The Music Marketing Manifesto. Ten Principles For Success

1. Write, record and play high quality music

It seems like an obvious thing to say, but everything starts & ends with the music. If the songs are poor, the recording is bad, and the live show is dull don’t expect to make a living from music.

2. Continue to only deal in high quality

Some of the best new bands and artists are let down by terrible videos, bad photography and shocking design. Yes it is fickle, but judging a book by it’s cover is a reality. When you are choosing which artist to review, book, or even sign you are invariably drawn to the most attractive presentation. So why not increase your chances of being heard? Remember, you can have the best music in the world but if nobody listens ,you get nowhere.

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How Stuff Spreads – Gangnam Style vs. Harlem Shake

In a new study looking at ‘How Stuff Spreads’ Face has identified key components that make things go viral. Looking at the spread on Twitter of two global memes, Gangnam Style vs Harlem Shake, Face discovered eight common characteristics which it says led to them becoming viral phenomena, generating thousands of spin-off versions and billions of views.

The eight common characteristics are:

1. Bursts and Rises: There are 2 models of virality.

The Burstmodel is bottom-up:the variations are more powerful then the original seed and there’s no clear leadership or narrative. The meme relies on community relevance to spread.

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MusicThinkTank.com Weekly Recap: How Often Should You Play? 6 Drawbacks to Playing More Shows

• Ariel Hyatt | 6 Key Tactics For Organic Success on YouTube From Hip Hop Artist Robert Scott

• Simon Tam | How Often Should You Play? 6 Drawbacks to Playing More Shows

• Dillon Roulet | The Musician of Oz

MusicThinkTank.com Weekly Recap: The Next Era of the Music Business & More

Where

The Music Industry

Thinks Out Loud 

• Marcus Taylor: 4 Emerging Trends in Social Media & How They’ll Impact The Music Industry
• Bobby Owsinski: The Next Era Of The Music Business

MusicThinkTank.com Weekly Recap: The Rise of Vinyl & more

Where

The Music Industry

Thinks Out Loud

• Corey Crossfield: Mobile Engagement With Applications
• Simon Tam: How to Get a Sponsor or Endorsement: The Sponsorship Packet/Proposal Outline
• Joe Petro: The Rise Of Vinyl

MusicThinkTank.com Weekly Recap: How to Create a Successful Kickstarter Campaign & more

Where The Music Industry Thinks Out Loud

• Ariel Hyatt: How To Make Your Facebook Timeline POP!
• Simon Tam: How to Create a Successful Kickstarter Campaign
• Tom Dennehy: Research Says Young Listeners May Embrace CD Quality Audio. Habit Says It Won’t Be on CD.
• Jamie Leger: The Indie Artist Launch Plan - Part TWO

Natalie Cheng Is Music Think Tank's New Community Manager

We’re proud to name Natalie Cheng as Music Think Tank’s first ever Community Manager. Natalie has toiled away in the shadows here for months; editing comments, tagging posts and in general keeping things flowing.  This acknowledgement of her efforts is long overdue.

So, who is Natalie Cheng?

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Music Think Tank Logo

I just passed this logo over to Bruce and Kyle at Hypebot, but it occurred to me that others may need it also.  Without further introduction, may I present…the Music Think Tank logo (as a PNG).

50 Most Read Music Think Tank Posts In 2010

Here’s a look at the top Music Think Tank posts in 2010. There’s some invaluable advice being churned out by these great authors. If you have a minute, glance through this great list of insights and marketing advice. This listing is organized by pageviews. Take a look:

1. How to Write a Music Business Plan
2. Bob Marley: The Transformative Sound of Selling Out
3. 15 Critical Marketing Mistakes That All Musicians Need To Avoid
4. 30 Tips For The Typical Musician 
5. Why Music Should Never Be Given Away For “Free”  
6. Template for Writing a Music Business Plan 
7. Eleven Steps To Fixing The Problem That Occurs When You Work Harder Than Everyone Else In The Band
8. Dear Musicians - Please Be Brilliant or Get Out of The Way
9. Well, What Is A Good Digital Music Strategy ? Part 1 - Introduction and Website  
10. 9 Mistakes To Avoid When Recording Your Own Album

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What If You Owned Music Think Tank?

It’s been a few months since the Hypebot team has taken over the stewardship of Music Think Tank. In that time, we’ve published some really spectacular material along with a couple of things that did not deserve to be featured in this thoughtful forum. Along the way, we’ve learned and are (we hope) slowly improving how we do things and the quality of the content.  But now that we’ve got our bearings, it’s time to ask for feedback: If you ran Music Think Tank, how would you do things differently?

For example:

• Should we more or less selective with the articles that we publish on the home page?
• Does the current level of self-promotion in some posts bother you or is it payback for sharing their content?
• Are there additional voices that you wished were represented here?
• Are there topics that you wish we’re covered more on MTT?
• Do you listen to MTT Radio and if so, how can we improve it?
• (Your great idea here.)

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