You’re working hard to spread the word about your sound, but are you working smart? When you need to increase your fan base and amp up the loyalty of those adoring hordes, you’ve got to keep the linesof communication open. If you want your fans to be true fanatics, show them the love with email newsletters that tell them what they want to know and offer them a little extra for their loyalty. You need to stay connected with the perfect fan club newsletter.

1. Shake it up! How do you get people to pay attention to you? You need to strike just the right chord if you’re going to appeal to potential readers. Try:

• Using unusual subject lines. Uninspiring titles like “Weekly Newsletter” fail to spark anyone’s interest. Choose a subject title that arouses their interest and makes them want to read more.

• Personalizing your content. It’s easy enough to add the individual subscriber’s name, rather than beginning with a generic greeting, so your fans feel important and included. Remember, they want to hear about you, not just your merchandise. Don’t be afraid to share some personal details (as far as you are comfortable with this) and insider information about the band. Fan loyalty increases when fans feel personally connected to you.

• Providing Fitting Links. Just as your articles should be targeted toward your customers’ personalities, so should your links. You might want to link to other music related websites, or to blogs and websites you love. Again, your newsletter is a place to share what’s on your mind.

• Advertising. No one subscribes to a newsletter whose existence they haven’t noticed. Make sure to include subscription information on your blog, website, and any tickets you order from TicketPrinting.com for your upcoming show. You can even choose inexpensive posters to advertise your band and your newsletter. The more fans hear about your newsletter, the more enticing it becomes and the more your fan base will increase.

2. Smooth it out! In addition to exciting content, your newsletter should have an attractive and easy-to-browse layout. Generate the perfect layout by:

• Finding the perfect design. Your newsletter layout should reflect you. Find colors that summon your style, or mimic the band’s logo. Make sure the text is still readable, and doesn’t get lost in your scheme. It may take several revisions, but finding the right formatting is essential. Don’t overdo it. Too many images, videos, and bright colors can overwhelm rather than attract the reader.

• Choosing a consistent publication time. Get your fans used to a newsletter delivered at the same day and time every week or month, so they start anticipating its arrival. EmailLabs reports the best days to send emails are Tuesday and Wednesday in the morning, when people regularly check their email. After you pick a time, stick with it. When they’re looking forward to hearing from you, you won’t want to let them down.

• Proofreading. Check for misspellings and layout errors. Be certain that your newsletter says exactly what you want it to say. Remember that your layout may change depending on your customers’ servers. Enlist some friends to receive early versions, or set up multiple accounts at popular servers such as AOL, Yahoo, Hotmail, and Google, and double-check that your layout is delivered as expected.

• Telling a friend. Word of mouth marketing is the most effective way to promote yourself and your music. Add a “Tell a Friend” button to allow fans to easily send the newsletter to their friends. Need more buzz? Add a promotion that people can’t help but talk about, such as a drawing for special VIP passes to your next event. Fans will start spreading the word about your inviting content, along with the advantages of receiving your newsletter.

3. Break it down! Tracking your statistics can help ensure your music newsletter efforts pay off. If any of the statistics aren’t what you expected, ask yourself these questions:

• Does your newsletter stand out from the crowd?
• Do your fans know how to access your newsletter?
• Why is your newsletter not valuable to your fans?
• Do you need more specific or personal content?

If you don’t know the answer, ask the people who do know: your target audience. Make changes accordingly, and give your fans what they want. Address your deficits so your newsletter is attractive and tempting to readers. Marketing your band is not a one-step process. Email newsletters d o require a fair amount of attention to detail on a regular basis, but they are crucial to maintaining a growing, loyal, and excited fan base. Once your newsletter finds its audience, increase its appeal with exclusive offers available only to fans with subscriptions. You can pre-sell tickets, offer merchandise discounts, or give away passes to your next event. And don’t forget that TicketPrinting.com is an easy way to order your tickets, coupons, gift certificates, VIP passes, and more!

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The best writing in the world is wasted if its intended audience never sees it. Amp up web traffic to ensure your blog reaches its optimal fan-building potential with these 5 final steps.

8. Track and analyze readers
Invest in some tracking software to understand traffic to your sites. You can start with free services like Google Analytics or Stat Counter to determine which of your blogs gets the most traffic, where your visitors come from, and which pages they like best. Later, you may want to pay for more advanced tracking. Figure out what your fans want so you can provide more of it! Tracking software also provides keyword analysis, so you can see how people are finding your blog in the first place.

