The End of the Music Album as The Organizing Principle
Dave Allen / music think tank:
Music fans are no longer patiently waiting for their favorite bands to deliver new music according to the old customary cycle - album, press release, video, radio, tour. No, the fan base has to be regularly and consistently engaged. Some Ideas:
- First, communicate openly and ask your fans what they want from you
- Listen to what they have to say. Really listen
- Provide unique content such as early demos of new songs
- Never under estimate the power of a free MP3
- Forget completely the idea of an organizing principle. Invent a new one
- Use social media wisely. Twitter and Facebook Pages are best, MySpace is too cluttered
- Don’t push messages to your fans, have a two way interaction with them
- Invite them to share, join, support and build goodwill with you
- Scrap your web site and start a blog
- Remember to forget everything you know about the CD “business”
- Start to monetize the experience around your music
- Remember - the browser is the new iPod
