You are in a band because you offer something musicially to the group you are playing with. But what else do you bring to the table?

In this day and age, it isn’t enough to just play bass or just play guitar.

Having computer skills, the desire to oversee some online marketing endeavors, the ability to maintain or write code for your website, or simply the ability and desire to personally network in your local music community – these are all important additional traits that are helpful and necessary for  young bands.

Every member must have a role. Below is an example based on a five member band:

guitarist – business and music networking; oversees band management matters and coordination with outside advisors

bassist – music scene networking; manages myspace and twitter

guitarist – recording studio access; industry contacts; music distribution through his music label

drummer – isn’t big on using online stuff, so puts extra time in networking with the local music scene and “offline” fans

singer – networking with local scene and business folks, manages facebook account

Music manager Emily White recent wrote a guest post on the MIDEM blog that discusses this very issue, and highlights how multiple talents are put to use with an upstart band she manages named Family of the Year.  Her piece offers numerous insights into what a DIY strategy can look like when implemented by an experienced manager who understands which of the newest technology is most useful, and which tools may not be necessary.

DIY exists because of the multitude of low cost and frequently time intensive means to promote the music you are creating, not to mention the cost savings with doing it yourself rather than paying someone to do it.  On top of that, most bands do not have label support, a manager or even a fan/manager.

Yet even if you do have the luxury of having a manager, the manager can better spend time pursuing growth and moving your band up the ladder if he/she isn’t burdened with handling all of these tasks. Thus, the more time and energy put in from all band members, the more of an edge your band will have – at any level of the music food chain.

So the question remains, what are you doing non-musically to support your band?