9. Find subscribers
Your fans need know when new content is posted so they can connect immediately. RSS feeds are the easiest way to notify fans of new posts. Once you have the feed set up, display the RSS feed button prominently on your blog in many different places. Some users like to be notified by email. You can collect email addresses and send your updated blog out directly. To increase your fan base, offer contests that encourage fans to sign up for your RSS feed: give away tickets or VIP passes to your next event, posters of your album cover, shirts, or other merchandise. Above all, make signing up easy! It should only take one click to get weekly updates.

10. Create a Conversation
You’ve got to allow comments on your blog. Interesting discussions indicate an active fan base; a blog with zero comments on every post appears unpopular and discourages followers. Ask questions in the conclusion of each post to encourage reader responses. Get the ball rolling by asking a friend to write an interesting or controversial comment on your first post. Then, respond to your comments. Readers want to know their voices are being heard, and they feel more connected to the band when they hear back from you. Comment on other blogs, including forums and chats (see #4). Always include a link back to your own blog so casual readers can follow you home and become fans.

11. Avoid Routine.
Many readers lose interest when confronted with pages of pure text. Add the occasional funny YouTube video, unique MP3, screenshot of a website you discuss, or photo of your guitar. Anything that breaks up the text and requires a second glance will boost your blog’s appeal. Consider occasionally changing the type of blogs you write. Every once in a while, make your blog a video-blog. Just film yourself narrating the blog and upload it to YouTube. Create a music video and advertise it through your blog. Consider hosting a guest-blogger every once in a while (maybe the drummer thinks he can write better than you). Inviting band-mates, other musicians, or club promoters to share their opinions gives the readers a different point of view. If you’re then asked to become a guest blogger on their sites, the cross-linking can provide a boost in traffic.

12. Build a brand.
Differentiate your blog! Make sure it is recognized as your blog, not just another page on the web. Promote your blog in as many different ways as you can. Bring it up at performances and to friends. Put your blog on business cards, your website, and social networking sites.

These 12 surefire steps will get you started as a successful blogger and help you to develop a loyal fan base. Just remember your audience and keep them satisfied. Then watch your work pay off as you achieve popularity online and with your musical career!

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Done right, blogging can be an excellent platform for up-and-coming musicians to reach out to their existing fan base while attracting new listeners. Done wrong, blogging can be an exercise in frustration, disappointment, and failure. You want to do it right, don’t you?

The hardest part of creating a successful blog comes at the beginning. Once you’ve found a core of readers, it’s easy to keep writing at regular intervals, but you’ll need to put some effort in to start. Formatting, writing, and promoting your blog the right way from day one is the key to success online.

1. Focus on Content!
Consider the sorts of things you could write about, playing to your strengths. You want to find a narrow niche, a subject you can discuss in depth, over time, without getting sick of it. Think details and specifics: overly general writing gets overlooked. Don’t be afraid to make it personal. Your fans want to know about you – what do you care about and why? If you choose topics about which you are passionate and well-informed, it’s a lot easier to write great content.

Make your blog easy to read. Write exciting posts, adding bullet lists and using bolding for emphasis. Keep your paragraphs on the short side so they’re easily scanned. Use descriptive language, and add dialog where appropriate. Get your spelling and grammar right! Don’t count on your computer’s spelling and grammar checker. If you know this is a problem for you, find a dependable human reader to proofread.

2. Take time with your Title!
When you’re just starting out, your name alone isn’t much of a draw, and boring titles will get passed over. Think of something relevant and clever to grab the attention of the casual reader. Play with language. Have fun! If you can make a potential reader laugh or think based on a few words, they’re far more likely to get drawn into your blog.

3. Write Often.
The only way to improve your writing is to do it often. You need to update your blog regularly

anyway—at least once a week, but a few times a week if possible—and you already know practice makes perfect. Your skills will improve as you go, and you can start to develop great content. Blogs will not attract fans if they don’t provide new content. You want your readers to get into a routine of reading your blogs. Your readers want to believe that you care about your blog topic. The more you can express yourself, the more you connect with your readers. Fans are the most important resource for spreading your music and making your name known. Write for them.

