Dick Clark: Tribute to an Icon & Legend

I'm old enough to remember Dick Clark's American Bandstand. Sure, it was safe and squeaky clean. But there's no denying that Dick Clark and his iconic TV show were trailblazers.

He introduced an entire generation of music fans to pop stars of the day. He was a prolific host, performer, and entrepreneur.

My biggest Dick Clark memory, though, was a double album called 20 Years of Rock N' Roll. My mom owned it and, along with her many Elvis records, this album was part of my early introduction to pop music of the '50s and '60s.

I salute Dick Clark for his immense contribution to American music history and culture.

If you want to learn more about the man and his legacy, here are some of the best news stories that were posted today:

USA Today

Huffington Post

ABC News

Pitchfork

New York Times

Wikipedia

Use This iPad App to Create Original Graphics

I'm really enjoying the new Paper app on the iPad. It's free to get the ink pen tool, and $7.99 for the full kit.

I sprang for the full version. Here's a quick doodle I made last night using it:

I plan to create my own graphics and use them in upcoming photos and videos, etc.

Here are links to learn more about it
itunes.apple.com/us/app/paper-by-fiftythree/id506003812
www.fiftythree.com

What about you?

How could you use Paper (or any other image creation app or software) to create original graphics to go with your original music?

-Bob

Don't Make THIS Mistake with Your CD Artwork

A friend of mine, who happens to be a great singer and songwriter, recently released his first EP. He was very excited about getting this debut recording out to the public.

He was doing all the right things: Getting digital distribution through CD Baby, setting up a Facebook fan page and a YouTube channel, hiring a graphic designer, and even manufacturing a short run of physical CDs.

I was so happy for him and eagerly bought a copy of the EP when it was available. The packaging looked great ... but I quickly noticed that an important detail was missing.

I examined the album artwork two or three times to make sure I wasn't overlooking it. Alas, one crucial detail was nowhere to be found.

On the album artwork, this talented artist had neglected to include a web addrdss of any kind. No artist website, no Facebook address, no Twitter URL ... nothing!

Of course, you can say that many of the people who buy the album will already know where to find the artist. Or that anyone can simply "Google" his name to find him online. But WHY make fans work that hard to connect with you?

Your physical recordings are more than just pretty packages to deliver your music in. They also act as marketing tools. Therefore, you should use them (and every other piece of physical promotional material you create) to connect with fans.

Do This to Make a Real Impact

In fact, I encourage you to take it a step further on your album artwork. Don't just list your website. Create an attention-getting incentive to visit the site and ... drum roll, please ... get on your mailing list!

That's right. Think about it. Is everyone who purchases your album, or everyone who sees your album at a friend's house or in their car, on your mailing list? In most cases, the answer is absolutely NO! Which means there's a huge disconnect between you and your fan base.

Consider all the people who purchase or hear your new album and love it. How will they know when you have something new for sale? How will they know when your next live show is? How will they get to know and appreciate you more?

The short answer: They WON'T if you aren't able to connect with them directly!

That's why building a mailing list is so important. And that's why creating an obvious "call to action" on your album artwork to visit your website and get on your list is important to your growth as an artist.

Note of clarification: I'm suggesting you place your websites and calls to action on the inside of the CD booklet/insert or on the back cover - NOT on the front cover of the album. Some digital retailers, such as iTunes, will not sell music in their catalog if the album cover contains a web address.

What do YOU think? I welcome your comments.

-Bob

P.S. The image above is by Chris Griffith.

Bob Baker: The CD Baby Interview [VIDEO]

A few months ago, CD Baby president Brian Felsen interviewed me at the TAXI Road Rally. We covered a wide range of marketing and indie music career topics.

Here's the full video interview.



What do you think about the topics we covered? I welcome your comments!

-Bob

3 Ways to Crush It With Your Music Marketing!

Are you serious about promoting your music? Are you ready to move beyond lip service and take concrete actions to move your music career forward?

If you truly embrace the following three ideas and make them a part of your marketing DNA, I guarantee you’ll crush it with your music marketing!

1) Do Something Every Day

For a moment, let’s talk about your physical health. Let’s say that you decide you’d be better off if you lost 20 pounds and tightened up your stomach muscles and other areas of your body. The first week, you work out three times and feel the burn. Then two weeks pass by before you exercise again. A month later, you find time to work out one more time.

Then you look at yourself in the mirror and think, “I don’t look or feel much different. Why isn’t this stuff working?”

