Panda Express has a business model that can kick your music career into high gear. Here’s how:
They have a try-before-you-buy procedure.
They have defined products to scale the business.
They have three tiers of purchase options.
The problem is you’re only selling to one customer, the sampler. This is why you’re struggling to make ends meet with your music money. And you shouldn’t be, because you’ve got hungry fans to serve!
Have the Items Ready Before the Sale
10 +1 new main dishes (songs - battle-tested and competition-ready)
3-5 sides to enhance the main dish (mediums like audio, visual, photo, premium subscriptions)
2-3 upsells (merchandise) with a 50% upsell rate
Allow Customers to Sample Before Purchase
You might understand that the customer wants to sample, but you must realize how many samples the customer needs before they actually listen. In most cases, it will take the average listener two months of content before they actually take a listen via Spotify. Why? Because the listener is not ready to leave the platform unless they are really intrigued by your performance on social media. Remember, the average music listener is not a music lover.
Allow Customers to Sample Multiple Times Before Purchase
If the customer doesn’t have an option to sample two or three products before streaming, then they will more than likely not stream. The more options they have, the more they will convert. If the sample is filled with dopamine, they will convert easier!
Only Allow Customers to Sample from the Available Songs
Cover songs are cool, but let those be the new products you have. When you’re unknown, you’ll want customers to stay focused on the main products (songs) that are already available. So once they sample them, they can immediately be served those recordings.
Mistake #1: Not Encouraging Them to Listen
I see this mistake all the time. When artists offer samples, they never ask for the sale. Just as much as people enjoy the sample, you always want to encourage them to stream in the caption section. Eventually, they will if they are getting high off the samples. Always be closing!
Mistake #2: Not Asking for Upsell (Side Items)
Artists never have small, inexpensive merchandise they can sell that screams "I’m a part of your club." You need to have these available so customers can ask and purchase on their own. They will do just that when they are truly intrigued by your talent. However, every once in a while, you need to encourage them to buy in the mix of all the sampling.
This Means I Will Need to Take More Time to Build Than Putting Out Music?
What did you think this was? Were you going to do music and money magically appears in your pockets? No, we’ve got a whole operation to build.
Why Can’t I Press Go Before Everything Is Done?
You can, but here’s what I’ve found out: you’ll always be chasing the next checkpoint and tripping over yourself to meet demand. Careful planning allows time to catch up to demand. Doing it in real-time causes heavy stress.
How Long Should I Take Building Everything?
As long as it takes. I get that you can’t do everything in the beginning, but you should strive to have all of this complete to have a successful first-year run. It may not seem like it in the beginning, but as you stay consistent, the demand will increase exponentially, provided your product is dope!
Here’s What I Suggest
Create the music first and really, really test it. Focus on 10 final slots.
Figure out the medium approach and the frequency of delivery you or your team can handle based on the money and labor force you can afford.
Work on merch in the $10-$20 range that says "I’m cool" and looks cool to make people flaunt what they purchased.
Check This Out!
If you're a music creative or executive looking to build your label or publishing company in 60 days or less, grab the 60-Day Record Label Course and get it done today! You’ll gain the ability to get real funding, avoid contractual pitfalls, and keep the middleman out of your pockets. Click the link below to get started now! If you’re skeptical, grab the free guide, "10 Ways to Increase Your Record Label Profits," which comes with a free split sheet download.
If You Follow the Panda’s Philosophy
Things will flow methodically.
Your efforts will be focused for streamlined growth.
Cash flow will increase way quicker!
Becoming the Master on Your Own
Yields more lessons than successes that may be necessary for you.
Unfocused growth.
You’ll be strapped for more cash through the process than the latter.
Conclusion
If you were struggling with a business model:
Follow the Panda.
Work on your product.
Release with confidence.
So you can become the self-made entertainer you’ve wanted to be.
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