Connecting With Fans And Giving Them A Reason To Buy Requires A Lot Of Experimenting

from the some-will-fail-spectacularly,-but-some-will-succeed-spectacularly dept

With my big post explaining the whole CwF+RtB concept in a lot more detail, complete with examples of many artists, small to big, who are using it, we've been hearing about more and more artists. It's really great, and it's often difficult to choose which ones are worth writing up. But sometimes an example comes along that really highlights a point that hasn't necessarily been driven home before, and that helps make the decision easy. ChurchHatesTucker points us to a recent blog post by singer Marian Call in which she talks about her various experiments in connecting with fans and the surprise result of giving them a reason to buy. I can't emphasize enough that the whole post is worth reading, but I'll share a few highlights.

First, she talks about how much value there is in really connecting with your fans over social networks, and that doesn't mean just putting out blast messages about what you're doing, but also reading about what they're doing -- and, at times, going beyond that, including visiting "their websites, blogs, photo albums once in a while." Obviously, you can't do this all the time or with every fan, but it certainly does help connect with many fans in a very genuine way. It's not marketing, it's about making a connection and building a real relationship.

But the bigger point that she makes is that all of this -- both sides of the CwF + RtB equation -- require an awful lot of experimenting:

About twice a week I think, "Why don't I try this crazy idea and see if it works?" about some element of my career. With no label, no manager, and no inner voice of reason slow me down, I get to experiment all I want. 90% of my crazy ideas have to do with social networking -- which I spend half a lifetime doing, despite the crap I take from my family and Real Life friends. (Hey, some of us actually do bond over web comics, starship replicas, the fail whale, and photos of stuff on cats.) Mostly my nutty ideas work just a little bit. Some are epic failures. But my experimental flopping and floundering inches me closer to the day when I'll be totally financially independent as a full-time musician. Plus it's more fun than having a real job.

But every now and then a crazy idea works really really really good. Bam!

The really good idea in this case? She was performing a live gig at Whole Wheat Radio that was to be streamed online, and in a quick & dirty way, decided to offer up a special limited edition "bootleg" CD of live tracks. She said that her Twitter and Facebook friends had been complaining that she hadn't released any new music in a while, and she's still working on her next "studio" album -- but in just two hours she was able to assemble everything she needed for the Marian Call Bootleg Album, which she decided to make available for one night only. How did it work out?

I planned to sell 20-40 of my little bootleg CD's. Silly me. I sold well over 200. My little stack of jewel cases looked so pathetic.

WholeWheatRadio.org broke every record for online listenership, CD sales, tips -- everything. The more listeners tuned in, the more tuned in, and the more money they gave, the more money they gave. The crowd online was thrilled to be breaking WWR records. I drove away from Talkeetna having earned about $4,000 in one night, with a new CD to produce in just a couple of days and an avalanche of e-mail and publicity requests to deal with. Seldom have I been so happy and so panicked.

Again, this isn't the solution for everyone. But it shows how really connecting with fans, and trying different stuff out continuously, helps. Eventually, one or more of those ideas takes off with great results. While she may not be a full-time musician yet, it certainly seems like Marian has all the right pieces in place (and, yes, that includes great music).

Filed Under: experiments, music business models

Nettwerk Testing Its 'Pay On The Way Out' Concerts

from the be-interested-in-seeing-how-that-works-out... dept

Terry McBride, of Nettwerk, an interesting label based in Canada, has been running a whole series of interesting experiments that show how a modern record label can still be useful. When I saw McBride speak at Midem earlier this year, he mentioned an experiment he was running, which I never really wrote about. However, Nancy Baym points out that it's starting to get some press. The idea is a free concert to attend... where you're asked to pay what you think it was worth on the way out. Nettwerk artist k-os is doing this, setting up a "Karma table" where you can also get a free copy of k-os' "fan-mixed" album. This was the other experiment Nettwerk is running: rather than letting fans remix the album, they released all the stems so that fans could mix the album itself -- and then they're releasing both the best fan-mixed versions and the professionally mixed versions.

It's an interesting experiment, and it will be worth watching (especially if McBride is willing share any of the actual results). It does seem like a risky move, because you're taking on the whole upfront cost of putting on the event -- giving away a scarcity, rather than an infinite good. However, depending on how the rest of it is structured they could end up making some decent money out of it. I'm just not sure it's really the best model, since giving away the scarcity for free gets much costlier much faster.

Filed Under: business models, concerts, experiments, free, k-os, terry mcbride
Companies: nettwerk

Groove Armada's Business Model Experiments; Halfway There

from the it's-something dept

A bunch of folks have been sending in various stories about Groove Armada's experiment for distributing its latest music. The program, which was actually launched at Midem a couple weeks back, is explained (somewhat) in the following video at that event: There are a few elements here that are interesting and make sense... and a few that seem a bit questionable. First up, the musical group left Sony BMG last year and rather than signing a deal with a new record label, instead partnered with drink brand Bacardi, which has a long history of sponsoring music and live music events. This was interesting and followed on similar experiments by brands like Tag body spray, which launched its own record label recently, as well. It also followed on the massive success some musicians have seen in China by focusing on "sponsored" music.

That happened last year. What was new that was announced at Midem was the ability for people to download and share songs from an upcoming EP. I'll let reader SteveD summarize the good and bad:

The good:

• DRM-free music promotions though corporate sponsorship
• Opt-in mailing Bacardi list rather then Opt-out
• Very polished; quick sign-up, hassle-free download, links for inviting friends and facebook app supplied.

The bad:

• Treats access to music as a value-adding service in itself
• Restricts further access to content until you've invited x number of friends
• 'Rewards' system is really just a way of getting you to abuse you address book for them (access to all 4 tracks requires you spam 2000 friends, according to site Q&A).

To the "bad" list, I'd add the fact that the program is only going on for a month or so, and then the special "sharing widget" goes away. Again, there's plenty to applaud here in experimenting with new models, especially involving sponsored content and giving away music for free. However, the execution involving spamming of friends leaves plenty to be desired. That's not so much about connecting with fans as forcing yourself on people who aren't interested.

Filed Under: business models, experiments, file sharing, groove armada, music
Companies: bacardi