Every week, we highlight one of our favorite websites on Bandzoogle.  

Who: Treacherous Dogs  
What: Indie Rock Band
Where: London, UK
Why their website rocks: We love the header image that the Treacherous Dogs are using for their website, which looks great with one of our newest themes. We also love how they keep the design and content nice and simple throughout their site.

On their Photos page they have official promo photos, as well as an Instagram feed that helps keep the content fresh. And on their Videos page, they’ve embedded nice large videos so that fans can watch them comfortably right on the site. Nicely done guys!

Check it out at: www.treacherousdogs.com

As many of you may have heard, there is a bug affecting web servers called "Heartbleed" that can compromise your private data.  

We’d like to let you know that Bandzoogle sites were not affected.  Our e-mail server (Zimbra) was updated as soon as the bug was announced.

Mashable has a comprehensive list of sites that were affected (see the entire list here).

Several sites that musicians might use on a regular basis were potentially compromised. We recommend that you immediately change your passwords for the following sites if you have an account:

• Facebook

• Instagram

• Pinterest

• Tumblr

• Google / Gmail

• Yahoo / Yahoo Mail

• GoDaddy

• Dropbox

• Soundcloud

If you are using the same password for your Bandzoogle account as with any of the sites listed above, we recommend to also change your Bandzoogle password, just to be on the safe side. To do this, login to your account and click ‘change password’ from your Account tab, or use the 'Forgot password?' link at www.bandzoogle.com/login

- Team BZ

There are plenty of reasons for musicians to blog on a regular basis. First and foremost, blogging is one of the best ways to drive people to your website. Every time you create a new blog post, it’s an excuse for you to invite fans to check out your website.

Blogging also shows that you are active in your career. If a potential fan visits your site, enjoys your music, and then sees that you have months of regular blogging under your belt, they might click on a few posts to get a better sense of your personality. If they really like what they read, you might have a fan for life.

Blogging is a great way for your fans to get to know you better. Reading about you and your art adds context to the music, and that’s how they’ll come to value it more. They might be fans of your music already, but if they become fans of you on top of that, then the music gains an increased perceived value. Our CEO David Dufresne likes to make the comparison of having your music in a gallery versus at IKEA.

Blogging is great for SEO

Improving your SEO (search engine optimization) is another great reason to blog. Simply put, the more you blog, the more Google can find you, and the higher in the search results you will potentially appear based on the keywords, titles and content of your blog posts.

So what can you blog about? Here are 13 topics that musicians can easily blog about:

13 Topics Musicians Can Easily Blog About
Not sure what to blog about? Here’s a quick brainstorm of 13 things you can blog about that might help trigger even more ideas:

1. Preview an upcoming show

2. Review a recent show

3. Stories from the road

4. Behind the scenes at rehearsals

5. Songwriting process

6. Making of your album

7. Crowdfunding campaign

8. New gear

9. Other great bands/musicians in your local scene/genre

10. Music that’s inspiring you at the moment

11. Your crazy pet(s)

12. Passion outside of music (maybe you’re a big sci-fi geek, or have a favorite sports team)

13. An issue you care deeply about outside of music (the environment, human rights, etc.)

Note: If you do decide to start blogging, it’s really important to keep it up to date. Just as an updated blog can show that you’re active in your career, if your last post is from a year ago, it can create a negative impression. Focus on blogging regularly, rather than trying to make each post perfect.

Photos & Videos

Some of you might be thinking “Well, that’s sounds great, but I’m not good at writing blog posts!”. That’s ok, your blog posts can contain mostly photos, or can even be videos.

Whichever method you are most comfortable communicating with, go for it. The important thing is to post new content on your site on a regular basis where fans can gain some insight into your career and who you are as an artist.

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What topics do you blog about? Let us know in the comments!

Every week, we highlight one of our favorite websites on Bandzoogle.

Who: Michael St. George
What:  Dub Artist
Where: Hamilton, ON, Canada
Why his website rocks: Michael St. George’s site features a great header image, and we especially love the description he includes with it: Dub Artiste - Poet - Playwright. You immediately know what Michael does when landing on his site.

