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HOW TO MAKE MORE MONEY WITH MUSIC

The Complete Guide

By Randy Chertkow and Jason Feehan
presented by t

Introduction:
Making Money From The Studio To The Stage..............................................3

Part 1:
Making More Money With Your Studio........................................................... 4

Part 2:
Generating Revenue By Licensing Your Music...............................................8

Part 3:
Merch Strategies To Build Your Brand And Earn More Revenue............. 18

Part 4:
Making More Money From Your Shows And Stage.................................... 26

Part 5:
Nine Free Revenue Streams For The Working Musician...........................30

Making Money With Music............................................................ 37

About The Authors................................................................................ 38

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 Introduction:
Making Money From The Studio
To The Stage
As musicians and artists, our passion is to make you’re reading come in. We’re here to help show
music to express ourselves, entertain our audi- you what’s possible, what services to use (many
ence, and build connections with our fans. But of which are free), and most importantly, how to
once the music is created and released into the tap — and boost — the revenue streams within
world, how do you build and sustain a music ca- your reach. Read on for revenue-generating tech-
reer? It seems no two artists build their careers niques involving everything from studio to stage,
the same way, but there are money-making and including licensing, merch sales, artist branding,
business-building techniques that every musi- building a following, and more.
cian can access. The question is, which you will
choose to master and implement in your own Share this guide with your team and other art-
music business? ists you know so you can discuss which revenue
streams, methods, and techniques work for you
In researching our book, Making Money With and brainstorm which new ideas you want to try.
Music, we identified over 300 sources of income After all, business is a team sport. As the saying
for musicians. The book documents the frame- goes: if you want to go fast, go alone; if you want
works, patterns, and recipes you can follow to to go far, go together. There’s more income to be
help you grow your music career, many of which made for your music business—the techniques
you can simply add to what’s already working for inside this guide will help you unlock it.
you. For example, if you’re in your studio record-
ing music, there are other musicians who might Prefer video?
be interested in buying the by-products of your We’ve created videos for each section of this
recordings, such as the stems and raw tracks and guide. Click here to watch them all or check out
even your unique presets or original samples. If the individual videos from each section.
you perform live, there are revenue streams be-
fore, during, and after every show you could be
tapping. Most musicians miss these opportu-
nities because they don’t know about them or
know how to implement them.

That’s where our book, free newsletter, doz-

ens of Disc Makers Blog posts, and this guide
3
 Part 1: Making More Money
With Your Studio
Click here to watch the video