4. Be aware of your surroundings!
You’re not alone. The web is full of music blogs and websites, and many of them may share your genre. Make a point to Seek out similar blogs and engage with their authors and readers. Subscribe to their feeds, read their updates and stay in touch with what everyone else is talking about. Commenting on other blogs is a great way to create relationships and encourage potential fans to check out your work. Remember, your comments must be interesting or useful. Nobody appreciates spam posting with generic comments. You won’t trick anyone into becoming your fan that way. While you’re doing this, you can also submit your music to different online radio stations, and comment on others’ music. This should inspire feedback on your work. As soon as a relationship is established, you and your new contacts can promote each other through blogs, podcasts, and other web content.

5. Submit Your Blog.
One of the essential steps in attracting readers is to submit your blog to directories. This allows fans to find and read your content, increasing traffic to your blog. If you want to list your whole blog along with a brief summary, submit your link to common blogging sites like BlogFlux or The Hype Machine. You can also contact established, major music websites and tell them why they should feature your blog. Along with submitting your blog to general music directories, have a friend submit individual posts and articles to sites like Digg, StumbleUpon, Technorati, Netscape, and Reddit. These sites allow users to “digg,” “thumbs up,” or “favor” articles and blogs that they love, recommending them to other users. You can submit your own material, but it’s better if you get your buddies to submit for you. This is one place where self-promotion looks a little suspicious.

6. 2P’s : Ping and Podcast.
“Pinging” a site lets readers get automatic updates when you add new content to your blog. Some sites even allow you to add keyword tags so that when someone searches for the topic of your article, your blog will show as a result. For example, if you’re blogging about the tricks to lyric writing (tag words) and a user searches for writing lyrics, your post will come up.

Podcasts are appealing to music aficionados. Think of them as audio blogs. You can add a podcast to your existing blog, or you can create a new podcast on its own. Either way, you can use your music along with more original content, or a reading or discussion of your best content. Some of your fans won’t care to read, but will be more than happy to listen to you talk, sing, or play guitar.

7. Consolidate!
Although hosts such as BlogCatalog and WordPress are great places to experiment with blogging, your blog can easily be lost among millions of pages of content. Remember, you are entertaining readers for the purpose of promoting your music online. If you can host your blog on your own website all your work is visibly connected. You’ll stand out and create a new interplay among all your pages.

These are your basic tips for getting started, choosing content, and laying out your blog. Be sure to catch part II of “Taking it to the Web: Band Blogs,” where we’ll discuss promotion throughout the life of the blog.

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Everyone uses press releases! Any individual or organization with a message to share can write this type of article to promote themselves, their ideas, or their work. A press release is written in third person and formatted similar to a newspaper. The goal of your press release is to demonstrate to the editor of a newspaper or magazine the value of your band. If you appeal to that editor, he or she will provide you with some free publicity in a large public forum. You can send press releases through email or snail mail, and you can write them about anything you consider newsworthy. CD releases, upcoming concerts or performances, new music videos, new labels, or a change of members are all good reasons to write your press release and release your message into the world.

If you’re wondering, “How can I do that?” read on.

?1. No one wants to read a poorly written article. Professional-looking press releases are free of grammatical errors and formatted properly. This style of writing is formal, very different from a blog or forum post. If you feel like you don’t have the time or skills to do it right, hire a professional. The press release is a tool to get your foot in the door. When you’re fishing for publicity opportunities, intriguing writing makes your band seem worthwhile.

?2. Press releases announce significant news about your band. Make sure to include all the details. Answer every who, what, when, where, why, and how question you can think of. Editors should not have to search for your information. Eye-catching titles make it more likely that your press release gets read. Increase the appeal by adding relevant links to past press releases, articles, blogs, videos, pictures, and music samples—anything to make your article stand out.

?3. Press releases need to persuade editors that your news is worth writing about. Know your reader. Find editors who write about your genre of music and target your press release toward them. Another great way to target editors is to add your press release to distribution sites so your articles reach your target. Try a press release site that serves the music business. They’ll distribute your press release to targeted editors, or even write press releases for you. No matter who writes your press release, always read it before it goes out. Be sure it’s interesting, says what you want it to say, and is free of errors.

