All-new Webinar Series Premiers April 25th!
This Thursday, April 25th we’re hosting a FREE, one-hour webinar that we’ve dubbed “The Art of Tasteful Boasting: How to write a press-worthy biography & tagline. We are very excited to play host to an AWESOME cast of Panelists, including:
- Julia Rogers - MusicianCoaching.com
- Chris Robley - CD Baby
- Jem Bahaijoub - imaginePR
We’ll be discussing the challenges that go along with writing strong artist bios and attention grabbing taglines for use in your Presskit, press releases, and one sheets. We’ll be covering topics like finding your narrative voice and overcoming writer’s block. We’ll also open it up for questions so you can ask about anything we don’t cover.
PIMP YOUR EPK: A Webinar hosted by Dotted Music
On Wednesday, April 10th at 11AM PDT (2PM EDT), Andrew Apanov of Dotted Music and the Stand Above the Noise video series will be hosting a 30-minute webinar called “Pimp Your EPK” and has chosen to use Presskit.to as the sample EPK platform. We’ll have a Presskit.to team member on hand to answer questions and chime in with tips throughout.
Get Hired: Think like a Hiring Manager
Written by Sophia Moon.
Standing between you and your dream job is a gatekeeper, namely the hiring manager who sorts through hundreds, sometimes thousands of submissions to match candidates to open positions. They are experts at spotting careless errors, have no tolerance for missing information, and will unemotionally eliminate unfit candidates to get to a manageable few that show the most promise.
The challenge of dazzling a hiring manager is manifold - to provide the right information to stand out amongst all the candidates, while selectively adding samples from your portfolio that best represent you and your work.
A helpful exercise, I find, is to think like the hiring manager who comes across your Presskit and resume. Let’s assume for the purpose of this exercise that you are absolutely qualified for job “X”. How do you create a Presskit that showcases your talents and compels a hiring manager to see you as a strong candidate for your dream job? Now, go assemble your Presskit to include all of that relevant information and content. Every individual has unique experiences so with a media-rich Presskits you can really distinguish yourself with examples of your work.
Check out T.J. Petracca and Reynold Roque’s Presskits for great examples.
Below is a basic checklist of items your Presskit should definitely have. (Note: these are the minimum Presskit requirements for Justine Taormino to submit your Presskit for opportunities on the Berklee LA Opps Board as well.)
- Name: Your Name, Band Name, Company Name - whichever is relevant to the job you are seeking.
- Cover Image: High-Res Professional Headshot or band photo; or company logo.
- Current Location
- Professional Skill
- Video Introduction: Read blog post on Video Introductions here.
- Professional Resume: Upload to your Presskit in the Files section, under the media tab.
- Media: At least one (1): audio, video, image
- Bio: A short description of yourself and your work (Tip: list your accomplishments in the Wins section)
- Wins: Highlight a minimum of 2-3 notable accomplishments
- Contact Information
- Links: Website and social media presence (Tip: Avoid adding personal social media links.)
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Sophia Moon is the Chief Marketing Strategist for Presskit.to. She holds an MBA in Marketing from the D’Amore-McKim School of Business; and a BA in Sociology from Brandeis University. Sophia specializes in brand management, content strategy and social media marketing. She is a well-respected, independent Singer-Songwriter, currently working on her second album, Shades of Love (Acoustic R&B) .
Make A Great First Impression With A Video Introduction
Written by Sophia Moon.
It’s a dog eat dog world out there and that dream job you’re applying for has applicants lined up from here to Timbuktu. Having a neat Presskit that showcases your professional resume, wins, and media will definitely put you in the lead, but a video introduction might be just the personal touch that could set you apart from a sea of candidates.
To that end, here are some simple steps to creating your own introduction video.
Featured Presskit: Hello Bear (Norwich, UK)
We’re psyched to announce that our featured Presskits are now supported by Audio Cotton. Need tees? Audio Cotton will make it happen and has some really affordable options, including one off prints.
Check them out at http://audiocotton.com, and be on the lookout for their new website launching soon.
