Crack in the foundation, or beginning of a new era?

Here's an interesting idea. The Minister of Education in Norway is wanting to legalize file sharing.

I've been guilty in the past (and still am, a little bit) of being the type of artist that has cringed at the thought of free file sharing. I mean, honestly, as Indie musicians, we really do depend more on music sales to keep our heads above water than the Majors do, and we don't generate near the numbers in live performance revenues.

However, I do have to admit that the whole issue of file sharing does remind me of the old Tape Trade argument from the 80's. Trading tapes then didn't kill the music industry, and sharing files now probably won't either, though the Major Labels (and some Indies for that matter) are going to do their best to alienate their potential customers by fighting them so hard.

I think it's time for a new plan guys. The public has spoken and they want to be able to share music files with each other, and the more we fight against it, the more we'll have to fight against it and let's be honest, do we really want to build a divide between those of us that make music and those that like to listen to it?

I have to admit that, when I find out that people really like my music it makes me happy. I didn't write it to store in my basement. I didn't spend money on duplication to have CDs set on my shelf, or to hand out to friends and family for validation of what I do. I want the world to hear what I have to say and the best, most effective way of spreading the word about my music is to get people excited enough about what I do that they want to call a friend and tell them. Word of mouth, it still works.

Now, lets talk about revenues. How does this REALLY effect our bottom line? This is still a business after all. I, of course, don't have all the answers but I do have a couple of strategies that I feel we should be employing anyway.

First, there are no rules anymore. It's becoming an "every man for himself" kind of industry and the old rules that were set up by the Major labels don't work anymore. That's ok though, because it's not the first time it's happened. Motown is a prime example of building a new plan and running with it, and I highly recommend reading up on Berry Gordy and his empire, it's fascinating.

What new ways can you create value to keep people coming back for more? What new products can you add that will offset monies that may be lacking from music sales? What exciting ideas can you come up with to bring more and more people to your live performances? As my business coach is fond of saying: "If you treat your business like a hobby, it will cost you like a hobby, but if you treat your business like a business, it will pay you like a business." Like I've said before, if you're trying to make a living from making music, you are in business. Get used to it.

Second, take advantage of anyone and everyone who wants to share your music with others. Let them be your Evangelists! You don't have to give everything away for free, but why not treat it a bit like a Radio Single. Make money off of it where you can, but use it to spread the gospel of you!

The fact is we should be looking for any angle to get ahead and to monetize our efforts, but it's only good business to not alienate the customer in the process. We need music listeners. Without them there's no point in making music.


Read more about Norway's plans here:

http://torrentfreak.com/norwegian-minister-wants-to-legalize-file-sharing-090222/


Later,