success in the book world.

After writing several novels and honing her writing chops in obscurity since she was in elementary school, Hocking decided to write in a specific genre (paranormal romance) and in a style that she felt had potential commercial appeal.

Still, traditional publishers rejected her over and over again. In the spring of 2010, she self-published her first novel as an ebook on Amazon (which is fairly easy to do). She started getting a steady trickle of sales right away.

As sales grew she wrote and submitted more novels to the Kindle store and other online ebook retailers.

Things snowballed far beyond her wildest expectations. It's been reported she made about $2 million USD last year. And she recently signed a $2 million deal with a major book publisher for a three-book series.

Of course, as Lefsetz points out on his blog, there are not a lot of Amanda Hockings out there. In the indie music world, the same can be said for success stories like Jonathan Coulton (who grossed a half million dollars last year as an unsigned, independent artist).

It would be easy to write off both of these examples as flukes and discredit their success instead of celebrate it (and, believe me, MANY people do). But not honoring what led to their good fortune is shortsighted.

Here are the traits that Coulton and Hocking share:

• They are both prolific; they have created a vast body of work over the years
  
• Through years and countless hours of effort, they have honed their craft and created music and books that a certain slice of the population deems "damn good"
  
• They have been willing to use the Internet and the digital tools available to them to connect with an audience
  
• They create even more music and books to feed the appetite of their existing audience, which further grows their fan base and income streams

There's your modern day formula for success -- at music and anything else, for that matter!

To reinforce these steps, here's the "business model" that Jonathan Coulton recommends:

"You need to work extremely hard, make music that is great, and find people to buy it from you. The end."

What are YOUR thoughts on these modern DIY success traits? I welcome your comments.

-Bob

P.S. Here are links to the Bob Lefsetz blog post, the Amanda Hocking article, and Jonathan Coulton's blog.

Meet Kendra, My New Assistant!

For more than two decades, I've prided myself on living the DIY (do it yourself) ethic that I preach. Years ago I made a decision to create and run a business that I could operate by myself, working from home without a staff, office space or much overhead.

I feel very blessed that I attained that goal.

Over the past few years, as my publishing and teaching efforts have grown, my girlfriend (and very significant other) Pooki has taken on a few responsibilities. But the bulk of the workload still fell on my shoulders (plus, she has her own interests that I encourage her to pursue).

All of this led to my current situation:

• Working a LOT of hours on all aspects of the business
  
• Feeling like I'd hit a ceiling on the impact I can have and the number of people I can reach as a one-man show

So in recent months I began entertaining the idea of getting help ... which led to a perfect solution and the ideal person to step into a new role in my life.

Meet Kendra Wright!

I asked Kendra to write her own introduction, and she came up with this clever Q and A. I hope you take a moment to read it and welcome her to this new adventure!


How did you meet Bob?

I have to say I'm pretty resourceful when it comes to finding ways to meet people. I'm a networking master. If I want to connect with someone, I'll make it my personal mission to find a way in.

I was reading Bob's blog and Twitter feed for a while before I realized we lived in the same city. In the summer of 2009 I found out Bob was giving a workshop for aspiring authors at an expo in St. Louis. I showed up determined to meet him.

I remember Bob asking how everyone found out about the speaking engagement, and I told him I had been online stalking him for a while. We laughed about it, and the rest is history.

Nearly two years and a few projects later, now I'm his right-hand gal.

What projects are you looking forward to working on with Bob?

Helping him get some downtime! Seriously! If you knew the massive amount of projects Bob has in the works on a daily basis, your head would explode. I have to take notes just to keep up with him.

He works hard, and he works a lot. He loves it, but he also needs some time to chill and recharge his batteries. So I'm looking forward to helping lighten the load for him. I'll know I'm doing my job well when he finally takes a day off.

Who are you? How did you get into the music world?

I’ve been working with the local St. Louis music scene for about six years now. I have a Bachelors in Media Studies from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

I’ve done everything from artist management, image consulting, production work and PR to branding, merchandise and driving rock stars around the city. (Ask me about the time I got lost in East Saint Louis with the Reverend Horton Heat in my car.)

In my free time I enjoy reading, finding new adventurous things I haven't done (I just gave skydiving a go), hanging out with my pooch, traveling, and volunteer work. I'm addicted to anything with sugar, anything Apple, and only wear slip-on shoes.

I'm also the most organized person on the face of the earth, which is why Bob and I make a great team; his world can be pretty chaotic!

A few pet peeves: Cold weather, arrogance, awkward silence, and books with bent front covers.

Favorite guilty pleasure: My apple products and organization.

Song you could listen to on repeat forever: "4am" by Our Lady Peace.

How can you help me, Kendra?

Bob is a busy guy! Really, "busy" is stating it lightly. Even though he tries to answer every email personally, he just can't always get around to it.

If you have a truly important message, and you don't want it to get lost in the shuffle of Bob's crazy world, feel free to shoot me an email at Kendra AT bob-baker.com. If it makes it to my inbox, there's a much better chance it'll actually get on Bob's radar.

Facebook + Bandcamp = I Had No Idea You Could Do This!

This past week — completely by accident — I discovered a surprising way to use Facebook and Bandcamp to share and sell music on the world's most popular website.

Did you know this was even possible?

I just created this video tutorial that walks you step by step through what it is, how I did it, and how you can too.




Was that helpful? I welcome your comments below.

Bob

48-Hour Sale: 4 Music Titles Only $9.95 - Ends Friday, June 3

Sorry, the 48-Hour Sale Is Now Over

Here's the nudge you've been looking for ...

Get 33% to 50% Off these four music marketing resources - now till 12 Noon EST on Friday, June 3.

