"Let us distribute your track, so you don't have to deal with the administrative troubles. You retain all copy and distribution rights, and receive $0.20 for each sold track."
This company wants to give you .20 cents on each track sold.....
Are they freaking insane? That is over 80 percent of your profit.
The site is tracktesting.com. Stay away from them. Matter of fact, if you need distribution, you can go to www.watunes.com and get your music on itunes and the such for free.......or use CD Baby! A company that pays every week! not every 6 months but every week!
I had to post this cuz I could not believe these people actually think they are hooking you up by taking all your money! Watch these companies. They try to screw the little man!
Do research first!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Friday, June 12, 2009
Class Action Suit Against Snocap / iMeem for NOT Paying Out!
Sign up here to get your info to the lawyers.....
http://www.504productions.com/snocap_class_action/
I want to file a class action suit with any artists owed money by Snocap / iMeem. If you have placed a snocap store on your Myspace profile, had sales and have never been paid, plz contact me with your full name/ artist name and phone number. Send to tearsoftechnology@yahoo.com
Alone I may not be able to nail them, but having everyone on board who has been affected will get action.
Tired of companies that are established cannot manage their money so they refuse to pay out as they should and then the independent artist suffers from their mistakes. When it was the artists music sold by said company! Many companies are stealing from artists and bands and it needs to stop. In this day and age,we as artists and bands have the power to do it ourselves, and screw these companies.
They are getting rich off you and cant even pay you?
Plz repost to your musician friends who have had a Snocap store on their Myspace profile and have been ripped off.................
http://www.504productions.com/snocap_class_action/
I want to file a class action suit with any artists owed money by Snocap / iMeem. If you have placed a snocap store on your Myspace profile, had sales and have never been paid, plz contact me with your full name/ artist name and phone number. Send to tearsoftechnology@yahoo.com
Alone I may not be able to nail them, but having everyone on board who has been affected will get action.
Tired of companies that are established cannot manage their money so they refuse to pay out as they should and then the independent artist suffers from their mistakes. When it was the artists music sold by said company! Many companies are stealing from artists and bands and it needs to stop. In this day and age,we as artists and bands have the power to do it ourselves, and screw these companies.
They are getting rich off you and cant even pay you?
Plz repost to your musician friends who have had a Snocap store on their Myspace profile and have been ripped off.................
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Free Digital Distribution?
WaTunes, a service that helps independent artists get their music into online music stores like iTunes and Amazon, has announced that it is making its service entirely free. The move is a direct attack on competitors like TuneCore, which also helps independent artists distribute their music but charges fees depending on the number of songs being sold and the number of stores the artist would like to sell their tracks on.
In the company’s blog post on the new pricing scheme (or lack thereof) CEO Kevin Rivers writes:
So now that the company is giving up its entire source of revenue, how is it planning to make money? I spoke with CEO Kevin Rivers, who explains that the site is moving towards launching a music-based social network with rich music widgets and a community of fans and artists (it sounds like it will compete against sites like MySpace Music). Users will also be able to buy songs through an online storefront, with advertising as the primary source of revenue. The move to make WaTune’s distribution service free is designed to attract a variety of independent artists to the music social network, which he says will launch around June.
While this seems like a great deal for artists, it also sounds a little too good to be true. There are already many online music communities, and even if WaTunes does begin to distribute music for a large number of artists, I still don’t see how they’ll be able to convert them into new users on their music portal. That said, free is free, so I doubt WaTunes will have any trouble attracting new artists for the time being.
In the company’s blog post on the new pricing scheme (or lack thereof) CEO Kevin Rivers writes:
We’ve went from being free to be charged, to giving 90% of sales, to giving back
all the sales earnings. We’ve finally can say that we have raise the bar even
higher by providing you guys an ABSOLUTE digital distribution service. As of
now, WaTunes will enable it’s customers to continue to sell unlimited music,
earn 100% of the royalties, and more, ALL FOR FREE! There are no fees,
cancellations, no gimmicks.
So now that the company is giving up its entire source of revenue, how is it planning to make money? I spoke with CEO Kevin Rivers, who explains that the site is moving towards launching a music-based social network with rich music widgets and a community of fans and artists (it sounds like it will compete against sites like MySpace Music). Users will also be able to buy songs through an online storefront, with advertising as the primary source of revenue. The move to make WaTune’s distribution service free is designed to attract a variety of independent artists to the music social network, which he says will launch around June.
