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9:41 pm
June 10, 2011
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QuoteWell... I'm pretty excited! Today I have taken the first step in scaling up my video marketing traffic strategy. My best traffic source has been YouTube. When I'm running my channel optimally, I get about 10 subscribers a day from one channel at essentially no cost and very little effort.
What I am doing is now creating other channels with different themes, and I am going to be hiring people to run them for me. I am starting with a "Music To Relax With" channel. I'd like to do a "Wine and Jazz" channel. Maybe a "Music and Travel" channel. You get the idea...
Initially, one of my street team members is going to run my "Music To Relax With" channel and help me work out the bugs in my system. I've written a tutorial for her with lots of pictures! I fully expect the tutorial to be a work in progress.
I figure each channel can be run by someone spending about an hour or two a week. I think I can hire someone on Fiver (or elsewhere) at $10/week. That's something that I will gladly pay for. If my statistics hold up, I should be able to clear almost $40/week/channel after paying someone.
In case you're wondering why I want to hire a bunch of people, the reasons are: (1) I want people I can fire without affecting my street team; (2) I can't have more than one YouTube channel promoted from a single IP (I looked into proxies, and decided against that for a number of reasons); and (3) I want my virtual assistants to essentially make the channels theirs -- I want the different personalities.
I'm sure there are going to be bumps in the road as I figure things out. I'm sure there is going to be plenty of variability in the channels and quality of people I am able to hire.
So...I'm starting with a street teamer today. Wish me well! I'm sure I'll be pulling my hair out at times! Nevertheless, this should work. I'll let you know how it goes. In the mean time, I welcome thoughts and other input.
Frankly, I'm a little nervous... LOL! 
6:02 pm
June 7, 2011
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That's awesome Charley. You continue to impress me. I love seeing how you're taking this stuff and really running with it. Bu all means, let us know how it goes. Do you you feel like sharing one of the channels? I can't remember if I've seen it or not.
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.
6:32 pm
June 9, 2011
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I'm gonna go out on a limb and suggest that the most innovative approaches to marketing music are going to come from within this forum, from now on...
10:36 pm
June 10, 2011
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John Oszajca said:
That's awesome Charley. You continue to impress me. I love seeing how you're taking this stuff and really running with it. Bu all means, let us know how it goes. Do you you feel like sharing one of the channels? I can't remember if I've seen it or not.
Thanks, John. I almost hesitate to share this stuff because I'm such a novice, I don't have a track record, and I'm deviating a bit from the tried and true methods you recommend. Nevertheless, I'm trying to take the basic principles you teach and make them work for my particular situation.
Really, my video approach is just sort of a spin-off on the twitter and article marketing strategies you taught me. I just found it easier to make a video or two and come up with 10 - 15 unique auto-send messages than to keep having to entertain people with tweets or deal with the ever-changing policies at Ezine. Then I noticed my video was at the top of Google under the keywords "smooth jazz sax" and "smooth jazz saxophone" and the lightbulb went on.
I'll share a couple channels:
Here's my main channel: http://www.youtube.com/charleylanger. I'm going to keep that one under my control.
This is one that's in its infancy: http://www.youtube.com/MusicToRelaxWith. This is the first one I'm turning over to someone else to manage.
Now I'm planning other channels, and we'll see which ones work. My hunch is that video marketing might be an easier way to promote myself to people who fit my demographic, but aren't necessarily searching for "smooth jazz" content. For example, I know people who listen to my music tend to be more of the "wine and cheese" crowd rather than the "beer and chips" crowd. I also know that they tend to be 45 - 55, they tend to like travel ("smooth jazz cruises" are popular), they want to relax, "ambience" and a "feel good" vibe are what they'yre looking for, etc. So, I'll build channels around those themes, turn them over to someone else to manage, and...we'll see...
So, don't be impressed yet! When I'm bringing in $100 a day in sales, then you can be impressed. 
But I do really appreciate your encouragement. 
11:44 pm
June 9, 2011
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Just a thought, but...
Perhaps when your Music to Relax with channel gets some traction, it might be a good way to bring cash through exposing your channel subscriber to new acts (who pay you for the spot).
