Music Arsenal: new beta version

Posted by Flick in Reviews on 05 8th, 2008 | one response |

Several weeks ago we wrote about ways of using Google Applications for your music endeavor, promising to write about another invaluable tool called Music Arsenal. Music Arsenal have began testing out a beta version that anyone working in the music industry will find useful, especially independent record labels. How exactly will Music Arsenal empower you?

Keeping track of contacts can be an overwhelming task, especially when you have several people working with you. Who contacted whom, when, and what was discussed? Bouncing emails back and forth can fill your inbox quickly, and things are likely to slip by if you don’t have a system of tracking these conversations. Music Arsenal understands the importance of managing contacts, allowing you to mark down when you’ve talked to them, how you communicated, and set up reminders to contact them in the future. Extensive notes can be made, that not only you can see but everyone on your team can as well.

As you develop your list of contacts, you can either add the contact to your directory or to Music Arsenal’s public directory. This is an exciting feature since you’ll be able to contribute to a massive collection of contacts with other Music Arsenal members. Imagine having access to thousands of venues, blogs, radio stations, bands, promoters, booking agents, distributors, producers, and recording studios. Contacts are broken down to five main contact types: General, Venues, Retail, Radio, and Press.

Projects are another key feature in Music Arsenal. Every time you contact someone, you can track the conversation with a project. Money coming in and out of your endeavor can be tracked with each project, allowing you to break down the cost per project. For example, if you’re releasing a CD you can easily figure out how much cost per disc you have tied into a given project.

Artists that you work with can be linked to projects, tasks and concerts. As you tie the artist to the project, you can keep track of the progress you are making. Schedules can be made with tasks, and each task can be appointed to a user. Tasks are fully integrated, creating lists for each user and sending out reminders.

If you’re planning a tour the Concerts feature is a tremendous development. Concert information can be detailed, including time for load in, sound check, and the time doors open, as well as information about the venue and promoter. After you have planned a tour you can print out tour agendas, and embed the tour information on your website.

Instead of pitting Google Applications versus Music Arsenal, we’ve found that utilizing both creates a powerful combination of tools. If your team is disciplined enough to contribute information, you’ll stay organized, focused and informed. Not yet fully functional, the beta version of Music Arsenal will be a tremendous business management tool for anyone looking to make an impact in the music industry.

UPDATE: Music Arsenal has posted information about the new beta version here.

If you are interested in testing out the beta version, here is the Beta Signup form.

We’re promised to expect:

User Messaging – Users will be able to message other users of Music Arsenal to quickly build relationships.
Scene Reports – Easily find out all you need to know about a city or market where you’re looking to tour or promote a product.