Music Marketing [dot] com

Want to Sell More Stuff? Steal This Idea!

I subscribe to a lot of magazines, because I'm old school. Unfortunately for magazine publishers, not everybody is like me. In fact, most people aren't like me.

So what's the solution? Increase your subscriber base by getting the people who buy (in other words, the biggest fans) to give away free subscriptions in hope of winning other people over.

Example is below...

It works for big magazine publishers and it will work for you. CDs are cheap, so you could do the exact same deal on your music. $10 for a CD, plus two additional CDs for the buyer to give to friends.

Look, people who want to share your music have nothing to stop them from making copies, so you might as well give those people the "official" version of what you do and encourage word-of mouth around it.

Or try this technique with tickets to your next gig... The more people in the audience, the more likely those people will have a good time. And it's more opportunities for you to win over new fans.

Time to Expand Your Music Business?

Jack Daniel's is the best-selling whiskey in the world. Because of this, we all know the "square" bottle, the black/white label, and all about Lynchburg [Pop.361], Tennessee.

Did you know Lynchburg is in "dry" country? Sure you did.

Did you know, since they can't serve whiskey in Lynchburg, you're served lemonade when you tour the distillery? Sure you did.

So why is Jack Daniel's doing "non-whiskey" things like this?

And this?

Because people who like Jack Daniel's whiskey also like meat! And if they're going to get meat anyway, it might as well be from Jack Daniel...

Even if you've got a hot product that sells a lot, it can be a good idea to expand to other things.

So what do fans of your music like and they'd buy from you, if you were to offer it to them? If they're the same type of people who like Jack Daniel's, perhaps your own brand of hot sauce would be a good place to start.

Protection for Your Love Gun

Is there any product or service that Gene Simmons won't license?

Is there any product or service that you won't license?

Discuss below...

How to Build Rapport with Your Fans (and a Big Ass Mailing List)

A couple of weeks ago, Imogen Heap came through Nashville. This was just after a huge flood hit the city, causing about $1.6 Billion in damages and displacing thousands of people.

The show was full of audience participation, but this took it to a new level.  Instead of having somebody call out a request or doing a singalong, Imogen asked the crowd for a time signature, a tempo, and a key, then created a song with them.

Most shows are a "one-way" thing... The artist performs and people in the audience listen.  This changed that, since the audience was actually part of the song being created.

The song was recorded and now it's for sale.  All the money goes to flood relief. Buy the track now and see how she does it...

This is something she does in every city, by the way.  And it works on so many levels... For one, it's not just any charity; it's a charity that means something to the local audience.  It's also a moment in time, much like a photo, that lets people take the experience of a live performance home with them.  And beyond just that, it's an experience of something they were actually an active part of, beyond just sitting in a chair and watching it happen.

Lack of followup from the thousands of people touring acts play for each night is "money on the table" at its finest. For a show like this, people pay around $50-100/ticket.  They're obviously fans and fans never stop at just one purchase...but they do have to know something is available for them to buy.

How do you do this?  A mailing list.

But people don't just sign up for a mailing list, you have to offer them a benefit for doing so, or make it part of another transaction in which you get their mailing information.  Selling somebody a recording like this is that transaction.

People also have to like you and trust you before they'll do any business with you...and doing something for a charity they can relate to is a good way to make that happen.

Everybody has $1, right?  Everybody wants to help others, right?  Combine the two in your music marketing and you'll not only build great rapport and goodwill with your fans, but you'll also build a huge mailing list that you can use to promote other things.

Other things about this show which built rapport and goodwill...

1. Brought in a local act to open as well as join her on stage during the main performance.

2. Before the show, had people go to her website and tell her which songs they wanted to hear.

Now it's your turn... How are you building goodwill and rapport with your audience?  Post your comments below...

Double Your Music Business Income (Without Working Any Harder)

Want more money from your music business?  Sure... But that would involve a lot more work, right?

Not really...  In fact, you probably are already doing the work; you're just leaving money on the table.  I find this to be the situation with almost every band I work with, at least on some level.

What I'm talking about here is something that can easily double the money you make from your music business.  In fact, if you use it right, you'll be able to increase your music business income a lot more than that.