Charley Langer - Music Video Mogul (pimp) has a ring to it 🙂
Think about it though, it would be a built-in and targeted list of people that relaxing bands would love to have exposure to.
1:47 am
June 10, 2011
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Steve Rodgers said:
Just a thought, but...
Perhaps when your Music to Relax with channel gets some traction, it might be a good way to bring cash through exposing your channel subscriber to new acts (who pay you for the spot).
Charley Langer - Music Video Mogul (pimp) has a ring to it 🙂
Think about it though, it would be a built-in and targeted list of people that relaxing bands would love to have exposure to.
Hmmmm...I hadn't thought of that! You're right. I could do the same thing for others... Thanks for the idea!
2:47 pm
June 7, 2011
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Channels look great. Another thing you might think about down the line is creating a "smooth Jazz" blog and going after hundred, eventually thousands of keywords. You could use your videos as content, as well as writing blog posts. It's a lot easier when you don't have to appease EZA's terms and conditions. But there is some additional work up front as you need to learn some SEO and do some SEO maintenance as well.
I'm thinking about doing a monthly training module on blogging for musicians. Assuming I do, I should have some indepth pointers for you.
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.
5:37 pm
June 10, 2011
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Hey John
I'll secong the motion for a training module on blogging for musicians. That is the next area I will be working on in my website!
What would a jam session with Gordon Lightfoot, Collective Soul, and Damien Rice sound like?
Check out Greg Parke and you’ll have a pretty good idea!
4:06 am
June 10, 2011
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John Oszajca said:
Channels look great. Another thing you might think about down the line is creating a "smooth Jazz" blog and going after hundred, eventually thousands of keywords. You could use your videos as content, as well as writing blog posts. It's a lot easier when you don't have to appease EZA's terms and conditions. But there is some additional work up front as you need to learn some SEO and do some SEO maintenance as well.
I'm thinking about doing a monthly training module on blogging for musicians. Assuming I do, I should have some indepth pointers for you.
Thanks, John. I thnk that a module on blogging and how to SEO blogs would be helpful.
5:53 am
June 10, 2011
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Great Channel, Charley! May I ask you what you pay for the 'free download' promo that appears over your video, that also has your URL link?
Cheers,
George
1:05 pm
June 15, 2011
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The overlay link is actually free. You just need an adwords account. I set it up on a few of my video's too, check out http://myspace.com/japjapmusic
I just found this video that explains you how to do this:
Cheers, Jasper
4:26 pm
June 10, 2011
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Great Video Jasper, Thanks! Crap. Now I gotta work on my videos, too!
What would a jam session with Gordon Lightfoot, Collective Soul, and Damien Rice sound like?
Check out Greg Parke and you’ll have a pretty good idea!
2:44 am
June 10, 2011
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Well, I think I may have successfully hired my first VA. I had to go through five or six to even get where I am now. Nightmare is a bit of an overstatement, but I had trouble staying patient. It took me a day or two (or more) of each one to see if they even had a chance of working out. I have one actually working now, but we'll see how it goes over a longer time period. I'm optimistic.
Please don't think I'm racially prejudiced by making a few observations, but I think, even with my very small sample size, I can say that there are certain things that go with the territory of hiring overseas vs Amercan. Some of these issues probably should have been intuitive to me, but they weren't:
- Some foreign VAs either had problems installing or running the software on their computers. Don't assume that computers are the same everywhere!
- The communication barriers are not insignificant with the foreign VAs
- The foreigh VAs really want to please.
- American VAs are more likely to have good computers, be well-educated, technically savvy, and quick to understand. However, they are more expensive, and don't seem to like direct marketing.
Common to all the VAs was a difficulty in getting them to understand that I want them to run the software on their computers in the background, and not watch it run and charge me for every hour they stare at it. LOL!
I'll keep you posted.
3:34 am
June 9, 2011
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Kudos, for getting in there and figuring this stuff out for everyone.
Interesting what you said about American's not liking direct marketing. Funny thing is that direct response marketing is so simple (although not always easy), that it seems most people convince themselves that it can't really be that simple.
