Here you'll find some answers to common questions about boom.fm.
If you're still in the dark after going through the FAQ, swing by our support page or contact us.
General
How is boom.fm different to other music sites?
Will boom.fm recommend any new music?
I am a band manager/photographer/producer - how do I get involved?
The music player
User profile
If I don't want to set up a profile, will I still be able to access the site?
What are the benefits of having a profile?
Can I post things to Facebook or twitter?
Can I communicate with bands directly?
Buying tracks
General
What is boom.fm?
boom.fm is a website where music fans can explore a whole new world of lesser known artists, and listen to digital radio that's tailored to their music tastes. All the good stuff, none of the crap you have to sit through with regular radio. It's also a place where bands can upload their music to get playlisted on our personalised radio stations, or even to sell their music directly to fans. We want fans to discover new music, and to help up-and-coming local bands build an audience. {
How is boom.fm different to other music sites?
We're not just an impersonal music shop, or a social network where you can follow the artists you already know and love. On boom.fm, the joy is in the journey. We recommend artists and tracks based on your tastes so you don't have to spend loads of time filtering through music that you'll hate. And we understand that music is more than just tracks. It's also about the gigs, the artists, the videos. We're out to give you that rush of falling in love with a band for the first time, every time you visit us. {
Who are the people involved?
We could tell you, but then we'd have to kill you. Just kidding! boom.fm is the flagship product of the aptly named boom!, a privately held company based in Stellenbosch, South Africa. boom! is part of the World of Avatar, a group of technology companies founded by Alan Knott-Craig Jnr, former MD of iBurst, and Peter Matthaei. (Incidentally, World of Avatar recently bought Mxit, Africa's largest social network, so we're not just a fly-by-night shop.) Pete also happens to be the CEO of boom!. Everybody at boom! is passionate about music, and we love the vibrant local music scene. We're not some faceless corporate in it just for the money; we're in it for the music. In a sense, we're building boom.fm for ourselves, because we want to use it too! {
Will boom.fm recommend any new music?
Yip. When you first arrive at your dashboard, we'll ask you to pick the type of music you're into, broadly speaking. This will help us to start serving you up recommendations. Every time you see a band you like, follow it! Every time you listen to a track you like, favourite (heart) it. That helps us to get an even better understanding of your tastes and give you even better recommendations. Another good way to explore the music recommendations we have for you is to switch on "radio mode" in the music player at the bottom of the site. This will create a personalised radio station according to your tastes that will keep on playing automatically. {
Are my details safe?
Absolutely. Your data is stored securely, and we use a secure connection for login and registration. We encrypt your password so that not even the people working for boom.fm know your password! As with any site on the Internet, however, it is your responsibly to pick a password that hackers cannot guess easily. For example, "password", "123456" or your name are bad passwords. Also: never ever give your password to other people, not even to people pretending to work for boom.fm. Our staff will never ask for your password. {
Is this for local music only?
Our focus is on helping fans discover music that they may not have heard before on radio or TV, and that the bands upload themselves. Any artist, big or small, from any country, can sign up. {
I am a band manager/photographer/producer - how do I get involved?
Drop us a mail on info@boom.fm and let's talk! {
The music player
What is the music player?
The music player is a *drum roll please* music player. Ok, a bit more seriously: It's a site-wide feature of boom.fm that allows you to listen to uninterrupted tunes while you browse and use the site. It's your playlist, radio station and music controls rolled into one. You can add tracks to the player from anywhere on the site, switch on radio mode to have boom.fm automatically add tracks to the playlist so you can listen to music while you do other things, and allows you to control the track that's currently playing. {
How do I add tracks to the player?
Wherever you see a + button on the site next to a track... Just hit the + and it'll get added to the back of your playlist. (If you'd rather interrupt what you're currently listening to, hit the play button next to a track and it'll stop whatever you're currently listening to and start playing the track you've just selected.) You can add as many tracks as you want to to the playlist. As long as you leave your browser window open, the music will keep on playing! And we're even awesome enough to restore your playlist the next time you come back to boom.fm. {
How do I remove tracks?
You can remove queued tracks from your playlist by hovering your mouse cursor over the track's thumbnail, and clicking the little "x" in the corner. {
What is radio mode?
Radio mode is pretty damn sweet: it will continually add tracks based on your music taste to your playlist. It effectively turns boom.fm into your personalised music radio station. You can turn on radio mode by clicking the switch at the right-hand side of the player. {
How do I see which tracks played previously?
Just click the "left" arrow on the left side of the player's playlist. To view upcoming tracks, just hit the "right" arrow. Simple. Genius! {
What do I do when I hear a track I really like?
If you're playing a track you really like, just hit the favourite (heart) button to the left of where it shows the currently playing track. This will add it to your favourites. To see your favourites, go to the "Favourites" tab under "My profile". (Very soon we'll allow you to create playlists that you can share from your favourites. Also coming very soon, we'll allow you to purchase tracks you like.) {
User profile
If I don't want to set up a profile, will I still be able to access the site?