While this seems like a great deal for artists, it also sounds a little too good to be true. There are already many online music communities, and even if WaTunes does begin to distribute music for a large number of artists, I still don’t see how they’ll be able to convert them into new users on their music portal. That said, free is free, so I doubt WaTunes will have any trouble attracting new artists for the time being.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Surprise! Study Shows Few Indies on Radio
Artist advocacy group The Future Of Music Coalition has released a new report “Same Old Song" confirming that indie music is not getting its fair share of airplay on broadcast radio.In April 2007, the FCC found widespread payola and ordered the four largest U.S. radio groups (Clear Channel, CBS, Citadel and Entercom) to pay $12.5 million in fines and work with the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) to draft 8 “Rules of Engagement" and an “indie set-aside" including 4,200 hours of unsigned and indie label music.
But FMC's new survey of Mediaguide airplay data shows little has changed in the 2 years since the FCC decree. Indie music did make slight gains at AAA Non-comm. and Country radio. But at all 5 other dominant radio formats (AC, Urban AC, Active Rock, CHR Pop, and Triple A Comm.) the share of indie music played remained stagnant at 78-82% despite ndies comprising 30-40% of the marketplace.
Not surprisingly, the FMC also found that there were very few slots for any new music .There too, new major label songs typically receive more spins than indies. Finally, FMC looked at the indie labels...
themselves and found that only a handful of indies have the resources and clout to garner airplay consistently. For the remaining indies, airplay is infrequent and modest, if it happens at all.
“As this report dramatically shows, we are still haunted by the ghost of payola, whether real or imagined." commented Peter Gordon of Thirsty Ear Records and indie music's lead negotiator with radio.
Rich Bengloff, President of A2IM adds, “Independent music accounts for approximately 38% of digital sales in the U.S. and over 40% of audience impressions at internet radio ,but consistently receives only slightly more than 10% of traditional commercial radio airplay. It's obvious that music fans want independent music, and commercial radio programmers continue to ignore that demand at their own peril."
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Wax on the Come Back? Best Buy is Giving Vinyl a Spin?
The consumer-electronics giant, which happens also to be the third-largest music seller behind Apple's iTunes and Wal-Mart, is considering devoting eight square feet of merchandising space in all of its 1,020 stores solely to vinyl, which would equate to just under 200 albums, after a test in 100 of its stores around the country proved successful.
Though vinyl represents less than 5 percent of Best Buy's music sales, the format is growing while CD sales continue to shrink.
Vinyl sales grew 15 percent year-over-year in 2007 and 89 percent in 2008, making the 1.9 million vinyl albums purchased last year the most since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. This year is shaping up to be even better, with 670,000 vinyl albums sold through mid-April.
By contrast, CD sales have fallen at a roughly 20 percent clip for the past few years.
To be sure, the growth in vinyl, even when combined with digital sales, isn't enough to offset the decline in CD sales. But it does show that consumers haven't abandoned the physical format.
And the fact that a retailer of Best Buy's size is willing to expand vinyl offerings is an incremental positive for the beleaguered music industry. A typical Best Buy store features about 16 square feet to 20 square feet of music merchandise and displays about 8,000 CDs.
"Our goal is to occupy as much square footage as possible with music products," said Atlantic Records CEO Craig Kallman, whose personal vinyl collection numbers more than 300,000, making it one of the largest private collections in the world.
Hoping to capitalize on the renewed interest in vinyl, all of the major record labels have combed through their catalogs to remaster and re-release marquee titles with their original artwork and packaging -- both of which are essential elements for the vinyl consumer.
For instance, EMI in September 2008 launched its "From the Capitol Vaults" vinyl initiative with such titles as The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds," Jimi Hendrix's "Band of Gypsies," and Radiohead's "OK Computer."
Compared with a CD, vinyl costs more to make and retails for a higher price -- $22.95 vs. around $13.99 for a CD -- but has lower margins.
Both Kallman and Jason Boyd, EMI's senior director of catalog sales, said profits made from vinyl were acceptable enough to warrant producing the format.
The situation is the reverse for Best Buy. Chris Smith, the company's senior music merchant, said margins on vinyl sales are "healthy enough" to mitigate the risk that comes along with not being able to return unsold inventory like it can with CDs.
