Play as many shows as possible. Whether you're landing an opening spot for a major band at a large venue, or playing at a small neighborhood club, you need to work on polishing your live act. Rehearsing is great, but it can only take you so far. Playing in front of an audience is the surest way to tighten up your band and to forge its true identity. Remember that a label is more likely to take a chance on you if you're seasoned live performers. After all, they'll expect you to tour to promote your releases.
Book studio time at a local recording facility and record a 3 or 4 song demo of your strongest material. This demo recording has to really impress the Victory Record label, so it needs to be professionally arranged, performed and recorded. Your competition is likely armed with high-quality recordings, so don't compromise on quality by recording yourselves, unless you have advanced production skills. Rehearse and fine-tune your material before you even go into the studio, so that you don't waste expensive studio time practicing and rearranging parts. Although these songs will probably be re-recorded should the label sign you, you need to demonstrate that you're studio-savvy and have finely honed material.
Book a photo shoot with a professional photographer. Resist the temptation to save money by having a friend take a few live shots of the band at a local gig. Snapshots are fine to share among friends, but if you want to separate yourselves from the hordes of bands vying for label attention, you need to have professional-quality studio shots that show that you take your business seriously.
Upload your music and photos to your band's website, blog or social networking site. Make sure that the site is kept current by regularly posting new content, keeping fans informed of your recording sessions and your live performance schedule. Make sure too, that you have a way for visitors to leave comments and sign up to your mailing list. A record label will be more willing to take a chance on a band that is already cultivating a vibrant and interactive fan community.
Visit the Victory Records website. At the top of the homepage, click on the "Submit Demo" tab to open up a simple submission form. Here you'll enter the name of your band, your contact information, and give links to the sites that are hosting your songs. There'll also be a text box for you to write any additional comments. Don't paste in your band bio and send a long message hyping your band. When they listen to your demo on your website, there'll be every opportunity for them to read about your band should the music interest them. Keep it simple and write a short note explaining that you think your band might be a good fit for the label and that you look forward to hearing from them.
Wait patiently for a response from the label. If you don't hear from them after two or three weeks, send a concise follow-up email asking if they received your demo submittal form and whether they've had a chance to review your music. If they didn't receive the form or it was overlooked, ask if you can mail them a hard copy of your demo CD. If they're open to this, ask for a contact name so that you can address the envelope directly to them. If they decide to pass on your band, be professional, thank them for their time and continue to work on improving your material. Just because they didn't choose to sign you now doesn't mean that future submissions won't win them over.