How to Choose The Right Band Management Software For Your Band

Managing a band involves a huge amount of dedication. Staying organised can be particularly challenging, especially for busy musicians like yourself. From logistical planning to musician coordination and meeting client demands, maintaining a high level of organisation is essential. However, the demanding nature of a musician's life can make it difficult to allocate time for planning upcoming events and ensuring everyone is well-coordinated.

To help you streamline your band management process you can adopt a software, but which one to pick? There are many factors to consider such as whether you need a band management software and what features you needs. In this article, we hope to help you answer these questions so you can pick the best software your band.

Do you need an online band management software?

Before you invest, both time and money, into an app it might be worth considering if now is the right time. Below we've listed the most common reasons for people adpoting a band management tool to help them out.

1. You struggle to find the time to manage your gigs

Planning and organizing your events takes time and if you feel you don't have enough time to do this then having a band management tool will help you have a better view of your diary and tasks, and it can be easier to focus on what you enjoy best, playing music!

2. You need additional reporting

Having the ability to create and view advanced reports might be the reason to switch to an online manager. Reports allow you to control finances, gigs and view who is working on your events.

3. You need help organising musicians

Band management software should allow you to share event information with your musicians and allow everyone working the gig to have access to their information they need. They should also enable you to collect invoices and availability. Moreover, you're able to make your business a 'self-service' modal when it comes to booking and managing musicians releasing the reliance on you when it comes to sharing and updating information.

So if you're struggling to manage your musicians then a band managment software will help and save you a lot of time and effort.

4. Always losing gig information

Have you ever had a situation where a client gave you an important update and you forgot about it, or can't remember where to find it? With the software, you can stop this. For example, Band Pencil provide a space for you to store all of your gig information and keep track of it.

With a tool like Band Pencil you can add individual notes to events so if a client calls you up, you can type as they speak to make sure you don't miss anything.

Tips on how to choose your online band management software

If you've decided you do need to invest in a management software, picking the right tool for your business might seem like a complex task. To help, we've outlined the top things to look out for.

Compare prices

No one likes to overpay for things that don’t meet their expectations. So consider the prices and check if the software offers more than one plan. Maybe you don’t need to choose the most expensive but the basic plan. Make use of a free trial which will help dispel doubts after testing the software.

Check features adequacy

Some of the band manager users may choose software based on its popularity. Of course, it’s a solution, but it’s much more advisable to compare the features offered by the software to your needs. 

For example, if your musicians complain about not being tech savvy enough for an online software, choose software with an easy to use Member Portal. Don’t forget about checking integrations, such as a link to an external calendar, this will help release the reliance of logging in.

Thinking about adopting a CRM system rather than a prupose built band manager, take a look at our comparison table:

	Band Management Software	CRM
Store advance information, such as soundcheck, dresscode.	✓	✕
Ability to add people you're working with.	✓	✕
Member Portal to give gig access to people you're working with.	✓	✕
Store details about your venues.	✓	✕
Build your band line up.	✓	✕
Accept invoices from your musicians.	✓	✕

Read the reviews

And last but not least, pay attention to the reviews on multiple websites. Why? Because who will know better than the other user. Carefully examine the positive and negative ones, searching for aspects that might be essential for you. 

For example, maybe the software has multiple critical functions, but the interface makes it harder to use. Also look for reviews from businesses that are similar to yours. For example, if a covers band doing roughly the same amount of gigs as your is using and enjoying the software,  it will probably work well for you.

Ready to Choose Your Band Management Software?

Time management and good event organisation are two points that help your music business grow. Band management apps allow you to regain control, properly store all of your gig information, and, what’s more, make the lives of your clients and musicians easier. Thanks to band management softwares, you can avoid double booking and unnecessary misunderstandings.

Need help picking your band management software?

If you need help getting started, we've written an article comparing the top band management apps available in 2024. It doesn’t matter if you are running an artist management agency, small jazz trio, or you're a freelance musician, band management apps apps will make your life easier!