PROMOTION, MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION DISCUSSION

Z and I are on one called strangeworld.
There free networks.
I will get a link. Or Z can.
DACE>

DACE wrote:Z and I are on one called strangeworld.
There free networks.
I will get a link. Or Z can.
DACE>

Checked this out but it looks like its closed now.

Checked out Ning too and its no longer free. The cheapest paid option only gives you 1 GB of storage which is no good for video.

I checked out a free script called Beatz which does give you full audio / video site when you add it to your hosting site. It was just too complicated to get it to work.

To do this you need all sorts of add ons and programming knowledge. I don't want to spend large amounts of time learning this stuff. Need something easy that works.

I have the webspace (150GB) if there is an easy option. I could do a website and use flash players.......but that wouldn't be interactive.

Any further thoughts on this ?????

I will check into it. Not sure what is available at the moment and still free and easy to set up.

Some other promotional ideas I have seen recently (that some bands use) are:

1. Bundling -- give a CD away free with something else (like sell the T-shirt and give away the CD with it).

2. Buying the CD gives you an online freebie (inside the CD package is a code or something that gets you a
free download when you enter it online)

3. Exclusives -- you get something in the CD package you can't get by downloading the music (a bonus disc
with video on it, or something like that)

4. Special Media -- releasing the music on Vinyl with better and bigger artwork, lyrics, liner notes,....

5. Alternate distribution methods -- convincing the local coffee shop to put a display up by the register
where people can buy your CDs for a discount (maybe just a stack of one CD at a time for $5 each or something)



Z

On the note of FREE, or CHEAP, or DEAL...Not with me! I played that game at the flea markets for YEARS! NOPE! it dont work...HIGH DOLLAR SELLS BEST! TRUTH thru doing it for YEARS! You put your price, you sick to it, you DONT sell "cheap" or make "deals"!!!!!
TRUST ME ON THAT......10 bucks is as cheap as it gets! Its our MUSIC..We buy gear and shit..we spend time, put our heart into it. NO DEALS!

10 bucks man....How much Gas will that get you...4 gal. here...2 people cant get fast food lunch for 10.

Lets dont go the "deals" road please. Im not anyway. Been down it, STILL BROKE!



Thing is, i dont know if we need any site yet?????
For ourself, we dont...To promo and sell, yes we do..Our OWN site..But its alot of work and time. I know i need the money, i know peter wants to sell his music....Im up to try anything.

I know this also..I have recorded 3 tunes in the last 2 days, this day is not over. That comes first......As it should with us all. If I ask Z for something, I want him to do HIS music FIRST, then help me if he can. We need to keep at the MUSIC...First things first.
Forum posting, online surffing, BSing, should be second to our music!
I see this ALL the time..People say "O, im to busy to do music", but there online BSing ALL the time....They could be recording...They dont want to is what it is..NOT they dont have time. Or they dont see things right??? Its to bad for them.

If you do your music, even if you dont think you want to, you WILL get excited about it, you WILL want it heard, you WILL find a way to make that happen.

I have seen this happen, I have MADE it happen for others and myself online.
GET EXCITED about your music...DO your music, all the other stuff comes from all that.

YES..we need to talk here..This is a Forum to do just that. And im talking about the whole of people online, NOT us here..Tho we do get off track here alot also. MUSIC is why we come here.

Not ranting guys, just thought....MUSIC is the main THOUGHT with us all.

DACE>

Absolutely. I'll take your word on the price point.
It's like fishing. If no one is biting it doesn't matter what your bait is.

I agree totally about the MUSIC. That is the way I approach it as well.
MUSIC always comes first.

Z

We have had things set on our table for months asking a buck for them. Then started saying 5 bucks,,,,, SOLD...Everytime! They think if its cheap, its not good or something. Its was hard to learn needing cash SO bad....You want to make money, you figgure, if it DEAL, they will but it......NOPE! THEY WONT! If they dont like the price they will ask if you would take less...But most times, if you something, you get it...IF its not TO cheap.
ANY less than 10 bucks for a SEALED-INDIE-ALBUM, it TO cheap! They wont buy it.

When we sold LPs and Music stuff in TX, we were NOT cheap! We sold GREAT at the record shows..HELL! We would get 4 tables at 40 bucks each for ONE DAY SHOW!..But he gave us one Free....Still alot of cash, but we made MONEY!!! GOOD money. And our shit looked KILLER...He would put us right by the front door....He said, you guys table LOOKS like a record show!!!!...So he liked that...us...Bob was good to us. I miss the shows. i miss the money also..lololol...

Good to hear on the Music Z....I allways worry i take up your music-time. I dont want to do that. Its NOT fair to you because you have SO little time to do music.

