[Dixielandjazz] Web Sites!

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

In a message dated 11/19/03 9:05:46 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
JazzHags at aol.com writes:

> 
> Tom Wiggins wrote in regard to websites:
> 
> "  The unfortunate truth is that most of them are worthless since they do 
> not 
> get any traffic and are almost never findable unless you know exactly how to 
> 
> get there". 


Hi Doug:  

THE KEY WORD HERE IS "MOST"   
I was not implying that yours fell into that category, I was speaking 
generically about many of the sites of this nature, that have cropped up all over the 
world.  These sites start off well intentioned, but then seem to resort to 
just tying in other sites that try to sell the artist and bands more and more 
expanded services, for more and more fees.

I am delighted to hear that yours is indeed working for you.  It probably has 
a much better chance at being successful than most, due to the fact that you 
are a Band leader and are operating your site in the interest of promoting 
music rather than just selling web pages.

> 
> Tom while I agree with much of your post about promoting bands - I cannot 
> buy 
> the above statement.   


> In the 6 yrs the "Riverside Dixieland Jazz Band" http://riversidejazz.com 
> site has been up - the site has received almost 21,000 hits and most of our 
> gig 
> inquires come from the site. 
> 
> There are a few tricks to the trade in getting your site to the head of the 
> pack on search engines -- if you check "Dixieland jazz bands" on Google - 
> you 
> will find our band listed twice in the top ten.
> 
My point exactly here Don:  "IF you check Dixieland jazz bands" the surfer 
has to know pretty specifically what they are searching for to find you, and if 
they find a directory with 20 pages of websites to click on they will get 
pretty tired pretty fast trying to take the time to check them all out looking for 
your band.  It also helps if they know the name of the Dixieland band they 
are looking for.  I send out thousands of e-mails direct to the buyers that I 
want to reach and in the email is embedded a hot link right to the website of 
the act I am selling so they can check it out if they have the time.  If they do 
I usually get a reply and a request to send a promotional kit with full CDs 
photos, etc., followed by a booking.

This is particularly effective when I am trying to break a new unknown artist 
or band.


What I mean is that you have to constantly find a way to market your band to 
DRIVE buyers to your site, The search engine placement is of course very 
important and also take constant work to keep yourself up there in the top ten, 
especially after everyone else starts to learn how to do it.

> My intent is to promote the"Musicians-R-Us" site the same way and hopefully 
> I 
> can get good web exposure for all that are listed in the directory.
> 
> Don't get me wrong I am in no way intimating that our band is getting the 
> same amount of work as your bands - but we aren't spending $20,000 a year to 
> 
> promote it either.

I should also clarify that number as well Don, It is for constant 
International on going promotion direct to the buyers of major name Jazz and Blues and 
Gospel bands, as well as publications and radio show hosts who have a crossover 
into the promotion business.
I constantly work an International database of over 20,000 talent buyers of 
all genres of music for my Booking Agency operations.  This has often resulted 
in my persuading them to buy OKOM for events that never thought of doing so, 
and once they do they love it.

Hence guys like Steve Barbone and I always talking about getting OKOM music 
Out of the Box it has been in for forty odd years now.  The Box is worn out 
folks, not the music.

And in all fairness to your band and most OKOM bands on the list, We are not 
marketing to the same audience either, so I should definitely remember that in 
my posts, but what I am trying to get the Good OKOM groups to realize with my 
often hasty promotional posts is that you need to expand beyond the 
Traditional circuit that most of you are playing if you want to expand the audience for 
OKOM.  THAT IS ALWAYS MY modus operandi
No matter how I might mis speak myself in a post.  I am definitely on your 
side.

I never want to discourage any of you from trying anything you think might 
work to get live gigs happening and get your bands on them.  My interest in 
staying on this list is to try and help and share my years of Marketing Music 
experience with any and all of you who think I might have some things to help you 
and your specific projects.

> 
> In promoting a band I definitely believe that a site on the web should be a 
> part of your arsenal, it is not the "be all &end all," but it is important.
> 

We are in total agreement here, it will one day come into it's own, but in 
the meantime what I was trying to get across is, that just having a website or 
web presence is not enough to fill your calendar with gigs.  Every band needs 
to constantly promote themselves and in any place they can realistically 
invision obtaining a live performance opportunity from.

Many festival buyers have emailed me and told me they simply do not have the 
time to download photos, files and web pages, as clearly indicated in John's 
reply to my first reply.  I don't know what John is selling on his website to 
punters, but I understand it if he is selling piano rolls to a specific limited 
marketplace of buyers who know exactly what they are looking for.

It has been my experiences that most Festival producers and talent buyers do 
not yet go shopping via surfing on the web to find the acts they buy, and I 
have actually been told by a few of them that if they ever bought an act off the 
web or from an email then they should be fired from their job.  Since I have 
sold many shows over the Internet, and booked many tours with e-mail I 
certainly do not agree with those kind of buyers.  Since the inception of e-mail my 
telephone bills have almost disappeared for International communication.

I sincerely wish you great success with the project.

Tom Wiggins
Devil's advocate sometimes.