I was reading a blog post about the Social Media Release Template, version 1.5 on PR-Squared, and it made me think about these emails I keep receiving from bands, record labels and booking agencies. It’s really annoying to get hundreds of emails each day, saying “Hey! We are some random band, you should check out our Myspace page, book us and buy our cd”. I would be happy to listen to your songs and have a look at your pictures and live videos, but I don’t have the time to go to 5 different websites to do it.
What I think bands (and record labels / booking agencies) should do is easy: send a quick press release by email, and provide a link to a social media release (SMR), or, in other words, a page aggregating the various items you want to share (music, pictures, videos, blog posts, tour dates, etc.). To know what you should include in that page, ask yourself what people want to know about your band:
- People want to listen to the band
The first thing you want to do when a band contacts you, is to listen to the songs to know who you’re dealing with. So, include a Myspace player and the embed code so people can listen to the songs, and share it with their friends or contacts. - People need background, booking and contact information
A quick biography and discography are mandatory, and you should also add any relevant information about your record label, booking agency and past tours / shows. Provide clear contact information; who is taking care of booking your shows, who is in charge of management or distribution, etc. The contact information should include your blog, Twitter, Facebook pages and groups, Youtube channel, Flickr, etc. - People want to see some action!
Listening to the songs is great, but live performance is also important. Don’t forget to share pictures and videos (you could do this by using a Youtube channel or a Flickr pool). - People want to see the band playing live
Now that we know how your band sounds like, we would like to see you playing live! So, try to include a listing of the upcoming shows and tours. This list should also include links providing more information about the shows, the venues, or how and where to buy tickets. - People like to have recent news and updates about the band
If you have a (myspace) blog, a tumblr page or a Twitter account, show their feeds on the social media release page! People love to read more about bands, especially when they’re on tour or in the studio recording their upcoming album.
So, that is basically what I would put in a social media release for a band (but it could easily be used by record labels and booking agencies to promote new releases, upcoming tours and booking offers). Some last quick thoughts:
- Don’t forget to include logos from the band, the record label, the booking agency, sponsorships and any other (relevant) endorsement .
- If you have great reviews or interviews, share them in the SMR and / or highlight the best quotes.
- List some relevant selling points.
- Provide quick links to your online presence: Myspace, Facebook (pages and groups), Last.fm, Flickr, Youtube, Twitter, etc.
- Make the whole thing easy to share and embed. Use ShareThis, RSS feeds and widgets.
Feel free to comment if you have any idea or suggestion, I’d be happy to update this post with your thoughts!
Thanks for including Spotted by Locals Chris!
This comment was originally posted on http://www.chrisunitt.co.uk/)” rel=”nofollow”>Chris Unitt
Thanks for including Spotted by Locals Chris!
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt
Thanks for including Spotted by Locals Chris!
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt
@narwhal_attack @880s this might interest you guys: Social Media Releases for the music industry http://bit.ly/dcrck
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
@narwhal_attack @880s this might interest you guys: Social Media Releases for the music industry http://bit.ly/dcrck
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
[...] Social Media Releases for the music industry – MonkeyWatcher – Advice for bands – "send a quick press release by email, and provide a link to a social media release (SMR), or, in other words, a page aggregating the various items you want to share (music, pictures, videos, blog posts, tour dates, etc.)" I get a lot of adjective stuffed press releases from bands' PR companies too – the essentials with links to further stuff would be so much more useful [...]
And thanks for including my post about SMR for the music industry.
This comment was originally posted on http://www.chrisunitt.co.uk/)” rel=”nofollow”>Chris Unitt
And thanks for including my post about SMR for the music industry.
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt
And thanks for including my post about SMR for the music industry.
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt
pour ceux qui bossent dans la musique: Social Media Releases for the music industry http://bit.ly/dcrck
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
pour ceux qui bossent dans la musique: Social Media Releases for the music industry http://bit.ly/dcrck
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Social Media Release for the music industry http://bit.ly/ZXndw
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Social Media Release for the music industry http://bit.ly/ZXndw
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
RT @thibautthomas: Social Media Release for the music industry http://bit.ly/ZXndw
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
RT @thibautthomas: Social Media Release for the music industry http://bit.ly/ZXndw
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Thanks for including Spotted by Locals Chris!
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt
And thanks for including my post about SMR for the music industry.
This comment was originally posted on Chris Unitt