Sunday, December 2, 2007
Comments on Mr. Bob Lefsetz Blog on The Kindle
Recently a good friend of mine sent me a copy of a blog from Mr. Bob Lefsetz. I was not familiar with Mr. Lefsetz, a book he had written called “The Lefsetz Letter“ or the Blog. My friend Blake Goldsmith thought I might enjoy his blog titled “The Kindle” and sent it over. I must say I found it interesting for several reasons. His rather “scattered” style of bloging caused me to go to my good friend “GOOGLE” to find out a little more about him and to see if I could understand his writing style and his positions on the various aspects of the music industry and its players.
[Here is the information on how to connect with Mr. Bob Lefsetz and I recommend if you are interested in the music industry and looking for someone who will make you “think” everyday - - not always agree with the thoughts - - but make you think – here is where you want to go, also the Archive will give you the complete “The Kindle” Blog of Bob’s:
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1]
I will say that I found much common ground in his writings that I was able to review. I also would take issue with some of his opinions, concepts of the industry, and where and what everyone should be doing in the future.
If you will indulge me, I would like to start with his “The Kindle” blog. First, I would agree with his thoughts on Doug Morris. However, I have known Doug since Big Tree and worked with him on the England Dan and John Ford Coley project. With that being said, he was a great record guy and has somehow lost his way. I read the same article as Bob about Doug’s plans to “hold up” iTUNES for more money - - without contributing anything to the success of the artist or the distribution device (iTUNES). Bob is right - - sadly this is just an example of greed plain and simple. Knowing the man Doug Morris was, I can only agree with him statement “old fart record execs!”
I do not see his analogy between the book business and the record industry. The Kindle project is going to start off with the upper demographic of book readers - - probably the “road warriors” who now stop into a book store at the airport for a paperback, will look at The Kindle as a companion to the iPHONE!
What is the problem? As Bob should know and understand this is the age of Internet and “downloads.” The retail book store industry is going the way of the “Record Store.” So what? It is progress; at least the publishing industry understands their “world” and is preparing for the future. Buying books on line for a $10.00 price or less, makes sense when it is a “drop ship” business. This is the BIG mistake the former C.E.O’s of the major records companies in the early 1990’s. In 1990 Wayne Huizenga had the answer to this problem of the just starting P-2-P File sharing which Shawn Fanning was calling “Napster.” Mr. Huizenga bought up 3,000 Warehouse record stores, created a partnership with NewLeaf Corporation to “hard wire” all of his stores with Fiber Optic lines and create stores that would allow the customer to purchase a download CD and have it out the door in six minutes or less. This concept would “level the playing field” for Independent labels as well as the majors because “distribution” would no longer be a consideration - - all a band needed to do was provide Wayne with a music file which could be uploaded into the system and “let the sales begin.”
Do you know why this failed? The major labels would not license their artists to Wayne Huizenga. Why not? Because they knew it would be ultimately the end of a lot of jobs because without the need for distribution, a central system of accounting, eventually the corporate owners in Germany and Japan would figure it out and they would be gone. So they stonewalled the project, it went away and Napster became the future of the next generation of music listeners.
Think about it. If the executives had endorsed and encouraged the Huizenga project the whole industry could be different now. The new music buyer could have had their download and at the same time “trained” to continue to pay for it. This is the difference as I look at for The Kindle, the industry is creating the next generation of consumer - - if they want to still read. So I think consumers should embrace this technology - -the price will drop, no question and yes, brick and mortar book stores will go the way of Tower Records, but the industry will continue to thrive and give outlet to new and young aspiring authors. In addition authors will have the options of self publishing with this distribution system in place and as Bob has mentioned about recording artists - - keep total artistic control over their written words.
I really do not understand the Jay-Z reference in Bob Lefsetz Blog . Selling over 500,000 units when you own the label and a keeping at least 50% of the wholesale - - I’ll take it and would not call it a failure. Plus if he is going for the “urban” (P.C. term –O.K.) anyonemust know that only 20% of the Urban market have home computers and 85% of white families are computer equipped. Which probably accounts for the heavy Urban leaning of the Top 50 Billboard charts - - Sound Scan records it and Billboard “buys it!” Anyway, look at Paul McCartney, his last album on Capitol sold 40,000 the first week; his Starbucks release did 160,000 in its first week of sales. I would say there is a correlation between marketing and accessibility to the artist’s target market. Maybe Jay-Z should have worked a deal with Foot Locker!