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Between their Melodic vocals and Punchy guitar and bass lines, Hello Bear caught my ear instantly. With the visual image to accompany the sound, these guys are ripping up the UK’s Pop/Rock scene both on the Airwaves and on Stage.
We had the pleasure of interviewing Hello Bear’s Manager James Richardson about how they’re using Presskit.to/HelloBear to showcase their career, and how some of their awesome initiatives have brought them the success they’ve seen thus far. Check it out!
Presskit.to: How have you used Presskit.to/HelloBear to showcase your career thus far?
James Richardson: We’ve used our Presskit extensively for a recent radio campaign (which we received national airplay from Amazing Radio amongst others) and we’ve been sending it to other promoters to secure more shows/future touring opportunities ever since. Just recently actually we managed to secure a great London show to coincide with the Single we’re launching in November. I really think our Presskit aids us in our pitches by having lots of relevant content plugins like Soundcloud and Youtube available in a visual way. Being able to showcase your notable achievements into categorized Wins is another feature we’ve found useful too.
Pk: In 2010 Hello Bear won the Next Big Thing Competition. Have you seen any notable Dividends from this Win?
JR: I think we’ll let the giant cheque do the talking here ;)
Pk: You guys have included several of your Music Videos in your Presskit, and they’re all great! Have you seen these Videos as a useful way to showcase the group when reaching out to Agents, Promoters, etc.?
JR: Thanks very much! It’s very important to show a visual side to the band’s music, and I think it helps promoters to really ‘get’ what they’re about, and how they can fit into one of their nights. I mean, without seeing what the band is like live it can sometimes be difficult to understand what a band is all about just by listening to one of their tracks. Hello Bear is quite a fun, animated band so it always helps to use videos to showcase this kind of thing.
Pk: In March, Hello Bear was featured in Artrocker Magazine. Can you tell us a little about that Win?
JR: They were featured in the ‘New Blood’ section which is their area for showcasing the best new artists around, and basically who Artrocker think you should be keeping an eye on. It was great to be included in that feature and they were very kind to the guys in this review. We also had a full page ad the following month which was great as the album was released then.
Pk: What’s up for Hello Bear in the coming months? Anything we should keep an eye out for?
JR: Next month (the 12th of November) we’re going to be releasing the fourth and final single from their ‘This One Girl…’ album, it’s going to be called ‘64 Hit Combo’ and the video is going to have a thumb wrestling theme to it! They’re also gearing up to record the 2nd album which we’re hopefully going to encourage some label interest with.
Pk: Thanks James!!
Ways to use Presskit.to: Professional/Personal Resume
Here’s Part 3 of our blog series outlining ways to use Presskit.to. For Part 1 on Creating a Presskit for an Upcoming Album Release, click here. For Part 2 on Creating a Presskit for an Upcoming Tour, click here.
Don’t call us. We’ll call you.
The job market in today’s economy is a dog-eat-dog world. With the competition greatly outweighing the number of available jobs, it’s important that individuals remain on their toes and find tactful ways to set themselves apart from the rest of the crowd.
The days of the PDF Resume are over. Gone are the lines of hyperlinked text directing to your latest portfolio accomplishments. Present yourself like an Amateur Professional - NOT a Professional Amateur. Presskit.to is the best platform to showcase your abilities as an individual and a professional competing in the job market. Check it out!
Cover Art: You, of course! Make sure it’s a picture you’re okay with using in a professional setting.
Title: Naturally, the Title of your Presskit should be your name, if you’re using it as a way to present yourself as an individual. List your Hometown as wherever you’re active in the Job Market.
Tagline: Throw in a few words about yourself, such as “2010 Graduate of University of California, Santa Cruz” or “Law School Student currently applying for Internship Opportunities.”
Media+
Audio: Include anything you’ve done that can be encompassed in an audio form: speeches, interviews, lessons, spoken word/poetry, performances, or even an “about me” introduction to your potential employer.
Video: Include some videos of you performing, speaking, teaching, or even a video introduction of yourself. This section can be used to show people what you do.
