Tips on Finding the Best Publicist for your Band

To  get noticed and heard in the music industry in this age of the Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, it takes effective publicity which involves good communication and teamwork.  The best publicist is one who works on independent releases and you can feel they connect with you and has proven to be able to connect with the audience using modern and standard channels.  Finding the ideal publicist for your band will cost you though; here are the 10 best tips to help you through this process, whether you are looking for a permanent publicist, for your next tour or album.

1. Check there track record: When searchhing for a quality music publicist, among the initial details you will get about them besides the name is how long they have been handling Public Relations for which musicians presently or have in the past.  You should also find out where else they featured in, and have a look at their blogs and try find if you know any writers, media producers in the music press and the media they may have had solid relations with because positive work sells itself.

2. Follow referrals, read Reviews: If you expect to hire a publicist that will be aggressive in hunting for you, you have to do the hunting yourself.  It is much easier to find reliable information today on these subjects because of the internet, take advantage of it.  Talk to referrals and check out publicist reviews and make a list of a few.  Every now and then you come across a name, on a blog referral and your heart will feel it when you know it’s the perfect fit for your needs.  Follow any promising link and gather information before moving forward.

3. What’s the Publicist’s current client roster: The best place to start following a promising lead?  If you follow a referral that takes you to the contact of the publicist, find out how effective they are in promoting their clients and what techniques they are using to see if it is what you are looking for.  However, I would advise you to consider only publicists who currently have not so many campaigns running, you need to find a publicist who will have time for you and who can give your music the attention it takes to truly absorb and feel it.

4. Find a publicist that specializes in your music genre: this is a very important point many bands and solos overlook, yet it is very important.  Just because a publicist is doing amazingly well promoting a friend who plays jazz doesn’t mean they can turn your next rock tour into a cosmic travel.  Be smart, look out for the small things.  A publicist may take your project because you have talent, but unless they feel you first, you will not really get efficiently understand each other.

5. Your publicist and your audience must connect:  This means that your publicist must be on the same page with your kind of crowd.  You don’t need to be supporting the same football team or watch the same TV shows but you must see that you can form a connection outside the studio and office.  Make a friend first and you will make a wonderful partner.  Your publicist should not only understand but ‘know’ how to be your fan second.

6. Good communication breeds teamwork:  While assessing a potential publicist for suitability to handle your PR, get to know how forthcoming they are on information such as schedules, fees, plans and everything else.  The best publicist is not one that uses and industry jargon to end every sentence, it is one that communicates the clearest and in time.

7. What do they think about your music?  When considering a candidate to be your publicist, you would want him or her to be your fan, but if not a mentor who believes you have the potential to reach out and turns millions of people out there into your fans.  Get your mixtape to the publicist ( make sure it has a fire ass mixtape cover and look for the belief and enthusiasm that comes with good communication.

8. Set expectations and make them clear:  Before you chose your publicist, it is important to set the right expectations and be clear on what you are seeking.  Do you want a local or an international campaign?  Do you want a publicist to handle press and organize tours or just a PR manager to connect with fans online?  You should also understand when the publicist is available and what opportunities they see.  Setting expectations MUST go both ways for it to work.

9. Responsiveness:  How long did it take for the publicist to respond when you approached them about working together?  Did they have time for you or did they just pass you on to an assistant?  Being a musician is not a job, it is your life, and you should expect to find a publicist that is prompt, pays attention to detail and understands more than just audio and visual communication and responds to them.  Trust me, you will come back here and thank me I pointed this out.

10. Budget: Finally, find out how much it will cost you to hire the right publicist.  Can you afford what they are asking?  Based on the duration of the contract, does your band have sufficient finances to keep the publicist comfortable and dedicated even if things go south?  Remember that hiring the best publicist could be costly considering you just got a team member whose fruits are not instantaneous.

You are now set to find the best referral for your next album, tour or public relations project.

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