I would not agree that the CD model is totally broken. I would agree that “old fart record execs can shoot themselves in the foot.” They do not know the difference between a well crafted CD like the Eagles or Kid Rock and a filler CD like Hillary Duff or Paris Hilton. Unfortunately, (in my opinion) some great CD’s like the latest by Bob Seger, have gotten lost in the shuffle. I have purchased more CD’s in the last month than I have in the past two years. Why? “Senior artists” are putting out real CD’s with ten plus tracks that are all interesting and listenable. The music business in certainly not “dead.” However it is changing and Mr. Lefsetz is so right that the “old farts” have got to go!
The problem now is the consumer has “choice stress.” There are only twenty-four hours in the day. When the music industry started getting big the 1960’s (Motown, British Invasion), 1970’s (Underground Radio, disco),
1980’s (glam rock, techno) and finally 1990’s (punk and grunge) the free-time options were smaller - - top 40 radio and three television networks. Now there are so many options, there is really no way to get a mass consensus from the public on what is “great.”
Instead it is becoming fragmented and this is not bad. It just means the music industry executives have got to think in terms of marketing and understand the limits of the market they are trying to reach. Radio is so much a “lost cause” - - - I agree (once again) with Bob, terrestrial radio, MTV, and satellite are not going to really create a new superstar. However Cable television and in some cases network television are creating the next generation of artists with the ability to sell-out arenas. Why is this happening?
The reason for this goes back to Robert Silberman, creator and C.E.O. of SFX which became Clear Channel Communication. Everyone knows the story, take the music business and treat it as a Fortune 500 corporation. In other words take the “human element” out of the equation. Buying up all of the major concert promotion companies in the country and consolidating them under one banner SFX then negotiate with the “top artists” for larger guarantees that they had ever seen before. Pushing to the side, the independent small promoters and eventually the agents who were representing them. What came out of this was a “dinosaur mentality” - - eat everything in sight and don’t plant anything. So for a few years it worked great because there was an abundance of artists at the top of their game and looking for the most money. At the right moment Mr. Silberman took his accountants and marketing people into Clear Channel Communications and convinced them if they bought SFX and merged it with the dominance of Clear Channel Communication in the radio broadcast industry it would be a “home run.” Timing is everything! They bought it and bought the company. Unfortunately, did not look far enough ahead. What is missing in the music business today is anyone willing to “plant seeds.” The showcase clubs, small hall venues, promoters willing to work with new acts to get a date with a “winner” - - a negotiating tool of the talent agencies such as CAA, William Morris and Premier - - all gone.
Now Clear Channel Communication is left with radio stations, concert venues and a market that is not what they thought it would be when they bought it. As with so many things, the cause and effect are sad!
I believe the future is responsible people taking control and understanding that this is 2008 (almost) not 1969 (the Woodstock era) and act accordingly. Big corporations controlling the music industry are over. The future is niche marketing.
I could say more, but I hope I made my thoughts clear and have given you some new ideas. The industry needs someone to constantly “needle them.” It appears from my Google search, Mr. Bob Lefsetz has taken up that cause. My only suggestions would be to “curb the anger” and “keep up the good fight.”
[Here is the information on how to connect with Mr. Bob Lefsetz and I recommend if you are interested in the music industry and looking for someone who will make you “think” everyday - - not always agree with the thoughts - - but make you think – here is where you want to go, also the Archive will give you the complete “The Kindle” Blog of Bob’s:
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1]
I will say that I found much common ground in his writings that I was able to review. I also would take issue with some of his opinions, concepts of the industry, and where and what everyone should be doing in the future.
If you will indulge me, I would like to start with his “The Kindle” blog. First, I would agree with his thoughts on Doug Morris. However, I have known Doug since Big Tree and worked with him on the England Dan and John Ford Coley project. With that being said, he was a great record guy and has somehow lost his way. I read the same article as Bob about Doug’s plans to “hold up” iTUNES for more money - - without contributing anything to the success of the artist or the distribution device (iTUNES). Bob is right - - sadly this is just an example of greed plain and simple. Knowing the man Doug Morris was, I can only agree with him statement “old fart record execs!”
I do not see his analogy between the book business and the record industry. The Kindle project is going to start off with the upper demographic of book readers - - probably the “road warriors” who now stop into a book store at the airport for a paperback, will look at The Kindle as a companion to the iPHONE!
