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R.I.P. Bo Diddley

I am a huge fan of rock music history, and in that regard you don’t get much more historic or pioneering than Bo Diddley.

As we celebrate an historical week for America, we lose an historical figure.

“If there’s a Rock-n-Roll Heaven, you know they got a helluva band.”

Posted Friday June 6, 2008
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50 Bands

Here’s a fun exercise for a Friday (or really any day): find all 50 bands represented in this image. Before you know it, hours will have ticked by.

Posted Friday May 9, 2008
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Street Teams

Record labels and independent musicians have been utilizing street teams to deploy on-the-street guerrilla marketing tactics for a long time. But mobilizing these fans can be a complicated exercise in logistics and time management.

Now there is an online software platform available for managing street teams no matter where they are. A great idea whose time has come and something events also should look into. It’s comprehensive, user-friendly, with built-in quality control and incentives for the best street teamers.

Check out Fancorps.com.

Posted Tuesday April 22, 2008
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Thoughts on South by Southwest '08

No surprise, SXSW was replete with way too much to do to squeeze it all in. Crazy! My musical highlights included punk veterans X and I finally got around to seeing Tom Freund, for whom a friend plays drums. I’d say his music is a cross between Lucinda Williams and Leonard Cohen. WOW.

And of course it was a marketing explosion. Very well done in most cases, I’d say, although there was so much of it that it’s easy to get lost in the chaos. Dell did a killer lounge in the convention center, with a fake fireplace, plush carpet, and acoustic acts playing during the day. Probably something they do all the time at trade shows, but not really the kind of thing you see at events like South-by, where the marketing is as much B(usiness) to C(onsumer) as it is B to B.

Several companies had their own venues, be it an actual existing brick and mortar space or a big tent they popped up just for the occasion. Either way, it’s an effective way for a brand to take ownership of the goings-on and then share that with consumers. A nice version of the pop-up store concept.

There was a good bit of “ambush marketing” as well – non-sponsoring companies (who are often competitors with the official sponsors) just showing up and giving away product and swag – which sucks for sponsors but it happens all the time at events. It would be nice if event organizers would police that more effectively but sometimes they can’t and then sometimes they just don’t.

Posted Thursday March 20, 2008
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South by Southwest Hosts Marketing with Music Panels

One of the (many) reasons SXSW is such a hot property is the daytime panel discussions at which top industry pros discuss myriad topics relevant to the business of music. Panels are only open to badge-holders, which means you have to be a festival registrant. (SXSW also sells wristbands for fans who are only interested in attending the artist showcases.)

This year there will be two panels discussing the partnership opportunities between bands & brands:

Brands, Bands, and Fans
Here’s the description of the panel according to the website:
With the traditional music industry in a state of flux, new opportunities for investment and exposure are arising. Music has the ability to inspire passion, engage audiences on a variety of levels, and offers a versatile media for conveying thoughts, feelings and ideas. It is no surprise then that consumer brands around the world see music as an effective platform for delivering a brand experience. Leading music and brand specialists look at which campaigns actually succeed in putting value back into music, and what lessons can the music industry learn to develop preferable brand partnerships in future.

This Year’s Model: Brand Labels
Description:
The music business is undergoing a sea of change as name artists become free agents and new artists question the value of the traditional label/publisher relationship. There are only so many movie, TV, and game slots to expose new music. Starbucks Hear Music has opened the door to yet another alternative: the brand label. Brands are becoming very active in working with artists in more of a partnership arrangement. The panel will discuss the opportunities and ramifications of this new model.

Posted Wednesday March 5, 2008
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South by Southwest Taste on a MyTown Budget

SXSW has become such a high-profile music industry event that marketers clamor to it and then try to rise above the fray to create a killer buzz campaign. And that gets pricey.

(Click here to better understand why music is such a powerful marketing tool.)

So your product or service is perfect for a music industry showcase & festival, but what’s a small business to do? Well, check around for a SXSW knock-off in your city or region. The tremendous success of SXSW has spawned tons of copy-cat events all over the country. Of course they may not offer the same prestigious association, but they do offer a heck of a lot else that any savvy marketer can and should take advantage of. They also offer the chance for a more meaningful interaction with potential consumers – an opportunity that marketing-campaign-saturation renders less relevant every year at SXSW .

