D.I.Y.

Making Your EPK Stand Out: 3 Techniques

EPK-tips-for-musicians-1200x598While there is a plethora of advice available on the specifics of what needs to go into an electronic press kit and how to get it created. With the millions of EPKs out there, however, finding a way to make sure yours stands out from the crowd is equally important.

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Guest post by Suzanne Paulinski of DIY Musician

There have been many posts written on how to create an E.P.K. (also known as an Electronic Press Kit) — what to include, where to host it, and so forth. But what about how to set your EPK apart from all the rest?

How can you create an EPK that works for you, as well as all those who receive it? After all, submitting an EPK that serves its purpose means it gets you the “yes” you’re looking for. Isn’t that what we all want?

Here are 3 things you can do with your EPK so it’ll not only make an impression, but deliver results:

1. NICHE DOWN

Your EPK is your digital pitch to land a job. Much like submitting resumes, it makes more of an impression when your cover letter/resume is specific to the job to which you’re applying.

It makes more of an impression to send an EPK tailored specifically to songwriting when you’re looking to land a publishing deal and one tailored specifically to live performance when you’re looking to secure a gig/tour.

If you have various skill sets, create separate versions so the EPK you send a booking agent isn’t filled with details on your latest songwriting collaborations or licensing placements, information that is irrelevant for them to identify whether or not you’re a good fit for their venue.

2. BRING THEM HOME

While you can host your EPK on various hosting sites, or attach a PDF or zip file (which many professionals prefer you NOT do) in an email, I’d recommend you create a single page on your website with anchor links to your various EPKs. That way someone can skip straight to the presentation of your bio, music, and press quotes that are most relevant to them. You can also host PDFs of your EPKs on your website, making it available for easy viewing or downloading.

Hosting the information on your own site brings them into your territory, giving them the option to look around at what else you’ve got going on with your career. It also helps you avoid issues with someone else’s site being down due to scheduled tech updates, or an email getting routed to the spam folder due to a suspicious attachment.

3. MAKE THEM AN OFFER

1Too many EPKs list chronological facts and figures; they fail to sell a story. Why YOUR band? Why should they pay attention? What’s in it for the person looking at your EPK? Is there a story to which they — and, more importantly, their audience — can connect?

When creating an EPK, remember to focus on what you’re offering the people who will see this information. If it’s for booking a tour, what do YOU bring to the stage? If it’s for landing a publishing deal, what do YOUR songs elicit in listeners? Overall, how will working with you make THEIR lives easier?

Look at the EPK you have now. What message does it send? Does it tell a story or does it simply present lists, dates, and names? Always remember that industry professionals get pitched to nearly 24/7. Stand out from the crowd by making their job as easy as possible. Tell them you’re incredible to work with by showing them how incredible the work is that you present to them. Put in the work and you’ll get the work.

Suzanne started out in the music industry as an intern for Atlantic Records and college rep for WEA. She managed the national street team & mid-west retail for Astralwerks (EMI) and holds a Masters in Psychology. Now, with The Rock/Star Advocate®, she is a mindset coach for music industry professionals, helping them gain clarity on their goals while maintaining a healthy work/life balance. She recently published her first book, The Rock/Star Life Planner, available now on Amazon.

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3 Comments

  1. from the experience of dredging through my own email box:
    * YouTube video (just audio fine IME) of at least one complete song linked in the email. Make it easy for us to hear what you’re about.
    * Make it not a goddamn pain in the arse for your reviewer. e.g. Site with login? Ain’t nobody got time for that.
    * Ideal method: YouTube video in song, preview on Bandcamp with download code. YMMV of course. I like Bandcamp, others may not. Click and download from Dropbox is OK too.
    * Did I mention making it easy? Make it easy.
    YMMV, others are not me.

  2. Good thoughts…What about SoundCloud for the EPK tracks instead?
    (Especially for as-yet-unreleased tracks)

  3. yeah, that works in my experience too 🙂
    In the general case, assume your problem is obscurity rather than piracy – make it as absolutely easy as possible for someone going trough a pile of stuff to hear and like your record.

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