Think about all the work that goes into record- 1. Create multiple products and revenue
ing a song. There are a ton of components that streams from one track
make up the final track. For example, a single Your final track is not one product—it is actually
song might have dozens of individual instru- many products and each can earn you royalties
ment tracks, tweaked virtual synth sounds and individually. This generates multiple revenue
effect chains, original beats, and even original streams. You can:
samples you create specifically for the song.
Sell and stream your music via digital dis-
All of these components come together to cre- tribution. The place to start is with digital dis-
ate your final mix, but they are invisible to your tributors like CD Baby to release your music
fans. Once you master and distribute the final worldwide. This is the key first step since it’s the
tracks to distribution platforms, you can then primary way your fans can stream, buy, and en-
make money from your sales, streaming, and joy your music across multiple platforms.
royalties if you’ve registered them properly.
Collect royalties when your music is per-
But there are dozens of potential revenue formed or streamed. There are dozens of roy-
streams hidden in that track you created. alty revenue streams you should be earning.
Unlike other industries, music is unique when it There’s too much to go through in this guide,
comes to making money: almost all aspects of but they are covered in detail in our book,
the production process can be sold or licensed Making Money With Music, which includes
to open up new sources of revenue for your busi- details for how to register with Performance
ness. But, to unlock these streams, you need to Rights Organizations (PRO) like ASCAP, BMI,
pull out these items and make them available. SEASAC, and SoundExchange. You can also use
a service like CD Baby Pro Publishing, which
We’ve broken this down to three things: will help you collect many of your royalties for
a percentage cut.
1. Create multiple products and revenue streams
from one track By registering your music with PROs, you can
get paid for all the hard work you put into get-
2. Sell and license your track’s by-products
ting your track streamed, played on the radio
3. Monetize your production process
(Internet or terrestrial), and performed. Once
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registered, these royalty organizations—which vices like Disc Makers. Don’t just focus on
vary in how they operate and collect perfor- your one track or album. Consider special or
mance/mechanical royalties when your music is limited-edition versions, bundles (greatest
played—will begin sending you checks. For some hits, genre themed albums, etc.), and more.
organizations, if you give them permission to
collect worldwide royalties, you can start getting Licensing your music. You can also license
checks from plays worldwide. Don’t discount the your song and sound recording to business-
international nature of this—it’s surprising how es such as media companies, film studios, ad-
often music gets popular in different corners of vertisers, TV production companies, and more.
the world even if you haven’t toured there. These are not only a parallel revenue streams,
these are entirely different target customers. While
Selling alternate versions of your music. If a the best deals usually come from personal re-
song becomes popular, you can sell alternate lationships with music supervisors, you can
versions of the track—sometimes at a pre- use CD Baby’s Music Licensing Platform or
mium. This includes remixes, demo versions, put your music up on licensing libraries such
live versions, making-of, and various other as Songtradr or Music Supervisor. (We go into
spin-offs. Besides selling these, you can also detail about licensing in Part 2 of this guide.)
use them as crowdfunding or patronage re-
wards to get more income from your backers. 2. Selling and licensing your track’s
by-products
Selling hi-def/high-quality digital versions. You know the sounds and presets you use in
Some of your audiophile fans will want hi-def your music? Your musician fans may want those.
or high-quality versions of your music, and you Production elements such as your stems, beats,
shouldn’t disappoint them. You can make WAV, and source tracks can be used by your fans and
FLAC, or lossless tracks available using digital remixers to use in their own music. A very pop-
storefronts like Shopify, SquareSpace, Pay- ular song with a unique sound gives you the
loadz, or any other digital distribution platforms. opportunity to let your musician fans pay to get
access to your music’s individual elements and
Selling physical product. Physical products opens up entirely new sources of income such as:
can make you the most margin—significantly
more than digital sales and streaming alone. Stems and sources tracks. Stems and
When you’re performing a show or holding an source tracks are ready-made for remixers
event, it’s the easiest way for fans to get your who love your song and want to make their
music and you can capture impulse buys. Con- own version or remix it. When you license
sider creating products like USBs, CDs, vinyl these, be careful not to give away too many
LPs, and more from manufacturers and ser- rights and lose the value in your own music.
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Beats. There are some musicians who make you to provide some of these individual com-
their entire living making beats and oth- ponents along with the full version of your
ers who just do vocals on top of other peo- song to use in their work. Movie trailer and
ple’s beats. If you have a knack for this, cre- advertising music supervisors are specifical-
ating them can be a full-time job. If you’ve ly looking for quick sound bites which evoke
produced beats for songs you’ve released, you emotions and you should have these ready-
can license them and earn additional income. to-go to improve your chances to get licensed.

Samples and sounds. Not every musician has You can sell your track’s by-products through
the ability to capture high-quality sounds, and if marketplaces like Splice, Beatport, Beat-
you have this studio capability, it can be a valu- stars, and Airbit. These curated sites are picky
able by-product from your recording process. about who they let in, so you may opt to sell
For example, some musicians capture samples them yourself using digital download sites like
from every live drum set they record in order Shopify, SquareSpace, or Payloadz direct-
to create virtual drum kits. And if you use your ly from your website. Be sure to share what
imagination, nearly every sound you capture you’re selling on social media and spell out
when recording a song can be used in samples what you have available. And, you can do this
you provide for licensing purposes. Note that while still getting your regular music fans ex-
sounds are useful for more than music: they cited about the new tracks you’re creating.
are also licensable as sound design snippets for
videos, television, and movies. Because of this, 3. Creating multiple revenue streams from
breaking glass can be just as useful as the vo- your music production process
cal that can be sliced into interesting sounds. You can even make money from the songwriting
and recording processes by creating videos or
Synth presets, effects, and effect chains. live streams while you’re in the studio. Plus, it’s
Today’s studio tools are very configurable and free to stream a live video feed using services
capable of creating a vast array of sounds and such as Twitch, YouTube Live, Periscope, Face-
effects—especially if you chain them together. book Live, Mixer, and YouNow. And video sites
You might have a knack for tweaking your synth such as YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and others
or you may have found ways to tune your set- allow you to freely create an account and upload
tings just the right way in your latest release. your videos to distribute worldwide. Even bet-
All of these can be saved and then purchased ter, all of these platforms have monetization op-
by musicians wanting to do the same thing. tions which you will want to take advantage of.