Though vinyl represents less than 5 percent of Best Buy's music sales, the format is growing while CD sales continue to shrink.
Vinyl sales grew 15 percent year-over-year in 2007 and 89 percent in 2008, making the 1.9 million vinyl albums purchased last year the most since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991. This year is shaping up to be even better, with 670,000 vinyl albums sold through mid-April.
By contrast, CD sales have fallen at a roughly 20 percent clip for the past few years.
To be sure, the growth in vinyl, even when combined with digital sales, isn't enough to offset the decline in CD sales. But it does show that consumers haven't abandoned the physical format.
And the fact that a retailer of Best Buy's size is willing to expand vinyl offerings is an incremental positive for the beleaguered music industry. A typical Best Buy store features about 16 square feet to 20 square feet of music merchandise and displays about 8,000 CDs.
"Our goal is to occupy as much square footage as possible with music products," said Atlantic Records CEO Craig Kallman, whose personal vinyl collection numbers more than 300,000, making it one of the largest private collections in the world.
Hoping to capitalize on the renewed interest in vinyl, all of the major record labels have combed through their catalogs to remaster and re-release marquee titles with their original artwork and packaging -- both of which are essential elements for the vinyl consumer.
For instance, EMI in September 2008 launched its "From the Capitol Vaults" vinyl initiative with such titles as The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds," Jimi Hendrix's "Band of Gypsies," and Radiohead's "OK Computer."
Compared with a CD, vinyl costs more to make and retails for a higher price -- $22.95 vs. around $13.99 for a CD -- but has lower margins.
Both Kallman and Jason Boyd, EMI's senior director of catalog sales, said profits made from vinyl were acceptable enough to warrant producing the format.
The situation is the reverse for Best Buy. Chris Smith, the company's senior music merchant, said margins on vinyl sales are "healthy enough" to mitigate the risk that comes along with not being able to return unsold inventory like it can with CDs.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
French Lawmakers Reject Internet Piracy Bill
French legislators on Thursday rejected legislation to permit cutting off the Internet connections of people who illegally download music and films. But a stubborn government plans to resurrect the bill for another vote this month.
Backers of the bill -- record labels, film companies and law-and-order parliamentarians -- couldn't rally the needed support during in a near empty lower chamber ahead of the Easter holiday. Lawmakers voted 21 to 15 against it.
The measure would have created a government agency to track and punish those who pirate music and film on the Internet. Analysts said the law would have helped boost ever-shrinking profits in the entertainment industry, which has struggled with the advent of online file-sharing that lets people swap music files without paying.
The government, intent on gaining the upper hand in piracy, managed to slip the measure into an April 28 special session devoted to initiatives by President Nicolas Sarkozy's conservative UMP party.
The president's office reaffirmed Sarkozy's wish to get the law passed "as quickly as possible."
He "does not plan to renounce this whatever the maneuvers" to try to stop the bill's passage, a statement said.
Music labels, film distributors and artists -- who have seen CD and DVD sales in France plummet 60 percent in the past six years -- almost universally supported the measure, hailing it as a decisive step toward eliminating online piracy and an example to other governments. Artists' groups in France have said the future of the country's music and film industries depends on cracking down on illegal downloads, and the legislation received industry support from around the world.
"It is disappointing that the law was not confirmed today," said London-based John Kennedy, Chairman and CEO of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which represents the recording industry worldwide and supported the bill.
Legislators and activists who opposed the legislation said it would represent a Big Brother intrusion on civil liberties -- they called it "liberticide" -- while the European Parliament last month adopted a nonbinding resolution that defines Internet access as an untouchable "fundamental freedom."
Opponents also pointed out that users downloading from public WiFi hotspots or using masked IP addresses might be impossible to trace. Others called its proposed monitoring structures unrealistic.
"It is a bad response to a false problem," said Jeremie Zimmerman, coordinator of the Quadrature du Net, a Paris-based Internet activist group that opposed the bill, calling it "completely impossible to apply."
He said the bill's rejection is proof of a widespread sense that it was a draconian approach.
Under the legislation, users would receive e-mail warnings for their first two identified offenses, a certified letter for the next, and would have their Web connection severed, for as long as one year, for any subsequent illegal downloads.
French Culture Minister Christine Albanel had said the bill did not aim to "completely eradicate" illegal downloads but rather to "contribute to a raising of consciousness" among offenders.
