1.  Credibility - as described above. Dot COM, NET, and ORG extensions are the most respected.  Keep it legit, go for a name that represents you, your group, your company, or your organization. 

2.  Easy access - your goal in choosing a domain name should be one of easy access for your fans, customers, or cients. Remember the term we mentioned earlier; you want your domain name to be “easily memorable”. 

3. Rankings - when you submit your domain name into search engines, the more easily accessed (or sometimes more common) domain name causes more visiters, which in turn creates a higher ranking.

4. Advertising - will this domain name be easy to advertise, both print and verbally.  There should be no confusion.  Fans, Clients, and Customers should be able to get to yuor address fairly easy after hearing your web address spoken.  In other words, make sure it is easily accessed after hearing it verbally. 

The domain name you choose for your group, ministry, or organization may not be available, which means you may have to get a little creative.  Here’s a few pointers that may help you in choosing the perfect domain name for yourself:

1. If possible use your Group, Company, or Organization name. If your group’s name is No Name Quartet, your number one options should be nonamequartet.com, nonamequartet.org, or nonamequartet.net.  If that’s not possible then use key words such as THEnonamequartet.com, nonamequartetmusic.com, nonamequartetonline.com, etc.

2. When using the words TWO/TO, FOR/FOUR, ARE/OUR, and YOU try to spell out the word rather than using replacements.  (ie. 2 for TWO/TO, 4 for FOR/FOUR, R for ARE/OUR, etc.) This works well for text messaging, but makes it hard to advertise your domain name in spoken word.

3. You are allowed up to 67 characters when choosing your domain name.  However, the shorter the better.  If you had a choice between nonamequartet.com and nonamequartetisnowonline.com your better choice is nonamequartet.com

4. Hyphens should only be used in cases where nothing else is available.  Again, in spoken advertising of your domain name, hyphens can cause confusion.  If you were searching for NO Name Quartet, before going to a search engine, your first instinct would be trying nonamequartet.com and NOT no-name-quartet.com.

5. It would be wise to purchase all COMMON variations of your domain name.  If No Name Quartet is going to purchase nonamequartet.com, they should invest in purchasing nonamequartet.net and nonamequartet.org as well.  A lot of times, if variations aren’t purchased, some porn or gambling sites will purchase the domain names which will cause quite an embarrassment to your Fans, Clients, or Customers if they accidentally type in the wrong extension.

We advise getting a piece of paper out and start thinking.  (You’ll find we do this quite often for almost any situation) Grab someone else to help!  Two minds are always better than one.  Write some ideas for your domain name using the tips we provided above. 

Now, When purchasing a domain name it is important that you don’t purchase other stuff that you won’t be using.  Some Domain Name Registrars offer products or services for extra costs that your Hosting company can usually provide for NO extra costs.  For example, some Registrars offer Email Accounts, Site Builders, Shopping Carts, etc. There’s no need to purchase other items from a domain name registrar if your hosting company will provide it.  If you later find out that your hosting company does not provide something that your Registrar does, you can add it later. 

You also want to look at pricing.  If you find a domain name that costs more than $20.00 per year you are paying way too much.  Unless the domain name is owned by someone else and you are desperate to purchase that certain domain name, paying over $20.00 per year is not worth the expense.  Remember, again, to make sure that you are not adding anything extra to your domain name purchase.  Some registrars automatically check boxes for items you may not want, so always double check your total when you are at the check out.

If you are using a designer, we recommend that you allow them to set up your domain name and hosting.  IT’s a more personalized service, and they will know what they can offer you and what they need to purchase through the domain registrar company. 

Usually a designer will include the purchase of the domain name in their agreement.  Make sure before signing the agreement you know how much the renewal of the domain name will be for the years following. 

Some domain name registrars we recommend are:

GoDaddy.com
000domains.com
domaindirect.com

Never knew there could be so much in simply finding a domain name?  Check back soon for more updates!

The first step to a website should always be your domain name.  The internet is rapidly growing and millions of new websites are created every year.  With this in mind, we want to be able to puchase the perfect domain name for our group, ministry, or organization.  Sometimes this is not possible, but we hope to walk you through the process of finding the one that’s closest to perfect.

First of all, we need to understand exactly what a domain name is and what it does. 

Dicitonary.com defines it as the following:

domain name
n.
A series of alphanumeric strings separated by periods, such as http://www.hmco.com, that is an address of a computer network connection and that identifies the owner of the address.

Wikipedia.com defines it a little more simpler:

Domain names are hostnames that provide more easily memorable names to stand in for numeric IP addresses.

Let’s remember the term “easily memorable” for later. 

An example of a domain name would be:  southernspin.com

Domain names are used in URLS to direct the user to a specific page. A URL is “A Uniform Resource Locator (URL). It is a string of characters conforming to a standardized format, which refers to a resource on the Internet (such as a document or an image) by its location.”

An example of a URL using a domain name would be:  http://www.southernspin.com

A URL made up of your domain name and an HTTP code is called a WEB ADDRESS.