What is the problem? As Bob should know and understand this is the age of Internet and “downloads.” The retail book store industry is going the way of the “Record Store.” So what? It is progress; at least the publishing industry understands their “world” and is preparing for the future. Buying books on line for a $10.00 price or less, makes sense when it is a “drop ship” business. This is the BIG mistake the former C.E.O’s of the major records companies in the early 1990’s. In 1990 Wayne Huizenga had the answer to this problem of the just starting P-2-P File sharing which Shawn Fanning was calling “Napster.” Mr. Huizenga bought up 3,000 Warehouse record stores, created a partnership with NewLeaf Corporation to “hard wire” all of his stores with Fiber Optic lines and create stores that would allow the customer to purchase a download CD and have it out the door in six minutes or less. This concept would “level the playing field” for Independent labels as well as the majors because “distribution” would no longer be a consideration - - all a band needed to do was provide Wayne with a music file which could be uploaded into the system and “let the sales begin.”
Do you know why this failed? The major labels would not license their artists to Wayne Huizenga. Why not? Because they knew it would be ultimately the end of a lot of jobs because without the need for distribution, a central system of accounting, eventually the corporate owners in Germany and Japan would figure it out and they would be gone. So they stonewalled the project, it went away and Napster became the future of the next generation of music listeners.
Think about it. If the executives had endorsed and encouraged the Huizenga project the whole industry could be different now. The new music buyer could have had their download and at the same time “trained” to continue to pay for it. This is the difference as I look at for The Kindle, the industry is creating the next generation of consumer - - if they want to still read. So I think consumers should embrace this technology - -the price will drop, no question and yes, brick and mortar book stores will go the way of Tower Records, but the industry will continue to thrive and give outlet to new and young aspiring authors. In addition authors will have the options of self publishing with this distribution system in place and as Bob has mentioned about recording artists - - keep total artistic control over their written words.
I really do not understand the Jay-Z reference in Bob Lefsetz Blog . Selling over 500,000 units when you own the label and a keeping at least 50% of the wholesale - - I’ll take it and would not call it a failure. Plus if he is going for the “urban” (P.C. term –O.K.) anyonemust know that only 20% of the Urban market have home computers and 85% of white families are computer equipped. Which probably accounts for the heavy Urban leaning of the Top 50 Billboard charts - - Sound Scan records it and Billboard “buys it!” Anyway, look at Paul McCartney, his last album on Capitol sold 40,000 the first week; his Starbucks release did 160,000 in its first week of sales. I would say there is a correlation between marketing and accessibility to the artist’s target market. Maybe Jay-Z should have worked a deal with Foot Locker!
I would not agree that the CD model is totally broken. I would agree that “old fart record execs can shoot themselves in the foot.” They do not know the difference between a well crafted CD like the Eagles or Kid Rock and a filler CD like Hillary Duff or Paris Hilton. Unfortunately, (in my opinion) some great CD’s like the latest by Bob Seger, have gotten lost in the shuffle. I have purchased more CD’s in the last month than I have in the past two years. Why? “Senior artists” are putting out real CD’s with ten plus tracks that are all interesting and listenable. The music business in certainly not “dead.” However it is changing and Mr. Lefsetz is so right that the “old farts” have got to go!
The problem now is the consumer has “choice stress.” There are only twenty-four hours in the day. When the music industry started getting big the 1960’s (Motown, British Invasion), 1970’s (Underground Radio, disco),
1980’s (glam rock, techno) and finally 1990’s (punk and grunge) the free-time options were smaller - - top 40 radio and three television networks. Now there are so many options, there is really no way to get a mass consensus from the public on what is “great.”
Instead it is becoming fragmented and this is not bad. It just means the music industry executives have got to think in terms of marketing and understand the limits of the market they are trying to reach. Radio is so much a “lost cause” - - - I agree (once again) with Bob, terrestrial radio, MTV, and satellite are not going to really create a new superstar. However Cable television and in some cases network television are creating the next generation of artists with the ability to sell-out arenas. Why is this happening?
The reason for this goes back to Robert Silberman, creator and C.E.O. of SFX which became Clear Channel Communication. Everyone knows the story, take the music business and treat it as a Fortune 500 corporation. In other words take the “human element” out of the equation. Buying up all of the major concert promotion companies in the country and consolidating them under one banner SFX then negotiate with the “top artists” for larger guarantees that they had ever seen before. Pushing to the side, the independent small promoters and eventually the agents who were representing them. What came out of this was a “dinosaur mentality” - - eat everything in sight and don’t plant anything. So for a few years it worked great because there was an abundance of artists at the top of their game and looking for the most money. At the right moment Mr. Silberman took his accountants and marketing people into Clear Channel Communications and convinced them if they bought SFX and merged it with the dominance of Clear Channel Communication in the radio broadcast industry it would be a “home run.” Timing is everything! They bought it and bought the company. Unfortunately, did not look far enough ahead. What is missing in the music business today is anyone willing to “plant seeds.” The showcase clubs, small hall venues, promoters willing to work with new acts to get a date with a “winner” - - a negotiating tool of the talent agencies such as CAA, William Morris and Premier - - all gone.
