What does a Promotion Manager do?
Promotion managers work for record label promotion departments, where they strive to grow the audience for the label’s artists and bands by generating radio airplay. Due to the name, record promotion is often confused with publicity and marketing. However, the difference is clearer than it sounds: While the publicity department takes care of television appearances and magazine articles, and the marketing department develops artists’ long-term brand and social media presence, it’s up to the promotion department, and the promotion manager as one of its senior staff, to pitch new tracks, records, and artists to radio stations across the country, securing radio airplay and growing the audience for the label's releases.
At a Glance
Many promotion managers start as field representatives, working a small region of radio stations and other music-related businesses. Others begin in radio, working at local stations, before switching over to work for record label promotion departments. An experienced promotion manager might become the director of promotions at the label, overseeing a team of managers and staffers, or transition into working as an independent radio promoter, which is a freelance position that utilizes the same contacts and knowledge-base but allows for more freedom in selecting clients.
An internship in a label’s promotion department is an excellent jumping off point for an aspiring promotion manager, and frequently leads to an entry-level position in the department. However, one should be aware that these internships are rarely paid anymore. Working in music radio can be an alternate path to radio promotion, as doing so helps one to develop an understanding of what radio stations look for in the songs they pick up, knowledge of different radio formats, and an initial network of contacts.
Communication; information management; leadership; marketing, Mediabase; BDS (Nielsen); Shazam; Sound Scan; MScore
Communication is the most important skill for a promotion manager, whether it’s getting and relaying reports, giving directions to field representatives in the promotion manager’s territory, convincing a program director at a radio station to take a new track from an unseasoned artist, collaborating with the marketing or publicity departments on a promotional push for a label artist, or discussing the label’s priorities and overall strategies with a promotion VP or format head.
This is a field that is competitive by definition: Every day, dozens of people in similar roles at different labels are competing for a limited number of spots on the same radio station playlists. As a result, most promotion managers work long hours, sometimes rising early to assess charts and Nielsen BDS reports.
