Detour can help you choose where to play

This is only in Beta testing at the moment - and I hadn't heard of it.

But, its great. And since it has the people behind SongKick behind it, and becuse of the way it works, I have a feeling it will succeed.

In a nutshell, fans can pledge to attend a gig by the band that uses Detour to route their tour. 

I know there have been other services that try to allow fans demand that a band play their town (GigWish and Eventful being just two) but they haven't ever really quite nailed the method like Detour seems to.

Maybe that's because it's in private Beta and there are just a few bands using it but I think it's more to do with the fact that it's not just wishful thinking - it's about a band saying they will tour and looking to fans to help them suggest places that they might not otherwise play.

I really hope it works!

Read the Songkick piece about it here.

And the FAQ's here.

YouTube - InVideo Programming is a killer feature for musicians

We mentioned this new YouTube feature a week or two ago, but it is SO important here's a little round-up of posts about it.

In short, you can now put an image linking to your channel page or an image and link featuring a video across ALL your videos - all with one click.

This means that when you have a new video uploaded, you can promote it across all your existing videos. Alternatively, you can create a custom image that links to your channel with a 'call to action' asking people to subscribe.

The ability to promote a new video automatically across a whole channel is a very big deal - get to it.

Here's Prescription's piece on it: http://www.prescriptionmusicpruk.com/the-prescription/2012/10/30/an-important-new-youtube-feature-for-musicians.html

Here's YouTube's own - http://youtubecreator.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/keep-your-audience-engaged-with-invideo.html

And, this from the ever brilliant Smart Passive Income site covers it as part of a longer post which is well worth a read -  http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/how-to-hand-out-flyers-online-old-school-and-new-school/

100 Great social media tips

Don't click on this link unless you have some tiume on your hands!

It's a list of 100 great socila media tips but each tip links to another article and pretty much all of them are really worthwhile. It just cost me well over an hour of productivity.

Bookmark it for sure.

Click here for the 100 tips.

Want to link from your YouTube video to your site...or iTunes?

This is a killer update from YouTube and something that every artist I work with has wanted to be able to do for sometime.

You can now create an annotation in a video on YouTube and link it so people can click through directly to your site or to your music on iTunes or a whole host of other places.

Well, you can....if you're a premium partner. 

And I know most DIY musicians aren't.

So having gotten you all excited, sorry to dash your hopes, but there are a whole load of DIY and Indie musicians who are already premium partners on YouTube and if that doesn't include you, it's yet another incentive to make YouTube a major priority.

Plus, of course, often the features that first appear on premium partner channels find their way to all of us.

Here's hoping.

Here's the link to YouTube to read all about it.

MySpace - Maybe?

MySpace has launched a little teaser video to let us know that the new owners have revamped the look and the functionality and that a relaunch is on the way.

We'd all dismissed this once almighty platform (with our advice being just to keep a basic presence there) but maybe we've been too hasty and perhaps it can rebuild itself as a definitive destination for music lovers, and therefore for artists.

We'll see.

 

But, there seems to be some excitmenent amongst the DIY musician fraternity as this post from Music Ally says:

When advertising firm Specific Media bought Myspace – complete with investment from Justin Timberlake – it’s fair to say the most common reaction was a shrug. Dying brand, no chance of a comeback.

Yet if you thought of Myspace less as a falling social network, and more as (potentially) the largest music discovery site in the world, there was a glimmer of hope. Well, a video teaser of the new Myspace has fuelled that hope.

As one heavily-retweeted Twitter user put it: “Instagram + Pinterest + Windows 8 + Justin Timberlake = SexyBack”. It’s very beautiful, heavy on images, and light on clutter. Music remains a key ingredient too, with mixes, trending artists and songs, a radio option and a whole section spotlighting ‘This week’s Top Fans’.

Besides the obvious Pinterest comparison, we’re seeing elements of Vevo and music discovery site TheSixtyOne, as well as iPad app Aweditorium. It’s a world away from previous incarnations of Myspace, and even – whisper it – makes Facebook’s artist pages look a little old-hat.

Check the video here

:

5 Key Points to Help Make a Low-Budget Video / VYCLONE Iphone APP

In todays social media world, the video seems to be the optimum format for getting your music across. As much as we like to listen to music, the art of discovery is often helped with a video.