You know the reason. You can’t lose 20 pounds and get in shape by exercising sporadically. In the same way, you can’t promote your music effectively by doing it every once in a while, when you happen to find time to squeeze it in.

Too many musicians think about self-promotion in terms of the big media blitz. They use terms like “push” and “hype” and believe that one big wave of promotion will launch a music buzz that will somehow continue without any further effort from them. Sorry, but that isn't the way a successful music career works.

From now on, stop thinking about the Big Push and start getting in tune with the idea of small self-promotion activities engaged in on a daily basis.

The thing is, with this approach, progress is tough to measure. Just like one exercise session won’t produce noticeable results, every day or week you promote your music may not appear to bear fruit. But over the course of weeks, months and years, the continuous effort generates a tremendous payoff.

Every day, do something to promote your music. Reply to an email from a fan. Send a review copy of your CD to a new media source. Call a venue or talent buyer to set up a gig. Talk to another artist about a cross-promotion idea. Post something interesting to your social media profiles.

The activity doesn’t have to be earth shaking. As long as the actions you take are focused on connecting with more fans, doing something simple every day will reap huge rewards just three to six months from now. I guarantee it.

2) Be Consistent with Your Message

Once you start reaching out to fans via highly targeted avenues, it’s important to send a rock-solid message. Your goal is to get a growing number of fans to make a mental connection between your name, your musical style, and the unique way that you approach your music. You can’t accomplish that goal by being inconsistent.

Keep in mind that people are bombarded every day with thousands of messages. Your self-promotion efforts are in competition not only with other musical acts of all types, but with all forms of media – radio, TV, Internet, print magazines, video games, smartphone apps, and more. People will need to hear your message repeatedly before it’ll even begin to sink in.

That’s why consistency is crucial. If you use one photo or motto one month and an altered, unrelated photo or motto the next month, people will become confused and indifferent to who you are as an artist. Your identity will become vague, causing fans to turn their attention to matters they can more easily get a handle on.

Make good use of a Brand Identity Statement (BIS), which is a short sentence or motto that clearly describes who you are, what you play, and why people should care. Creating a BIS forces you to define your musical image. Once you’re locked into that identity, every time you create an email, web page, album cover, poster, press release, or prepare for an interview, you should ask yourself, “Is this communicating and reinforcing my core identity?”

If your answer is no, redo the thing until it’s tightly focused on the message you need to be sending.

3) Be Bold, Exciting and Different

The best self-promoters aren’t afraid to take calculated risks. They also aren’t squeamish about pursuing marketing avenues that are fun, fresh and innovative. Too many songwriters and musicians play it safe and stick to traditional promotion tools that won’t rock the boat. I encourage you to stretch yourself and be willing to take some chances – when appropriate.

One band from Chicago delivered its new CD to radio disc jockeys and record store managers along with a fresh, hot pizza. You can believe that tactic made the band stand out from the crowd. Another artist persuaded the mayor of her small town to proclaim a special day in her honor. What exciting angle might you use to gain exposure?

Brace yourself. Trying something new and different will push your panic button through the roof. The fear of the unknown is the single greatest factor that maintains the status quo. But if you are to become an effective music promoter, you must push through your apprehension and be willing to go for it.

Warning: I’m not suggestion that you engage in crazy gimmicks for the sake of being different. Carelessly parading yourself before fans and the media without a purpose could easily backfire, and that wouldn’t help your cause one bit.

However, if an out-of-the-box promotion idea reinforces your musical identity, has the potential to connect with your ideal fans, and seems like it might have media exposure possibilities … don’t be shy about it.

Quite often, greater success lies just outside of your comfort zone. So don’t be afraid to be bold, exciting and different!

What are your thoughts on these three ways to crush it with your music career?

I welcome your comments.

-Bob

Six Steps to Making Money with Music in 2012

Enjoy this guest post by Ariel Hyatt of Cyber PR.

It’s been hard to wrap my head around making money with music in 2012. I speak to so many musicians who used to make a lot more, and now it’s time to re-think your approach.

Paying attention to the advice in this article could help you make more money this year. That’s my hope.

Marketing 101 – Your List

The first step towards this is back to Marketing 101 and a topic many musicians don’t like: building your email list and using it regularly. Communicating regularly and consistently with your fan base and then asking them for money only after you have built trust and rapport (when the time is right).