"There needs to be an experiment," said Pierre-Yves Gautier, an Internet law expert at the University of Paris, noting the plummeting profits of the entertainment industry. "Frankly, it's worth it."
Backers of the bill -- record labels, film companies and law-and-order parliamentarians -- couldn't rally the needed support during in a near empty lower chamber ahead of the Easter holiday. Lawmakers voted 21 to 15 against it.
The measure would have created a government agency to track and punish those who pirate music and film on the Internet. Analysts said the law would have helped boost ever-shrinking profits in the entertainment industry, which has struggled with the advent of online file-sharing that lets people swap music files without paying.
The government, intent on gaining the upper hand in piracy, managed to slip the measure into an April 28 special session devoted to initiatives by President Nicolas Sarkozy's conservative UMP party.
The president's office reaffirmed Sarkozy's wish to get the law passed "as quickly as possible."
He "does not plan to renounce this whatever the maneuvers" to try to stop the bill's passage, a statement said.
Music labels, film distributors and artists -- who have seen CD and DVD sales in France plummet 60 percent in the past six years -- almost universally supported the measure, hailing it as a decisive step toward eliminating online piracy and an example to other governments. Artists' groups in France have said the future of the country's music and film industries depends on cracking down on illegal downloads, and the legislation received industry support from around the world.
"It is disappointing that the law was not confirmed today," said London-based John Kennedy, Chairman and CEO of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which represents the recording industry worldwide and supported the bill.
Legislators and activists who opposed the legislation said it would represent a Big Brother intrusion on civil liberties -- they called it "liberticide" -- while the European Parliament last month adopted a nonbinding resolution that defines Internet access as an untouchable "fundamental freedom."
Opponents also pointed out that users downloading from public WiFi hotspots or using masked IP addresses might be impossible to trace. Others called its proposed monitoring structures unrealistic.
"It is a bad response to a false problem," said Jeremie Zimmerman, coordinator of the Quadrature du Net, a Paris-based Internet activist group that opposed the bill, calling it "completely impossible to apply."
He said the bill's rejection is proof of a widespread sense that it was a draconian approach.
Under the legislation, users would receive e-mail warnings for their first two identified offenses, a certified letter for the next, and would have their Web connection severed, for as long as one year, for any subsequent illegal downloads.
French Culture Minister Christine Albanel had said the bill did not aim to "completely eradicate" illegal downloads but rather to "contribute to a raising of consciousness" among offenders.
"There needs to be an experiment," said Pierre-Yves Gautier, an Internet law expert at the University of Paris, noting the plummeting profits of the entertainment industry. "Frankly, it's worth it."
Monday, March 16, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Sell It Yourself.....
The system is bullshit that you only make about 77,000 dollars from sales topping 2 million.....let's say each copy was sold for 15 bucks each. At 2 million copies, that is 30 million dollars. And she only sees 77 grand? She is right, someone is getting rich off those sales and it sure as hell aint the one who wrote the material.
Lily Allen Angry for Not Earning Enough Money From Album Sales
Lily Allen is unhappy when finding out that she has earned only 50,000 pounds from her debut album "Alright, Still" despite its impressive selling point, which reached almost two million copies worldwide. "I don't make any money out of record sales at all. I make money out of touring and syncs, publishing," she says during an interview in Q Radio.
"My songs being put on 'Grey's Anatomy' things like that," Lily reveals further. "I don't make any money at all from selling an album, which is probably why I feel so angry about doing all this promotion because I am not earning any money out of it, someone else (is) and they don't have to live with the lasting effects."
In related news, Lily Allen has hinted to make a live appearance at this year's Glastonbury Festival during an interview with Absolute Radio Hometime DJ Geoff Lloyd. "I will be playing lots of festival this year. I'm not allowed to say which. But yes, one begins with a G," she states.
Lily's second studio album "It's Not Me, It's You" meanwhile is due to hit the U.K. market on February 9. Its sounds will reportedly range from jazz, country to dance music.
Lily Allen Angry for Not Earning Enough Money From Album Sales
Lily Allen is unhappy when finding out that she has earned only 50,000 pounds from her debut album "Alright, Still" despite its impressive selling point, which reached almost two million copies worldwide. "I don't make any money out of record sales at all. I make money out of touring and syncs, publishing," she says during an interview in Q Radio.