With all the low budget tech out there, it is now within everybodies reach to create a video. I succesfully filmed a band at a live gig recently with just two iphones just to see how it would work, and it didn't turn out too bad! 

So if you fancy giving it a go, there are a few simple things you need get right before you embark on your first video production.

Peter Gavin has put together a list of 5 key points that will help you create your first video in a post that i found on evolver FM.

He says you need to consider these things..

1. It takes 2 (cameras) to make a thing go right

2. Lighting is the more important than your camera

3. Audio quality can make or break your video

4. You already own editing software

5. Resize your videos without losing quality

He goes into depth in the full article that you can read here. Which also has more leads/links to more info that will guide you through to making your first video.

VYCLONE Iphone APP

Another interesting way to create a video is to use a useful app that has just appeared on the Web.

Vyclone is a new free iPhone app which allows you to include and remix your own video footage with the ones of your friends recording the same event.

Vyclone synchronizes and edits everyone's clips to create one movie with all the angles cut together.

Sounds awesome, you just make sure you get a few friends to install the app at your gig and get them filming, all the pain of syncing is taken away so you can just use the best shots!

For more info go here

Go on give it a go... it's not as difficult to make a video as you think!

Links

http://evolver.fm/2012/08/17/5-ways-to-make-a-low-budget-video/

http://vyclone.com/

 

 

 

The Reason We Are All Addicted - The Scientific Power of Music

The way music can effect people is fascinating, it seems to be able to effect you physically and emotionally, but have you ever wondered how?

I came across the following video which gives you cool insight into how music really does effect you, and the reason we are all addicted to it.

Check it out, music really is a drug.....

10 Ways To Grow One Gigantic Mailing List

Hi! We're back from our Summer Holidays, Ian spent a lovely 2 weeks down in Devon dodging the rain, whilst I avoided the Olympic madness in London and spent the time in Berlin. So we are back now bringing you more tips and suggestions we have scoured from the web, and as we were away there's a lot to catch up on.

The first thing to catch my eye is an article on how to grow your mailing list. This in my mind is the single most important thing a band should be doing, after writing some amazing music!

Musicians have to get over the fact that their music won't be magically discovered as it was before the internet, and staying connected to your fanbase is imperative, and the best connection you can have (after their telephone number which is highly unlikely) is their personal email address.

Jon Ostrow, Cyber PR’s publicity director has written an article that hits the nail on the head and lists 10 Ways To Grow One Gigantic Mailing List.

Continual and correct engagement with your fanbase is crucial to keep them loyal, and with sense of exclusivity you will continue to keep them that way.

He mentions in his article...

When building and nurturing a fan base, your objective is always to strengthen loyalty, then size. Going way back to the ‘1000 true fans‘ theory, having 1000 super fans who buy everything from you and are in constant support of you is far more beneficial (and lucrative) than 10,000 casual fans. So, creating a strong sense of exclusivity is very important when offering something in exchange for an email address. You want your fans to feel as though giving their email address to you is meaningful, as if they were joining a club or community, ultimately strengthening their loyalty to you.

Check out his 10 winning ways to grow your mailing list here

 

Link

http://arielpublicity.com/2012/08/02/call-to-action-10-ways-to-grow-one-gigantic-mailing-list/

 

by Steve

 

 

 

How The Internet Has Rocked The Music Industry - Infographic

We seem to be awash with infographics here at Make it in Music!  I just found this other cool one (courtesy of Mashable) displaying the facts about How The Internet Has Rocked The Music Industry. Sometimes its good to see the details! 

15 Top Tips to Record Like A Professional - Infographic

I love Infographics, especially when they are well designed and informative. So i just had to share this one with you. Here is 15 Top Tips on how to Record Like A Professional. 

 

The Friday Five - 27th July 2012

It's almost here! The Olympic Games in London starts in just a few hours, the buzz here is pretty intense and the City seems to of gone mad. And amongst all that we have still managed to get out of the pub, and bring you 5 Olympic nuggets for you to peruse at your leisure.  See you at the finishing line! And in no particular order....

