Reporting from MidemNet (Cannes, Fr)

Today, I attended MidemNet which is the digital music conference that precedes Midem.  This event attracts a wide variety of digerati, labels and music industry execs.  The dark auditorium and comfortable seats makes it a challenging fight with jet lag.  But fortunately, i slept just enough, had plenty of coffee and even took a morning jog this morning which all combined to keep me alert throughout the day.

Every year, there is generally a "hot" topic that pervades not only the panels, but the intense networking that occurs.  The last couple of years focused on DRM (i.e., digital rights management) and subscription services.  This year, the main subject was fan interactions and how to create a compelling relationship that leads to increased revenue.   I will write a more detailed description of the many specific discussions and ideas presented.  But for now, I can easily summarize the common thread to a successful artist/fan relationship.

It is content...and lots of it!  Releasing one album per year is just not enough to create a loyal customer and combat the attractiveness of free, illegal downloads.  The key is to not provide as much content as you can.  The goal is to gather as much information about your fans as possible (least of which should be an email and cellphone number).

One artist sold a subscription for a year's worth of songs for $50 and then he proceeded to write/post a song per week.  Other artists gave away free downloads in exchange for an email or cellphone number.  

Content does not have to be just music.  Jack Penate, a case study presented at MidemNet, created 100's of short videos as did Soulja Boy Tell 'Em.  These can be short glimpses into rehearsals, gigs, sessions or everyday life.  Photos, blogs, drawings, and poems are all good examples of content that help create and sustain interest.

The lesson that I have always advocated and that all the panelists emphasized is that an artist has to always produce something that motivates a fan to want to come back to you.  Without a ton of content, fans' interest will wane.  

More to come from Cannes.

Au Revoir!

Comments

[Tom Valentino]

Hey Steve

id you have your annual ceremonial Dinner with our mutual friend?

Best

Tom Valentino