Yip. If you want to cruise around a bit anonymously, just sign up. All user profiles are hidden when you create them. Also: we will never, ever, cross-our-hearts-and-hope-to-die share your contact details with anybody. But it would be pretty cool for other fans in the radio rooms to find out more about you when you're chatting in there. So once you're ready to come out of the proverbial profile closet, just go to "My Profile", fill in whatever you're cool with sharing, and then click "Publish Profile". This will make the site feel a bit more like home, and allow other users to get to know you better. It's also a great way to share the music you love, because all the tracks you've hearted will show up on your profile. {
What are the benefits of having a profile?
A profile allows you to share the tracks you love on your profile. Just go to "My Profile", fill in whatever you're comfortable with sharing, and then click "Publish Profile". (And just in case you're wondering, we'll never, ever, ever share your contact details with anybody.) {
Can I post things to Facebook or twitter?
Not right now. But we're working on it! {
Can I communicate with bands directly?
Nope, not at the moment. Most bands link to their twitter or Facebook profiles on their boom.fm pages - that's probably the best way to communicate with the band. {
Buying tracks
How do I buy tracks?
We're still working with the banks to finalise billing! (Sorry, these things take a bit of time.) But once all the paperwork is sorted, you'll be able to buy any tracks that are available for purchase by just hitting the shopping cart icon next to a track name anywhere on the site. This will add it to your shopping cart. Once you've found all the tracks you want to purchase, just click the checkout icon in the menu bar at the top of the page to take you to the payment page. All payments are ultra-secure, and we don't store your payment details. Please note that not all tracks are available for purchase - it all depends on whether the bands or labels have made the tracks available to us. {
Where does the money go?
Artists can offer their tracks for sale directly through boom.fm. All that money goes directly to the bands (except for a small transaction fee charged by the banks). We don't keep any of the moolah. So when you buy music on boom.fm, you're fully supporting your favourite artists. {
Here you'll find some answers to common questions about boom.fm.
If you're still in the dark after going through the FAQ, swing by our support page or contact us.
General
Why would I want to put my band on boom.fm?
How is boom.fm different to other sites?
Can I release an album on boom.fm?
Will boom.fm do any marketing for me?
What kind of advertising will be on the site? I don't want my tracks next to a PEP ad.
Will boom be organising events? What other presence will boom have in the real world?
Band profiles
I don't know how to create a profile, is there any help?
Is it easy for me to edit my profile (like adding and removing stuff)?
I have a band, but can I also be a fan?
I have more more than one band - can I create a profile for each of them?
Can I block users from following?
Can fans chat directly with me? Can they spam me?
What privacy settings are there?
Can I get stats on page views, likes, etcetera?
Track uploads
In what format should I upload my tracks?
Why do you require such hectic quality for music sales?
I have a publisher and/or only my label can offer my tracks.
What does it mean when I offer my music for streaming?
Does boom.fm use DRM (digital rights management)?
How do I offer my music for download?
I'm struggling to upload my tracks. Help!
Selling stuff
How much money does boom.fm take from my track sales?
How do I get paid when fans purchase my music on boom.fm?
How secure is the site? I don't want my tracks poached.
Gigs
How do I tell fans about my gigs?
General
Why would I want to put my band on boom.fm?
Because we have the coolest domain and we're awesome! Both true, but seriously, there are plenty of reasons:
- It gives you instant access to our audience of music fans.
- It's a way to get yourself playlisted on our personalised radio stations. This is the 21st century, and we believe radio in its traditional form is slowly going to die. Traditional radio isn't very democratic or interactive, and it's slanted towards a mass audience. Think of boom.fm as radio for the Internet age. It's social, it's democratic, it's personalised, it's interactive, it's engaging. It's about "what I want to hear, when I want to hear it", rather than "ugh, why do I have to listen to ten songs that suck to find one that's cool". So join boom.fm and be part of the radio revolution - the future starts now!
- You can use boom.fm to build hype for your band, or for your album releases.
- You can sell your music on boom.fm and get to keep all the money. (We told you we're awesome!!)
- Unlike most other sites, we're a one-stop shop for music. You can sell music, advertise gigs, post status updates, link to your social media accounts, and grow your audience, all under one (virtual) roof.
- We're only about music. You won't get lost in the noise of people posting about how their cereal affected their bowel movements.
- You get to be in charge of what you do and how you want to do it. Want to sell your music? Great, you can do it. DON'T want to sell your music? Cool, you can do that too. It's your music, and your brand, and we respect that.
- boom.fm isn't just a website. We actively participate in the live music scene by sending our team to gigs and festivals, where we engage with fans and bands. So for us, the music doesn't stop when people close their web browsers. This helps us to grow our brand and our audience, and helps us build trust with our fans and bands. More engagement from our base of fans means more activation opportunities for our bands (if you pardon a bit of biz-speak).
