Because I have a passion for music, a lot of years dealing with it, and a background in economics, I recently spent time with people who wanted help in designing a new business model for the music industry. I felt I could use the exercise as well, for my own efforts. It is a subject that one of my cowriters and I discuss all the time. We didn’t come up with a good model (let’s get that out of the way right now) but we did come up with insights that I want to share.

Ayn Rand held that the biggest mistake philosophers (and economists) always made was in not checking their premises—the assumptions that you make when you start your thought processes. After rattling our  brains in an unproductive fashion for some time, I realized that we had never checked our premises. So the first question is, what were they? Were we even starting from the same ones?

When  business might not be business

A basic premise for me, in this case, was that we were going to produce a business model. That’s the words we used, at any rate. Immediately we saw difficulties. I understand a business model to be a set of strategies that can be used to produce a consistent profit. Old economics training dies hard, after all. I was looking for ways to, in the vernacular, monetize the music. The people I was talking with were asking the questions: “How can I make a mark on the music industry? How can I get a foot in the door.” And those are quite different. If profit making is not a critical factor, and sustainability of a business enterprise isn’t at stake, the horizons widen considerably. You have many, many more options. Including one I dislike, which is giving music away. (But I digress.)

The next premise was that it is possible to create a viable model for doing business (however you define that) that can accommodate all the facets of “getting music out there.” There are certainly some strategies, but the delivery systems, targets and attitudes of the people using music are in a lot of flux. People are trying all sorts of things to get music into the hands of folks who will listen to it and use it. Anticipating both technology and trends, when taken to extreme, becomes speculation, and can be a distraction from music.

When is an industry not and industry?

The final premise was that it is possible to model the music industry. And why wouldn’t it be? Well, the answer here is when there is no industry to model.  I know, we talk about it all the time, but that doesn’t make it real. And here is why: Music is a piece of several related industries, not one of its own. Music is used in movies and television and in theater. And these are a part of the entertainment industry, which also encompasses a lot more. As such it is subject to the fortunes of those industries. Songwriters are in the recording industry, which sometimes produces product for film and television, and sometimes for the multimedia industry and sometimes for educational purposes. Music teachers are educators and their career fortunes are tied in more to that industry than anything musical.

It is a tangle of economic indicators, fortunes, and requirements.

In major industries, they separate consumer (retail) activities from business to business products. Sometimes the products are the same, and sometimes quite different. In the world of music (as opposed to industry) a master recording is a business to business product and a CD or download is a consumer product. They are marketed quite differently. The investment and rewards are quite different as well.  As you can see then, a musician/songwriter/composer/performer/teacher serves a lot of different (and diverse) client bases. Each has different needs, requirements, and even business cycles. As a session musician or songwriter, the amount of government spending on education probably won’t affect your business significantly; as a teacher, it might. And the opposite is true if there is turndown in consumer spending on entertainment.

Get a handle on the goal

So, the discussion we had should have started with questions that helped defined what we want to do. “Making music” is too vague to mean much to anyone. But defining specific roles within that universe would tell us who and what you want to be, which makes it possible to find a way to get there. And that is a better understanding of the idea of a business model than we used.

A vision of what you would be doing, a clear picture that shows you touring, or sitting home writing music, or doing studio work, is a place to start. Then trust your gut reaction to that picture. Is it cool, or stressful? That will tell you a lot about whether to even bother pursuing it. There is no point in figuring out a way to get more gigs if you hate playing them!

I would like to hear about your business plans and models. How do you segment this fragmented, bit of lots of other industries? How do you plan to make inroads in your specific segment? This is less about trying to be a star than a serious, and business like, approach to doing what you want to do and being successful at it (by your own standards).

In my last blog I suggested that this start of a new year is an excellent time for refocusing. You can stop, take a breath, get some perspective on what you are doing and where you are going, and decide where you need to put your best effort right now. To complement that idea I am going to suggest that you learn to narrow your focus. You need to pick one, manageable thing. Success in music is not a focus. Improving your skills at getting bookings, learning to play Thelonius Monk, or finding a way of marketing your songs, are all things that can be focused on. And yes, these can, and probably should be, broken down into even more manageable chunks.

The Multitasking Trap

The fastest path to frustration is to try doing everything at once. One of the shocking truths (for some) is that multitasking does not generally produce very good results. It might produce a lot of results, but little of it is worth much. There is no focus, little ability to follow through, and you come across as distracted—not a good image in business, playing on the bandstand, or listening to a loved one. Success and focus go together. The best negotiators are patient people; some of the best players know when to lay back.

Being focused isn’t easy in a world full of distractions, but I frequently see people fall by the wayside because they don’t understand the need. Here is a case in point. A talented singer I know moved to a town and starting putting a band together, jamming with everyone who would let her join in, and booking gigs, all at once. Because she had a compelling personality and a fine voice, she got several gigs. Unfortunately, her talents did not extend to band management and, as the gigs approached, she was unable to keep her band together. Although they rehearsed a fair amount, progress was slower than she wanted, and tempers flared. The band was fired or quit, depending on the person telling the story, and the gigs were ultimately either cancelled (bad for your reputation) or played with a pickup band, which couldn’t provide the showcase she really wanted. Her intentions were fine—she wanted to take the local musical scene by storm, but she didn’t determine what needed to be done, prioritize, and then focus. Impatience shot down an energized effort.

Although it can seem intolerable to put things we want on hold, it is only sensible to present new material or a performance when it is ready, and not a moment before. The big acts rehearse for a long time, and often use coaches to get the performance to the desired level. Even Michael Jackson worked with dance professionals to hone his skills, back at his peak.
If success is your goal, then hard work should be your mantra. And the focus should be on the thing that is most important to do next. It might be something to do with business, it might be art, it might be personal.

Know What Needs To Be Done

A very good course I took years ago suggested that we should all have a short “to do” list. This list should be of only the things that qualify for the heading “If this was the only thing I got done today, I would have accomplished something important.” You put the most important at the top and do it. You don’t think about #2 until #1 is done, or you find that for some external reason it can’t be done today.

That is one way to learn focus. It is how I got this blog done today, rather than at some future time. It is the way I will finally learn to play Thelonius Monk tunes (or anything else).

So you focus, narrowly, on something to be accomplished, then give it your best shot. Then you move on. You can’t make a mistake by focusing and giving it your best effort. It’s only when your thoughts on unfocused (as in multitasking) that you give less than your best.

Now it is time to find your focus, and go for it. It promise that it will make 2010 the best possible year it can be for you. And who deserves that success more?

Press Play To Watch The 2009 Holiday Message From Kavit Haria:

FREE Teleclass With Kavit Haria on Mon 4th January 2010:
Strategies For Kickstarting Your Music Career In 2010.
Click Here To Book Your Place

Be Among The Willing

Talking to other musicians and composers I am often reminded what a contrary lot we can be. Putting a band together and keeping it together is often compared to trying to herd cats. It can soak up a lot of effort without getting any useful results. Sure you get some grand experiences, but results?

Of course sometimes it works. And that is because you have lucked into working with a group that can best be described as the willing. When I lived and worked in the Los Angeles area, I was impressed to find that the studio musicians, the ones really making money, were accessible, eager to share their knowledge and experience and just downright friendly. The loved what they did and it showed. As players, they were willing to learn, to try new things, or do old things one more time when it was called for. In addition to their skills, that attitude was what got them work.

MUSIC AND REALITY

In the current market, with music even being treated as free (google “giving your music away” and see how much reading there is), lowering the price you charge won’t make you more successful. It might even make you less successful—after all, if you don’t value your music, why should a customer? Some libraries even wave licensing fees, hoping to make money on the back end, from performance royalties. That can work, but it is a slog and a big gamble. It all depends on who licenses it and how they use it.

If that doesn’t appeal to you, there are marketing tricks galore that you can try, if you have the time. There must be more music sites than there are musicians trying to sell music. And, if you don’t have time, there are people willing to do the tricks for you– if you have the money. But the noise level is so high that it is hard to get heard no matter who does the shouting.

So what is a kid to do?

REVISIT NETWORKING

Networking was all the rage long before Facebook. In fact, it was all the rage before anyone called it networking. Business to business work (as opposed to retail) has always been to a large extent about relationships. Good sales people build rapport with their customers. No matter what the business is, networking is an important set of skills (it isn’t just one thing!).

Successful companies understand this and have built their success on responsiveness to their customer’s needs. When the customer needs something, they show their willingness to be part of the solution. And there is that word again—willingness. A willingness to provide support, ideas, effort, whatever it takes, is a significant quality of a successful person in any field.

So what does that mean to a musician/composer/songwriter? Basically it means that your job is, in addition to creating the best music you can, to help your customer solve their business problems. If your customer is a music library, paying attention to the kinds of music that they like to work with is a start. But what about those difficult calls?  Can you come through with Nigerian music, or a hip hop Christmas tune? If your client is a music supervisor, the same applies. And the other side of it is respecting them. Don’t send them something that isn’t quite right, but might be close. Or something not done well. Act professional to get treated professionally.

Now of course there are more ways to serve your clients well. But it is up to you to get to know the client. If a singer has a certain image, give her songs that enhance that image…don’t create a new one unless you are asked to.

Another item to note is that many businesses grow each other. The supplier becomes successful helping their customer become successful. A fledgling Disney Corporation and a garage operation called Hewlett-Packard did a lot for each other. Be willing (that word again) to work with fledgling film makers—you won’t make money on that project, perhaps, but your work can get heard. And if the film maker hits the big time, he or she will remember the willing workers that propelled that success, who made it a little easier.

Business expert Guy Kawasaki has a phrase or acronym in his book The Art of The Start called “Weave A MAT” where MAT stands for Milestones, Assumptions and Tasks. 

The idea is to create a system of milestones, assumptions and tasks to keep your music business on course for achieving your target. You want to set milestones for your music promotion, music sales, gigs and financials. You want to set tasks on a daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly and yearly basis so that you move fast towards those milestones.

Watch his talk on weaving a MAT to get an idea of how you can apply this: 

Without vision, it’s difficult to be clear on your future. Many of the independent musicians I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with don’t seem to have any vision. I can usually tell that from their character and attitudes towards their music, or their answer to my question, “Where do you see your music career in five or ten years?”

Vision isn’t just about thinking long term. It’s about what you want your music to do to you, your band members and your audiences. Vision is about a future that’s filled with hope and promise for you and your fans. Vision allows your music career to pan out like a story that you’ll be able to piece together at the end of your life (if it ends in this lifetime). Vision is what Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Anita Roddick had, all in their own unique ways. Vision is about how you’ll leave your mark on the world, your footprint, your reason for living.

Character is about your attitude towards your music. It’s about belief in your vision through what you do every single day. It’s how you live your life and how you deal with opportunities. When you’re clear on what you and your music represent, your character will not be influenced by the people and peers around you.

For me, my music career has always been a long term thing. I am fortunate to do the work I do as a music business consultant that it’s become much more exciting and fun for me than my playing career itself. But I still play. I just don’t go after recording stuff, bands and gigs as some may. I have a clear vision of what I want for my Tabla career that I can make clear decisions on who I say ‘yes’ to and who I say ‘no’ to.

We all have different visions that are unique to our music and unique to who we are. Our vision is created through our upbringing and the experiences we’ve already had in our lives.  Your character is a reflection of what you want to achieve and the challenges you’re working to overcome, based on what your vision is.

Whenever I take on staff in my team, it’s important that they have a vision and character that excites them and the people around them. That comes from me, the leader, having a compelling vision myself. The same will go for you and the team you build around you.

Many musicians I speak to work a day job as well as trying to pursue their music career. One of the biggest challenges they are faced with is “not enough time to get everything done”. As an independent musician, you’re a music business owner. If you don’t already believe and understand that, I think that’s the first place to start.

Having a vision ensures that you will not jump around from strategy to strategy, idea to idea and product to product. Once you find a proven path, with proven case studies, then you can simply follow it. There are only 86,400 seconds a day. You can’t buy more time, and what you do with your time determines your income. Your vision and character helps determine what you do with your time.

One of the first personal development books I ever read was ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’ (see Wiki summary) by Stephen Covey. His second habit, “Start with the end in mind” is all about creating a vision. Derek Sivers gave this book a mention too. 

Create some time in your life to think about your vision. Clear your space and just think about where you want your music to go, what you want it to achieve and how you want to leave a legacy. These things make up your vision. Then the attitudes that these create for you are your character, but it’s not something you force, it’s something you live. 

