When we launched ECHE, we were so excited! Of course, we wanted artists like you from all over America to flock to www.echemusic.com, join and start uploading their songs. However, are you ready for radio? Have you taken care of the necessary prerequisites?
Here are four things you may want to do before sending your songs to radio:
- Set up a website. This is fundamental. It’s your home on the Internet and helps establish your brand. Your website should also be the main place you sell your music and communicate with your fans.
- Start building your fan base. Radio wants listeners so they can attract advertising so they can stay in business. If you’re not bringing listeners, radio is less likely to want to play your music. Your fans are radio’s listeners.
- Have a marketing strategy. Where can radio find you other than in their inboxes? Are you promoting yourself?
- Follow the radio station’s instructions, present a nice looking cover and/or package and have a good song (fundamental) and you’re easy to work with.
Bonus tip:
Be professional and respectful. Don’t approach radio DJs and program directors as though you’re best friends. And certainly don’t approach them as though they have to play your music. Radio programmers receive a lot of music. There’s no guarantee they will play yours and they have no obligation to.
Maybe you haven’t completed every item on the list. Don’t be discouraged. ECHE can still be a useful tool for you, especially for numbers 2 and 3. Sign up, build your profile and upload a couple of songs you want to send to radio. Then ask people to rate your songs. We’ll give them a listen as well. Based on the ratings, you’ll get an idea of how they’ll be received by the listening public. You may even decide to submit different songs. It happens! Want constructive criticism? Let us know and we’ll have our radio partners provide some feedback.
Do you have any tips I left out? Put them in the comments.