love sure beats living in a cardboard box along some forgotten alley. Some revenue
sources include original music; live shows; digital downloads; merchandise such as t-
shirts and CDs. There are also potential opportunities for licensing and selling your tunes
for various commercial applications, writing and playing music for games, theater, broad-
cast, etc.
- Action/promotion plans–These are your objectives. It’s where you detail how you’re
going to reach your goals. Your action plans might address these points:- Print, including flyers, posters, business cards, etc.
- The Internet, including your band’s Website, blog and social media
- Public relations and networking
- Developing a press kit
- Live show development–What will you do on stage that is unique, has impact, en-
gages the audience and is memorable? Also consider whether you’ll need props
and special equipment. This section can also cover your strategy for playing bene-
fits to gain recognition and similar venues.
- Merchandise–Merchandise is stuff you sell at shows and can give away as a promo-
tional tool. The typical stuff includes CDs, t-shirts and posters. But why not get imagina-
tive and stretch yourself a bit? How about a USB drive with your band’s logo and a few
tunes on it? Key chain bottle openers can be a hit as well as beer koozies. Nobody likes a
warm beer at a show. These are also called premium items and most are dirt cheap to buy,
while often selling for at nice profit.
- Budget–This is exactly what it sounds like. How much money is it going to cost you to
jump-start and continue your marketing and promotional efforts? You don’t need all the