?4. Manners! If your press release is successful and someone takes the time to write about your band, send a sincere thank you letter. It’s a good way to demonstrate your professionalism, create a relationship with the media machine, and increase your chances that the editor will write about your band in the future. On the flip side don’t be a pest. If editors decline to write about you, don’t hound them or continually send press releases.

?5. While you are writing first for your reader, the editor, don’t forget the power of relevant keywords, which get search engines on your good side. The right keywords can increase the traffic to your press release once its published, but make sure your use of keywords is not so obnoxious that no one can read through them. Use relevant keywords relating to your genre in the press release, so Google and other search engines put your link at the top of the page. Consider specific industry lingo, like “crunk thugs freestylin in LA”. Don’t depend on general keywords: there are more than a billion pages about “music” and your page will be lost in a crowd. Adding specific locations such as cities, states, or venues help you land higher on the results page when someone searches for what you offer. Search engines also calculate the number of links pointing to your page to determine your popularity. If it’s interesting, relevant, and well-written, more sites will link to it, and your traffic will increase yet again.

?6. Organize your press releases on your website. Maintain a page with links to every press release you publish, so you and your readers can find the information. Categorize them in chronological order, with the most recent on top. Create an RSS feed so readers can receive automatic updates when you upload new press releases .

You may find the style of writing a press release alien or confusing, but there are plenty of online resources to help you out. Try the policies for writing press releases to create a really effective article. Music Biz Academy helps artists educate themselves about promotion, distribution, and other business-related topics. Of course, reading other musicians’ press releases can get your creativity flowing. Educate yourself and take the time to create something remarkable, and you’ll soon create a new buzz around your music.

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Myspace Myspace.com 1. Personalize	Reverb Nation ReverbNation 2. Add Music	YouTube YouTube.com 3. Add-ins	Facebook for Musicians Facebook 4. Make Friends
Ning.com Ning.com 5. Join Groups	flickr flickr.com 6. Comment	twitter Twitter.com 7. Blog!	jotlet Jotlet.net 8. Calendar

Social Networking is not only fun, but is one of the best and most popular ways to connect with fans on a personal level. Putting some time and effort into creating and maintaining a popular profile is an essential part of a successful music career. Follow these 8 steps, and you will be on your way up the social ladder!

1. Personalize
Show your individuality by making your band’s page unique. Fill out an “About Me” section with information about the individual members of the band (or you), how it was created, past events, news, and upcoming plans. Most sites allow a personalized background along with themes, applications, and text with which really add individuality to your page. Above all else, remember to let your band’s persona shine through in every aspect of your profile.

2. Add Music!
Including music on your site might seem like a no brainer. But different networking sites have different requirements for adding music. Facebook requires you to sign-up through applications, such as iLike. Some networking sites that are more focused toward the music industry, like Buzznet, will come with the technology to upload your mp3 music directly onto your site. To get the maximum amount of music on all your sites add a widget. These are helpful when you want to link things like your music, schedule, and videos from one page to another. A great widget will provide information on frequency of play and traffic type. For example, if you place a widget on your MySpace page from The Hype Machine, another music networking site, it will allow the music from Hype to be heard on MySpace. Not only can you get more music, videos, and content on your networking pages this way, it also lets fans copy the widget to their page which is great for promotion.

3. Add-ins
Include other add-ins like video, podcasts, and photo albums on your site. This is another great way to personalize your page. You should also add any music videos and personal band videos you have to the site. Rich media allows an insight for fans to see the personal side of the band. Make sure to post pictures of your events and trips. New content draws friends and fans back to your site, so update it frequently. Have the band make podcasts. These very popular audio files are a great way to create awareness for your music so have them available on your site.

4. Make Friends
Adding friends and fans is a key aspect to social networking. After all, social networking is about being social, and having someone to be social with is usually a good idea. When searching for and adding friends, it is important to choose people with similar interests. Usually, people within your particular group (as discussed below) are a good place to start. Set up an RSS Feed to your blog and your whole website so followers are updated when you add new information. This should be an easy one-click step for your friends.