Guerrilla Music Marketing, Encore Edition
50% Off
Learn more about this title or Order Now

Killer Music Press Kits
41% Off
Learn more about this title or Order Now

Killer Music Web Site Critiques

33% Off

Learn more about this title or Order Now

Indie Music Confidential Mega Package

33% Off

Learn more about this title or Order Now

Perhaps you've been browsing all the music marketing books and resources available here ... but haven't made up your mind about which titles to get.

Now would be a good time to move ... and save 33% to 50%.

Note: The regular prices still show on the individual sales pages. But when you click "Add to Cart" the sale price will display ...

But only until 12 Noon Eastern on Friday, June 3.

So start saving now!

-Bob

One Way to Help Joplin, MO, Tornado Victims

I was all set to send a funny email yesterday.

It was going to be about how the world didn't end on Saturday, but your ability to join the Music Marketing Mentorship Program was truly ending May 24, etc.

All that changed when I started hearing reports Monday morning about the unthinkable devastation in Joplin, MO, on Sunday.

Joplin is about four hours away on the other side of Missouri from where I live in St. Louis. I wanted to do something to help.

So I created a video Monday afternoon about the new deadline for the program -- and a way you can help the good people of Joplin.

Please take a moment to watch it now.

In fact, I've expanded this fund-raising effort and will send a portion of all sales from my website this entire week to the Joplin, MO, disaster relief effort.

Again, watch the new video and see some of the bonus incentives I've added to entice you to join. You really do get an amazing collection of music resources when you get with the program by the deadline.

Whether or not you join or purchase something from me this week, I hope you consider helping those in need. Here's a page at MSNBC filled with many ways to help in Joplin.

Be safe, and count your blessings!

-Bob

P.S. The new deadline to join 3MP has been extended to Noon EST on Wednesday, May 25. I hope you decide to join this great group of proactive musicians, managers, and promoters ... before I close it to new members.

5 Facebook Music Fan Page Mistakes

Last week I posted a new video called The 5 Biggest Facebook Fan Page Screw-Ups. It generated nearly 2,000 views in its first week. Since it's such a popular topic, I thought I'd post an updated text version here on the blog ...

Facebook. You already know it's the most prominent social media site on the planet.

You probably also know that, in addition to having a personal profile for yourself as a person, you can also create a "fan page" for your band, your music company, or yourself as an artist — or anything else for that matter.

Having a Facebook fan page can be a great promotional tool. But like any tool, it can be used ... or abused. In this post I will focus on the most common blunders as I walk you through the "5 Biggest Facebook Music Fan Page Mistakes."

Here we go ...

Big Mistake #1
Not Claiming a Customized URL

When you first create a new fan page on Facebook, it gives you a funky web page that reads something like Facebook.com/pages/lkzvf09786e3r0pu-ie3r3658

Not very user friendly or easy to remember. The good news is, you can create a customized address for your fan page, such as face.com/yourbandname. Here's how:

When you are logged in to Facebook, go to www.facebook.com/username. Then follow the instructions to create a custom URL. For example, mine is www.facebook.com/bobbakerfanpage.

Important note: As I understand it, you need to have more than 25 people "like" your fan page before it will allow you to claim a custom URL. So if you just created your page, you'll need to drum up at least some fans before you are extended this privilege.

Big Mistake #2
Engaging Only in One-Way Communication

Many artists make the mistake of using their fan page as a place to make announcements — and that's it. So you see a lot of updates along the lines of "I'm playing here Sat night," "My new album available now on iTunes," or "We just got reviewed in this magazine."

That's cool stuff worth sharing, but it's not very engaging. So think more in terms of a two-way conversation. One simple way to do that is to simply ...

Ask your fans for feedback!

On a regular basis, ask questions on your fan page: "What should we play at our next show?" "How should we celebrate the singer's birthday next week?" "Which of these three songs do you like best?"

Also, show your personality. Share your sense of humor and quick wit (assuming you possess these qualities, of course). Make your updates lively and engaging — not just dry announcements.

So ... Ask, ask, ask! Show your personality. Make it a two-way conversation.

Big Mistake #3
Not Responding to Comments

Okay, so you took my advice and you are posing questions and asking for feedback. And people are responding on your page. Great. Now what?

You must acknowledge them!

When people take the time to leave a meaningful comment on your fan page, you will create a lot of good will by commenting back. At the very least, click the "like" link related to the comment, which will appear in that person's list of notifications.

Find some way to acknowledge that you saw and appreciate the comment!

Big Mistake #4
Always Promoting and Selling

Nothing turns off a fan more than a constant barrage of sales messages (and this is coming from a guy who sends out a lot of sales messages :-) Use your fan page status updates to communicate with your fans — not just promote to them. Share interesting stories and links, new music, and other cool things you have done or discovered that they might be interested in.

A good motto to keep in mind is "Share and serve, don't always sell." Memorize that!

Big Mistake #5
Never Selling

On the opposite end of the spectrum from Always Selling is ... Never Selling. And this is a major screw-up too. Some creative types are so worried about being perceived as greedy or pushy that they never make people aware they have stuff for sale — they never give fans the opportunity to support them financially.

Don't screw up in this area too!

So, while you're delivering value, asking questions, engaging with your fans, and interacting with them ... don't forget to make them aware of the cool things you have for sale. Don't go overboard with sales pitches, but don't shy away from them entirely either. Strike a balance.

Give your fans an opportunity to help and support you!

There you have it ... The 5 Biggest Facebook Music Fan Page Mistakes.

Which mistakes are you making (or avoiding)?

I welcome your thoughts in the comments section below.

-Bob