1. 2004 What I learned on my
vacation
The Musicians Cooler is Moderated by Dave Jackson, author
of the book "Get Your Band out of the basement (And keep them
out of the asylum) available at http://www.marketingmusician.com/band-book.html
Hello Cooler Friends,
I wanted to send out a quick blurb as we watch the caboose of 2004
roll out the door. As my vacation had me coming back too late to
publish the typical newsletter (for those who have just subscribed
this is not typical), and also get the next round of “battlingbands.com”
ready to go, the next battle will start 1/10/05. Congrats to the
band Faded Me. They recently participated in the battle of the bands
promotion, and sold CDs in December. I’m proud of my little
“Cross promotion” experiment as battling bands sold artist
CDs 11 out of 12 months in 2004 (Damn you January!). This issue
I share my thoughts on my vacation (and how it relates to your band),
and I share a fun tool I found, and I have a document for you. Our
next issue will be more “normal” and will feature Spotlight
artist 38 Acres.
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2.Marketing
Mouse Style |
I recently took my first trip to all three Disney Parks in Florida
(MGM Studios, the Magic Kingdom, and Epcot). It was a fun time with
my Brother and his kids, and while I was gone it snowed 10 inches
in Ohio. It was fun as people from all over the world were represented.
I got to hear “Daddy Buy this for me!” in 12 different
languages as well as “My feet hurt.” While disguised as
theme parks these are giant marketing machines and I thought I’d
share some insights from the parks, and relate them to your band.
Take Care of Your Super Fans
My brother’s father in law has an annual pass (a super
fan). Consequently, he gets better deals on hotel rooms, etc on
Disney property. You might work a deal with a club owner where you
could produce a coupon for $1 off the door charge (maybe make a
mock dollar bill with your singer’s picture in place of the
President on the bill). One other perk the “Super Fans”
get at Disney is a chance to join the “Diners Club” where
(for a fee) you get a discount at Disney Restaurants. To get the
most for your fee, you need to eat at the restaurants a couple of
times. I’m sure Disney still makes money on the meals, and
of course you are now back in front of the Marketing Machines. Lastly
they made a mistake on our booking, and we spent half the day in
three different lines trying to get our tickets (that were ordered
months ago). The result? We got our first park free. Take care of
your “Super fans.”
Details, Details, Details
Everything at Disney is about the details. From the facial expressions
of the Ben Franklin animatronic (robot) as it walked up the stairs
(pretty impressive for a robot), to the fact that the streets were
SPOTLESS (I saw a child drop their ice cream and it was cleaned
up in less than a minute). You have to walk through a tunnel to
get to the magic kingdom. It gets dark in the tunnel, and as you
walk through and get your glimpse of the castle, they have a popcorn
cart there. The view is opened up to a beautiful park with the smell
of popcorn in the air (and who doesn’t like popcorn?). This
makes a great first impression. What kind of details can you focus
on in your band? That would be practicing songs, getting those harmonies
perfect, starting on time, watching the time on breaks, what you
wear on stage, leaving the stage like you found it. The little details
add up to one giant impression.
Be Friends With The Bouncer
I was on “Main Street USA” during “Shift change”
for the characters. I laughed when I saw Pinocchio being escorted
(as all the characters were) by a bodyguard. I then saw why as a
young boy shouted out something in a language I didn’t recognize
but it ended with “Pinocchio!” The bodyguard pointed to
a place where Pinocchio would be available for pictures and autographs.
If things get nuts, it’s good to know your bouncer by name.
Strike While the Iron is Hot
Every ride (and I mean every ride) emptied into a gift shop.
Kids are coming off the Tower of Terror going “Woa that was
cool!” and what do they see? You guessed it, the Tower of Terror
t-shirt. In my opinion EPCOT is nothing but a giant gift shop (look
a Mexican gift shop, a French gift shop, etc). So if you have merchandise
to sell, be sure to mention it as you are going on break (while
your fans are going “Woa”). While you may be selling it
from the stage on break, you may want to have someone by the exit.
Why? At Disney you HAVE TO walk through the gift shop to get back
to the street. While some people may walk by the stage EVERYONE
will be walking out the door.
