Effectively promoting a music CD requires organization. Create a spreadsheet using Microsoft Excel (or a similar program) where you can store information regarding CD promotion. Important items to include are the organizations or people to whom you send your CD, the dates you sent them, e-mail and contact information for each recipient and notes that illustrate whether someone has received and/or responded to your submission. A spreadsheet enables you to follow up on all of your submissions in an organized, practical way.
Whether you plan to promote your music CD on a local, regional or national level, knowing your demographic is critical. At a local level, learn all of the newspapers, magazines, and radio and television stations that might be open to welcoming your CD submission. A local weekly entertainment publication, for instance, is a great venue for potentially getting your new CD reviewed. Local radio or television stations often invite musicians for on-air interviews, providing even more recognition.
Websites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter have become important tools for music promotion. Giving yourself an online venue for presenting your songs and information about yourself is easy and often free. Social networking sites enable you to upload songs, photos and biographies, and give you an instant connection to a large potential fan base. They also allow you to update fans about upcoming shows or releases.
Family and friends can be an integral part of promoting a music CD. Family members or friends may have connections within a local or regional music community you otherwise would not know about. Giving them a few CDs will enable you to get your music into more hands faster and potentially grow your fan base exponentially.
When you do start playing live shows, positioning a mailing list next to your CD merchandise gives fans a chance to sign up for updates on future shows and releases. Getting fans' names and e-mail addresses can help you grow your local and regional following by keeping them abreast of developments in your career.