The ABCs of NFTs (Understanding "Non-fungible tokens")

NFTs are suddenly headline news! Artists and musicians are using NFTs as a new way to release their products into the marketplace. NPR reports that the artist Grimes recently sold several NFTs for over $5 million and an NFT video clip of LeBron James making a historic dunk for the LA Lakers earned more than $200,000. Rolling Stone reports that the rock band Kings of Leon is releasing its new album in the form of an NFT. At the auction house Christie’s, bids on an NFT by the artist Beeple are already reaching into the millions. It appears that what started as an online hobby among a certain group of tech and finance geeks is now being catapulted into the mainstream.

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How To Use Music Merchandise As Part Of The Marketing Strategy?

Musical bands often take advantage of shows, musical tours, festivals, and outdoor concerts to sell their merchandise in order to make more money. It also increases the band’s public awareness, and the band’s performance will be a reminder to the guest when they think of the experience. 

Marketing merchandise is one of the most effective ways to grow your engagement on different social media platforms. It boosts your marketing effort and helps you create vibrancy with your audience. But, in what ways can you use music merchandise as a part of the marketing strategy?

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Music Merch Guide

Many musicians struggle in turning their passion for music into a living. Why? Perhaps this is because so many artists do not realise that being a musician also means running your own business. In order to make money from your artistry, you need to wake up and smell the corporate coffee…

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Making Merch Work For You Now – Covid Edition

We are living in trying times for sure, friends. And while this IS temporary, it may be some time before you can take your show back on the road. With this harsh reality looming, the first instinct may be to panic. Try not to do that - don’t let uncertainty prevent you from moving forward. The best thing we can do for ourselves now is to keep going, find ways to pivot, and figure out how to weather this storm.  

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Music Show Admission: Sales Management For Your Venue

Performing live at music shows is always such a rush. You play or sing to overjoyed fans and it seems like the rest of the world melts away. But it’s also necessary to think about practical elements such as admission and merchandise sales.

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How To Use Merch To Engage Your Fans

Fan engagement and direct-to-fan are hot topics these days because it’s finally come to light that fans are the real gatekeepers in the music business. And by now we should also know that merchandise is one of the surefire ways that artists can make solid money today. Like most other revenue streams for artists, being successful at your merch biz is highly dependent on your fans. The good news is that in addition to being a cash generator, your merch can actually be used as a fan engagement tool. When you’re using your merch to engage your fans, they’ll feel connected to you.  When they feel connected and as if they are part of your journey, they will be likely to buy more. So how exactly can you use merch to engage your fans? Here are five ways:

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How To Sell Merch & Music At Shows Without Being Sales-y

When it comes to selling merch and music at live shows, it’s not uncommon for musicians to feel uncomfortable and out-of-their-element. This unsettling feeling usually causes musicians to avoid sales altogether.

After all, we musicians are creatives. Deep down, we believe that the quality of our creative products should speak for themselves.

And yes, it should…

But only if people know about it.

That’s where marketing comes in.

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7 Tips To Improve Merchandise Sales

A big reason why fans purchase music merch is to connect with others that share a common interest, and to show off their musical tastes.

Merchandise is also a great way to advertise your artist. We find that items with the artist’s name included tend to sell better than items without it.

It doesn’t have to be splattered in huge letters across the front, but including the artist’s name visibly on the item helps.

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6 Ways To Make Sure You’re Leaving Nothing On The (Merch) Table

This post was written by Brian Buchanan and originally appeared on the Bandzoogle Blog.​

It’s 2017! Here we all are in the future, and what do you know - the music industry hasn’t collapsed!

Sure, CDs aren’t selling the way they used to in stores. Neither is digital music, thanks to the explosion of streaming services. But those of us living the nose-to-the-grindstone, unglamorous life of the touring musician know a secret: people still buy stuff at shows.

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Want to Make More Money from Bandcamp? Add Some Merch

If you’re already using Bandcamp for digital downloads of your music, then you know what a powerful sales tool the platform can be. But if you limit yourself to only selling those digital downloads, you’re leaving money on the table. Here’s a brief guide to the benefits of adding merchandise to your Bandcamp store.

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How To Sell Merch Like A Boss

Don’t get stuck with a bunch of burned disks you can’t sell. The more options you have for getting rid of merch, the more likely you are to sell stuff. Here are some easy options to help you sell merch like a boss.

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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.  

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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.

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Band Merch: Breaking Away From T-Shirts And CDs

Recently, I jokingly tweeted that bands should capitalize on fingerboards as a form of merchandise. Surprisingly, some people from my fairly low amount of Twitter followers seemed to agree with the sentiment. Merchandise costs money of course, but it’s specifically how bands make money on the road. This is especially true in today’s internet age, but I’ve also learned that the more merch you have at your table, the more you’ll sell, as you appeal to different tastes. I’m not saying your DIY, independent band has to have six plus tee-shirt designs. I’m saying don’t be afraid to step outside of the box. Here’s some merch ideas I’ve seen artists - some platinum-selling, some who can’t sell more than 100 copies of their records - do before that struck me as particularly interesting.

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