5. Join Groups
One of the simplest ways to participate in the online community and build relationships is to join groups that have interests similar to your own. MySpace alone offers over 5000 different groups that deal with music specifically. Broaden your network and fan base by joining and participating in discussions, adding photos, or listening to other band’s music. Once group members see that you have joined the discussion, they may go to your personal page and become a friend or fan. Remember to search for communities within your particular music niche as well, such as Last fm or Pure Volume. If there isn’t one already, make one! You may be surprised at how many people are interested in the same things as you.

6. Comment
Don’t be shy! Make comments on similar blogs and pages within the same network. Always leave a link or banner leading back to your page, so readers can contact you. Soon enough, you will have intriguing conversations that will help you develop a large fan base. When someone leaves a comment on your page, be sure to comment back in a timely manner. Fans feel more related to the band when they see a personal message on their profile.

7. Blog!
Create blogs through your site. You should update your blog frequently (try for at least once a week) and write about a specific subject that you know about, like drumming for a rock band. Along with blogging on your website, try Twitter a mini-blog site that allows users to write what they are doing at any moment. You can also post comments/pictures via cell phone so you can constantly update your site. When writing a blog remember who your audience is; you can subtly promote your band through a blog, but if readers are sensing a marketing operation they will quickly become uninterested. Besides, a good blog will promote itself.

8. Calendar
Almost every social networking site has a calendar feature that allows you to easily update your friends on your upcoming events. They either come with the calendar functionality or you can easily add a calendar application; such as the Jotlet application for Facebook. For most of these sites all you have to do is click on “manage calendar” to set up your information and it automatically displays updates on your site and lets your fans know about upcoming events. Don’t forget the RSS feed!

It is hard to keep multiple sites up-to-date. If you are pressed for time, there are a few sites that allow you to update all your sites at once. When you apply these top 8 online networking techniques to your band’s profiles you’re online popularity will increase greatly. Soon enough, you will have a great list of friends, fans, and supporters of your band. Be genuine when you are commenting and writing blogs. At the same time, show your band’s personality so you don’t get lost in the crowd. Promote comments and feedback in every aspect and have fun socializing!

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In “Getting to Viral: 4 Steps for Online Promotion,” we discussed how you, the hard-working and well-deserving musician, can start using your website to promote your music, build your fan base, and earn more money. Today, let’s take it to the next level, with advanced marketing tips for hungry artists.

1. Post details of upcoming events.

Place an organized calendar of the band’s upcoming events in a visible spot on your webpage. Include the city, state, venue, and a link for driving directions as well as one to buy tickets right from the calendar. Make sure it is easily accessible. When your fans want that information, they shouldn’t have to search for it! Yahoo Groups offer an online calendar that allows users to access information about new events, photos, and links. Many online networking communities allow you to post notifications right on the site.

2. Share your music.

Adding music to your band’s website lets listeners preview your albums. Do you believe your songs are good enough to sell themselves? Offer some free content and persuade listeners to pay for the whole thing. Here’s how:

• You need a computer with audio input capability and an audio encoding application, such as iTunes or Windows Media Player. If your music is already on a CD or your computer, it is easy to reformat these files as MP3s. If you are working with analog recordings or some other format, it can be more complicated, but there are plenty of programs that allow you to transfer songs.
• Once you have an MP3 file, upload music to your wenough to sell themselves? Offer some free content and persuade ebpage just like you would with any other media or image file.
  If your band’s main site is on MySpace or Facebook, you might have to download the proper application to play your music/videos.

3. Keep it user friendly.
You’ve got a lot to offer, but don’t make the mistake of cluttering up the page. You’ll overwhelm users if things get too complex. Not everything needs to appear on the front page. Consider adding a site map and a search function. A few category links at the top, bottom, or side of the page allow for easier navigation, while the search box lets viewers find just what they’re looking for. Allow loyal fans to submit an email address. Send them notices and links when a page is updated. Also, avoid flash animation; it may look pretty in theory, but can easily become overwhelming. In some cases, flash animation will make it hard to load your page. If you’re set on using animation, choose only one or two, and offer the ability to load the page without them.

4. Stay Updated.

You can connect to the Internet from the library, a coffee shop, a hotel lobby, or a smart phone. These days, it’s harder to find an area without Internet access than a wifi hotspot. Your fans are online all the time, and you should be too. A cell phone with the capability to view your site lets you update at a moment’s notice. If you are on the road, or don’t have a computer, take pictures from your phone and send them to your website. No matter what, continuously check and update your site. Offering new content on a regular basis keeps fans coming back to see what’s new, and good content gets emailed, Dugg, and otherwise reposted, increasing your traffic. Frequently updating also increases your relevancy in Google searches and helps you turn new fans on to your music.