Keep the Fan Favorites
It was fun to see things like the “Dumbo” ride, and
the “Haunted Mansion” as I had seen these on television
growing up (some 20 years ago). These rides are still here because
they are fan favorites. There is a reason why every cover band plays
“Brown Eyed Girl” and “Mustang Sally” and Ted
Nugent Sings “Cat Scratch Fever,” people love those songs.
Give Them A Reason to Come Back
Disney routinely adds new attractions, or in some cases updates
and old one (The “It’s a small world after all” ride
was closed as it was being revamped– thank God!). You should
routinely update your show and website (maybe have a “Song
of the week” to stream).
Have a Plan in Place For Your Product
At MGM studios there was a GIANT billboard promoting the Movie
“Chicken Little.” If your are like me you are probably
saying, “I missed that one.” We all have as it will be
out in 2005. Before you can hold your finished CD in your hand,
you should have a plan on how you will market it (what radio stations
to solicit, special offers for fans, where you will hold your CD
release party). Again, this should be researched and ready before
you have the CD.
Make Your Last Song Your Best
Every park closes the night with a fireworks display. I have never
seen anything like this. It’s all computerized and put to music.
The synchronization was perfect, and truly mind boggling (they had
one firework that blasted into a star shape, as well as a heart
shape). While I wouldn’t go back to EPCOT (I believe it stand
for Every Person Comes Out Tired) for the “Countries”
I would go back to watch the fireworks. They also had people at
every exit saying “thanks for coming, have a good night.”
It was obvious that they wanted to leave you with a good impression.
3. Tracking Downloads
I recently went in search of a tool to track downloads on my
site (to track the number of times the musicians toolbar was downloaded
- check it out at www.musicians-toolbar.com
). The program I found is called download manager and it can be
foudn at http://www.themusicpages.com/HWD/scripts.html
It's 10 bucks. I tried a couple "Free" titles, but they
either had no intructions on how to install it, or it didn't work.
This software titles counts the number of
times someone downloads a file on your site (you can have
it displayed on your page if you want). I'd give it a "B"
in terms of ease of use (you end up using some strange URLS), but
once you get the hang of it, its not bad. So if you have free downloads
on your site, now you can track them without having to pull up your
site stats.
4. Planning Document
For 2005
So how was 2004? While our web sites grew, personally 2004 sucked
(Bankruptcy, Divorce, and Foreclosure- Oh My!), but I am ready to
hit 2005 with less baggage, and a renewed spirit. I once worked
for a company that had all its employees fill out a "Planning
Document." It's very simple.
It makes you think about what you did this year, plan on what you
want to do next year, and then has a goal worksheet to write down
the steps on how you are going to do it. If you'd like to download
it click
here or go to (http://www.musicianscooler.com/cgi-bin/download.cgi?id=2
). Send it to all your band members and make some goals for 2005.
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Conclusion
Thanks to everyone who is a subscriber for all your input over
this past year. I have LOTS of plans for 2005 (more teleclasses,
new web design, resources, reviews, and more). I look forward to
YOUR contributions as well. If 2 heads are better than one 715 have
to be phenominal!
Thanks for taking time to read the newsletter. Got input? 888-563-3228
or send it to cybercooler@hotmail.com
Dave Jackson
Moderator
www.musicianscooler.com
Get Your Band Out of the Basement (And Keep them Out of the
Asylum)
Order this book full of communication, marketing, and promotion
ideas now 100 Pages for$12.99
http://www.marketingmusician.com/band-book.html
CD Consignment Guide
Got a CD you want to sell on the Internet. There are LOTS of
places to choose form. This guide spotlights 18 different sites.
http://www.jammindave.com/merchandise.htm
Finding Time To Achieve Your Goals
This guide leads you through making SMART goals, that lead to
success. Check this out and more.
http://www.jammindave.com/goalcenter
New FREE Ebook From Dave Jackson
Look Before Leaping into Cyberspace.
Learn how to plan your web site before you build it.
http://www.jammindave.com/lookb4leap.pdf
This book has been downloaded
times (You need adobe acrobat reader to view this document) You
can download adobe acrobat reader at http://www.adobe.com
As always this is produced with great passion, but a general lack
of sleep. This issue was really rushed, so please forgive any typos.
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