 

1. How To Make A wikipedia Page For Your Music

Excellent set of guidlines and rules for crafting your own wikipedia page. you got to make sure you create  something that doesnt automatically gets removed. Thats happened to several people i know.

http://musformation.com/making-a-wikipedia-page-for-your-music/

 

2. Utilising Fan-created Content In Your Next Music Video.

Useful examples of getting your fans in to help create your next viral video!

http://musicgoat.com/build-a-kickass-fan-community-with-crowd-sourced-content

 

3. Top 5 Mistakes Musicians Make with Their Live Show

This is real solid advice, all musicians should read this one.

http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/07/top-5-mistakes-musicians-make-with-their-live-show/

 

4. The Totally Colourblind Man Hears Colours As Music

There are times I wish i could do that!  Just Watch.....

http://www.alancross.ca/a-journal-of-musical-things/2012/7/27/the-totally-colourblind-man-hear-colours-as-music.html

 

5. More Free Samples! This Time Some Out Of This World Weirdness

Sometimes, you're looking for a beat, chord or riff that you can use as the basis for a track, but on other occasions, what you need is a bit of other-worldly weirdness to add atmosphere.

http://www.musicradar.com/news/tech/sampleradar-13154-free-sample-downloads-217833/114

 

Enjoy the sports fest! See you next week....

 

Steve

Kickstarter for the Average Musician

Kickstarter and fanfunding, are the buzzwords of the moment. Thank you Amanda Palmer!

But realistically, how easy is it to reach a target?  

You have an email list of fans, but how many will give you some of their hard earned cash?

There are many questions like this that the average musician needs answers to, so John Oszajca of Music Marketing Manifesto has recently interviewed someone at the other end of the scale to Amanda Palmer, singer/songwriter Kat Parsons, who recently reached her modest amount (in comparison) of 20,000 US Dollars to record her album, and asked her why she chose Kickstarter what her pledges were, how she engaged her fanbase to reach her target.

The interview is a podcast on his website and you can hear it here.

 

Link

http://www.musicmarketingmanifesto.com/mmm-podcast-episode-7-kickstarter-for-the-average-musician-with-kat-parsons/

 

Fan Engagement - 5 Tips For Effective Fan Polling

Last week here on our posterous page we posted an article on How To Increase Your Reach On Facebook. Explaining that the reason your posts are not being seen by your entire fanlist is becauuse of a system called Edgerank, which basically puts your posts into more newsfeeds depending on how viral your previous content is. This judges your content as relevant and worth spreading.

One system that I have personally seen to bring results is to run a poll.  Facebook has a section in create a post section called 'Ask Question'. Working for a band, we decided to get the fans involved and created a poll about what songs the audience wanted to hear at an upcoming London gig. We placed just few songs in there to start, and allowed the fans to add more songs to the list, effectively creating a chart of what were the favourite songs of the bands fanbase. 

The engagement was amazing, and the chart filled up nicely bringing many songs they hadn't played for a while to the list, which were then added to the setlist on the night of the show.

This also had a positive effect on the edgerank, as other posts seemed to reach further and be viewed by more of the fanbase. Just the result we needed! Polls can be useful, our reach definitely increased and the fans got to hear songs that they wanted!

Polling fans can also be used to obtain different information you may need to move forward with your career, such as what songs should i finish for my album?

You could very easily do this on Facebook but there are other applications that can help you get feedback and be even more engaging to your fanbase such as the online app called Popplet, and DIY musician Abi Robins did just that.

Mark Boyd has written an article for about how Abi used Popplet and she shares some of her ideas about fan polling that can help you build and maintain a loyal audience for your music.

She states in Marks article,

“A lot of my fan base thought it was really cool to use Popplet as a way to provide feedback. It gave fans an insight into the new album production – much more than just asking a  poll question – and a lot of people thought it was a really neat idea. It was a way of presenting the information that they hadn’t seen before, which, I think, turned quite a few heads. The fact that it looks really neat and it is easy to navigate helped a lot, too.”

She also gives 5 Tips For Effective Fan Polling, so its worth reading the whole of Marks article here.

And find out more about Popplet here

Of course you can be very imaginative about the things you poll your fans about, fans love to be involved. Remember in this Social Media age you are now their property, with them you are nowhere.

Links 

http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2012/07/5-tips-for-effective-fan-polling/

http://popplet.com/

 

Above photo is of the artist Modest Mouse checking out what his fans have to say. photographer unknown.

 

 

Music Marketing - How to Target and Conquer your Niche

The music industry today looks to be full of artists that seem to come from nowhere. All of a sudden they have a viral hit, whether it's from a video, or a trending tweet. 

