Three Easy-To-Understand-And-Implement (Fresh!) Ideas
1. Lower CD Prices
This is just common economic knowledge. When demand goes down, you lower your prices. Even more so with technology, prices generally go down for products as they become more commonplace and easier to make. Why is this different for CDs? For a product that has remained virtually unchanged for over 25 years, it is ridiculous that we are now often paying higher prices for them. A 15 year old making $6.50 an hour is not going to pay twelve or thirteen dollars to buy something they can easily get for free. People actually do want to still buy CDs, but labels are making it harder for us by asking that much for something that can be obtained (albeit illegally) for no charge. If labels started making all CDs sell for under $10, the CD market might actually have a chance for a comeback. If this doesn’t work, then just go digital. Only do large releases of the CDs that you feel will sell well and make the rest of it digital, with a limited CD pressing. This will lower pressing costs and increase sales because of the convenience and lower costs.
$18.99 - No, really.
2. Fewer Package Tours
Another solution is to stop putting four well known bands on one bill and charging $25 for a club tour or $35 for an arena tour. In theory it makes perfect sense, why wouldn’t you want to see three or four of your favorite bands in one night? Well, for one it means less shows. Sure, we get to see multiple bands in one night, but that means that those bands aren’t having their own shows, so instead of 3 or 4 tours at the same time, all including bands you would go see, you get one. This in turn lowers merch sales because not too many people will buy three shirts in one night, but would definitely consider buying one shirt on three different nights. By getting rid of package tours, ticket prices would go down to $12-$15 and merch sales (which by the way should never be above $15 a shirt) would go up, which is a decisive win-win situation. Also, when there are fewer well-known bands touring together you have a chance to find new bands in the openers. I first fell in love with Fall Out Boy four years ago when they opened up for Yellowcard and Less Than Jake at a club tour. The local scene could also get a much-needed lift by putting a local band in an opening spot instead of having a well known band play. This is also beneficial for both parties, fans discover new bands and new bands get new fans. So, if my calculations are correct we now stand at a double win-win.
3. Take More Chances
Has the industry ever considered that CD sales are slumping because everything on the radio has been heard before? Take The Format for example, they are a pop band that you can’t put a specific label on that would absolutely kill on the radio, yet because they haven’t been fine-tuned by a major label, they don’t get much radio play. So, take a chance and send a new type of song to radio, if it doesn’t catch on, then it doesn’t catch on, but I would imagine that I’m not the only one who has completely abandoned the FM airwaves. Stop jumping on the latest trend, because that’s what it is, a trend. Labels have jumped on the whole “screamo” scene and started signing those bands because a couple of them worked and now they’ll sign any of a number of identical bands because they scream. Well, sorry to say, but that sound will be outdated within a year. It seems like every label just follows each other and the trends. The labels that are going to succeed are those that break the mold and start pushing bands that bring something new to the table instead of whatever is hot for the next week.
