Here are some free downloadable templates and worksheets that will help save you time:
1. MARKETING PLAN OUTLINE A sample marketing plan outline taken from the e-Guide: “Your Successful CD Release” by Peter Spellman & Dave Cool: Download PDF File Why should you write a marketing plan? Read this. 2. MEDIA PROGRESS SHEET: Here is a sample media progress sheet that you can recreate using any spreadsheet program. This is a must-have for any media/publicity campaign! Download PDF File (reduced to fit onto 1 page, just to give you an idea of the structure) Download Excel Spreadsheet (spreadsheet that you can use and modify yourself) 3. RADIO TRACKING LOG SHEET: Promoting your music to radio? This sample radio tracking log sheet is a great way to keep track of the progress of your radio play: Download PDF File (reduced to fit onto 1 page, just to give you an idea of the structure) Download Excel Spreadsheet (spreadsheet that you can use and modify yourself) 4. SAMPLE CD MARKETING BUDGET (NEW!): A very straight-forward "marketing spreadsheet for dummies", simply plug in costs in the appropriate category: Download Excel Spreadsheet (spreadsheet that you can use and modify yourself) Downloadable templates and worksheets are added regularly, so you can sign up to the mailing list to be notified as soon as new ones arrive: Sign Up! *By signing up to the mailing list, you'll also be entered to win a FREE copy of "What is INDIE?"!* |
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 Here are the absolute best and most helpful websites we've come across for indie artists: 1. SELLING YOUR MUSIC Online CD Distribution: • CD Baby: www.cdbaby.com • earBuzz: www.earbuzz.com • Indie Pool (Canada): www.indiepool.com • Bluetracks (Quebec/Canada): www.bluetracks.ca Digital Distributors: • CD Baby: www.cdbaby.com • TuneCore: www.tunecore.com • SNOCAP: www.snocap.com • Indie Pool (Canada): www.indiepool.com • Bluetracks (Quebec/Canada): www.bluetracks.ca Downloads at Live Shows: • Dropcards: www.dropcards.com • FizzKicks: www.fizzkicks.com • discrevolt: www.discrevolt.com Ringtones: • MyxerTones: www.myxertones.com • Xingtone: www.xingtone.com Licensing: • Pump Audio: www.pumpaudio.com • Rumblefish: www.rumblefish.com 2. LIVE MUSIC Find Venues: • Indie-Music.com: www.indie-music.com • The Musician’s Atlas: www.musiciansatlas.com • The Indie Venue Bible: www.indievenuebible.com • Listening Room Tour: www.listeningroomtour.com Find Conferences: • Sonicbids: www.sonicbids.com • The Musician’s Atlas: www.musiciansatlas.com Find Festivals: • Sonicbids: www.sonicbids.com • Indie-Music.com: http://indie-music.com/fest_search.php • The Musician’s Atlas: www.musiciansatlas.com • Festival Network Online: www.festivalnet.com Find Colleges & Universities: • Sonicbids: www.sonicbids.com • The Musician’s Atlas: www.musiciansatlas.com • OnlineGigs: www.onlinegigs.com • Indie Band Manager: www.indiebandmanager.com
House Concerts: • Houseconcerts.com • Concertsinyourhome.com • AcousticRoof.ca (Canada) Help with Booking Gigs: • OnlineGigs: www.onlinegigs.com • Sonicbids: www.sonicbids.com • Eventful: www.eventful.com 3. MEDIA/PUBLICITY Research/Finding Media: • The Indie Bible: www.indiebible.com • The Musician’s Atlas: www.musiciansatlas.com • The Virtual Publicist: www.thevirtualpublicist.com • Indie Band Manager: www.indiebandmanager.com • SOPREF (Quebec): www.sopref.org
