Distributing to the Press (for artists)
INTRODUCTION TO DISTRIBUTIONS
Distributions are a great way to get further attention for your performances because they push the information to specific relevant journalists who write about concerts in the cities where you are performing.
Users with a Free Account will have a one-line listing in emails distributed to journalists in the city of your event or genre of your release.
Users with a Premium Account will have a larger listing of your event or release sent to journalists, complete with a photo, blurb, and more links. Upon our Fall 2011 Launch, we will provide Distribution Lists to press outlets in most U.S. concert cities. (Later in the year, we will provide Distribution Lists by genre for album/release coverage.)
WHAT YOU GET WITH EACH DISTRIBUTION
After you create a Dispatch and choose either the free listing or Fancy Listing, StoryAmp automatically schedules three emails to the relevant press list. The emails go out six weeks, four weeks, and two weeks before the event listed in the Dispatch.
Journalists receive a maximum of one email from StoryAmp per day. We do not want to clog journalists' inboxes with email; we want to free up their inboxes and remove friction so that it is easier for them to find the best music for their coverage criteria. If your Dispatch is the only one going to a journalist that day, the journalist will receive the Full Dispatch. If your email is scheduled to go out the same day as one or more other artists' Dispatches, the journalist will receive a Digest-style email with a "listing version" of your Dispatch. In addition, your Dispatch Listing will be included in the "Submitted" section of the journalist accounts within the StoryAmp website. The listing version is visually appealing and is designed to engage journalists by giving them everything they need with one click. The listing includes your primary Dispatch photo, your short pitch, one-click access to your primary Audio stream, date and city your event, one-click access to your Full Dispatch, and a button to add your Dispatch to their Queue (a tool that helps journalists flag Dispatches for deeper reading and listening).
When you schedule a Distribution, you will see the Distribution schedule in your Dispatch Dashboard. As Distributions are sent, you will see them logged in your Activity Log. As journalists click through the emails to see your Full Dispatch or listen to your music, activity in your Activity Log will increase.
Please feel free to recommend cities missing in our Distribution Lists or if you would like to let us know which Genre Press Distribution Lists you would use in our first rollout of genre lists, we would love to hear from you!
By the way, if you already have your own press contacts, you can also use the Share function from the Dispatch Dashboard to provide a URL directly to journalists you know.