Podcast appearances and mentions of seth hanes

Seth Hanes, author of Amazon Best Seller Break Into the Scene and the blog Musican's Guide to Hustling, chats about Mahler Symphony No. 1 and what encouraged him to help musicians get gigs! Visit Seth at sethhanes.com.

Download this episode to your computer Seth Hanes - Leveraging His Book to Create Authority Seth Hanes is the author of the book, Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career Seth is a classically trained musician who graduated from the Music School of Philadelphia. Today, he shares with us his thought process behind writing his book, his goal for writing a book, and how he leveraged his book to get more opportunities and help more people in the process. [03:35] Why Write a Book Seth has long been thinking about starting a book while at music school. His biggest issue with the music world is the tremendous lack of practical training for musicians, specifically how they can monetize their skill sets. Like many creative types, schools teach students a hyper-specific way of doing things and how to approach their craft. But they're taught little to nothing about how to go out into the world and turn that into a career. His book, Break into the Scene came out when he was trying to solve his own problems. Having read some books as well as some online courses and worked with business coaches, he tried to figure out how to go about turning his skill set into a money-making machine. And he found the striking lack of good resources on this topic out there. Hence, he decided to create something he wished he had access to when he was getting started. It practically took him four years from when this idea was conceived until he finally at down to write it. He knew that if he had to be successful at this, he had to take the time and invest his time, energy, and resources to make it happen. [07:10] Finding the Right Angle for the Niche Seth explains the book was written to be a how-to guide for people, specifically for musicians. The goal is to give them a quick result through equipping them with tools they need to be successful after reading it. What he found intimidating with other similar books is that they're mostly written by university professors. But he felt they lack the rawness of their own story. So he wanted to take a different approach with this. This said, he did have some share of the impostor's syndrome where he doubted himself, which he had to deal with for years and which he considers to be the biggest hangup. But what actually helped him grow his confidence was when he started a blog. He wanted something in a how-to format, presenting really raw, tactical advice musicians could use in specific situations they may find themselves in. He was like creating a little playground for himself where he could test out these ideas - see what works, see what didn't and what was resonating with people. And this was how he approached the ideation of the book, which was a long process to figure things out. By writing his blog to overcome his impostor's syndrome, he saw how his audience was reading it and people were getting results. Then he knew he was ready to write a book and all he needed now was to get a game plan to do it. [10:45] The Impostor's Syndrome and How It Impacts Your Confidence Azul focuses the discussion a bit on the the impostor's syndrome which is pretty important considering it's probably one of the major reasons people don't take action to begin with. It's that feeling that you don't deserve it or that you're not going to be able to do well or write as well as somebody else. In fact, he thinks the testing that Seth did was to figure out if things were going to work before he invested his time and effort. Seth admits there were many years of procrastination between the point of thinking about it and actually doing it. Azul confirms that while working with Seth, it wasn't that he didn't have the knowledge, but he didn't have the confidence to know that it would resonate with the world. What was in his head was all his ideas spread across different places (blog, interviews) and now he had to bring it all together to have that flow. And this gave him clarity. [12:10] Writing In Your Own Style, Your Own Voice Seth was also initially concerned about not being grammatically correct but it's how he talks. However, this does resonate with actual artists even if they may not resonate with those in the academic world. Eventually, they would see how people are getting results from it anyway. Seth has spoken at big universities and one of his goals was to use this as a tool to get himself out there further. He is specific about how he writes and presents his ideas. he thinks one of the ideas people struggle with is they try to sound like other people when they write and it just doesn't land. Seth is a very casual guy and doesn't want to get into the formality of things. So this is something he wanted to reflect in the book itself. He would normally write line by line and not in full paragraphs. And that's just how he writes. Some people don't like that and he's fine with that. But for him, this was how he knew he'd be able to write it and share it so he just had to stick to his guns with it. Seth adds that anybody who reads his stuff can immediately identify what he writes because of his distinct voice and style. Part of that comes from ignoring some of the conventional advice about writing and presenting ideas. Again, this can easily be tied into the impostor's syndrome. Azul stresses the fact that there is no right way to do any of this. Just remember that there is somebody consuming