'Tis the seasons to tour! And what a better way to prepare for your first time, or to give yourself a little refresher on how things should go.
We'll start out with the simple touring things:
1. Avoid Big Cities.
This may be disappointing to some, but there is wayyy too much competition for peoples' attention and loyalty in places like New York City and LA. And unless you're a big band or actually live in these cities and have already been playing there, your best bet is to build a strong following in your city and the surrounding cities. Once you have a sizable following, gradually start to expand your playing field to larger cities.
2. Don't Rush To Get a Bus
Buses are crazy expensive! Your band needs and of course wants a vehicle that is safe, reliable, and cost-effective. Unless you plan on selling all your merch and maxing out every venue, any profit you make will go toward a tour bus. On average, the cost of a bus per day could be from $2,500- $3,000 per day! (YIKES). Stay small.
3. Don't be in hurry to play for no one.
It's great to be excited to play shows, but sometimes bands will jump at the opportunity to play without determining whether a particular show is worth the effort. When you play a show at a certain venue in a certain city, you are helping people to associate your band with other bands and venues. Research the venues that you'll be playing at and determined whether they're a good fit for your band/music before giving the okay. Make sure that people are actually going to show up to see you play!
4. Protect Your Equipment
When loading/unloading equipment, setting up, or leaving your vehicle, there are certain things you can do to protect your gear and vehicle from being stolen. First - lock the doors! Make sure that all band members have a copy of the van key. If possible, back your vehicle against the wall of a building in a way that prevents someone from opening the main door and getting into your equipment.
5. Get a Street Team! (& give them lots of respect)
A good street team can work miracles for a band. Not only can a street team spread the word about your music, they can also help out with small things that you may need on the road. Your street team can be a pool of resources, but you need to communicate with them as to what you need. Keep in mind, they are people and want to be respected. Tell them you appreciate their help, and reach out to them once in a while even when you don't need help. This will help your band build stronger, better relationships with the street team and can only help along the way.
6. Make sure your merch booth is placed well
Merch sales are one of the biggest ways to make revenue for your band. People will almost always pass up a merch booth that is hidden in deep dark corners of venues. They simply just won't see you. Your merch booth needs to be located in a traffic stream that is close to the venue's entrance, therefore making it easy to see.
7. Hire a Merch Person You Can Trust.
It's great that your drummer's kid sister wants to be a part of the entourage, but make sure that she's a good fit for the job. Handling merch is not the most glamorous of jobs, but it is one of the more important jobs for any band looking to make a profit. The merch person needs to be organized, able to count change, and have a working understanding of inventory, or they can wreck you financially. It's also wide to give your merch person a percentage of what you make for the night - this will give them incentive to their job well.
8. Get interview & Do well!
If you see the opportunity to get interviewed (wink, wink), go for it! It's a great chance for you to spread the word about your music and upcoming shows or projects. Research your interviewer (if you can) and his/her organization so that you can customize your interview so that it appeals to their following. ALWAYS have a purpose when interviewing.
9. Make a Budget
If you're serious about making your band a profit (for more tours, ect.), then I highly suggest you learn excel. Yes, it's a complete pain. Yes, you will hate it. But you can use formulas to calculate daily expenses and income. The good news? $$$ and once you know the formulas, excel does most of the work for you.
10. Hope for the best, expect the worst.
Not trying to be a pessimist, but when you're prepared for whatever can go wrong you're way better off. It doesn't make much sense to prepare yourselves to play in the best venue, in the best city, in front of the best crowd. Devise plans for things like power surges, alternate ways to get paid if you don't get money from ticket sales, etc. The music industry is all about improvisation - use that skill to prepare yourselves for anything your tour may throw at you, and you will succeed. (This in general is also good to live by.
Keep a look out, as the Summer touring season begins I'll be posting tips weekly!
We'll start out with the simple touring things:
1. Avoid Big Cities.
This may be disappointing to some, but there is wayyy too much competition for peoples' attention and loyalty in places like New York City and LA. And unless you're a big band or actually live in these cities and have already been playing there, your best bet is to build a strong following in your city and the surrounding cities. Once you have a sizable following, gradually start to expand your playing field to larger cities.
2. Don't Rush To Get a Bus
Buses are crazy expensive! Your band needs and of course wants a vehicle that is safe, reliable, and cost-effective. Unless you plan on selling all your merch and maxing out every venue, any profit you make will go toward a tour bus. On average, the cost of a bus per day could be from $2,500- $3,000 per day! (YIKES). Stay small.
3. Don't be in hurry to play for no one.
It's great to be excited to play shows, but sometimes bands will jump at the opportunity to play without determining whether a particular show is worth the effort. When you play a show at a certain venue in a certain city, you are helping people to associate your band with other bands and venues. Research the venues that you'll be playing at and determined whether they're a good fit for your band/music before giving the okay. Make sure that people are actually going to show up to see you play!
4. Protect Your Equipment
When loading/unloading equipment, setting up, or leaving your vehicle, there are certain things you can do to protect your gear and vehicle from being stolen. First - lock the doors! Make sure that all band members have a copy of the van key. If possible, back your vehicle against the wall of a building in a way that prevents someone from opening the main door and getting into your equipment.
5. Get a Street Team! (& give them lots of respect)
A good street team can work miracles for a band. Not only can a street team spread the word about your music, they can also help out with small things that you may need on the road. Your street team can be a pool of resources, but you need to communicate with them as to what you need. Keep in mind, they are people and want to be respected. Tell them you appreciate their help, and reach out to them once in a while even when you don't need help. This will help your band build stronger, better relationships with the street team and can only help along the way.
6. Make sure your merch booth is placed well
Merch sales are one of the biggest ways to make revenue for your band. People will almost always pass up a merch booth that is hidden in deep dark corners of venues. They simply just won't see you. Your merch booth needs to be located in a traffic stream that is close to the venue's entrance, therefore making it easy to see.
7. Hire a Merch Person You Can Trust.
It's great that your drummer's kid sister wants to be a part of the entourage, but make sure that she's a good fit for the job. Handling merch is not the most glamorous of jobs, but it is one of the more important jobs for any band looking to make a profit. The merch person needs to be organized, able to count change, and have a working understanding of inventory, or they can wreck you financially. It's also wide to give your merch person a percentage of what you make for the night - this will give them incentive to their job well.
8. Get interview & Do well!
If you see the opportunity to get interviewed (wink, wink), go for it! It's a great chance for you to spread the word about your music and upcoming shows or projects. Research your interviewer (if you can) and his/her organization so that you can customize your interview so that it appeals to their following. ALWAYS have a purpose when interviewing.
9. Make a Budget
If you're serious about making your band a profit (for more tours, ect.), then I highly suggest you learn excel. Yes, it's a complete pain. Yes, you will hate it. But you can use formulas to calculate daily expenses and income. The good news? $$$ and once you know the formulas, excel does most of the work for you.
10. Hope for the best, expect the worst.
Not trying to be a pessimist, but when you're prepared for whatever can go wrong you're way better off. It doesn't make much sense to prepare yourselves to play in the best venue, in the best city, in front of the best crowd. Devise plans for things like power surges, alternate ways to get paid if you don't get money from ticket sales, etc. The music industry is all about improvisation - use that skill to prepare yourselves for anything your tour may throw at you, and you will succeed. (This in general is also good to live by.
Keep a look out, as the Summer touring season begins I'll be posting tips weekly!