giving away Cd's at gig, to the folks who really liked your

Buck Cannon · March 22nd, 2005, 02:30 PM

I think, in the early part of the game I'm in that this is a good idea, it cost me about a buck,

I give out 4-5 a gig.. just to the special folks who ya really can tell dug your tunes.

I'm thinking it makes them commit a little? like they come out hopefully more often.. etc..

and they'll tell others..

??????

tdu · March 22nd, 2005, 02:33 PM

Well CD's have become so cheap to manufacture now that consider about 1/4 of our run to be dedicated as promo material anyway. If we sell half of them we still make a profit.

So ya I have no problem giving CD's away. Especially if it's to cute girls.

genelovesjez · March 22nd, 2005, 02:59 PM

I've been the recipient of CDs when I have told bands how good they were, and I've always used the CDs to turn other people on to them.

It's definitely a good idea. Once you put something out there, you never know where it'll go - sort of like viral marketing.

weelie · March 23rd, 2005, 02:51 AM

Giving something something small but special free to people tends to come back to you like a boomerang. And I think the fact you are giving them out yourself makes it personal and will lead to good word-of-mouth and an image of yourself as a real nice guy.

teledude66 · March 23rd, 2005, 06:41 AM

my idea was to give out our shirts and man you'd thought i said let's play for free...the drummer freaked out he said it wasn't fair cause he wanted to charge his friends and i didn't ...i think it's cool to give it out free at first, it's all about growing a fanbase...

dogcityrocker · March 23rd, 2005, 06:51 AM

we give away more than we sell

Tim Armstrong · March 23rd, 2005, 08:32 AM

I think I'm going to put together a 4-song CD that I can burn myself, put in a simple sleeve, to give away at gigs.

I figure if I give them a taste, they'll want more!

We'll sell our full-length CD and T-shirts (good money!).

Cheers, Tim

gtrjones · March 23rd, 2005, 08:51 AM

There is a perception among SOME people that if you're giving away your music, it must be worth what you're asking for it. I appreciate the effort to reach-out to fans, and have given away my share of CDs... but I like Tim's approach... the 'burn 'em on a computer, stomp the label on 'em at home CDs, with 4 or 6 songs' are the giveaways... the Full-length, nice artwork, spent money on 'em CDs are for sale...

teledude66 · March 23rd, 2005, 11:45 AM

let me restate my post , ours is a crap demo to begin with, and they are all burned on my PC... yeah if there was big money invested, maybe the hot chicks would get'em the rest of the losers will pay...lol....on the other hand if you had 100 cd's no one listens to because they are not sold, inconspicuously passing some nice cd's around may seed the rest of the cd's to get sold...

skiraly017 · March 23rd, 2005, 12:17 PM

Burn some generic white label 3 or 4 song giveaway CD's on my PC with info included on purchasing the full CD. Regardless of how inexpensive it has become to make CD's, its still money coming out of your pocket. Like Buck I live in SoCal and since I'm not a doctor or lawyer, times are tight. If I ever get my CD going, the last thing I could afford to do is give away a full-blown production CD. It's not that I wouldn't appreciate someone who dug my music, I just don't have FU money at this point in my life.

mark norwine · March 23rd, 2005, 12:36 PM

I disagree......

If you give something for free, ultimately, the value is zero.

People have greater attachment to that for which they sacrifice....even if the sacrifice is small.

tdu · March 23rd, 2005, 03:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by teledude66

my idea was to give out our shirts and man you'd thought i said let's play for free...the drummer freaked out he said it wasn't fair cause he wanted to charge his friends and i didn't ...i think it's cool to give it out free at first, it's all about growing a fanbase...

There is no better advertising on earth then a hot girl wearing your t-shirt. So I give those away free as well.

I hate to use the expression, but a problem is a lot of people just aren't with the times. I know bands now who record full quality demos in a studio just so they can give away copies at shows. If people like your stuff enough, they will buy a product when you have it available. But you are crazy not to take advantage of cheap recording and manufacturing options available today. And not to take advantage of Mp3's. I do whatever I can to get people out to shows because that is where we make our money. Giving away merch is one method of doing that. We still do sell enough merch that we make a profit on anything we print up.

I totally do not agree with the statement above about the 'worth' of material. This all has to do with the state of the modern music business.

Elk · March 23rd, 2005, 10:03 PM

I saw Bugs Henderson for the first time a few years back right before Christmas. After the show he shook everyones hand on the way out and handed them a recording. One of the coolest, most personal things I've ever seen a musician do. I've bought several of his CD's since then as well.

March 22nd, 2005, 02:30 PM	#1 (permalink)
Buck Cannon Banned Tele-Holic Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 516	giving away Cd's at gig, to the folks who really liked your I think, in the early part of the game I'm in that this is a good idea, it cost me about a buck, I give out 4-5 a gig.. just to the special folks who ya really can tell dug your tunes. I'm thinking it makes them commit a little? like they come out hopefully more often.. etc.. and they'll tell others.. ??????