it. It's not for you, but there's that style of yours. And people will get to know you and appreciate you and like you, or not. [15:55] Writing the First Draft is a Sprint Seth struggled with getting the initial idea out on the page. So he started out a mind map where he those idea placed on some cards. And he points out one of the biggest things for him which was that he didn't want to start unless he's doing it the right way. People can tend to be perfectionists but you have to get past that. And for Seth, this was a really big mental shift for him. Just getting that first draft done and out was really a mental barrier for him. Azul gives a great analogy of writing the first draft as a sprint. He encourages people to make this into a sprint rather than taking your time and working on it for several months, or worse, even years. He says this is the worst thing you can do because you grow and change as a person. Your ideas change. If you wait that long, you're going to want to change the book every three or four months. Hence, it's important to sprint. Azul recommends reading Bird by Bird. It's counter-intuitive to what's being taught in schools where you need to edit while you go. And he explains this is the worst thing you can do because there are two different processes. One is the creative side while the other is a filter for editing things out. Unfortunately, a lot of people never get to finish it because it's not perfect yet. The first draft is supposed to be messy and ugly. And if you believe that, then you're doing perfectly well. Then there's that aspect of having multiple editors since you need a lot of eyes on it. [20:30] Putting It Out on Amazon and Marketing the Book The day of the release finally came and Seth vividly remembers it. He thinks people need to understand what they're trying to accomplish with a book. For some people, it may be to sell thousands of copies and make money. For others, it may just be to share ideas with people. For Seth, his goal was to get it in front as many musicians as possible knowing this is something valuable to people. The day it launched, he was so relieved that it went successfully. Talk about debuting at #1 and #3 for an Amazon category. And up to this day, it still sells every month and he still gets a check from Amazon. He still gets to receive emails from readers from around the world who are using the material. A year later, people are still writing him and writing about it. He has seen people taking pictures of it on Instagram and tweet about it. They send him messages on social media. He could say this was one of the most satisfying things he has ever done. It wasn't that he was selling so much but it was that knowing it was out in the world and that he accomplished this thing and it was doing what it was intended to do was what was really satisfying for him. Seth did a whole big launch and went out to various podcasts. He did guest-post on different sites. He built up his own site and he had his own audience and email list that he built up. So he used all these assets he had built to make his book marketing success. Moreover, he has always wanted to do more speaking and he was able to do this because of the book's success. He has gotten a lot of consulting clients from people who read the book or heard him on the podcast. [23:20] Standing Out in a Crowd Seth just started working at a digital marketing agency. and he believes the book was a big part of him standing out from the crowd. He has a music degree and a self-taught marketer with zero formal training. So it's hard to stand out in crowd of people with MBA and business degrees. What he has instead, is raw skill set that he has developed over the years out of doing it over and over again. And he was able to demonstrate this by doing things like marketing his book and getting clients and building his own business from it. So for him, the book was hugely instrumental in all of those things. And he's very proud to have created it. In fact, when he went in for his interview for his current role, he saw his book on the shelf. Azul says it's a pretty strong "calling card" for his ability to produce results. It's right there on your future employer's office. It doesn't get any better than that! Seth recounts how this happened. He reached out to this agency, applied online, and got rejected immediately. So he put together this whole presentation and a website along with a bunch of ideas and he sent them to the founder of the company. He eventually got his foot in the door by tweeting the founder at the company. It was a long and rigorous process that he didn't get the job. A couple of months later, he went back to some of the people he knew who work there and reached out to them thru email. So he got invited in and when he got in the office, he saw his book sitting on the shelf. So by then, he was able to leave a pretty good impression. [27:30] Leveraging His Book to Create Authority Azul outlines how Seth has leveraged the book to help him get more opportunities. You need to understand that it's not the book itself. But if you want to be a writer, then make it a living as a writer and you'd have to be writing more books and that's where the money will come. On the other hand, if you're using it as a way to grow as a person or grow your influence or your opportunity, then a book is a great way to do it. It's a great feeling just knowing you're helping other people get to where you were when you first started out and then watching them grow and their success in whatever field you're writing about. And Seth adds you really don't have to write hundreds of pages. For