Merch Smarter – Unraveling 5 Common Mistakes Artists Make With Their Merch Business

There are two ways that musicians have always made money.  One is by performing and the other is by selling merchandise (“merch”).  With the continued decline in music sales (except vinyl), and the increasing popularity of music consumption through streaming platforms like Spotify, artists are yet again forced to lean more heavily on other income sources in order to make a living doing what they love.  Touring and live shows continue to be a primary revenue stream for artists, and most artists sell 85% or more of their merch directly at live shows at the merch table.  With that, merch can be a lucrative source of income to artists if they play it right.  While many artists know that selling merch is a good way to keep the hypothetical lights on in their business of being an artist, we’re still seeing some common mistakes being made out there across all levels. Let’s zone in on 5 of these and see if we might make more sense of this merch madness.  

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Survival Of The Smartest

• Cherie Nelson | Survival Of The Smartest: A Musician’s Guide To Moving To LA
• Anne Kings | Vinyl Record Sales Surges And Music Events Go Viral
• Joy Ike | How To Successfully Promote Your Music
• Rachelle Wilber | Band Management: How to Make Your Artists Truly Successful
• Mark Knight | Fans Not Fame. A New Way To Promote Independent Music

Survival Of The Smartest: A Musician's Guide To Moving To LA

Your journey may not start or end in LA, but if you’re looking to make a name for yourself in the entertainment industry, odds are you’re going to spend a considerable amount of time in the City of Angels. And while sometimes it’s a good thing to be a big fish in a small pond, there is nothing like walking down Sunset strip and popping into The Roxy or The Viper Room a few nights of week to do some world-class networking. So when you get the band together or just get your butt and your guitar out on the highway and en route to Los Angeles, here’s your guide for surviving the city that can give you life or steal your soul.

Click to read more ...

Vinyl Record Sales Surges And Music Events Go Viral, Thanks To Rising Popularity Of Online Music Streaming

Downloads of music clips are down, and sales of music compact discs (CDs) are dropping—both of which are casualties of the battle for the hearts and minds of millions of music buffs who are more than willing to pay a few bucks to hear their favorite tunes. And the winner of this particular round happens to be online music streaming, which (to those who might have been living in a cave the past year) plays a cell device user’s favorite songs at a few simple clicks.

Click to read more ...

How To Successfully Promote Your Music

Before Facebook and the era of social media, it was estimated that the average person was exposed to some 2000 ads every day - billboards, television commercials, signs in grocery stores and storefronts, etc, etc.

Since then, that number has probably doubled. This makes promotion very tricky. How do you successfully promote your music when there is so much competition? Below are 6 things you must do to stand out in a sea of clutter, make a dent with your music, and continue to grow your fanbase.

Click to read more ...

Band Management: How to Make Your Artists Truly Successful

Whether it be a new artist getting prepared for a wave of gigs, or an artist who is seasoned with entertainment experience, a manager can be a useful and essential element is the prosperity of their career. A manager is the business backbone, the organizer and the planner; a band without proper management is restricted from success. This person can be an outside source or a member within the band or group who has a knowledge of business and professionalism. There are some key points to have in mind when you are seeking success for your artist.

Click to read more ...

Fans Not Fame. A New Way To Promote Independent Music

When I started managing The Daydream Club in 2012, the band and I had a clear idea of what success meant. We needed a record label, radio play, a ton of live shows, glowing press reviews, these things combined would deliver critical acclaim, fame, album sales and income.

We were not naive, and had our eyes open from the start. We knew major label revenues had always been built around popular music for the masses. There was a clear template that worked and that wasn’t going to change. We were fine with this, while we quickly realised One Direction fame would allude us, we still believed there was enough room as a mid-tier artist to forge a sustainable living from music. 

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Who Killed The Creativity?

• Jason K Ventura| Who Killed The Creativity And Imagination?
• Matt Mannino | Long Live EDM
• Cherie Nelson | Protecting Yourself And Your Fans From Getting Hacked
• Jon Ostrow |The Ultimate Guide To Selling Band Merch Online
• Todd Tate | DIY Music Video Production

Who Killed The Creativity And Imagination?

In a generation that is hooked on video games, cells phones and laptops, it’s no wonder why we lack the creativity and the imagination of other generations. It starts from the time of being an infant to early childhood. The toys children play with leave nothing for the imagination to pick up on. Toys nowadays not only talk; they interact with children as well. Don’t get me wrong; I think this is great for children to build communication skills, however I believe that other toys should allow children to be creative and use their imagination. Creativity, imagination, and common sense are all skills that are becoming rare and hard to find.

Click to read more ...

Long Live EDM

By Matt Mannino from Berklee’s Music Business Journal.

The electronic music industry has grown up. Attendances at Electronic Dance Music festivals in the United States exploded between 2007 and 2014, going from 145,000 people to 1.4 million. This has made EDM the poster child for the millennial music industry, for no other music genre or industry sector can compare in performance (a tenfold increase in audience is equivalent to a staggering 34% annual growth rate).

Click to read more ...

Protecting Yourself And Your Fans From Getting Hacked

In late 2015, music distributor TuneCore announced it was the target of a security breach that ultimately compromised some of its customers’ personal information. Fortunately, no music files were compromised. But TuneCore admitted names, email addresses, passwords, and mailing addresses were exposed.

You may think that would never happen to your music business, and breathe a sigh of relief that your own system doesn’t store customers’ financial info. But TuneCore customers had their mailing address, bank addresses and last four digits of their credit cards on file. It’s really not that difficult to take the leap and connect that information in order to make fraudulent purchases and steal someone’s financial identity.

Click to read more ...

The Ultimate Guide To Selling Band Merch Online

Before you dive into ordering or creating your merch, there are a few steps to consider to ensure that your time and money spent on investing in merch is worth the effort.

Click to read more ...

DIY Music Video Production

In today’s music world, video rules. With the rise of YouTube this proves to be self evident. But many talented musicians and bands opt out, worried they simply do not have the funds to make “professional” music videos.

But what does it really take to make a “professional” music video these days? What are the real costs? And ultimately: do fans really care?

I’ve gathered some advice from various discussions with associates in the SF Bay Area music scene, and I also have. Hope you find it helpful!

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Be A Tighter Live Band

• Robert Lanterman | 4 WaysTo Be A Tighter Live Band
• Cherie Nelson | 4 Ways to Spark Inspiration And Break Through Writer’s Block
• Jon Ostrow | 9 Ways To Build Your Mailing List (And Sell More Music Online)
• Ta’Rikah Jones | 6 Social Media Tools For Musicians
• Daniel Adler-Golden | How Big Is The Music Business, Really?