We also love that his Homepage features a short bio, regular updates on his blog, a site-wide music player, mailing list sign up, and social links. With the social links, he’s using our newest icons set, which automatically match the site’s design and look sharp on high resolution displays!

Check out his site at: www.michaelstgeorgedub.com

Every week, we highlight one of our favorite websites on Bandzoogle.   

Who: Erica Perry    
What: Country Bohemian Singer - Songwriter
Where:  Leander, Texas
Why her website rocks: Because it totally suits her style! Self-proclaimed 'Gypsy Soul', Erica found one our newest responsive themes to fit in line with her personality. With a little bit of sky whimsy, custom title font and really great vintage looking photography in the headers, Erica has made this template her own. The Home page is inviting to her fans with a nice hello message to her fellow HIPPIES. There’s also a section listing ways to connect to her by social media, radio tour and fun events. This website is a good example of how using professional photographs makes the difference between a pro and amateur look. As a bonus, Erica’s site looks great on mobile devices since she’s using one of our pre made templates. Beautiful job Erica!

It was never about Fruity Loops for me, and never will be about Fruity Loops for me.

 

I was born in 1981.  My father produced jingles for commercials, put Cleveland on the map, excelled at jazz piano, and had a state of art studio in 1985.  I was immediately mesmerized by the sounds programmed with a floppy disk and the Yamaha DX-7 Keyboard.

 

Music is an art of expression.  I have given my blood, sweat, and tears to this entity called music.  It is the universal language and relates to both me and every human being around the world.

 

It was never about a DAW for me.  It was about CREATIVITY.  It was never about the Pro Tools vs. Cubase battle for me.  That was simply a vessel to create a final product.  It was never about Ableton.  It was never about Digital Performer.  It was never about the never ending battle in forums and in person.  It was never about Fruity Loops - the stigma of a DAW that is immediately dismissed as "not worthy."  It was about finding the easiest and most user friendly process for my type of production.   In my case, that usually means starting with drums, adding a baseline, and then adding many parts of percussion and additional harmonies.

 

I ask you this: If you write a letter to someone, does it matter if it comes from Hotmail, Gmail, AOL, or another type of email program?  No.  Rather, it is about the content within the email and how it makes you FEEL.

 

Music means creating something from nothing.  Like a painter with a paintbrush on a blank canvas.

 

I ask the world: Why be so obsessed with the Pro Tools vs. other software programs?  I guess I can "sort of" understand those who say "these kids never learned an instrument."  I can't really speak to that because I learned the piano and drums by ear, and then took that knowledge into the digital domain.  I guess you can call me a hybrid of the analog and digital worlds.  I am grateful that my dad "showed me the ropes" so to speak, using midi keyboards like Korg and Kurzweil, and manually playing in each harmony or drum pattern using a keyboard.

 

I ran into somebody today who claimed I was "stuck in box" by using the FL Studio Program.  I would argue that any thinking that claims I am stuck in box is exactly that: Stuck in a box.  For me, it has NOTHING to do with the software DAW so to speak.  Yes, the software FL Studio is good for me because it allows me to sequence quickly.  But the underlying message I am trying to communicate is this:  The most important part about composing music is NOT the software that you use.  Certainly it can help in the process, and you should find the DAW that works best for you, but it is all about your own creativity.  It's about how you add each section of your song, the harmonies you incorporate, and the way the melody or baseline makes you FEEL.  

 

Music makes you FEEL.  It makes you FEEL when you hear it through a radio.  It makes you FEEL when you are working out and listening to music on your iPOD.  it makes you FEEL when you are dancing to music in a club.  It PICKS YOU UP when you are feeling down.  It motivates you.  It connects you.  It reminds you.  It's your friend.  It's the emotion that is indescribable.  It is different for each person listening, yet it connects everybody.

 

As producers, engineers, and composers, it is not about what DAW you use.  It's about how you make your audience FEEL.  If you can get your message across using Pro Tools, by all means use it.  If you like Digital Performer like the famous composer Hans Zimmer, use it.  If you like fruity loops, keep at it.  If you like Cubase or Ableton, stick with what works.