The DIY musician needs to realise that this kind of thing doesn't happen purely because they have have written an amazing tune. There are thousand of undiscovered brilliant tracks out there. More often than not, it has become succesful because of their canny use of Social Media. And probably even more so because they understand what their niche is.

So what is a Niche?

Cyber PR's Jon Ostrow puts it like this,

a niche is simply a specific or ‘specialized’ market. In other words, it is not ‘the whole world’ or ‘rock fans’. A niche is a very detailed, smaller sub-section of a bigger market, but most importantly those who are characterized within the niche are far more likely to be loyalists than fans of a more generalized market. Not to get too ‘marketing-jargen’ on you all, but typically speaking, the more specific a niche, the more dedicated those within it will be, and visa versa, the more broad a market becomes, the less dedicated the fans will be.

So clearly, all music genres fall into niches, the trick is, How do you conquer that niche to get your message/brand across? Well, you need to define and locate the fans of your niche, Jon suggests collating the following information to help you determine that.

•  
  • Demographic (age, gender location)

•  
  • Similar / influential artists (remember to start locally, then branch out to the regional, national and global scale)

•  
  • What are the influential promotional outlets?

•  
  • Where do the fans exist online?

•  
  • What blogs do they read?

•  
  • How do they find out about new music?

•  
  • Are they into fashion? If so, what brands?

Check out the Jons Full article for cool tips on how to understand and conquer your niche, you can read his full post here.

 

Link

http://arielpublicity.com/2012/07/18/conquering-your-niche/

How To Increase Your Reach On Facebook

If you use Facebook as much as I do, you will see many disgruntled users complaining on how their fan page content is not reaching all the fans they have. This is because Facebook doesnt work in the same way as other social media tools do. it uses an algorythm called Edgerank. Once you understand this and how it works, you will definitely see an improvement in your views, and your content should be becoming more viral.

The Edgerank algorythm determines what gets placed in a users newsfeed. You will notice that in the ticker at the side of a facebook page that not all the content displayed there gets put into your main newsfeed. with the thousands upon thousands of posts going on every minute, there has to be some way of seeing what is of interest to you, and this is judged upon engagement.  

Since the last major facebook update, the two main websites I am blogging on  I noticed through my statistics for those sites that the amount of traffic coming from Facrbook was declining. 

These sites are feeding by an RSS feed all the posts created on them to their respective Facebook pages, but the engagement created by them is becoming less and less. 

So what is needed is a better form of engagement that can get traffic from these views to get to your site.

Check out this infographic from the Mariposa Agency for some facts on different forms of engagement other than status updates and how well they perform.

On the two websites I mentioned earlier, we have taken steps to change this, by utilising images placed on facebook with a link in the text we've noticed a vast improvement of engagement and traffic.

Bryan Kim director of Biz Dev at Tracksby, personaaly admins over 100 facebook pages for musicians. He has written a brilliant article going into detail on how to get your facebook page performing better. He says,

No matter how facebook slices it, your actionable instruction remains the same: GET MORE ENGAGEMENT! Get those likes, those comments, those shares. Make it your main goal with Facebook. These engagement points build on top of itself, ensuring better and better distribution on news feeds over time as your engagement improves. It’s something like a credit score for your Facebook page, and the algorithm lends you more impressions the better you perform.

How to increase your reach on Facebook?  Read his full article 'The Definitive Guide To Facebook For Musicians'  here.

Written by Steve

 

Links

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2012/07/facebook-for-musicians-a-definitive-guide.html

 

The Friday Five - 6th July 2012

Another week over! Here's a bunch of thing we liked this week across the musical web.

 

1. Why are verse lyrics so hard to write?

So you have the hook, now you gotta get the story right. Some top tips on getting the verse lyrics sorted on your next song.

http://garyewer.wordpress.com/2012/07/03/why-are-verse-lyrics-so-hard-to-write/

 

2. Lego step sequencer

This is not a trick is actually works. Built at a Hackathon in the States, a webcam detects the colours of the bricks and plays the appropriate sound. Cool!

https://vimeo.com/45026119#

 

3. Using QR codes to promote.

QR codes are great, they are the funny looking square patterns that are popping up everywhere.