March 22nd, 2005, 02:33 PM	#2 (permalink)
tdu Friend of Leo's Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Ontario, Canada Age: 32 Posts: 2,399 9 Photos	Well CD's have become so cheap to manufacture now that consider about 1/4 of our run to be dedicated as promo material anyway. If we sell half of them we still make a profit. So ya I have no problem giving CD's away. Especially if it's to cute girls. __________________ Torn Down Units brand Rock n' Roll My Solo Stuff:

March 22nd, 2005, 02:59 PM	#3 (permalink)
genelovesjez Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Toronto, Canada Age: 41 Posts: 3,735	I've been on the other end of it... I've been the recipient of CDs when I have told bands how good they were, and I've always used the CDs to turn other people on to them. It's definitely a good idea. Once you put something out there, you never know where it'll go - sort of like viral marketing.

March 23rd, 2005, 02:51 AM	#4 (permalink)
weelie Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Helsinki, Finland, Yer-up Age: 34 Posts: 1,932 12 Photos	Giving something something small but special free to people tends to come back to you like a boomerang. And I think the fact you are giving them out yourself makes it personal and will lead to good word-of-mouth and an image of yourself as a real nice guy. __________________ <- I don't need smileys, I'm smiling already.

March 23rd, 2005, 06:41 AM	#5 (permalink)
teledude66 Friend of Leo's Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Lawndale,N.C. Age: 41 Posts: 2,735 20 Photos	big fuss... my idea was to give out our shirts and man you'd thought i said let's play for free...the drummer freaked out he said it wasn't fair cause he wanted to charge his friends and i didn't ...i think it's cool to give it out free at first, it's all about growing a fanbase... __________________ The fact that no one understands you doesn't mean you're an artist.

March 23rd, 2005, 06:51 AM	#6 (permalink)
dogcityrocker Tele-Meister Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Maryland Posts: 400	we give away more than we sell

March 23rd, 2005, 08:32 AM	#7 (permalink)
Tim Armstrong Moderator Poster Extraordinaire Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Berlin, Maryland, USA Age: 49 Posts: 8,404	I think I'm going to put together a 4-song CD that I can burn myself, put in a simple sleeve, to give away at gigs. I figure if I give them a taste, they'll want more! We'll sell our full-length CD and T-shirts (good money!). Cheers, Tim __________________ http://www.moodswingers.org

March 23rd, 2005, 08:51 AM	#8 (permalink)
gtrjones Tele-Holic Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Austin, TX y'all Posts: 804	There is a perception among SOME people that if you're giving away your music, it must be worth what you're asking for it. I appreciate the effort to reach-out to fans, and have given away my share of CDs... but I like Tim's approach... the 'burn 'em on a computer, stomp the label on 'em at home CDs, with 4 or 6 songs' are the giveaways... the Full-length, nice artwork, spent money on 'em CDs are for sale...

March 23rd, 2005, 11:45 AM	#9 (permalink)
teledude66 Friend of Leo's Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Lawndale,N.C. Age: 41 Posts: 2,735 20 Photos	let me restate my post , ours is a crap demo to begin with, and they are all burned on my PC... yeah if there was big money invested, maybe the hot chicks would get'em the rest of the losers will pay...lol....on the other hand if you had 100 cd's no one listens to because they are not sold, inconspicuously passing some nice cd's around may seed the rest of the cd's to get sold... __________________ The fact that no one understands you doesn't mean you're an artist.

March 23rd, 2005, 12:17 PM	#10 (permalink)
skiraly017 Tele-Holic Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Hermosa Beach, CA Posts: 672	What I would do... Burn some generic white label 3 or 4 song giveaway CD's on my PC with info included on purchasing the full CD. Regardless of how inexpensive it has become to make CD's, its still money coming out of your pocket. Like Buck I live in SoCal and since I'm not a doctor or lawyer, times are tight. If I ever get my CD going, the last thing I could afford to do is give away a full-blown production CD. It's not that I wouldn't appreciate someone who dug my music, I just don't have FU money at this point in my life. __________________ "But right now I need a Telecaster through a Vibrolux turned up to ten."

March 23rd, 2005, 12:36 PM	#11 (permalink)
mark norwine Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: New Jersey Age: 50 Posts: 1,363	I disagree...... If you give something for free, ultimately, the value is zero. People have greater attachment to that for which they sacrifice....even if the sacrifice is small.

March 23rd, 2005, 10:03 PM	#13 (permalink)
Elk TDPRI Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: St. Louis, MO Posts: 87	I saw Bugs Henderson for the first time a few years back right before Christmas. After the show he shook everyones hand on the way out and handed them a recording. One of the coolest, most personal things I've ever seen a musician do. I've bought several of his CD's since then as well.