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Wow, it had been a while since I rode the band drama rollercoaster


Vermoulian

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Earlier this year I joined a second band, a Beatles tribute of sorts. It's been largely a fun experience, although things are a bit more chaotic than I have been used to. Still, I'm starting to feel like I'm getting comfortable with the repertoire, and I do enjoy the shows.

 

The guy who formed the band and nominal leader is a good guy but he's been dealing with some pretty serious issues in his personal life, due to health and job problems. Earlier this year (shortly after my first show with them) he announced he was pulling the plug on the band, but subsequently he changed his mind, we booked more shows, and things seemed to be going okay. But after a show Saturday, he sent another e-mail saying he was burned out on music and not to consider him a member of the band anymore.

 

I don't know whether this was due to him being particularly depressed at that moment or a deeper, more profound issue he has with the band. But this time, without consulting anybody else, he deleted the band's Facebook page, squandering 18 months of brand-building and the 600 likes the band had accumulated. Unclear what will happen now---at least some of the guys want to keep it going.

 

My other band, an 80s-new wave-alternative cover band, has been pretty much drama-free since our present line-up got together three or four years ago. I've decided I don't really like band drama.

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He's got some issues, obviously, but I did not suspect he'd do something like this. I don't really know him that well; I've only been in the band a few months, but I get the impression that even the guys who have been around since the beginning were blindsided by this.

 

The band was actually doing fairly well. I would expect that if the rest of your life is a mess, that would be something to hold on to.

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Regarding the Facebook page, Facebook doesn't like to lose customers. At least for individual pages for people, if you delete your account you can ask them to "undelete" it and it will all be restored just like it was. I dont' know whether that is true of facebook pages, but it may be possible to ask the guy to have the page undeleted if you all decide that you want to move forward.

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Maybe not worry about the FB page, and elevate your marketing with a proper web site if the rest of the band decides to continue. My impression is that potential venues much prefer to see a pro web site over a FB page; FB is of some value in letting people who might form part of an audience know what you're up to, but that doesn't in and of itself usually result in gigs unless you're dependent on your draw and FB is your vehicle for that. In other words, the deletion of the FB page might not be of much consequence.

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I think Gman hit the nail on the head. We have a pretty tough market these days for every kind of business and one thing seems to hold true in my market. The harder they pound facebook typically the worse shape they are in. facebook is a good tool to keep your fan base informed and up to speed,, but its really not going to get you bookings. A great web page is a better sales tool. One of the problems with face book is you lose control of things. People post things without thinking. they show rooms that look empty , they post cell phone videos you would not choose,, and they take pictures that may catch members at a bad angle etc. Since they are fans ,, you really cant pull them down. When it comes to sales its best for you to totally control what goes out to potential bookings.

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