Touring Tips

• What are the benefits of creating an Indie on the Move account?

• While Indie on the Move primarily functions as an open source music venue/band database and interactive tour booking resource, creating an IOTM account can significantly enhance your experience by enabling you to...(and this is just to name a few of the great features)...

   

  Musicians & Industry Professionals

  • Customize your homepage to stay informed of upcoming local shows, opportunities, new bands, venues, music, photos, videos, etc.
  • Submit booking inquiries through our internal emailing system to all venue bookers across the U.S.
    (inquiries are received from the personal email address affiliated with your IOTM account, i.e. johndoe@gmail.com)
  • Rate and review venues from an artist's/performer's perspective
  • Add your favorite venues to our ever-growing database
  • Receive notifications, follow, and contribute show and band opportunities/availabilities on a local, regional, statewide, and national level
  • Post classified ads in our Availabilities section
  • Gig swap and communicate with other IOTM members - from artists and venue bookers to labels, agents, and promoters
  • Post, follow, and share upcoming shows/events
  • Upload songs, photos, and videos to your profile - all of which receive internal IOTM cross platform promotion once uploaded and every time viewed
  • Invite friends/fans to post positive feedback on your profile to help spread the good word

  Music Fans

  • Customize your homepage to discover and follow new artists and stay informed of their upcoming shows, music, photos, videos, etc.
  • Post photos and videos from events you've attended at IOTM venues directly to specific venue profiles
  • Rate and review clubs from a spectator's point of view
  • Post fan feedback and comments on your favorite artists' profiles
  • Invite musicians to play your events
  • Add your favorite venues to our ever-growing database
  • Locate, contact, and share with other registered Indie on the Move members through an in-depth Profile Address Book

• Does Indie on the Move offer consulting services over the phone?

• Absolutely. For a small fee, our dedicated staff is available to chat with anyone and everyone seeking advice, references, and general insight into booking with Indieonthemove.com and maximizing the success of their next tour. Just send us a message by clicking "Contact Us" at the bottom of the page and we will get back to you ASAP with an hourly consulting estimate.

• How do I copyright my music?

• Very, very good question. Copyrighting your music is probably one of the most important aspects of being a songwriter. Before you invest in a radio campaign or push to have your song on the next hit MTV reality series, you must copyright your music! This is the only way to legally protect yourself when someone tries to steal one or all of your songs. You can copyright your music by going to www.copyright.gov and setting up an eCO Account. From there we recommend that you contact an intellectual property attorney to help you through the process and make sure that you're properly protected.

• When am I ready to tour?

• If you are considering going out on tour, there are a few prerequisites that must be met in order for you to make everything happen. To begin with, you should have a band website, Indie on the Move profile, and/or any other web page where fans and bookers can listen to your music and get a vibe of what you’re up to. You should also have a hard copy press kit or EPK (electronic press kit) that you can mail out if a booker requests it. Above all else, prepare yourself and the rest of your bandmates for the journey ahead.
  
  We recommend starting small and booking regional tours before tackling the entirety of this great country. From there, radiate outwards from your hometown in growing concentric circles. Then you can slowly build your own circuit and become the rock star that we all know you are.

• What should my press kit include?

• A generic press kit should include:

  • A brief biography of your musical project, no longer than one page in length
  • An 8 x 10 promotional photograph of the band
  • A three or four song demo, showcasing your best recorded material to date.
  • A fact sheet of industry, radio, and show accomplishments. This basically acts as your musical resume for press people and bookers to refer to.
  • A press page with selected quotes and reviews of your live show and studio albums.
  • A radio page, containing all of the radio stations that have and are currently spinning your latest release.
  • A shows page explaining where and when you have played. This must include city and state listings when pursuing an out of state club for bookings.

• How do I plan a tour?

• Whether you’re planning to do a two-week tour or a two-month tour, first and foremost you should sit down and write up a mock itinerary. This will include the cities you plan to hit and the dates you plan to be in each city. With gas prices as high as they are, try to line up the cities in the most logical way possible as to limit driving time. For example:
  
  R 1/8 – Boston, MA
  F 1/9 – Middletown, CT
  S 1/10 – Philadelphia, PA
  Su 1/11 – Pittsburgh, PA
  
  M 1/12 – OFF
  T 1/13 – Cleveland, OH
  W 1/14 – Columbus, OH
  R 1/15 – Indianapolis, IN
  F 1/16 – Frankfurt, IN
  S 1/17 – Chicago, IL
  Su 1/18 – OFF
  