"My songs being put on 'Grey's Anatomy' things like that," Lily reveals further. "I don't make any money at all from selling an album, which is probably why I feel so angry about doing all this promotion because I am not earning any money out of it, someone else (is) and they don't have to live with the lasting effects."
In related news, Lily Allen has hinted to make a live appearance at this year's Glastonbury Festival during an interview with Absolute Radio Hometime DJ Geoff Lloyd. "I will be playing lots of festival this year. I'm not allowed to say which. But yes, one begins with a G," she states.
Lily's second studio album "It's Not Me, It's You" meanwhile is due to hit the U.K. market on February 9. Its sounds will reportedly range from jazz, country to dance music.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Image Line Software Releases Sawer
The synth is available at a reduced price until the end of March 2009
Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium, March 3, 2009 -- Image Line Software, the developer of FL Studio, has released Sawer, its latest synthesizer plugin. Sawer is a powerful vintage modeling synthesizer that cuts through the mix with precise articulation and a punchy sound.
Sawer’s filters have been modeled on the rare 1980s ‘Soviet era’ analog synthesizer, Polivoks. Meticulous attention has been paid to Sawer's filter and envelope design, ensuring a unique sonic character, reminiscent of the Polivoks hardware.
Just as the random variability of electrical components makes analog hardware unique, Sawer’s oscillator design has also been touched by the magic of chance:
”While programming the SAW oscillator, I accidentally set some incorrect variables and immediately the sound gained bass, acquired some light but pleasing noise on the attack and an overall richer sonic spectra. Immediately I realized this was no mistake but a discovery and built on this sound, adding some frequency modulation to give it a touch of analog authenticity and so 'Sawer' was born“, explains Maxx Claster, Sawer's chief developer at Image Line Software.
As modulation is critical for achieving authentic analog sounds, Sawer has flexible modulation routing. An Envelope and LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) source can be used to control a large number of destination controls. Further, the MIDI Modulation Matrix provides the ability to route MIDI controllers to most targets in Sawer.
Finally, Sawer includes CHORUS, PHASER, DELAY and REVERB effects for an overall impressive and polished sound.
Key features of Sawer:
System Requirements:
With a 10% Off Discount, FREE Lifetime Updates and Access to Gigs of FREE Samples, You Get One of the Biggest Music BANGS for Your Buck!
Make Your Own Beats & Music in Your Own Studio
Add to this our 'Lifetime Free Downloadable Updates' Guarantee, and you have no reason not to add FL Studio to your standard gear!
There is plenty FL Studio Video Tutorials on their site for registered users...
Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium, March 3, 2009 -- Image Line Software, the developer of FL Studio, has released Sawer, its latest synthesizer plugin. Sawer is a powerful vintage modeling synthesizer that cuts through the mix with precise articulation and a punchy sound.
Sawer’s filters have been modeled on the rare 1980s ‘Soviet era’ analog synthesizer, Polivoks. Meticulous attention has been paid to Sawer's filter and envelope design, ensuring a unique sonic character, reminiscent of the Polivoks hardware.
Just as the random variability of electrical components makes analog hardware unique, Sawer’s oscillator design has also been touched by the magic of chance:
”While programming the SAW oscillator, I accidentally set some incorrect variables and immediately the sound gained bass, acquired some light but pleasing noise on the attack and an overall richer sonic spectra. Immediately I realized this was no mistake but a discovery and built on this sound, adding some frequency modulation to give it a touch of analog authenticity and so 'Sawer' was born“, explains Maxx Claster, Sawer's chief developer at Image Line Software.
As modulation is critical for achieving authentic analog sounds, Sawer has flexible modulation routing. An Envelope and LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) source can be used to control a large number of destination controls. Further, the MIDI Modulation Matrix provides the ability to route MIDI controllers to most targets in Sawer.
Finally, Sawer includes CHORUS, PHASER, DELAY and REVERB effects for an overall impressive and polished sound.
Key features of Sawer:
- Main oscillator for subtractive synthesis: SAW shape with Sync frequency.
- Sub oscillator (-2 to +2 octaves) with level, phase & detune controls.
- 1 NOISE Oscillator.
- Variable polyphony (1 to 24 voices).
- 8 voice UNISON with user-adjustable stereo panning, detune and ‘Octaver’.
- SYNC & RING frequency modulation.