A domain name is broken down into levels.  The levels are divided by a period (.) and are assigned numerically from right to left.  The top or first level is the ending portion of the domain name (ie. COM, ORG, NET, etc.) The second level is the unique name of the site (ex. southernspin of southernspin.com) A third level domain would be: blog.southernspin.com .  More than three or four levels of a domain name are uncommon, but they do occur. 

In order to give your group, ministry, or organization validity you need a domain name.  No more FREE sites.  From the little or much surfing you do on the net, looking at the two domain names below, which would you find to be more credible?

adhd.com

adhd.kids.tripod.com

Which of the above domain names will be easier to advertise?

Now that we’ve looked at what a domain is and does, our next topic will be Finding the Perfect Domain Name

Bob Baker, who in my opinion is a genius, has a book that he wrote entitled Unleash the Artist Within.  He says “Most people have it backwards. First BE. Then DO.  Eventually you will HAVE.  You can’t DO unless you ARE.  Reaching your potential fans shouldn’t be all about hard work and no fun.  It’s about using your creativity.  That’s that part of your brain that you put aside to become an “adult”.  Bring it back out and have fun with it.

It doesn’t hurt to try to come up with a Statement.  In the Marketing world, it’s called a Brand Identity Statement.  To do that, we need to know what a Brand is.

Brand
A trademark or distinctive name identifying a product or a manufacturer.

A Brand Identity would be how you want the consumer to perceive your product or your brand. Which would then make a Brand Identity Statement a motto, phrase, sentence, paragraph, etc, that defines WHO you are and what you do.  When we determine who we are and what we do, we can determine who our fans are going to be.  Then we can work on the best way to reach them.

Now, let’s work on that brainstorming.  We know our goals, made our statement, and now we need to “get to work”.

There’s all kinds of things we can do: 

Send news releases regularly (Joan Stewart - The Publicity Hound - offers a list of 89 reasons to send a News Release when you sign up for your email newsletter!  She also offers free articles on her site regarding publicity.)
Donate Time for Charity Events
Give-Aways, Contests
Write articles in e-zines, magazines, your website
Create an informative website
Send out an email newsletter
Get to know your local newspaper - They are always looking for interesting photo opportunities
Call your local Cable company - Find out details on creating your own TV Show
Participate in online discussion groups, message boards, etc
Billboards
Magazine Ads
Newspaper Ads
E-zine Ads
Radio Ads
Posters
Mailing Lists
Postcards
Flyers (you can even go as far as Door Hangers)
Word of Mouth
Brochures
Air Blimps

MarketingProfs.com has amazing articles you can read, one in particular which lists a lot of the above ideas.  You can find that article here. You may have to register, but it’s well worth giving them your email address!

Don’t forget that you’re going to need a way for your fans and industry to contact you.  You will probably want to think about HOW they will do this.  Web, Phone, Fax, Email, etc.  Before you start reaching fans, they need to be able to reach you.  When you have your contact information all set, paste it EVERYWHERE.  That in itself is advertising.

The best advice is to open your mind to the creativity you’ve stored away.  You’ll be surprised at what you can come up with.  Check back to my next blog to see where we go from here.

According to Dictionary.com, marketing is simply “to offer for sale; to sell”.  Here’s a pretty cool Principle that Bob Baker over at TheBuzzFactor.com has found.  It’s quite interesting to think that any artist could accomplish this.

Bob says:

The VFW Hall Principle

Let’s say you went to an average U.S. city (such as Kansas City or Denver) and you rounded up 1,000 people and gathered them in a giant VFW hall. These 1,000 folks would be randomly chosen and made up of people from all ages, genders and backgrounds. Next, you’d distribute information about your act to these people and play tracks from your new CD for them.

After this direct exposure, what are the chances that one person out of those thousand would be attracted to your music and identity enough to buy your CD or come to your next show? Most musicians, regardless of what style they play, should feel pretty confident about being able to win over at least one new fan from this group of 1,000. That’s a one-tenth of one percent conversion rate.

Now let’s multiply that formula by the entire U.S. population of 285 million people. One-tenth of one percent would be 285,000 people. Mind-boggling, isn’t it? That would be enough fans to make you a bonafide star.

Ok, so every artist has the potential of attracting or reaching 285,000 people.  Note, we said “potential”.  You know you have potential fans out there, it’s a matter of finding them (or them finding you).  The key to all of this is to make those people hear you somehow.  Most of us involved in Christian music do not have the funds for a MAJOR marketing plan.  However, we’ve found (as Chosen Few has song), it’s in “The Little Things”.

But first things first.  Do you even know what you are all about?  The most common thing we see is people rushing into the singing part and missing all the other parts it takes to be effective.

Marketing plans do not need to be complex.  They can even be “make it up as you go”.  However there are a few essentials you need to know before starting out.

You must know exactly what your music is about. 

