Is your band newsworthy?

Are you doing all you can to help your musical project stand “above the noise”?

Features and reviews are awesome, However, most bands miss opportunities for extra exposure. 

Look at  opportunities you have for obtaining additional press,

Themes that tie into current events, local or national news or your favorite  causes.

• Your band or company name?

 Pomplamoose The name derives from the French word pamplemousse,[5] meaning grapefruit.

Steeley Dan is named after a adult toy in the William Burroghs novel
“Naked Lunch”

Green Day- If you smoked pot and goofed off all day you had “a green day”

• CD  or song name- do you have any significant meaning in the name?

Nirvana’s, Smells like teen Spirit: Kathleen Hanna, the lead singer of the group Bikini Kill, gave Cobain the idea for the title when she spray painted "Kurt Smells Like Teen Spirit" on his bedroom wall after a night of drinking and spraying graffiti around the Seattle area. In his pre-Courtney Love days, Cobain went out with Bikini Kill lead singer Tobi Vail, but she dumped him. Vail wore Teen Spirit deodorant, and Hanna was implying that Cobain was marked with her scent.  The Deodorant sales went through the roof when this song became a hit.

• Highlighting a band members noteworthy deed (It doesn’t have to be musically related)

Bob Geldof, Activist and founder of the band  boomtown rats who's Band-aid efforts have raised millions for anti poverty relief for Africa.


Chris Owens' background would take the spotlight when his band “Girls”hit the scene in 2009. With a story like his -- a childhood spent in the controversial religious cult Children of God (now known as the Family International)

•  Subject matter of songs- do you have tie in’s to current events or trends?  

We are the world- Led by Michael Jackson & Lionel Ritchie with 45 other artists led the way with USA for Africa to raise awareness and fund famine relief for Africa.

Look to you local news for information about current events, even causes that you are passionate about.

        Share the name of your band with readers in the comments below, or how you have used the idea’s above to obtain press for your band or creative business.

The magic 3 p's in Marketing

Ask yourself what are the things that bring you emotional fulfillment?

If you’re a artist certainly your “art”, what ever medium it manifests itself in-  music, painting, writing, film, are at the top of the list.

Having a successful marketing campaign for your creative business   means you must have the  magic 3 p’s as part of your marketing strategy.

Passion, Purpose, & Product.

Passion: Connecting with your own unique “higher purpose” whether it is raising money for your favorite local charity, ending poverty, or bringing awareness about a service need in your community. 

Including your “emotional fulfillment in your entertainment helps define who you are as a individual brand.  Don’t try to be an advocate for every cause, pick a theme and focus on it.

Purpose:  This is how a creative business defines what it does; it builds loyalty within your organization, and establishes trust with your customers because they see their values in action.  This Purpose helps transform your creative business into an organization with a cause, and individuals will do incredible things to support a cause.

Product:  When you package your “purpose” into your product you have just positioned yourself ahead of the competition. You have given your creative brand a personality and a human characteristic that will resonate with your customers, which will help you, identify very specifically who your “fans” are and help you grow as you connect to your higher purpose.

What are the 3p’s in your creative business?  Let us know in the comments below so more fans can connect with what your doing!

Working class hero's

Where were you when President Kennedy,  or John Lennon were killed?
How about  Elvis, Lady Diana, Kurt Cobain, or Michael Jackson died?  These individuals were all cultural icons that had a impact on the way we live.  Most of us remember where we were when we heard the news of their unexpected deaths.

This week in America everyone is talking about  a series of events that involved the loss of so many "working class" hero's,  9/11.
There events are  book marks in everyone's lives. Iconic moments in time, where certain foods, events, and even songs are a reminder of those events.

  I don't want to talk about the event, where you were when the event's occured.  Or the negativity around the event.

  I want to focus on the small window of time after the event.
 I know you remember it, It lasted for just  a couple of weeks,  when all the senseless B.S. just fell away.  

It hindsight it was a beautiful moment of time where everyone was NICE to one another.
We didn't rush, we waited for people to cross the street, we smiled to strangers and said hello, we offered a seat to someone who looked tired, and we  offered a hand to those less fortunate.


I am sending a smile and kind word to all who read this-and invite you to use your creative energy to create something positive.


You my friends are the instruments of change.
Lay down your fears, put aside your hate and instead,
write or sing a song, paint a picture, create a sculpture, knit something, write a poem, Then, give it to someone... ideally a total stranger, and expect nothing in return.

If you are a recipient of a gift from a stranger, pay that kindness  forward.

 I invite you to share this with a friend, and wish all who read this

Happy Blessings,


=Tamra=



Photo Credits:

Heart Rock & Yarn Earth: Tamra Engle(c)

MJ & Diana: http://awesomepeoplehangingouttogether.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/michaeljacksonprincessdiana.jpg

John Lennon:  http://www.greatmodernpictures.com/lennonnyclg.jpg

Do you have a contagious brand?

Do you have a brand that is contagious?

Is there compelling content that people love? 

Are you creating unique ways to connect with your fans and allow them to participate in the creation process?

I recently  read the Hierarchy of Contagiousness, which offered the perspective of brands being either a rubber stamp or box of Crayons, 

Step back and take a look at your creative business model, is it more like a rubber stamp or box of crayons?

 In the Rubber stamp model, one size fits all, and a very short life cycle. Ironically,  most personal brands fit into this category; since the idea of a personal brand is to highlight your uniqueness.

In the "box of crayons" model,  your fans can use tools to mix and blend their own colors.   The “Crayon” model is so successful for businesses interested in long-term success that mega brands are creating opportunities to include their fans in the creation process:

Pepsi / Doritos   invited fans to help them create and submit video content, that the product selected a winner to use for their Superbowl ad.

Bjork’s "Biophilia" for iPad  will include  ten separate apps, all housed within one "mother" app. Each of the smaller apps will relate to a different track from the album, allowing people to explore and interact with the song's theme's or even make a completely new version of them.

Nine inch Nails have invited fans to remix 21 tracks which have been called the limitless potential. 

 Share your examples of how you have used your “box of crayons” to create fan engagement opportunities in the comment section below.

Links:
 http://www.crashthesuperbowl.com/#/?finalist=6886

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biophilia_(album)

http://www.9inchnails.com/remixes/
http://www.pollsb.com/photos/o/32699-box_crayons.jpg