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Breaking Into The Biz Column in Spill Magazine by Skylar Entertainment’s Diane Foy

How long should one commit to promoting an album before moving on to the next one? 6 months? 1 year?

The promo campaign for an album release should start a minimum of 2 months before the release date and continue for as long as the artist is touring and/or has momentum.  Continuously touring will dramatically increase the success of an album as will any newsworthy events or accomplishments.  Generally publicity and radio promotion campaigns run a minimum of 10 weeks as it takes time to start seeing results.  Results are always hard to predict, however, the more the artist has going on the better the chances.  If you get lucky and things take off for your career, the album may have a life of a few years.

2. What is the difference between publicity and marketing? Publicity & radio promotion? Does one have to do all, and which is most important for a new release?

Publicity is one part of a marketing plan not the whole plan.  Marketing is an ongoing process involving everything that can be done to promote and sell the artist and products. Publicity, radio promotion, advertising, packaging, distribution, touring, websites, merchandise etc., all of it is marketing. Publicity is the part of the plan that attempts to make the public aware of the artist and its music by promoting to the media. A publicist will get the word out through press releases, mailings, e-mails, phone calls and networking to solicit reviews, profiles and interviews.  A publicist also assists in managing the image and perception of the artist and often creates opportunities to promote the artist.

A radio promoter promotes a specific single to commercial radio through their relationships with music and program directors across the country with the goal of getting “adds” on stations and increasing the rotation level of the song to get charted. Depending on the genre, style and production of the music, commercial radio promotion is not always necessary. Many artists find success through campus, community, internet and satellite radio.  Both publicists and radio promoters often promote artists to managers, labels, distribution companies, agents, lawyers and other professionals the artist may require when they feel the artist is ready to go to the next level. They also set your release apart from the hundreds of other artists soliciting the same attention as they have more contacts and ongoing relationships with the media.

3. How important is cyber-publicity vs. traditional publicity?

Cyber publicity is online marketing and these days it is one of the most important aspects to an artist’s career.  Setting up and maintaining a page on all the music and social networking sites is vital to growing an artist’s fan base. You can hire companies to assist you in online marketing, however, personal involvement from the artist in blogs, messages and comments is necessary in creating a personal connection with fans. Both traditional publicity and online marketing are important in furthering an artist’s career, however, online marketing can be ongoing, while traditional publicity only comes in when there is a story to tell.

Questions submitted by EMAR