 

The main battle comes between each fellow producer.  We are supposed to be making music that makes people FEEL.  This was never a gimmick for me.  I have seen the forums and I have seen the YouTube comments.  Why do we have to battle with people that are using different DAWS?  We should be encouraging people who are making music, not cutting them down because they use a certain DAW.  Just because you use Pro Tools doesn't mean you are better than someone else.  Rather, pro tools (in certain cases) may be a crutch to certain people, because they have no real creativity.  It's like spraying Febreze instead of really cleaning your carpets: Your house still stinks and the spray is only a cover up.  You will be exposed for who you are in due time.  

 

I can create in Pro Tools.  I can create in Cubase.  I can create in FL Studio.  I can create in Ableton.  I can create in Digital Pefrormer.  I have been multi-tracking since I was 5 years old, using a Casio Sk-8.  It was never about a DAW.  It was only about creating.  I can only shake my head in disbelief when I see or I am part of these arguments, which base themselves upon what DAW you are using, and not WHY you are creating music in the first place.  For the LOVE.  Not for a gimmick.  Not for notoriety.  For the love of music and creativity.

When creating your website, you have to think about the different kinds of people that will be visiting it. These can be your current fans, potential new fans, as well as media/bloggers, bookers and other industry people. 
 

For that latter group, they’re likely looking for different information than your fans are, and you have to be sure to make it easy for them to find it. This can best be done by adding a Digital Press Kit section to your website.

 

Here are the 7 essential elements to include in your digital press kit:

1. Bio
 

First and foremost, have your most current bio available. It would also be a good idea to have a few different versions of your bio, like an elevator pitch, a short bio (1 paragraph), a medium bio (a few paragraphs) and a long bio (4+ paragraphs). This way you’ll have options for whatever needs the media or industry person might have. You can also include a downloadable pdf with all of the different versions of your bio on them.

 

2. Images

 

The next element to have in your digital press kit is a section with images available for download. Make sure some of these are hi-resolution in case the media person or festival programmer needs to use the image for print. You should include a few different official photos, with vertical and horizontal options, as well as black & white versions. Be sure to also include the image for your most recent album cover as well.

 

3. Music

 

Of course, you’ll need to have your music available to listen to. You should also make a few tracks available to download and/or embed, and if a media person wants to have a copy of your full album or EP, place clear information on who they can contact to get a copy.

 

4. Video

 

Many blogs and media sites love to embed videos of the artists they’re covering to make the article more visual and engaging. Embed 2-3 videos in your digital press kit to make it easy to find a quality video that best represents your band, including at least one live video incase a blogger is previewing one of your upcoming shows.

 

5. Press Articles/Reviews

 

It wouldn’t be a press kit without some press, so post links to a few of your best reviews and interviews. Be sure to pull the best quote from each review and include it underneath the link, don’t assume that people will click on each article and read them in full. You can spice up this part of your digital press kit visually by including the logos of the media source next to each article/review.

 

6. Contact info

 

Even though you might have a “Contact” section on your website, include detailed contact info in your digital press kit to have everything in one place. Include an email address as well as a phone # where a media person or booker can reach you if they need to speak to you in a hurry.

 

7. Social Links

 

And finally, add your social links to the page so that if the media person or booker wants to quickly check out your social media presence, they have all the links right there. Don’t overdo it, you can simply list the social media networks that you are most active on. For most artists this would be Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

This is a guest from Darren Gallop. Darren is the CEO of Marcato Musician, a web-based artist management software. Darren is a former touring musician who gained lots of wisdom from pounding the pavement throughout North America. In this post he offers some great tips for musicians on how to stay safe while on the road. Enjoy!
 

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Forget stage diving. It’s safe to say that driving from gig to gig is one of the most dangerous things most artists are required to do throughout their career. Traveling at speeds in excess of 100Km/h in a sheet metal/fiberglass box on wheels is something we all have become fairly comfortable with. The harsh reality is that one bad split second decision can instantly result in a life changing or even life-ending crisis. This was one of my greatest fears when I used to tour constantly in bands.

During my time on the road I have seen more accidents than I can count, numerous close calls and have even been involved in a few incidents. Luckily for my band mates and I, none of our experiences resulted in anything more than a wrecked band van and some minor cuts and bruises.

