A New Direction, Connection!

This post will be a lot like my last post, where I went into depth about potential revenue streams that artists could utilize to supplement piracy. Even though I am still a very strong believer in artists giving their records away for free.

People that "steal" music DO really want to listen to the album and support the artist, however with the way of the economy and the endless options for entertainment, paying $18 for an album you might only enjoy 2-3 songs on simply is a ridiculous thing to ask of a person, let alone a young person with minimal to no income.

However artists need to make money some how, I believe the concept of "connection" is the way to do so.

On one hand we have  the cost put into creating and distributing an album, and on the other hand we have the people that are actually going to buy it... With out adding and numbers or considering and statistics we all know these two hands will be extremely out weighed. Because of this rather than attack the people "stealing" the music, since lets be honest they DO want to hear your music they just can't afford too, why not figure out how they CAN support you.

First step, give it all away! You are never really going to make that much off of album sales unless you own all your copy rights and have next to no debt that needs to be recouped, and even at that point you will also have to be self distributing the release to see a major amount of income. So why not just forget about making money that way, rather give the music out for free, this creates an instant bond with your audience and potential audience, making them more likely to keep up with the goings on in your life.

After a month of free music you can judge your popularity and see if releasing a "Limited Edition" version of the album would be worth it.  This should include multiple bonus tracks, acoustic versions, studio/tour footage, and cool packaging or extras. The bonus to this is it can be sold at a very high price and since you gave everything else away people will buy it, since it's limited edition! The same thing can be done with a "Live DVD" or basically anything else, the point I am trying to make is that people want to support people they feel care about their fans.

One major source of revenue has always been live shows, yet once again, they are getting expensive and people are picking a choosing where/when/who they will pay to go see.  Because of this artists need to stay on top of their Social Networks and reach out to fans in the areas they are touring to ensure attendance.  But just reaching out isn't enough to make people want to spend $20 for a night of music, so once again rather than take it for what it is, artists need to think outside of the box, but how?

There are literally apps for everything now days, apps that let you tell people what you are doing and share it with the world. I feel the next big step for the entertainment industry is to develop and implement a new social network for bands and fans. One that would give the artist the ability to set up contests and prizes for each event they were having which would give fans a chance for free merch or a shot at back stage passes. Something along the line of...

"HEY-- We are playing the House of Blues in Orlando this weekend, the first 25 people that check in @HoB and send us a picture of our merch girl @Jessic1221 will be entered to win one of 5 BSP's and 1 of 10 free tshirts! Get First!"

This, although seemingly simplistic may be enough to add 10-30 more people at your show due to the mind set of, "Well I wasn't going to go out tonight but $20 for a shot at back stage passes??!!!?! I have to go now!" In addition to the obvious increase of ticket sales, artists can also start booking larger venues and asking for more money due to higher attendance.

This is just one of many things artists can do, however a new app doesn't need to be implemented just for this to happen with things like Twitter and Foursquare out there already it is something they can implement now for more money.

The Music Industry is one based on selling and then reselling the same collections on a different format, now that new formats aren't requiring people go re buy their entire collection, the income seems to have dropped immensely, when really it is the same based on new music. Rather than attack consumers for getting music the way they should, the Industry needs to evolve to a point where they can keep up with the way we are consuming music in this day and age.

These are my opinions and should be taken as just that! Thanks for stopping by!

Getting Back to Basics

With so much changing in today's "Music Industry" and the negativity surrounding it's future many may think recording artists could be deterred from moving forward.  For some, piracy is a deterrence, however there are road blocks in all aspect of life and you can either sit around and do nothing, OR you can find another way around it.

I have previously written a post about Dave Melillo and his "Melillo Mondays"stream where he connects with fans, not for profit, but rather just to maintain relationships.  However I feel there is more opportunity for many people, not just recording artists to use live stream sites such as Justin.tv Twitch.tv and UStream.tv as an addition source of income.

Live streaming is very much the same as regular television, you stream from home to your viewers and run commercials just like you would see on regular TV. The streamer then receives payment based on not only the amount of viewers that see each commercial, but also the amount of clicks from their stream. For some people, this can turn into a full time job and a source of revenue that can even support them.

In addition to the live stream, they can have a YouTube page set up to "archive" their past episodes or highlights from their stream.  This allows even more income if the individual has partnered with YouTube, and can result in huge income with high subscribers/viewers. On average YouTube partners can receive between $0.50 and $6.00 per 1000 views on their videos, with a lot of views that income can really add up.

So what does this mean for today's recording artists?

In a time of low album sales and piracy, it is often difficult for an artist to make ends meet. I have often told bands that I have worked with to "give your music away for free," if people like it, they will not only buy it, but also spend money to see you play. With that in mind artists need another way to make money when not on the road, streaming is the next step.