- We are actively working on international expansion plans. Being part of boom.fm means that you can build your fanbase globally.
- Because we focus on up-and-coming bands and artists, and not global superstars, you won't get lost in the noise.
- We have our own content team that writes feature articles and produces video clips of bands. If you're on boom.fm and we like what you're doing, we could do a feature on you!
- And lastly, as corny as it sounds, we love what we do. It's not just a business to us. We love music, and we love the local music scene. We treat your b(r)and and your music as art rather than as some faceless commodity to be moved at all cost.
And here's our resident funnyman (he prefers "band relationship manager") Jacques adding his two cents:
How is boom.fm different to other sites?
General social networking sites like Facebook and twitter are a nice way to engage with your existing fanbase, but they're not that good for getting loads of new fans. They're also quite cluttered with non-music related stuff.
Many sites (like bandcamp) allow you to sell music; but once again, they're not really built to you to promote your music to new fans. On-line music retail sites aren't something that most people would visit regularly because there are no hooks that draw people back on a daily basis.
Enter boom.fm. We help our fans discover and fall in love with music. This helps our bands build an audience. {
Can I release an album on boom.fm?
Yip! You can upload high quality versions (MP3's with a bitrate of 256 kilobits/sec or higher) to your profile, and pick a price point for selling the tracks. Then just tell your Facebook or twitter fans they can buy your tracks by posting a URL to your profile!
We also recommend you have a listening session with your fans. Create a radio room, invite your fans in, and play your tracks. If you get in touch with us before-hand on tips@boom.fm, we can help to promote the listening session through the site and on our social media accounts. {
Will boom.fm do any marketing for me?
We obviously can't promise that we'll do any marketing specifically on behalf of your band. We are however putting in a lot of effort promote bands on our site. These include:
- Featuring bands we think our users will like on the site.
- Tweeting and posting to Facebook about certain bands.
- Organising "battle of the bands" type stuff on the site.
- Organising slots for promising bands at festivals.
- Featuring bands in news items and boom.fm-produced videos.
Since we have a lot of bands, we need to use some editorial discretion as to which bands we feature at any given time. To increase your chances, here are some guidelines to get on our radar:
- Engage with us on the site, on our Facebook and twitter pages, or drop us an e-mail.
- Maintain a complete and up-to-date band profile on boom.fm. Load some tracks for streaming. Make sure you have a good profile picture.
- Tell your existing fans about boom.fm. We're always keen to work with artists who are keen on boom.fm.
- Release an album!
- And most importantly, make good music. We welcome music in all genres, but your music has to stand out compared to your peers.
{
What kind of advertising will be on the site? I don't want my tracks next to a PEP ad.
We're allergic to banner ads. We feel it dilutes our brand (much the same as you probably feel!), and distracts and clutters the experience for our fans. We will however take on some sponsorships as and when opportunities arise to help us operate the site. Any time that boom.fm works with brands, we will be careful to choose ones that share and reflect our values and vision for the site.{
Will boom be organising events? What other presence will boom have in the real world?
We will be organising events featuring bands that are active on boom.fm! We're also already very much a part of the local music scene, taking our journalists and video crew out to gigs and festivals. Even cooler than that, we have a boombus, a 70's era VW Kombi that we've branded and pimped out! The bus goes wherever the party goes (or vice versa). Here's where it all started with the boombus:
Band profiles
I don't know how to create a profile, is there any help?
If you haven't signed up yet, just hit sign up to create an account - it's pretty easy and self-explanatory all the way. Else, if you've created a login already, please log in (if you haven't done so yet), and then go to "My Profile".
If you're still struggling, go to the support page or contact us on support@boom.fm and we'll get you sorted. Our support team has a motto: "No band left behind!" {
Can I preview my profile?
Yip. Just click the button at the top of the "My Profile" page where it says "Your public profile is accessible at...". {
Is it easy for me to edit my profile (like adding and removing stuff)?
Absolutely. Just go to "My Profile" and edit whatever you want to change. Remember to click the "Save Info" button once you're done editing to update your profile. {
I have a band, but can I also be a fan?
Yip. Every user with a band also gets a fan profile. At the top of the "My Profile" page there's a "context switcher". This allows you to pick which of your profiles you want to edit. Just click on the thumbnail of your personal profile, and then edit your personal profile page. (Note that your public personal profile isn't explicitly linked to your band profile.) {
I have more more than one band - can I create a profile for each of them?
Yip - you can have more than one band attached to your account! At the top of the "My Profile" page, click on "Edit profile". You'll see a drop-down with some options. Click "Add an artist", and - lo and behold! - you can create another artist profile page.
To switch between editing your various artist profile pages (and your personal profile), just click "Edit profile" again to see all your different profiles. {
Can I block users from following?
Not at present. (Also remember that fans can't interact with you directly through your band profile, even when they follow you. That's what Facebook and twitter are for.) {
Can fans chat directly with me? Can they spam me?
