He entered the world on October 3, 1954 by way of Dallas, Texas and

Received inspiration from his older musical brother Jimmie

His guitar playing fingers moved the chromatic scales in a new direction;

The strings on his guitar vibrated with a special winning zing

People in the crowd were moved; they clapped, waved, and danced

Whether playing a solid body-electric or an acoustic-electric guitar he was terrific

While he played with garage bands he zapped many musical bugs

Now in junior high school he performed gigs in Texas night clubs

During high school he left the classroom and enlightened folks in swinging pubs;

He started his band, The Cobras, and took Austin night clubs like a venom storm

Renamed the band as Triple Threat in ’75, they affected the norm

With musician Lou Ann Barton on the team, they were transformed;

Then came their new name, Double Trouble, with a rubble and musician, Otis Ruch

Stevie Ray Vaughn commanded the stage as lead vocalist with a lightning rush;

As he played at The Montreux Festival in ’82 his inspiration touched many artists

With motivation from David Bowie and Jackson Browne two musical geniuses

Stevie Ray shined like a diamond as the famed string picking guitarist

“Texas Flood,” their blockbusting album in ’83 was a stumping success

In ’84 they released “Couldn’t Stand the Weather,” it was like flying feathers

This was better than the rest by any test known in the West

During ’85 with keyboardist, Reese Wynans, their third album Soul to Soul

Hit the market like a storm and became their 3rd gold album on the chart

It was a great success from the very start-it created a blast!

Each musician knew their part and they were smart with their performing art

Following the death of his father, Big Jim Vaughan, in ’86 he collapsed in Germany

His recovery came with the album, Live Alive; the year was after ’85

With Eric Clapton, Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder and others he was alive-no jive!

At George H. W. Bush’s inauguration in ’89 his fingers and guitar shined

The fifth album, In Step, zapped the “Best Contemporary Blues Recording” Grammy

The struts on his guitar sing in the ring with his virtuosity styled splash

His legacy left the world with a great volume of musical sash-not stashed!

Stevie Ray a guitarist and singer who took the world in a flash!

For most photographers, getting a paid gig seems to be getting increasingly more difficult. With the advent of affordable DSLR cameras, nearly everyone is a photographer now and the market seems saturated.

The savvy photographer, however, realizes that the market is still thriving and well… if you know where to look.

Just as times change, markets change too. Below are five markets that are easy to penetrate if you have a plan and some drive. The best part? They’re all hungry prospects looking for photographers!

1. Corporate functions/Event photography

Corporations are constantly looking to document events. Likewise, events are always taking place. Whether it be a fund raiser, a holiday party, a college graduation, or a mixer for the chamber of commerce, companies and individuals alike are always in the need for web photos and even prints.

Find yourself a niche in this market by joining organizations, participating in mixers, and using word of mouth to promote yourself. Other possible revenue streams could be: Corporate Head shots, architectural photos for print ads, and employee events/portraits/weddings.

2. Club/Bar Photography

Bars, restaurants, and clubs are always looking for photographers to document their hip new locations and trendy club-goers. They’re looking for photos to use in fliers, website promotion, and possibly even wall art!

Find yourself a niche in this market by targeting restaurants and bars you frequent often. Start small. Ask the owners if they’ve ever thought about using photos to enhance sales for their restaurants. Once you’ve received a few paying gigs you can use the images as promotion to other club owners. Other possible revenue streams could be: Fashion work if you see the right person, stock photography (don’t forget a model release!), and abstract art.

3. Ebay Photo Guru

Every day, millions of people log onto eBay.com to find the perfect gift, toy, or collectors item. However, many items go overlooked because they don’t have a photo. Help some people liquidate any items that might fetch a premium to the right buyer on eBay and other classified sites by offering to take photos of goods using a mobile studio. The mobile studio need not be extravagant, simply a white poster board and a flash could be sufficient.