  M 1/19 – OFF
  T 1/20 – Cincinnati/Louisville
  W 1/21 – Nashville/Murfreesboro
  R 1/22 – Birmingham, AL
  F 1/23 – Knoxville, TN
  S 1/24 – Morristown, TN
  Su 1/25 – Atlanta, GA
  
  M 1/26 – OFF
  T 1/27 – Columbia, SC
  W 1/28 – Charlotte, NC
  R 1/29 – Mt. Pleasant, SC
  F 1/30 – Fayetteville, NC
  S 1/31 – Raleigh, NC
  Su 2/1 – DC
  
  Note: This will probably change quite a bit as you start the booking process. From our experience, the actual tour has never followed the initial schedule. It’s wise to have multiple options (cities and venues) for each date.

• How do I delegate tour responsibilities amongst my band members?

• It certainly helps to delegate responsibilities to each person involved in the project. You probably don’t want to rely on just one person to do all the work, especially if it’s your first tour. You don’t want multiple people trying to book the same city either, because it often gets confusing for you and for the venue bookers. Don’t just focus on booking the shows. It’s also a good idea to have at least one person working on promotion for radio and press to add to your sales pitch for clubs.

• How do I establish market contacts?

• For the markets that you have played before, use those contacts to lock up your next date. For new markets, the easiest way to get your foot in the door is to contact other indie artists in the area. They can usually help you book the show or at least recommend clubs or other bands for you to contact (Hint: You may want to utilize the Bands tab at the top of this page and/or the Search All Users function under "My Profile"). When someone gives you a contact recommendation, whether it is for a club or another band, always ask for permission to drop their name as a reference. This makes your booking inquiry solicited.

• How do I approach a venue booker?

• When contacting a club, bookers tend to take you a little more seriously if you speak to them as a representative of your band rather than just as a band member. While you may play guitar or drums, you also have authority to speak for the unit, so you do truly represent the band. It really just comes down to a matter of professionalism. It never comes off well if you say, "I play guitar for this awesome band and you should book us." Your introduction should go as follows:

   

  “Hello, my name is …… and I represent ……

   

  Don’t lie and say that you work for Sony music unless you truly do. If a booker asks you if you are in the band, tell the truth. If you are asked how many people you can draw, give a reasonable estimate. DO NOT attach MP3’s to your initial booking email unless the "Booking Tips" section for that venue specifically states to do so. Bookers generally hate to download MP3’s unless they specifically ask for them. It is better to include a link to your website, Indie on the Move profile, or EPK, so that the booker can experience streaming audio from the Internet. Another thing that bookers hate is when they receive emails inquiring about booking nights that they do not host live music. Do yourself a favor and familiarize yourself with a venue and the nights that they actually do have shows before reaching out. ALWAYS include as much contact information as possible, i.e. phone number, email address, band name, band website, etc. And lastly, include ALL selling points in your email. Ask yourself, "What is going to give this booker a reason to book my band other than just our music"?

• What is something that I should NOT do when sending a booking inquiry?

• Do NOT send a generic message to multiple bookers in the same email. It is wise to cater each email to each specific club that you are contacting. Furthermore, bookers do not like to see that there are other bookers' email addresses in the "To:" field. This often leads to your inquiry being deleted or marked as spam without even being read.

• What's my sales pitch?

• When communicating with a booker be as concise and informative as possible. If you need to, take some time to get your spiel ready before actually establishing contact. You want to include all relative information that will convince the booker that you are going to get people through the door on the night of the show (i.e., promotional pursuits and previous draws in that market). That is what he wants to hear because that is how the club makes money. 

  
  A very helpful tool is offering to book the entire bill. If you tell the booker that you will take care of getting strong-drawing local support to guarantee a crowd through the door, they will usually at least put the night on hold for you until you line those acts up. In essence, you do the booker’s job for him. Then, the best ways to find local bands that the booker is comfortable with is to either ask him for recommendations or to check out the club’s calendar and make a note of the bands playing Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. These tend to be the bands that have proven themselves to the booker and have the strongest draws. Next, sort through these bands and find the ones that you like best and fit well with your style of music. Lastly, write them to see if they’d be interested in sharing the bill with you.

   

  Another great way of finding local acts to hop on a bill is through Indie on the Move's "Bands" tab at the top of this page. Whether it is an actual gig swap or simply a show offer, the Bands search function allows you to conduct advanced statewide, city specific, and radial searches for bands and artists by genre. You can then contact them through our IOTM email system, check out their profile to hear a clip of their music, and view the local clubs that they traditionally play in their home market to get an accurate idea of the size of their draw.

