Log In
Members
Home
Add Reply
Add Topic
Topic RSS
12:07 pm
January 25, 2013
Offline
QuoteHello,
I'm working on releasing my 6th album soon. I'm done with the recording process. Now I'm working on the Launch....
1) Pre-order phase:
I'm first setting up a pre-order that ends Nov 10th with special perks (kinda of like a Kickstarter campaign) to help me cover the cost of mastering, art Work and CD duplication... FYI >HERE< is a first draft of the pre-sale page I set up on my website (Squarespace)
2) Launch :
After the pre-sale is done, I will release the album a month later on Dec 2nd. It will be available for purchase (mp3 and CD) on my website, itunes, Amazon music, bandcamp, etc...
3) Windowing:
I will only put one single up for streaming the day of the release, not the entire album. I'm thinking of adding the entire album to the streaming platforms in 6 months or so.
4 years ago, with the release of my 5th album "Made In Gaspésie", and after following John's "Record Release Formula" module, I was able to chart #14 in the Billboard. I used the company "Indie Hit Maker" to do so. I also had a Kickstarter campaign running for that release, which I don't have for this new album.
It was quite an accomplishment for me, I was super happy and proud about it and I would like to try and chart again this year and was looking for advice. Do you guys know if
- I can chart in the Billboard without using Kickstarter ?
- I can chart in the Billboard just by doing pre-sales through my website store ?
- Do you guys still use Indie Hit Maker ? or can you advise me other companies I could use ?
Thanks a lot for your help, 🙏 have a great weekend.
Eric
11:54 am
June 7, 2011
Offline
Hey Eric,
That sounds like a great summary of what you need to do... My answers below...
Eric John Kaiser said
- I can chart in the Billboard without using Kickstarter ?
Of course. You just need a company that can report your sales. If selling independently, you will need to go through Shoppify and use the singles app. Check out this episode: https://www.musicmarketingmani.....soundscan/ - It explains it.
- I can chart in the Billboard just by doing pre-sales through my website store ?
Yep.
- Do you guys still use Indie Hit Maker ? or can you advise me other companies I could use ?
No, my understanding is that they lost their ability to report to soundscan, but their website does not seem to indicate that anything has changed, as a result they have completely lost my trust. Currently, the only option I know of (without using a distributor) is the singles app I mentioned above. They also now have some nice redirect and upsell apps that have improved things since the release of the podcast episode.
Thanks a lot for your help, 🙏 have a great weekend.
Eric
You as well!
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
9:37 am
January 25, 2013
Offline
Thanks a lot for your answers. I appreciate it.
- FYI Also had issues with "Indie Hit Maker" when they tried to sell me a weird publishing deal related to streaming promotion services. Although I was happy to get help from them to chart with my last album, I don't really trust them anymore also... 😉
- I totally remember that podcast episode. Super interesting one. I just talked to someone at "Singlemusic" seems like a cool and helpful company. They also seem to have good customer service. It seems like they could help me set up what I want. However, I'm still looking at all the fees I would have for using their services (because I would also need to create store on shopify which has a monthly fee...).
- I'm also looking at Bandcamp... 🤔 It seems like they also do pre-orders and also report sales to Soundscan/Nielsen. However, I'm not sure how many pre-order options (or tiers) I can create using Bandcamp. It seems like they only have one option: pre-order the download of the album
+ I'm also not sure I can easily link Bandcamp to the landing page I'm creating for my pre-order. It seems like I would have to choose between using a pre-order page (like this one, still a work in progress 😉 : https://www.ericjohnkaiser.com.....rder-vieux ) OR Bandcamp. I don't think I could use both.
--> What do you think of setting up a pre-order on Bandcamp ? As opposed to using Singlemusic ?
Thanks again for your help and perspective on things 🙏
Eric
9:52 am
June 7, 2011
Offline
Hey Eric,
I'm not a fan of Bandcamp. It just doesn't allow you to control the customer flow. If charting was important to me I would either use Shopify/singles or us a bonus system to sell albums... IE, order on Amazon (or wherever) and then submit your order ID on a custom form, for a free bonus.
Hope that helps.
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
11:18 am
January 25, 2013
Offline
Thanks a lot John. 🙏 I'm going to use Shopify and Single Music. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks again for interviewing them in your podcast. Was super helpful. Take care,
Eric
10:16 am
June 7, 2011
Offline
That's great to hear. Be sure to let us know how it goes!