Find yourself a niche in this market by working with sellers that list items frequently but have poorly designed listings, often with no photos. Use word of mouth along with posting ads on popular local classified sites like craigslist.org and backpage.com. Other revenue streams could be: catalog work for entrepreneurs that sell jewelry and widgets online. Also, you may find goodies you just can’t live without and be able to negotiate a deal before it hits eBay!

4. Rock Band/musician photographer

Do you know of anyone that is in a band or performing arts? Big name bands pay big bucks for tour photographers. Shrink this philosophy to a local scale and charge a band for a nights worth of photos that they can use for their demo album, myspace page, and other promotions. Band photography can be tricky, so be sure to do some reading online before you accept a paying gig. It might be wise to do a few shoots for free just for experience.

Find yourself a niche in this market by making contacts at open mic night and larger band performances. Often opening bands are up and coming in the rock world and if you can get in early, you might be able to ride on the coat tails to a national tour! Other revenue streams could be: Night club, bar and venue photography contacts, other bands, fan print to order pictures, and newspaper submission abilities.

5. Real Estate Photography

Due to recent market changes, Realtors are looking for anything and everything to improve their chances of selling a home. There is nothing that helps a home stick out on the MLS more than a professional quality listing photo. Take the time to make the home look top notch and the Realtor will be nothing short of ecstatic with you. Get up early and use the early morning (or evening) light to work in your favor for exterior shots, and use a tripod or flash system to light the interior shots. If you can get the hang of this, you won’t have time for any other business.

Find yourself a niche in this market by making contacts in the real estate industry. Stop at real estate branches and use morning meetings, fliers, and phone calls to get in touch with decision makers. Create a couple packages for agents to choose from to make the quickest sale with the least headache, then organize a time to gain access to the home. Realtors are huge on word of mouth advertising, so make sure to use it the best you can. Also team up with lenders and title agencies (if you have them in your area) for joint marketing campaigns. Other revenue streams could be: Office party event photographer and business head shots for promotional materials like business cards and web sites.

Like any endeavor, a business should have a plan and requires follow through and hard work. The reward, however, can be monstrous and well worth the effort. Be sure not to make promises you can’t deliver upon, and handle yourself in an ethical manner. Also, always have a spare business card handy!

Building a music career is hard work. Every day, month and year you repeat the same grind: build the band, write the songs, record the songs, rehearse the songs, perform the songs, promote the band, advertise the band, solicit industry, publicize to the press, build the website, create the message boards, forums, and chat rooms, assemble the street team…it goes on and on until you think your head will surely explode from the mountains of menial tasks that face you, the unsigned artist, each day.

Still, after putting in all of that work a band will hit dry spells, slow times and glass ceilings. Some days, your already slow move forward, seems to retard even further. Sometimes it feels as though you’ve peaked and will never advance. There are even days you want to blow off all of this tedious monotony, get a job in the electronics department at Target, and call it a day!

But even as your face is smushed up against the glass ceiling of a never-changing cycle of music business grunt work, hope is just over the horizon. See, there is something that you never stopped to think about all the while you were chasing the elusive brass ring of music stardom…all of this time, you were in control. If opportunities have stopped coming your way, then make your own. If you want to be a rockstar, develop a situation you can star in and rock. You have the power and the ability to be anything and everything you have ever wanted to be if you learn to simply create your own buzz.

The following are a few tips that may help you to get started creating your own buzz in order to push past the obstacles and keeping moving down the Yellow Brick Road of musical superstardom:

1.) Create Your Own Gigs—Tired of whining that you never get the gigs you want? You know: good clubs, weekend shows, prime slots, longer sets, decent pay, good bands on the bill, press attending, industry confirming and most importantly, your band headlining. It’s ridiculous to waste time complaining, when you could be booking, planning, promoting and playing your dreams gigs right now. Sure it will be a lot of time invested and it may mean putting smaller gigs on hold for awhile in order to promote one giant show, but the payoffs will inevitably outweigh the work…and the best part is, it’s all about you. You are the promoter. You are the stars of the night. You pick the date, the times, the bands. You invite the press and the industry. Within a month or two, you could be playing the types of gigs you have always wanted, and all the while getting press, making money, collecting names for your mailing list and building hype for your band that even the stodgiest industry can take notice of.