So here’s a partial list of similar events in other cities that might be more budget- and marketing-friendly to you:
DFest in Tulsa, Ok.
MusicFest Northwest in Portland, Or.
Atlantis Music Festival in Atlanta, Ga.
NoisePop in San Francisco, Ca.
MOBFest in Chicago, Il.

In addition to the above, most major markets have a local alt-weekly paper that hosts an annual music awards event. Some markets that come to mind are Dallas, Houston, St. Louis, Kansas City, Phoenix, L.A. / Orange County, Seattle, and Portland.

These events are lists that come to mind with no research (as I’ve been to most of them). So it’s just a matter of a little research.

OR…

Combo Platter specializes in this kind of thing. To find out why you should consider music events to market at, go here and here

To determine if this is a viable marketing avenue for your business – and it’s not for everyone – contact Combo Platter at info(at)ComboPlatter(dot)net.

Posted Friday February 29, 2008
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South by Southwest

Spring Break for music industry folk takes place every March in Austin, Tx. Being a native Texan, SXSW is a ritual for me. Now that I’m in Seattle, it’s not as easy to get to, but get to I do.

When I first started going in the mid-90’s, folks were complaining about how it had grown from a cool little event that showcased the best of Texas and regional music, to a commercialized sellout that kowtowed to the major labels. Well if that were the case circa 1995, it’s now a grotesque orgy of expense accounts, schmoozing and marketing, with a little music thrown in.

I still have a blast every year! Drop me a line if you’re going.

Posted Sunday February 24, 2008
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Blurring the Lines

Superstar hip-hop producer Timbaland has agreed to produce songs exclusively for distribution to subscribers of Verizon’s V-Cast service. Subscribers will get other exclusives too, such as “making of” videos, and of course ringtones and ringbacks.

You might be saying to yourself, “Wait a minute, I thought Verizon was a cell-phone service. But this sounds more like an entertainment service.”

Now THAT is Engagement Marketing.

Posted Friday February 8, 2008
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Marketing with Music and Almost No Money

Got $10 to spare for a marketing effort?

Sell A Band may represent the new paradigm for emerging acts in music, given the slow implosion that major labels are currently experiencing, not to mention the coma that music-centered retailers are in.

On Sell A Band, you can search around for acts that your customers like and if you find some, you can sign up for free as a Believer and invest in increments of $10. And of course artists can sign up for free and invite friends and fans to invest.

An especially good idea for small businesses with a strong online / e-commerce aspect, and those who want to build their web presence.

Posted Friday February 1, 2008
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This One Goes to 11

Are you sick and tired of the phrase “Think(ing) outside the box”? I sure am.

Instead, in homage to one of the classics in cinema, I’d rather go to 11.

Posted Sunday January 20, 2008
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Shock N Rock

File Under: Oh Brother.

As I often espouse in this blog and on this page, and as you probably have seen for yourself, music is ubiquitous these days as a marketing tool. Free downloads are all too common (read: tired), and cell phone companies have been incorporating MP3 players into their devices with great success in the past few years.

So marketers of all kinds are now trying to capitalize on the MP3 trend. One new entry is Taser.

Yes, that’s right. You can rock while you shock.

While I obviously support the use of music in marketing, that’s not to say that it’s a one-size-fits-all idea. Sometimes it comes off as parents trying to be cool around their kids’ friends and ending up looking ridiculous. Is that what Taser’s doing? I think so, but time will tell.

Posted Wednesday January 9, 2008
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Engagement Marketing

I love the pop-up store concept. It’s when a brand opens a retail store for a brief period of time, typically no more than a month or so and sometimes just a week or two.

There are lots of cool things about this idea. Because of the short life-span of a pop-up store, it instills a sense of urgency. Because it’s usually a one-off, the brand doing the pop-up will often do fun promotions and things that you don’t normally find at a traditional store. It’s a fantastic way to engage the consumer and to find new ones. It’s also a great idea for brands that may not be a very viable long-term retailer, or those who’d like to test the waters. Charities, for example.

Rhino Records has a pop-up store just for the month of December in LA, where visitors can see the real-life versions of box sets, limited edition prints, read the liner notes, etc. In other words, they can be ENGAGED. I’ve not heard the term “Engagement Marketing” anywhere else so far, but that’s what’s going on here and it’s the new paradigm in marketing of any kind.

