The responsibilities that come with promoting your band on the web these days are endless and overwhelming. We at Me and the Machine Records have taken a moment out of our endless and overwhelming schedule to compile a list of essential websites that will get you on the right track. If you think we missed anything or would like to enlighten us about where else we should plant the MATM flag on the web, please shoot us a note on Twitter.
1. Bandcamp - Without question the greatest, all-purpose music
sales and promotions tool out there right now! And, it's free!!
2. Twitter - This will be, without any doubt in our minds, the way
music will be shared in the next 6 months. You heard it here first.
3. SongTwit - You just recorded a new tune and you want to allow
you twitter followers to be the first people to hear it? Start here.
4. Muxtape - While many of the bands featured on Muxtape continue to
beat the "ironic keyboard" dead horse, the layout is gorgeous and the
traffic is plenty.
5. Last.fm - Allows you to gain new fans by lying to them and telling
them your band totally sounds like Grizzly Bear.
6. LinkedIn - For when the whole "music career" thing doesn't
work out and you need to find a real job. Build contacts here in case...
7. Pandora - Getting in is tricky but if you make the cut,
people can build stations based on your music. Pretty sweet.
8. OurStage - About the most honest way on the web for you to
gauge whether your band sucks or not.
9. Flickr - It's a great way to share photos from your bands most
recent gig. Just make sure you delete the pics of the after-party before uploading.
10. Blip.FM - Used in conjunction with Twitter, this is another great
way to share your music.
11. Blogger - Once you start it, you can easily integrate your
blog into your website via feedburner.com. Blogs are great because sometime, especially if you're on the road, the memories don't actually last forever.
12. GigMaven - Book more shows. And when you're done, book even
more shows.
13. ArtistData - Are you absolutely sick of adding your new tour
date to 20+ social networks? Setup an ArtistData account, add it once and go practice.
14. Bandize - Q. How many CDs did we sell the last time we played
here? A. If you're diligent about recording this info, Bandize will tell you.
15. Google Docs - So, you've got countless social networking
sites set up and you can't remember the passwords. Keep 'em here and access them from anywhere.
16. YouTube - Enough said.
17. Tr.im - Short URLs are the new black and clicks can be stylishly
tracked.
18. Google Analytics - Should we send records overseas and follow
it up with a tour? If you're tracking your analytics, you'll be able to tell if that's a wise decision or not.
19. Viewbook - So your girlfriend has created all these great
show posters and you have no way to display them. Now you do!
20. DashGo - You know who's coming to your website now thanks to
Google Analytics (see #18) but do you know how your traffic is holding up on the social networks? No? Now you do.
21. PayPal - Use this to get paid (needed to receive payment from
Bandcamp)!!
22. Google Reader - Find all the music blogs you can, subscribe
to their RSS feed and know what is going on in your industry. Billboard alone simply doesn't cut it anymore.
23. MadMimi - Send out incredible looking emails for your band
and collect email address from all of your sites. It's about $10 a month and worth every frigging penny.
24. Facebook - When your done looking at former classmates that
either got super hot or totally went the other way, use Facebook to promote your shows.
25. MySpace - We don't like it. But we suppose it has to be done...