What style of music do you sing?  Do you sing Christian Country, Inspirational, Southern Gospel, Southern Country, or maybe a mix fo all.  Either way you need to know WHAT you sing.  If you don’t know, ask other people.

What is your primary focus?  Are you an encourager?  Are you all about working with Women/Men’s ministries?  Do you focus primarly on salvation or healing?  What do you want to accomplish?

What makes you different?  Why should fans choose YOU over any other singer/songwriter?

What makes you or your group YOU...what makes you unique? 

Stop right now, get out a pen and paper and start writing.  You can’t sell something you don’t know anything about!

Next blog:  Brainstorming Ways To Reach Your Potential Fan

The first question to ask is do you know what a Web Site is?  Too many times you’ll see people get on the computer or internet and start working with things they really have no knowledge of, and in the end, end up causing more problems than they had before they started.

So, what is a web site? 

A set of interconnected webpages, usually including a homepage, generally located on the same server, and prepared and maintained as a collection of information by a person, group, or organization. (found at Dictionary.com)

The key word here is “information”.  The Web was and is intended to help people find “information” quickly and easily. Having a web site is not about showing off great graphics, although graphics are nice, it’s about communication.  The idea of having a “presence” on the web is getting information to others about your self, ministry, group, or business. 

When you create a website you create something that represents you or what you do.  A website should be an image of you.  It is important that you create an image that’s a professional true reflection of you, your ministry, your group, or your business.

The old saying “you get what you pay for” rings true when it comes to your “presence” on the web.  We hear from people all the time, “Why should I spend money on a website when a member of our group, or family, can do it for free?” The answer is simple.  When you have a website that is inadequately created, in the end, it will still cost you money.  Lack of professionalism can cause you loss of product sales.  You will still have to pay for hosting or maintenance of the site. 

We’ve seen, many times, people who have come to us because the person that was working on their site (for FREE) wouldn’t update their site regularly.  If you’re an artist, this can be hurtful to you.  You communicate to your fans through your website.  These people are in a bind.  How can you complain about that which you are getting for free.  Remember, when you PAY, you have the right to complain or just request a change.

Next Topic:  Domain Names

We know that everyone has different goals.  Some feel a need to be more ministry minded, which is fine.  Others feel the need to be more business minded. That’s fine too.  BUT, our belief here at Southern Spin, is that there must be a combination of both.  If you’re singing any type of Gospel Music and there is no ministry focus, then why are you doing it?  But, if you’re singing/working in any type of Gospel Music and you’re ALL ministry, how do you pay your bills? 

Our company wants to provide you, the artist and industry professional, with information that can help take your business or group to the next level.  In the coming posts, you may find a sentence with a link in it, or you may find a bit lengthy post.  All will point to some sort of tip or information that will help you better your group or business. 

We believe in running our business in a manner that represents Biblical standards.  We know that without that, our business cannot succeed in any way. 

Just to tell you a little bit about our company.  We began in January 1, 2003.  (You may want to read our About Us to familiarize yourself with us - Chris and Amy).  When I say we, I mean, myself and my younger brother, Chris.  Chris was a big Contemporary Christian Music junkie (well, almost ALL kinds of music junkie).  He specialized in the knowledge of the history and current aspects of almost any music industry, but he LOVED CCM.  Being a true SG girl, my family and I always prayed that Chris would find the enjoyment out of this genre as we did.  It was amazing to see the transformation.  Now, Chris’ main desire is to see this great genre come to the 21st Century. 

During Christmas 2002, Chris was home from College.  We were all discussing the aspects of SG music.  Chris began to tell us how different, well, behind SG was compared to ANY other genre of music.  He began to express a great concern, wishing he could do something about it.  That’s when our Mom looked at him and said, “just do it then”.  January 1, 2003 we began this journey.  We sent a press release out to the few media outlets we had.  We started out with 4 Clients (2 of which were some how related to us).  The other two were friends of mine whom I had talked to about working with us.  They gave us a shot, a chance, and I’m so very thankful.  We could not be where we are today without them. 

We started out as a publicity company, who handled minor publicity, web design, and the creation, writing, and design of media kits.  I was amazed to see what God was doing through us.  Within a year, we went from 4 clients, to 10.  After the second year, we were up to 20.  The end of our third year we now have over 40 clients and we are still growing.  We’ve learned lessons.  We’ve learned plenty of them.  But God has called us to this time and place and we are ecstatic at what He is going to do for us in the future. 

Every step we take, every move we make is guided by prayer and advice from our elders.  Some people call us young kids, and that’s ok.  We are still young, however, our take is why wait for us to become old before we do something? 

Our company has grown from just a minor publicity and web company, to so much more.  We have divided our company into several divisions, to better serve our customers.  SSE Group is the conglomerate of the following divisions:  Southern Spin Entertainment, SSE Design Group, Southern Spin Radio, and Southern Spin Artist Direction.  For more information on SSE Group and it’s divisions you can visit www.ssegrouponline.com

Our prayer is that you will learn from the information and tips we provide. 

God Bless,
Amy Marie Unthank

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