| CD Baby DIY Musician Podcast |
 June 29,
2009
Ep.65 : Matthew Ebel - Stream your concerts to the world
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| CD Baby Music Podcasts |
 Music Discovery
 Hip Hop
 60's Pop
 Rockabilly
 Top Sellers
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| CD Baby annual contest to promote top-sellers in August |
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We're always trying to do more things to help promote your CD. Here's something you can take advantage of:
THE CD BABY SAMPLER
Q: What is it?
a CD sent to customers along with every single order we sell.
Q: How many songs?
10 audio tracks. 80-90 mp3 tracks. All on one CD. (meaning: anyone with any CD player can hear the first 10 songs. Then anyone with a cd-rom drive and an MP3 player can hear the other 80-90 songs.)
Q: How do I get on it?
On September 2nd, we'll tally the 100 best selling albums from August 1-31, and contact you for permission. We're only going to count how many CDs were SHIPPED as of midnight on August 31st. The #1-10 will be audio tracks, and #11-100 will be MP3 files. Then we make 5000 CDs, and give them to the next 5000 customers in November and December.
Q: That's not fair! My music is great but I'm not a top-seller!
Last time we did this, the top #100 seller had only sold 30 CDs! I'm suuuuure you can sell 30 CDs in a whole month of trying. Get creative. Try a new approach. Reach some new fans.
Q: Does it cost anything? Do we get paid anything?
Nope. Nope. I'm paying for the cost of it myself, as thanks for your business, and in hopes of turning on our customers to albums they might not have noticed last time they were at CD Baby.
Q: But you'll ask my permission, right?
Right. On September 2nd, if you're a top-100 seller, I'll email to ask your permission.
Q: What song will you use?
It HAS to be an original song, NOT a cover-song. I'll ask you on September 2nd, if you're a top-100 seller this month, which ones you give us permission to use. Then we get to pick a track from those, in order to make it a well-flowing album.
Q: Will we get credit on the album cover?
Yep. It's a thin cardboard sleeve so it will fit with every order. But the back cover lists every Artist Name, Album Name, Song Name, and CD Baby web address.
Q: What to do now?
Go promote! We'll do the counting. (No fair buying your own CD, or asking your mom to buy 100 copies. Karma, baby.)
Q: Do sales at live shows count?
Nope. Only CD sales sold through cdbaby.com - so we can track it fairly and accurately.
Q: Wait I have more questions!
First, before emailing us, please read these two links from our previous years' announcements:
http://cdbaby.org/stories/04/09/01/5239913.html
http://cdbaby.org/stories/03/08/01/0940393.html
This is probably obvious, but remember that this CD will be going to people who buy CDs online. Meaning: the very people that are most likely to come back and buy your CD. It's the best targeted promotion you could ask for.
Reposted on Wednesday August 02 2006 @ 10:43AM PDT
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Derek
August is a great month to promote CD sales here in the UK.
Normal sales are regular record company releases are low so
careful marketing will increase independent sales.
Would like to get on sampler BUT more sales will be a priority for
ALL Loose Records artistes and , Derek, what a brilliant way to
encourage us when the opposition are on vacation (whatever that
word means)
all the best
Andrew
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This is an awesome thing you guys are doing, but it seems like it would be more beneficial if you set up some sort of promotion for artists who are struggling and have not been able to sell even 30 CD's a month. The current promotion only helps top-sellers who already are getting tons of sales and exposure, while the little guys continue to struggle without any help.
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Joey - that's exactly what we're doing.
I'm doing this to encourage all the artists who aren't selling 30 a month to try some new promotional ideas, do a new push, reach some new people, to try to sell just an extra 30-40 CDs this month.
It's just that little extra push we all sometimes need to make us do something we've been meaning to do but never got around to it. (Such as various promotional ideas you've thought of but never tried.)
We've been doing this for 5 years now and found that the already-top-sellers have the least to gain from this and often don't even bother to give their OK when the month is through, so that the others can have a chance.
