Ten Common Mistakes Independent Record Labels Frequently Make

by Keith Holzman

aving written my free Manage for Success newsletter

4. Poor Marketing.

for more than six years, its occurred to me that many

You wont succeed if you make your marketing up as you go

independent record labels create the same problems for

along. You should lay the groundwork as to how youre going

themselves time and again. The following is a summing up of my

to go about creating success for an artist and his music months

thoughts and observations on these common errors.

in advance of release date. Again, plan dont just react. This

includes not only budgets (see above) but requires careful and

1. Insufficient Capitalization.

thoughtful creation of a strategy tailored to the specific release.

This is probably the single biggest mistake people make when

And dont wait until a recording is completed to think about

planning to start their labels. They dont project their money

how youll market it. Start while the artist is in the studio (or

needs carefully, and begin operating their businesses with little

even at the contract signing stage.) You need to be sure that the

cash in reserve. Be sure you have sufficient cash available at

recording is not only truthful to the artists intent, but is one that

the outset to be able to survive for two to three years with little

you can market appropriately. Dont forget that the CD cover

prospect of much if any money coming in. Remember, it

and packaging should be a part of the marketing effort. The more

takes time to build artists, their careers, and your label.

time you spend with the artist, and understand his or her music,
the better your marketing plan is likely to be. And be sure all

2. Poor or No Budgeting.

departments (and the artist) are tuned in to the concept.

A labels entire operations should be carefully budgeted. This is

the financial road map for how you do business. And remember,

5. Unreasonable Expectations of Your Distributor.

it is a business! You should create annual budgets, which should

The marketing and selling of music begins and ends with the

be modified and refined as the year progresses based on how well

label. You shouldnt expect your distributor to do it for you. Its

(or not) you are succeeding. (See my Newsletter #1 Budgets of

expertise is in selling your music to retailers not marketing or

May 2001,

promotion. Its not like many years ago when regional distributors

http://www.holzmansolutions.com/articles/01-may01.html.)

had local promotion and marketing staffs to help pitch your

product. Today, the distributor is the primary pipeline to your

The making of each recording should be budgeted to include all

customer nothing more, and nothing less. Its essential that

aspects of what it takes to come up with a completed, mastered

you be in control of your marketing.

project. (See Newsletter #6 A&R Administration of October 2001,

http://www.holzmansolutions.com/articles/06-oct01.html.)

6. Spending More Money than Necessary.

Many labels frequently spend too much to make a recording.

Additionally, the marketing of each project should be carefully

This is usually because the project was not planned in detail

budgeted to include all related costs: publicity, radio promotion,

prior to going into the studio. A labels responsibility is to see that

advertising, tour support, etc. (See Newsletter #9 Marketing of

the artist is well prepared and knows what he wants to do in the

January 2002,

studio, which at $100 to $250 per hour is no place for rehearsals.

http://www.holzmansolutions.com/articles/09-jan02.html.)

And dont hire more musicians than necessary to fulfill the

artists intent. It takes lots of planning and careful budgeting, but

3. Poor Planning.

thats part of my philosophy of running a successful label. Also,

Every aspect of how you operate needs to be planned out in detail

dont spend more on marketing than is necessary to fulfill your

not just budgets. You should have a grand plan that looks

plan. Newspaper and magazine ads, for example, are a waste of

ahead at least two to three years. If not, youll most likely find that

money for an emerging artist no one knows about. Save those

youre reacting to events rather than making things happen when

funds until youve succeeded in building a name and some public

and how you want them to. This includes the number and kinds

recognition for your new face. Thats when you should consider

of recordings you want to release, future staff, infrastructure,

spending money to further artist recognition not just for

space needs, etc.

letting the public know about your recording, but to let them
know when and where the artist can be seen in performance.
(continued over)

7. Insufficient Exploitation of Music as a Source of Ancillary

10. Poor Web Sites.

Revenue.

All record labels must have a web presence. The web has been in

Dont leave money on the table. Exploit your catalog and copyrights

existence for more than a decade, and not having a good site is

to the fullest. This subject was covered to considerable degree in

nothing short of negligence. It neednt be expensive, and dont

Newsletter #10 Ancillary Income of February 2002,

attempt complexity to show how creative your designers are.

http://www.holzmansolutions.com/articles/10-feb02.html.

For example, flash animation, although very clever, is a pain for

people who use a dial-up modem. The same goes for using too

8. Overstaffing.

many graphics on a single page. Cover minis and artist photos are

Dont employ more staff than you absolutely must have to function

a given, but be sure theyre optimized for the web, making them

properly and efficiently. This is not to say that everyone must

use as little download time as possible. If a page takes too long

spend twelve-to-fourteen hour days, six days a week. If the work

to load, your prospective customer is liable to give up and not

and responsibilities are clearly defined, and the entire staff knows

navigate any further on your site.

the companys goals and works cooperatively, no one should be

over-burdened. Its important that the style and manner of work
be created at the top. The label owners and principle officers
must establish well-defined goals and set good examples for their
employees.

Be sure the site is filled with useful information, not dazzle. Add
artist bios, tour information and fun facts. Your entire catalog
should be available for perusal. Consider offering a prize to visitors
(such as free promo stuff) for correct answers to a simple quiz
taken after surfing your site.

9. Improper Supervision of Internal Staff and Outside (Non-

Also be sure you give your visitor sufficient opportunity to listen

employee) Services.

to samples of your music. There should be thirty-to-sixty second

This relates to the above pitfall. Your staff must understand

samples of at least three or four selections per artist. And these

their responsibilities, and the companys goals must be clear to

should be available in at least one if not all of the standard

all. Then its managements job to see that the staff is handling

browser audio media: QuickTime Player (Apple), RealPlayer

tasks properly. Not only must the job be done but on time and

(RealAudio), and Windows Media Player (Microsoft). You might

efficiently. If a weak management doesnt supervise its staff, time

also provide links to these companies, so that a visitor to your site

and money will be wasted. The same is true for outside (non-

can download these utilities if they dont already have them.

employee) freelancers.

Finally, make it easy for a customer to buy your music either as

Im a firm believer in outsourcing wherever possible. This reduces

payroll and you pay for assistance only as needed. But the work
of these people needs to be supervised as well. Its not necessary

downloadable files, via purchase of CDs and DVDs at your site, or

by way of a link to an established on-line retailer such as Amazon.
com or CD Baby. After all, the idea is to sell your music.

to be looking over someones shoulder all the time, but managers

For more suggestions about improving web sites see Newsletter

must be sure that the work will be completed on schedule and on

#39 Effective Web Sites of July 2004,

budget.

http://www.holzmansolutions.com/articles/39-jul04.html.

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KEITH HOLZMAN

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