example, he ordered the book Love Yourself by Kamal Ravikant and he laughed at how short it was. It was about 40-50 pages with little blurbs in it just formatted in the book. But he sold tens of thousands of copies. So you can't really get hang up on the preconceptions of what a book actually is and that you have to do it in a certain way because it's not true. That being said, you'd have to get past the assumptions of what a book really is which can serve as a big mental block for people. [30:55] Self-Publishing versus Traditional Publication While there were times he was thinking of approaching traditional publishing and reworking some of the book, but he doesn't personally see the value from doing it. He thinks that anything they're going to do, he can probably do better on his own considering it's just a small niche. So he really doesn't see any financial incentive going down the traditional publishing route. He just sees it as something that made sense so he decided not to pursue it. Nevertheless, it's a matter of persona preference and the space that you're writing in. Azul adds people don't know how publishing works. And one of the things they don't realize is that you will most likely surrender most of your rights to the publisher. So they will own the audio rights and the rights on the name of the book. And people might get a small advanced payment from it. But the truth is, you're fighting for books on Amazon or any bookstore much as anybody else. So this is something you need to weigh out. Will this benefit you? Will this match your goals? Pat Flynn has proven that you can actually get your book on Barnes and Noble even if you don't have it traditionally published. Being an online test dummy, he always finds ways to do things. More importantly, your goal is what matters here. [33:30] From a Book to an Online Course From writing his book, Seth has developed an online course. He uses this material to help people who need more than information and need guidance. He wanted to find a way to turn this into more of an opportunity to himself and be able to help more people. He already had the content created and he knew he had the audience that wanted more. So the online course seemed like the logical next step for him. He already had an email list and a website people are reading, so it was a matter of turning that content into a course. And when he did the launch, he made a good chunk of money with it, which was something he could re-invest so he can create more stuff. For him, it's a great way to open another revenue stream for himself and help more people in the process. He got an email from a student who told him he got to triple his income because of reading his book and blog and taking his course. He was able to use his material to start systematically growing what he was already doing. In total, he has invested less than $100 or maybe more in Seth's products, and he's gotten massive results. And it's people like this guy is why Seth keeps on pushing forward on this because he knows it's helping people. Additionally, he loves getting to meet people and working with them. He ultimately looks at it as just another piece of the puzzle. [36:36] The Power of Investing in a Business Coach Seth is a big fan of working with other people on projects because it bakes accountability into it. So he did hire a business coach to give him some actionable steps and deliverables. Also, making a financial investment in something is important. He had never worked with a coach or taken an online course that he wasn't able to turn around and apply the material to make more money. While it may cost money upfront, it's so worth it to make the investment in yourself. If you're paying somebody money to help you do something, you'll absolutely do the work to get there. It all boils down to having that sense of accountability and the best way Seth thinks anyone could get it is by working directly with someone who's there to help you where you want to go. Azul adds it's more of a head game in there rather than the information you get from them. [41:00] Seth's Advice to Aspiring Writers Seth says he's nothing special. He's just some guy that had an idea and wanted to share it with people. So if he can do it, anyone else can do it. Moreover, he stresses the importance of getting real specific with what it is you really want to achieve when writing a book. Why are you actually writing the book and what is the outcome you want to see? He doesn't think everybody should write a book. It's a very difficult process and it can get very frustrating. It can take a lot of time. So if you don't have a great direction and goal with it, it's going to be difficult for it to be successful. But the more direction you're able to give yourself with it, the easier the process will be. Then you know how to work towards that specific goal. Reach out with people writing books and blogs in your specific industry or niche and ask them if writing a book is something that makes sense. Then work backwards towards what the actual process looks like. Again, know what it is you're really trying to achieve to begin with and what it actually takes to get there. Lastly, check out the Perennial Seller by Ryan Holiday if you need any help with writing. It talks about how content spreads and lasts over time and how it resonates with people in the long term. Links: Reach out with Seth on SethHanes.com where you will find his blog and other resources. Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott Love Yourself by Kamal Ravikant The War of Art by Steven Pressfield The Perennial Seller by Ryan Holiday  