5. Merchandize.

Selling band merchandise is one of the easiest ways to generate revenue and convince your fan base to provide you with free advertising. T-shirts are probably the most popular merchandise for any band. Café Press, Spreadshirt, Zazzle, Printfection and the list goes on of popular place to make your individualized shirts. You can create, design, and sell T-shirts, all on the same site. This site lets you slap your design on a variety of other products, too. Limited merchandise makes the product more appealing. Sell limited editions of your products at concerts and special events. Tell your fans they can purchase your products on your website to encourage more traffic.

6. Promote it!

Sure, you’re using your website to promote your band. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to promote your website. Website promotion lets people know you’re on the web. Announce that you’re online when you’re onstage at concerts and performances. Include URLs in your CD liner notes. Print them on your merchandise Tell your friends, family, and acquaintances. Allow fans to sign up for newsletters; this is an easy way to build your fan base and costs little to nothing to implement.

So start functioning at your highest capacity. Put your website to work for you and sell music in your sleep. Need more ideas? Look at other band and artist pages for inspiration. Some excellent examples to check out include AFI, Amy Winehouse, The Dixie Chicks, and Good Charlotte. With a little help from the Internet you can reach more fans, achieve more bookings, and earn more money than ever before!

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Your band rocks. You know it rocks. You’ve found the sound to take to town. But these days, everything’s on the Internet, and if you want to share your music with the world, you need to be there too. Don’t worry! It doesn’t take a degree in Computer Science to get ahead online. If you can surf the Internet (and we know you can, or you wouldn’t be here) you can expand your fan base across the country and around the globe.

1. You Must Submit

• Websites like GarageBand and Kazaa let listeners enjoy totally free music. Tap this vast market by submitting your songs to online radios. You’re potentially reaching an audience greater than the biggest gig you’ve ever played, and you don’t even have to unload your equipment from the van. One upload covers you forever.

• Once your music reaches the masses, these sites will help you connect with your new fans. Most sites allow you to add links to your website or email newsletter, so that you can capitalize on the momentum of the moment. Music lovers hear your music for free, follow the links to your site, and become instant fans.

• Links make the Internet go ‘round. Post your own on comment boards, forums, and fan sites. Encourage your fans and groupies to post links, too. More links posted by more people in more places equal more search engine relevancy. Remember, a link is more than a URL and a name. Anchor text, with interesting descriptions, encourages people to click.

2. Give It Away Now

• Internet newcomers sometimes balk at offering free content, but what better advertisement is there? If listeners fall in love with one or two of your songs, they’ll be happy to pay to download the rest of the album. If they’ve never heard of you, what will compel them to spend money just to find out whether or not you’re any good? Free content is free publicity.

• Root your website in your own sound. You’re a band! When fans hit your home page, they need to hear your music. Use an audio encoding application to create MP3 files of the songs you want folks to hear. Then upload the file to your site, so that it’s easy for them to find and play high quality recordings of the music right then and there.

• Everyone loves freebies. Once you’ve got your fans’ attention, give them incentives to love you more. Create online contests or other ways for visitors to win free tickets or VIP Passes to your next show. Mail personalized postcards with images and track titles to anyone who downloads the album. All the extras help create a real bond with your fans.

3. If You’ve Got Something to Say, Why Don’t You Say It?

• The best way to stay in touch with the virtual community is to read and comment on other websites and blogs. If you know music, other musicians and bloggers want to hear your feedback on their work, and if you leave comments on blogs, other bloggers will follow you back to your site. Google Blog Search, Blogdigger, Bloggapedia, BlogTopList, Blog Catalog, and Outpost Earth can help you find your music community online.

• Keep it real by keeping your own blog with Blogger, WordPress, or LiveJournal. Stay in touch with your fans by giving updates on your band’s schedule, offering snippets of new songs, and providing juicy gossip about the music. Add links back to your website so fans can download music or sign up for your newletter. Read your fans’ comments, respond to them, and watch your network grow.