- 2 ADSR envelope generators (one user-assignable to modulation parameters).
- 4 FILTER modes - low pass (24 & 12 dB/Oct), band pass and high pass.
- Chorus, Phaser, Delay & Reverb effects.
- Muti-mode Arpeggiator.
System Requirements:
- Operating System: Windows XP, Vista/ Mac
- Processor: Minimum 2GHz AMD or Intel Pentium III compatible with full SSE support or G4 PowerPC (Mac) with full Altivec support
- RAM: 512 MB
- Hard disk space: 130 MB
With a 10% Off Discount, FREE Lifetime Updates and Access to Gigs of FREE Samples, You Get One of the Biggest Music BANGS for Your Buck!
Add to this our 'Lifetime Free Downloadable Updates' Guarantee, and you have no reason not to add FL Studio to your standard gear!
There is plenty FL Studio Video Tutorials on their site for registered users...
Thursday, February 26, 2009
A Recession Is Great For Freelance Work
Now would be a good time to concentrate on making money with your talents, not skills. Get out and talk to people and offer your services. Advertise your services.
Always thought about freelance work but have not found the right time? Well, if we are faced with a recession, experience shows that a recession can be a good time to be a freelancer.
Many larger companies and organizations lay off full-time employees and contract the work out to freelance professionals. It's cheaper for the some companies because they don't have to pay related benefits or long-term employment issues.
How do you get started? You don't need to even quit your full-time job. Becoming a part-time freelance professional has never been easier. Then, if you decide you have enough work and want to switch to full-time later...you can. Some people just stay part-time and enjoy the extra income.
In order to get started, the first step is finding a good freelance community and search for work that may be of interest to you. There are many different freelance communities with thousands of different jobs available. You will just have to find the one that fits your interests and goals.
Once you have found work that you are interested in, you will either apply or bid on the available work. You may not be chosen for every assignment, but with so many available, you are certain to find just the right work for you.
Then you work with employers, complete your assignments, and receive payment.
As you complete more and more work, you will earn a reputation as a freelance professional...so if a recession hits, they will pick you as their worker of choice.
Always thought about freelance work but have not found the right time? Well, if we are faced with a recession, experience shows that a recession can be a good time to be a freelancer.
Many larger companies and organizations lay off full-time employees and contract the work out to freelance professionals. It's cheaper for the some companies because they don't have to pay related benefits or long-term employment issues.
How do you get started? You don't need to even quit your full-time job. Becoming a part-time freelance professional has never been easier. Then, if you decide you have enough work and want to switch to full-time later...you can. Some people just stay part-time and enjoy the extra income.
In order to get started, the first step is finding a good freelance community and search for work that may be of interest to you. There are many different freelance communities with thousands of different jobs available. You will just have to find the one that fits your interests and goals.
Once you have found work that you are interested in, you will either apply or bid on the available work. You may not be chosen for every assignment, but with so many available, you are certain to find just the right work for you.
Then you work with employers, complete your assignments, and receive payment.
As you complete more and more work, you will earn a reputation as a freelance professional...so if a recession hits, they will pick you as their worker of choice.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Making the Most Out of Online Resources
Written by Daylle Deanna Schwartz
Author of "Start & Run Your Own Record Label" and "I Don’t Need a Record Deal!"
© 2009 All Rights Reserved. Used By Permission
Indie artists often complain about not having the budget they’d like to market and promote their music. Nowadays, digital marketing offers a plethora of opportunities for marketing yourself and your music that doesn’t cost anything in dollars. But, it can be hard to know where to begin—and end. While much of it is good for those of you with small to no money budgets, there’s still a big expense for taking advantage of so many opportunities—TIME.
The good AND the bad news: the cost to break an independent act can be more in time than in dollars. It’s great to have free tools! But you could spend all of your waking hours going onto all the different social networking sites and other avenues of promotion and still not make a dent. With all the artists and labels vying for online attention, you must work to make your music stand out.
It’s important to brand your name online. The more people see it, the more curiosity can be generated, which leads to potential fans or clients checking you out. The more you respond to fans who write to you, the more loyal fans you’ll have. But so much of the efforts to find fans is one by one, which accounts for a lot of the time you need to put into it.
