As a musician, booking events and selling merchandise is essential for building a successful and sustainable career. However, competing in a market with limited opportunities and networking challenges can be discouraging. In this article, we’ll guide you through actionable tips and suggestions to increase your chances of booking events, boost your merchandise sales, and establish a professional social media presence to excel your music career.
Challenges in Booking Events and Festivals
Booking events and festivals can be challenging, and many musicians struggle to secure gigs. Competition is high, and networking can be complicated. Profiling the issues can be beneficial to find proactive solutions. Having a limited network, negotiating fees, or submitting applications with irrelevant information can be one of the critical obstacles that musicians face in booking events.
Solutions and Suggestions for Successful Event Bookings
To increase your chances of booking events and festivals, we’ve collated a few suggestions that could be helpful. Networking with other artists or professionals in the industry can aid connections and expand your network. Building a professional EPK with a track record of performances, tweaking your application with personalized information, and collaborating with other musicians can add value and differentiate you from those in your competition.
FestivalNet.com offers a platform to create an EPK! Pro Members can upload images, video, songs, biography, and even documents for event producers to download (should you want to share your stage set up, song list, brochure...). You can share your FestivalNet profile link just as you would a website link. Include your festivalnet profile link in your email signature and share on social media posts.
Following up is necessary in getting booked. One can not send a blind email to an event promoter and forget about it. Set up a system that works for you to follow up via phone call and email. In the FestivalNet pro search database, there is a 'reminders' link that toggles with your Google or Yahoo calendar to quickly help you set up personal reminders. There is also a 'MyNotes' link associated with each event that allows you to make personal comments on the event and track your steps in getting booked. Lastly, be sure to utilize the 'hide' function in pro search if there is an event that does not work for you and you would rather it not come up again in your search results.
Get far ahead of posted deadlines. You can search by musician deadline on FestivalNet to get ahead of posted deadlines.
Boosting Merchandise Sales and Unique Marketing Ideas
Merchandise sales are an essential revenue stream for musicians. Creating unique and high-quality merchandise is increasingly crucial to stand out in the market. You can increase sales by creating exclusive items with limited editions and collaborating with local businesses to cross-promote each other. Also, utilizing online platforms and integrating marketing initiatives can be effective to expand outreach and increase sales.
FestivalNet allows Pro Members a free 10 item merch shop! No monthly fee, no listing fee, and just 5% commission on sales is associated with the Pro Shop plan.
Establishing a Professional Online Social Media Presence
Social media is essential for boosting your career and outreach to fans. Maintaining an impressive online presence can differentiate you from your competitors. You could boost your social media presence by engaging with fans frequently, creating visually appealing posts, and interacting with your audience. Utilizing targeted advertising and sharing content frequently can prompt fan engagement and lead to more significant sales for merchandise and event bookings.
To maximize your success in booking events and increasing merchandise sales, it’s essential to overcome the challenges that musicians face in the competitive market using creative solutions. Establishing an effective social media presence, collaborating with local businesses, and building professional relationships in the industry can assist in expanding your opportunities. FestivalNet Pro Member perks are a great help in finding events, staying organized, and networking with an online EPK. Implementing these strategies will lead to more successful event bookings and merchandise sales and build a sustainable music career.