2.) Join The Ranks Of The Press And/Or The Industry—You know what they say…if you can’t beat them, join them. If you want to get industry or press to notice you and your band, what better way than to become a member of the industry or press. Pick up a gig writing for a local magazine and review your friends’ bands and the shows you promote. Intern at a record label and meet friends in the industry to invite to your gigs. Start a management/promotion company and book your band and your friends’ bands to become better acquainted with clubs and their booking agents. You’ll find it will be much easier to deal with industry people when they consider you more of a peer and not just another band asking for help.

3.) Numbers, Numbers, Numbers—It may sound ridiculous but in the entertainment industry (as in any business), your perceived worth is tracked by your numbers. Web posters, gig patrons and listeners of your music all translate to numbers and the big ones impress fans and industry alike. If you want club bookers, managers, magazine editors and A&R to notice you then make sure your numbers are up. Web hits, fan group members, online community friends and people on your personal mailing list all add up to your bankability as a band so keep driving those numbers up and watch the doors swing open wide for you.

4.) Teach, Volunteer, Take Classes, Join Groups—If you want to meet new people, gain different opportunities, and find fresh ways to obtain your goals, then get out where people are doing what you seek and mingle. If you play and instrument, start teaching and get to know the bands of your students. If you see big events happening in your town, volunteer to work them and get to know the management, talent and audience alike. Take classes and join music organizations not only to learn but to network. There is a whole world of entertainment people out there. Get to know some of them and make those folks a part of your band’s promotional circle.

By following these tips and others soon you will find that your band is enjoying the opportunities and buzz you were only dreaming of before. Best of all, you’re now in charge of your own career and musical destiny; creating profitable situations for yourself. You are playing good shows and coming home with money in your pocket. You are selling your own product to pay for band expenses. You are filling your press kit with reviews, interviews and mentions of your band. You are meeting people and building your mailing list. You are establishing your reputation as an important member of the artistic community. No longer waiting to be thrown a chance by some industry member, you have taken command of your musical destiny and cast yourself as the star of your own show. Now, don’t you feel better?

It is very important as a musician to heave a well put together press kit that will help steam roll your path to success in the music industry. Press kits are also commonly called “media kits” and “artist bio” but they all used for the same thing which is to help with Music Promotion, Music Publicity, Booking Agents and Band Promotion. There are a lot of bands out there all gunning for the same venues, radio play and magazine interviews which is why you are more likely to successfully snag all of these opportunities with the Press kit I’m going to help you build. Lets get started with the basics and go from there.

COVER- A first impression is a lasting impression so make sure this aspect of your press kit really shines, let this be the part that introduces you to the venues, radio stations and magazines. Include what genre of music you play, your band logo (eye catching) and your contact information for the band (Myspace, Website, Phone numbers and email).

ARTIST INTRO PAGE (Bio)- Start off by introducing your group followed by the band members (if any), follow that with the style of music you play and list any genres you may have. Go into naming some quality venues, clubs etc. you have played at in the past and which cities or regions they were in. Also list important equipment you may have such as amps, PA, Microphones, lights, etc. and any personal you may have that runs the production for your shows. Talk about your fan base, include the size of it and how you communicate with them. List any street team supporters you may have and where they are located. Make sure to differentiate between original music or cover music depending on which one relates to your style and also if you’re an acoustic or electric act. List any promoting techniques you may use to help bring people to your shows seeing how this is the only way to make any money at live venues it is a very important part to getting venues to book your show. List any websites, social networking sites and or flyers you use for promoting shows and music presence. One way to get started is to attend open mic. nights and leave your press kits with venue managers after the show in hopes of getting a gig in the future.

