TalkMusicBiz - The Endorsement Deal
This is how you can start your life as a business person in the new record business model. This is the endorsement deal.
Step 1: Talk music business:
How you doing? Welcome back to TalkMusicBiz. OK. Hang onto your hats, because I'm about to spin probably one of the most creative... I like to think so. I'm patting myself on the back, the kind of guy that I am. Whatever. A new approach to our industry. This is something that I know, you probably think, why would I divulge this now? It's because this isn't about me and coming up with something and trying to capitalize on it, as much as it is to put forward new possibilities. Whether I'm just now talking to some of the industry top administrators and professionals, there's no reason why I can't share it with you.
Step 2: Record deal Vs endorsement:
So here it is. A record deal versus an endorsement deal. This is something that I've been kind of working on paper, and I'm kind of executing for a couple of people at the moment. Just because I say it doesn't mean everybody can run out and do it, just because it takes some marketing concepts behind it.
Step 3: It's not simple:
But what it is I'm talking about is, a lot of us consider, and when we do what we do in this industry, or at least a lot of the younger artists. Even some artists who have been trying to do this for years, they talk about the record deal. It's ironic, because I was approached to run an independent label that actually had some decent money behind it, and I said, why are you going to open up a label? You're not watching my videos! Why are you going to open up a label? You need to consider blah blah blah blah.
Step 4: Getting subbed into labels:
So how this works is this. Though a record deal should still be part of the thinking in the approach of putting together a project, for somebody to invest. A lot of us out there are actually putting out complete projects. A CD typically contains 10 songs and a hard product. And what's happening is, people are getting record deals, but what's happening is they're getting subbed into labels. Since you've already put all the sweat equity into producing your CD, and some friends may have invested time and every and so on, whatever that deal is. Other labels will just bring it up, and utilizing their machine and promotions and marketing, break it out, and then they take a piece of it.
Step 5: Don't need a record company:
That also came from another discussion with somebody who said, I've already been doing this, and this company wants to sign me, but they want all of this. I said, why? You're already going on your own. You don't need the record company. They can't do anything that you can't do. And that was another subject, but let me get right back to it.
Step 6: The endorsement aspect:
The endorsement aspect, not the record deal. I say, here's what we're going to do. We're going to do the same things that we normally do. We're going to produce the music and shoot the videos, whatever they are, funcam videos, handcam videos, singing into a webcam video. Whatever the case is, now we're going to have, also, the band website. And trick it out, just like we should do.
Step 7: Utilising websites:
However, where I'm going with this, and how it was I positioned this, and a lot of these other labels are starting to go, huh? Is utilizing the website as a band channel, not a band website. And through the cooperative viral marketing plans that I implement on these companies, bringing thousands and thousands of people to interact with the band on their site, which brings stick equity, which means people actually go on the site and actually sit there and watch all your videos.
Step 8: Potential for advertisers:
That's a lot of equity that's being built up. That is a very big potential for advertisers to want to endorse the band. So right now, the CPM is about $20 per 1,000. It's a buzz term. I kind of think it's an imbalanced way of looking at things, but you know, all the marketing people, they do this CPM. About $20 per 1,000 people coming to your site. That's what a worth is. That's how you gauge the worth. So if you're getting thousands and thousands and thousands of people at your site, because you're streaming your web concerts, you are doing data mining with giving away a song for people signing up on your mailing list, you're doing contests and things to participate, to draw people back to your website to participate with voting this and doing that.
Step 9: Make a living:
All of a sudden, you as an artist or as a band are drawing heavy attention to a site, and the potential... I don't even care if you're in a town of 100,000 people. If your in a town of 100,000 people and you have enough attention to your site, there are potential people in your town that might give you $1000 a month, $1500 a month and upwards to do what? Advertise on your site. So it's a another way of looking at making a living with your music, draw them in with your music, participating with you and your music, communicating with you in your music, drawing them to your site, keeping them on your site. Bringing the value of you and your music up through people coming to your site draws the attention of people who want to advertise. See where I'm kind of going with this? It's no longer just a band website. It's a band channel. Treat it like TV. All of a sudden, the possibilities are 12, 15, 30, 50,000 plus a year, dollars that is, for you, because of the attention that's coming to your website. So whether it's a small little website, because you're a small local band in a small town. That, because it's on the Internet, has the possibility to blow up into a global sector. Anyhow, I know what I've thrown out there might be a little bit much, and there's so many steps behind it. But this is what I'm working on with some of the... I don't want to say the major type people. But when we sit around and we have our lunches, I listen to what they say and I go, try this. So I thought I'd bring that to you guys, and the reason why I do that also is because it churns up more ideas. And I know so many of you out there have just as creative intellectual thinking as you do writing your music and producing.Once again, this is about the music business, and I know some people won't agree with that. You know, that it's a heavy commercialization of the music, but what else are you doing it for? If you want to do it for yourself, and you don't want to make a dollar, that's fine. But for those of you who do, this is another option. Record deal versus endorsements in advertising. See ya.