Fans can't chat to you or spam you through your profile. {
Can fans write on my "wall"?
Nope, not at present. If we get many requests for such a feature, we'll make it happen in a future update (and obviously allow artists to switch off this feature). {
What privacy settings are there?
We've tried to design a thoughtful and stream-lined experience that protects our bands' and users' privacy without having a privacy dashboard that looks like the control panel of the Starship Enterprise. Some things to be aware of:
- Band profiles are public per default. You can however hide your band profile from the "My Profile" so that nobody can see it. (Although in most cases, that would be pretty pointless - afterall, the point of boom.fm is to promote your band.)
- Personal profiles (for all users, including band members) are public per default. You can "hide" your personal profile if you're so inclined, or just not fill in stuff you don't want people to see.
- We never, ever publish the e-mail address you used to sign up with.
- The contact numbers on your band profile are published, but obviously only if you specify them. So if you don't want people to contact you, don't fill in contact details.
- Your personal profile isn't explicitly linked to your artist profile.
- We don't enforce a "real name" policy. You can use whatever name you want to use on your personal profile and as your username for the radio rooms (provided it's not offensive).
{
Can I delete my profile? How?
To prevent accidental deletion of profiles (and the tracks and stats associated with that account), you'll need to contact us on support@boom.fm if you want to have your profile completely wiped off the site.
Note that you can "hide" your various profiles from the "My Profile" page. Hidden profiles cannot be viewed or accessed by other users. {
Can I get stats on page views, likes, etcetera?
Yip. Just go to the "Stats" tab on the "My Profile" page (make sure you've selected the correct artist profile - you can switch between profiles by clicking on "Edit profile"). {
Track uploads
Why should I upload tracks?
By uploading your tracks, fans can experience your music first-hand on boom.fm. Your music can be made available for purchase or as a free download (you choose!). You can also allow your music to be streamed on boom.fm.
VERY IMPORTANT: you may only upload tracks to which you own the legal rights for digital distribution. Anyone uploading tracks illegally will have their account revoked without warning or discussion. Here at boom.fm, we take the rights of artists and publishers very seriously. {
In what format should I upload my tracks?
If you just want your tracks to be streamed but not sold through boom.fm, you can upload the tracks to your profile at any bitrate in mp3, mp4, m4a or ogg format. We will automatically convert the files to the correct format and bitrate for streaming.
If you want to sell your tracks through boom.fm, we require tracks to be in mp3 format, with a bitrate of at least 256 kilobits/sec. We also strongly suggest that you properly tag your mp3 files with Artist name, Track name, Genre, Release year and Album name before you upload them. This will make it a lot easier for you to manage your tracks on your profile later. {
Why do you require such hectic quality for music sales?
Well, 256 kbps isn't that hectic! We could've asked for the original uncompressed masters :-) The reason for the quality requirement is that 256 kbps is pretty much the standard quality on most consumer-focused music retail websites such as the Nokia Music Store and iTunes. People who buy music (as opposed to, say, pirating it) are actually rather sticky about quality because they expect music that they pay for to sound the way the artists intended. Lesser bitrates, such as 128 kbps, have noticeably poorer quality (especially at the high end of the spectrum) than ones at 256 kbps. Above 256 kbps, the quality gains are fairly insignificant for most ears and sound equipment. {
How does uploading work?
Simply hit the "upload my tracks" button on your profile page. This will bring up a pop-up window where you can select some options (which we explain below) and where you can select one or more files from your computer for upload.
The options that you select will apply to all the files that you upload as part of that particular batch. If the options should not apply to all the tracks you want to upload, rather upload the files in separate batches. (For example: if you want to offer some tracks as free downloads and some for R10, do two separate uploads.)
Once you click "upload", the files will start uploading to the server. Note that depending on the size of the files and your Internet connection speed, this can take a while. Just grab a beverage and hang tight until it is done.
Note that if your tracks are properly tagged before upload, we will automatically store the correct track and album names. But don't worry, you can always edit this information later from the track browser on your profile.
If you want to change anything on the track (including the download pricing model or the streaming options) even after uploading, just click "edit" on the relevant track in the track browser on your profile. {
I have a publisher and/or only my label can offer my tracks.
No problem! Drop as an email on support@boom.fm with your band name, your management's contact details and your label's or your publisher's contact details and we will negotiate on your behalf. {
I have some demo tracks.
No problem. Just upload them as you would any other tracks (as explained above). {
What does it mean when I offer my music for streaming?
"Streaming" on boom.fm means that fans can listen to complete tracks without being able to download the tracks. Tracks that you make available for streaming will show up in the playlist on your profile page where fans can then listen to them. They will also be made available for playlisting on users' personalised radio stations.
If you do not want to make your music available for streaming, fans will only be able to listen to 30 second previews of your tracks. {
Does boom.fm use DRM (digital rights management)?
No, we believe that DRM hurts the user experience for fans who legally purchase download digital music, whilst having little or no impact in reducing piracy. We much rather make it simple for fans to acquire and enjoy your music legally. Also, the trend internationally is to move away from DRM on digital music purchases. However, be assured that we take your rights as an artist extremely seriously. In fact, boom.fm was conceived precisely because we want to make it easier for local fans to discover awesome new music and to ensure that local artists get properly acknowledged and rewarded for their work. {
How do I offer my music for download?
On the track upload page, choose an option from the download drop-down control. You can choose to not allow users to download your music (although that would make your fans sad). You can also choose to offer your tracks as free downloads. If you would like to get paid for your music, simply select the price you feel comfortable with from that drop-down. Lastly, if you feel brave and trust your fans to do the right thing, you can let your fans pick the price they want to pay for a download. In this case, fans can choose to pay anything from nothing to R10 per track. {
I'm struggling to upload my tracks. Help!
Please drop us a mail on support@boom.fm and we'll help you get your tracks up in no time! {
Selling stuff
How much money does boom.fm take from my track sales?
If your band chooses to sell its music directly through boom.fm, you get to keep all the money for sales of those tracks except for a small transaction fee charged by the banks and the payment gateway. (We are still busy negotiating with credit card billing companies for the transaction fees - we'll update you on the exact revenue amounts for each price bracket before we launch the sales functionality to our fans.) We offer this primarily as a service (and incentive) to unsigned bands to use boom.fm.
We are also currently working on deals with record labels and digital music distributors because most signed bands don't control the distribution rights to their content. The terms of those agreements are different, so if you're signed and your contract doesn't allow you to sell your tracks in digital format yourself, you'll earn whatever the terms of your label deal stipulate (and will get your royalties through your existing channels rather than from us directly). {
How do I get paid when fans purchase my music on boom.fm?
If you offered your tracks as a paid-for download, you will receive ALL of the proceeds from sales after deduction of payment processing fees (such as credit card fees) and VAT. Yes, you read that correctly! We believe that artists should get to keep all the money from it after transaction fees and taxes. You can view real-time statistics about downloads (and a bunch of other things) from your profile page.
Once you have accrued at least R1000 from track sales, we will contact you to get your banking details. We will pay monthly (provided you reach the pay-out threshold). If you do not reach the payment threshold in a given month, don't worry: any money that your tracks have earned will keep accruing until you reach the threshold.
Note: the above only applies to music that you directly uploaded for sale to boom.fm. If your music is offered through a separate agreement that boom.fm makes with labels and distributors, the terms of those agreements apply to those sales. You will be paid your royalties as per your agreement with your label and the royalty collection agencies and not directly by us. {
How does boom.fm make money?
We sell weed in the boombus to keep the site alive. Jokes jokes! For now, we're venture capital funded to help us get started. We're also in the process of negotiating some sponsorships (both on-line and event-based). Lastly, we're cooking up some special things in our labs that we can't talk about yet but that will be win-win for us and our artists. {
How secure is the site? I don't want my tracks poached.
Your log in and sign up are protected with secure encryption. All the tracks that you upload are stored securely and cannot be downloaded unless a user purchases the track. {
Can I sell my merchandise?
Not at present. It's something that is on our road-map though. We'll let our bands know when we're ready to move merchandise. {
Gigs
How do I tell fans about my gigs?
You can add your gigs on the "My Profile" page by clicking the aptly named "Add Gigs" button in the "Gigs" section. The gigs that you've added will show up in the feeds of all the fans that follow your band. {
Why would I want to put my band on boom.fm?
How is boom.fm different to other sites?
Can I release an album on boom.fm?
Will boom.fm do any marketing for me?
What kind of advertising will be on the site? I don't want my tracks next to a PEP ad.
Will boom be organising events? What other presence will boom have in the real world?
Band profiles
I don't know how to create a profile, is there any help?
Is it easy for me to edit my profile (like adding and removing stuff)?
I have a band, but can I also be a fan?
I have more more than one band - can I create a profile for each of them?
Can I block users from following?
Can fans chat directly with me? Can they spam me?
What privacy settings are there?
Can I get stats on page views, likes, etcetera?
Track uploads
In what format should I upload my tracks?
Why do you require such hectic quality for music sales?
I have a publisher and/or only my label can offer my tracks.
What does it mean when I offer my music for streaming?
Does boom.fm use DRM (digital rights management)?
How do I offer my music for download?
I'm struggling to upload my tracks. Help!
Selling stuff
How much money does boom.fm take from my track sales?
How do I get paid when fans purchase my music on boom.fm?
How secure is the site? I don't want my tracks poached.
Gigs
How do I tell fans about my gigs?
General
Why would I want to put my band on boom.fm?
Because we have the coolest domain and we're awesome! Both true, but seriously, there are plenty of reasons:
- It gives you instant access to our audience of music fans.