Now Clear Channel Communication is left with radio stations, concert venues and a market that is not what they thought it would be when they bought it. As with so many things, the cause and effect are sad!
I believe the future is responsible people taking control and understanding that this is 2008 (almost) not 1969 (the Woodstock era) and act accordingly. Big corporations controlling the music industry are over. The future is niche marketing.
I could say more, but I hope I made my thoughts clear and have given you some new ideas. The industry needs someone to constantly “needle them.” It appears from my Google search, Mr. Bob Lefsetz has taken up that cause. My only suggestions would be to “curb the anger” and “keep up the good fight.”
Thursday, October 4, 2007
IS ADVERTISING DEAD
PROLOGUE
I have wanted to write a Blog for some time. My background is in the entertainment industry having spent almost forty years in various aspects of entertainment, but I also have other interests and “opinions!” When my good friend David who controls this web site invited me to create a Blog, I was and am still very excited. However, with the opportunity, comes the responsibility to make sure there is “content.” This obligation gives one a greater respect for those people who everyday put out a column in the newspaper - - it is a tough assignment to keep things fresh and more importantly “interesting.” I would right now like to be very candid and personal with those of you who are reading my Blog. I have written for magazines and entertainment publications since the late 1980’s through today. I keep a file of everything I have written and thought, I could use these articles to get me started by updating the information and “editing” a bit. However right in the middle of this “game plan,” I was reading my current issue of Inc. Magazine (I really enjoy this publication - - used to favor Success Magazine when it was around). Anyway, there on page 74 my first inspiration came along. I was at first going to write Kambri Crews about her letter to the Ask inc. column with my thoughts and insight. But then I remembered “I have a Blog!!!” So now I may share my thoughts with Ms. Crews - - who I believe I may help, but pass it along to anyone who happens to read this Blog and may benefit from my knowledge and experiences - - now this is really “exciting!!!” In the past when I have written articles for Night Club and Bar Magazine, I have gotten faxes, e-mails and even telephone calls from readers expressing interest and having questions which I have gladly answered. Now I am looking forward to a wider range of people that I may be able to touch. So with that said, here goes for Ms. Kambri Crews, founder of Ballyhoo Promotions in New York City.
BLOG October 04 2007
Ms. Crews wrote and asked the question: “I’m promoting a new comedy club. We’ve run television, radio, and print ads, each with discount codes to help track responses, but had little or no return. I want to try another campaign, but I’m not sure it’s worth the cost. Is advertising dead?”
With all proper respect to Hap Klopp who responds to question in this column, I do not think he has the first person experience to properly respond to Ms. Crews - -I do.
First let’s answer the question - - “is advertising dead?” Advertising is NEVER dead for the “big boys.” If you are selling cars, soft drinks, beer, and toilet paper - - NO - their main goal is positioning in the mind of the consumer. When it is time for either a car or a roll of toilet paper, the respective manufacturers do not what to be left out of the thought process. Many years ago (late 1980s) when all of the stir was about advertising alcoholic products on radio and television and there was a buzz in the congress about passing a law outlawing the advertising of these products (similar to cigarettes) Mr. Busch, which one I do not remember, from Anheuser-Busch stated at the time, he would “welcome” such a ban because it would save money and probably not affect the bottom line that much, since all the advertising did was maintain their market position. In other words if in a given hour there were commercials for Coors, Miller and Rolling Rock, he needed to run a Budweiser commercial so that the consumer when he went to the package store, would not forget his option to buy Budweiser along with Coors, Miller and Rolling Rock. At the time of this discussion I recall that using cigarettes as an example it was stated that twenty-three (23) new brands had been introduced to the market without benefit of radio or television advertising. Since the mid-1980s I am sure there have been many more cigarette brands that have found their way to the market place and been successful, in addition “line extension” of established brands such as Camel and Salem to name two have flourished and made impacts on the consumer.
Moving down to the businesses that is looking for anywhere from 200 to 20000 potential customers (entertainment venues such as clubs to concert halls such as arenas) it has become a more difficult task to reach the target market.