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
8:11 am
January 25, 2013
Offline
Hello John,
I hope all is well. 😀 I finally released an album last Friday Jan 29th. I set up everything with Singlemusic (after listening to your interview with the CEO) so my sales would be registered with Soundscan. I'm now trying to see if by any chance it charted today (Feb 9th 2021) in the Billboard World chart...🤞
However to see the chart, I need to take an annual subscription to Billboard (which I don't need, I just want to see if I charted or not). Last time I was able to chart, 4 years ago, I had released my album with "Indie Hit Maker" who sent me an email telling me I had charted. Singlemusic, does not provide that information. I also tried contacting someone who works at Billboard, or call stores to try and find the actual magazine but with no success so far.
I was wondering if you could help by any chance and if you had any advice on how I could find out if my album is in the "Billboard World Chart" ?
Thanks a lot for your time 
Eric
2:44 pm
June 7, 2011
Offline
Hi Eric,
I know you are already aware of this because of our email convo, but I made this quick tip video to answer your question: https://www.mmmanifesto.com/in.....wall-hack/
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
2:57 pm
January 25, 2013
Offline
Yes I saw. Thanks a lot John ! You rock. I tried to leave a comment on the other video (the hack one) but for some obscure reason it's not working...
A few quick comments:
- I talked to someone over the phone at Billboard today. He was very helpful and nice. He confirmed that they do not offer any month to month subscription anymore (If not like you said in the video, I would have paid $10.99). The minimum yearly subscription is $489.
- That same guy told me that you could send an email to subscriptions@billboard.com to ask if you charted or not. Still waiting to hear back. I'll let you know.
Take care, thanks again.
Eric
12:15 pm
June 7, 2011
Offline
Hey Eric,
Just to clarify, it's approximately $130/year. The ad says $489 value. But I totally thought the price was $489 as well, for the longest time. Terrible layout for the copy. And still to expensive to just check the charts once.
Have you ever considered signing up for Soundscan yourself? When you take the percentage fee that the Singles app people take, it probably would work out as cheaper if you end up selling 500 - 1000 albums. And you'd have way more info. Just a thought.
Let me know if it turns out you charted.
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
7:24 am
January 25, 2013
Offline
Thanks for the info. I appreciate it. I actually didn't know you could sign up directly to Soundscan. I'll check it out.
To answer your question, I unfortunately did not chart with my new album in the "Billboard World Chart". To be honest, I was a bit disappointed. I put a lot of time of energy to try and chart. I did with my last album 4 years ago. I was hopeful I could do it again to get more momentum with promoting this new album. Oh well... maybe next time!
168 copies of my album (Downloads and CDs) were registered with Soundscan using Singlemusic. It however got a bit confusing because all the sales are not registered... From what I understood, it depends on what country the album was bought (although it was sold here in the US), if it was redeemed (ie downloaded) and fulfilled. So not all sales are reported. I also sold a few USBs, which is also not considered as sale for Soundscan. FYI if you sell a T-shirt + a download as a bundle, that download doesn't count either.
4 years ago using Indie Hit Maker, after doing a Kickstarter campaign, I think the % of my sales that were reported was higher. than this time... but I wasn't in charge of doing it. Indie Hit Maker did it. No sure exactly how it worked then, the rules set by Nielsen/Soundscan have probably evolved since then also...
I'd also be curious what my position in the charts actually was (they only show the 15 first World albums). I couldn't find out and I never got an answer from Nielsen Soundscan after sending an email.
Show must go on! 😉 Thanks for your time,
Eric
11:27 am
June 7, 2011
Offline
Sorry to hear it Eric. In my experience it usually takes more like 500 - 1000 sales to chart on one of the smaller charts. But that varies a lot depending on the week, and the genre.
But at the end of the day, while it would have been nice, it really won't change much. Charting is nice for social proof, but there are a lot of ways to get equally powerful social proof, so I wouldn't let it get you down.
Onward and upward!
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
2:31 pm
January 25, 2013
Offline
Thanks John. I appreciate it. 🙏 Have a good week.
4:57 pm
June 7, 2011
Offline
\m/
Having trouble with your marketing? Wish you could have an experienced direct-to-fan marketing expert look over your actual campaigns, music, or content and offer feedback? Or perhaps you’re just looking for a little one-on-one assistance so you can ask questions that pertain to your specific goals and get a second, more experienced, perspective? Click here to book a session with me now.
1 Guest(s)
