How to get your song on radio

To answer that question, it’s first important to understand how a song gets played on “Big Time” radio. program directors try to pick music that the listeners of their stations will like, and if the listeners respond (calling in to request the song; calling in to ask what the song was, etc.), the song gets played more and more. If there’s little or no response, the song doesn’t get played for very long

For an artist to even be considered by a Program Director at one of these stations, a tremendous amount of other activity must be going on. One of these Big Time stations “tests” their music during one of their “specialty” shows (i.e. shows that feature local music, which are typically aired on weekends or late at night — when few people are listening), and it goes so well, that other stations pick up on it.

Here’s are some tips on how to gain the director’s favour:

Burn your band’s song to CD and create a professional presentation.
Attempt to make an appointment with the Music Director or Program Director of the station you want to get your song on.
If you get an appointment, be punctual and tell him/her about your band and the song and WHY it would fit with their programming.
If you cannot get an appointment with the Music Director or Program Director, mail your presentation.
Follow up with a phone call 3-5 days later. If you get voice mail, leave a message. Try again.
If your song is a special piece of production such as a parody, humor or even sports-related, bypass all of the above and make contact with that station’s morning show.
Only present your song(s) to stations where it would fit into the format (exception: parodies, humor, sports-related, etc.)
Obtain testimonials from club owners about the crowds you draw.
Have photos of big events you played? Show them.
Highlight “Go To” tracks (pick your best 2 or 3 songs)
Show any quotes you have. Chicken and the egg here, how do you get quotes if no one has heard it! Get it to any friends, bookers, managers anyone in the industry who can give you a good (and honest) quote
Avoid too much clutter; get to the point and keep your application clean and focused
Don’t ask the MD or DJ to contact YOU. They won’t. You are one of thousands. Whatever you do (and this happens) DO NOT ask for the CD back. Seriously, I’ve seen it, “we only printed a few so please send back if you’re not going to play us”. I won’t detail how wrong this is.
If you have a cool promo item, great. If you send too much you end up looking desperate and trying to show how unique you are instead of letting the music do the talking. Now if the station is playing you by all means follow up with stuff that could be given away to listeners etc. But don’t try to buy the DJ with trinkets.