Duende Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Okay, I'd like to run this past people and see what your views are as we have a few generations of posters and people from all kinds of back grounds... Here it goes (my idea) My idea is selling cds at recitals etc, that in their package are very simple - i.e just a cd and front cover; so to put you completely in the picture, no inlay card with photos and information etc, just a plastic wallet with a cover and cd... BUT...(here is the exciting bit) instead: having all extra info on the album, such as photos, track info etc, available online (maybe as a downloadable pdf format?). The information could be more comprehensive than a hard copy could provide and in turn the product (the cd) would be more interactive than a traditional cd. It would be a great way, having gotten someone to already to purchase your cd, to have them visit your site and become more involved? Some of my friends love this idea and some think a cd should be complete i.e have a 3/4 leaf inlay cards? Thoughts appreciated! Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saturn Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Sounds interesting. Would the online content be out there and available for whoever finds it, or would the purchase of a CD provide some kind of access that only that customer would have to the content? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Great idea!! You could also include on the web site a request not to share the CD with others in order to help support the artists who created the music. The composer/composers are the ones who spent time and money to make the CD it's only fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest farnsbarns Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I went to a knoffler concert once and on my seat was a sticky label for a blank cd and instrctuions on how to download and create the cd. Then you just had to stick the label on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I went to a knoffler concert once and on my seat was a sticky label for a blank cd and instrctuions on how to download and create the cd. Then you just had to stick the label on it. So they were giving out their music free? That's a great idea if you are a working/touring band. Distribute your music for free and use it as marketing/promotional material for your live shows. For anyone who is not actively touring it's not so attractive when you think of the investment in time and equipment or studio time needed to make the recording. just sayin'.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest farnsbarns Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 So they were giving out their music free? That's a great idea if you are a working/touring band. Distribute your music for free and use it as marketing/promotional material for your live shows. For anyone who is not actively touring it's not so attractive when you think of the investment in time and equipment or studio time needed to make the recording. just sayin'.... No, it was part of the ticket cost. Each person had an idividual code that allowed them to download the cd image in .iso format, once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 No, it was part of the ticket cost. Each person had an idividual code that allowed them to download the cd image in .iso format, once. Cool... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duende Posted August 6, 2011 Author Share Posted August 6, 2011 Sounds interesting. Would the online content be out there and available for whoever finds it, or would the purchase of a CD provide some kind of access that only that customer would have to the content? I hadn't thought of that, making it only available with a code on the cd makes it more Bond like and hense exciting!! I went to a knoffler concert once and on my seat was a sticky label for a blank cd and instrctuions on how to download and create the cd. Then you just had to stick the label on it. that is very interesting! A recent promo concept that is also quite cool is download cards. I think more and more as much as I love vinyl and cds etc, computers are so much a part of music and life in general you have to go with the times..even if you play guitar music by people who have been dead hundreds of years! Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris. Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Okay, I'd like to run this past people and see what your views are as we have a few generations of posters and people from all kinds of back grounds... Here it goes (my idea) My idea is selling cds at recitals etc, that in their package are very simple - i.e just a cd and front cover; so to put you completely in the picture, no inlay card with photos and information etc, just a plastic wallet with a cover and cd... BUT...(here is the exciting bit) instead: having all extra info on the album, such as photos, track info etc, available online (maybe as a downloadable pdf format?). The information could be more comprehensive than a hard copy could provide and in turn the product (the cd) would be more interactive than a traditional cd. It would be a great way, having gotten someone to already to purchase your cd, to have them visit your site and become more involved? Some of my friends love this idea and some think a cd should be complete i.e have a 3/4 leaf inlay cards? Thoughts appreciated! Matt on itunes it basically does that.... if you buy a cd on itunes you get all the cd art and info on the album or if you upload a cd on to itunes it does that to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duende Posted August 6, 2011 Author Share Posted August 6, 2011 on itunes it basically does that.... if you buy a cd on itunes you get all the cd art and info on the album or if you upload a cd on to itunes it does that to Hi Chris Thanks for your input I already have some stuff on itunes, but this is different; as it is stuff I am selling at concerts directly to people as a solid product and the remainder of the product will be via my website. The idea is to make it very personal and also to lead people into my site (muah ha ha ) Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy R Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Good Ideas Matt. If your real goal is to get people to go to your site ( and I assume purchase more product) then you could do it in a couple of ways. If you are really into providing a CD or possibly DVD? You could actually do the reverse and provide all of the printable material on the CD and have them go to your site to download the music. You could even make it where they could select X amount of songs from your catalog so that everyone gets a CD of the stuff they like. If you have the music already, there is a chance they may not care about getting the other material or will think they will do it sometime and just forget. What you could do is make the CD or DVD kind of a "Concert Program" of sorts that has photographs and information about you as well as some video clips as well as a song or two. Then by purchasing this they will have to got to your site to download the music. I think that making it where they can select what songs they want to download is a great idea too. If you want to be even more "Green" You could just sell a cd sized "voucher Card" with your Bio etc... and a code to download the rest. This would save you some money and again push people to your site.... Another thought would be selling a thumbdrive with interactive content and that launches to your site.... Just some ideas.... Good Luck Sir! Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duane v Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I still like the in-hand conceptual approach. I feel the CD or product should tell a story at the moment it is being looked at / held. The story doesn't have to be long, but it should represent / speak to a point and time when the performances were done. I feel you should get people to know you as you are representing yourself in a live performance just before, during, and right after that said performance.... I think it's a bad idea to make them wait until they find a computer to learn about you. For most people too much time will have elapsed and the residue of your performance will have worn off. They key is to get people to come to your performances / shows, rather than your website Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest farnsbarns Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Hi Chris Thanks for your input I already have some stuff on itunes, but this is different; as it is stuff I am selling at concerts directly to people as a solid product and the remainder of the product will be via my website. The idea is to make it very personal and also to lead people into my site (muah ha ha ) Matt Matt, we should talk. This is the kind of stuff I do for a living, and I would kill for some theory lessons. Perhaps we could come to dome arrangement? PM me if your interested in talking about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAS44 Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Definitely a good idea, of course you'd want to mention the feature on the disc :P just so no one is left scratching their head. Uses less paper too, seems a good idea to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 I am very much behind the times when it comes to computers, and especially concerning music. I definitely have an opinion, but I may be in a severe minority. I get quite upset when I get a product and I am required to go "online" to make it complete. Mainly instructions, but for even a computer, you are asked to go "online" to get it running. Ironic. Paying bills or even doing business, I don't like being "required" to go online to accomplish something. So, for me, COMBINING "online" with "real world" is always a bad thing. The other part that I am in a minority, is I take my copies of music seriously as far as recordings. I am still of the school that a computer can NOT give you every part of the performance by a musician that a record or CD can. When I actually purchase music, a big part is the performance by the artist, and a big part is the quality of reproduction to listen to the artist. To sum up my feelings about the online thing, I like being online for info, and I also admit to liking the accessibility to hear things I would not be able to because of the access. I think for the most part, the more a person can get online, the more we get of that person, especially in the case of an artist with a product. Also, I am solidly with DUANE in his comment. There is no substitute with giving a crowd a performance and having them want to see you play. Also, having someone WANT to pay for your music in the form of a recording is an honor, and giving the money's worth in both areas is the moral thing to do. I think selling CD's at a show is a great way to make more income from a performance, and if someone buys at a show because they liked what they saw, whether they are buying just to support you or buying because they want to hear it more, it is money well earned. SHORT VERSION: giving the public what they want in as many ways as they want it is always a good move, and the more options the public wants, the more you can accommodate. Jacking around the public in an effort to get them to do this or that is always a bad move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Plains Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Matt, I think CDs are on their way out. Why spend money on a CD and wallet when you don't have to? Digital downloading is the way to go. If you want to sell something directly to people at your recitals, maybe offer them something like an iTunes card at a discounted rate that's only good for downloads off your website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duende Posted August 6, 2011 Author Share Posted August 6, 2011 Charlie, will pm you when I get back... This is exactly what I was hoping for; lots of ideas and thoughts and a tester of what people feel about CDs and online stuff! Andy and others (sorry can't see the other posters names on my phone) some excellent ideas!! I rather like R9's view of the gift cards. I noticed CD baby does download cards too. My thinking at the moment is to have my current traditional cd and also a more modern product. The computer seems to be turning more and more into an entertainment centre that is music system, cinema, communications network as well as computer. The way it is going it looks like one day you wont have a separate phone, stereo and TV etc. Everything will be on the old computer! Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl00dsm0k3 Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 no i like having all the stuff inside Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest farnsbarns Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Some years ago I made a prediction that the best trick the internet will ever do is to appear to disappear as it becomes more cleverly and seemlessly integrated into our lives. I can see that beggining to happen with smartphone apps and bins that can add products you have run out of to your shopping list, or even order them. Also products like itunes and media centres are taking us that way too. My companies tag line and ethos is "the best way to predict the future is to invent it". That's why I contribute quite a bit of time to open source projects, especially those that help to detach internet services from our PCs and browsers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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