As independent musicians, we’ve got to do a lot of the marketing on our own – that’s in addition to booking gigs, making music, speaking to producers, negotiating deals and much more. The challenge is in staying consistent with all our tasks and doing them as we should be so that the small tasks on a regular basis can snowball and realize it’s results.

John Jantsch over at the hugely popular Duct Tape Marketing Blog shares a great tip for marketing businesses, and just like your independent music career can be thought of as a business, this tip ‘wowwed’ me with its simplicity that as of today, I’m going to put it into effect in my business and with my team members too.

But it would work so effectively for musicians too. John says that too many people see a crazy idea for marketing and go chase it, only to then drop it within a couple of days and weeks instead of being focused with it. He says, “The key is to understand the work that makes a difference, remained focused and plug away. Chasing the new new thing will drive you crazy and never allow you feel what momentum does for a small business. “

Here’s the tip in his own words:

Here’s a tip if you find the allure of the noisy new thing is too loud to stay focused on what needs doing. Create a score card with no more than ten marketing related action items on it. Rate each of those items for importance – give a new sales presentation five points and a new blog post two for example. Both of those marketing related activities will pay off, but one is clearly more important than the other. Now, set a goal of twenty points every day. (The blog post and sales presentation would have netted you seven.) By turning your little marketing tasks into a game you get two benefits. 1) You might actually keep focused on winning the game by completing important actions and 2) if you find yourself with some free time, you might dive into an important marketing task instead of wasting your time reading email.

Of course, you probably wouldn’t want to do a sales presentation as a musician, but you could replace it with ideas in my “Strategy Guide to Succeeding As A Musician in 2008″ report. It’s free so if you haven’t read it, go get it.

His advice: dream a little smaller. 

The key to success not just in the music industry but in anything you do is consistency.  Look at another area of your life. How did you achieve a particular goal you set? You stuck at it and did what you needed to do regularly to get there.

If it was passing exams at school, you revised a little bit every day in the lead up to the exam. Think to when you bought a car or a home, you saved up a little bit and consistently to get wherey you wanted to get. There is real power in consistency. 

There is nothing more important in promoting your music and growing your music business than to be consistent. That is, deciding on one or more goals and creating a path to get there.

Before you go to sleep today, make a list of five things you need to do tomorrow. Then wake up, and make sure you do them in order of high priority to lower priority. Do these five things first before you do anything off the list. Make it so important that if you did these five things in the day, you will be totally fulfilled and anything you do after that is a bonus.

When you decide upon five things, ask yourself about each one: does this task contribute to me achieving my goal? If it doesn’t then the task doesn’t deserve to sit on your list of five. It can be done afterwards.

Make your list of five. If five’s too much, do four. Or three.

Then do it daily. And consistently. 

One of my business mentors James D. Brausch talks about the 2%er concept a lot. It’s something that has been instilled with me ever since I was a young child.

Stand out. Don’t be like the 98% of people – the rest of the world. Be different. Watch what somebody does and do the complete opposite. The one who succeeds the most is the one who stands out and follows through. Become the 2% of people who take responsibility for their life. These are the kinds of things he says.

I know a lot of musicians, and I mean a LOT of musicians, who don’t want to promote their music on their own, get the word out there while they get going. They want someone else to do it for them. It makes sense. I would want the same too.

When you’re starting out, you don’t always have the funds to outsource all that so it’s done for you. So naturally it means you have to get going on your own. But when you get going… something magical happens… you attract the right services and resources (time, funds, expertise, etc) to help you propel yourself light years.

But how do you get to that point?

You need to start it yourself. Start somewhere. Follow a plan. Don’t waste time.

Those who can get up and take responsibility fall into the 2%er category that James talks about.

The others who sit back … say they’ll do something but end up doing nothing … get fed up and throw in the towel … they are the 98%ers of our world.

Which category you want to be a part of starts with making a choice.

Which choice will you make today?

We talk a lot in the music industry about having persistence and going forth with your goals regardless of how many times you’ve fallen down if you really believe in yourself.

Seth Godin posted a couple of days ago about persistence and it struck a chord with me. He says it so simply in just two lines. Here it is:

Persistence isn’t using the same tactics over and over. That’s just annoying.

Persistence is having the same goal over and over.

If you think you’re being persistent, stop a minute and check. Are you being persistent with your goals or with your tactics? Tactics should change. Strategy should be flexible. Goals shouldn’t, if you really believe in them.