Better than the Van is an awesome website devoted to helping bands find free places to stay while on tour. The idea is simple. You create a profile saying where you are, who you are and whether you have a place to offer or need a place to crash. The profiles are really easy to create (and I mean really easy) and it’s a great way to make connections with people in the cities you’re visiting. But don’t take our word for it, Co-Founder Todd Hansen was kind enough to answer a couple questions for us that show how  BTTV philosophies are in line with the Tour:Smart way of life. If you want to support BTTV they’re having a pledge drive to fund a website update that will add new features and make the page generally more helpful to bands. You can donate here.

Read the Full Interview After the Jump

Interview:

T:S : Was there a specific touring experience that you had that led to the creation of this site?

Todd: The idea came from touring in general and wanting to have a site like this at my disposal for either a band I was playing in or one that I was helping out. There are so many sites to promote your music on, I thought there needed to be one that actually helped get things done and bands out on the road. Having a place to stay after a show tends to be a big hindrance to touring; that and getting shows which BTTV is helpful for as well.

T:S : What are the benefits of using your site, other than the obvious monetary ones?

Todd: Local connections and friend-bases turning into fan-bases.

Connecting with people in cities you’ve never played before is huge. Especially if they know other bands you can play with or contacts at venues. They can give you a wealth of knowledge about where to play and who to play with. Plus they may do some leg work and help promote the show. It becomes a great way to gather “intelligence” in order to tour smarter.

For bands it’s about making connections through BTTV and establishing a friend-base in a city. Your host invites friends to your show, maybe throws a party and things progress. The next time a band tours to that city, the have a contact point and as the relationship builds, more people discover the band and the friend-base turns into a fan-base.

For hosts (either bands or music fans) it’s a unique way to support music other than buying a record or going to a show. There’s a bit of social collateral when you, “have a band staying at your house”. It’s an event for a lot of people and something to break up the everyday of living. It feels good to give back and help out others who need it.

T:S : Alright, finally, as someone who clearly works in and for bands, what is your ultimate touring tip?

Todd: The best advice I ever got was from Syd Butler of Les Savy Fav. He also runs French Kiss Records and to all his bands he says, “Tour, Tour, Tour”. That’s it really. Bands need to set it up so they can tour and hit the same cities on a pretty routine schedule. Bands shouldn’t wait around for someone to swoop them up or put them in an iTunes spot.

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