More And More Bands (And Their Labels) Giving Fans A Reason To Buy

from the good-news dept

Peter Davias alerts us to an article over at Indyweek noting how more and more bands are adding value in order to get fans to actually find it worthwhile to buy the album. The article includes a bunch of examples down at the end, including a limited edition comic book based on each song on an album (by the band The Hold Steady). The band Sunn O))) apparently offered up some different options, including just getting a patch with the CD... or if you bought both the CD and a t-shirt, you got the patch along with a sticker and a poster. And on and on it goes. But, what's worth mentioning here is that many of these promotions appear to be done with the record label in question. I know it's fashionable for some to claim there's no need at all for a record label any more, but I still think there's a place for labels in helping the bands that don't want to figure out these business model issues themselves. It's just that the old "model" of bands signing away everything to those labels is likely to change drastically. Still, it's nice to see more and more record labels recognizing that the way to sell these days is to provide additional value beyond just the music.

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Band Used By The Prosecution In Pirate Bay Case Releases Latest Album... On The Pirate Bay

from the whoops dept

Advance Patrol was one of the bands used by the prosecution in The Pirate Bay trial as an example of a band harmed by The Pirate Bay. Except... apparently the band didn't think so. Isak sends in the news that the band has released its latest album on The Pirate Bay, with a message saying how they love The Pirate Bay:

The hiphop group known as Advance Patrol hereby release its new album on The Pirate Bay today. They do so to spread their music to as many as possible, and at the same time discredit the prosecution against The Pirate Bay, a prosecution where Advanced Patrol has been used as a weapon in the circus around the court proceedings....

We never asked to be plaintiffs in this case, Gonza from Advance Patrol explains, they used us as a weapon in a fight in which we don't wish to participate. We refuse to be used in a war against our fans!

You cannot legislate away file sharing, Gonza says. Those who share our music are also those who appreciate it the most. They are my friends, and friendship is something to be valued highly. That's why we're giving away El Futuro to the internet, to our friends.

Once again, the further this goes on, the worse and worse the lawsuit looks for the entertainment industry...

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Bands That Take Selling Seriously

from the don't-forget-the-merch dept

We recently wrote about how bands are (successfully) experimenting with different models to sell more merchandise at shows, and Ian Rogers of Topspin (who I also -- finally -- got to meet at the Leadership Music Digital Summit) writes about two bands he recently saw who clearly understand the value of selling (and, as he notes, neither band is using Topspin, so he's not promoting his own partners here) by actually realizing that selling merchandise is part of their job. He describes how one band, Halestorm, was opening for another band, but rather than being just a typical opening band that fades into the background, they made sure that people knew about them, first by putting on a great show and then by making it clear that (a) they have affordable merchandise for sale and (b) the band itself will be hanging out with the crowd and wants to meet everyone. From Ian's post:

• Lzzy starts solo with a guitar around her neck and a mic, just singing acapella. Long notes, killer voice. She has people cheering for her before the rest of the band even walks out on stage. Before her voice gets hidden behind the rock, she lets 'em know she can sing and you can see people are impressed straight away.
• The rest of the band appears and they tear through a few songs. It's straight-ahead rock, on the heavy side but ready for pop radio. Everyone in the band is high-energy and engaging, even Lzzy's brother Arejay on drums is standing up for parts of the songs and just generally being a showman.
• Mid-way through the set Lzzy announces they have a new record coming out in a few weeks but you can buy a pre-release of it now for $5 at the merch stand.
• There's a drum solo-y part that doesn't go on long and ends with the entire band at the front of the stage playing drums and the crowd cheering as they go crazy with it.
• During the last song Lzzy reminds them that they have their own merch stand upstairs and CDs for only $5. She also says the whole band is going to be up there after their set and that she wants to meet everyone.
• I head over to the merch stand after the show and watch their tour manager relieve the woman who runs the merch table so she can disappear into the crowd below with a box of CDs with "Halestorm CDs $5" written on it.
• The merch stand is mobbed. It's surrounded by people and they are selling merch literally as fast as their tour manager can manage.
• The band appears (after breaking down their own stage setup) and meets and talks to as many people as possible, while helping to sell their merch.
• Free stickers list their MySpace page, etc.

As Ian notes: "I'm not worried about these guys at all. Even if the record doesn't work at radio (it may) they're going to do just fine building their audience one show at a time." The band is doing everything right. They're using every opportunity to connect with fans, while also giving them a real reason to buy. They're not waiting for their record label to get them on the radio or MTV. They're doing everything they can to actually build up a rabid supporting fanbase from the bottom up.

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Another Band With Another Unique Business Model

from the turning-your-fans-into-promoters dept

Often, when we describe a certain business model put in place by one band that embraces the basic economics of the music industry, someone shows up in the comments to claim "while this might work for musician X, that's an exception... it'll never work for big/small/mainstream/niche/whatever artists." This sort of comment misses the larger point. We are not suggesting a single "business model" for the entire industry. In fact, we're just explaining the economic forces at play, and showing a variety of different business models that embrace those economics. It's those different business models that makes the market so interesting and dynamic and allows bands to stand out from the crowd.

For the latest example, reader James Saunders points us to the band Umphrey's McGee, who implemented a business model for their latest album that helped turn their fans into promoters. Saunders explains the band's "unique plan":

As more people pre-ordered, the band would add more "extras" to the release. There were eight tiers of potential content, each unlocked once a predetermined number of albums were purchased. The result was a massive effort by fans to promote the album for the band; if they got more people to buy it, their own purchase would have more value. I bought my copy over 2 months ago, and I convinced two friends to get it as well. Eventually, all eight tiers were unlocked, so a good number of albums must have been sold. The whole experience offered more to fans than just "music tracks" which could be pirated. Instead they were given a chance to help a band they love reach a wider audience, while at the same time "earning" more for what they were already willing to pay."

This is a neat variation on a similar model we've seen from musicians like Marillion and Jill Sobule to get fans to agree to pay up early in exchange for some benefit. The addition of having different beneficial levels "open up" just adds to the appeal, and it helps turn fans into promoters as well. Again, this is not "the" business model for all bands -- but yet another example of a band recognizing one way to implement a business model that really does focus on connecting with fans and giving them a real reason to buy.

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