Think about the amount of people that would log in to see behind the scenes of their favorite bands practice, or the number of people that would jump at the chance to get a sneak peek of a new album with "In Studio" stream updates.  As a music fan myself I know the more I feel connected to a band the more likely I am to pay for a show or an album.

Is this the way artists will start making more in the next few years? No one knows for sure, however I defiantly think this a huge opportunity just waiting to be taken advantage of.

When Making A Business Plan...

There are many things that are important to take into consideration when sitting down and creating or refining a business plan for any future endeavor. Often I find myself worrying too much about formatting and numbers than they way it comes off to the person looking at it.

I understand there is defiantly a lot that goes into making sure a business plan has all the information and numbers or cost a potential investor would be interested know prior to buying into the idea.  However, I feel as if a lot can be said for creating a document or presentation that gets them excited before they see any projections on the company's potential revenue. This is especially important for someone like myself who isn't necessarily creating this too pulling any sort of funding but rather to be considered for a partnership with a preexisting publicity firm.

Running an operation like the one I have outlined and wish to pursue further, there is virtually no over head, start up, or any other costs associated. Because of this the company can be active while not making that much money while it grows and becomes something that could support myself. With that being the case, I am more likely to show a publicity firm what I plan to do and how I plan to work in hopes of being associated with them and their existing relationships in exchange for a percentage of my earnings. With this in mind it is easier to stop worrying so much about exact numbers or projections and focus on something I hadn't even thought about prior to this class, presentation.

I hope to take what I have put together this month and expand on my current business plan to create something that showcases the feeling and direction of the actual company. A document that will interest people to take a look and read over, rather than the plain word document I currently have.

Dissecting the Teachings of Frank Foire and Mark Cuban

BUSINESS PLANS (image from 348_business_plan_cartoon.jpg)                                                        

As Karen Klein states, in her Bloomberg Businessweek write up Building a Better Business Plan, "A business plan serves two purposes: It's an organizing tool... And it's also a document that sells your business idea" (K. Klein).

Klein touches on the two very important points, the first is the most clear to anyone sitting down to make a business plan, and that is you need a plan.  The BP acts as a fail safe guide to show you where you are at with your current idea, how well it will stand up in the industry, and what you need to work on to make it successful from day one.  The other key point that is sometimes lost while drafting the BP, is that after completed, it is a great way to sell your company and yourself to investors or potential strategic partners. To get a better idea of what we can gain from a great BP we turn to two industry experts to hear what they have to offer op on the subject!

Image source: http://www.frankfiore.com/

Frank Foire is a "best selling author" for his work in non-fiction prints which include the book Write A Business Plan In No Time. "He has a B.A. in Liberal Arts and General Systems Theory from Stockton State College and a Masters Degree in Education at the University of Phoenix." (http://www.frankfiore.com/)

"A business plan also acts as a dry run for your business even before it starts. It's actually a written description of your business' future."             - Foire

What Foire is stating here, is that a well thought out and honest BP can show a potential business owner how well they are doing in preparing for the launch of their business, as well as what areas they need to focus on before seriously considering moving forward.  As we worked on our business plans for class this week, there where a number of areas that I realized I had taken little to no time to consider and that launch was quite a bit farther off than previously assumed.  Although this is technically considered a set back, it is much better to be honest with yourself prior to starting the business than the jump in and realize you need to work out a few kinks.

Image source: mark-cuban.jpg

Mark Cuban is a self made billionaire from Pittsburgh, PA and is widely known as the owner of not only the NBA team, the Dallas Mavericks, but also Landmark Theatres and Magnolia Pictures.  He also appears as a "Shark" or investor on the ABC television series "Shark Tank"

Even with all these major accomplishments, rather than sit back and let his fortune mass up, Mark has developed his own version of a Stimulus Plan which directly relates to the creation and distribution of business plans.

"Rather than trying to be a Venture Capitalist, I was looking for an idea that hopefully could inspire people to create businesses that could quickly become self funding." - Cuban

Essentially Cuban was offering his personal Blog "Blog Maverick" as a place where potential business owners could share their ideas with him in hopes of having him invest in their companies. The only catch that comes along with posting your business plan on an investors site is that now it is out in the public for anyone to try to emulate.  This however may have been exactly what Cuban was looking for, yes there is a moral grey area about actively pursuing someone else's idea, however this gives the public that subscribes to Cuban's Blog endless ideas to not only make a life for themselves, but also to boost the economy.

The base of this idea is a well made, well delivered business plan that not only shows a clear outline of how the business is too be run, but also a creative and engaging portrayal of the direction the presenter hopes to go as well as how successful the company potentially can be.

After reading what these successful experts had to say about the importance of a well thought out and honest business plan, it has really changed my out look on my own plan and lead me to address potential flaws within it.  Although it is important to be confident in the success of the business, it is also important to understand just how much of a chance you stand regardless of how confident you are.

