[This article was written by Cristof Ensslin, cellist and manager of The Wilhelm Brothers, a cello-infused folk rock band from Asheville NC.]
Are you doing the booking for an indie band? Have you ever come across a venue that didn’t want you to book another show within a certain radius and time span? Chances are, you have.
For example: you aim to play in a city on your tour route. One venue wants to book you Wednesday night, the other Thursday. There’s a good chance one (or both) of the venues may not like that arrangement. This doesn’t happen very often, but when it does it tends to occur in big cities like Boston, NYC, Atlanta.
It’s understandable why venues think this way. Clearly, the feared downside is that your draw may be split up between the two (or more) venues and dates. This is especially true when it comes to the part of your crowd that’s comprised of your friends. You may be able to cajole them to one show, but not necessarily two. And if your crowd gets split between two events, both venues will feel like you’ve lost them revenue. Rents and other costs are high and tending higher, especially in the big cities. So every penny counts. Understood.
But…
If you read self-help, business, and success literature, you’ll know that fear-based behavior and decision-making should be avoided. Opportunity thinking (based around the question “how can we make things happen”) should be favored. This is true in general, and also in this specific case of the touring band trying to make the most of their gas money. So let’s look at this as an opportunity:
Who is your draw?
1. Your friends.
As mentioned above, you may not get them to come to both shows, but you could probably cajole them to one. …Read the full story
Source:: The DIY Musician