Gigging thing - opinions, please!

[mrph]

(With apologies to diffrentcolours for poaching the title...)

There's been a fair bit of debate about gigs and promoters elsewhere on LJ today - mostly about a specific incident, but with some discussion of what should be expected/provided, good practice and all that sort of thing.

And thinking about it, there are a few musical and promotery types reading this journal. So...

What advice should be in a FAQ/guide for first time gig promoters?

Or, from the other point of view, for new bands who are about to start playing gigs?
Edit: actually, there seems to be a very decent take on the band's checklist here. Which the gigging thing lyrics indirectly reminded me of... :)

Comments

Addendum

[mrph.livejournal.com]

6. ...and for more than a week beforehand. Unless you've got a regular slot, at least four weeks is a good span of time to advertise...

7. Food and drink can always be specified in the contract, too. That way you don't get caught offguard when your band turn out to be veggies (or vegan) and can't eat your lovingly prepared ham sandwiches. :)

Addendum 2

[sogoth.livejournal.com]

6... don't just stick to your town either. Spread the advertising as far and wide as possible. Let the band have access to the flyer designs, or send them some printed ones; they have as much interest in the gig being successful as you do. Place the flyer on your website, place links to it on newsgroups, LJ and any other online resource you can find (though probably no more than twice on one site as it looks like spam after that)

Re: Addendum 2

[sogoth.livejournal.com]

This reminds me. Tips on designing decent, effective flyers could be useful too.

If it's electronic make it black and white, not shades of grey/colour. Otherwise it doesn't photocopy properly and just looks shit.

If you can afford it, spend a little extra on decent quality paper rather than using your work photocopier. Decent quality flyers make it look like you care more. Full colour really attracts attention (though can cost a lot)

Don't forget things like venue address, web address, ticket prices, opening/closing times and band lineup on the flyers. It's amazing what people forget to put on!

Make it seem like great value. If it's £3 entry on the door, make the flyer say "£3 entry on the door with this flyer". More people will keep the flyers and remember about the gig if there's a specific reason to keep the thing. Works even better if it's like us and you can't charge entry as we get to put the word "FREE!" on them :)

Don't clutter your flyers with big, complicated colour background images that can obscure the text. If you want a background make sure the text resides within a box that has a single colour background, or at least ensure that it's big enough and bold enough to be obviously different. (include some examples of good and bad flyer designs on the site? - not real flyers though as this may upset the people that spent time designing them)

Re: Addendum 2

[mrph.livejournal.com]

...and do try not to change the date, venue or headliner after you've flyered the whole wide world.

[Case in point: I have a glossy Elektrofest flyer next to me right now. If I hadn't read the latest blurb on http://www.flagpromotions.com I wouldn't know it had moved to the Islington Academy...]

Re: Addendum 2

[sogoth.livejournal.com]

that's handy to know. I wasn't aware that it had moved venue!

Flyer design revisited

[mrph.livejournal.com]

Don't forget that flyers need to be readable in low light conditions - at least if you're flyering clubs. Which is another good reason to use light backgrounds and big, chunky lettering.

You want something that'll look interesting before they actually pick it up - otherwise it risks a short and soggy life as a beermat!

Re: Addendum 2

[shermarama]

Check if the bands have done a flyer; in some cases they might have come up with something better!

I'd like to chime in from my own point of view, which is as a musician.

Sound - the sound engineer is the centre of the whole experience as far as the bands are concerned. The house sound engineer is not God, I've met some very bad ones, in fact the last gig I played saw me doing most of the work of chivvying bands and gear on and off stage to try and get a soundcheck for any of us. I don't expect to have to teach a sound engineer how to use a multimeter to check if a lead is dodgy but I did that night.

And, I view contracts as pretty much a waste of paper unless you're getting into bands with serious management. What's supposed to happen if you don't do something that's written on the piece of paper? There's not the slightest chance of being able to claim redress over anything without good-will between the parties, in which case you don't need a piece of paper. What's the point in being able to wave a piece of paper and complain if the gig turns out rubbish, in the case of either party's fault?