To help determine what your financial goals for the year will be, first ask yourself some questions:<\/p>\n
– Will you be releasing new music this year?<\/p>\n
– How will you raise money to pay for the production?<\/p>\n
– How will you\u00a0distribute<\/a>\u00a0your music to digital stores?<\/p>\n – How will you promote your music?<\/p>\n – Do you need new promotional photos?<\/p>\n – Are you creating any merch?<\/p>\n – Are you going to buy any new equipment?<\/p>\n – Do you need a new\u00a0website<\/a>?<\/p>\n Try to get as clear as you can about everything you would like to do this year, and\u00a0be sure to\u00a0<\/strong>write it all down<\/a><\/strong>. Writing down your goals will help give you some direction and focus.<\/p>\n 2. Determine Expenses<\/strong><\/p>\n Once you know your goals, write down all of the expenses that you\u2019ll need to keep track of:<\/p>\n Cost of Music & Merch<\/strong><\/p>\n Recording\/Mixing\/Mastering:\u00a0<\/strong>Many musicians now record at home rather than go into a studio, so expenses with recording can vary greatly depending on your approach.<\/p>\n CD Duplication \/ Vinyl pressing \/ Download Cards<\/strong>: Research how much it will cost to manufacture any physical versions of your album.<\/p>\n Digital distribution<\/strong>: Although minimal, depending on\u00a0which service you use<\/a>, there is either an upfront cost or annual recurring cost to distribute your music to iTunes, Amazon, etc.<\/p>\n Merch<\/strong>: How much will it cost to make t-shirts and other merch items?<\/p>\n Live Shows<\/strong><\/p>\n Rehearsal space<\/strong>: Will you need to rent rehearsal space?<\/p>\n Equipment:\u00a0<\/strong>Do you need any new instruments\/amps\/pedals\/accessories this upcoming year?<\/p>\n Posters\/flyers\/postage<\/strong>: Although not as much as in the past, posters are still useful for putting up in the venues you\u2019ll be performing at.<\/p>\n Food & Gas:<\/strong>\u00a0Whether you\u2019re touring or not, getting to gigs and eating before\/after costs money.<\/p>\n Lodging<\/strong>: If you\u2019re touring, will you be staying at hotels? Using\u00a0Airbnb<\/a>? Hopefully you\u2019ll be able to stay with friends\/family\/fans, but that\u2019s not always possible.<\/p>\n Conference\/Festival fees:<\/strong>\u00a0Are you applying to perform at conferences or festivals? There is often a fee to apply, and for some conferences, even if you\u2019re accepted to showcase, it still costs money to attend.<\/p>\n Publicity\/Promotion<\/strong><\/p>\n Graphic Design:\u00a0<\/strong>Some bands are fortunate to have a member that is a skilled graphic designer. If not, hire a professional graphic designer to handle your album artwork, as well as images you\u2019ll need for your website and social media profiles.<\/p>\n Photo Shoot<\/strong>: We can\u2019t stress enough how important it is to have professional photos, especially for your website. Please read:\u00a0The Definitive Survival Guide for Band and Musician Photo Shoots<\/a><\/p>\n Publicist<\/strong>: Will you be hiring a publicist to help with the initial launch and promotion of your new music? How about to help with online PR? Our friends over at\u00a0Cyber PR Music<\/a>\u00a0is a good place to start.<\/p>\n Website<\/strong>:\u00a0<\/strong>Well,\u00a0<\/strong>it\u2019s no surprise that at Bandzoogle we honestly believe you shouldn\u2019t have to pay thousands of dollars for a new website. Bandzoogle\u2019sPro plan<\/a>\u00a0is just $200\/year, where you can\u00a0design a totally custom site<\/a>, and sell music and merch directly to your fans,\u00a0commission-free<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mailing List:<\/strong>\u00a0Email newsletters are still the\u00a0best way to convert fans to paying customers<\/a>. Most mailing list services charge a monthly fee, so put that into your budget (if you\u2019re using Bandzoogle for your website, amailing list is included)<\/a>.<\/p>\n Videos<\/strong>: YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine in the world, so chances are people will be trying to find your music on there. Making an official video is a good idea, but you should also upload simple lyric videos and other low budget videos. Here are some ideas to help with your videos strategy:Musicians: 8 Killer, Cost-Effective Videos To Add To Your YouTube Strategy<\/a><\/p>\n Ads:\u00a0<\/strong>Will you be buying any ads online to help promote your music, live shows, or latest video? Facebook ads can be highly targeted, and now services like Topspin offer targeted online\u00a0advertising for musicians<\/a>.