Licensing your by-products. When licens- Creating behind-the-scenes live streams or vid-
ing your music, music supervisors may want eos can enhance interest in your music and
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creative process. Even if you don’t play live, Conclusion
there’s nothing stopping you from streaming There’s money in your music creation pro-
or uploading a studio performance to open up cess! Stop thinking only about the final track
new revenue streams, especially if you have you release, start taking advantage of these
a dedicated or sizable following. And don’t elements during the recording process, and
forget, these extras can make patronage or you can make more income off the same
crowdfunding rewards that can be the per- track. If you are aware of all these revenue
fect bait to entice people to become backers. streams in the studio, you can run your record-
ing process with this future income in mind.
Of course, whenever you start making money
from the songwriting and recording
process, you can boost interest by Pro Tip!
using social media to announce you’re
sharing aspects of the production process.
For more about making your videos and
video streams sound and look the best, read
“Improving the audio in your streaming
broadcasts and videos” and “Easy fixes to
improve the lighting in your videos”
on the Disc Makers Blog.

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 Part 2: Generating Revenue
By Licensing Your Music
Click here to watch the video

Getting your music licensed is a fantastic way work: you can’t say no if someone wants to cov-
to boost your income and get exposure, and to- er your song and there’s a maximum amount
day’s independent musicians are scoring more you can charge. But the law doesn’t regulate
licensing deals for film, TV, movie trailers, and the rates when someone wants to use your
commercials than ever. To help generate these music in an audio-visual work like a televi-
opportunities, you need to understand how li- sion show or film. In fact, you can refuse to
censing works; learn how music is chosen for TV let them use your music or set any price you’d
shows, movies, and other audio-visual works; like. If they don’t pay for it, they can’t use it.
and get your music in front of the right people.
This kind of licensing deal is known as a syn-
1. What licensing is chronization (sync) license, because the li-
When other people want to use your song/ cense allows that person or production com-
composition or sound recording for their au- pany to sync your sound recording to visual
dio-visual work, they need to ask your permis- images. In other words, you’re not selling it—
sion and obtain a license from you to do it. they’re renting it and can only use it for what
Most artists are familiar with how cover songs you allow them to do with it in the license.

WHAT IS AN AUDIO-VISUAL WORK? EXAMPLES OF WORKS PEOPLE WHO MAY

The term “audio-visual work” is legalese for a CONTACT YOU
Films
visual presentation that includes sound, re- TV shows Music supervisors
gardless of the technology used (projectors, Vlogs Film or TV productions
Documentaries Film Or TV directors
computer, etc.). Whenever someone wants
Movie trailers YouTube creators
to incorporate your song or sound record-
YouTube videos Indie filmmakers
ing into their audio-visual work, they have to Web series
Student filmmakers
get your permission. Part of granting your Short films
Advertising companies
permission is charging a license fee for its Commercials and ads
Studios
use. At right is a list of uses that may trigger Radio spots
App developers
Apps
a license as well as a list of people who typ- Video game creators
Video games
ically contact musicians to use their music.

