| When writing your record label business plan, pay | | | | It simply doesn't matter if investors will like the type of |
| attention to what you need to achieve in the plan and | | | | music you intend to promote with your new record |
| what will be difficult or even impossible for the plan to | | | | label. Investors and lenders simply have to understand |
| convey. The following are a few tips: | | | | that there is a clear market for this type of music and |
| Do Keep It Short and Sweet | | | | a demonstrated need for the music you choose. The |
| The length of your plan won't make it any more | | | | music does not have to have mass market appeal, as |
| convincing and there is no a magic number of pages | | | | long as you have a plan for how the target market will |
| which will win over investors who are on the fence. It | | | | be reached and can convince readers that they will |
| is the quality of the argument within its pages which | | | | buy the music. When the music sounds odd or |
| should make it clear that you have found a valuable | | | | extremely niche when described directly, describe |
| opportunity, have the means and ideas to exploit it, and | | | | instead the intense devotion which the fans have for |
| expect profits that will make investors happy. | | | | the genre. |
| Do Show The Experience of Your Management | | | | Don't Assume Just Building A Website Is Marketing |
| Team | | | | Launching a website for your business was once |
| Running a successful record label requires skills in a | | | | described as "placing a billboard along the information |
| variety of functional areas (marketing, sales, legal, | | | | superhighway". Those days are long gone, and putting |
| logistics, artist development) and it is highly unlikely that | | | | up a website is now more like buying a 1-800 number - |
| any one person, yourself included, will have skill in all of | | | | it is a means for customers to reach you, but only if |
| these areas. Therefore, you must show that the | | | | they can find it. The marketing plan should focus more |
| experience of the team members and planned team | | | | how the website itself will be promoted (on posters, |
| members, put together, covers all of these bases. | | | | CDs, via email lists, search engine optimization and |
| Spend time showing this experience through biography | | | | search engine marketing) than on how the website |
| and resume focused on the needs of the business. If | | | | itself will drive sales. Websites are now primarily |
| any holes are left, don't ignore them, but show you | | | | means for users to engage more directly with the |
| recognize the need to recruit more talent. | | | | bands and music they enjoy rather than means to |
| Don't Assume The Music Speaks For Itself | | | | convince them to buy the music. |