- It's a way to get yourself playlisted on our personalised radio stations. This is the 21st century, and we believe radio in its traditional form is slowly going to die. Traditional radio isn't very democratic or interactive, and it's slanted towards a mass audience. Think of boom.fm as radio for the Internet age. It's social, it's democratic, it's personalised, it's interactive, it's engaging. It's about "what I want to hear, when I want to hear it", rather than "ugh, why do I have to listen to ten songs that suck to find one that's cool". So join boom.fm and be part of the radio revolution - the future starts now!
- You can use boom.fm to build hype for your band, or for your album releases.
- You can sell your music on boom.fm and get to keep all the money. (We told you we're awesome!!)
- Unlike most other sites, we're a one-stop shop for music. You can sell music, advertise gigs, post status updates, link to your social media accounts, and grow your audience, all under one (virtual) roof.
- We're only about music. You won't get lost in the noise of people posting about how their cereal affected their bowel movements.
- You get to be in charge of what you do and how you want to do it. Want to sell your music? Great, you can do it. DON'T want to sell your music? Cool, you can do that too. It's your music, and your brand, and we respect that.
- boom.fm isn't just a website. We actively participate in the live music scene by sending our team to gigs and festivals, where we engage with fans and bands. So for us, the music doesn't stop when people close their web browsers. This helps us to grow our brand and our audience, and helps us build trust with our fans and bands. More engagement from our base of fans means more activation opportunities for our bands (if you pardon a bit of biz-speak).
- We are actively working on international expansion plans. Being part of boom.fm means that you can build your fanbase globally.
- Because we focus on up-and-coming bands and artists, and not global superstars, you won't get lost in the noise.
- We have our own content team that writes feature articles and produces video clips of bands. If you're on boom.fm and we like what you're doing, we could do a feature on you!
- And lastly, as corny as it sounds, we love what we do. It's not just a business to us. We love music, and we love the local music scene. We treat your b(r)and and your music as art rather than as some faceless commodity to be moved at all cost.
And here's our resident funnyman (he prefers "band relationship manager") Jacques adding his two cents:
How is boom.fm different to other sites?
General social networking sites like Facebook and twitter are a nice way to engage with your existing fanbase, but they're not that good for getting loads of new fans. They're also quite cluttered with non-music related stuff.
Many sites (like bandcamp) allow you to sell music; but once again, they're not really built to you to promote your music to new fans. On-line music retail sites aren't something that most people would visit regularly because there are no hooks that draw people back on a daily basis.
Enter boom.fm. We help our fans discover and fall in love with music. This helps our bands build an audience. {
Can I release an album on boom.fm?
Yip! You can upload high quality versions (MP3's with a bitrate of 256 kilobits/sec or higher) to your profile, and pick a price point for selling the tracks. Then just tell your Facebook or twitter fans they can buy your tracks by posting a URL to your profile!
We also recommend you have a listening session with your fans. Create a radio room, invite your fans in, and play your tracks. If you get in touch with us before-hand on tips@boom.fm, we can help to promote the listening session through the site and on our social media accounts. {
Will boom.fm do any marketing for me?
We obviously can't promise that we'll do any marketing specifically on behalf of your band. We are however putting in a lot of effort promote bands on our site. These include:
- Featuring bands we think our users will like on the site.
- Tweeting and posting to Facebook about certain bands.
- Organising "battle of the bands" type stuff on the site.
- Organising slots for promising bands at festivals.
- Featuring bands in news items and boom.fm-produced videos.
Since we have a lot of bands, we need to use some editorial discretion as to which bands we feature at any given time. To increase your chances, here are some guidelines to get on our radar:
- Engage with us on the site, on our Facebook and twitter pages, or drop us an e-mail.
- Maintain a complete and up-to-date band profile on boom.fm. Load some tracks for streaming. Make sure you have a good profile picture.
- Tell your existing fans about boom.fm. We're always keen to work with artists who are keen on boom.fm.
- Release an album!
- And most importantly, make good music. We welcome music in all genres, but your music has to stand out compared to your peers.
What kind of advertising will be on the site? I don't want my tracks next to a PEP ad.
We're allergic to banner ads. We feel it dilutes our brand (much the same as you probably feel!), and distracts and clutters the experience for our fans. We will however take on some sponsorships as and when opportunities arise to help us operate the site. Any time that boom.fm works with brands, we will be careful to choose ones that share and reflect our values and vision for the site.{
Will boom be organising events? What other presence will boom have in the real world?
We will be organising events featuring bands that are active on boom.fm! We're also already very much a part of the local music scene, taking our journalists and video crew out to gigs and festivals. Even cooler than that, we have a boombus, a 70's era VW Kombi that we've branded and pimped out! The bus goes wherever the party goes (or vice versa). Here's where it all started with the boombus:
Band profiles
I don't know how to create a profile, is there any help?
If you haven't signed up yet, just hit sign up to create an account - it's pretty easy and self-explanatory all the way. Else, if you've created a login already, please log in (if you haven't done so yet), and then go to "My Profile".