But what are they for? What you need is a QR reader in your smart phone. It scans the square which then opens the phones browser and takes you directly to the content. Check out how this band used them on a poster for ideas.

http://www.independentrockstar.com/2040/qr-codes-posters-matt-moran-band/

 

4. Complete Guide to Sync Licensing

After our article on our main site about Cover Songs, I found this great video article all about Sync Licensing from DIY musician

http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/the-diy-musicians-complete-guide-to-sync-licensing/

 

5. Beatsurfing - The Organic MIDI Controller Builder

This is an awesome new programmable midi controller for the iPad.  Especially if you like your music glitchy. Check out a few of the videos and demos to get an idea of what this is truly capable of.

http://beatsurfing.net/

Don't forget to check our latest post on our main website  Do you need a license for a Cover Song?

Have a good weekend!   Steve  :)

 

4 Tips to Get You Acting Like You're In The Music Business.

I have been in the business along time. And I would freely admit back when I started, the industry was a different beast, and being an artist had a definite amount of roleplay come with it.

It seems like a cliche, but that was a time when musicians felt like it all had to be done by someone else and all you had to do was keep on turning out the music, everything else was handled by your management.

The hedonistic lifestyle is still portrayed in the media, but really, how much of it is still true today. The music marketplace has become a very competitive area, and it is important to be on top of your game, as someone else just might be more 'on it' than you and clinch that gig/deal/contract.

Alas there still seems to be a contingent of talented musicians that are following the DIY approach that havent quite fully made the shift.

Things need to tighten up.

Cheryl B. Engelhardt is a musician and has written an interesting article with basic points to help you to start acting like you are in the business.

Her four very simple points are:

1. Don't Flake Out

2. Be On Time

3. Craft Your Emails, Don’t Spit Them Out

4. Keep Your Receipts Organized, Finances Clean

She states:

So here’s the cold, hard truth: you are in a business now, so play the part. As a musician, I see more responses (which lead to more results) when my communications are clear and professional. I tend to be [annoyingly] persistent, so I want to make sure my messages are not annoying to read or decode. When I’m on the other end of those messages, I have an easier time reading a longer email that is well-written than reading a short-hand email, trying to figure out if the writer meant “there” or “they’re.”

Seems like she has some advice well worth following and reading, i suggest you keep an eye on her and check out her  “In The Key Of Success: The 5 Week Jump-Start Strategy,” an incredibly effective, result-oriented eCourse for independent musicians who are serious about breaking through plateaus in their careers.

You can read her full blog post here

and check out her music here http://www.cbemusic.com/

CDs and DVDs - Contrary to Belief They Do Not Last Forever

I remember back in the seventies on a British TV show called Tomorrows World a presenter showing us what the future of music will be.

DIGITAL SOUND!  I watched in awe as he presented a small silver disc, 12cm across and said you can fit 74 minutes of music on this. I could not believe what I was hearing. 74 minutes of pristeen sound, that would never wear out on a robust medium that you could scratch get finger prints on, (oh yea they got that wrong) and nothing will happen to the music on it. This definitely was the future.

I remember when the first CD players came on to the market, quite a few years later, and trying this for myself, and yep for the best part, he was right. It seemed like we had finally got a medium for music that would not wear out, last for ever, create exact copies, (that's another issue) and store any recordings we had made in the 'analog' age so our music can last forever.

Well it looks like he was WRONG!

CDs and also DVDs are not the things we thought they were. It appears they can rot and go moldy, just like tape does, (ok not quite but you see what i mean), so it could be time now for you to check out your old cds and see what condition they're in.

So how can you tell if something's up? Tina Sieber has written an article on the subject, she says,

You can do a simple visual check. If you see light shining through tiny little holes when you hold a disc against light, then the reflective layer has started to disintegrate. Also check your CDs for discoloring, especially around the edges. See whether the different layers are still tightly together or have started to de-laminate.

If you are getting worried you better check out the rest of her article here.

Written by Steve

 

Links

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/cds-truth-cddvd-longevity-mold-rot/

The World Without Internet

We have all come a long way in the past 15 years. The internet has completely changed our Music Industry and our day to day lives. What would the World be like now, without the internet?  I found this great infographic, and just had to share it with you.

 

The World Without Internet

We've come along way in the past 15 years. The Music Industry is now pretty much totally dependent on the internet to survive. What would the world be without the internet? I found this very cool infographic i wanted to share with you.

 

<img class="aligncenter" src="http://www.bloodyloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/world-without-internet.gif" width="500" alt="" />