So how do you engage your fans?

Posted Thursday December 27, 2007
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Marketing and Music Industry Chaos

The music industry is in something of a Jekyll and Hyde situation right now. CD sales have been in decline for several years, and the ball is rolling downhill faster and faster. This means that major record labels are slowly imploding. That’s the down side.

The up side is that music is more ubiquitous than ever; bands and artists have MUCH more power and options than ever; and there are tons more marketing channels and ways for an artist to build their business besides selling records.

Not long ago it was cd sales (“units moved”) that was the only measure of an act’s success, and touring was primarily a means of promoting and selling cd’s. But the decades-old paradigm is shifting. Full-length cd’s are being eclipsed by single downloads, and music is often given away for free as a promotional tool that then hooks the fan into buying merch, concert tickets, not to mention the ever-increasing pool of artists’ ancillary businesses such as clothing and fragrances. CD sales tracking is now only one element of the overall success measure, as things like live shows, ringtones, blog and chat room buzz, and social networking show the bigger picture of who’s hot and who’s not. Very often cd sales don’t translate into ticket sales, and artists who don’t sell many cd’s consistently play sold-out shows. Artists who use to be tied to major labels out of necessity are now taking control back and doing all kinds of never-seen-before experiments and deals. It’s pretty exciting, unless you’re employed at a major.

So major labels are hurting badly, other things are still evolving and have yet to settle into a predictable methodology, and many other music business aspects are positively thriving. It just so happens that those thriving parts, and even the still-evolving parts, are the ones that a business of any type and any size can utilize in a marketing partnership. Don’t let any reports of doom and gloom give you the wrong impression. These are the days.

Posted Thursday December 20, 2007
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Great Info for Musicians

Here is an excellent resource for finding all manner of advice regarding the music business. Any baby band or emerging artist has to take care of their own business at least for a while, like it or not. Not knowing the tricks of the trade can really hurt an artist creatively and financially, and in fact has hurt many including some of the most well-known. The Beatles, for one.

Even after an artist has achieved a level of success that warrants having a manager, booking agent, attorney, publicist, business manager, label, publisher, distributor, etc., it’s still important for a musician to understand the business. This can be difficult because business often feels counter-intuitive to a musician’s creativity. But there are literally hundreds if not thousands of horror stories of musicians who just didn’t know any better and got totally screwed because of it.

There are tons and tons of books, blogs and websites that dole out music business advice and tips, but I like this as a real user-friendly and easy to navigate page; and the information is sourced from bona-fide industry pros. I’ve checked out a few of the articles on the page, and so far everything is very thorough and spot on. I highly recommend taking the time to utilize this valuable resource on a continual basis.

Posted Wednesday December 19, 2007
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Marketing with Music Gone Wrong

Music is such a popular (read: effective) tool for marketing that occasionally big companies will make what I believe are big missteps in trying to cram music into their brand messaging.

Sometimes there are TV spots whose concepts clearly started with the song, then the spot was built around that. Someone in the C wing said “I love this song, we gotta use it in our commercials!”, and next thing you know your TV’s showing you an SUV driving through an empty cityscape to the strains of “Dust in the Wind” by Kansas. Ugh.

The latest one to make me shake my head sadly is the Direct TV spot / music video featuring Beyonce pitching the service by singing about how great Direct TV is while a team of nattily clad gents join her in a smartly choreographed routine.

(Her spots for Amex, on the other hand, are much more tastefully done.)

Will her fans start screaming for Direct TV now? I kinda doubt it, but who knows. The bigger issue for me is that the commercial is barely distinguishable from a music video, which of course is the point. But that just goes to show you how truly manufactured top 40 music and videos are these days. And is Beyonce a manufactured act? See, THAT’S my point – no, she’s not. She is truly a multi-talented performer. And this kind of thing is way beneath her.

The key to making an artist & business partnership really work, really resonate with the fans that the company is trying to reach, is to make it authentic. There needs to be a philosophical match, if you will, between artist and company. Something that makes sense not just to the target consumer, but to the artist’s fan base.

Every artist will have her or his own definition of selling out, as will their fans. There are lots of great ways to create a great joint promotion partnership between artists and companies, but if you ask me this is a textbook sellout.