It’s not enough to just register on all the websites. While there’s unlimited space for everyone online, you can get lost in it all and not make any constructive progress. I know. I’m always getting links to sites I “should check out.” People email me both to my server and on the social networking sites. It gets overwhelming. Another day ends and I haven’t done any writing. So I must get tough with myself in order to function.
Time isn’t FREE when it costs you your sleep, your personal life and even your sanity. But you can take control of online activities to make the most of the best opportunities. Here are so DOs and DON’Ts for getting the most out of your online resources.
DON’T jump around to everything that seems interesting or the new flavor of the month.
DO force yourself to stay on track. Put aside things you want to check out for when you have some time or accept you can’t look over everything. Learn the benefits of hitting DELETE.
DON’T immediately answer emails when they come in or click when you get a link.
DO: Prioritize what most needs to be done at this point. I have a NEED TO ANSWER folder and put personal emails and those asking questions into it. Have a block of time set aside when all you do is answer emails. When time is up, leave the rest for the next block!
DON’T jump from one site to another and register with every one you can.
DO plan your direction carefully and prioritize your needs to work them properly. Social networking sites allow musicians to seek fans out and interact with them. But working one or two hard is strongly advised as opposed to doing a little bit on many. If you have too many, you don’t work anything well and you can spread yourself too thin. Decide which sites are best for you and concentrate your energy to build up relationships with fans on them.
DON’T try to do everything yourself. DO mobilize fans to help. Get volunteers to assist you in following up with online activities. Ask them to tell other musicians on the site about you, use your music as their default on their MySpace page and drive potential fans to your sites. If you have a budget, hire an online marketing specialist to direct your efforts and do some of the legwork.
DON’T register with any social networking site that you’re not prepared to follow up with.
DO answer every email and make your presence known. Respond to comments. Nowadays, when people hear an artist they like or see you perform, they’ll leave a comment on your MySpace page. It’s important to respond. Musicians who keep in touch with their fans religiously build the strongest communities and get the most support.
DON’T focus just on MySpace and Facebook.
DO diversify. While pure social networking sites are great to exploit, get your music in places where people can find it. Do as many things as you can that don’t require constant attention that give your music potential exposure. Create iMixes up in the iTunes music store. Get your music into streaming radio sites, such as Last.fm, Pandora, Launch, iLike, etc. Send it to MP3 bloggers who review your genre of music. Post videos on YouTube. And get yourself on wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. These efforts often just require doing something once and can drive people to find your music.
DON’T think that selling and promoting your music online is all you need.
DO everything you can in real life too. Touring is still important for creating a strong connection with fans. People do live a good part of their lives off the computer so follow traditional promotion routes too.
DON’T put all your energy into inviting people you don’t know to be your friend or worry about having big numbers of them.
DO be more concerned with connecting to real fans. Successful artists say they don’t worry about how many friends they have on MySpace. What’s important is that they’re real fans who care about reading bulletin posts and getting invitations to your gigs. Of course you can invite people to be your friend if you want to know them. But do that with an email to introduce yourself so they know who you are and why you’re requesting them as a friend. Just inviting for the sake of upping your numbers is a waste of time these days. I don’t have thousands of friends on MySpace but every one of them came to me. I like that better! www.myspace.com/Daylle
Before you begin, make sure you’re ready to commit the time. Even with limits, you’ll spend hours a day keeping up. Find sites that are the likeliest to reach your audience and work them with a vengeance. Take advantage of every function they offer. Join relevant communities. Interact on them as much as you can so people get to know you. Eventually some will come to your page and hear your music.
Being online can be a full time job and you might only have a limited amount of time to devote. ReverbNation www.reverbnation.com has many helpful tools that can save you a lot of time and maximize your online reach. Some people hire a promoter to do it for them. If you don’t have a budget, I highly advise that you put aside time every day to work this new model for marketing and promoting music online, with a real plan.
Author of "Start & Run Your Own Record Label" and "I Don’t Need a Record Deal!"
© 2009 All Rights Reserved. Used By Permission
Indie artists often complain about not having the budget they’d like to market and promote their music. Nowadays, digital marketing offers a plethora of opportunities for marketing yourself and your music that doesn’t cost anything in dollars. But, it can be hard to know where to begin—and end. While much of it is good for those of you with small to no money budgets, there’s still a big expense for taking advantage of so many opportunities—TIME.