ARTIST PHOTOS- Lets take a look at why it is so very important to have good photos before we talk about how to acquire them. Take a look around at today’s communication behaviors and you will quickly notice that visual imagery is king in the world’s communication. You see it no matter where you are and it would seem that almost everyday new technology comes out that even furthers how we view this media on a day to day basis. This should be setting off a little red alarm in you head telling you that if this is true then it must be vital the way people are viewing you which brings us back to your photos. First impressions are lasting impressions so if you really want to have those in the industry and amongst the music community to take you seriously you will want to get some Professional 8×10′s taken of your music group or single act. Be resourceful in about getting your photos, be sure to shop around and maybe ask friends and family if they know of anyone that can help you out. There isn’t really any need to spend a fortune here if you take your time and do some research first. Have fun with this as well, use your imagination and come up with some fun ways to accurately portray your music.

Booking Information – This is the section of your press kit that contains all of your Booking Information such as the best way to contact you, preferences in types of shows and areas you can travel to perform. It is important to have your contact info in multiple places through out your Press Kit so go ahead and add your phone number and address again in this section as well.

Demo CD You are rarely going to run across a club or venue that will agree to have you come play before they have heard your music and the best way to have them take is a listen is to create a Demo CD. The Demo CD should consist of 2-4 songs each being the best of your material, this is the time to really show them your good stuff. Once again add your contact info to the label that will be placed on this Demo CD which should also include your band name and the list of songs on it. All of this is to help ensure that even if the person or venue you gave the press kit to looses the kit, there might be a good chance that your CD could still be floating around along with how to contact you for gigs. Spend some time into a nice looking CD Cover and label so that who ever sees it will know that you are serious about your music.

SONGS LINEUP- Put together a list of your songs that your band might play on a average basis including the best of any cover songs you might add in with your original work. If you might be wanting to do anything else such as a light show or some sort of skit on stage this would be the place to add that in as well.

SHOWS SHEET- Your bands shows sheet should include any past gigs you have played and any future ones that you have already lined up to perform at.

BAND / MUSIC REVIEWS- To show credibility of your bands music it is very important to include any Music Reviews or news paper clippings on your band into your press kit. If you do not have any of those items then you might want to start getting your music out to resources that can do a review for you such as local newspapers and organizations like www.LocalProMoConnect.com

BUSINESS CARDS- Were not saying that you have to present your self as some corporation only aimed at making money but we are saying that you need to treat your music as a base line business which means you will need a card to pass around at every show you go to. You can include your Independent acts business card in the mix of your press kit as well as always keeping a few on you at all times in case you run into the right person that will be able to help you out. You can make your own business cards at almost any copy store for a relatively good deal seeing how they are only made up of paper and ink. And almost every word program comes with a few templates you can use at home and have printed on card stock paper or even just very thick regular paper. Make sure to include your bands Name, Phone, Contact Name, Websites, Email, and any logos you might have to represent your act. You might want to make up a small batch of high quality cards to pass around to industry reps and a bigger batch of average business cards to pass around to the common person but it is up to you and your budget to determine how and when this is all possible.

ENVELOPE- Depending on who your planning to receive your press kit you might want to come up with two very different designs for the envelope it will be going into. Your going to want to stand out in a pile of many envelopes so be sure to use a load color and unique design that captures the attention of the beholder to ensure your press kit wont be overlooked on the desk or in the file cabinet of a venue owner or booking agent. On the other hand you will want to be a bit more settle when it comes to sending your press kit out to record labels or industry reps so try to think of a design that is appealing to the eye but not to distracting. Just be sure to have both styles ready to go on a moments notice in case you have to send them out or hand them off to any and everyone that might be able to help further your musical career. Thanks you for following along with us on successfully building your press kit and we hope all the best to your near future and utilizing these tools.

You’ve just come together as a band and you’re ready to gig. But when you approach clubs to play they want to know where you’ve played in their market before and what kind of draw you usually bring. (Draw means how many paying fans usually come to one of your shows.)

If you’re a new band then your answer would be “we haven’t played before so we don’t really know how many paying fans will come.” And you know what will happen with that answer. They’ll tell you to come back when you have a fan base.