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Since there’s no limit set for what you can • exactly how they can use your music
charge for sync licenses, you can ask for as • how long they can use it
much money as you want. Realistically, what • where they can use it (geography/country)
you can get is determined by the market and • how much it will cost them (the license fee)
the budget the interested party has to work • how they should credit the song
with. But you have another advantage: if you •w
 hether others can license and use this
own both the song/composition and the sound song or if they are the only ones exclusively
recording, then you can get two license fees be- licensing it
cause audio-visual works need to license both! • any other terms and limitations you can
mutually agree to
For example, when our band, Beatnik Tur-
tle, licensed one of our songs to ABC Family/ What licensors will ask for is typically broad,
Disney for use in a nationwide television ad- but it’s in your interest to make the license as
vertising campaign, we restrictive as possible and
negotiated two licenses: make them pay for each as-
Pro Tip!
one for the right to sync pect of the license so you
our song/composition and can negotiate a fair sync fee.
another for the right to
Make sure you capture all the
use our master sound re- And remember, when the au-
money you can from licensing.
cording. Since we owned dio-visual work airs, it will gen-
Read our book, Making Money
all the rights and acted as erate performance royalties.
With Music, which explains
our own publisher (song/ Plus, the exposure and public-
“The 12 Registrations You Should
composition) and music ity the audio-visual work gen-
Do For Every Composition
label (sound recording), erates can boost merch sales,
and Sound Recording To Ensure
we ended up receiving ticket sales, word-of-mouth
You’re Paid What You’re Owed.”
all the money. Of course, buzz, and streams of your mu-
the makers of the au- sic. Of course, you can only get
dio-visual work could have hired musicians the royalties if you register your music with a Per-
to record a cover version of our song to formance Rights Organization in the first place.
avoid paying the sound recording sync li-
cense, but they wanted our original recording. For all these reasons, getting a licensing deal
can be lucrative. To improve your chances of
But it’s not just about the sync fee. As getting your music licensed, you need to under-
the copyright owner of your song/com- stand who the key people are when it comes to
position and sound recording, you’re placing music in film, TV, ads, and movie trail-
free to negotiate all the terms, including: ers and give them what they’re looking for.
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2. Understanding music supervisors’ needs non-musical directions like, “I want a song that’s
Directors and producers hire music supervisors blue” or “It needs to sound like an autumn day
to find the perfect music for the story being smells.” Once the ideal music is found, music su-
told. These music supervisors are also respon- pervisors jump into negotiation mode and try to
sible for securing the music rights and work- contact the musician, publisher, or owner to se-
ing out the licensing deal. Their jobs mix their cure the rights and work out a deal that fits their
love of music with a knowledge of filmmak- budget. Despite their expertise, even if they find
ing, copyright law, and contract negotiation. what they feel is the perfect track, anyone on the
production team can veto their choice, even the
Music supervisors live and breathe music. These actors. With advertising, the paying client always
are the people who are constantly on the look- has the final say. Because of this, music supervi-
out for new music and new genres, scouring sors keep multiple music options at-the-ready.
music streaming services for new sounds. They
frequent music blogs and podcasts and keep Since every medium has specific needs, music su-
up on music news and websites. Their deep pervisors often specialize in television, film, com-
knowledge of music is critical since it helps mercials/advertising, or movie trailers. Here are
them create a mood, elicit a particular emotion, the needs of each of these areas so you can an-
or build pace within a scene. As a result, they gle your music towards what they’re looking for.
have huge, carefully cataloged music collec-
tions and stems so they can locate the perfect Film
pieces when they need something right away. Films have historically been popular tar-
gets for musicians since getting placed in a
Beyond recorded music, music supervisors also film can be extremely lucrative, especially
have trusted musicians they work with who can from performance royalties. Films take lon-
create music on demand. They know they can ger to create than TV shows or movie trailers,
call on these musician/composers at any time which provides more time to find that per-
to come up with the right music for their scene. fect song and clear the rights for the music.
These musicians have shown they can meet tight