Don't feel defeated before even trying.
- Derek
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Is it tracked by # of CD's sold or $$$ revenue? Does a $15 count
for more than a $10 CD?
Also, will you be grouping all of an artist's sales into one tally total
again or will it be disc-to-disc this year?
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# of CDs sold.
a $5 CD sale counts as much as a $25 CD sale
and yes, artist's sales are grouped into one.
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do digital sales factor into this????
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yo Derek,
Thanks for keepin it real
as always,
let the games begin!
-Saul Kaye
www.saulkaye.com
COOL WATER RECORDS
"Jump in.... get wet!"
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Derek, thank you for your email on setting up an easy link to the CD Baby shopping cart from my website. Much appreciated!
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Derek:
Great promo! This will help Indie artists with original tracks reach buyers who have not stumbled on their music due to the vast amounts out there.
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First of all thanks to CdBaby for the CD sales and new ways of promoting and expanding the INDIE MOVEMENT.Derek is the "White Russell Simmons" lol ... and we are thankful for your simple but off the wall ideas.CdBaby has helped me understand the Music biz from a President`s point of view as well as an artist.For FREE TIPS please go to POPPAPRODUCTIONS.NET and see what the MAJOR LABELS DONT WANT YOU TO KNOW about owning your own music. - Once again thanks.
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oh yea baby..lets do this.
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Thanks for the easy to set up graphics link to my CD Baby page. I stuck it on my new myspace profile and am awaiting results as we speak. Re the contest - I'd be ecstatic if I could sell 30 CDs in a year, let alone a month! Great idea, but since I can't seem to find enough musicians able to handle the parts to promote my CD it makes it near impossible to sell many at all (because without a band I can't go play and nobody knows who I am). Anybody in Nashville, TN want to join a rock band? ;)
http://myspace.com/shannonnoelsingersongwriter
http://cdbaby.com/icebergnoel
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yahoo sold a cd today. I'm going to the top!
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Aw... my CD won't be ready to be sold until the end of the month....
hahaha! Cool idea, though. I'll try next year.
Hey Derek, John Aldrich told me to say hi to you whenever I joined
CDBaby! :) Hi.
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hello, DEREK, WE'VE BEEN DOING, SMALL SALES FOR SOME TIME NOW, AS YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED, I'M A SMALL SALSA MUSIC (LATIN AMERICAN MUSIC) TROPICAL MUSIC) INDIE, WITH VERY LIMITED SALES WITH YOUR COMPANY. DO YOU THINK THAT MY ADDING A TRACK (LATIN) WILL DO ANY GOOD, BEING THAT YOUR BIG ###'S ARE ROCK...SUGGESTION, MAYBE YOU SHOULD DO A LATIN ORIENTED OFFER, IN ANOTHER HAND IT WOULD CREATE, YOU, TO MAKE, A CHINEESE, RUSSIAN, HINDU??OFFER? GETR BACK TO ME. JOE
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Hi Derek,
First, you are one of my heros. Now that I've said that I want to get down to business.
I've been working really hard this month to sell CD's because I really want to get one of my songs on the CD Baby sampler. I have 6 different CD's listed and my question is this:
Why are my CD's not listed under the discription area? In other words, I have three different artists listed for "sounds like". Mine are Jimmy Buffet,Bob Marley,Harry Belefonte. I have two CD's in the Harry Belefonte area, but the other's are not listed anywhere in any catagory. They are all island music CD's and none are even listed in that catagory. I've checked and I have that genre listed under my "items". Is there a rotating system you have for everyone's CD's? Or, does CD baby determine the catagory ultimately?
I appreciate any help you can give me. I've sold 33 CD's this month and want to at least double that by the end of August (or more of course).
Look forward to your answers!!
Thanks!
Lenore Troia
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hi Lenore -
Our "sounds like" thing has to stop after a certain number of albums on screen. It used to be unlimited but then some (like Bob Marley) had over 1500 albums found, and it would try to show them all on one page, sometimes crashing people's browsers.
