| It is possible that in this day and age any | | | | These five steps are the first baby steps in |
| musician can get their music licensed. By | | | | getting music seen by the public on your |
| musician (in quotes) that may mean anyone | | | | site. Following this advice will get quality |
| fluent in the world of Garage Band, anyone | | | | hits to your site and some great leads. |
| who is able to string loops together or | | | | |
| anyone that plays an instrument for leisure | | | | To go even further, you may want to take some |
| and can record with decent quality. | | | | additional advice. Perhaps having thousands |
| | | | of dollars of equipment and an unending |
| The home recording studio business has | | | | fountain of creativity spewing from your |
| flourished over the past few years and just | | | | faucet will not ultimately get your music out |
| about every person who wants to can record a | | | | there. Take every band that was ever created |
| piece of music with decent quality. Every Mac | | | | for example. The great tunes, the great |
| nowadays ships with Garage Band included in | | | | lyrics, the amazing 7/8 part in the middle of |
| the software package. | | | | that one song will go unnoticed if you just |
| | | | sit back and let it stream on your website. |
| So with all this sort of new technology being | | | | |
| utilized by the common mortal man, their | | | | The beauty about sites like is that people |
| influence on the licensing industry has been | | | | will hear your music on that my space site. |
| noticed. It used to be a challenge to make a | | | | The only problem is that our ears are that |
| career in music licensing. Now it is almost | | | | much more cluttered. Do we really have that |
| impossible. Good friends of mine that were | | | | much time to sit back and take in that much |
| the jingle writers of the past now are | | | | music? Music Supervisors and Producers will |
| looking at other possibilities to earn | | | | not comb the web and look for you. It is |
| income. The competition is just so fierce. | | | | important to get your music to them. You can |
| | | | parallel this to the days of the phantom A&R |
| Now, I have been in this business for a few | | | | person that supposedly was going to show up |
| years and have gotten a couple of tracks | | | | at your show. Was he or she ever there |
| licensed on VH1, MTV, Bravo and many others. | | | | through all the silhouetted faces in the |
| The licensing fees are much lower than they | | | | crowd? Now, I am not saying that you will |
| used to be. Royalty Free music has enabled | | | | find success in picking up a Hollywood |
| prospective buyers to get decent music for | | | | Reporter magazine, finding a new show or |
| their productions and not worry about paying | | | | movie in production and submitting your music |
| a large amount of money for it. | | | | to the Music Supervisor. It definitely does |
| | | | not work that way either (well not always). |
| When I launched my royalty free website in | | | | Years ago I interned for a Publishing company |
| 2003, I had every intention to make all the | | | | and later on an Intellectual Property company |
| music on the website available to anyone that | | | | and I sifted through thousands of unsolicited |
| wanted it. It sounds great but with any | | | | CDs. Ninety nine percent of them got thrown |
| website, just being on the web does not | | | | away. |
| ensure sales. Proper avenues of promotion | | | | |
| must be taken to get your site noticed. | | | | People in the music business hold on to their |
| | | | niche business with claws so thick it would |
| 1. Have a site that works 100 percent. No | | | | take a jack hammer to penetrate. There are a |
| broken links or glitches. No under | | | | lot of musicians jumping up and down trying |
| construction pages. | | | | to get attention. Let your inspiration be |
| | | | your guide but make sure you chisel your way |
| 2. Have as much content as possible. Stay | | | | through to the other side; and be creative in |
| away from large flash orientated sites | | | | this chiseling. Remember, if you bought a |
| | | | book about how to become successful in this |
| 3. Manually submit to all major search | | | | business, think of how many people are |
| engines and directories. I have not found a | | | | reading the same type of book with the same |
| submission service that I trust yet. If I | | | | information. Now think about how many people |
| find one I will let you know. | | | | are using the same tactics as you are. |
| | | | |
| 4. Update your content daily | | | | I remember it being the winter of 2002 and |
| | | | just purchased a whole new recording system. |
| 5. Get quality reciprocal links to your site. | | | | I had put down my stage microphone and hung |
| By quality I mean sites that are PR4 and | | | | up my guitar for studio headphones. I |
| above and have content that relates to your | | | | attended TV/Film music conferences to find |
| site. The jury is still out on this but it | | | | out what I was up against. I read all the |
| seems to work. | | | | semi-useless books about how to get |
| | | | successful writing music for TV and Film. I |
| 6. Write articles and post them on other | | | | found that the only was to get your music out |
| sites. Make sure you point back to your site | | | | there was by promoting yourself day and night |
| and make the content relevant. | | | | and finding new ways to get your stuff |
| | | | noticed. |