Getting the Gig - Part 2

Once you have established your goals as far as gigging is concerned you should get down all the names of the venues you could potentially play at; make notes on contact details such as postal addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. You should also get a list of promoters who specialise in putting bands on in different venues, they could also point you in the right direction.

Before you start contacting people or venues you should have your demo's ready with a short press pack (a piece of paper with a good photograph of the band describing the bands style of music, the achievements, bands you've played with and also what the band expects in the future plan. Keep it short and concise, don't babble on with long sentences as promoters don't have the time to read “crap”.

When phoning up a venue ask who to talk to with regards to getting a gig, ask if they are free and if they are not then ask when they may be free to talk to. Always remain courteous and polite, it may be a nice added touch to speak to them by name as it is a sign of respect and they will remember it; this also applies when going into the venue in person to attempt to get a gig.

If a venue/promoter hasn't contacted you for a while then it may be a good idea to politely call them to remind them that you are after a gig, don't pester them though! Often they may have forgot to consider you for a line up and this will trigger their memory. It may help to quote a time and date that you initially made contact with them as this shows your commitment and desire to play for them... this will definitely impress them!

It always helps to offer to play for free or relatively low fee's, it also helps to say that you can pull a reasonable crowd(don't lie!); remember that promoters are running a business, they want to make as much money as possible to cover their fee's and also want the security of a band who can pull the figures they quote.

If you still have trouble getting your first gig than maybe you should looking into putting on your own gig? The next section covers this.