Every business, whether it be a service industry, such as airlines, or a product-oriented business, such as a record company, has "money on the table" from aspects of the business which aren't being used.  Some businesses are onto this, such as the airline industry, which uses extra space on its airplanes to ship packages, or the record business (and I'm talking vinyl records) which can sell returned goods or unsold product for recycling.

And if you're thinking, "David, there isn't a vinyl record business anymore," you're wrong.  But the book industry, which is basically the same business and runs on the same model when it comes to returning products, operates the same way, selling returned books and unsold product or recycling the material themselves, for the manufacture of other books.

Again, every business has these elements.  And yes, that includes your business.

If you're in a band, for example...

If you're not selling the original demos you made of songs, you're leaving money on the table. 

If you're not selling recordings of your rehearsal sessions, you're leaving money on the table. 

If you're not selling recordings (both audio and video) of your live performances, you're leaving money on the table.

If you're not getting video of yourself in the studio, showing "behind the scenes" footage of your album being created, you're leaving money on the table.

Want an example of somebody who is doing it right?  Lovers Electric sells both an "album" and "bedroom demos" of their songs.

Think your fans wouldn't go for that?  You're wrong.  Nobody will go for everything you do, but depending on how you frame things, "demos" can be very popular.  And Lovers Electric does a great job of setting expectations.  From their site...

"Like the packet says, this was recorded at our home studio (aka bedroom), it has a lot of the original versions of songs from our debut album, but with a few different tunes... For those who'd like to hear a bit of Lovers Electric history..."

Again, not everybody is going to go for everything and some of the things you do will sell better than others, but if you're only for a single album for $10, that's the most you're going to make from even your biggest fan.  You can easily double or triple the amount you make from your top fans by releasing things like demos or rehearsal sessions, things you're already doing and letting go to waste.

Want more ideas like this?  You're in luck...

I've got a book called Never Leave Money on the Table - How to Grow Any Business and Get Really Rich with 10 Simple Marketing Strategies. This isn't a book about music, it's a book about business.  More specifically, it's a book about how you can grow your business and make more money with it.  Same business, more money.

A lot of musicians find it hard to believe they can actually make 2-3x more money than they are now, without doing any extra work, but it happens all the time.  Airlines which ship packages in passenger flights aren't flying any more miles?  They're simply looking at every little bit of space they have and making the most of it.

You can do the exact same thing with your music business.  The money is there, you just need to reach down to pick it up.  So do it!

Feel free leave comments and share your "money on the table" stories below...

Kiss Sells Out...Again!

Kiss is the latest act to do a big deal with Wal-Mart.  "Sonic Boom" will be released exclusively at the store (and Sam's Club) on October 6th. It will include a CD of the band's first new music in 11 years, re-recorded versions of famous Kiss hits, and a live DVD.

Other acts which have released albums through Wal-Mart include the Eagles, AC/DC, and Foreigner.

Thoughts?

The Future of Vinyl Records

Where vinyl records are now and where they're going...

The History of Vinyl Records

Ok, not exactly, but this is the history of a vinyl plant called United Record Pressing, which is in Nashville.  If you're ever in town, I highly suggest dropping by for a tour!

Do We Fight Pirates or Do We Learn From Them?

Thoughts?

Charcoal Briquettes and a Lesson for Your Band

Picked this one up from Early to Rise...

The History of the Charcoal Briquette

Give Henry Ford credit for inventing the charcoal briquette. Ford made the first briquettes out of sawdust and scrap wood from his factories. Then he sold barbecue grills and the briquettes at Ford dealerships to encourage people to drive their cars to go on picnics.

(Source: That's a  Fact, Jack!)

It's interesting knowledge, but there is a huge marketing lesson here...

What Henry Ford did by getting people thinking about picnics was getting them to imagine how much easier their lives would be by owning a new car.  And he made the transition from car to barbecue grill seamless, to  where it didn't seem like that is what he was doing.

You can do the same thing with your music...

Perhaps you're a R&B singer with smooth love tunes.  What goes along with smooth love tunes?  Get people to imagine the scenario, so that your music is part of it.  In other words, say "If you want a good time tonight, you're going to need this music in your stereo."

Any time people can associate your music with a good time, whatever that good time is, you've got a great opportunity to sell something.

Bottom line-- You're not selling music; you're selling a good time.