Sending Press Releases: • Music Industry News Network: www.mi2n.com • Billboard Publicity Wire: www.billboardpublicitywire.com 4. ONLINE PROMOTION & NETWORKING Social Networking: • indie 911: www.indie911.com • MySpace: www.myspace.com • Facebook: www.facebook.com • Last.fm: www.last.fm • Fuzz: www.fuzz.com • Ning: www.ning.com Other Networking: • GoGirls Music: www.gogirlsmusic.com • Mamapalooza: www.mamapalooza.com • Just Plain Folks: www.jpfolks.com Video Sharing Websites: • YouTube: www.youtube.com • MySpace: http://vids.myspace.com • Google Video: http://video.google.com • Yahoo!: http://video.search.yahoo.com • Revver: www.revver.com • Metacafe: www.metacafe.com • Veoh: www.veoh.com • Vmix: www.vmix.com • Dailymotion: www.dailymotion.com • Vimeo: www.vimeo.com Blogging: • Blogger: www.blogger.com • WordPress: www.wordpress.com Website Hosting and Design: • Host Baby: www.hostbaby.com • Bandzoogle: www.bandzoogle.com • NIMBIT: www.nimbit.com E-mail List/Newsletter Management: • Groupie Corral: www.groupiecorral.com • FanBridge: www.fanbridge.com 5. GETTING ORGANIZED Database Software: • Indie Band Manager: www.indiebandmanager.com • Filemaker: www.filemaker.com • Microsoft Outlook: www.microsoft.com/outlook • Act!: www.act.com Financial/Spreadsheets: • Google Docs: http://docs.google.com • Microsoft Excel: www.microsoft.com/excel • Apple’s Numbers: www.apple.com/iwork/numbers 6. MERCHANDISE CD Manufacturing: • Disc Makers: www.discmakers.com • Oasis Disc Manufacturing: www.oasiscd.com • Ball Media (Canada): www.ballmedia.com • Indie Pool (Canada): www.indiepool.com CD Displays: • CD Stands: www.cdstands.com • SumaDek Portable Listening Display: www.sumadek.com Promotional Merchandise (Shirts, buttons etc.): • CafePress: www.cafepress.com • JakPrints: www.jakprints.com • Pure Buttons: www.purebuttons.com • The Button Store (Canada): www.thebuttonstore.com Promotional Materials (Stickers, Flyers, Postcards etc.) • JakPrints: www.jakprints.com • Go 4 Color (Canada): www.1000cards.net 7. FURTHER RESOURCES • www.artistshousemusic.org • www.bemuso.com • www.musesmuse.com • www.musicbizacademy.com • www.musicdish.com • www.starpolish.com/resources |
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And here are some of the best books and guides we've found that can help your career:
1. Your Successful CD Release: A Quick-Action Guide to Marketing Your CD by Peter Spellman and Dave Cool 2. Plan Your Band! Sample High-Impact Band Business Plan and Music Investor Proposal All-in-One by Peter Spellman 3. The Self-Promoting Musician: Strategies for Independent Music Success by Peter Spellman 4. Indie Power: A Business-Building Guide for Record Labels, Music Production Houses and Merchant Musicians by Peter Spellman 5. Indie Marketing Power: The Resource Guide for Maximizing Your Music Marketing by Peter Spellman 6. Start and Run Your Own Record Label by Daylle Deanna Schwartz 7. I Don’t Need a Record Deal!: Your Survival Guide for the Indie Revolution by Daylle Deanna Schwartz 8. Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook by Bob Baker 9. How to Be Your Own Booking Agent by Jeri Goldstein 10. I am a Professional Artist by Gilli Moon 11. MySpace Music Marketing, by Bob Baker 12. How to Use Video to Promote Your Music Online by Bob Baker 13. Using Myspace to Promote You & Your Music by Madalyn Sklar with Georgia Moncrief 14. The Artist Entrepreneur: 13 Modes of Flirting with Darkness by Leonardo de Luca 15. Guerrilla P.R. by Michael Levine 16. Guerrilla Marketing Excellence by Jay Conrad Levinson 17. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell 18. The Purple Cow by Seth Godin 19. Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi 20. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie |
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