JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Have you heard of artistpr.com

here's the questions I think you should always ask before you purchase a service:

- what is your definition of success, and what is your business plan for your music? how does this service support your goals?

- what is this service going to do for you that you're not doing or couldn't do yourself? You should do it yourself first so you understand what is required, and only purchase help when you don't have sufficient time to do it anymore / or if you can't access that area of the market yourself.

- what is their track record? One assumes a proactive musician has been building their network, reading newsletters and forums to do with music all the time. If this was a fantastic service that really helped artists, then why haven't you heard of it before now?

- who do they accept as members? Have you listened to that music? Is it well-produced, commercially viable?

- how do they go about executing your "pr" for you? What specifically will they do and how will they report the results to you. If they're going to be lumping your music in with other artist's music on a compilation CD, forget it. If they're going to be pitching your music to radio stations... get yourself a copy of the Indie Bible, read the articles and pitch yourself (and follow up your pitches as advised in the book).

- even if they do succeed in getting you "pr" what is the point of that? Do you have a product you are selling, do you have a tour you're selling tickets for... how is this investment going to end up as dollars back in your pocket?

- I don't put any reaccuring charges on my credit card if I can help it. $60 a month = $720 per year. Do they offer a discount if you pay the year up front? (That's more than double a TAXI membership, or an SongU membership, or a NSAI membership. These organizations have good reps.)

Suggested resources for DIY PR:
www.thebuzzfactor.com (Bob Baker)
www.cyberpr.com (Ariel Hyatt)
www.theindiebible.com (The Indie Bible)

I have additional resources listed on my blog, scroll down on the right-hand side.
http://theshysinger-songwriter.blogspot.com/

HTH