"Music Distribution: Selling Music in the New Entertainment Marketplace" |
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Short, to the point, big type, and not very thick. I figured this paperback would be a quick, easy read. Boy was I wrong, this book stuffs a lot of information into a thick package. C. Michael Brae is the CEO, Hitman Records and Dameon V. Russell is Hitman’s COO. Both have been involved in various business and educational ventures leading them to Hitman’s birth in 1991. The book starts out with some very interesting facts and figures about the industry in general. Everything from major and indie label and overseas sales to industry trends and analysis is covered in the first few pages. Chapter 2 gives details on pre and post production in music and music video. Budgeting and approval processes are covered here. The book goes beyond technical jargon and gives real world clarification to each process. The next chapter is a mere three pages long, covering manufacturing process, systems, and product platforms. There is a short but, comprehensive section on profit analysis and pricing. Half this chapter has some good commentary from Radio Media. Chapter 4 on is entitled “Distribution Companies.” This section gives an outline of all the various categories of companies. Everything from major distributors to rack jobbers is covered with explicit examples of each. Chapter 5 is an excellent tutorial on the distribution process and its many other partitions. Pricing, payment terms, invoicing, payment collection, and other topics get examined. The next chapter dives into all the resources that distributors, retailers, and promoters use to track sales. Databases such as Muze, SoundScan, and BDS are explained in detail. My only (minor) complaint about this book is that it doesn’t give any internet addresses. However, a quick search engine hunt can bring up anything the reader may want to know, so it is not that big a deal. Also of importance in this chapter is a clear and concise explanation of the UPC/Bar Code system. What it is, what it is used for, what all those numbers mean, and it’s importance in the distribution and marketing process are all covered here. This chapter alone is a must read for anyone in the music industry. NAIRD (The National Association of Independent Record Distributors) and NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers) www.narm.com are covered here as well. Both these organizations are critical resources for any distribution campaign. Chapters 7 and 8 are brief continuations of promotion and marketing operation details. Chapter 7 focusing on alternative selling in relation to inventory reduction including cutouts, mail order, etc. Chapter 8 is covers the Internet for promotional distribution, however, this is not a means of primary marketing for this book and it should not be the place you go to for website advice. The next section covers radio campaigns. The importance of the one-sheet and all factors of radio promotion and marketing are comprehensively covered here. This chapter also has a good listing of trades and their importance in the overall distribution process. This is a great resource of college radio resources, as well. The final chapter is one of the longest and covers marketing processes. Demographics play heavily here. Identifying and targeting your audience, retail and radio promotion (again), and street promotion are all covered. The appendixes at the end are almost one third of this book and are impressive. There is a snail mail listing of performance rights organizations, trade publications, and an excellent listing of college stations complete with phone numbers. Contract templates include Radio tracking reports, various distribution agreements, and a management contract template. The book concludes with a US Radio Market Data Spreadsheet that lists the demographic info for North America. Syracuse is listed, as are Utica-Rome, and Ithaca. Sadly, this list is broken down only by population and ethnicity. Such statistics seem to be consistent with the mindset of the industry but, if they were consistent with the actual listener, Music 315 would be a country music site or if based on my ethnicity, a hip-hop site. Hitman Records’ site is a good example of a mid size distribution label. Acts are mostly of the urban variety, but Johnny Paycheck is also here. The authors and their bios and a history of the label are here. There is also an excellent example of a one-sheet for readers to view. As I said above, this little book packs a big punch. It is informative and give some very good advice. If you are interested in distribution this is the definitive guide. |
Book Review |