Bob Baker's The Buzz Factor

Found some great indie marketing tips on the Rampant Hosting web site. Here's an excerpt:

"Create an e-Team. An e-Team is a group of fans who work together to help spread the word about a band online. This means talking about you on message boards, chat forums and via e-mail, etc. But a word of warning: EVERYONE hates spam, so don't encourage your street team to spam on your behalf. It's unlikely to win you any fans!

"Join Forces. Another idea is to approach other bands and suggest you collaborate and produce a compilation CD. This is extremely useful, not only for reducing costs but it also means you'll all benefit by getting heard by each others' audience, thus increasing your fan base.

"Create an angle to market this compilation. Will it be a showcase album for local artists or would you prefer to include bands of a similar genre to you? Go and see as many local bands as possible. If you like them, approach them with your idea. Remember, by all means, cut costs but NEVER cut corners when it comes to quality."

Read the entire list of tips at rampanthosting.com/rcms/news/getStory/22

I'm pretty sure the advice above was written by U.K. artist Jane, who sold more than 2,000 copies of her debut album, Close Up and Real, after practically giving up all hope of doing anything significant with her music. Check out these encouraging remarks from her online blog:

"I'm delighted and astonished by the response I've had. Let's face it, I'm a thirty-something mother of three, hardly 'rock star' material, yet it doesn't seem to matter. In the current climate of an image-dominated music industry, I never believed I would stand a chance. Yet, given the choice, people really don't seem to care that much about age, looks or status. They just like the songs and it's brilliant ... exactly what music should be about."

Find out more about Jane at Janemusic.info