4. Reach Out and Touch Someone

• Social networking websites like Facebook and MySpace are a boon for bands of all sizes. These sites walk you through the creation of your own page, then help you find new and old fans among their existing members. Once you’ve built your page, you can post band news, add friends, customize your page, and get active in the music community.

• You put a lot of effort into that music video. Make sure it gets the audience it deserves.

• Post your videos for free on YouTube, Yahoo Video, and Google Video, and link them back to your website. There is literally no better way to find fame on the Internet than with a viral video—one that is so wonderful that everyone who sees it reposts the link and shares it with their friends.

• Join communities tailored to your genre. Find existing communities or create your own through MyBlogLog and Ning in addition to the other sites mentioned above. Joining these specific networks will help you stay in tune with the music world and find new fans and contacts to promote your band.

• Take it back to the real world. Once you’ve connected with your online community, you can start networking with posters hung in prominent locations or postcards sent to your mailing list. Just ask your fans if they want to receive mailings! You can use Ticket Printing’s Design Your Own tool to create publicity that will catch attention and connect you to your listeners.

So, start networking today! Spread your music and your influence far and wide across the Internet and watch your fan base grow.

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You’re no fool. You recognize the power of the Internet. You’ve customized your band’s page on MySpace and Facebook with your top singles and your favorite photos. You’ve even built your own homepage, or paid someone else to do it. Maybe you’ve gone the extra mile and joined a musical community like Linked-Musicians, ReverbNation, or HostBaby. That’s great. Now, what are you going to do with your new social networks?

1. There can be only one!

Your band is unique. Play your individuality up online. You’re real people with real messages for your fans. They want to know who you are. Add links talking about your history, including how you got together, your history and influences as a band, and personal biographies of every band member. Create new content available only on your site, like behind-the-scene photos and videos. All you need is a digital camera and someone to follow you around documenting your gig, rehearsal, or trip to the store to buy new guitar strings. Album artwork, upcoming performance schedules, lists of your favorite philosophers, and even snapshots of yourselves as small children all constitute high-interest content.

2. Talk to Me!

The Internet isn’t a one-way street. Once you start promoting yourself online, you need to provide an easy way for booking agents or promoters to reach you: your contact information. Don’t post your personal email address on the site unless you love unsolicited junk mail. Instead, designate an account just for band-related correspondence and post that information in a prominent place. If possible, make the “Contact Us” link a different color than the rest of the page. A corner of the page is a good place for this information. When you add this address, you can expect a certain amount of junk email to hit your inbox, but don’t worry! If spammers can find your site, so can real people. Services such as Gmail have excellent spam filters, and eventually your target audience will find you.

3. Feel the Love!

Toot your own horn. You’re musicians after all. Whenever your band makes the news or receives a positive review online, be sure you link to it so everyone sees how popular you are, and how people besides your mom think you’re great. Make sure to save these reviews to your hard drive, too. Sometimes sites fold or take down old content. You can always repost reviews (with permission and attributions) and other testimonials on your own pages. In addition, you can create an RSS feed so your fans can sign up to receive updates any time new content is posted on your website, blog, or news feed. When people are talking about you, that’s free publicity! Your website can turn up the volume on the buzz.

4. Right back at ya!

The Internet is all about community, and community means dialog. Give your fans that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from proximity to their idols by creating forums where fans can interact with each other and band members. Set up a message board where people can post questions or comments about the band or its performances, and make sure to answer those questions personally. If you can’t monitor these boards, find a host to interact with the community, set the overall mood of the forum, and ban trolls and other undesirables. You can even set up online chats during which fans can talk to the band online for an hour or so. This all helps to generate more positive press for you. You can cull the best of this information into testimonials reposted elsewhere on the site and use the contact with your fans to figure out what they want. If you can’t manage a forum or a board, keep a blog instead and write just for your fans. It’s an easy way to let folks comments and connect.

Stay tuned for part 2, in which we continue to reveal to you the awesome power of the Internet, the strength and beauty of your website, and the secret ninja skills of Web 2.0!

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With today’s technology there is a vast amount of ways to distribute your music. Instead of selling CD’s on the streets or begging local stores to carry your music, you can distribute your music online. There are countless music distributors on the web for independent musicians, but beware because some of them are not as legit as they seem. Go through this check list so you will know what to expect when deciding what online music distributor you will use.

