Music Business Hacks

Latest Episodes:

#18 - The Surprising Benefits to Transcribing Your Own Music Feb 18, 2018

Show notes

Transcribing your music involves translating everything from a piece of music that is performed to written form. It's dictation for music. Action items for today: - Start with a song - Adding variation to a transcription - Transcribing music from a different artist/genre Resources: Software: Transcribe! from seventhstring Software: Amazing Slow Downer by Roni Music Software: Avid Sibelius 8 First (notation software) Book: Contemporary Eartraining - Level Two: A Modern Approach to Help You Hear & Transcribe Chord Progressions, Modal Scales, and Key Changes Book/tool: Standard Wirebound Manuscript Paper (Music sheets)

#17 - Breaking Into New and Unexpected Markets for Your Music Feb 17, 2018

Show notes

Looking at the traditional methods of making new fans as well as new and unexpected ways of making new fans. How do you measure the return investment? How can leverage old school methods with unconventional ideas? Resources: Episode 2: How to Book Better Shows Episode 9: Perfecting Your Pitch Book: The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell How to Fund New Audiences Through Market Segmentation (article)

#16 - Hacking Yelp for Your Music Feb 16, 2018

Show notes

Have you ever thought about using Yelp as a viable social media platform to sell music and get more fans to your shows? That's right, Yelp. The food sharing guide. 3 Actions Steps: 1) Define your audience (write a fan bio) 2) Find the communities of the super fan 3) Create a list of engagement opportunities in those communities Recommended Resources: Book: How to Sell Without Selling Book: Jab Jab Jab Right Hook: How to Tell Your Story in a Noisy Social World by Gary Vaynerchuk

#15 - How to Get on the TED stage Feb 15, 2018

Show notes

The TED stage has a certain clout of prestige in our society. But how do you get there? Today, we talk about how delivering value with consistency can earn opportunities like the TED and TEDx stage. As someone who has appeared on the TEDx stage over a dozen times, I can assure you: this works. Activity: Reflect on this - what is your greatest idea to share? Then, find events to share that idea. Resources: Video: Pitching Your Way to the TEDx Stage (TEDx talk) Book: TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking by Chris Anderson Book: Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds by Carmine Gallo How to Get Invited to the TED Stage and What to Do When You Get There (article) 7 Essential Tips to Prepare for a TED Talk (article)

#14 - Weekly Recap: SMARTER Crowdfunding Feb 14, 2018

Show notes

A big week of big ideas! This recap goes over: Episode 8: SMARTER Goals - Your goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, timely, involve everyone, and revisited often. They will affect where you go more than nearly anything else. Episode 9: Perfecting Your Pitch - How do you pitch your music? Episode 10: How to Get Venues to Respond - The specific best practices for improving open and response rates from promoters Episode 11: Find New Sources of Inspiration - Ideas about how you can get new ideas for your songwriting Episode 12: Crowdfunding Your Way to the Top - Building support for your work en masse Episode 13: Kicking It with Kickstarter Record Breaker Shanna Germain - An interview with Shanna revealed some great tips for any artist to use for building more support for their work

#13 - Kicking It With Kickstarter Record Breaker Shanna Germain Feb 13, 2018

Show notes

An interview with author and crowdfunding success story, Shanna Germain. An award-winning writer and editor, she has published more than 350 stories, novellas, novels, articles, essays and books. She is an Associate Fellow at the Attic Institute and has taught classes in writing, publishing, media and photography at a wide variety of places. She is also co-author of Kicking It: Successful Crowdfunding from Stonebox Press Show Notes: Introduction: song - From the Heart (instrumental) by The Slants) (04:26): Why use Kickstarter instead of other platforms? (07:57): The pros and cons of working with collaborators (09:24): How to use stretch goals to raise extra money (13:15): The momentum cycle with crowdfunding campaigns (13:45): How to avoid failure (15:37): The make it or break it point in a campaign (20:22): Using a tool like BackerKit (21:00): Budgeting/goal setting (22:28): Best practices for creating backer rewards (24:36): How to provide incentives so people give more (31:35): The typical day/routine for creative work (37:28): Most influential books (40:00): Best Advice for a Young Creative Resources: BackerKit Crowdfunding Resource Kit Book: Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKeeBook: Swimming Sweet Arrow by Maureen Gibbon Book: A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver Book: Dog Songs: Poems by Mary Oliver Book: The Lure of Dangerous Women by Shanna Germain

#12 - Crowdfunding Your Way to the Top Feb 12, 2018

Show notes

Everything you need to know about Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and other sites. Whether you are raising money or crowdsourcing for ideas, we talk about the best practices to apply in campaigns. Whether you decide to launch a campaign or not, it's a good idea to learn about these concepts and lessons that you can apply to your career. Resources: Amanda Palmer: The Art of Asking TED talk The Art of Asking: How I learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help by Amanda Palmer (book) Kickstarter Success Stories (podcast series by John Lee Dumas) How to Create a Successful Kickstarter Campaign (blog)

#11 - Find New Sources of Inspiration Feb 11, 2018

Show notes

Today, we talk about how you can continue to get inspiration for your music. We focus on two main action items: - Create an Idea Book - Learning to Write Stories - See What's Selling, Then Do Something Else Resources: - The War of Art: Break Through the blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles (book) - 6 Steps to Songwriting Success (book) - Rocketbook Reusable Smart Notebook - amazing for songwriting ideas! - Pilot FriZion Ersable Pens (for your reusable notebook) - 30 Ways to Find Inspiration for Your Music (blog)

#10 - Getting Venues to Respond Feb 10, 2018

Show notes

If you're having trouble getting venues to respond to your messages, you need to listen to this episode. We'll go over 7 key tips in improving your booking email response rates as well as activities you take on today. Resources: How to Book Your Band's First Show (article) How to Book Your Band's Tour, Step-by-Step (blog)

#9 - Perfecting Your Pitch Feb 09, 2018

Show notes

Imagine you had an opportunity to directly pitch your music to the record label of your dreams - what would you say? Today's episode focuses on one of the most important skills needed to advance in the music industry: pitching your music. We talk about best practices and specific action items that you can take today for improving your pitch. Resources: Pitching Your Band (blog) Derek Sivers/Ariel Hyatt on creating the perfect pitch (blog/video)

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected