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Looper's Delight
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Thanks, Rick. This is good advice. I like the part about these people just being groups of people....humans. You are right. It makes a big difference when you make personal contact with people first. I take this for granted often, working for a company of over 100,000 employees, where I work from home, and participate or lead virtual meetings and conference calls all day long. We don't have a choice but to work effectively in a non-face-to-face environment. Kris ----- Original Message ----- From: "loop.pool" <looppool@cruzio.com> To: "LOOPERS DELIGHT" <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com> Sent: Wednesday, January 11, 2006 10:13 PM Subject: WAYS TO SELL OURSELVES: ONLINE > Kris wrote: > "How about how to get on radio stations. I think I spent a whole weekend >a > year ago sending out press packs to about 20 radio stations. It probably > worked on two of them...not much return on investment, and I'm reluctant > to try it again." > > I hear your reluctance but also have a couple of things to say about >being > more effective in your connection with the DJs. > > I've been the publicist, promoter, what have you for every music project > I've been in (except for a few commercial projects) > and what I've come to believe is this: > > The music business and all of it's branches are just fairly small tribes > of people. We tend to view them as rather monolithic when, in fact, >they > are just composed of individual human beings who all have their own > respective agendas about things. Like any small community, their are > personalities in it who are idiosyncratic and you have to cater to those > individual personalities. > > Sending material out is important but think about the myriad of > unsolicited pieces of mail you get daily by people trying to sell you > something. Unless someone has mentioned something to you in advance, > you will have a tendency to chuck stuff, especially if you are >inundated > the way most print journalists and on air disc jockeys are. > > Consequently, it is important to make a human connection with someone >who > you want to play and promote your CD. > I find that calling someone first and asking them if you can send them >(or > better yet, bring them) your recording is so much more effective than > just sending out packets. > > I have also found that if you can attach that connection with an event > that you are associated with can really increase the interest of the > journalist or DJ. I try to associate my record releases with >Events > (CD release parties) or Festivals to maximize the interest of the DJ or > Journalist. They are much more inclined to grant you an interview > which inevitably leaves to the playing of several tunes on the CD or, > better yet, a live on the air performance. > > Additionally, I have discovered that DJs love to help out, especially if > they believe that they are on the cusp of a happening event or movement. > I've found it very effective to specifically let DJs know that you (and > your movement or style of music) can really > use their help. I've had incredible success with the DJs at KUSP, > KKUP, KAZU and, especially, KZSC the local college radio station. > > Time of the year is important, too. This year the new DJs at UCSC >were > in the first week of their programs when we had Y2K5. They were > discombobulated, not set in their routines and consequently, I didn't > get an ounce of publicity for the > show on that the station...........the first time in several years. >It > makes me want to communicate with the RPM director > at the station to seek his or her advice about when to best have such an > event in the future. > > In the case of this particular station, there are luckily several shows >a > week who might play our stuff (the Live Looping community) > and that's a lot of energy because you might have to talk to four or >five > DJs before you find that one gem of a person who wants to help out. > It's all worth it, however. In the last two years two DJs at that > station have aided and helped my career and the > Looping events immeasurably..................now, of course, they have > graduated and I have to do it all over again..........lol. > > > > >