deadlines, often writing and recording music in When it comes to film scores, movie studios of-
a weekend or even a matter of hours. These key ten follow a different process. They may hire a
musician partners thrive in creating music at a mo- composer or musician to create the score (also
ment’s notice and can sign over the rights quickly. known as commissioning a score). That said,
depending on the film, they may license exist-
Music supervisors have to deal with very de- ing songs for scenes, depending on the direc-
manding clients—directors, editors, musicians, tor’s needs. For example, “Stuck in the Middle”
and publishers—who may give them vague, in the film Reservoir Dogs or “Starman” in The
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Martian. Note that instrumental versions of supervisors need snippets of music to create
songs are just as useful as the vocal versions impactful moments. As Exum explains, “Trail-
since directors and music supervisors some- ers follow a three-act structure: an opening, a
times need background music during scenes. middle, and then a big payoff at the end. Each
act needs different music.” To do this, music
Major film studios typically have a dedicated mu- supervisors want your song stems along with
sic budget, along with a licensing and accounting the final track. That way they can blend and
process, to license music, so if you’re contacted slice the music around the needs of the trailer.
by one, things can go relatively smoothly. Inde-
pendent films and filmmakers, unfortunately, Television
often lack all the above. And, since they may There’s more TV being made now than ever
lack the budget, they typically offer musicians before thanks to streaming, cable, broadcast,
a “step-deal,” paying out license fees based on and the innumerable other delivery methods
the actual box office receipts. Even if you ne- available. Like movie trailers, television re-
gotiate such a deal, know that since indepen- quires quick turnaround times. Shows can be
dent studios often lack the bookkeeping capa- produced within a week, which not only keeps
bilities and staff, it may be more of a challenge television music supervisors extremely busy,
to get your fee paid even if the film “makes it.” it also opens up a lot of opportunities for mu-
sicians. That said, music budgets for televi-
Movie trailers sion are smaller than for major film studios.
In the past, movie trailers were only seen before As a result, television music supervisors live in
movies or on TV as 30-second commercials. To- a fast-paced world and musicians who work
day, trailers are available on the Internet and are with them need to be responsive and flexible.
often two to three minutes long. As Danny Exum,
a movie trailer music supervisor, told us: “Trail- Music requirements for television depend on the
ers are big business, getting as much as 100 mil- show’s style, setting, and time period—and what
lion views online, and there are never enough the individual scene calls for. Similar to films,
fresh songs out there to use.” Movie trailers some studios commission scores for their televi-
usually don’t use the film soundtrack (since it’s sion series, but there are plenty of scenes where
being created at the time the trailer is being put existing songs set the right mood. Although hav-
together), so this makes it another licensing op- ing your stems available is a good idea, they’ll
portunity for you to target. You don’t have to get be more likely to just use the finished tracks.
your song placed in the film to be in the trailer.
Commercials and advertising
Trailers need to generate the right emotions Historically, many musicians were uncom-
in a short amount of time. To do this, music fortable licensing their music for advertising,
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but today, ads and commercials are seen for your music is exactly what they’re looking
as great opportunities for exposure and in- for to promote their brand to fresh audiences.
come. The Black Keys, for instance, have li-
censed many of their songs for television Commercials, like movie trailers, have precise
and commercials, generating significant rev- timing requirements. For this reason, many mu-
enue while boosting awareness of the band. sic supervisors turn to trusted music production
houses to compose custom music. If they use an
Advertising music supervisors who work with existing song, they’ll want both the instrumental
musicians usually do so to target that artist’s au- version as well as the stems. This allows them to
dience. They’re often hyper-interested in your maneuver around the lyrics, since a lyric sung at
demographics, such as age, gender, and location. the wrong time might conflict with the narrator’s
By using your music, they hope to associate their voice-over. Or, they may want to cut out certain
product with the same vibe that energizes your instruments and bring the lyrics down during
audience. Being new on the scene can be helpful the voice-over and then up again at the end.
since the buzz you’re already trying to generate