People always think that everything is a 'scam'. All I can say to that is if you're looking for a scam, you'll probably find one...
6:40 pm
June 7, 2011
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What countries have your VAs been from? I found everything you said to be true as well, accept I never ran into anyone who didn't like marketing. But then I tend to just have a VA complete a specific and repetitive task, such as write and publish articles. I haven't used them to manage the marketing process.
I used India and the Philippines for the most part. I had better luck with the Philippines. But it took a lot of searching before finding the right person. Now I'm just using my sister for some more important aspects of my business. I pay her much more but for what she's doing it's worth it.
I have used a couple guys in Romania for some one-off tasks and they were pretty good.
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.
2:32 am
June 10, 2011
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John Oszajca said:
What countries have your VAs been from? I found everything you said to be true as well, accept I never ran into anyone who didn't like marketing.
My foreign VAs were from India and the Phillipines.The person (American) who didn't like the direct marketing was not comfortable with sending messages to YouTube friends. She felt it was "spammy". My defense to her was:
The culture on YouTube is a middle road between MySpace and Facebook.
I would never use a friend adder or send people I don't know messages on Facebook. Facebook is about sharing your life with people you know. MySpace, on the other hand, is a ghetto.
YouTube, the middle ground between the two extremes, is largely about sharing art with people you connect with online. I get hundreds of messages from people I have "friended" sharing videos and music links with me. It's not like I'm pimping wrinkle removers (or worse) — I'm sharing my music with people who have accepted a friend request.
As for the concern about using software to do repetitive tasks, YouTube does, under their terms and conditions, specifically say they allow software tools to be used to send messages as long as you are not sending faster than is humanly possible. At a rate of ~ five minutes per message, that is NOT faster than humanly possible.
Furthermore:
1) I send one message, and only to those who have responded positively to a friend request. I am NOT sending messages to random people with whom I have no rapport.
2) There is a spam notification button in everyone's inbox. Spammers get complaints, and their channel gets shut down. My main channel has been in existence since 2009: http://www.youtube.com/charleylanger
3) If I was offending people, you would think that they would unfriend, unsubscribe, or respond negatively. They don't.
4) Those who join my mailing list by downloading the song get a lot of free music, which cost me $1000s to produce. My mailing list complies with the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, and they can opt out any time.
I thought all of that was pretty much a bullet-proof line of reasoning that I am not spamming. She said she understood my reasoning, and she admitted that it was pretty good, but she still didn't feel comfortable.
I think it's a cultural thing. Americans tend to have a bias against selling or being sold to. I'm not saying all Americans hate selling; I'm just saying I think there is a cultural bias. I have heard that from others, and I appear to be experiencing it.
5:19 pm
June 9, 2011
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Charley Langer said:
I'm not saying all Americans hate selling; I'm just saying I think there is a cultural bias. I have heard that from others, and I appear to be experiencing it.
Not to get off topic, Charley, but it's actually been proven that 99% of people hate both selling and being sold to.
I think this particular VA was failing to understand that your approach is not selling… or spammy… at all. In fact it's the opposite completely.
You are doing things in a fashion that allows people to decide to buy. That's a whole lot different than selling. You are just putting an opportunity to buy in front of people.
I once posted some promotional material for Jamroom Manifesto on a certain musicians classified listing site. When I posted it, the site owner sent me a message that I had inappropriately posted it in the wrong section and that it belonged under "Services"
While I understood what he was saying, my target audience was musicians seeking musicians not musicians seeking services. While he understood my explanation, he responded by saying quote:
"This looks like one of those sites that gets people to sign up and then tries to sell things to them". To which I replied, "Well, it is, but it's the musician's choice as to whether or not they sign up. Besides, what I am offering on the page is free and valuable."
I also pointed out the inconsistency of him having adsense on his site which shows in all sections, whether relevant or otherwise.
Ultimately the guy refused to let me post in the section where I thought was appropriate. I guess he felt that all choices to be made by musicians on his site were to made for them by him first.
Some people just don't understand buying vs. selling.
Like I said, sorry to get off topic 
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