Getting Your Band Booked in Clubs Sonicbids hosted an awesome panel in our office about “Getting Your Band Booked in Clubs.” Panos (Sonicbids Founder & CEO) moderated the panel and tapped into the 100+ years of collective booking knowledge from our 6 bookers who participated. Here are some top takeaways I have from attending the panel: · Look at a venue's calendar online for open dates. If you’re browsing a venue’s website and you see a ‘TBA’ in the near future that they normally would book, send your EPK and inquire specifically about that date. Your chances of booking at that venue are higher if you can fill an open slot on a short notice versus a random inquiry. · Gig swapping is good. Befriending other bands is one of the better ways to get recognized by a promoter. · The 3/3 rule applies in most towns. This means that you do NOT want to play a gig three weeks before or after another gig in any given area. Unless you have a massive following, it almost always hurts your draw, and bookers ultimately want you to sell out their club. · Send a quick message with a few honest ways you can draw. When you send your personal note to the promoter, just give a few quick, realistic, and honest ways you can draw at the venue. Your EPK and music should show the promoter that you’re quality. · Be cool. If you're difficult to deal with on the gig, late, or unprofessional, bookers will remember and they will tell other bookers. The same goes if you make a great impression. It will get around. Being nice, considerate and responsible goes a long way. Want to listen to all of the tips given at the panel? We filmed it and have links to the whole thing on our Sonicbids YouTube (link: http://www.youtube.com/user/SonicBids#g/c/84B2B0193C01DAE6). About Sonicbids Sonicbids is the website the helps bands get gigs and promoters book the right bands. Our community includes more than 245,000 bands and 21,000 promoters and licensors from all around the world. With festivals, clubs, colleges, music licensing and much more, Sonicbids offers a diverse range of gigs for every kind of musician. In fact, last year alone, more than 71,000 gigs were booked on the site. The company was founded in 2001 by Panos Panay and continues to focus on its core mission of empowering the artistic middle class. Get a gig or book a band at www.sonicbids.com.
By Tess Cychosz, Community Manager at Sonicbids
