Here are a few more action-including ideas to use in your messages to the music media:
3) Include your name, address and phone number
This should be obvious, but you'd be surprised how many music marketers overlook it. Along with inspiring a media person to action, you must include the methods by which to contact you. Do you want a media person to call you? Send an email or return post card? Make sure your name, address, phone number, email and website are clearly noted within your message. Again, you want to motivate these people to action, and then make it easy for them to connect with you.
4) Consider using a response coupon
You've no doubt seen these used in ads and fliers for a variety of products and services. Typically, a response coupon is outlined by a broken border, implying that the reader should cut it out and use it. Inside the border are lines to write in a name, address and phone number. The most effective response coupons start with a place to put a check mark and a sentence or two at the top that reads…
"[ ] Yes! I'm ready to take action to get the benefit you're offering. Please send me free details right away."
Question: Why not use this technique yourself? Marketing research indicates that simply having a response coupon on a marketing document increases the rate of response – even if the person responding doesn't actually fill it out and mail it. In other words, response coupons act as a visual stimulus that psychologically triggers the reader to act.
Therefore, include your phone number and email address near the response coupon section of your mailing piece. That way, the coupon alone will help inspire the person to contact you, but other contact options are there in case he or she wants your new CD or media kit sooner.
5) Include testimonials, sales charts, play lists, review comments, article reprints, and more
As I've already mentioned, you telling a media person how wonderful you are will get you nowhere fast. But there is a way to impress media people without having to use God-awful, ill-fated, me-centered wording. The key is to get respected, third-party sources to say something good about you, and then use those positive quotes to reinforce the fact that you are worth writing about or being given radio airplay.
Best approach: Starting right now, you should pursue all opportunities for free press and airplay, beginning with your local papers and radio stations. Whenever a review or article is written about your musical act, clip and copy the piece and add it to your press package. Also, when your indie release ends up on a podcast, radio station play list or regional sales chart, get a copy of it and do the same thing.
Important: Effective music marketing includes an ongoing process of pursuing and compiling third-party endorsements of your worthiness – and then using those comments to get what you want from the media.
You should also approach local disc jockeys, program directors, editors, writers – even agents, nightclub owners, and recording studio owners – and ask them for a comment you can use in your media kit. Before long, you'll have a whole collection of testimonials (from people other than your friends, family and yourself) on the impact you've produced thus far, not to mention your potential for larger-scale success.
6) Offer something free if media people respond now
Along with encouraging media people to contact you to get your CD or press kit, why not offer something else free to the first 25 callers. (Why not? It works for radio stations, why not your music marketing efforts?) Give away a T-shirt, poster, coffee mug, condom… whatever you can think of to help inspire a quick response.
There you have it – a quick course on how to make any communication you have with the media a more productive one.
Key question: What happens now? Will you remain part of the majority of music marketers – people who say they really want to promote their music on a wider scale… but never get past talking about it?
Or will you be part of the top 5 percent of the music community – people who have a true passion for the art and craft of making music? Ask the most prosperous artists. They'll tell you that being successful means taking that burning desire and belief in yourself and combining it with a healthy, regular dose of action.
Are you that type of person?
Only you can answer that. But whether you're in a band, run a record label or publicity department, or have a music-related product or service to promote, I encourage you to start putting these media exposure techniques to work right away. The worst thing that could happen is that you'd move one step closer to achieving your musical goals. And that's not a bad place to be.
No comments:
Post a Comment