• How do I promote for shows outside of my home market?

• There are a few very good tools to use when promoting your band in a new market. As stated above, delegate someone to pursue press for the show. You can usually get a list of periodicals and fanzines by calling the club where you are booked or checking out their website. Now it’s up to you to persuade the paper that you are news worthy. A good question to ask yourself is, “What sets us apart from other bands?” If you’re planning to follow through with this step, you can tell the booker when you initially contact him that you will be running a promotional campaign to coincide with your tour. They like hearing that. 
  
  In addition to press, you can utilize the Internet to get people out to the shows (i.e., blogging, contacting Facebook friends, etc.). Next, make sure you send posters to the venue that you’re playing with all the show details listed on it  - why? - because it looks professional, it shows the booker that you are promoting, and worst-case scenario, it at least gains you some name recognition in that market. You can try to form a street team in the cities that you are pursuing, in which case, you will need to find a very devoted fan to take the reins. If you’re successful here, you can have your street team handle the posters in said market. 
  
  A lot of times the best way to get people out to the show is to play with the right local band(s). It then becomes your responsibility to win over their fans, collect their email addresses for your newsletter, and get them to come out to your next show. Lastly, you can look into doing press ads, radio ads, and/or running radio campaigns through various companies. This can get a bit expensive, but if you invest money into a company, they are usually more likely to help you out with favorable reviews. For example, if you buy an ad with a newspaper, that may give you a leg up on getting a feature story the week of your show.

• What do I need to know to get radio airplay?

• Check out these free articles for tips: www.radio-media.com/song-album/articles/main.html. They really offer quite a bit of insight. A lot of them were written for touring bands too.

• How do I raise money to go on tour?

• There are a lot of ways to go about doing this, but here are a couple of great websites that can help you along: www.feedthemuse.net and www.kickstarter.com. Basically, you create an account, set a goal, and ask your supporters (fans, friends, family) for donations. A few dollars here and there can add up quickly. Check them out.

• This seems like a lot of work! Are there any promo companies that you could refer me to for press and radio help?

• Indeed! 

   

  Booking your own tour can present a very daunting task, especially for beginners. With that in mind, it is absolutely necessary that you pursue press and radio promo (college or commercial) in every market that you are playing so that you can maximize the success of your tour. Sometimes you'll land a CD review or show listing and sometimes you won't, but the fact that you are doing the leg work and pursuing these promotional outlets means a lot to bookers and clubs in general and will help bring a stronger draw and secure future bookings in that market - not to mention that you will collect some nice press clippings and industry quotes to add to your press kit.

   

  If for some reason you and your band mates simply do not have the time and energy to do all of this at once, we highly recommend the following two PR companies. We have worked with them both personally and they do amazing work. 

   

  Foley Entertainment - www.foleyentertainment.com

  -Dr. Eugene Foley has over 20 years experience in the music industry and has worked with everything from Major label Grammy winners to independent, DIY road dogs. He offers amazing services in tour promotions for press, talk shows, college radio and general consulting. Send him an email and mention Indie on the Move as your referral. 

   

  Black Lodge PR - www.blacklodgepr.com

  -Based out of Amish land Pennsylvania, the two Jeffs behind Black Lodge PR do spectacular work in album promotions and Internet marketing. Having both toured the U.S. and Europe extensively in their own bands, they have a knack for landing CD reviews in national outlets and helping to ignite a real buzz for an unknown act. Reach out to them and mention Indie on the Move as your referral. 

   

  Howard Rosen Promotion - www.howiewood.com

  -Howard Rosen Promotion is a full service Independent Radio Promotion company that has been in business since 1985 helping both signed and unsigned artists reach their goals of obtaining radio airplay across the US and Canada. HRP works with several radio formats (Top 40, Hot AC, AC, College, Alternative Specialty, Rock) and can help you figure out which format and plan is best for your music. Send HRP an email at: musicsubmissions@howiewood.com and mention IOTM as your referral.

• Do I need merchandise?

• Do not tour without merchandise. It is not very intelligent. When first breaking into a market, even the best promotion can often yield poor results in attendance because you have yet to build name recognition in that area.  Other times, you are forced to play for exposure alone just to get your leg in the door at one of the clubs. In either case, merch sales can not only get you to the next show, but also allow you to continue and finish the tour without going bankrupt. The club never gets a cut of your merchandise sales, so this all goes to your wallet. 
  
