Nashville's "English Only" Vote (and Marketing)

This month Nashville voters will head to the polls to vote on the English Only Charter Amendment. This Amendment would preclude the use of all non-English languages by Nashville's government.

The situation is very similar to what recently happened in California with Proposition 8.

There is a huge marketing lesson in these situations...

In my opinion, the reason Proposition 8 passed in California and the reason somebody would vote "yes" on Nashville's Charter Amendment is lack of understanding how the "other side" feels.

If you're not gay, why do you care about gay marriage?  It doesn't affect you.

If you speak English, why do you care if it's the only option?  You'll be ok.

But both these situations affect some people in a big way...and this is a huge marketing lesson.

If you're going to sell somebody something, whether it be music or anything else, you need to understand how the potential buyer feels.  You have to understand their needs, their wants, their desires, their struggles, and everything else that would either pull them toward or push them away from buying.

Who does the best job at selling golf clubs?  Somebody who plays golf.

Why?  Because he understands the needs, wants, and desires of golfers.  He can relate to them in a way nobody else can.

Who does the best job of writing songs people can relate to?  The people who have been in love, been dumped, been happy, been sad, and otherwise experienced life.

A little understanding goes a long way.

Comments

[Michael Annotti]

Thanks David ! I feel that is true... you have to play to the audience, not just go and throw whatever you've got at them and hope they can catch it ... you must consider who they are.. also what they want at that moment .. we are all living in the same world.. hearing the same news about the same food ... events .. look into the world we live in and experience it first hand to know how to relate with others do the same... in all my songwriting, as my upcoming album the songs are experiences, stories from my life, the happy, sad, uplifting and spiritual.
Have a great weekend!
Michael

[Lex Zaleta]

Music is the universal language, and the words we write can be just as universal. David and Michael are on target. Pick something as mundane as an astrological sign, and a half billion or so folks will be relating to your choice (Thank Dog we dyslexic Gemini atheists don't believe in astrology). The key is to make the mundane sound fresh, to make the listener proclaim, "I've been through that, but I never saw it quite that way before. I wish I'd thought of that!" If that listener feels better for having experienced your music, you've gained a fan for life (and done some healing in this hurting world).

[Ross]

The best way I've heard this put is by Tom Jackson (performance coach). He says the most important thing you can do is to love your audience. When you love someone, you give them what they need and what they want (when you can). The same goes for music.

Good Stuff.
Thanks

[David Hooper]

Tom Jackson has a lot of good advice.

http://blog.musicbusinessradio.com/2006/06/episode_4_tom_j.html has an interview I did with him on Music Business Radio. Worth a listen.

[Hugh Brown]

Great advice, David - for life in general, not just for sales.

The world could use a little more empathy.

Cheers,
Huge

[WR]

A little understanding is simply a matter of respect. I couldn't agree more. However, the first response is really what set me off here.

Perhaps I've misunderstood. But, I'm not at all sure I can agree with creating, pitching and selling one's music based on what we think an audience "wants" to hear. What I think an audience wants to hear and what the millions of other songwriters submit the audience wants are vastly different approaches. There is, without question in my experience, no way to compose a song worthy of standing the test of time, or even a couple dozen listens, in which the content was based on a marketing assumption or principle. There is no way to deliver a performance that makes a genuine connection based on that assumptive marketing principle either.

That is not to say that many hits, a multitude really, weren't based on this "marketing" premise initially in the songwriting stage. And, not every hit is a piece of sonic trash; some are exquisitely crafted. However, one need not look any further than MTV or CMT for overt examples of mediocrity. There are offices of writers and "producers", otherwise very creative people, churning out formulaic, ridiculous tunes - be they hits or moderate sellers - to push into the mainstream marketplace. And a lot of people love them. That’s all good… I guess. Commerce is, well, commerce. Few are claiming that they're selling respectable "art", that which adds value to the craft of songwriting. It is formulaic commerce. I don’t disrespect those making a living pushing it; I know one very successful Nashville tunesmith and I certainly respect his talents immensely. But he never crafted a great song based on his assumption of what an audience would love to hear.

In my opinion, the most successful artists, perhaps not mega-selling pop-stars, but artists with longevity, individual identity, artistic content and integrity, are not writing material from the standpoint of marketers. With that noted, they may certainly possess a subconscious understanding of their inherent mass appeal based on past success; but certainly not as a matter of compositional formula. Again, I couldn't disagree more with the general comment about, and I paraphrase, "playing the audience."

"Throwing what you have at them" is the inherent risk that artistry embraces. The challenges we have to face on stage in breaking the barriers down between ourselves as performing songwriters and the audience - a group of casual listeners with little or no idea about who we are - is essential to doing our job, honoring our craft and giving our audiences the opportunity to make that highly coveted connection to the music we create. The level at which we do that, the quality and effectiveness, is the direct result of experience, practice, past successes and, well... raw talent.

Yes, musicians should know best how to "sell" a song, not lawyers. But, so many musicians are simply - as in any profession - going through the motions. The most respected musicians understand their strengths as either composers, players or even simply, personalities - in many instances, all three - and "market" themselves based on that understanding... in the best case scenarios. Artistry requires committed development over time. It demands that risks be taken. A certain "reinvention of the wheel" is necessary.

