Once You Find Your Market

There’s a notion that all you have to do is find your market, your tribe, get your 1000 fans and you won’t have to try to sell anyone anything anymore.

No…you’re still gonna have to convince people.

You might not need to plead but you’re going to need to keep earning it.

The way you sell might change but there are no sure bets in this business. You gotta sell it.

Just because you had a hit doesn’t mean you’re going to have a hit. Just ask anyone who’s had a hit.

And artists don’t typically like to think of themselves as sales agents but they sure hope the audience will buy their act…and keep buying it.

Things will not take care of themselves, you have to take care of them. And the hard work of finding your market is worth the hard work of taking care of it.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

CDs By The Cafeteria

I made a record in high school and set up shop right outside the cafeteria. And I sold a lot.

I had three things going for me…

1. Everyone had a CD player (medium)

2. No one else was selling their CD by the cafeteria (competition/attention)

3. It was a small school so everyone knew who I was (reputation)

Take away any one of those three and I would have sold a lot less.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Caring For

The list of things we can care about is long.

The list of things we can care for is short.

Don’t confuse the the two lists.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Everyone On Staff Is Maxed

So when there’s a new idea, no one can do it…and then the hiring process begins. And it takes a long time.

But what if there was always someone on board with fifty percent margin in their day, paid for 40hrs but only doing 20 so that when the new thing is thought of they can dive in immediately, while it’s hot.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Let The Biz Know You

A commonality in successful artists is that a lot of biz people know who they are. And this helps when the artist starts to really get some hype because lots of people on the inside feel as though they had a little hand in it.

So if you’re an artist, go meet with all the publishers, try a few different agents, get to know all the managers, say yes to the co-writes, get on the festival bill even if its the 11am slot, go to other people’s shows, try different producers, be a guest on other records, get a song mixed by a few engineers, meet with the labels (and make them sell to you), play the writers nights, get good at playing your songs in offices…

You’re spreading good will. You’re spreading connection. So that when you start winning, they feel like they’re winning. And then everybody wins.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Earn Your Degree From Your Couch!

But in all likelihood, in order to use your degree you’re going to have to get off your couch.

(So the ease of getting the degree, certificate, license or credential from your couch can be the very thing that builds the road block that keeps you from utilizing it.)

You can do a lot from your couch but it’s still hard to go do something if you’ve never done anything.

Go do.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple