SONG CONTEST BLOG

::1:: How To Increase Your Fan Base

Jango’s Basic Geo-Targeting feature allows you to hone in on those regions where Jango listeners love your music most.  If you’ve already run a Jango Airplay campaign, simply check your Geographic Reports in your dashboard for this data.  Then, select the cities and states where you have the strongest following before you run your next campaign.  Not only will you turn passive listeners into loyal fans, you will also establish a local presence, leading to more requests for regional showcases and festival appearances.  And the best part… Basic Geo-Targeting is FREE!

::2:: How To Get Free Jango Airplay Credit

Every Jango Airplay artist has a PopScore.  Each week, artists with the highest PopScores receive free credit.  The PopScore reveals how well your music is resonating with Jango listeners based on your campaign targeting. The more precise your targeting, the higher your PopScore.  Obviously, if you are a Scandinavian Black Metal band targeting Dolly Parton fans, your PopScore will be gasping for air, so make sure you target the artists whose fans are most likely to identify with your music.  Remember, free credit means more plays.  And more plays equals more fans.

::3:: How To Get A Live Showcase

Top Jango PopScore artists get booked at the Wakarusa Festival, The Moondance Jam, The Viper Room in LA and more.  If you climb the PopScore charts, you might find yourself juggling phone calls and trying to decide which event is best for your band.

::4:: How To Make A Lasting Impression

Want to get listener attention, lightning fast?  Make an audio intro and attach it to the front of your song before uploading the MP3 to Jango Airplay.  A quick message, five seconds or less, telling the listener who you are and what they’re about to hear.  This is a simple way for you and your music to get cemented in the listener’s memory.

::5:: How To Rise Above The Noise

For artists looking for additional promotion, Jango Airplay offers robust packages though ‘Airplay PRO’.  These promotions include banner ads on Jango.com as well as customized overlay ad units that appear every time your song plays.  Give away an MP3, promote an album or tour; even run a contest, bouncing the listener directly to your own website.  Here’s a 60 second video demo of how the overlay ad units are served:

In addition, you can get a banner placed in Jango’s listener newsletter, sent to over 3 Million registered users each week.  For more info on these packages email: airplay-premium@jango.com

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“With 300 million people in America, you can fail to impress 299 million of them and still go platinum.”

Seth Godin, best selling author and popular blogger, writes:

If you have a book to write, write it.  If you want to record an album, record it.  No need to wait for someone in a cubicle halfway across the country to decide if you’re worthy.

I think Seth is suggesting that, if you’re waiting for a so-called music biz whiz to tell you that your band rocks, you’re giving too much power to someone who doesn’t care about your music nearly as much as you do.

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from: Mark Towne
to: Lior Shamir
date: Wed, Jun 23, 2010 at 5:50 AM
subject: We Are Listening / Tinderbox Updates

Lior,

I just wanted to drop you a quick line to let you know how much the Breaking the Band contest has helped us out.

Tinderbox has been very very helpful and has exposed our music to a much larger audience than we could have hoped for.  Our disc has been getting airplay at CMJ charted stations across the country since April.  We even charted in the top 10 slots at several stations! Our web traffic and album sales have definitely increased since we started working with Tinderbox and we’ve connected with many people we wouldn’t have reached if not for Breaking the Band and Tinderbox Music.

Jon has found 8 shows on networks like MTV, E! and even Oxygen that are interested in using our work in their series.  That’s still a work in progress but chances are pretty good we’ll land some television placements, reach more potential fans and maybe even make some dough for our next album.

I’ve been very impressed with the staff at Tinderbox and their results.  I can’t thank We Are Listening enough for providing us the opportunity!

I hope all is well and you are enjoying the summer thus far!

Best wishes,

Mark Towne
Booking / Drums
Vices I Admire

Video is not an option these days, it’s a necessity.  You need to be able to promote your music with video on your website, MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and dozens of other social media sites.

Your success depends on it.

You’re probably nodding your head and thinking: “That’s great, but how am I going to make a video?” After all, videos traditionally cost thousands of dollars to make and you most likely don’t have the equipment or know-how to make one yourself.

I’ve found the solution to your problem!

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Can your current music sales really support you?

Probably not, but you’re definitely not alone.  The days of artists earning their income through the strength of song sales alone are growing dimmer by the day.

Music fans don’t want to pay for music anymore, and they’re getting less willing to do so all the time.  Teenagers today have grown up in a world where they can download, stream and share anything they want, and all for free.

And they’ve never known anything different.

If even the most recognized artists in the world are having their songs downloaded for free, how are you supposed to make any money?

Believe it or not, you already have everything you need to make money.  But even though your recordings are the least likely commodity to generate a strong income, there are plenty of other things you can sell.

We’ve teamed up with our good friends at MusicCareerMasters.com to show you exactly what you can to do to drive your income outside of music sales.

MusicCareerMasters is a website created to help independent artists make a living from the music business.  It is run by Mark Smith, a veteran band manager of over 13 years.  He teaches musicians time tested and highly effective strategies to truly make it in today’s rapidly changing music ecosystem.

For We Are Listening members only, Mark has created an exclusive 6 minute video that walks you through exactly what you need to know to make the maximum money for your products.

Let Mark Show You His Instant Money Making Ideas >>

Scott Ginsberg, author and motivational speaker, writes:

Because of our instant gratification culture, we’re impatient.

Because of our privileged upbringing, we developed a mediocre work ethic.

Because of our self-reliant, entrepreneurial bent, we don’t offer loyalty easily.

Because of our abundance of choices, we’re quick to quit and pursue something better.

No wonder we can’t stick with anything for very long.

Now let me ask you this:

Are you sticking to your plan to achieve a successful career in music?

And what do you do when your plan doesn’t go according to plan?

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Not as many as you’d like, I suspect.

It’s not because your music is ‘bad’.  In fact, people talk about bad music just as much as they do about good music.

So why isn’t there a larger conversation around you and your art?

Because you’re relying on your music.

There are 13 million music profiles on MySpace but only 4,000 artists on the rosters of the major music labels.

It’s fair to assume that a lot more than 4,000 artists are writing, producing and performing great songs.  Some of them are making ends meet on indie labels or on their own…

…But the sad truth is that most of them are working day jobs and you will probably never hear of them.

The competition is fierce.

If your strategy for success hinges on great songs, awesome production, and a tight live act alone, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.

Here is an example of an artist who made it easy for music fans to talk about her, but she did NOT center the conversation around her music.

Instead, she created this video …and it worked!

I used to be.

I couldn’t handle the rejection.

And worse, help in the form of critical – sometimes brutal – feedback on my music would leave me licking my wounds for days.

You see, it takes a lot of courage to ask for help and welcome criticism as well as praise.

And this is the mark of an independent artist and entrepreneur that music fans and professionals want to listen to and associate with.

Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help

Professional songwriters, label executives, music supervisors, venue promoters, and die-hard music fans are all around you.  Take a big breath, approach them, ask a question, and even offer to play them a few seconds of your song.  Do this at every opportunity…

…You’ll be surprised how easily you shed your fear of dismissal.

And though you may not always like what they have to say, their willingness to help you – listen and share their thoughts with you – may drive your career to new heights.

Not everyone will be willing to help you.  But don’t let that put you off.

If you learn to ask for help and be open to receiving it in any form, you will discover that most people will go out of their way for you.  That’s a promise.

I hope this helps.