How to Find a New Band Member

Before you start advertising for a player, sit down and write two lists; a "what I do want" and a "what I don't want" list. This will assist you in writing the musician wanted advert and will also give you a check list to use when prospective members contact you. It will help you weed out any time wasters or unsuited players.

• must have own transport
• must have good equipment
• must have social media experience - to chip in with marketing
• must be able to co-write / write
• must be willing to rehearse weekly
• must be 18+

Ensure you have a process or plan in place before you start advertising. You should known how, where and when you are going to (a) screen applicants and then (b) audition applicants. Don't waste time by setting up an audition when a telephone or online conversation could easily rule out the tyre-kickers.

Many of the online forums targeting musicians have a section for "Musicians Wanted." Do a Google search for - "forums for musicians [insert your city]." The search results will provide you with a list of forums to check for musicians who are advertised as looking for a band, and for you to post an advert for the player you seek.

If you're in an established band and you already have a blog or website, create a page for "Musician Wanted," and include all the relevant information.

Remember that all of your other advertising i.e. forums posts, Facebook posts and adverts, tweets and even physical flyers and postcards can point people to this page on your website. You might end up with the bonus of additional people joining your mailing list , listening to your music and looking at your Gig Calendar.

Post a request for musician(s) on your Facebook band page. Change the post content each time and post frequently. Remember you can optimize your post to maximize it's chance of being seen.

Facebook adverts can be a great way to find other musicians. Make the advert content obvious, so that you're only attracting clicks from the relevant players. You can also target the local area so you're not recruiting from too great a distance. Traveling a long way for rehearsal can get tedious, and you don't want to lose another member.

Send a private message to each of your musician friends, explaining that you're looking for a band member and the necessary requirements. Ask if they know of anyone suitable, or if they've heard of any bands who have split up recently.

Search on Google for "Music Schools and Colleges [insert your city].” This will bring up a list of the tertiary music colleges. Contact each college and ask if they have an on-line notice board, or a physical notice board on campus. An advert targeting tertiary music students is a great way to find driven and talented players.

If you're a twitter user you can tweet about the spot available, but also remember to try twitter.com/search and enter "guitarist looking for band [insert your city]" or "band split up [insert your city]" etc. Check the tweets that appear and respond to anyone who might be suitable or who might know of other suitable players. Twitter search can be a very powerful tool when you’re looking for something specific.

Many music instrument shops have notice boards you can pin an advert to. Again targeting stores in your area will help you find someone local. It's also good to have a chat with the store staff about who you are and who you're looking for. Music instrument shop staff are generally well connected and hear all the local band gossip.

Have some postcards or flyers printed. Give some to the other members of your band. Get out and see other bands of similar genre and make sure you network! Let people know you're looking for musicians and have a flyer or postcard ready to hand out.

Instead of feeling let down because some-one left your fold, look at this situation as a positive. You’re in the position to find a great player who’s like minded and can commit to your project or band. Take this opportunity to find someone awesome!