[Dixielandjazz] Band Branding or Finding Differentiation.

[Stephen G Barbone]

 From the ISound Blog. Perhaps the most important question any  
"working" band leader faces is "How do I differentiate my band from  
all the others in my genre?" Like, we have many bands on the Left  
Coast that play a West Coast Revival style. Are they different from  
each other?  Should they be different?

Why was Condon so successful during a time that Dixieland was passing  
from musical favor and other Dixielanders were leaving for greener  
pastures?

While the below article is about a Rock band differentiating itself,  
the example is easily transferable to any genre.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband



Sunday, November 16th, 2008
Marketing Music: Your Band Brand
By: Peter Risman Pilot MarketingStrategy Peter at PilotMarketingStrategy

Installment 1 – Your Band Brand Everyone has a personal brand –their  
own unique identity.  Everything about you is included in your  
personal brand: what you look like; how you speak; how you dress; the  
car you drive; the books you read – the list is endless. You have a  
personal brand, whether you want one or not. Whether you are  
intentional about it or not. Everyone who comes in contact with you  
also interacts with your brand.  Your personal brand often precedes  
you. People begin forming impressions about you based upon the visual  
aspects of your personal brand, well before you even open your mouth  
to speak. Think I’m kidding? When was the last time someone who was  
significantly better looking, better dressed, in better shape,  
smarter,and more talented agreed to go on a date with you?  All  
right,then.  Every band has a brand – its own unique identity.  The  
same rules that apply to individuals apply to bands as well.  
Everything about your band is part of its brand: what each of you look  
like; how you dress; the instruments you use, the music that you play  
– the list is endless. Your band has a brand, whether you want one or  
not. Whether you are intentional about creating it or not. Everyone  
who comes in contact with your band also interacts with its brand.    
What’s all this marketing mumbo-jumbo have to do with rock and roll

The classic example of a rock band being intentional about defining  
its brand isthe story of Vincent Furnier and his band Nazz. In the  
late Sixties, Nazz was a struggling Los Angeles band, unable to catch  
abreak. Living with Pink Floyd, playing on the same bill as the Doors.  
A solid rock band in a city filled with solid rock bands, and going  
nowhere fast. Then they got intentional about creating their brand.“… 
There was that moment of saying: ‘We’re frustrated. We better do  
something that’s going to get us a lot of attention.’ That’s when  
Alice was created. That’s when I said ‘Let’s create this character  
that every parent in the world is gonna hate.’ The audience was going  
to go with whatever their parents hated...” (Terry Gross interview  
with Alice Cooper) I said, "I can create this Alice character to be  
the greatest rock villain of all time." (Andrew Denton interview with  
Alice Cooper)  Alice Cooper was the direct result of a decision to be  
intentional about creating a brand that was groundbreaking, andat the  
same time coolly calculated. If every rock band in the world was  
playing Peter Pan, Vincent Furnier was going to play Captain Hook.  
(AndrewDenton interview with Alice Cooper)  And the rest,as they say,  
is history.   if your band doesn’t define its brand, your audience  
will define it for you…  …And probably get it wrong.