Getting Your Foot in the Door

Getting Your Foot in the Door!

So many people are interested in getting into the music industry but few have any idea of the first steps needed to enter. Now today I will be providing some information that I retrieved on a few ways that will make ones entrance into the industry just a tad bit smoother. This post is good for those who may not know exactly what it is that they want to do in the industry, or for those that know what they want to do but don't know how to start. One of the first things and amongst the easiest thing to do to get into the entertainment world is to join a street team, often known as a promotions team. This is often the easiest thing to do because nightclubs are always looking for people to join their promotions team and help them spread the word about their upcoming events. Local artist are also looking for people to join their street teams to help promote their music and sell their marketing pieces. 

Joining a promotion team helps to get you introduced to many people who are also making their way into the industry and can take you along, or people who have been in the industry and know what people to introduce you to. Either way it goes getting to meet people and being known, as someone associated with entertainment in some way will only help your goals of getting into the industry. It is very important to make sure that after joining the street team that you keep meeting people and expressing your desire to be in the industry. Just make sure not to do it in a way that will be seen as annoying. This is an industry that really is about who you know and what they know about you.

Another thing that was mentioned and that could be helpful is to start a blog. If you can start a blog and capture an audience to continually check out the post and like or comment on them, this will make it easier to explain how you can get information in front of potential consumers because you already have a following. Blogging is often the key to helping you become relevant in any circle. The fourth tip and the one I consider the most important is to find a mentor. Having a mentor in the entertainment industry will not only help you find out how to navigate the industry but will continually give you insider knowledge that could be found no where else.

For more information on tips to breaking into the music industry feel free to follow this link http://mashable.com/2013/06/30/break-into-music-industry.

Getting Out and Being Heard

Getting Out and Being Heard

This week while doing some research, I came across some information dealing with publishing and distribution. Many time when artist are beginning to take their careers serious and want to start getting products out to potential consumers, they have a hard finding the proper distributions channels. Coming across someone who can turn your projects into something with a professional look and feel is amongst the first things that need to be done and it is hard to find. After getting materials pressed for the project, the artist is usually left with the task of getting the product to the possible consumers. This is where a lot of artist fall short because they lack the ability or the team to get the products out to people all over the country. 

This is where sites like www.cdbaby.com come into play. Not only will this site help the upcoming artist  to get their Cd printed but it will also give the artist a platform to sell and distribute their finished product. The www.cdbaby.com website allows artist a place to sell their products without taking away majority of their income. Yes, www.cdbaby.com charges a fee of $4 for every physical item sold, and 9% for every download or digital transfer. This allows the artist to charge what they want for the products and not see an increase in the fee. This seems to be very minimal compared to the amounts artist where previously given to have the same work done by publishing houses and record labels. Cdbaby.com is currently the industries leading online distributor of music for independent artist. They also offer the service of selling digital copies as well.

Outside of the distribution fees that were mentioned earlier, CDbaby.com also charges the artist $49 for every full album they submit for sell, $12.95 for every single song submitted. They also offer the artist the ability to have their products professionally registered at an additional fee. The bottom line is that CDbaby.com is the website that any artist looking to have  their products printed and distributed for them. This service also allows the artist to pass out information informing people where they can go online to purchase their music now or in the future.

This one the only site out of the ones that I researched that were specifically for the music industry. The other two websites that I went to both dealt with more with the print industry. The one site that I found was www.iuniverse.com. This website is geared more towards those that are looking to get into the media industry. Its very similar to CDbaby.com but has a higher price tag at $899-$1449. The last site that I looked at was www.booktango.com.

More information can be found by clicking the links in the paragraphs above.