Here are 8 road safety tips for musicians on tour that I have compiled over the years from my traveling experiences (and from my short lived bus driver career in Western Canada… tweet me and I’ll tell you some stories). I hope some of this advice helps you all travel a bit more safely on your upcoming summer tour adventures:

1. Is your van safe?

Have your vehicle periodically safety checked. We’re not talking about an annual or bi-annual motor vehicle inspection certificate (if that even applies in your province or country). I mean EVERY TIME you are about to leave for tour. When I was a bus driver we had to check fluids and tire lug nuts every day before we headed out on the road. This seems like overkill but at the same time it literally takes less than 5 minutes to do. Have you ever had a tire fall off while traveling at 100 Km/h? I have. It sucks!

Some of the areas that should be checked by your mechanic before you head out on tour include:

• All fluid levels
• Tires wear / Tire pressure
• Brakes and brake lines
• Tie rod ends and ball joints
• Tire lug nuts
• Glass
• Lights
• Wipers

On a daily basis you should check the following (particularly if your van’s odometer reads like a phone number):

• Fluid levels
• Tires and pressure
• Lights

2. Exercise Careful Packing

The time that I did get into a van accident with my band we were lucky to be able to say that the only damage was to a piece of equipment. A ride cymbal or a guitar can be a lethal weapon inside a rolling van. It is important to securely pack your van every time. Ideally your van would have a separate compartment for gear, which is the safest way to check this one off. If this is not an option then be very smart about how you pack. Keep the sharper heavier items low and secured with other items. Use your common sense. Ask your self, how would this pack job fair out if we slammed into the back of another vehicle or if the van rolled over?

3. Stay Clear of Drugs and Alcohol

Obviously your driver should be sober. This one is a no brainer. Another thing to also be cautious of is hangovers. If your driver partied like a rock star late into the evening the night before then there is no way he will be operating at 100% the next morning for that long drive to the next town. It makes sense for your driver or drivers to chill on the substance use. If there are a few drivers amongst your group that like getting messed up periodically then maybe taking turns would be the best bet. Just make sure that someone is being conscious and responsible with this stuff – a license suspension for impaired driving (or worse) can make future touring an even bigger headache.

4. Drive according to conditions

While I write this blog it is spring in Canada so the chances are slim that black ice and snow will be on the radar in the near future. However wind, rain and fog are common all year long and are worth being cautious of. If it’s pouring out your visibility is reduced, there is risk of hydroplaning and you have reduced stopping time. Take it down a few notches to compensate for these conditions. Keep your eye on the weather and leave early so you give yourself the time to drive safely. And again, this is where good tires, lights and wipers can mean the difference between getting there or not.

5. Be Aware of Fatigue

This is a major issue on the road with a band. Late nights and long drives are par for course so driver fatigue is likely to be an issue at some point in your tour. It is important to make sure that there is someone who has enough rest to drive all of the time. In the booking and planning stage of your tour it is important to make an agenda that is actually attainable. This can even become more of an issue when mixed with #3 “Drugs and Alcohol”. Again, just be aware of this. Don’t subject yourselves to these high-risk situations.

6. Ride with a co-pilot

I always designated the passenger seat for the ‘co-pilot’. This person’s job is to stay awake, operate the GPS (or if you’re old-school then read the map), DJ the van stereo, talk to the driver and make sure he or she is holding up ok.

7. Be Prepared for Emergency

In the event that you do run into issues on the road you should have the gear to cope with your emergency. Your road safety and first aid kit should include:

• BOOSTER CABLES
• FLASHLIGHT (batteries included)
• Warm clothing
• Reflective Road Triangles
• First aid kit
• Cell phone
• Flares

8. Get AAA, CAA or another Roadside assistance program

These programs are cheap and they pay back on hotel discounts alone. The major advantage to these memberships is that if you run into van problems you just call them and they send someone to help you. Changing a tire on the side of the highway on a rainy day can be very dangerous or at the very least a total pain in the ass. Marcato Musician powered rockers The Stanfields learned this lesson the hard way and were stuck with a massive towing bill when their van broke down in the Rocky Mountains.