Posted Tuesday December 4, 2007
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Rock of All Ages

Last night I caught the PBS airing of “Paul McCartney: The Space Within Us”, a concert and interview documentary. One thing that struck me, yet was not surprising, was the span of generations present at his shows. From teen punks to soccer moms (and dads) to boomers, the range was vast. In many cases it looked like a real family affair, even with some babes in arms and toddlers in tow.

In case you thought using music as a marketing tool only works with teens and twenty-somethings, think again.

Posted Friday November 30, 2007
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Sponsorship is for Everyone

While this site is obviously skewed toward the benefits of sponsoring music events in particular, which is a huge category in itself, the biggest category for sponsorship is in fact sports. This ranges from the obvious ones such as American football, golf, and the Olympics to things like local 5k marathons and boating events.

This is especially great news for small businesses. It means that there are opportunities just about everywhere and you don’t need a budget of millions to get into the action. In fact, many smaller local events – whether they are sports, music, parades, community, holiday, charity, or whatever – have starting points at just a couple hundred dollars (much cheaper than advertising on radio or many print publications).

Whoever handles sponsorship for the event you’re considering should take the time to explain in detail all the available options for you that would best fit your budget and objectives. Try not to let preconceptions of pushy salespeople scare you away. Good sponsorship staff understand that honesty is the best policy and that creating a win-win situation is good business. When in doubt, do some research on the event and see if they’ve had consistent sponsors or if it changes drastically every year. (Some change is normal, but a big overhaul year after year is a red flag.)

Now brush off that hesitation and go for it!

Posted Tuesday November 27, 2007
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Music + Marketing = Win-Win

Digital Music News reports a huge investment by energy drink brand Red Bull into the music business, including a state of the art recording studio at their U.S. headquarters in California. Details are scarce for now, but the report also says that many top music executives are in on the happenings.

Clearly the brand is looking to enhance and expand its lifestyle profile by adding music artists to the list of tastemakers and events, mostly in the realm of extreme sports, that they are already aligned with. It remains to be seen whether these artists will be household names or not, but my guess is they will first go after acts who also fit into the extreme sports lifestyle, such as emerging acts in punk, and DJs.

This arrangement should be a win-win for Red Bull and the artists (and labels? producers?) it works with. The scenario will likely include things like Red Bull having exclusivity on some singles that can be digitally and otherwise distributed to their consumers; and of course tour support. In exchange, the artist will probably get free studio time, added exposure, and of course money. The trick here is to work the deal so that the artist gets the money and promotion without feeling like – or coming off to their fans as – a shill. Look for an upcoming white paper on this very subject from Combo Platter.

Often referred to as “Bands and Brands” or something similar, you will see lots of discussion on this type of association here.

Posted Tuesday November 20, 2007
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Emotions Mean Business

People make decisions based on emotion rather than facts or logic. That is not meant to criticize, after all I’m a people too; rather it’s a familiar observation borne out time and again. I have read actual poll summaries that say folks preferred one person’s position on the issues, but liked another person more and so that’s who they’d be voting for.

(But I’m not going THERE.)

Where I am going is that this is Reason Number One to use music and events as marketing tools. People, when they’re listening to a cd, or at a concert, or attending a festival, are having FUN. They LIKE being there. They CHOSE to be there doing that instead of somewhere else doing something else, and they most likely spent their hard-earned money to do it. And the best part is, at least at a concert or festival, there’s a bunch of other people who are there for the same reason.

Don’t you think you should be a part of that?

Posted Tuesday November 13, 2007
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Discoveries

I love discovering new music.

There’s a buzz on for Black Kids. I think they’re pretty good. So far they don’t blow me away, and that’s really what I’m looking for. The last band to really blow me away was Arcade Fire, and before that it was The Polyphonic Spree (from my hometown Dallas, Tx.) But those were a few years ago. So I’ll keep my eyes and ears out for more Black Kids stuff and I hope they someday blow me and lots of other people away.

Now a group that is blowing me at least a little bit away is The Go! Team. Most recent release was a couple months ago. Will have to keep my eyes out for a Seattle tour date.

This is a cool place to find new stuff that suits your tastes. For other Combo Platter favorites, go here

What music blows you away? Share!

Posted Monday November 5, 2007
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