Costs: As with all distributors on or offline, you will probably have to invest some dough to get started. Costs may include:

• Startup fees or subscriptions: Most companies require either a one-time fee, monthly subscription, or a yearly membership fee. These vary greatly per company but boil down anywhere from $30-$480 a year because of the extra services that come included with the higher priced companies.

• Cut: For every physical CD it is common for a distributor to take at least $3-4. Percentage cuts of your sales are another common way for distributors to redeem money. If it is a more reputable company, like Amazon, it could be a percentage cut up to 55%, or as low as 9% from sites like CDBaby.

• Uploading Fees: Not all organizations have subscription fees, some charge a fee per song you upload to their site. This usually costs about $10 per 100 MB (about 25 songs).

Services: It is important to note that you will probably get what you pay for. The prices of online distributors vary greatly based on size, and the services they offer. Below is a quick summary of the different services online distributors can provide.

• CD/Digital Sales: Some distributors only offer CD sales; while others only sell your digital music, and some do both. Read the fine print and make sure you know what you are getting. Be aware that you may have to do the shipping if you are selling actual CDs.

• Protection: Some sites are not protected from malicious attackers. Make sure the business you choose has some sort of spyware protection.

• Connections: Some services connect with other big sites, like Rhapsody, iTunes, and even Amazon.

• Community networks: Most online distributors allow a community of artists, listeners, and other music buffs to join in on discussions, listen/critique music, and network.

• Additional services: Some sites go as far as giving their members tutorials, press kit builders, communication kits, sales reports, and contact lists. Of course, these always cost a little extra.

Watch out! There are thousands of distribution sites out there, but only a select few are actually qualified to do the work. Double check to make sure the site you choose is providing all the services you want it to. Here are some things to look out for:

• Specific areas and genre: This may be a benefit if you only want to target people in your local area, or that are interested in a specific music type. Just keep in mind that you will be subject to a smaller audience.

• Uploading music: Different sites will have different methods of uploading music. You will need some computer skills to be able to do this successfully.

• Shipping: Some sites focus only on promoting and selling your music, and make you ship your own CDs. If you go this route, it’s important to make sure you have time allotted for shipping your music.

• Promotion: Many sites only make your music available for purchase, and won’t help with the promotional aspects of distribution.

Now that you have an idea of what to expect from an online music distribution site, take-a-look at some of these popular music distribution services and see which one works for you.

• Amazon: This is the #1 seller of online independent CDs on the internet today.  With millions of visitors a day, your product will be seen next to many mainstream artists.  The Advantage program allows you to add as many CDs, videos, or books as you like for a yearly fee of $29.95. You also get a short bio page including pictures and sound clips.  They take care of returns at their cost.  Amazon will do all the shipping, but you pay for the charges.  Because Amazon is a highly visible site, there is a higher cost in commission rates.  You set your retail price and keep 45% of your sales.  Keep in mind that you will need to generate a UPC code for your CDs.

• CDBaby is the #2 seller of online music.  You can think of them as an exclusive online music store selling CDs and digital music.  CDBaby has the capability to connect you to iTunes Music Store, and Rhapsody.  They also have a “mini-store” page for your band on their site.  You can sell your CDs for however much you like, they charge $35 to sign up, keep $4 of every CD sold, and 9% of every mp3 sold.  To start all you have to do is pay the sign-up  fee, and ship them four professional looking CDs.

• CDPulse: Like CDBaby, CDPulse allows you to sell both mp3s and CDs.  They also provide a mini-site for your band where you can connect with fans.  They do all the shipping for you, and you will receive daily/monthly sales reports.  Plus, many venues sign up to recruit here so you can easily get gigs in your area.  There are no costs to sign up, but they do keep $4 for every CD sold at your chosen price, and you get .60 cents for every mp3 sold.  Pay an additional $9.95 per month for additional features like broadcasting of your shows.

• Artistopia believes in aiding an artist by helping them sign with a label and connect with the music industry. They have a free membership plan where artists can list 1 album, upload 3 songs, post press releases, add 3 pictures, distribute newsletters, and gain access to other communication and messaging tools.  They also offers a professional plan where you get all the aspects of the free plan, can upload an unlimited amount of songs and pictures, and gain access to great artist management and marketing tools for a one-time payment of $99.95.

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