Jennifer Rosenfeld is a leader in the world of music entrepreneurship and has been helping musicians “level up” their career since 2009. We go “inside baseball” on the whole podcasting thing.  I’ll bet that there are a few people listening to this podcast that actually listen to all of the shows we reference! Obviously, I’m a bass player, and I’m deep inside that world: teaching performing, going to concerts and events, and interviewing people. The truth, however, is that I’ve also entered this whole other world of podcasting, and I’ve developed all these fascinating relationships with people across various disciplines—from Scott Devine to Andrew Hitz. Links to Check out: iCadenza Coro by iCadenza Reclaiming My Identity As a Musician by Jennifer Rosenfeld Awakening your Business Brain by Jennifer Rosenfeld Break into the Scene by Seth Hanes

Seth Hanes is a horn player, digital marketer and author of "Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career". This TEM Short features thoughts on my favorite Seth Hanes quotes from TEM 107. Quotes: "The tactics don't dictate the strategy. The strategy should dictate the tactics." "I think the first step that anyone should take, before they do anything...don't make a Facebook page, don't even make a website, don't do anything. The first thing you should do is first figure out what is the product or service that you have that solves an actual problem that people have? You have to identify a problem that you can solve." "That's how I got on all of these (podcasts and blogs.) How can I be even kind of useful to this person? That's how I did that. And it cost me zero dollars." Show notes for all episodes of TEM including topics discussed, links to all books and websites referenced can be found at: http://www.andrewhitz.com/shownotes 1. Help me get to my goal of $50 per episode on Patreon by pledging as little as $1 per episode to support the show: https://www.patreon.com/tempodcast. 2. Help me get to my goal of 50 ratings at iTunes (I'm only two away!) by leaving a rating and review. And finally, a huge thank you to Parker Mouthpieces for providing the hosting for TEM. Produced by Andrew Hitz

TEM107: Seth Hanes on how to get guest appearances on podcasts and blogs, getting a self-published book to number one on three different Amazon lists and why strategy should always dictate tactics (and not the other way around) Seth Hanes returns to TEM to tell us all about how he got his book, Break Into the Scene, to #1 on three different Amazon lists. What You'll Learn: The importance of having specific goals when marketing and of having a feedback loop to verify whether what you were doing was productive Why strategy should always dictate tactics and not the other way around Why the first step should always be identifying a specific problem your product or service will solve for people How Seth built an email list (including the hard part - getting the first 100 subscribers!) and how he used it to help launch the book The importance of validating an idea or product early in the process to make sure anyone will buy it How he was able to get booked as a guest on 10 podcasts and write 10 guest blog posts in conjunction with the book launch Gary Vaynerchuk's advice on how to launch a book (which is really easy for anyone to do for no money at all and applies to anything, not just a book) Why he writes in his own voice in spite of the occasional critic Why the key to marketing yourself as a musician is pushing past the discomfort Links: "Break Into the Scene" Seth's blog post on launching his book Seth's email musiciansguidetohustling.com Aaron Campbell's Young Musician's Guide Podcast TEM 41: Don't Start with Logistics (TEM Short) TEM 101: Noa Kageyama of The Bulletproof Musician on the Rule of Thirds, Building a Huge Email List and What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Performance Psychology Jason Heath's Contrabass Conversations Rob Knopper's auditionhacker Show notes for all episodes of TEM including topics discussed, links to all books and websites referenced can be found at: http://www.andrewhitz.com/shownotes Don't miss the debut of the TEM Newsletter! Sign up to receive a free copy of 7 Lessons I Learned from the First 100 Episodes of TEM. 1. Help me get to my goal of $50 per episode on Patreon by pledging as little as $1 per episode to support the show: https://www.patreon.com/tempodcast. 2. Help me get to my goal of 50 ratings at iTunes (I'm really close!) by leaving a rating and review. Follow TEM on Instagram and Twitter and Facebook And finally, a huge thank you to Parker Mouthpieces for providing the hosting for TEM. Produced by Joey Santillo for Pedal Note Media