If you're still struggling, go to the support page or contact us on support@boom.fm and we'll get you sorted. Our support team has a motto: "No band left behind!" {
Can I preview my profile?
Yip. Just click the button at the top of the "My Profile" page where it says "Your public profile is accessible at...". {
Is it easy for me to edit my profile (like adding and removing stuff)?
Absolutely. Just go to "My Profile" and edit whatever you want to change. Remember to click the "Save Info" button once you're done editing to update your profile. {
I have a band, but can I also be a fan?
Yip. Every user with a band also gets a fan profile. At the top of the "My Profile" page there's a "context switcher". This allows you to pick which of your profiles you want to edit. Just click on the thumbnail of your personal profile, and then edit your personal profile page. (Note that your public personal profile isn't explicitly linked to your band profile.) {
I have more more than one band - can I create a profile for each of them?
Yip - you can have more than one band attached to your account! At the top of the "My Profile" page, click on "Edit profile". You'll see a drop-down with some options. Click "Add an artist", and - lo and behold! - you can create another artist profile page.
To switch between editing your various artist profile pages (and your personal profile), just click "Edit profile" again to see all your different profiles. {
Can I block users from following?
Not at present. (Also remember that fans can't interact with you directly through your band profile, even when they follow you. That's what Facebook and twitter are for.) {
Can fans chat directly with me? Can they spam me?
Fans can't chat to you or spam you through your profile. {
Can fans write on my "wall"?
Nope, not at present. If we get many requests for such a feature, we'll make it happen in a future update (and obviously allow artists to switch off this feature). {
What privacy settings are there?
We've tried to design a thoughtful and stream-lined experience that protects our bands' and users' privacy without having a privacy dashboard that looks like the control panel of the Starship Enterprise. Some things to be aware of:
- Band profiles are public per default. You can however hide your band profile from the "My Profile" so that nobody can see it. (Although in most cases, that would be pretty pointless - afterall, the point of boom.fm is to promote your band.)
- Personal profiles (for all users, including band members) are public per default. You can "hide" your personal profile if you're so inclined, or just not fill in stuff you don't want people to see.
- We never, ever publish the e-mail address you used to sign up with.
- The contact numbers on your band profile are published, but obviously only if you specify them. So if you don't want people to contact you, don't fill in contact details.
- Your personal profile isn't explicitly linked to your artist profile.
- We don't enforce a "real name" policy. You can use whatever name you want to use on your personal profile and as your username for the radio rooms (provided it's not offensive).
Can I delete my profile? How?
To prevent accidental deletion of profiles (and the tracks and stats associated with that account), you'll need to contact us on support@boom.fm if you want to have your profile completely wiped off the site.
Note that you can "hide" your various profiles from the "My Profile" page. Hidden profiles cannot be viewed or accessed by other users. {
Can I get stats on page views, likes, etcetera?
Yip. Just go to the "Stats" tab on the "My Profile" page (make sure you've selected the correct artist profile - you can switch between profiles by clicking on "Edit profile"). {
Track uploads
Why should I upload tracks?
By uploading your tracks, fans can experience your music first-hand on boom.fm. Your music can be made available for purchase or as a free download (you choose!). You can also allow your music to be streamed on boom.fm.
VERY IMPORTANT: you may only upload tracks to which you own the legal rights for digital distribution. Anyone uploading tracks illegally will have their account revoked without warning or discussion. Here at boom.fm, we take the rights of artists and publishers very seriously. {
In what format should I upload my tracks?
If you just want your tracks to be streamed but not sold through boom.fm, you can upload the tracks to your profile at any bitrate in mp3, mp4, m4a or ogg format. We will automatically convert the files to the correct format and bitrate for streaming.
If you want to sell your tracks through boom.fm, we require tracks to be in mp3 format, with a bitrate of at least 256 kilobits/sec. We also strongly suggest that you properly tag your mp3 files with Artist name, Track name, Genre, Release year and Album name before you upload them. This will make it a lot easier for you to manage your tracks on your profile later. {
Why do you require such hectic quality for music sales?
Well, 256 kbps isn't that hectic! We could've asked for the original uncompressed masters :-) The reason for the quality requirement is that 256 kbps is pretty much the standard quality on most consumer-focused music retail websites such as the Nokia Music Store and iTunes. People who buy music (as opposed to, say, pirating it) are actually rather sticky about quality because they expect music that they pay for to sound the way the artists intended. Lesser bitrates, such as 128 kbps, have noticeably poorer quality (especially at the high end of the spectrum) than ones at 256 kbps. Above 256 kbps, the quality gains are fairly insignificant for most ears and sound equipment. {
How does uploading work?
Simply hit the "upload my tracks" button on your profile page. This will bring up a pop-up window where you can select some options (which we explain below) and where you can select one or more files from your computer for upload.