In 1986 I took over Hammerjacks Night Club in Baltimore, Maryland for the booking of all national talent and the placing of all media advertising. When I walked in the door as a consultant the club was operating at a deficit of somewhere in the neighborhood of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100000.00) for the year. Once I proceeded to establish a booking schedule with talent that had market value, I constructed the media plan which we followed with great success over the following years. 1987 saw gross taxable liquor sales of $3.2 Million, 1988 $3.8 and 1989 $5.2 Million dollars. My media budget was in the neighborhood of $350000.0 annually. What I did and why I was successful was to take radio where I had the main A.O.R. (Album Oriented Radio) station WIYY-FM (98-ROCK) and purchase fixed position commercials on Thursday and Friday at 3:45PM, 4:45PM and 5:45PM which captured the afternoon drive people, on Thursday making plans for the weekend and Friday reinforcing the weekend plans. I used the same scheduling for any off nights when I had a national show coming in. These were piggy back spots mentioning as many as six upcoming events and also I voiced my own spots so they were distinctive - - you heard my voice and knew it was about Hammerjacks Night Club. Using a radio station on-air personality to read my commercial when he or she had just finished reading three other night club spots did not get it. I also used the entertainment weekly newspaper (The City Paper) but bought the center section the first weekend of the month, knowing it would stand out. All of this was great in the 1980s and 1990s when the target market I was trying to reach was “locked in” to these main sources for their entertainment information. Also radio station WIYY-FM reinforced what I was doing because their play list was what I was booking in live.
Now let’s look at 2007, it is not your “father’s marketplace!” The entertainment consumer is all over the place and is very impatient. In the 1980s and 1990s we faced a little bit of “button pushing.” Now the entertainment provider faces a real problem of “where is my market and how do I reach them?”
It is the Internet. No question in my mind about that. In order to be successful, whether you have a comedy club that holds 250 or a concert promotion with an arena with a capacity of 20000, you must stat by “preaching to the choir.” Get the core audience used to going to your web site for information on what is coming up and you will be successful and cost effective. From there you can use radio and television effectively, by finding out what the “choir” listens to - - if anything! With satellite radio, iPODS, MP3 plays, CD Players, downloads, My Space, and now You Tube the “buzz” comes from everywhere and the younger the audience you are trying to attract the more carefully you must do the research. For commercial radio I would only use it if I were booking an artist that they have interest in and will work with you on not only your buying spots, but them co-promoting the event with ticket give-away and promo spots. I like cable television because it narrows down the target market you are going after. However, remember just because it is MTV or VH1 does not mean it will deliver because there is a lot of clutter in the mix with age and viewer interests. With a comedy club you have a better chance of success by buying the local inset on
Comedy Central that is going to give you your target market (people interested in comedy) and if you find the programs that feature the comic you are promoting - - home run!!! I also like CNN and Fox News. Why you ask? Because the after midnight buys are so cheap and if you get “lucky” and a big news item breaks, you are right in the middle of the mix for very little investment. I use the example of the Saturday night Princesses Diana was in the car crash in Paris. Ask 100 people where they were and what they tuned into for the news of whether she was alive or deceased and I would guarantee at least 80% will say CNN - - you would be lucky to find 20% with the answer of CBS, NBC or ABC. I can only speak for Baltimore, but when I last checked it was $25.00 for a :30 second spot on CNN after 12Midnight.
I am going to e-mail this to Kambri Crews and I will let you know in a future Blog if I receive a response and what it was.
My answer to the question “Is advertising dead?” Yes, in the 1980s and 1990s format, but you still need it to flourish and profit, but it is a different game now and do not buy into the old “sales pitch!”
I have wanted to write a Blog for some time. My background is in the entertainment industry having spent almost forty years in various aspects of entertainment, but I also have other interests and “opinions!” When my good friend David who controls this web site invited me to create a Blog, I was and am still very excited. However, with the opportunity, comes the responsibility to make sure there is “content.” This obligation gives one a greater respect for those people who everyday put out a column in the newspaper - - it is a tough assignment to keep things fresh and more importantly “interesting.” I would right now like to be very candid and personal with those of you who are reading my Blog. I have written for magazines and entertainment publications since the late 1980’s through today. I keep a file of everything I have written and thought, I could use these articles to get me started by updating the information and “editing” a bit. However right in the middle of this “game plan,” I was reading my current issue of Inc. Magazine (I really enjoy this publication - - used to favor Success Magazine when it was around). Anyway, there on page 74 my first inspiration came along. I was at first going to write Kambri Crews about her letter to the Ask inc. column with my thoughts and insight. But then I remembered “I have a Blog!!!” So now I may share my thoughts with Ms. Crews - - who I believe I may help, but pass it along to anyone who happens to read this Blog and may benefit from my knowledge and experiences - - now this is really “exciting!!!” In the past when I have written articles for Night Club and Bar Magazine, I have gotten faxes, e-mails and even telephone calls from readers expressing interest and having questions which I have gladly answered. Now I am looking forward to a wider range of people that I may be able to touch. So with that said, here goes for Ms. Kambri Crews, founder of Ballyhoo Promotions in New York City.