Images: Throw in your Headshots, Photos of you “hard at work”, or PDF’s where you’ve been written about, etc. Feel free to get as creative as you’d like!
Files: Include your most recent Resume in your Files section.
About
Bio: Write a concise biography of you as an individual - from school credentials and areas of study, to past and current experience in your working field. Be detailed, but remember that no one appreciates hearing your life story.
Members: Well, this section is fairly self-explanatory. Add your name as well as the current or past positions you’ve held professionally in the Role/Instrument field.
Links: Add relevant links to your professional career in the links section, such as your LinkedIn profile or your personal website. Mark the 4 most relevant links to your career as Featured Links. Note: If you choose to post your personal Facebook profile in the Links section, you may want to do a sweep of the information that’s listed on your profile to make sure it’s work-friendly.
Wins: Add your accomplishments to the Wins section, like Graduating from College, winning a Scholarship, or any awards that you’ve gotten over the years. You can take a lot of accomplishments from your resume in the event that you don’t know how to brag about yourself!
Contact
List your email address and phone number, and street address if you feel comfortable.
Calendar
List any important events that you plan to attend, or use this section to plot out your un-availability for the next series of months. For example, you could list “Going on Vacation” as one of the Calendar items, and specify the duration and other details.
Ways to use Presskit.to: Upcoming Tour
Here’s Part 2 of our blog series outlining ways to use Presskit.to. For Part 1, click here.
Congratulations!! Your tour kicked off with a BANG!
Well, unfortunately, that “bang” we’re referring to was your transmission disconnecting itself from the undercarriage of your 15 passenger. Bummer, man. As you patiently await AAA’s arrival, you wonder how the hell you’ll make it to Saratoga in time for your 9 o’clock set.
Presskit.to probably can’t help you out in that kind of a situation while you’re on tour. What it can help with, though, is a TON of other things. One of the hardest parts of getting a tour together is the planning of it. Placing phone calls to venues, promoters, bookers, and getting lost in email chains has just about worn you out. So let us help with the clerical side of things so that you can prepare to rock the faces off audiences nationwide.
Title: The title of your Presskit should reflect the name of the Tour. (i.e. The Thickness West Coast Tour)
Tagline: Use the Tagline to describe the tour in short detail.
“The Thickness will embark on an 18 day tour along the West Coast.”
Cover Art: The Cover Art should reflect the press images used on the tour, a flyer for the tour, or the album that the tour is supporting.
Media+
Audio
Include songs from the album you’re supporting in the Audio Section. Also include a song by the opening acts on the tour.
Video
Add performance videos, tour announcements, promotional videos for the tour, the Kickstarter video that funded your tour, and on-the-road documentaries to the Videos section.
Images
Add Tour Flyer images, Press photos, and Live shots to the Images section.
Files
Add your Technical Requirements, Stage Plot, Press Release, Riders, and Day Book to the Files Section. This will be extremely useful to send to Production Managers, as well as Promoters throughout the tour.
About
Bio
Under the Bio section, include a summary of who’s performing on the tour, why the band is touring, and which venues/cities the tour will be stopping in.
Members
Include Bands performing on the tour in the Members section.
Links
Add links to bands’ Facebook & Twitter pages to keep up with them on tour. Also include links to the group’s Online Store, Official Web Page, and any Venues in which they’ll be performing.
- Tip: Be sure to include a link to your main Artist Presskit in your links section, and make it one of your Featured Links for easy access.
Wins
Add Wins for the tour as they are completed. For example, “First Show of the Tour” or “Sold-Out Hometown Show” could be notable milestones of the tour.
Contact
Be sure to list the Tour Managers, Business Managers, and Booking Agents that are working on the tour. Also include a contact person for the Band.
Calendar
Add tour dates to the Calendar, and be sure to include information in the description about the show. For example:
“Doors at 6pm. 18+ show. $5 presale, $10 at the door. Tickets available here.”
Ways to use Presskit.to: Album Release
Here’s part 1 of our blog series outlining ways to use Presskit.to.
