I'm basking in the afterglow of the first annual Listening Room Festival, founded by singer, songwriter, promoter, Fran Snyder. The festival brought dozens of artist/entrepreneurs to living rooms across St. Petersburg, Florida. A highlight for me was the workshops for those in the music business. One of the best tips, presented by Carey Murdock, was using MailChimp as an email broadcast platform. Don't let the funny name keep you from checking out this serious email solution. MailChimp is the only provider I've found that has figured out how to deliver your precious email marketing to a mobile audience. For those of you who struggle to publish a monthly newsletter, MailChimp provides templates that automatically include your blog-based newsletter content without having to cut and paste, format and repeat. You don't even need to schedule publication. As you build your campaign you can chose to broadcast daily, weekly or once a month. For traveling artists, a valuable feature is the ability to send to event announcements to only fans from a specific area.

You Don't Need to be a Rock Star

Even if all you play is air guitar, MailChimp's features make you look like a pro. I use their Android app to manage my email marketing campaigns while on the road. Their templates include the ability to create invitations to YouTube, EventBrite, GotoWebinar and Facebook Events.

MailChimp Field Guide

Even if you're happy with your current provider, you owe it to yourself to check out their resources for email marketer. Their field guide contains valuable information even it you don't have a MailChimp account. Rock Stars should check out the MailChimp For Musicians guide. I recommend you check out the entire library. Email marketing is an essential part of a successful Internet Game Plan. Don't wait for qualified prospects to happen by your website, meet them where they are!