<\/p>\n \nThis may not be the most fun part of the process, but\u00a0it\u2019s important to have tangible numbers so you can realistically assess what it\u2019s going to take financially to achieve your goals<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Also,\u00a0these shouldn\u2019t represent the entirety of your actual marketing plan<\/strong>. You should be using mostly free promotional tactics to engage your fans like using your\u00a0website<\/a>,\u00a0blogging<\/a>,\u00a0email newsletters<\/a>,\u00a0as well as social media like\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0to create awareness about your music.<\/p>\n 3. Project Income<\/strong><\/p>\n Now the fun part: projecting your income. Do your best to estimate how much income you\u2019ll be bringing in over the course of the next year. Here are some areas where you can earn income:<\/p>\n Music<\/strong><\/p>\n CD Sales:\u00a0<\/strong>If you\u2019re going to be playing live shows, having CDs on hand is still a good idea. They make great takeaway souvenirs that can easily be signed by band members.<\/p>\n Vinyl Sales:\u00a0<\/strong>Vinyl sales\u00a0surged 30%<\/a>\u00a0in 2013. Again, if you\u2019ll be playing live shows, printing a small batch to have at your merch table can help generate extra income.<\/p>\n Digital Sales:<\/strong>\u00a0You should be selling digital music through your\u00a0own website<\/a>\u00a0to make the most money, but also through online retailers. Keep in mind for your budget that online retailers take a percentage of sales (ex. iTunes takes 30%, Bandcamp takes 15%), and some digital distributors that get your music into places like iTunes and Amazon will take a cut on top of that.<\/p>\n Streaming:<\/strong>\u00a0Although per-stream\u00a0payouts from streaming services<\/a>\u00a0can be rather small, they can add up over time, and these services can also help new fans discover your music.<\/p>\n Publishing Royalties:\u00a0<\/strong>You should be signed up to a performing rights organization so you can collect royalties on your music, including public performance royalties (radio, TV, live venues), mechanical royalties (sales through retailers, streaming, etc.), and sync royalties (commercials, film, TV).<\/p>\n Digital Royalties:\u00a0<\/strong>Whenever your music is played on services like SiriusXM radio, Pandora and webcasters, they must pay royalties. You should sign up for a free\u00a0SoundExchange<\/a>\u00a0account to make sure you\u2019re getting those royalties.<\/p>\n Licensing<\/strong>: If you get your song placed in a film, commercial, or TV show, chances are they\u2019re going to pay you a licensing fee. These fees depend on the budget for the project, and how badly they want your song.<\/p>\n YouTube:\u00a0<\/strong>On YouTube, whenever your music is used in videos that are running ads, YouTube pays a portion of that advertising money to the rights holders of the song.\u00a0Audiam<\/a>\u00a0is one company that can help you collect this money.<\/p>\n Live Shows<\/strong><\/p>\n Money made from live shows can vary greatly. But the bottom line is that performing live is a great way to earn income, sell merch, build your mailing list, and connect with your fans. Be sure to read our blog series\u00a0The 4 P\u2019s of Playing Live<\/a>\u00a0to make sure you\u2019re getting the most out of your gigs.<\/p>\n Merch<\/strong>: Income from merch can really depend on the amount of live shows you play. Just be sure to have some t-shirts, as well as smaller items like buttons and stickers that you can sell to fans after the show. For more tips about merch, read:\u00a0Get Your Merch On: Generating Revenue from Merchandise<\/a><\/p>\n You can also sell digital merch items like PDFs, videos, and images. Read this post for ideas of digital items you can sell through your website:\u00a0Using the new File Download feature: 20 Items you can now sell<\/a><\/p>\n Other Revenue<\/strong><\/p>\n Crowdfunding<\/strong>: A crowdfunding campaign can help generate enough money to offset the cost of producing your album.<\/p>\n Day Job \/ Teaching:<\/strong>\u00a0Many musicians either teach or work some kind of day job on the side. The disposable income can then be used to help pay for expenses related to producing and marketing your album.<\/p>\n 4. Track Progress<\/strong><\/p>\n Finally, you\u2019ll want to track your progress. Create a spreadsheet that lists all of your expenses and income projections. You can use Google Docs, Apple Numbers, OpenOffice, or Microsoft Excel to do this.<\/p>\n Make sure to have 2 columns for the numbers, one for Projections, and one for your Actual results. That way you can see if things are costing above or below your projections and you can adjust accordingly throughout the year.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve created a sample music marketing budget which you can use as a template when creating your own:\u00a0Download Sample Music Marketing Budget<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n
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