Writing to a booker so you get a reply
Bookers get up to two hundred emails a week and most sound the same. Here is how to write the one that gets a reply.
A booker gets somewhere between eighty and two hundred emails a week from bands they have never heard of, most of them sound the same, and most of them never get a reply. It helps to see why.
The email that fails reads like this. Dear venue, I hope this email finds you well. We are an emerging indie rock band who would love to share our music with your audience. Our sound has been described as a blend of two influences with a contemporary twist that resonates across genres. We are currently planning a tour in the region and would love to be considered for a slot at your venue. Please find attached our press kit. Looking forward to hearing back from you. That one is rejected within about two seconds, and every booker can spot it from the first line. AI did not invent this email, it was the template long before AI existed, AI just made it cheaper to send two hundred of them at once.
The email that works reads more like this. Hi, I am in a band called whatever it is called, we are playing Eindhoven on the Friday and Den Haag on the Sunday in March, and we are looking for one more show in between, ideally the Saturday and somewhere we can drive to inside ninety minutes. Three of us, two guitars and bass and drums, loud, we last toured with another band you might know back in 2023. Here is one song I think suits your room, with a link straight to that song rather than a whole catalogue. The door split is fine, we bring our own sound engineer, and we will travel for a low guarantee. Anything? Marten.
The difference between the two is specifics. A real date, a concrete ask, a reference the booker can place, one song rather than a discography, and an honest acknowledgement that you are asking for a favour. Bookers reply to that, not always with a yes but often enough, because the email respects their time. And if you cannot write three sentences that are genuinely specific to one particular venue, then you are emailing too many at once, so slow down, pick the rooms you actually want to play, and write to each of them separately.
Love,
Marten