The options that you select will apply to all the files that you upload as part of that particular batch. If the options should not apply to all the tracks you want to upload, rather upload the files in separate batches. (For example: if you want to offer some tracks as free downloads and some for R10, do two separate uploads.)
Once you click "upload", the files will start uploading to the server. Note that depending on the size of the files and your Internet connection speed, this can take a while. Just grab a beverage and hang tight until it is done.
Note that if your tracks are properly tagged before upload, we will automatically store the correct track and album names. But don't worry, you can always edit this information later from the track browser on your profile.
If you want to change anything on the track (including the download pricing model or the streaming options) even after uploading, just click "edit" on the relevant track in the track browser on your profile. {
I have a publisher and/or only my label can offer my tracks.
No problem! Drop as an email on support@boom.fm with your band name, your management's contact details and your label's or your publisher's contact details and we will negotiate on your behalf. {
I have some demo tracks.
No problem. Just upload them as you would any other tracks (as explained above). {
What does it mean when I offer my music for streaming?
"Streaming" on boom.fm means that fans can listen to complete tracks without being able to download the tracks. Tracks that you make available for streaming will show up in the playlist on your profile page where fans can then listen to them. They will also be made available for playlisting on users' personalised radio stations.
If you do not want to make your music available for streaming, fans will only be able to listen to 30 second previews of your tracks. {
Does boom.fm use DRM (digital rights management)?
No, we believe that DRM hurts the user experience for fans who legally purchase download digital music, whilst having little or no impact in reducing piracy. We much rather make it simple for fans to acquire and enjoy your music legally. Also, the trend internationally is to move away from DRM on digital music purchases. However, be assured that we take your rights as an artist extremely seriously. In fact, boom.fm was conceived precisely because we want to make it easier for local fans to discover awesome new music and to ensure that local artists get properly acknowledged and rewarded for their work. {
How do I offer my music for download?
On the track upload page, choose an option from the download drop-down control. You can choose to not allow users to download your music (although that would make your fans sad). You can also choose to offer your tracks as free downloads. If you would like to get paid for your music, simply select the price you feel comfortable with from that drop-down. Lastly, if you feel brave and trust your fans to do the right thing, you can let your fans pick the price they want to pay for a download. In this case, fans can choose to pay anything from nothing to R10 per track. {
I'm struggling to upload my tracks. Help!
Please drop us a mail on support@boom.fm and we'll help you get your tracks up in no time! {
Selling stuff
How much money does boom.fm take from my track sales?
If your band chooses to sell its music directly through boom.fm, you get to keep all the money for sales of those tracks except for a small transaction fee charged by the banks and the payment gateway. (We are still busy negotiating with credit card billing companies for the transaction fees - we'll update you on the exact revenue amounts for each price bracket before we launch the sales functionality to our fans.) We offer this primarily as a service (and incentive) to unsigned bands to use boom.fm.
We are also currently working on deals with record labels and digital music distributors because most signed bands don't control the distribution rights to their content. The terms of those agreements are different, so if you're signed and your contract doesn't allow you to sell your tracks in digital format yourself, you'll earn whatever the terms of your label deal stipulate (and will get your royalties through your existing channels rather than from us directly). {
How do I get paid when fans purchase my music on boom.fm?
If you offered your tracks as a paid-for download, you will receive ALL of the proceeds from sales after deduction of payment processing fees (such as credit card fees) and VAT. Yes, you read that correctly! We believe that artists should get to keep all the money from it after transaction fees and taxes. You can view real-time statistics about downloads (and a bunch of other things) from your profile page.
Once you have accrued at least R1000 from track sales, we will contact you to get your banking details. We will pay monthly (provided you reach the pay-out threshold). If you do not reach the payment threshold in a given month, don't worry: any money that your tracks have earned will keep accruing until you reach the threshold.
Note: the above only applies to music that you directly uploaded for sale to boom.fm. If your music is offered through a separate agreement that boom.fm makes with labels and distributors, the terms of those agreements apply to those sales. You will be paid your royalties as per your agreement with your label and the royalty collection agencies and not directly by us. {
How does boom.fm make money?
We sell weed in the boombus to keep the site alive. Jokes jokes! For now, we're venture capital funded to help us get started. We're also in the process of negotiating some sponsorships (both on-line and event-based). Lastly, we're cooking up some special things in our labs that we can't talk about yet but that will be win-win for us and our artists. {
How secure is the site? I don't want my tracks poached.
Your log in and sign up are protected with secure encryption. All the tracks that you upload are stored securely and cannot be downloaded unless a user purchases the track. {
Can I sell my merchandise?
Not at present. It's something that is on our road-map though. We'll let our bands know when we're ready to move merchandise. {
Gigs
How do I tell fans about my gigs?
You can add your gigs on the "My Profile" page by clicking the aptly named "Add Gigs" button in the "Gigs" section. The gigs that you've added will show up in the feeds of all the fans that follow your band. {