I hope this has helped you to consider going back, dusting off that old business plan, and giving it another look!

Dave Melillo's MixTape is HERE!

The much awaited release from Dave Melillo is only hours away from releasing for free all around the web. This new style release, the "Thinking of You" MixTape is fully free and meant to showcase teh versatility and stylized abilities of Dave.  Although mainly a love song based release, there is much more than simple guitars and four by four beats driving this as Dave shows growth from start to finish not just as an album but on a song by song basis.

Pulling a lot of the MixTape together during the creation and release of his recent EP "Future Focused" there is a simple flow to the complex dynamics featured one each and every track.  While not featuring any of his more RnB // POP style tracks, Dave is looking for a shift in his music career and hopes by focusing his efforts on high profile remixes of the new songs will help his current fans grow and transition with him as he makes the jump from Acoustic Singer/Song Writer to a more POP focused individual.  With projects such as Cute Is What We Aim For and Nocturnal Me Dave has a strong "Indie" following that he doesn't want to lose or upset during the transition.  This is where the MixTape really bridges the gap, even though there are some songs that may not fit into his typical style, they still have the same voice and drive behind them.  As remixes are created and passed around, Dave's current fan base can slowly develop a new idea of his potential and feel like they have been with him from the beginning.  Just in business, it is easier to keep a existing client than to find a new one.

It will be interesting to see how the release goes over, as a personal project of mine I will be focusing on keeping Dave' old contacts up to date with everything while maintaining a constant effort to find and push the MixTape to new demographics.

A New Revenue "Stream"

With the economy in the state that it is, fewer people are as loose with their money when it comes to entertainment as they used to be.  Not only that, but the decline in album sales in the past years and the trend in the youth pirating the music they do download, it is often hard for new artists to make ends meet.  A lot of bands have realized the old model of doing things just simply doesn't exist on a small level anymore, you can not support yourself of music sales and need to find other ways to make money.  Thanks to the Internet, there are a lot of ways for artist to share their music and promote shows, allowing them to reach more people and get "bigger faster."  However with the majority of their income coming from concerts and tours, where do they make money while in the studio or writing or doing anything besides touring?

Well a few artists have found a very interesting way to "Stream" their revenue in the downtime.  Online "Streaming" is becoming more and more popular in all fields of entertainment from music to video games.  With multiple site options available virtually anything is available for view. Dave Melillo >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
is one such artist utilizing online streaming. He does a show every monday called Melillo Monday's during the time he asks from requests from viewers, answers questions and more or less provides his community with a "live vlog" experience. Streams provide the artist with the ability to manually run ads or have the run at certain times, the amount of viewers as well as clicks on the ads that run are what makes up the income for the artist.  Depending on the amount of viewers this income can really start to add up.  There are also options to "donate" to the streamer as well as the priceless ability to plug new shows/merch and releases.  This one week show is just one way artists are making money with streaming, some bands could do studio/rehearsal streams or even concert streams,  not unlike the Ben Folds ChatRoulette Concerts. Some streamers like Steven "Destiny" Bonnell II, a professional video game player, make the majority of their income from money made streaming.  I hope we see a surge in the music industry a few months down the road as streaming begins to catch on, this is an amazing way to connect with fans while earning a little extra income.

Gold Coast Music Group and Renee Yohe!

As Gold Coast Music Group pushes forward looking to make a name for them in this industry it was apparent that focusing on small acts would only help get their name so far.  By taking the time to consider their strengths as a publicity firm and evaluate potential cliental they were able to secure new campaigns that, with the pull of the clients, will hopefully push them into that next level and help not only bring in more business, but validate them within the industry.  In the next two blog posts I will be talking about two up and coming opportunities, how they came about, and GCMG’s plans for the publicity campaigns. First we will look at the new project from “To Write Love On Her Arm’s” inspiration “Renee Yohe.”

Renee is known for her books as well as being the driving force behind a teen help program “To Write Love On Her Arms,” which is set up as a support program for troubled teens dealing with drug/alcohol abuse and suicide.  Renee is now finishing a full-length project that blends pop style vocals with folk driven rock.  The band is currently in the end stages of the project and hopes to be releasing with in the year. 

Sean from GCMG is actually very involved with the project as he not only writes for the band, but also plays guitar in the band currently.  This is the main reason for GCMG being able to pick the project up.  With the press from TWLOHA as well as a movie based one Renee being released in the near future, securing features in online publications such as Pitchfork, Daytrotter, and PureVolume will be rather simplistic.  Besides this GCMG hopes to push the album through soundcloud and as many “free” online publications for the most cost effective press.

Once interest has been made and features secured the print publications will be alerted for not necessarily “release” date interviews and features.