What a year 2016 has been!   This past year is when I kicked the podcast into overdrive, and the stats bear this out: 125 total podcasts released 907,231 podcasts downloaded this year average of 2.4 shows released per week average daily listens: 2,486 This episode takes a look back at the guests featured this year and features a short quote from my conversation with them. Here's the "guest list" along with a link to their interview: Paul Ellison - http://contrabassconversations.com/paul Lauren Pierce and Geoff Chalmers - http://contrabassconversations.com/laurenpierce  Marc Ramirez - http://contrabassconversations.com/marcramirez  Ju-Fang Liu - http://contrabassconversations.com/jufangliu  Andrew Raciti - http://contrabassconversations.com/andrewraciti  Bruce Bransby - http://contrabassconversations.com/brucebransby  Douglas Mapp - http://contrabassconversations.com/douglasmapp  Ian Hallas - http://contrabassconversations.com/ianhallas  Carlos Henriquez - http://contrabassconversations.com/carloshenriquez  Brent Edmondson - http://contrabassconversations.com/brentedmondson  Susan Lipkins - http://contrabassconversations.com/susanlipkins  Nick Lloyd - http://contrabassconversations.com/nicklloyd  George Martin - http://contrabassconversations.com/georgemartin  Ron Carter - http://contrabassconversations.com/roncarter  Barry Green and Jeff Bradetich - http://contrabassconversations.com/barrygreen  David Murray - http://contrabassconversations.com/davidmurray  Michael Klinghoffer - http://contrabassconversations.com/michaelklinghoffer  Inez Wyrick - http://contrabassconversations.com/inezwyrick  Gaelen McCormick - http://contrabassconversations.com/gaelenmccormick  Andres Martin - http://contrabassconversations.com/andresmartin  Bert Turetzky - http://contrabassconversations.com/turetzky  Ira Gold - http://contrabassconversations.com/iragold  Chuck Israels - http://contrabassconversations.com/chuckisraels  Adam Ben Ezra - http://contrabassconversations.com/adambenezra  Peter Tambroni - http://contrabassconversations.com/petertambroni  Trevor Jones - http://contrabassconversations.com/trevorjones  Claus Freudenstein - http://contrabassconversations.com/clausfreudenstein  Guy Tuneh - http://contrabassconversations.com/guytuneh  Joe Conyers - http://contrabassconversations.com/joeconyers  Madeleine Crouch - http://contrabassconversations.com/madeleinecrouch  Justin Locke - http://contrabassconversations.com/justinlocke  Leon Bosch - http://contrabassconversations.com/leonbosch  Robin Kesselman - http://contrabassconversations.com/robinkesselman  Jerry Fuller - http://contrabassconversations.com/jerryfuller  Arnold Schnitzer - http://contrabassconversations.com/arnoldschnitzer  Gjorgji Cincievski - http://contrabassconversations.com/gjorgjicincievski Gabe Katz - http://contrabassconversations.com/gabekatz  Brandon McLean - http://contrabassconversations.com/brandonmclean  Katie Ernst - http://contrabassconversations.com/katieernst  Nicholas Walker - http://contrabassconversations.com/nicholaswalker  Lloyd Goldstein - http://contrabassconversations.com/lloydgoldstein  David White - http://contrabassconversations.com/davidwhite  Jory Herman - http://contrabassconversations.com/joryherman  Matthew McDonald - http://contrabassconversations.com/matthewmcdonald  Thomas Martin - http://contrabassconversations.com/thomasmartin  Thierry Barbe - http://contrabassconversations.com/thierrybarbe  Sam Suggs - http://contrabassconversations.com/samsuggs  Pablo Aslan - http://contrabassconversations.com/pabloaslan  Christine Hoock - http://contrabassconversations.com/christinehoock  Emilio Guarino - http://contrabassconversations.com/emilioguarino  Danny Ziemann - http://contrabassconversations.com/dannyziemann  Peter Seymour - http://contrabassconversations.com/peterseymour  Hugh Sung - http://contrabassconversations.com/hughsung  Diana Gannett - http://contrabassconversations.com/dianagannett  Hans Sturm - http://contrabassconversations.com/hanssturm  Nina DeCesare - http://contrabassconversations.com/ninadecesare  Corey Brown - http://contrabassconversations.com/coreybrown  Craig Butterfield - http://contrabassconversations.com/craigbutterfield  Frank Proto - http://contrabassconversations.com/frankproto  Shinji Eshima - http://contrabassconversations.com/shinjieshima  Sandor Ostlund - http://contrabassconversations.com/sandorostlund  Trevor Davis - http://contrabassconversations.com/trevordavis  Seth Hanes - http://contrabassconversations.com/sethhanes  Rob Knopper - http://contrabassconversations.com/robknopper  Allan Santos - http://contrabassconversations.com/allansantos  Jonathan Haskell - http://contrabassconversations.com/jonathanhaskell  David Heyes - http://contrabassconversations.com/davidheyes  Szymon Marciniak - http://contrabassconversations.com/szymonmarciniak  Garrett Hope - http://contrabassconversations.com/garretthope  Johnny Hamil - http://contrabassconversations.com/johnnyhamil  Cornelia Watkins - http://contrabassconversations.com/corneliawatkins  Dennis Bergevin - http://contrabassconversations.com/dennisbergevin  Alex Ritter - http://contrabassconversations.com/alexritter  George Amorim - http://contrabassconversations.com/georgeamorim  Reuben Rogers - http://contrabassconversations.com/reubenrogers  Yung-Chiao Wei - http://contrabassconversations.com/yungchiaowei  Petia Bagovska - http://contrabassconversations.com/petiabagovska  Florian Pertzborn - http://contrabassconversations.com/florianpertzborn  Rob Anzellotti - http://contrabassconversations.com/robanzellotti David Allen Moore - http://contrabassconversations.com/davidallenmoore  Dave Swift - http://contrabassconversations.com/daveswift  Scott Devine - http://contrabassconversations.com/scottdevine  Ben Allison - http://contrabassconversations.com/benallison  Bill Merchant - http://contrabassconversations.com/billmerchant  Chris Hanulik - http://contrabassconversations.com/chrishanulik  Caleb Quillen - http://contrabassconversations.com/calebquillen  James Newcomb - http://contrabassconversations.com/jamesnewcomb  Tracy Friedlander - http://contrabassconversations.com/tracyfriedlander  Other fun stats from 2016: Most downloaded episodes of 2016:  Gjorgji Cincievski Matthew McDonald Peter Tambroni Lloyd Goldstein Nicholas Walker Most-viewed interviews on Facebook of 2016:  Reuben Rogers Johnny Hamil Sandor Ostlund Yung-Chiao Wei Dennis Bergevin Multiple Appearances: Lauren Pierce (twice) Peter Tambroni (twice) Justin Locke (twice) Bass Festival Previews: ISB BASS2016 RCM Thematic Weeks: Luthier Week Gary Karr Week A Passion for Teaching Entrepreneur Week Teaching Week Memories from Prague Thanks to our sponsors! This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut. Enter the D’Addario strings giveaway for Contrabass Conversations listeners at contrabassconversations.com/strings! Hosting for Contrabass Conversations is provided by Bass Capos.  Bass Capos are an excellent choice for any bass player using or looking to implement a double bass extension. Easy to install and adjust, cheaper and more reliable than hand-built latches, also lighter and quicker in operation.  