Pro Tip!

Don’t take it personally if music supervisors don’t use your music

Music supervisors are extremely busy people who are constantly under tight deadlines and
pressure. Their job is to find the perfect track to license for a specific scene. If a music su-
pervisor chooses not to use your music, it is not a criticism, it only means the song didn’t fit
their specific needs for that project. Understanding this key difference can help you avoid
taking anything personally.

MusicSupervisor.com has placed tens of thousands of tracks for its musician clients in
film, TV, and ads. Barry Coffing, the company’s CEO, says it’s usually not your radio-track,
#1 live-show hit song, or favorite piece that gets placed. In fact, musician clients are often
surprised that it’s a “filler” song or one of their overlooked tracks that scores the placement.
This means the reciprocal is also true: the song or sound recording you place doesn’t mean
it’s your greatest track, it simply means it fit the needs of the scene.

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3. Boosting your chances to license: key royalty-free. And, if you’re in a band, make sure to
steps to take cover all the intellectual property you create with-
To help boost your chances of getting your mu- in your band agreement. Never use cover songs
sic licensed, follow these steps: for licensing—unless specifically requested and
the proper permissions have been obtained—
Clear the rights to all your music. All poten- since you don’t own the rights to those songs.
tial licensors, including music supervisors, want
to deal with songwriters and composers who Make it clear you own “200 percent” of the
own all the copyrights to their music. They copyright. When you say you own 200 percent
want to sign one agreement and avoid any legal of the rights, it means you can act on behalf of
questions of who owns what. This means that the songwriter for the song/composition rights
even if your music is the perfect piece for their and the sound owner for the sound recording
project, they’ll skip it and go with “Plan B” if rights. As mentioned earlier, the biggest night-
there’s any hint of risk concerning copyright. mare for any potential music licensor is if there
are any snags with the rights after releasing
Make sure you own or have cleared all the rights their work. If they want your music, they want
and can prove it. That means if you use loops or it free and clear. When you can prove you own
samples, you have proof of permission to use all of the rights, they can do business with you
them in your sound recording or can prove they’re much more easily.

Pro Tip!

Use split sheets to keep track of your rights and who owns what
Songwriting and sound recording split sheets are easy-to-use, templated agreements that
help get everyone who is writing and recording music on the same page. These forms track
who created what in a song or sound recording and document, in writing, the percentage of
income owed to each collaborator. By using split sheets, you make it easier to register your
songs and sound recordings for royalties while also protecting yourself against potential
legal disputes should the song or sound recording take off or get licensed.

The best time to capture this information is during or shortly after your songwriting or re-
cording session. Capture this information early and make it a habit in your production pro-
cess. We created free split sheets you can download, review, and use.

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Create a place where interested parties can is especially true for movie trailers. Using your
learn about and hear your music. Licensors mixing session to create these specialized ver-
and music supervisors are looking for the ide- sions will allow you to have them ready at a mo-
al piece of music to fit a specific clip of video. ment’s notice since licensors often don’t have
Because of this, they focus on certain qualities much time when they decide to use a piece. You
of a piece of music, such as the overall mood should also provide 320kbps MP3s and be sure
the piece evokes, the genre, the tempo/BPM, to fill out all your ID3 metadata fields, including
whether it’s an instrumental or vocal piece, and your website and contact info.
even what other artists it sounds like. Any de-
scriptive info you can provide in advance about Always be easy to contact. Make it easy for
these qualities makes a licensor’s job easier and anyone to get in touch with you by adding your
could improve your odds of placement. List this contact info to any MP3s you send to potential li-
descriptive info on a dedicated “licensing page” censors and music supervisors. Also, your email
on your website or post it to one or more of signature should include all your contact info,
the various licensing services available. Having web addresses, and social media profiles so it’s
song/music descriptions at-the-ready will help convenient to find you. When someone needs a
you when it comes to categorizing your music. song, they usually need it immediately, and you
don’t want to miss out on licensing income be-
Have mastered tracks of WAVs, stems, and cause they can’t connect with you.
instrumental mixes for all of your music. De-
pending on the needs of the scene or video, the Once you have the above, make it known that
person or production company licensing your your music is open for licensing and get it in front
music may need to use an alternate mix or just of key licensors, like music supervisors. This is
one of your sound recording’s stems. Depending done through networking and making personal
on how focused you are on licensing, you may connections, but it can also mean getting your
want to create alternative mixes while you’re in music into services that connect musicians with
the studio. For example, you may want to create: people looking to license music.

