Performing live and gigging is one of the biggest revenue-generating methods for independent musicians. Live performances are so lucrative because it puts the musician directly in front of the consumer. There’s no better way to gain fans and earn money than actively gigging. However, because there are so many musicians, the competition to win the most profitable gigs is stiff. That’s why musicians need to present themselves in the strongest and most effective ways to get the attention of bookers and talent buyers. That all starts with a captivating booking pitch and its connected elements. If you’re hoping to build a better booking pitch and increase responses, read on for the 5 elements of a strong booking pitch.
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#1 Subject Line
The subject line is the first impression they get with you. You’ve got to make this pop! In my experience this formula seems to work best:
Booking One Descriptive Word + The Name of Your Act + Your Preferred Date
You only get one shot to make this first impression so choose that descriptive word very carefully. Take a look at your artist story and see if you can find an engaging descriptive word that would fit well into this formula.
#2 Brief Intro
A strong music booking pitch starts with a quick introduction to you or your band and your music. It’s not a long paragraph. It’s not even your bio. Your brief intro should be just two or three sentences explaining who you are, where you are from, and your sound. You should also use this section to explain why you’re reaching out. The purpose of this section of your pitch is to set up the premise for the dialogue and give them a visual of your act through descriptive words.
#3 The Body
• An amazing promo photo
• A Great Review from another venue
• Links to your Press Kit
• Your Preferred and Alternate Dates
The next thing you’ll need to do is share some preferred dates in which you’d like to perform at the venue. I recommend including preferred dates and a set of alternate dates. Having dates makes it easy for the booker to check against their calendar and see if there’s an opening. If there are no dates to look at, it can be less appealing to work with you. The booker perceives this as extra time they have to spend going back and forth with you to agree on dates. They’d much rather avoid this hassle and move on to the next person who does have dates in their pitch. Including dates in your booking inquiry is a great way to make life easier for the booker.
Related: 10 Things Venues Won’t Tell You About Your Booking Pitch
Another way to make life easier for the booker is linking out to various elements of your press kit. Linking out to your promo materials simplifies your booking pitch so that it’s easier to read and not as lengthy. I recommend creating an electronic press kit on your domain to house promo photos, your bio, calendars, videos, and reviews. This allows you to showcase your music and give the full picture of your act in one place without the booker having to visit various links and sites to see all your materials.
Related: 5 Tricks to Boost Your Booking Efforts This Year
As mentioned above, links work great for booking pitches because they allow you to make a pitch that is short and sweet. However, adding one photo in the body of your email can do wonders. The human face is one of the most interesting things to look at. Including your photo or an official promo picture of your band in the body of an email personalizes your email and gives the booker a feel for your style in just one glance. A good picture can entice the booker to click on your links and find out more about you. Choose your best promo photo that tells a story and creates intrigue.
#5 Closing and Contact Info
Don’t forget to close the sale. End your pitch by offering an explanation of why they should book you. Maybe you’re going to bring out a lot of people. Or, maybe you’re going to promote the show like none other. Or, maybe your act is similar to other acts they’ve had before. Whatever you say, make sure it’s a compelling reason and make sure it’s the truth. This is your last opportunity to sell yourself, so make it count!
Even though you’re more than likely communicating via email, it’s best to leave your phone number, links to your social media, and a web address as well. A lot of bookers like to text and use instant messaging via social media. It’s much quicker to shoot out a text or IM than it is to call or send back an email. Do whatever you can to make things easy for the booker. You can’t imagine how many inquiries they get in a week! It is a lot! The more you can do to set yourself apart and make things easy for the booker, the better chances you have at getting a response.
The most important thing about your music booking pitch is to be concise. You need to share your info and reason for contacting them quickly. Most artists send too much information. They share all the radio stations they’ve been on, reviews, awards they’ve won, and any other information they think fits. This information is nice, but it’s too much to read all at once. Besides, venues don’t put a lot of stake in awards and accolades. They care more about how many people you can bring to their establishment. Always have this in mind when writing to venues to get gigs.
Optionally, you could also include your draw if you think it’s a good selling point. If you can provide evidence that you can get a significant amount of people out to their venue, you have a better chance of getting the gig. The reason why they have live music in the first place is to attract people. Therefore, including pictures or video of your last gig in the area clearly showing that you attract people with your booking pitch can increase responses and get you more gigs.
These five elements provide a foundation for a strong booking pitch. Without these elements, you fail to communicate who you are and what you want. If you’re looking for more help with finding gigs, consider taking our Free 4 Day eCourse How to Book [Profitable] Gigs. In this course, we cover how to develop promotional materials, sample booking pitches, where to find gigs, how to find gigs that suit your needs, and how to customize your overall gigging approach to earn a profit. Click here to take the free course.
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Great idea to pitch preferred/alternate dates. When I was more of a performing musician, I could’ve really benefited from that nugget. Good stuff!
Thanks, Caleb! Yeah, it’s interesting how adding one thing here and there can change up the whole experience and produce better results.