So, your band is just about to release your debut album. (Or your 3rd album. Maybe your 50th…) Regardless, any new release deserves it’s own publicity. What better way to showcase a new album than to create a Presskit specifically for it?
*Cue Billy Mays voice*
That’s right, folks!! Presskit.to is the PERFECT platform to not only showcase you as an artist - but all of the Projects related to your music career!
All kidding aside, there are multiple uses of Presskit.to that you can take advantage of, and an Upcoming Album Release is a perfect example.
Upcoming Album Release
Cover Art
The Cover Art for your Presskit should reflect that of your album - it’s Cover art! This is the first thing that will catch the viewer’s eye, so give your Album Art the chance to stand out!
Title
Different from a Presskit for a Band or Artist, the Title of your Presskit should be the name of the album.
Tagline
This is an opportunity to give a little more insight about your album. Feel free to give a little detail into a certain aspect of the album. For example, one could write:
“The Band’s 3rd studio album, recorded at Avatar Studios in New York City.”
Media+
Audio
Use the SoundCloud audio section to showcase some of the New Album’s material. Add two or three songs as a teaser, or add the whole album and make certain songs Private. This gives a great opportunity to Share your unreleased material with a Publicist that’s reviewing your album before it’s released.
Video
Add “Making of the Album” videos, In-studio documentaries, the Kickstarter video that funded the project over the edge, or anything else that’s relevant to the release of your new album.
Photos
Be sure to include a Hi-res image of the Cover Art, as well as any other PDF liner notes or Press images used with the release of the album.
Files
Use the Files section to include PDF files of Song Lyrics, Liner Notes & Album Art, Artist Logos, and a Zipped Folder containing the Album’s songs in MP3 Format. Remember: You can set these Files to Private to ensure that the general public won’t see anything you don’t want them to!
About
Bio
The Bio section of your Presskit can be used to discuss the process of recording your new album - from the writing stages, to where you recorded, who you worked with, the track listing, and any Thank You’s you’d like to include. Feel free to insert as much info about the album as possible, as this is a great place to insert anything special about this album and its awaited release.
Members
Add Band members, as well as Producers, Engineers, Additional Musicians, and Songwriters related to the album in the Members section. This can act as a place to properly credit those who recorded and worked on the album.
Wins
As your album gains momentum, try adding some Wins to your Presskit. Album Release Dates, Radio Rotation, and Benchmarks in Sales can act as Milestones for the album, while Album Reviews can serve as great Press quotes!
Links
Add all relevant links related to the band to the Links section of your Presskit. To tie your Album’s Presskit back to your Artist/Band Presskit, make your Artist Presskit a Featured Link for easy access. Be sure to include a link where someone can buy/download the album!
Contact
Add contact info for the Band, Record Label, Publicist, or Management in the Contact Section.
Calendar
Use the Calendar Section to list Release Dates, In-store Signings, Radio Interviews, or Tour Dates surrounding your new Album.
It’s Aliiiiiiive! Presskit.to public beta that is!
It’s PB Launch Day at Presskit.to (and we don’t mean we’re starting an all out Peanut Butter war in the cafeteria, although that sounds like a most triumphant time.) It’s PUBLIC BETA - What you’ve all been waiting for.
It’s been an incredible journey getting to this point and we couldn’t be more excited to see what happens next. It’s an extremely proud moment for the entire Indie Ambassador team - and we’re happy that you’re a part of it!
We are all musicians and young industry guys (and gals) who are actively involved in the new music landscape. Building Presskit.to alongside our peers in the field has been an awesome experience and it’s something that won’t ever change. This is only the beginning of what our team is capable of and how much we want to contribute to music & it’s future development.
There’s a ton more to do with the site and we have some big things planned, but we’re honored to have you involved from the very start. It’s your musical career; we’re just here to help you communicate your work to the pros in style.
So - we’re raising a glass to you dear musician, maverick of creativity, for working towards your dreams no matter how big or daunting. We all contribute to this industry, and today, we hope to have made it just a little bit brighter..
Make it happen!
Ben! & team Indie Ambassador
Now get familiar with Presskit.to!