This TEM Short is in response to my interview with Seth Hanes, author of "Break Into the Scene: " in Episode 69. I discuss how Seth gave the perfect pitch to an influencer in the music business which led to a job and helped to launch the most current phase of his career. Show notes for all episodes of TEM including links to all books and websites referenced in this episode can be found at: http://www.andrewhitz.com/shownotes It would mean the world to me if you felt like making a small donation to support what I'm doing with TEM. You can find out more at: https://www.patreon.com/tempodcast Produced by Joey Santillo

TEM69: Seth Hanes, author Of "Break Into the Scene", on the value of being willing to learn anything, the best time to take risks in your career and turning your skills into leveragable assets Seth Hanes is a musician, author and digital marketing consultant. Show notes for all episodes of TEM including topics discussed, links to all books and websites referenced can be found at: http://www.andrewhitz.com/shownotes Want to help "keep the lights on" and make future episodes of TEM possible? Please visit our Patreon page to see how you can help:  https://www.patreon.com/tempodcast Produced by Joey Santillo

Seth Hanes is a horn player, digital marketing consultant, and the author of the new book, Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career, which is available now on Amazon. If you want to check out some free email templates that will help you pick up gigs and some other bonuses, visit breakintothescene.com. We talk: how to get more gigs working with contractors how to market and self-promote working for free as a tactic Break into the Scene hit #1 in Amazon's music business category within days of its launch.  Check it out--it's a great read and full of actionable advice! Thanks to our sponsor! This episode is brought to you by D’Addario Strings! Check out their Zyex strings, which are synthetic core strings that produce an extremely warm, rich sound. Get the sound and feel of gut strings with more evenness, projection and stability than real gut. Enter the D’Addario strings giveaway for Contrabass Conversations listeners at contrabassconversations.com/strings!

