How To Add Affiliate Products To Your Mix
In today’s music environment many indie and small bands think they have a long term business by selling their CD’s to fans online, in stores and at shows. This is like backwards running. This has been the traditional model of music marketing and sales strategies created by major labels over the past century and it did work pretty good. This system has created everyday artists like Elvis and Less Than Jake. This has worked for new school artists like Lil Wayne and Bon Jovi.
For musicians, it is hard to justify having a business when your only product is a CD that your customers can get for free. The ideal situation would have musicians creating a catalog filled with backend products, upsells and cross sells, getting their fans prepped to take full advantage of their credit card limits. This creates a strong business and allows for elements of lifestyle design.
Smaller and indie bands can not do this. They do not have a back catalog and have a hard time funding the recording of a few solid tracks to burn on a disc. They are also in a hard spot to manufacture thousands of CD’s and hundreds of t-shirts, hats and other merchandise items.
With this objection from most musicians, there is another option to creating new streams of income without breaking the bank and the hassle of putting in countless hours to create new products. The logical answer is affiliate marketing.
Basically, affiliate marketing is a referral program. Check out the growth of Amazon, who took the internet world by storm by offering a referral program this is know commonly known as affiliate marketing. Affilaites helped them grow to be the largest online retailer.
Bands have the optimal chance to create a gigantic backend by recommending products to their core fans. Bands have a high influence over their fans, the people that come to their shows and believe in their words and actions. You can even start small with the Amaazon Associates or the iTunes affilaite program and sell music or movies that their friends make. Who wouldn’t like it if Katy Perry sent you an email saying she was in love with the new Pink record and here is a link to grab it.
The next step is so suggest guitars, events, clothing and sell the coll factor of being in a band. This creates a strong physical relationship with your clients. Every business needs to give their fans and customers value, this is no different.
The next time you are getting ready to launch a campaign, think about using affiliate marketing to bolster your online music marketing and your overall sales. Affilaite marketing is very easy to setup, promote, track and manage. The result is the ability to put some cash in the band’s bank account and give your fans more value. With this situation, everyone comes out a winner.
