The gentlemen of Hollow Vixen made a killer video for their song, "B.O.B. (Battery Operated Boyfriend)." And that video sat in the virtual can for a while 'til there was a best time to both release it and capitalize on it. This made sense then, and the proper time, effort, and coordination was what would (hopefully...) going to lead to something that'd launch the band to the next level ...
Hollow Vixen debuts “Battery Operated Boyfriend”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hollow Vixen Debuts “Battery Operated Boyfriend” to Disgust of Moral and Decent People Everywhere Boston band feels compelled to shatter the myth of man over machine – women agree. BOSTON, MA – July 6, 2010– Hollow Vixen (www.hollowvixen.com), the music industry’s leading advocate of beer consumption, loud music, and gender relations...
Direct-to-Fan: Measuring Success
The guys in Hollow Vixen have a lot to be proud of: they launched a website, released their first EP, played a bunch of shows, and managed to get it all done without (as many bands do…) coming to blows. So now, as they rest and rehearse before the summer tour kicks off again, we all thought this would be a good time to stop and see how things were going thus far. Before someone else...
Direct-to-Fan: Making Facebook Work
The whole dang world uses Facebook. So naturally, musicians trying to find ways to increase sales/exposure/fans have turned to Facebook in droves. To that end, Topspin and Nimbit both offer tools to increase return on Facebook activities. All of Hollow Vixen (not just me) spent some time working on a Facebook strategy that would provide the best user experience coupled with the least amount of...
Direct-to-Fan: Adding my stuff
Preface: Before I start today’s post, I want to acknowledge some key, critical facts. The folks ’round the Nimbit, Topspin, and Hollow Vixen camps have expressed their concern about the very nature of doing something like this. They’re smart people, and while they may be right to express their concern, I also greatly admire the fact that they trust me and allow me to do this...
Direct-to-Fan: Gimme yo’ email address!
Yesterday I laid the groundwork for this little experiment: I’m working with the guys of Hollow Vixen and using both Nimbit and Topspin platforms to see which works better for launching a new release and establishing a band’s online presence. High priority was to start building up a mailing list for the band. So I dove into both platforms to see what I could come up with. Here’s...
Direct-to-Fan Head-to-Head Battle-to-the-Death Mega-Royale Gala-Fest
I figured something like this deserves a bigger title than just “Something I’m Gonna Try.” In my capacity as mild-mannered marketing consultant, I spend a fair amount of time at Nimbit. No surprises there, and honestly, I like the product and believe in its claim/capability. But there’s this other company in the direct-to-fan space that warrants attention: Topspin...
All the King’s Horses, Part II
So as Ian and I discussed the state of the industry, its cast of characters, and what kind of artists should be using Topspin (or Nimbit ... or Bandcamp ... or Audiolife ... ), it all became re-enforced by what I saw on the tv last night: style over substance, instant over earned, easy over challenging.
All the king’s horses, and all the king’s men…
Sometimes the best laid plans of musicians and men often go awry. As a music industry veteran (and still under 40 years old!), I’ve seen lots of artists and companies emerge with huge plans to revolutionize the industry only to see reality come crashing in. Most of the time it’s caused by a failure to understand the industry or by over-estimating their own abilities. But since not...