You’re thinking, “Yeah, but we’re such a great band your customers will love us.” The reality is clubs don’t have customers, bands have customers. People go to a certain club to see a certain band. They don’t go to the Club X instead of Club Y because of the club; they go there because of the band that will be playing.

When you ask a club to book you, you are asking them to INVEST THEIR MONEY in you. It costs them money to open their doors. They have rent to pay, electric bills, payroll and the cleanup crew at the end of the night. They buy advertising promoting the bands that will be there because they know it’s the bands that are the appeal; not their club. So a club needs to know you have a following in order to book you.

The hardest gig to get is your first gig. And, as a wise businessman once told me when I was envisioning how big my new company could become,”you have to make your first sale before you can consider how you’re going to spend the money from it.” What this means for you is that you can’t think about gig number 2 until you get gig number 1 under your belt.

So, here’s the secret to getting the first gig that will make it easier to get number 2 and number 3 and so on.

Throw a Private Party. Of course, you’re not going to call it that, but for all intents and purposes, that’s what it is.

Create a guest list with your band mates. Write down EVERYONE you know. What’s the total number? Let’s say you have a four piece band and you each come up with 100 names. That makes your guest list 400 people. Statistics will tell you that only 20%-30% will come. (Hey even though your new band is the most important thing in your life, it isn’t the most important thing in your friends’ lives.) 20% of 400 = 80 people.

Determine what you can afford and select a club that fits your budget. Create a list of 10 clubs you want to play in. It’s more important to pack a club that holds 80 people than it is to perform your first gig at a well known club that looks empty. Keep this in mind as you create the list of clubs you want to check out.

Call each club and ask what it costs to rent their venue. Check weekday rates and weekend rates. A weekend is preferable but perhaps a Thursday night at a high profile club is better than a Saturday night at a less popular club. When you call the clubs be sure to ask if they have backline (backline is the industry word for the gear and equipment that the club has on hand for musicians to use) available or if you have to bring your own equipment. Also ask if the soundman is included in the quote or if that’s additional.

Venue’s Website and Advertising. Because you are booking this with them as a private party, they will not think to list your gig on their website or in their ads. When you’re negotiating to rent the space, ask them to list it just as they would any other gig in the house.

Book your gig at least four-to-six weeks out. Every bone in your collective bodies will want to book your show for this weekend; next weekend at the latest. DON’T DO IT! You need to create some excitement and buzz around it. AND you’ll have more choice among clubs when you book further out

Become a show promoter! Once you decide which venue you want to rent, and you finalize the rental with the club, the real work begins. Now you go into show promotion mode. DO NOT expect all your friends to come just because they said they will. If you do not do these steps, you will not have a successful show and the impression you’ll create with the venue is “Mental Note: NEVER book that band. They can’t even get people to come watch them for free!”

Create a theme. Make posters and flyers, print tickets, post your gig on any and every social media site you know of. Write a press release and send it to your local media – radio stations, TV stations, newspapers. REMEMBER your local college media! Your goal is to PACK THE CLUB. Keep in mind, for every 1 person you expect to show up, you need to put tickets in the hands of 5 people. Not only for those who say they’ll come knowing full well they won’t but don’t want to hurt your feelings but also for people who plan to come but have last minute changes and aren’t able to make it.

Create a theme. Many bands will call this a “CD Release Party” or a “Tour Kick Off.” But your theme can be as simple as “Band Name: Live At The Venue Name” or “Band Name Rocks The Venue Name.” It’s this theme that you want to incorporate in EVERY MESSAGE. An advertising rule of thumb is that a message needs to be seen at least SEVEN times for someone to remember it. So you need to create AT LEAST seven points of contact for each of your 400 friends.

Print Band Stickers. Stickers are one of the least expensive promotional tools you can invest in. Give one to everyone you know. Make them big enough to be seen (no 1″ x 1″ stickers). Just your band name or logo if you have one. Your goal with stickers is simply to create awareness so after someone has seen a sticker the name will ring a bell when they see a ticket or a poster or a flyer or a posting online.