Artists tend to misuse their email lists by only reaching out to their fans when they have something to sell (a show, a new release, etc). Sadly, they never reach out to their fans for other reasons: to bond, share a funny story, or invite everyone out to the local bowling alley on a Tuesday night for a hang.

Every study on sales has proven one thing: People hate to be sold to (think about the “used car salesman” stereotype). However, people love to buy, and people always buy from people they like and trust.

That’s how great sales people sell – they create relationships with their customers, they know what their customers will want, and they stay in their customers’ hearts and minds till the customer is ready to buy.

My dear friend and Cyber PR artist Amelia Gewirtz, of Parents With Angst, sells real estate. Throughout each year she sends me thoughtful gifts that I look forward to receiving. In the summer she sends me a list of fun free outdoor concerts and activities around New York. At Christmas she sends me a Zagat Guide with her name printed on the cover.

I know MANY real estate agents, but guess who I recommend when anyone calls me asking for a recommendation? That’s right … Amelia! Read more about her music here.

Now you may be freaking out here a bit. You may feel like your fans are not customers in your mind. Your fans don’t “buy” from you and you do not consider them in that light – I totally understand this. But I am asking you to take off your artist hat for a minute and put on your business hat. The truth is: Your fans are your customers. They give you money to support your creative livelihood.

You (your music and your art) are a brand, and if you want to make money you should begin to think of your music and assets as if they were a product line.

Based on looking at it in this light, here are six questions to consider:

1) Do you have a large fan base to sell to?

This means:
A) An email list
B) An active Facebook community
C) Twitter Followers
D) Blog readers (and your blog cross posted on Tumblr, Twitter, Last.fm, Facebook)

I consider a real fan base a minimum (between all sites) of:
1,000 on your email list and
5,000 in your social networks

2) What is your product line?

Do you only sell CDs and MP3s?
Do you have assorted merchandise?
A fan club or monthly offerings?
Do you tell your mailing list you are available to play private events and parties or weddings or BBQs?

3) Are your monthly newsletters well designed, consistent and trackable?

Choosing a Newsletter Provider
There are many reputable newsletter platforms available. We have had very positive experiences with the ones listed below. These different descriptions will help you choose which provider will be best for you.

FanBridge
If you want more control over the HTML design, the contact list itself, etc., we recommend FanBridge. It’s very easy to import your existing contacts using an Excel file. They also make it possible to set up a “Fan Incentive” where fans can trade you their email addresses in exchange for music (e.g. an MP3, which is a phenomenal way to accumulate contacts). It is also possible to update all your statuses for FanBridge, Facebook, and Twitter from the FanBridge dashboard.

Nimbit
If you are looking for a one-stop shop for both your newsletter and your online commerce, Nimbit is the place. If you are ready to set storefronts on your homepage or on Facebook, we would recommend looking into what they have to offer. Do be aware that as of this writing, they take a 20% cut of all transactions through their storefronts (fees of this type are fairly common).

ReverbNation's FanReach
If you are already using ReverbNation, there is no reason to leave. They have a great service when it comes to newsletter management. They also have great widgets that may appeal to you. You can use it for full integration.

4) Have you asked your fans what they want to buy?

Interview them and ask! Your fans may want coffee mugs or yoga mats and, unless you ask, you will never know.

For Newsletters: Survey Monkey
Use www.surveymonkey.com to run a survey on your newsletter list.

For Twitter: Twtpoll
Use www.twtpoll.com to send a survey via Twitter

For Facebook: Polldaddy Polls
Use this app to send a poll to your Facebook personal profile or Facebook Fan Page!

5) Do you have another talent that your fans don’t know about?

Remember the story about Amelia who sells real estate?
Do you paint?
Do you write?
Is there another way you can make money that your fans may want to know about?

6) Can you create some sort of monthly program that your fans might pay a monthly fee for?

How about a live track of the month club or a special new song you are working on? Would your fans pay $2 a month for that? (That’s $24 a year per fan, and that can add up.)

Read all about how artist Matthew Ebel achieved this here.

Money Making Steps - Recap:

1. Build your email list!! Every day think about how you can inspire more people to subscribe to your list.

2. Communicate regularly and consistently using HTML emails.

3. When your list gets to be at least 1,000 strong, ASK them what they might like from you and how much they will pay.

4. Create products and fan clubs and house concerts to satisfy your fans!

5. Count your money $$ ... Cha-Ching!

Ariel Hyatt is the founder of Ariel Publicity and Cyber PR, and the author of Music Success in Nine Weeks.