BLOG October 04 2007
Ms. Crews wrote and asked the question: “I’m promoting a new comedy club. We’ve run television, radio, and print ads, each with discount codes to help track responses, but had little or no return. I want to try another campaign, but I’m not sure it’s worth the cost. Is advertising dead?”
With all proper respect to Hap Klopp who responds to question in this column, I do not think he has the first person experience to properly respond to Ms. Crews - -I do.
First let’s answer the question - - “is advertising dead?” Advertising is NEVER dead for the “big boys.” If you are selling cars, soft drinks, beer, and toilet paper - - NO - their main goal is positioning in the mind of the consumer. When it is time for either a car or a roll of toilet paper, the respective manufacturers do not what to be left out of the thought process. Many years ago (late 1980s) when all of the stir was about advertising alcoholic products on radio and television and there was a buzz in the congress about passing a law outlawing the advertising of these products (similar to cigarettes) Mr. Busch, which one I do not remember, from Anheuser-Busch stated at the time, he would “welcome” such a ban because it would save money and probably not affect the bottom line that much, since all the advertising did was maintain their market position. In other words if in a given hour there were commercials for Coors, Miller and Rolling Rock, he needed to run a Budweiser commercial so that the consumer when he went to the package store, would not forget his option to buy Budweiser along with Coors, Miller and Rolling Rock. At the time of this discussion I recall that using cigarettes as an example it was stated that twenty-three (23) new brands had been introduced to the market without benefit of radio or television advertising. Since the mid-1980s I am sure there have been many more cigarette brands that have found their way to the market place and been successful, in addition “line extension” of established brands such as Camel and Salem to name two have flourished and made impacts on the consumer.
Moving down to the businesses that is looking for anywhere from 200 to 20000 potential customers (entertainment venues such as clubs to concert halls such as arenas) it has become a more difficult task to reach the target market.
In 1986 I took over Hammerjacks Night Club in Baltimore, Maryland for the booking of all national talent and the placing of all media advertising. When I walked in the door as a consultant the club was operating at a deficit of somewhere in the neighborhood of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100000.00) for the year. Once I proceeded to establish a booking schedule with talent that had market value, I constructed the media plan which we followed with great success over the following years. 1987 saw gross taxable liquor sales of $3.2 Million, 1988 $3.8 and 1989 $5.2 Million dollars. My media budget was in the neighborhood of $350000.0 annually. What I did and why I was successful was to take radio where I had the main A.O.R. (Album Oriented Radio) station WIYY-FM (98-ROCK) and purchase fixed position commercials on Thursday and Friday at 3:45PM, 4:45PM and 5:45PM which captured the afternoon drive people, on Thursday making plans for the weekend and Friday reinforcing the weekend plans. I used the same scheduling for any off nights when I had a national show coming in. These were piggy back spots mentioning as many as six upcoming events and also I voiced my own spots so they were distinctive - - you heard my voice and knew it was about Hammerjacks Night Club. Using a radio station on-air personality to read my commercial when he or she had just finished reading three other night club spots did not get it. I also used the entertainment weekly newspaper (The City Paper) but bought the center section the first weekend of the month, knowing it would stand out. All of this was great in the 1980s and 1990s when the target market I was trying to reach was “locked in” to these main sources for their entertainment information. Also radio station WIYY-FM reinforced what I was doing because their play list was what I was booking in live.
Now let’s look at 2007, it is not your “father’s marketplace!” The entertainment consumer is all over the place and is very impatient. In the 1980s and 1990s we faced a little bit of “button pushing.” Now the entertainment provider faces a real problem of “where is my market and how do I reach them?”
It is the Internet. No question in my mind about that. In order to be successful, whether you have a comedy club that holds 250 or a concert promotion with an arena with a capacity of 20000, you must stat by “preaching to the choir.” Get the core audience used to going to your web site for information on what is coming up and you will be successful and cost effective. From there you can use radio and television effectively, by finding out what the “choir” listens to - - if anything! With satellite radio, iPODS, MP3 plays, CD Players, downloads, My Space, and now You Tube the “buzz” comes from everywhere and the younger the audience you are trying to attract the more carefully you must do the research. For commercial radio I would only use it if I were booking an artist that they have interest in and will work with you on not only your buying spots, but them co-promoting the event with ticket give-away and promo spots. I like cable television because it narrows down the target market you are going after. However, remember just because it is MTV or VH1 does not mean it will deliver because there is a lot of clutter in the mix with age and viewer interests. With a comedy club you have a better chance of success by buying the local inset on
Comedy Central that is going to give you your target market (people interested in comedy) and if you find the programs that feature the comic you are promoting - - home run!!! I also like CNN and Fox News. Why you ask? Because the after midnight buys are so cheap and if you get “lucky” and a big news item breaks, you are right in the middle of the mix for very little investment. I use the example of the Saturday night Princesses Diana was in the car crash in Paris. Ask 100 people where they were and what they tuned into for the news of whether she was alive or deceased and I would guarantee at least 80% will say CNN - - you would be lucky to find 20% with the answer of CBS, NBC or ABC. I can only speak for Baltimore, but when I last checked it was $25.00 for a :30 second spot on CNN after 12Midnight.
