What to say when booking your band?

[DFW_Bass]

I'm looking for some tips to write or say to book my current band I play in. We're looking for acoustic and full band gigs...

is there a template such as a letter that people uses to send to club owners.. Since we're new i'm not looking for too much pay but looking for exposure and publicity.

Thanks

[VroomVroom]

When I chase after a booking, it tends to be tailored to that particular gig. Accordingly, I don't really have a template that would apply across-the-board. However, there are some basic things that apply no matter what.

- Describe what "they" (club, venue, booking agent, mother-of-the-bride, whomever...) gain by hiring you.

- Provide examples of similar gigs you've played.

- Make sure they know you're available - at their convenience - to discuss logistics, contractual requirements, etc.

- Be able to point to samples of your music, photos, and any other marketing materials you have...including references.

- Related to the above, but for clubs: have a demo and one-page sheet w/ photo(s) that gives an "in a nutshell" glimpse of your band. Period - don't bother cold-calling without it.

- Make your presentation - verbal and written - professional, grammatically correct, and easy on the eyes/ears.

- And finally, make sure you're in touch with the decision maker. This can be most frustrating at clubs. You don't want to spend weeks going back and forth with the bartender/night manager only to discover that the booking decisions are made by the owner, who's only there from 11am - 2pm on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Good luck!

[cassanova]

I've found the better the promo package the band has the less talking you have to do as it speaks for itself.

[IanStephenson]

I've heard our guitarist on the phone - effectivly cold calling venues, and coming away with two confirmed, paying gigs without them ever hearing us!

The side I hear is something like:
Hi XXX (know their name), I'm YYY from BAND, You might remember me from OLDBAND, who used to play your venue. We're just going through our diary, and we've still got a couple of free slots for later in the year, so we were wondering if you'd be interested in booking us. We normally charge $$$, but as it's a first time, and you don't really know us we'll do it for $$. How about dates XXX and YYY?

At this point the venue ususaly confirms one of those dates, or sugguests an alternative. He then follows up with:

Do you want to pencil in a date for later in the year, as were filling up pretty quickly?

sometimes he gets the second booking, sometimes we have to play the gig first before they confirm back.

I think the key things are:
a) sound confident
b) make it clear you HAVE work
c) that you're calling to HELP THEM OUT, not looking for a favour.

[whitedk57]

Hello, my name is ________.

[crijan]

If you're playing original music, another option is to look at the other bands that usually play the venues and get them to add you as an opening act or give you a recommendation with the booking agent of the club.