  Taking an active approach here can really increase the amount of sales you secure.  For the most part, people tend to be a bit shy or indifferent about approaching an artist after their set to see about buying something. So instead of waiting for them to approach you, you should reach out to them. Walk around the crowd, introduce yourself to people who watched your performance, collect email addresses for your newsletter, and hand out promotional flyers. Every little bit helps.

• How do I keep in contact with my fan base?

• When out mingling with the crowd, it’s a good idea to have an email sign up sheet for people to be added to your “newsletter.” You want to be able to keep the fans that you win over, so make sure you get their contact info. Email is usually the most convenient. Once you start amassing email addresses, you can begin sending out bulletins every so often to inform your fans of upcoming shows and news. This helps get people from past shows to continue supporting your musical venture and allows you to promote new releases.

   

  With that in mind, it is always important to have a reliable emailing system for sending out solicited mass mailings to your fans. Here are three to check out:

   

  Reverbnation - www.reverbnation.com

  Constant Contact - www.constantcontact.com

  iContact - www.icontact.com

• Where do I sleep tonight?

• If you want to maximize the amount of money with which you arrive home, don’t just plan on staying in motels or hotels every night. This will eat away at your show earnings very quickly. The easiest way to secure free lodging when you don’t have friends in that city is to ask the other band(s) if they have any extra floor space for you to sleep on after the show. Anyone who has been out on the road knows how tough it can be on expenses, and is usually more than willing to accommodate you if they can. 
  
  If this does not work, ask the fans that you have made at the show. Fans always love hanging out with a band they like. Either way, staying at a new friend’s house is more comfortable than sleeping in the van or outside. A lot of times, the people you end up staying with give you free food and drinks, saving you more money in the long run. If you can’t lock up a free place to stay, Motel 6 is usually pretty nice and it’s consistently one of the cheapest places to stay in almost every U.S. city (they are virtually everywhere too).

• What do I bring on tour?

• Keeping all of the above in mind, there are some items that DIY touring artists should never leave home without.

  • Sleeping bag and pillow
  • First Aid Kit
  • Flashlight, jack, and spare tire
  • Windshield washer fluid
  • Bottled water
  • Non perishable foods (i.e., Top Ramen, Cup of Noodles, Pop Tarts, Nutri Grain Bars, cereal, pretzels, peanut butter, fluff, granola bars, crackers, soup, etc.)
  • Laptops, iPads, and Smart Phones – Free wireless Internet access is available everywhere and you will need it to keep your tour going.
  • GPS system and/or National Atlas. Although a bit expensive, a GPS system is invaluable when you are running late for a show and can’t find your way to the club. They’re also very useful in locating nearby restaurants, hotels/motels, and colleges and universities. If you can’t afford a GPS system, Mapquest and Google are both very reliable sources for tour routing.
  • Always have an extra roll of toilet paper in the van. Accidents happen!

• Tricks of the Trade.

•  

  • Almost every gas station has a microwave, so use it. Campbell’s chunky soup keeps well and tastes great on the road.
  • Every coffee shop has free milk, cream, and water. It is wise to take advantage of these gracious offerings and make yourself a healthy cup of cereal in the morning. Be sneaky with this one.
  • Fast food joints offer plenty of complimentary utensils and tissues. They refer to the latter as napkins. And don’t forget your free condiments: salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard, etc.
  • Nationally based, free wireless Internet sources include: Coffee shops, fastfood joints, Public Libraries (and libraries usually have computers available for people that don’t have their own laptop), and colleges and universities (in this case sign in as a visitor or borrow a student’s user ID).
  • Always keep up on your oil changes. Jiffy Lube is very reliable and inexpensive.
  • Using synthetic oil in your engine and transmission makes the gears run a little cooler, going easier on your transmission. Pulling a trailer is hell on vehicles, and a blown transmission will ruin your tour. Also, make sure that the transmission filter gets changed every 50K-80K miles.
  • Get as many gift cards as possible at birthdays, Christmas, Hanukkah, and any other gift giving celebration.
  • Always shop for food at the local supermarket. Buy in bulk and be conservative.  
  • Always remember to set aside additional band funds and income to cover gas and unexpected motel costs. 
• Are there any industry websites that you would recommend me checking out?

• Absolutely! 

   

  Here are some links to professionals, companies, and organizations that we truly believe are helping out the independent music community and can aid in your success...

   

  Dave Urbanic - www.daveurbanic.com

  -Dave specializes in professional quality multimedia work. From photography and videography to promotional posters and flyers, he can do it all. He has toured the U.S. and Europe extensively (with various projects), and he is also the man behind the Indie on the Move Blog.

