Below are a few tips for submitting music to magazines and web sites. We hope you find them helpful.

Keep It Simple

The most effective submissions we get have only a few pieces of info: artist name, website address, release date and a few "sounds like" artists (ie: "you might like this if you're into Radiohead and Coldplay"). If there's even remote interest, the editor will usually listen or visit your site. Long press releases with endless amounts of information usually get passed over, simply because we don't have time to read them, and flowing superfluous paragraphs about the history of an artist mean a thing to someone who has no interest in reading it. Remember your goal: spark enough interest to make the editor open your package and actually listen. That's step one. You can include all the additional info you want as long as the basics are the first thing the editor sees.

Think Before You Send

Do you send 10 press releases a day? A week? I will tell you honestly, they don't get read...at least not by me. Try to really give some thought before sending something. Pay attention to what kind of music the publication or site usually covers...are you sending a death metal artist to a country music writer? I promise it will not be opened, let alone considered. Spend a few minutes to learn if your music is the kind of thing the publication might be in to.

Format Emails For the Masses

Sure a fancy HTML message might look cool, but the truth is, you need a lot of things in your favor to do it right. First, are you any good at formatting? Second, are you sure that the recipient's email program will be able to display the message properly? Sometimes a good bet is to send a nicely laid out text message. It's to the point, everyone can read it, and it won't set off as many spam filters.