I am going to e-mail this to Kambri Crews and I will let you know in a future Blog if I receive a response and what it was.
My answer to the question “Is advertising dead?” Yes, in the 1980s and 1990s format, but you still need it to flourish and profit, but it is a different game now and do not buy into the old “sales pitch!”
Sunday, September 30, 2007
HOW DO I GET A MAJOR RECORD DEAL
I have been in the music/entertainment business for over forty years, and seen many, many changes throughout that time period. One of the biggest problems that occur in the related industries is people keep trying to recreate the "wheel" instead of rolling with what is happening now and not going back to yesterday and trying something that worked in 1960 with a repackage in 2007! Usually does not work.
The above being said, I wish I had a dollar ($1.00) for every time I get an inquiry from a band member or band manager on “how do I get a major label to sign me/my band?” If the dollar had come my way by now I would be writing this column from a beach in Hawaii!!
Anyway, the answer is not in getting signed, it is “selling product.” To sell product you need several things. Among them is distribution, hard to sell if it is not available where you are playing. Second you need promotion to create a “buzz” so people want to find your single or album and buy it. It used to be radio airplay did that. Get your music played on a major radio station and “bingo” the stores start getting calls for your “newest song” and everything starts to roll from there.
This is 2007 and it is not the “Woodstock Generation” we are talking about any longer that was influenced by A.O.R. (Album Oriented Rock) radio stations, top forty radio stations, even college eclectic formatted radio stations. This is the new generation of music fans that are getting their music information from a variety of sources outside of the conventional “listen to the radio and buy it.” Where did Death Cab for Cutie come from? Not radio, but the television shows “The O.C.” sound track. Jet from an iPod commercial. Yes, they eventually wind up on the FM radio band somewhere. The starting point is different and more unconventional, as Taco Bell says “Think Outside The Box!”
In 2007 and from now on, what will make a band is promotion and distribution. If you do not know about it, you can not seek to buy it. If you do not have a store that stocks it, you can not sell it. The promotion today is left up to the band and band manager. Even it they are “finally” signed to a major label deal, if you talk to the band you will find they started out as an independent recording group with their own label and through playing and promoting creating that “buzz” which attracted major label interest. Tired of selling their product out of a van or filling orders from their web site, even though the profit per unit is much greater, they took the offer of a major label with hopes that their product would finally reach the masses in retail distribution and if the label has a deal with iTunes, Napster, and the other on-line music sellers become available to their fans that way.
Well guess what? The national retail chains are going the way of the vinyl albums. In 1990 most retail record stores sold vinyl records, with some cassettes. By 1994 there were NO new vinyl albums being pressed or released by record companies, except for “special projects.” The retail brick and mortar stores are going the same way. Look around in Baltimore where I live, only Record and Tape Traders has survived with ten local stores. Most of the other chains are either gone, in chapter 13 or going away shortly. It is moving quickly to digital downloads. This is great for all the bands that have signed with a major labels because their music will be available via the above mentioned on line outlets. However, those artists will be paying their fees through their contracts to the record companies and out of a ninety-nine cent download, how much do they make after everyone at the label has taken their fee? What about the unsigned artist that is sitting out there with a full CD of music or maybe just “one great song?”
One answer may be the on-line stores that bands can now use to distribute their product. so those who have asked the question “how do I get signed to a major label?” The answer - - you don’t! What you do instead is go to a Burn Lounge site and download a non-exclusive distribution agreement for your product. Follow the instructions and within three weeks (if everything goes well) you will have licensed your music for free, posted your music on all Burn Lounge sites. You will collect a royalty for every song and album sold without having to pay distributors, labels and anyone else. Your distribution deal that you sign will have the terms of how much you will receive on every piece of product sold. All you now have to do is PROMOTE!!!PROMOTE the fact that you have product, promote the fact that your fans can go to a Burn Lounge site and buy your product.
