[Dixielandjazz] Selling your band and creating jobs.

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

By Tom Wiggins


Hey Band Leaders:

Public speaking is another form of effective PR. You probably don't think of 
yourself as a speaker, but it's easier than you think—and the results will 
prove it's well worth the effort. 

If a prospect wanted to meet with you today to discuss buying something from 
you, you would gladly meet and talk. You could probably talk as long as that 
interested prospect wanted to talk. See, you can talk. You are a speaker. Now 
imagine making this same presentation, holding this same discussion with a room 
full of prospects. 

Speaking to increase your public awareness is not quite the same as 
delivering your sales pitch at the podium. You need to deliver something of value to 
your targeted audience, and you want to educate and inform. This type of 
speaking does a number of things for you:

It establishes you as an expert in Jazz or any other format you are talking 
about. You become the resource. People like to buy from experts. 

You are in a giving mode. You are giving information, tips, techniques, 
methods and ideas. You may even be sharing some stories that your audience will 
relate to and learn from. Your audience will appreciate this value.

You are being efficient. Delivering your message once for many to hear is 
much more efficient than delivering it many times to every single prospect. 

You start and continue a relationship. Many people will want to talk to you 
after you speak or follow up with you in one form or another. 

You develop a prospect list of highly targeted people to market to after your 
presentation. These targeted and interested audience members are more likely 
to buy from you than someone who has not heard you or who you don't have a 
relationship with. 

There are a number of places where you can speak. Many service organizations 
feature speakers and meet weekly, such as Rotary, Lions and Kiwanis. 
Toastmasters is a group that will help you with your speaking. Church groups and 
Universities also have guest speakers on particular subjects. Some chambers of 
commerce invite guests to speak at their functions. You can even develop your own 
seminar or workshop if you have the right subject and the right audience. 

Always use handouts and always follow up. This is something you can't do with 
a press release. This form of PR is more attentive to your target markets of 
people who buy and program music services and events.

Can't develop a good speech? Try this technique: Find out what some "pain 
points" are for your target audiences, and then ask questions that are related. 
Answer the questions in an informational, value-oriented manner, and you have 
the basis for a presentation. 

For example, for a marketing presentation, ask: 

- Are you challenged with finding good music and bands for your events? 
- Is your message getting to the right prospects?   Have you thought about 
using Live music to promote your business?
- Are customers returning after they buy the first time? Having Live 
entertainment can attract new customers to your business or events,  Call us when you 
want to promote your organization and or events.

Answering these kinds of questions will attract a group of small-business 
owners or professionals trying to grow their businesses. And that's likely the 
perfect target market for one who chooses to speak on marketing topics.   Key 
phrase for you:  "Say It With Music"

Last but not least, publicize the fact that you will be speaking. Send a 
press release to targeted media as well as your current customer base announcing 
your speaking engagement. PR can feed upon PR, and speaking is one way to do 
that.  You can also take your act or a part of it and actually perfom a couple 
of numbers for them to give them the idea.   

Getting your act in front of as many potential buyers as possible can land 
you a lot of jobs that you might otherwise never have even known about, and the 
folks who might hire you might also never know or think about calling you to 
add to their events.

Many businesses have grand opening sales etc, and you can get a list of these 
new businesses from the Chamber of Commerce and or new business license 
listings int he newspapers etc.   

These little gigs can and usually happen in the daytime  business hours and 
can add up to a decent number of gigs a year, which you can basically use as 
rehearsals and auditions, most will lead to other jobs big and small.

If they can see and hear yoiu they will buy you much quicker than just 
getting a phone call or a letter,   That's Why they call it "LIVE MUSIC"

Hope this gives some of your folks some good ideas,  Shamless Marketing 
everyday keeps the calendar full of gigs and making money.   Now go get em.  OKOM 
is the best kind of music to do these promotions with, and will stop shoppers 
and peole in their tracks.

Don't forget to have your CDs there to sell as well, and if a person is 
really intereted in hiring you GIVE them the CD for free, it is the best audition 
you can have and also a great business card.   So it costs a couple bucks, if 
you book a gig for more than two bucks it paid for itself.

NOw go contact every PTA association in every school in your city area and 
offer to play a fundraising event for them  let them arrange to get the school 
auditorium and pay for printing up flyers to send home with every kid in school 
to attract their parents to come to a concert to raise  money for the school. 
  Offer to split the income 50/50 with them, and try to set the performances 
up on Mon. Tues. Wed.  when most groups are not playing anyway, good time is 
right after dinner time and for no more than an hour and a half, the kids have 
to go to school the next day, and the parents have to go to work.

Take your CDs to each performance and sell them as well,  you will start to 
get lots of other jobs like weddings and Birthday parties etc from these 
events.

As musicians we think about music and playing and gigs all the time, but we 
must remember that there are a lot offolks out there who do not and need 
exposure to us and what we do to stimulate them into hiring live music.   They are 
not going to call the  AFof M Union hall to find a band.  Most of them have 
never even heard of the Union anyway.