What Venues Really Want: A Modern Guide to Booking Success

Play Live, Retain Live

The landscape of live music booking has evolved significantly in recent years, and seems to continue to evolve every year with venues adapting their priorities to match the changing digital environment. While social media followers were once the golden metric for booking decisions, venues today are looking deeper at an artist's overall reach and engagement.

Today's venues are more interested in your content's reach than your follower count. A musician with 1,000 followers who consistently gets 10,000 views on their reels often holds more value than someone with 10,000 followers but minimal engagement. This shift has made mastering short-form video content, particularly reels and TikToks, crucial for artists. When your content goes viral, venues see you as a valuable marketing asset, essentially a walking billboard for their establishment.

Venues are increasingly drawn to artists who operate their music career like a business. Using professional tools like IRM's platform demonstrates your commitment to smooth operations. From automated contracts to one-page show promotions and systematic follow-ups, these professional touches make you stand out. Venues appreciate artists who make their jobs easier, and utilizing these tools shows you value their time and business.

One surprising trend in today's booking landscape is the growing demand for genre flexibility. Venues are particularly interested in artists who can seamlessly incorporate 90s and early 2000s popular music into their sets. This versatility not only appeals to a broader audience but also shows adaptability, a trait venues value highly. Whether you're a country artist throwing in a pop cover or a rock band with an R&B twist, this flexibility can set you apart.

Venues now view artists as marketing partners. They're looking for performers who understand that promotion doesn't start and end with the show, it's an ongoing process. Pre-show promotion is mandatory, even for smaller gigs, as it helps build your reputation as a serious professional. During the show, engaging with the audience and encouraging social media interaction creates valuable content for both artist and venue.

What happens after the show can be just as important as the performance itself. Using IRM's automated tools to send thank-you emails the following Monday shows professionalism and attention to detail. Some successful artists take it further by sending thank you packages to venues, including links to social media content from their performance. This gives venues shareable content and provides another opportunity for audience engagement after the event.

Before booking, venues want to see a clear and professional electronic press kit (EPK), high-quality live video content, and consistent social media presence. They're looking for artists who understand that success in today's music industry requires both talent and organization. Your EPK should tell your story effectively, while your live videos should demonstrate your ability to engage an audience.

The key to securing repeat bookings is minimizing what venues call "break points", which is any friction in the booking and performance process. The easier you make it for venues to work with you, from initial contact to post-show follow-up, the more likely they are to book you again. This means having clear communication, professional documentation, and reliable performance standards.

In today's competitive music landscape, venues are looking for more than just talented performers, they want professional partners who understand the business side of music. By focusing on reach over followers, maintaining professional operations, promoting effectively, and making the venue's job easier, you significantly increase your chances of booking success and building lasting relationships with venues. And remember, any questions you have, just as your IRM Manager!