I recently posted on Facebook and my personal site, a video tutorial on using Google Maps and Google Docs for planning and organizing a tour - for songwriters/performers.

If you are touring - or want to - this might be helpful info:
http://www.matthewmoranonline.com/2009/07/09/the-touring-songwriter-and-google-maps/

I recently took a week and toured into New Mexico - starting in Silver City and then up to Albuquerque via Las Cruces and Ruidoso.

Here are video updates from the road.

TOUR VIDEO RECAP
Video 1 – Phoenix to Silver City
Video 2 – Silver City to Las Cruces
Video 3 – Las Cruces to Ruidoso
Video 4 – Ruidoso to Albuquerque to Home

As part of this tour, I create some merchandise - simple rule of thumb here...  Having something - even a demo CD of 4 songs - is critical. People want something they can take away. The t-shirts and CD combo were a key piece of funding this tour and leaving people with a piece of me.

Currently,2 more designs are in the works.

I am also recording a new CD project, for completion in 6 weeks. Working title is "Where I Belong" - the title track being a more hopeful look at climbing back to a "Where I Belong".

Finally, I recently (yesterday) starting playing around with ArtistData.com. I love what they are doing - providing a single source for performance and news updates across various social media sites. Believe me, if I can enter my calendar data once and have it update my website, twitter, facebook, reverbnation, myspace, etc. and send notifications/updates to a variety of concert listing sites and media outlets, that is worth what I pay for it (free) and more.

As I write this, I am emailing back and forth with a couple house concert hosts. Also, looking for contacts in Las Cruces, El Paso, and virtually any place between there and Albuquerque (Alamogordo? Truth or Consequences?) to play house concerts or venue gigs (for the right venue). Planning and finalizing a mini-Southwest tour...

I've uploaded a new song, "The One Thing I Can Do" and am looking for bass and lead guitar. I would love fiddle too - if someone is so inclined..
http://www.kompoz.com/compose-collaborate/home.project?projectId=9952

Here is a video of me playing it live at Cave Creek Coffee Company - a really nice venue near my house. Mike Assad (guitar - very good guitar) and Kevin Brennan (percussion) accompanied me. Too much fun. I had never played it live prior to this night - so they had never heard it either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoROkbLSHtw

Well, I've been lousy on taking advantage of talent here at Kompoz and would love to remedy that.

However, back in December, when I started formalizing and acting upon a business/marketing plan for my music, I initiated 3 "achievables."  "2 out of 3 ain't bad.." is what MeatLoaf told us - and given the timeframe I have done pretty well on 2, and so so on the 3rd.

1) Mailing List (Grade = A+).
My mailing list has grown and I've been diligent in distributing 2 newsletters a month with minor/performance updates between.

In fact, I can tie 3 house concerts I'll be playing to the consistency of the newsletter. The first is in Cave Creek, AZ - close to home. One is in California and the other in DC.

2) Venues (Grade = B)
I've contacted venues, picked up paid gigs - so much that I stopped contacting them until this past week.  I've created a rather organized list and process for searching and contact venues by area. This is now being passed on to 2 people who have joined up as "street team" folks.

3) Merchandise (Grade = C-)
My recording is/was done and then I started messing with additional production - MIDI bass,drums, violin, etc. It has been fun. I've learned a lot - and I went over schedule by 45 days.

I just posted an entry on my site on using Google maps for tour planning.

Other social media of note:
Facebook Fan Page | Twitter | YouTube

If you use any of those, connect. I have a new recording project I am starting in the next 30 days and hope to post 2 new recordings in the next week or so.

Another songwriting tutorial - dealing with ideas (their source and how I capture them)

I realized that I left off the "tool" I use most often for capturing ideas now - a digital recorder.  Much safer when driving than a pad of paper.

Been playing a lot and collaborating offline (well, online but off Kompoz) for the past month.  Might put one of those projects up here soon.

Last month I played a little set for the Arizona Songwriter Association in Glendale, AZ.  From that and with a conversation yesterday with my son's friends, I wrote a blog about first steps in songwriting.

I focus on cadence, who I believe has cadence, and why Winnie the Pooh can help your songwriting.

Let me know what you think.

Songwriting First Steps - playing with words

I do, seriously, want to get new stuff posted here but I have been a bit busy this past several weeks.

I have added some additional information to my 2009 action plan - mailing list and venue contacts.  Part 1 | Part 2

Then I was up in Portland on business but had the opportunity to play out at a couple of open mics (see picture above).  I spoke to one of the venues about coming back to play a full-set - and picked up the name of several others in the area.  Maybe a week in spring.

This weekend I play Friday, Next Coffee Company in Glendale, AZ.  Saturday as part of the Arizona Songwriter's Gathering.  Sunday I will appear on Good Morning Arizona - a popular morning TV show.  That should be fun.  And then Sunday at noon at a local coffeehouse.
See my site for the complete schedule.

All of this is to continue aggressively building a mailing list - which I wrote about in prior blogs as well, while recording more songs.

Here are some thoughts on adding music to what I do professionally.

Over the next 7 days, I have a goal to contact 33 venues in Phoenix and the Southwest.  That is to make up for the 3 days in Portland when I didn't contact any.  3 Venues a day as part of "the plan".

I moved my mailing over to:
http://www.mynewsletterbuilder.com

Prior I had used a combination of local addresses, a free online tool at my webhost, and using Facebook, myspace (almost useless), and other online sources.

The first tasks was to clean my mailing list.  I have hundreds of addresses but know that many of them are just casual addresses that are not really engaged with what I am doing.  I brought everything into a spreadsheet, lined up fields like email address, first name, last name, zip, source or category, and state...

I created an action column (first column) and marked all of those that I was going to import directly (they had signed up or asked specifically to be added to my list - true fans or interested parties).  Then I identified those that should be out and out deleted.

The rest get an email asking them to sign up but explaining that if they do nothing, they receive no more emails.  I want opt-ins only and valuable contacts only.

I sent out my first newsletter this morning and in the past 20 minutes, have received 13 bounces and had more than 10 people open and click a newsletter link.  Furthermore, I have had 6 friend request on either Facebook or Myspace.

So far, no unsubscribes...

Mailing list managemenet was one of three primary goals for 2009.  The other two are:

1. Venue Contact - getting booked at "good" venues - which for a songwriter is different than a cover band.  Using a very direct contact method, I have 6 paid bookings lined up in the next 60 days.
    
2. Product Development - 5 new t-shirts and a coffeemug design have been completed.  Seeking out 2 local vendors for short-run production.

I've started putting together something like a business plan for the music side of what I do and have connected with a couple local and one international artist to share ideas and resources.

More on this later.

What are your objectives, if any, on the business side of your music?

I've been reading, "I Don't Need A Record Deal!" by Daylle Deanna Schwartz.  I took a variation on a tip in there to help add people to your mailing list.

The key is to make it easy and give listeners/fans the opportunity to connect.

I blogged about it here on my personal/performer website.

I started using My Newsletter Builder due to simplicty and price.

Coming Soon -what I am doing with merchandising...