Music Funding 101
Banners
As opposed to shirts (which primarily display band info), banners display mostly sponsor info. And we are talking here about physical banners at shows, which are hung up on a wall (not the web-only banners you see on your computer screen). Banners work here just like they work at baseball games: the fans see them while watching the action. Thus, since the band is right there in front of the fans, there is no need to put much band info on the banners. One 2 x 4 foot banner with sponsor(s) name and logo should be good enough for most small shows, and a 4 x 8 foot banner should be good enough for night clubs and small indoor/outdoor venues.
A single banner should be fine for most of these smaller shows; if placed near but not directly next to the band, it will be seen plenty. Keep in mind there will probably be many photographs taken of the band, and you want the banner to show up in these too.
Like t-shirts, there certainly is a creative aspect to designing banners which can make them appear cool instead of crass or sellout-ish. Interestingly, even though all TalentFunding.com articles focus on being sponsored, the one word you probably would never want to use on a banner (or on a shirt or anywhere else) is "sponsored." It just won't work.
The background color of the banner should be visible but not overstated, considering the type of venues you expect the banner to appear at. Coffee shops can use warm colors; dark clubs can use white; outdoors can use bright or black. Coffee shops don't need bright or huge lettering, but dark clubs and outdoors do.
The critical part is how to word the sponsor's name on the banner, without looking ridiculous. If "XYZ" is the band, and the sponsor is just a person's name ("John Doe"), then there are some relatively simple options ... just plug your band and sponsor name into the following examples and see how they sound (the sizes of the letters, of course, would vary):
JOHN DOE thinks XYZ rocks!
JOHN DOE thanks XYZ for their ambient vibes
John Doe's XYZ!
XYZ ON STAGE TONIGHT thanks john doe!
XYZ THANKS JOHN DOE for his new age support!
JOHN DOE you are jazzy! - xyz
Get the Blues with XYZ and John Doe!
However, if the sponsor is a company name, you have to be a little more creative. First of all, see how many words of the name really need to be used. If the sponsor is "John Doe and Sons Tractors," then you might be able to use just John Doe and Sons, or just John Doe. This becomes a negotiating point: the sponsor will want more, and the band will want less.
The basic less-creative starting point is some kind of "we think you are wonderful" statement from the sponsor, or some kind of "appearing tonight." The following examples are not flashy, but you don't have to think a lot to use them:
APPEARING TONIGHT - XYZ thanks, john doe and sons tractors
WE LOVE XYZ! john doe and sons tractors
The more creative approaches, which are usually harder to get approved by the sponsor, are done by using some part of the sponsor's name in the meaning of the banner:
WE'RE PULLING HARD FOR XYZ! john doe and sons tractors
XYZ - The Only Band To Tour With A John Doe and Sons Tractor
Logo's are the easiest part. If the logo is the sponsor name itself (like IBM or Ben & Jerry’s) you can just replace the "name" part in the examples above with the logo. If the logo is separate from the name (like McDonalds) the logo can be shrunk down so it becomes just a decoration and not the main attraction of the banner.
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