No more carrying CDs to gigs, just a simple card that has the address on line where your fans can purchase your music. The key here is YOUR MUSIC; no one else owns it, just you. The only hand in the pot is yours, you earn it through creative energy and hard work touring, and you keep it all. Play in Baltimore, or "Nowhere", Montana as long as your audience has access to a computer and can download music, your have a sale.
If at some point the band would like to own a Burn Lounge and take this further on their own, you can do it. There are also several other sites where you can get your materials on line and sign a non-exclusive distribution deal. I only mention this one because I am familiar with Burn Lounge and have a personal site (this is not a commercial so I am not going to mention my Burn Lounge address - if interested write me). The only point here is to take your band career into your own hands. My predictions is within the next ten years there with be possibly THREE major record companies in existence - - the rest will be merged and gone.
The above being said, I wish I had a dollar ($1.00) for every time I get an inquiry from a band member or band manager on “how do I get a major label to sign me/my band?” If the dollar had come my way by now I would be writing this column from a beach in Hawaii!!
Anyway, the answer is not in getting signed, it is “selling product.” To sell product you need several things. Among them is distribution, hard to sell if it is not available where you are playing. Second you need promotion to create a “buzz” so people want to find your single or album and buy it. It used to be radio airplay did that. Get your music played on a major radio station and “bingo” the stores start getting calls for your “newest song” and everything starts to roll from there.
This is 2007 and it is not the “Woodstock Generation” we are talking about any longer that was influenced by A.O.R. (Album Oriented Rock) radio stations, top forty radio stations, even college eclectic formatted radio stations. This is the new generation of music fans that are getting their music information from a variety of sources outside of the conventional “listen to the radio and buy it.” Where did Death Cab for Cutie come from? Not radio, but the television shows “The O.C.” sound track. Jet from an iPod commercial. Yes, they eventually wind up on the FM radio band somewhere. The starting point is different and more unconventional, as Taco Bell says “Think Outside The Box!”
In 2007 and from now on, what will make a band is promotion and distribution. If you do not know about it, you can not seek to buy it. If you do not have a store that stocks it, you can not sell it. The promotion today is left up to the band and band manager. Even it they are “finally” signed to a major label deal, if you talk to the band you will find they started out as an independent recording group with their own label and through playing and promoting creating that “buzz” which attracted major label interest. Tired of selling their product out of a van or filling orders from their web site, even though the profit per unit is much greater, they took the offer of a major label with hopes that their product would finally reach the masses in retail distribution and if the label has a deal with iTunes, Napster, and the other on-line music sellers become available to their fans that way.
Well guess what? The national retail chains are going the way of the vinyl albums. In 1990 most retail record stores sold vinyl records, with some cassettes. By 1994 there were NO new vinyl albums being pressed or released by record companies, except for “special projects.” The retail brick and mortar stores are going the same way. Look around in Baltimore where I live, only Record and Tape Traders has survived with ten local stores. Most of the other chains are either gone, in chapter 13 or going away shortly. It is moving quickly to digital downloads. This is great for all the bands that have signed with a major labels because their music will be available via the above mentioned on line outlets. However, those artists will be paying their fees through their contracts to the record companies and out of a ninety-nine cent download, how much do they make after everyone at the label has taken their fee? What about the unsigned artist that is sitting out there with a full CD of music or maybe just “one great song?”
One answer may be the on-line stores that bands can now use to distribute their product. so those who have asked the question “how do I get signed to a major label?” The answer - - you don’t! What you do instead is go to a Burn Lounge site and download a non-exclusive distribution agreement for your product. Follow the instructions and within three weeks (if everything goes well) you will have licensed your music for free, posted your music on all Burn Lounge sites. You will collect a royalty for every song and album sold without having to pay distributors, labels and anyone else. Your distribution deal that you sign will have the terms of how much you will receive on every piece of product sold. All you now have to do is PROMOTE!!!PROMOTE the fact that you have product, promote the fact that your fans can go to a Burn Lounge site and buy your product.
No more carrying CDs to gigs, just a simple card that has the address on line where your fans can purchase your music. The key here is YOUR MUSIC; no one else owns it, just you. The only hand in the pot is yours, you earn it through creative energy and hard work touring, and you keep it all. Play in Baltimore, or "Nowhere", Montana as long as your audience has access to a computer and can download music, your have a sale.
If at some point the band would like to own a Burn Lounge and take this further on their own, you can do it. There are also several other sites where you can get your materials on line and sign a non-exclusive distribution deal. I only mention this one because I am familiar with Burn Lounge and have a personal site (this is not a commercial so I am not going to mention my Burn Lounge address - if interested write me). The only point here is to take your band career into your own hands. My predictions is within the next ten years there with be possibly THREE major record companies in existence - - the rest will be merged and gone.
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