The good AND the bad news: the cost to break an independent act can be more in time than in dollars. It’s great to have free tools! But you could spend all of your waking hours going onto all the different social networking sites and other avenues of promotion and still not make a dent. With all the artists and labels vying for online attention, you must work to make your music stand out.
It’s important to brand your name online. The more people see it, the more curiosity can be generated, which leads to potential fans or clients checking you out. The more you respond to fans who write to you, the more loyal fans you’ll have. But so much of the efforts to find fans is one by one, which accounts for a lot of the time you need to put into it.
It’s not enough to just register on all the websites. While there’s unlimited space for everyone online, you can get lost in it all and not make any constructive progress. I know. I’m always getting links to sites I “should check out.” People email me both to my server and on the social networking sites. It gets overwhelming. Another day ends and I haven’t done any writing. So I must get tough with myself in order to function.
Time isn’t FREE when it costs you your sleep, your personal life and even your sanity. But you can take control of online activities to make the most of the best opportunities. Here are so DOs and DON’Ts for getting the most out of your online resources.
DON’T jump around to everything that seems interesting or the new flavor of the month.
DO force yourself to stay on track. Put aside things you want to check out for when you have some time or accept you can’t look over everything. Learn the benefits of hitting DELETE.
DON’T immediately answer emails when they come in or click when you get a link.
DO: Prioritize what most needs to be done at this point. I have a NEED TO ANSWER folder and put personal emails and those asking questions into it. Have a block of time set aside when all you do is answer emails. When time is up, leave the rest for the next block!
DON’T jump from one site to another and register with every one you can.
DO plan your direction carefully and prioritize your needs to work them properly. Social networking sites allow musicians to seek fans out and interact with them. But working one or two hard is strongly advised as opposed to doing a little bit on many. If you have too many, you don’t work anything well and you can spread yourself too thin. Decide which sites are best for you and concentrate your energy to build up relationships with fans on them.
DON’T try to do everything yourself. DO mobilize fans to help. Get volunteers to assist you in following up with online activities. Ask them to tell other musicians on the site about you, use your music as their default on their MySpace page and drive potential fans to your sites. If you have a budget, hire an online marketing specialist to direct your efforts and do some of the legwork.
DON’T register with any social networking site that you’re not prepared to follow up with.
DO answer every email and make your presence known. Respond to comments. Nowadays, when people hear an artist they like or see you perform, they’ll leave a comment on your MySpace page. It’s important to respond. Musicians who keep in touch with their fans religiously build the strongest communities and get the most support.
DON’T focus just on MySpace and Facebook.
DO diversify. While pure social networking sites are great to exploit, get your music in places where people can find it. Do as many things as you can that don’t require constant attention that give your music potential exposure. Create iMixes up in the iTunes music store. Get your music into streaming radio sites, such as Last.fm, Pandora, Launch, iLike, etc. Send it to MP3 bloggers who review your genre of music. Post videos on YouTube. And get yourself on wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. These efforts often just require doing something once and can drive people to find your music.
DON’T think that selling and promoting your music online is all you need.
DO everything you can in real life too. Touring is still important for creating a strong connection with fans. People do live a good part of their lives off the computer so follow traditional promotion routes too.
DON’T put all your energy into inviting people you don’t know to be your friend or worry about having big numbers of them.
DO be more concerned with connecting to real fans. Successful artists say they don’t worry about how many friends they have on MySpace. What’s important is that they’re real fans who care about reading bulletin posts and getting invitations to your gigs. Of course you can invite people to be your friend if you want to know them. But do that with an email to introduce yourself so they know who you are and why you’re requesting them as a friend. Just inviting for the sake of upping your numbers is a waste of time these days. I don’t have thousands of friends on MySpace but every one of them came to me. I like that better! www.myspace.com/Daylle
Before you begin, make sure you’re ready to commit the time. Even with limits, you’ll spend hours a day keeping up. Find sites that are the likeliest to reach your audience and work them with a vengeance. Take advantage of every function they offer. Join relevant communities. Interact on them as much as you can so people get to know you. Eventually some will come to your page and hear your music.
Being online can be a full time job and you might only have a limited amount of time to devote. ReverbNation www.reverbnation.com has many helpful tools that can save you a lot of time and maximize your online reach. Some people hire a promoter to do it for them. If you don’t have a budget, I highly advise that you put aside time every day to work this new model for marketing and promoting music online, with a real plan.
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