Interactive Award: Edition´10

The Bazzookas get the ball rolling…
It all starts with good, genuine music. That’s the base. When that’s taken care of, you can start building; building your musical life, networks: the fan base, journalists, radio stations, television, programmers, bookers, buyers etc. Building your future.
The concept below started after releasing a successful EP: Nothing but positive feedback in reviews, magazines, websites, radio, television, and, of course, from the fans.

Bottom line:
Hit Charts are a way of getting your name and face out. Reaching the charts means that a lot of people like what you’re doing, for they bought your track, whether it’s via download or on a CD. Reaching the charts might get you airplay, which might help you in climbing the charts! Hit Charts are composed by numbers of paid downloads, CD-singles sold and airplay on a very limited number of radio and television networks.
To have a hit means to be noticed. DJ’s give you a try. TMF uploads the clip to TMF.nl, and after many views, ratings and a spot on the Top100, add it to their playlist. As a result, programmers read reviews and hear from colleagues that the band, and the record, are doing well. The fans hear all the positive output and feel supported in their taste. Journalists write columns and reviews because apparently the band matters, and vice versa, a journalist will like the affirmation of a Chart rating after having written something positive about a band. They’re almost human!

Long story short: a chart rating is a way of materializing your dream. You get the ball rolling, reaching the initial goal: Play lots of shows!

Dilemma:
Surfing on Dutchcharts.nl, one of the things you’ll see is the singles chart. 100 singles that have done well in the past week. Many downloads, many sales, and possibly much airplay. Beside this weeks rating, there’s also a link to the video clip on Youtube for every act. On Youtube, listening to the music, as well as watching the video is free. Someone who knows his way around a computer will rip the video within seconds, take the audio and have the MP3 on his computer or MP3-player.

Concept: Give the MP3 extra value!
Our concept constitutes the revaluing of the MP3. This exists in the fact that everyone who downloads our track (for €0,90) has a chance of winning an exclusive private Bazzookas concert at their homes, or where ever. So instead of buying an MP3 – which you can get anywhere else for free – you’re buying the possibility of having your favorite band perform in your bedroom!
Because we have a solid fan base (proven by last year’s concept) we were able to motivate our fans to download our track. Because there is a quite large number of fans, we were in a position to reach new fans every week for two months, and convince them to join the competition. Right until the big denouement: New Year’s Eve: 01/01/2010, 00:01 o’ clock. That’s when we will announce our lucky winner. The concert will undoubtedly lead to another cool new web-video…

System:
It’s very simple: Our website, as well as a press release, announce that a download can result in winning an exclusive Bazzookas show at your house. A link redirects the fan to a paying site. Along with the track comes a code, which the downloader then emails to us. We collect the codes, and the associated email address. We randomly select a winner, and announce his or her name on New Year’s Eve.

Approach:
We posted an announcement on our website, and sent a press release to Musicfrom.nl. The ANP (General Dutch Press) picked it up, and all the music-related webzines and magazines in turn scooped it off the ANP website. In less than a day we had an additional 15000 hits on Google. Even the REVU wrote about it!

Result:
We are in the top100. We entered at 91, moved to 86, and while writing this piece we are at 68. We are overflowed with radio interviews and bookings from local TV networks: 3FM live with Giel Beelen, played at several radio programs.
We’re in talks with two record companies. We got a huge number of reviews. And the most important thing: loads of show confirmations and requests that will definitely be answered. We can play shows, many of them, and for the right price.

Side Effects:
What’s very convenient about getting a code per download sent at you, is that we can tell exactly how many downloads are needed for a chart rating. Moreover, we have all the email addresses of our dedicated fans, whom we can update with news, or for a next competition! For example a reward for The Missing Link to Pinkpop…
Fun fact: there have been festivals who downloaded our track, hoping to book us for €0,90. School classes, radio stations and sports teams are also on our download list. Some fans even downloaded our track five times!

Follow-up:
As mentioned above, the event ends on New Year’s Eve. That’s when the prize will be rewarded. This will lead to a lot of publicity. In the mean time we recorded an acoustic version of the song in question, as we noticed that many networks had trouble getting used to our rough sound. This acoustic version features a key role for a whistler. Yes, a “pout-your-lips-and-whistle” whistler. We contacted three-time world champion in whistling, Geert Chatrou. He loves the song, as well as the chart rating, and immediately decided to join the release. Of course we’ll have the same competition for this track: Download for a show at your house! Exclusively for you. And we’ll bring Geert along…

Bazz

http://www.bazzookas.nl