Paul Savage Marketing
Punktastic.com
Back in the days before Facebook and even MySpace, I founded a music website called Punktastic.
As an aspiring journalist, I wanted to write about music to try and get some extra experience. In 2000, Punktastic began as a passion project to write live reviews and share news on my favourite bands. It quickly developed into something much bigger, with tens of thousands of daily users and busy message boards connecting fans from across the world. I was breaking new stories as a legitimate outlet and interviewed some of the biggest bands at the time - including Blink 182, The Offspring, Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Brand New, Panic at the Disco, Bring Me The Horizon and many more.
Using social media strategies (before they existed!) I utilised email, word of mouth and other websites to spread the word of the website. In 2003 the site had grown sufficiently that I started promoting gigs at venues such as Joseph’s Well and The Packhorse in Leeds, Camden Barfly and Sheffield Corporation. I started a record label, signed over a dozen artists, and released a number of physical CDs. I also sponsored tours, stages at Slam Dunk Festival and was treated as a legitimate news source by PRs, management and agents.
I sold the website and business in 2010 and it continues today.