Marketing it is a matter of clear and defined delivery, whether it's from the stage or the pages of a magazine. Hype is the f---buddy of commerce. Anyone can fluff up some hype about their "scene" and, in many cases, it's very effective. But, thankfully, it exacts its own toll. Composing a great song and delivering a great performance has nothing to do with hype and even less to do with marketing.

I absolutely agree with the comment that we should "love our audience". That is simply stated as a matter of respect. They've bought a ticket and/or a CD. They've showered, picked up the girlfriend and otherwise spent a couple of hours preparing to get to your show. We owe it to them to deliver our "highest art"; not some concept of a song (or ten) as designed with our marketing schemes, our assumption of "audience friendly", in mind. Those types of songs, those types of performances, are a dime a dozen and completely forgettable. I write these opinions confidently because I’ve made those "assumptive" mistakes many times over.

I would add a quote that I recently came across as an addendum to the previously noted comment: "Love what you do and sell that love."

That's what should be, in my opinion, at the very heart of "marketing" one's music. Of course, there are an infinite number of opinions on what the approach to anything in life should consist of. So, take this reply for what it is... which is me throwing whatever I've got at you, hoping you might be open to it. Then again, I won’t take offense or be rethinking my marketing strategies if you don’t. Such is the risk I’m willing to take.

All the best in your endeavors,
WR

[Tim Anderson]

Yes, a little understanding does go a long way! However, I'd like to offer the following:

I believe that to vote in favor of Prop 8 or the Nashville "English Only" charter amendment doesn't necessarily demonstrate a lack of empathy or understanding of the opposing views. For example, I can understand that a local restaurant will go broke if not enough people eat there. I can understand that they have rent to make, bills to pay and kids to clothe and feed and send to college. But, if people don't like the restaurant because it's filthy or the food is disgusting, most of them are not going to eat there even if the owners are nice people and they feel sorry for them. This example, and I'm sure we could all think of a million others, clearly shows that people do make decisions that may adversely affect the lives of others, though they do not lack understanding of "how the 'other side' feels".

It follows, then, that in the case of Prop 8, the outcome does not mean that those with the prevailing view lacked "understanding" of the other side's feelings, thoughts and desires. It simply means that a large enough number of people believe that marriage should remain as between one man and one woman, and they voted their beliefs. Similarly, those who vote in favor of "English Only" may be well-informed about the opposing view, but still believe that tax payers' money should not be spent providing certain non-English services for immigrants living where English is the native language.

That said, I agree that writing great songs that are universal (empathetic) in theme from one's unique perspective (experiences in life) is great for marketing and also is one of the best ways to impact the culture. Beyond that, since it IS possible to really love a song without having had the experience that the song is about or, for that matter, without even knowing more than a word or two of the lyrics, other factors such as production, melody, quality of the singer's voice, guitar solos, the video, etc. also can have a huge influence on whether or not people will buy the music.

So, as I see it, my job as a singer/songwriter is to write about great ideas that are worthy to sing about drawn from my own life experiences and those of others through books/movies, push through for the words, melody and chords that best convey the idea, and find ways to produce the music with excellence that will have the best possibility of appealing to as many as possible while staying true to who I am and what I believe. Then, since marketing is a numbers game, once the music is in a marketable format, the challenge is to get the music heard by the largest number of people possible through online and traditional media and live performance, knowing that those who hear it and love it will buy it.

[Dan Gillogly]

Well said. We need to know as marketers what the audience wants.

There is one very big flip side as a marketer here.

We are not going to satisfy everyone. That's very important to know. The only people we need to know about are the people who we do connect with, who do "get it", who resonate with our message and are willing to pay us money to do what we love.

Once we find out who our audience is, THEN we give them what they want. THEN we can adjust our songs and shows to them. THEN we can churn our marketing to give them what they want, keep them showing up at our shows and keep producing CDs they will buy.

That is the very essence of good marketing. Just know that we will not satisfy everyone.

As songwriters it is very different. I need to understand myself and hopefully other people will "get it" through my ability to communicate clearly with music and lyrics.

As a performer I want to satisfy everyone. I want to reach and connect with everyone in the room.

As a marketer that is not necessary. As a marketer I only need to reach the people who are signing checks.

[David Hooper]

You are correct in that you can't satisfy everybody. You could give $1,000,000 to help the homeless and somebody would be pissed.

From a marketing standpoint, it's there is more money when you really relate to a few people than when you try to please everybody. And to do this, you must know your audience and how they feel about things.

On the related note of "no money in the middle..."

Listen to some of the demo reviews at http://blog.musicbusinessradio.com/ because I think this illustrates this point in a great way. The people who are really good (or really bad) are memorable and get good advice. Those who are in the middle, with average playing or writing, don't get anything and are easily forgotten.

[Paula Benson]

I do believe the above comment about selling is true somewhat. I remember a new artist some years ago came on the scene. She was about sixteen and I knew the song she sung. I would have purchase the cd only because her voice was very very good. But I knew she never had a broken heart that could make you go WHAT THE HECK!!! I would have been convinced she knew what she was singing if she had some bad experiences at love.

I am glad you mention the above information. I need to remember why I sing songs and write them.

Thanks
Paula B.