• an instrumental mix 4. Getting your music in front of potential

• a vocals-up mix (+1 or 2dB than normal) licensors
• a vocals-down mix (-1 or 2dB) The music publishing and licensing industries
• a radio-friendly mix (if there’s profanity) have always been about relationships: if you can
get to know potential licensors or music super-
You may also want to create mixed-down stems, visors directly, you can pitch songs to them or
source tracks, and beats since some licensors become a trusted resource they can turn to for
may want just the elements of your music. This their music needs. This is especially true if you
14
gain a reputation for being great at composing high-quality download of a song. We recom-
in a particular genre of music. In fact, this indus- mend making it a download since many may
try is usually split into people who make music, add it to their personal collection. Plus, provid-
people who have the relationships, and the mu- ing a download makes it easy to add your music
sic supervisors who choose the music. to video software, increasing your chances of
your music being used for a scene.
Here are ways you can build relationships with
potential licensors and get your music into key Get your music in services music supervisors
services and sites that can boost your chances use. Most music supervisors have a short list of
of getting licensed. trusted services and partners who supply mu-
sic. This includes music production houses that
Check out the credits of your favorite show. specialize in creating pre-cleared music libraries
If you see a TV show and have music you think specifically for the needs of music supervisors.
fits its style, check the credits to learn the name It also includes various curated and non-curat-
of the music supervisor. Then search the web ed music matching services. Getting your music
or LinkedIn to find out how to contact him/her. into these resources can get you into the ears of
Many music supervisors are superfans of mu- potential licensors.
sic and have their own blogs or websites where
they share playlists. The same technique works Music matching and licensing services. Licens-
for movie trailer production houses. If you have ing services are in business to make it easy for
music you think is ready for placement, search potential licensors to find and license music for
the Internet for the studios’ website. They often their projects. Most of them have a submission
highlight their latest trailers and list the staff or process which includes listening to and evaluat-
have a contact page. Once you’ve identified who ing your music to determine if it matches their
to contact, reach out directly. needs. There are two types of music matching
services: curated and non-curated.
Attend music industry conferences. Potential
licensors, including music supervisors, often at- Curated services include APM, Audio-
tend music industry conferences like South By sparx, AudioSocket, GettyImages Music,
Southwest, National Association of Record Jinglepunks, and MusicSupervisor. Some
Industry Professionals, and The Association specialize in particular uses, such as Songlily,
of Music Producers. If you contact someone which focuses on licensing music for games
directly, keep in mind their mailbox probably and apps, and Motionarray, which is focused
has hundreds of unread emails from musicians. on video. Another example is Taxi, which aggre-
To cut through the crowd, make your message gates “wanted” listings from media companies.
short and make it easy to click a link to get a Taxi charges a fee to join and to submit, but if
15
your music is chosen by the potential licensor, genres, or moods. They usually have their mu-
Taxi puts them in touch with you to work out a sician partners create different versions of one
licensing deal. song, chopping it up into 15- and 30-second clips
and making different instrumental versions. De-
Non-curated services allow anyone to upload pending on the music production house, the
their music to their music libraries as long as music is licensed per use, covered by a yearly
you agree with their sync licensing terms (which subscription arrangement, or sold royalty-free.
may ask for exclusivity). Examples include
SongTradr and SynchTank. Your distribution Unlike the curated and non-curated options,
partners may offer a sync licensing service as to get your music considered for inclusion, you
well. For instance, CD Baby offers a sync split fee need to contact and build a relationship with
option to list your song in its catalog for music these houses. They want proof you can create
supervisors and other media users to license. and produce quality music that meets their stan-
dards. Many want a work-for-hire arrangement,
With any of these services, carefully compare exclusive rights to the music, or part or all of the
their features, the percentage of the sync li- publisher share of the composition rights. You
cense fees they’ll pay you, payment terms, and should become very familiar with their terms
other terms and conditions. Although some and may want to discuss with your attorney be-
services may take a higher percentage of your fore signing any deal.
sync license, they may have closer relationships
with potential licensors, music supervisors, or Get your music out there. One of the easi-
other media users and therefore increase your est ways to increase the chances of potential
chances to succeed with getting your music li- licensors finding you and your music is simply
censed. The most important term to watch out by releasing and promoting your music, as we
for is whether they want exclusive rights, which discuss in our book, Making Money With Music.
means they get paid even if you sign an agree- Our “Releasing Your Music and Getting Noticed”
ment without the aid of their service. When in section covers five chapters, including “Get
doubt, consult your attorney before signing or Heard and Seen” and “Your Release Strategy”
submitting anything. and explains how you should create and release
a steady stream of music; promote it effective-
Music production houses and licensing ser- ly; get it played, heard, and seen across the web
vices. Music production houses specialize in and by music services; and generate publicity
licensing music for music supervisors and oth- and media coverage. The more you grow your
er media clients by hiring musicians to create audience, expand your music business, and con-
original music. Many of these are specialty pro- quer particular niches, the more likely licensing
duction houses with a focus on specific styles, opportunities will come to you.
16
Conclusion generates royalties—but only if it’s registered
Licensing doesn’t just create a new income for composition and performance royalties,
stream, it draws fans to your existing music sound recording performance royalties, me-
and supercharges other income streams, like chanical royalties, and more. Get our book,
performance and mechanical royalties. But Making Money With Music, and learn about
you’ll only get more income if you’ve set your- the “12 Registrations You Should Do For Every
self up to harness it. Here are related revenue Composition and Sound Recording To Ensure
streams and benefits you can pursue to get the You’re Paid What You’re Owed.”
most out of licensing:
• Boost bookings for live shows and events.
• Generate license fees from your song/com- Licensing can help you book more shows and
position and sound recordings. Clear the get a bigger draw. Especially if you were li-
rights for your music and license your music as censed for a major film or TV show.
described in this guide.
•
Generate additional licensing opportuni-
• Generate publicity and media attention. Any ties. There are many types of music licensing
major placement can generate new publicity opportunities, such as video games, VR, musi-
opportunities which can boost your reach and cal greeting cards, toys, ringtones, apps, sheet
exposure. Plus, it’s a great reason to reach out music, and other products requiring sound de-
to all of your publicity contacts and get more sign and music. Plus, new uses for music seem
stories and coverage of you and your music. to be invented every day.

