Industry news & advice blog

A few months back, I posted a blog explaining how The Unsigned Guide is kept up to date, and this month, as well as telling you about the sections of our music industry directory we are currently  working on, I’ll be giving you the lowdown on how the Survival Guide can help you save those all important pennies!

At the moment we’ve been updating our Record Shops, Video Production, Printers and Merchandise sections of the Guide, making sure that all details held in our directory are as up to date as possible, as well as adding new businesses we think it’s worth you knowing about. If you have a business you’d like to be included in the Guide, don’t forget you can always get in touch via our online Get Listed form or drop us a line to recommend any companies or individuals you think should be.

Selling your music in Record Shops
Selling and distributing your music correctly is obviously key to any band’s success and it’s important to remember how helpful your local record shop can be. Independent record shops are not only a useful outlet for unsigned bands and artists to sell releases but also for promoting gigs and events. The Unsigned Guide’s Record Shop section is chock full of listings (over 250 in fact!) detailing stores that are willing to stock material by unsigned and emerging acts. We also list record shops that have room for gig posters & flyers, those that sell tickets and even those who put on in-store performances.

Our Record Shops section allows you to search by UK city/town or region to find nearby stores and gives you that all important specialist info so you can target the right ones. As you’ll see in the sample Record Shops listing below, not only do we provide you with individual stores’ contact details, including click-through online links, we also let you know if they specialise in any particular genres and what formats they stock. 

Contact names are also included in the majority of our listings and you’d be surprised how far you can get with a polite and personal email. Build a relationship with your local record shop and they’ll be more likely to help you out in the long term. With many struggling against closure in recent years, we’re sure if you show them support, they’ll do their best to support you in return. 

Make a music video with our Video Production listings
YouTube has fast become the first port of call for anyone looking for new music so having a video presence is vital, otherwise you could be missing out on a whole hoard of new fans! An innovative, eye catching video is a sure fire way to grab people’s attention and get them talking about your music. Perhaps you want some decent live footage to show what you’re made of? Whatever it is you’re looking for our Video Production listings can help. As well as providing contacts for top notch video production companies, we can also hook you up with the details of smaller businesses and individuals who cater for smaller budgets. You’d be surprised how many people are looking to extend their portfolio and shoot for cheap! 

As you’ll see below, our typical Video Production listing will tell you what types of filming and shoots each company specialises in; whether it’s live shoots, promo videos, location work or even documentaries. We’ll also tell you if they provide editing and post production services, plus details of any music clients they’ve worked with in the past. 

Our listings will also advise if special rates to unsigned and emerging acts are up for grabs, plus whether they can work to lower budgets - handy as we all know it’s important to work within your means! Our You & The Music Industry hub, packed with advice, tips and essential information from those in the know, has articles from the likes of Radar Music Video and Sitcom Soldiers, explaining what you should expect from a video shoot, how to best prepare and how you can promote and feature your music videos on blogs once made.

Promo print for your band or gig
Print companies aren’t necessarily the first thing that springs to mind when you think of music, but producing posters and flyers are essential when it comes to promoting your band or gig. A reliable local printer can also help you out with tickets, signs and backdrops too.

With over 280 individual listings in the Printers section of The Unsigned Guide, spanning the width and breadth of the UK, you’ll find varying companies catering to all budgets.

Our Printers listings include details of the items they can produce, turnaround times and whether they have an in-house design service. Of course, if they have previous experience of working with music industry clients, you’ll also find this in the listing.

Need help with producing eye-catching designs for your promotional print? Check out our Artwork & Design section which is bursting with designers & agencies who can come up with the perfect artwork for posters, merch, CD releases and more.


Producing music merchandise
Any band will tell you that there’s money to be made in merch and putting thought into what you produce and its design could see you bring in extra revenue and pay for those all important recording sessions. Think outside the box a little; fans will pay for something that’s unique and there’s more to merch than just badges and tees. The Merchandise listings in our directory will put you in touch with a whole host of companies local to you producing stickers, keyrings, hats, tote bags and hoodies.

Not only do our listings supply you with the email addresses and telephone numbers for various merchandise companies, we also provide click-through links to their websites, blogs and social media pages so you’re able to have a gander at their work. Our listings, as shown below, will also give you info on the types of merch they produce and the quantities/runs they cater for. Again, we’ll mention if they’ve worked with music clients previously. 

Savings & discounts on music services with Survival Guide
We all know that money is tight for bands and musicians starting out. With this in mind we launched our Survival Guide to give you a little helping hand. Members of The Unsigned Guide can take advantage of over 100 exclusive discounts, deals and special offers from companies listed in the directory so you can save money on music essentials. Every little helps!

With fantastic discounts on everything from recording and rehearsal sessions, photo and video shoots, merchandise and CD duplication, you’re bound to save a few pounds that can be spent elsewhere. Taking advantage of the offers couldn’t be easier - all you need to do is look out for the yellow Survival Guide logo across our listings (see example below) and the details of the discount/special offer will all be laid out in front of you. Easier still, you can refine searches within the directory to just give you company listings with a Survival Guide offer. Easy peasy!