Print tickets. Since this is a private party in the eyes of the venue, they will most likely NOT have an employee in their ticket box. You’ll want to ask a friend to sit at the front door to collect tickets and stamp hands. Even though this is a private party for the venue, this is a gig for you. And when was the last time you went to a gig that didn’t have tickets – or at least stamp hands at the door? By printing tickets and putting them in people’s hands, they’ll be more likely to REMEMBER your gig. The tickets should have the THEME, date, time, venue, age (if the club is “21+” or “18+” or “all ages”) and price on them. Yes, you should put a price on the tickets – even though you are giving them out for free. That price should be what you expect to charge for future gigs. This is how you set the expectation for what people will be asked to pay to see you play in the future. You can buy blank ticket stock at Office Max and print them on your own printer at home. Do NOT print these tickets on anything other than ticket stock. You are a professional band. If you want to be taken seriously you have to look legit.

Posters and flyers. Take your lead from the most successful bands in your market. Visit their MySpace and Facebook. Go to Guitar Center and look at the posters hanging on their bulletin board. Are most of them dark? If so, maybe you want to make yours white so it stands out from the rest when you hang it up (yes, once you print your poster you’re going to find EVERY free bulletin board in town and hang it up.) Also, what size are most of the posters? Are the no-name bands hanging 8 1/2 x 11 and the big names in town printing 11 x 17? Is the paper regular printer paper or is it heavier stock. What league do you want people to think you’re in? My guess is 11 x 17 and heavier stock. On the other hand flyers are usually 8 1/2 x 11 printer paper cut in four. For these you might consider buying bright colored paper and printing with black ink.

Street Team. It’s time to call in best friends, girlfriends, brothers and sisters, moms and dads. You need an army. Ask each one of them to hang up 5 posters. Ask the venue you’ve rented to hang up your poster alongside all the other bands playing there. (Be sure to tell the venue that your party is open to the public.) You, the band members, have the honor of handing out the fliers. Go to college campuses and hand them out. Go to concerts of similar music when people are leaving and hand them out. Ask an independent music store if you can set up a table outside their door one Saturday and hand out fliers. This is usually easier if you are a customer at their store. (Big stores like Guitar Center and Sam Ash usually don’t allow this.) You must put them in people’s hands. I know. Every band HATES this. But you must get over that. You’ll be doing this for a very long time.

Social Media. MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, Zvents, Craigslist and wherever else you know of. Be sure your gig is posted. On sites like Craigslist, MySpace and Facebook – be sure you’re reposting every week or, as you know, the event drops to the bottom and no one will scroll down far enough to see it. If you’re using Twitter, be sure you ask your followers to retweet about your gig. Research shows that people retweet more when they are asked to rather than simply doing it on their own.

Photography. Now is not the time to ask a friend to take pictures at your first gig. Hire a photographer. Be sure you hire a photographer who has experience shooting live bands. Ask to see samples of their work. The changing stage lights and movement of band members requires a special photography skill. You want band pictures AND you want crowd shots. Your goal, when the night is over, is to post photos that portray you as a professional band that packs a house.

Door count. Whomever you’ve asked to work the door needs to keep track of how many people show up. Those with tickets are easy to count. Rip the ticket stub and save them to count later. But the hand stamp requires a counting system. Perhaps one of those silver “clickers” or just good, old fashioned paper and pen.

All of this then gives you the information you need for gig number 2.

Booking Gig Number 2. You should be on the phone the Monday after your gig with every club that has a capacity the size of the crowd you brought in on your first gig to book gig number 2. When asked,”Where have you played in this market before and what kind of draw do you usually bring?” Your answer will be, “Well we played this past Saturday at Venue Name and we had 80 people” (or however many your door person tells you.) You should also know that clubs are used to bands lying about their draw, so they will automatically cut whatever you say in half. Therefore, you should add to your statement, “So I feel 100% comfortable guaranteeing you that we’ll draw at least 50 people to your club. And we are willing to guarantee that draw with money.”