In this episode of the podcast I speak with musician and digital marketing expert Seth Hanes of Musicians Guide to Hustling about his new best-selling book "Break into the Scene." The book became a No. 1 best-seller on Amazon on launch day in three categories, and unseated a New York Times best-seller from the top spot. This is an amazing achievement for any author, let alone a first time, self-published one. Congratulations Seth on this Amazing achievement! Seth shares valuable thoughts on some of the book's concepts including communication, marketing, and even his creative outlook on turning free gigs into great opportunities. This episode is a must-listen episode for students, new grads, and any musician looking to start freelancing.

October 10, 2016: This is a MUST "listen to" for folks trying to break into the freelance scene!  Digital marketing consultant and musician Seth Hanes shares stories and advice on building your brand, to get more gigs.  He talks about his rise from parking attendant to marketing director for the Philly Pops.  He also give us some previews about his new book, Break into the Scene, which is now available on Amazon.Marketing specialist Seth Hanes is a private consultant who works with businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals in digital marketing and website development, bringing public attention to where it is deserved. As a musician, Seth has an acute understanding of the mechanics of self-promotion. He willingly shares his expertise on his blog, The Musicians Guide to Hustling. He also speaks publicly on his techniques, having spoken most recently at Kutztown University and the Philadelphia International Music Festival in partnership with Project 440.  

Seth Hanes is Philadelphia-based horn player and entrepreneur, and runs the excellent website The Musician's Guide to Hustling, where he helps musicians get more gigs and create more – and more rewarding – connections with other musicians. I met Seth when he invited me to come on his site to talk about the differences between traditional publishing and self publishing, and I was impressed with his level of knowledge on marketing and effective promotion. Seth just released his first book, Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career, today, and I think that it's a great addition to the library of any musician who wants clear, actionable advice on how to improve their career. In the course of our conversation, we covered: Freelancing Having a versatile skillset Scarcity vs abundance Reaching out Connecting with contractors Marketing fundamentals Considering the challenges of your prospective collaborators Breaking into the Scene Links Seth Hanes Seth on Twitter The Musician's Guide to Hustling Break Into the Scene on Amazon BreakIntoTheScene.com Dennis on The Musician's Guide to Hustling

Seth Hanes is a musician, digital marketing consultant, speaker, and founder of musiciansguidetohustling.com, As a digital marketing consultant, Seth has worked with multi-million dollar organizations, book publishers, and musicians from ensembles like the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. His new book, “Break Into The Scene”, is a guide for musicians looking to start their careers and create their own opportunities in music. We're continuing with our special series on music podcasters and entrepreneurs. With all the recent news of orchestras going on strike or struggling to stay afloat, most classical musicians - particularly students - might find themselves asking some difficult existential questions. Not so with my guest, Seth Hanes, who instead sees all of this as a huge opportunity to learn more about how music organizations really work, how to solve their problems, and taking what he's learned to help other musicians take control over their lives and careers. Links "Break Into The Scene" book "Break Into The Scene" Webinar - Thursday, Oct. 13, 9 pm EST Seth's website: http://musiciansguidetohustling.com/  

Wow. A lot of titles for this guy. Seth Hanes is a horn player, digital marketing consultant, and the author of the new book, Break into the Scene: A Musician's Guide to Making Connections, Creating Opportunities, and Launching a Career, which is available now on Amazon. We talk about necessary persistence, marketing, being the solution, and all sorts of awesome juicy stuff. If you want to check out some free email templates that will help you pick up gigs and some other bonuses, visit breakintothescene.com. Support the podcast: patreon.com/divergentpathspod