So it limits it, but unfortunately there's really no way to control the order. The database just generally turns up the newest and most-active albums first. Sorry!
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Thanks so much for explaining....now it all makes sense!!!
hugs,
Lenore Troia
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Just want to thank you, Derek and company. Within 2 days on being on your site - I have had 141 hits and my first order. Woo-woo!!
I've also been contacted by 2 publications who would like more information.
And I haven't even started my promotions yet...I'm excited about our possibilities. Thanks for beng there for independent artists, CDBaby
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Hey, how about a contest for the CD,s that never sell or longest in the "BIN" without/sales? that would probably be a very interesting collection. I,m new to this CDbaby so don,t get insulted.
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| by
on Tuesday August 29 2006 @ 02:53PM PDT [ reply | parent ] |
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Now that would be a funny contest! I don't see it happening since the point of the contest is to get us off of our butts and try to sell some music, but the idea really is funny. Maybe there is a contest in there somewhere, it'll just take someone smarter than me to figure out what it would be.
What was the joke? Spinal Tap had the first album to go aluminum: over 1 million copies returned!
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what effect did the promotion have with the "takes a hood to raise a child album"
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Dear Derek:
You are constantly thinking of new ideas to promote which helps all of us. It is much appreciated. Since digital download sales are the wave of the future,why not adapt your idea of a CD Sampler and put out another made up of best selling CD Baby songs sold through music digital downloads? It will not only give exposure to the songs but also to the CD Albums if they are listed.
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I want to invite all ya'll to my new website KrazyAztec.com - http://www.krazyaztec.com/ It's finally up! Thanks to CD Baby.com I've already sold 30 copies online to many countries manly Japan and the United States. I've got 4 FREE MP3 PROMO tracks / songs for all ya'll!! So drop by the site ( krazyaztec.com ) and GO to FREE MP3's and check em out! I've also sold some MP3's through CD Baby.com Thanks CD Baby.com
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CD BABY ROCKS...PLAIN AND SIMPLE!
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really solid idea. you guys rock.
we'll be working for the next one since we didn't get the new album
up online in time. Thanks!
Chantel and 8traC
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/8trac2
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I sold one.
Did I make the cut?
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OK, so I gotta know...what's the least amount of sold copies to make the sampler? anyone know?
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whats the highest number of cd's sold on cd baby and who is the artiste?
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Hey, when are we going to find out ANYTHING about this contest??
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the bad news from the water cooler is that google is planning to offer Derek 1.8 billion dollars for cd baby so the august contest is off.
the good news is that he is planning to give each artist at cd baby 50,000 dollars to help us get over the end of cd baby,
just kidding people
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CDBABES... I'm a little slow (eh?) where are the results of 2006 sampler?
THANKS YA'LL
Seth
Floydhead
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IF we buy cd's now do we get the sampler or not???
wtf
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Hi: I want to thank cdbaby for promoting the unknown artist. There are so many talented people out there that need a chance.
I am promoting a new yodeling CD + plus. If you believe yodeling music is out of style for the times, and not a popular genre, then you have not heard Betty Adel's CD. She has a background in many genres of music, and some of it is in her non yodeing songs on the CD.
Her voice will sooth your soul, and excite the imagination with her origional lyrics and style. She puts yodeling in a new level of music. She has been out a short time and has sold to Japan, New Jersey, the west, and is now being played on Germany and Australia radio. I want to thank CD baby for the opertunity for her to be heard around the world. If anyone has any advice on how to get distrubition in those countries without having to go the expensive shipping route, I will be very greatful. Oreana Enterprises. nanneyhelen@aol.com
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Hi: I want to thank cdbaby for promoting the unknown artist. There are so many talented people out there that need a chance.