In conclusion, it’s important to be conscious of the dangers involved with being a touring musician. There is nothing that can ruin a tour faster than a motor vehicle accident or breakdown and of course it can do more than just ruin the tour! Don’t let an avoidable accident be the end of your music career. Have fun and play safe!

If fans should be able to find detailed information about your upcoming shows anywhere, it should be on your own website. We feel it’s important enough to have a Calendar page (which you can also call “Tour” or “Events” or “Shows”) as part of your main menu. That way, no matter where a fan is on your site, with one click they can find your upcoming dates.

So when organizing your website, be sure to make that information easy to find. Some bands place a widget somewhere on their Homepage, but once a fan clicks away to another page on your site, the information becomes less easy for them to find again, if they even noticed it in the first place.

Other bands place a calendar widget in a sidebar that appears on every page. Although this is better than simply embedding a widget on the Homepage, it can cause clutter on other pages where that information isn’t relevant. Plus, you can do so much more with a dedicated Calendar page.

Here are 4 tips for setting up your Calendar page to make sure that fans, industry, and media have all the information they need:

1. Add Relevant Show Info

Of course it all starts with having the info that people need to know about your upcoming shows:

Date: Include the day, date, and year.

Time: Besides when the show starts, you can also add details for when the doors open, and when exactly you’re scheduled to go on.

Venue: The venue name, address, link to the venue’s website, and link to a map and/or directions to get there. You could also mention if there is parking at the venue.

Ticket Info: How much is the show? Is it pay at the door? Can tickets be purchased in advance? If so, include a link to buy tickets.

Other Info you can include:

• Info about other bands with links to their websites
• Is the show All Ages?

2. Important Dates to Include

Besides your “regular” shows at music venues and bars, it’s important to include these other dates:

Private events: Although your fans can’t go, it shows people that you’re active and open to performing private functions, which can be good paying gigs.

House Concerts: Sometimes house concerts can be invite-only, but again, it’s important to show your activity, and lets people know you’re available for house concert gigs.

Conference showcases: Though not open to the public, when bookers visit your website, having conference showcases listed looks good. Also, for industry people at the conference, they’ll sometimes want to get details about your showcase, so it's a good idea to list it on your website.

College & University Gigs: Once again, it might be the case that these are not open to the general public, but it’s important to list them to show that you’re getting hired by colleges & universities. This could help lead to more college & university gigs, which tend to be well paid.

Fundraising Events: If you’re playing an event to raise money for a charity or an organization you support, list those shows as well. It shows that you’re active in your community and are willing to play benefit shows, which can make for feel-good stories in the media, and lead to increased exposure for your band.

Previous dates: Although not necessarily relevant for your fans, it can be a good idea to list your previous events to show bookers/festivals/media how active you are. This could be a full list of your previous events, or you could simply highlight some of your bigger shows.

Important note: If you don’t have any upcoming dates, don’t leave your calendar page blank. Let people know what you’re up to by adding a message saying that you’re currently booking shows, writing material for a new album, in studio, etc.

3. Spice up the Page: Add Visuals

Many websites that have a calendar page simply have a listing of upcoming dates, which definitely serves the purpose of the page, but you can make your live shows even more enticing by adding visuals.

The first thing you can do to make your calendar page more visually appealing is to include a show poster/image for each upcoming show. You can also add some of your best live photos to the page to give fans an idea of what the experience of seeing you live is like. Gal Holiday’s Shows page is a nice example of this: www.galholiday.com/shows

Even better than adding some live photos? Add your best live video to your Calendar page. Maybe a friend of one of your fans is checking out your page to get details on the show and decide if they’re going to attend. A great live video might help get that person to leave the comfort of their home to come check out your set.

More importantly, bookers will often visit the Calendar page of an artist’s website to see their activity and make a decision whether to book them or not. A good quality live video can say a lot to a booker about the level of performance you can offer and the experience you’ll give to the audience.

4. Add a Call-to-action

Last but not least, you should add a call-to-action to your calendar page. A call-to-action is meant to direct people to do something specific while on the page. For your calendar page, you could add a call-to-action encouraging people to contact you for booking information, and mention what type of gigs you’re available for (private events, fundraisers, house concerts, etc.), then provide a link directly to your Contact page.