This is how that works. Let’s say the going rate to see a band in your market is $5. If you guarantee 50 people, then you are guaranteeing the venue $250 in ticket sales. They also expect everyone coming in will buy two drinks at $5 each. So the venue expects a MINIMUM of $15 from each person who comes to see your band. Let’s say 40 people show up to Gig #2 and you’re guaranteeing 50 people. You owe the venue $150. (The 10 people you guaranteed x the $15 per person the venue expected.) This might scare you, but this is the way you build a solid reputation in your town. Venues like working with bands with this business acumen and approaching venues in this manner will get you more gigs than bands who don’t offer guarantees. This also puts a burden on you to get out and do all the promotional things for gig #2 that you did for gig #1. Only this time, people will be paying at the door rather than having free tickets to get in.

Your band is a start-up business. You must invest in your business. When I opened my first music school I had to invest in renting a building, buying equipment, paying staff and marketing. You are doing the same thing. Your guarantee to the venue is your rent and your staffing.

Maybe you’re thinking, “Yea but we need to make money too.” At Gig #2 your chances of being paid to play are pretty slim. However, you might be able to negotiate a percent of the door OVER your guarantee. Let’s say the split is 50/50 over the guarantee. Let’s say you guarantee 50 people and 80 people show up. You would get 50% of the revenue generated at the door for 30 people. (80 people – 50 people guarantee = 30 people.) The ticket is $5. Split that 50/50, you get $2.50 x 30 = $75.00. Even if the club says “no” they’ll see you as professionals and respect that. In your conversation ask them what your draw would need to be in order to split the door with you. Then you know what you’re working towards.

Check any business book and it will tell you most businesses don’t make money in the first year. Your band is a business. It might be a while before you make a profit…or even get paid to play. If you don’t believe in yourselves enough to invest in yourselves, why should the venue?

If you are just a starting band, be aware of the reality that you are not going to get paid during your first few shows. Just think about the idea of playing for the glory of music, not for money. Contact a more established band and offer an opening gig for them. Opening gigs for free will help you have a great start in promoting your band to the public. A successful band needs to have great exposure. Take every opportunity of playing in front of the crowd whether it be a paid act or not. Every single bit of it would definitely help you reach success.

Old school or new school, it doesn’t matter. As long as your band promotional tactics work, it’s valid. Take postcards for example. The internet revolution may have put the humble card in a bad light along with grandma’s antique collection but it is still potent. Yes. Printing postcard for your band can be cool way to help push your group’s career a notch higher. Read on to find out how:

Advertise Your Band Via Printing Postcard Designs that Rock

* Know your audience. Gaining the best result is the aim of your printed card. This translates to getting your band more bookings for gigs. To achieve this, you and your band mates should lay a comprehensive campaign plan. This would include monitoring the quality of promotional prints, plotting the campaign, and sorting out lists of important people who will be your target. Planning ahead would help you avoid wasting your time, effort, and resources.

* Make an attention-grabbing design concept. A typical gig organizer receives tons of promotional materials on a regular basis. Make your prints stand out by thinking of an unusual design. Just make sure that it is in line with your band’s image. You don’t want the organizers to get a wrong impression of your band, do you? Choose clear and simple font such as Helvetica, Arial, and Verdana. The simpler, the easier to read.

* Avoid cluttered designs. Overly chaotic graphics may be so rock and roll but remember that your objective is to communicate. What’s the use of a postcard “masterpiece” when it will only end up in the trash bin? Minimize your graphics instead. You can go for one striking photo or illustration and counterbalance it with white space. Trim down the information to the basics: band name, contact numbers, and e-mail address.

* Opt for the best printing company. Most unsigned bands like you have limited budgets. Considering this reality, it is best to choose a printing company that offers the best print output yet still maintains affordable printing rates. Look for online companies that combine reasonable rates with excellent quality.

Promoting your music in an over-saturated music market is not that easy. However, a little bit of ingenuity and huge doses of perseverance will help in taking your band to the top of the game. A well-targeted postcard print that comes out from a superb printing job might be the extra push that you have been waiting for.