I am promoting a new yodeling CD + plus. If you believe yodeling music is out of style for the times, and not a popular genre, then you have not heard Betty Adel's CD. She has a background in many genres of music, and some of it is in her non yodeing songs on the CD.
Her voice will sooth your soul, and excite the imagination with her origional lyrics and style. She puts yodeling in a new level of music. She has been out a short time and has sold to Japan, New Jersey, the west, and is now being played on Germany and Australia radio. I want to thank CD baby for the opertunity for her to be heard around the world. If anyone has any advice on how to get distrubition in those countries without having to go the expensive shipping route, I will be very greatful. Oreana Enterprises. nanneyhelen@aol.com
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| by ed
on Wednesday December 06 2006 @ 10:43AM PST [ reply | parent ] |
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Big Cock has an unfair advantage.
;-)
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| by
on Monday December 11 2006 @ 11:29AM PST [ reply | parent ] |
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"# of CDs sold.
a $5 CD sale counts as much as a $25 CD sale
and yes, artist's sales are grouped into one."
I sold collectively 83 units that month. Kristen now says the contest was for one CD title only. Somethings strange here..............
Please explain.......
Thanks,
Lenore
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Derek
Re your promotion for small guys like us & Joey's comments in Aug & your response I must confess I agree with Joey. If 30 sales pm is the aim then this defeats the object for most of us. Exposure is what we're all here for and I believe that cdbaby should be trawling for the small guys too. As an aside (apologies for this plug) I should mention that The Hollywood Killers have just released their debut album which will be available on cdbaby soon. Meanwhile the singer/songwriter Jim Penfold has written the title track for Charley Boorman's new series (available on amazon) "Road to Dakar" following on the amazing worldwide success of "Long Way Round" featuring Boorman & Ewan McGregor travelling round the world on BMW motorbikes....
Heh Derek if this is not newsworthy then what is?
Back to helping the small guys though I really do believe that more assistance (plugs) is needed so any help would be greatly appreciated from you guys up there in Portland OR.
Rich @ Sloopy Box Music UK
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how many CD sales has the highest seller of all times in CD baby?
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How long did it take? to sell 20,000 copies?
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I just want to say thank you.
You've really helped, taken the time to reply to questions and on the first day the CD was up the first album was sold!
So, thank you.
Colette.
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Just wanted to say thanks on my end as well.
It's a beautiful thing to have certain folks on CD Baby really care in terms of getting out info. to their CD suppliers!-;)
Looking forward to updated "News, tips and articles" section as well!-- that is a help indeed.
-JC (of J.C. Bosco)
cdbaby.com/all/jcb4lifecc
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I like the idea. I dont feel it is as creative as you can get, but it wouldn't hurt. If you have a good representation of yourself. The thing most should remeber is with these things you should come with some of your best. In the case of myspace. I only use it to get feedback from others of my songs before i package them to sale. In addition i have sold more than 30 CD's in a month through myspace, and they suck.
So Derek good thinkin..
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I was told about cdbaby from a vocalist who had not sold many cds but was sure that I could Im not sure how many cds I will sell but I do know that I am proud to have found an organization to assist me and create new and exiting promotional Ideals. I have not been able to convience my vocal group how Important it is for us to stick together and promote ourselves and be consistant with what we do so I have decided to go it alone with the help of my wife and my keyboardist and a new female vocalist I have met. The bottom line is cd baby has givin me the hope and drive I always knew was inside of myself but I knew that somewhere I was not the only person looking for a little light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you for being their and showing the non believers there are real avenues out their for us lonely soilders who have suffered the pain and torture of trying to survive the hell of disbief and non support. R'MOzartAndSweetDollyHall
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I have some people that I want to give for gifts, so would those
count? If so, how would I make it count?
Also, with the credit card swiper, can it be portable so I can carry it
with me? Do I have to hook it to a computer? How big is it?
Thanks!
-Lacie Kirk
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| NOTE: If you need a reply you should email CD Baby directly instead of posting here. We don't often read old message board postings, and have no way of replying to them!
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