DACE>

DACE wrote:We have had things set on our table for months asking a buck for them. Then started saying 5 bucks,,,,, SOLD...Everytime! They think if its cheap, its not good or something. Its was hard to learn needing cash SO bad....You want to make money, you figgure, if it DEAL, they will but it......NOPE! THEY WONT! If they dont like the price they will ask if you would take less...But most times, if you something, you get it...IF its not TO cheap.
ANY less than 10 bucks for a SEALED-INDIE-ALBUM, it TO cheap! They wont buy it.

When we sold LPs and Music stuff in TX, we were NOT cheap! We sold GREAT at the record shows..HELL! We would get 4 tables at 40 bucks each for ONE DAY SHOW!..But he gave us one Free....Still alot of cash, but we made MONEY!!! GOOD money. And our shit looked KILLER...He would put us right by the front door....He said, you guys table LOOKS like a record show!!!!...So he liked that...us...Bob was good to us. I miss the shows. i miss the money also..lololol...

Good to hear on the Music Z....I allways worry i take up your music-time. I dont want to do that. Its NOT fair to you because you have SO little time to do music.

DACE>

Totally with you on the pricing DACE........I pointed out right at the beginning of this thread that I have sold far more tracks online than I have ever been able to give away as free downloads. Its all about percieved value of an item.
Its also a good point about getting a fair return for our hard work and investment into our music.
We may do it for the love of it .......but there's no reason why we should sell ourselves short.

If some one is buying something because its cheap or there is a deal then they are buying it for the wrong reason.

Another point I need to make is that I too am guilty of spending too much time here lately.
Putting these threads in and answering takes up a lot of time and when you add to that the time I spent putting the Darkstarcruiser project together and setting up a website for that......well I haven't made a track for several weeks.

I really need to get on with the next GT album so if I dissappear for awhile its not any kind of lack of interest but the pressing need to get on with making music......and I know that you will understand that.

The other point is about a website. I can build websites and I have masses of webspace sitting idle on a hosting account. All I need to do is get a good dotcom domain name for a few dollars.
Maybe a Wordpress website would work for us ??
They can be set up fairly easily and I can do custom designs as I have the software.
Essentially they are a Blog but lots of people use them as websites and its easy to embed videos and flash players.

I could give everyone their own page and I could add your Soundcloud or Soundclick players on there.
People can also add comments on Wordpress pages so it gets a bit interactive.

You can also link posts to sites like Facebook and Twitter.

I have done all this before and I know it works and they seem to rank well in the Google Search Engine.

Some Domain names available:

the-fortress-of-solitude.com
the-f-o-s.com
f-o-s.co.uk
f-o-s.us

THe best ones are always gone like ....fortressof solitude.com......but I think the dashes work better anyway. Dotcom's are always best as they get first priority in a search engine.

Think about it.....theres no hurry.

You guys are right about pricing.

I'll just get you some merch, and you can set the price Dace.

I'm only good at selling beers to blondes when I'm buying!


Z

""I really need to get on with the next GT album so if I dissappear for awhile its not any kind of lack of interest but the pressing need to get on with making music......and I know that you will understand that. """

Peter...I just set aside times in my day to be online. You have to get uesd to having "time"....Now that you do, setup time for here, time for music, time for other things...On and Off does nobody any good.

You leave out for a week or month, things change on ya...I know this from going offline..You know ths also.

Just setup some time-spots for things you do.

Z....
10 bucks is the price...Its fair to both sides..and the right price.
50% of all sales go's to you for the copies and AFR site.
But thats if i start selling alot...And i think i will in time.
We will get to the money when it starts rolling in.

DACE>

$10 works for me. You gonna have a little boom box to play samples?

As for time, yes, what works best for me is just going with the flow.
I almost always have a little time during the day between meetings.
I use that to post and listen since I'm not at home and can't record.

And then from about 10 to Midnight I can record, listen, and post.
Which I pretty much do in that order. If I'm not trying to finish a song, I listen and post.
If I am trying to finish one, I work on that.

If I'm out of town at the lake, I use an hour or two of that time to write fiction.
Since I don't usually haul a bunch of gear up there.

But take any time you need Peter. We'll keep the lights on.

Z

Thats me also Z...And online is an important part of my day..I enjoy it, and it helps my music alot also.

Being offline showed me how much its part of my life. It sucked pretty bad.
Im just glad to be back now.
I share the PC with brenda, and i cant go but like 30 , 45 mins before my eyes and ass start hurting, , so i jump on every few hours if i have time.

Weekends im pretty busy but still get online alittle.

Peter, just try to find alittle time for everything. Will suck around here without you around. It slow as shit here really.....I dont see you very offten as it is. Whatever is best for you...Dont let us stop you from the music bro... I try to hold back alot so to not take up everyones time.

Anyway...Weekend is here, time to try and make some CASH...

All.
DACE>