   

  Artist Data - www.artistdata.com

  Artist Data allows bands to list all of their upcoming and past shows on all their many websites through one central hub. This website is a great tool and an even better time saver. Rather than having to go to your official website, then your facebook page, then your reverbnation site, then your purevolume site, etc. to list a new show everytime that you book one, you can instead go to www.artistdata.com, enter the show once, and it will send the show listing to everyone of your websites. It will also send these listings to sites such as jambase, eventful, and last fm thus increasing your exposure. The more your name is out there, the more people will see it. 

   

  HootSuite - www.hootsuite.com

   -Hoot Suite allows you to manage and track multiple social networking sites from just one platform. This includes multiple accounts from the same site as well. By allowing you to send out timed updates to one or multiple sites at the same time, it really makes keeping the world informed easier and more time efficient.

   

  Masterdisk - www.masterdisk.com/indie

  -These guys are the REAL deal when it comes to mastering. The best in the biz and...they just opened their very own "indie" wing for artists with a more conservative budget. Some notable albums that their staff has mastered: Nirvana's "Nevermind", Pearl Jam's "Ten", The Smashing Pumpkins' "Melancholy...", The Police's "Synchronicity", and many many more. Needless to say, if you need mastering done call them NOW!

   

  CDbaby - www.cdbaby.com

  -THE place to go for online distribution. Not only does CDbaby sell your albums to anyone worldwide, but they also convert your albums to MP3's and get them posted on every major digital distribution chain on the net.

   

  Music Nomad - www.musicnomad.com

  -MusicNomad is a musicians advocate organization that tries to make sense of the vast and fragmented music industry through researching, interviewing, reviewing and ranking thousands of companies in the music industry and filtering the ones that can really help musicians. They then do write ups on the companies, rank them and give you a direct link to their website. There are also tips, news and articles for musicians to explore. The Website is free to use and focuses on fighting for the underdog, independent musicians!

   

  Foley Entertainment - www.foleyentertainment.com

  -Not only has Dr. Eugene Foley written a great "How to do it" guide for independent musicians, but his company provides a wonderful array of publicity campaigns and radio promo to enhance the success of your independent tour. He has over 20 years experience in the music industry and has worked with everything from Major label Grammy winners to independent, DIY road dogs. Send him an email and mention Indie on the Move as your referral. 

   

  Black Lodge PR - www.blacklodgepr.com

   -Based out of Amish land Pennsylvania, the two Jeffs behind Black Lodge PR do spectacular work in album promotions and Internet marketing. Having both toured the U.S. and Europe extensively in their own bands, they have a knack for landing CD reviews in national outlets and helping to ignite a real buzz for an unknown act. Reach out to them and mention Indie on the Move as your referral.

   

  The Sixty One - www.thesixtyone.com

   -The Sixty One functions as a site where account holders rate, review, and comment on independent artists and their music by means of a bump system. Artist accounts allow bands to upload songs on their profile along with some general information while personal account holders rate those songs. This is a great way to introduce your music to a new audience. If people like your song(s) they will "bump" you, giving your song(s) more points. Songs with the most "bumps" get placed on the site's homepage thus increasing your exposure even more. 

   

  Discmakers - www.discmakers.com

  -THE place to go for pressing a new album or DVD. They do very professional work, offer a great deal on 300 11x17 promo posters, and provide a nice discount for BMI members.

   

  Feed The Muse - www.feedthemuse.net

   -Basically, you create an account, set a goal, and ask your supporters (fans, friends, family) for donations. A few dollars here and there can add up quickly and build towards your next tour. 

   

  Planetary Group - www.planetarygroup.com

  -Radio campaigns galore. Planetary Group does an amazing job of taking a new release to college and commercial radio stations all over the U.S.

   

  Did we miss any? If you have any additions that the Indie musician should know about please click "Contact Us" at the bottom of the page and let us know.

• How do I protect my music and make sure that I collect the royalties that are due to me?

• You absolutely must become a member of one of the big three performing rights organizations in the U.S. These organizations collect licensing fees on behalf of songwriters, composers and publishers and distribute them as royalties to their appropriate members. Check out these websites for further information and get yourself signed up ASAP...

   

  BMI - www.bmi.com

   

  ASCAP - www.ascap.com

   

  SESAC - www.sesac.com

• Where do I find decent food on the road?

• Very good question. We recommend that you check out:

   

  Yelp - www.yelp.com