11 Ways to Create Unforgettable Music Video Content

This is a guest post by Kendra Wright (my assistant)

Every artist should be using online video as part of their promotional toolkit. That means you must set up a YouTube account (also known as a “channel”) if you haven’t done so already. And once in place, your channel must feature new videos on a regular basis.



Why? Because video allows you to connect with fans and potential fans in ways that other forms of media can't touch. People experience things through text differently than they do through audio. Video, which combines both audio and visual stimulation, impacts many people on an even deeper level – which explains why it’s such a popular medium online.

Many artists get excited about video, post one clip, and then move on to the next idea that sparks their interest. Or they have the misguided notion that traditional music videos are the only thing they should post on YouTube. Not true. There are many ways to use video to attract attention and communicate with fans. And, to make the most of your YouTube channel, you should post new and varied content to it every month.

To get your wheels turning, here are 11 ways you can start cranking out fresh videos to engage and increase your fan base.

Promote your live events. Do a quick video about an upcoming show to complement the fliers you post online and off. Share the basic details about the event, along with anything special fans can look forward to that will get them excited about the show. This is something you can convey through video that you simply can’t do with a poster or flier.

Give fans a peek behind the curtain. Take your fans on a trip behind the scenes. Let them in on the recording process, show them any fun preshow rituals the band has, or record unusual things you come across while on the road. Give them a glimpse of your musical lifestyle.

Announce breaking news. A simple text-based Facebook announcement is so old school, how do you expect to stand out in the newsfeed? Catch up with the times and release breaking news in the form of short videos! Have you picked a release date for the new album? Want to introduce your new guitar player? Crank up your Flip video camera or smartphone and give fans a treat.

Show off new merch. Sure, you can post a photo with the new T-shirt design. But maybe you could take that a step further and actual wear one and model it in a video! Have any cool stories about your new designs? Wanna do a silly commercial on why fans should buy your merch? Plain ole images are so predictable. Give fans a cool heads-up on the new products you have coming out via video!

Let your fans interview you. Encourage fans to send in questions and answer them on camera. It’s a quick and easy way to make your fans feel special (be sure to state their name as the source of the question), which will inspire them to share the video with their friends. Chances are, if one fan is curious about something, there’s another out there who wants to know too.

Talk about who you are when you’re not onstage. Fans want to feel like they know you. Being a musician is just one small part of who you are. Do you have special causes you rally behind? What other artists are you listening to? Who influences your songwriting? Have any great, positive insight on life that you want to pass along to fans? These types of videos specifically appeal to the niche of super fans who are interested in learning anything you’d like to share. But they are also a great way to show another side of yourself.

Make a video for every song. In a recent interview I did with indie music phenom MC Lars, he recommended that every musician make a video for each song they want to promote. Watch that video (in which Lars shares some great tips on how to make a living as a DIY artist) here.

Give video music lessons. Do instructional videos of how to play your most popular songs. Have any tricky tuning or chord progressions? Or, do you see your songs played incorrectly on a lot in covers? Give your musician fans cool insight into how to play your tunes straight from the fingers that created them them.

Document a goal. Are you trying to raise money through a Kickstarter campaign to pay for a project? Are you already in the process of recording a new album or EP? Have you challenged yourself to write one new song a day for 30 days in a row? Great! Use video to update your fans on where you are with the goal.

Remind people of the details and let them know how they can help. This is a great way to keep creating awareness on projects that stretch over a long period of time. If you only talk about your project or goal once, it may lose buzz and momentum before completion. Keep it on their minds via video updates.

Explain the inspiration behind your lyrics. The beauty of music is that we all get to interpret it through our own filters. What a set of lyrics means to you can be completely different to someone else. But it can be really interesting to hear what inspired certain songs to be written, or to find out how the story ended in real life. Share these insights about your songs with your fans.

Share cool moments with your fans. Did someone propose onstage at one of your shows? Did you capture any video of epic costumes at a Halloween show? Did a fan send you some amazing art? Find unique ways to highlight these moments, say thanks to your fans, and let others know just how great your fans really are!

Did I leave anything out? In what other ways can musicians use video to attract attention and connect with fans? I welcome your comments.

For additional reading on video marketing best practices, check out these links:

How to Make Your Music Video Go Viral: 10 Tips From Cee-Lo, OK Go & More

9 Video Marketing Mistakes to Avoid