• Boost streams and sales. Make your music Licensing your music takes some work, both on
available for streaming and sales so the expo- the business end as well as in the studio, but
sure can get you more income. It also increas- it can pay off big. Make sure you collect what’s
es interest in your back catalog. needed in the studio to get the source tracks,
stems, and mastered finals ready, and then get
•
Boost royalties when your music is per- out and network with music supervisors with
formed. When your music is licensed for au- the goal of getting your music in a film, TV show,
dio-visual works, it usually gets performed and movie trailer, or commercial. 

17
 Part 3: Merch Strategies to Build
Your Brand And Earn More Revenue
Click here to watch the video

1. Your merchandise strategy heads. It’s the essence of this persona that influ-
To make the most money from your merchan- ences the type of fans you attract and ultimately
dise sales, you need to understand why fans buy helps you to understand what they will relate to
merchandise from artists in the first place. While and see themselves reflected in.
fans do buy merch to support their favorite art-
ists, that’s not the primary reason—otherwise, To use a musical analogy, think of your perso-
you’d be able to save tons of money on printing na as an EQ for your personality, where you can
costs by simply selling them plain white t-shirts! boost just a few key aspects to make it easy for
an audience to easily grasp what you and your
To truly get your fans excited enough to open music are about. This lets you tap into the magic
their wallets and get your cash register ringing, of how people become such die-hard fans, they
you have to focus your merch on them, not you. want to get a tattoo of your logo.
This means creating merch that speaks to some
part of their identity or their experience.

Creating merch that speaks to your fans’ identi- Pro Tip!

ty starts with understanding them well enough
to know what images represent them so that
they’ll want to wear, use, or show it off in their For more about developing your artist
daily life. To create merch that speaks to your persona, read “Define Your Persona,
fans’ experience, you need to create mementos Find Your Voice, And Build Your Artist
that remind them of your shows and live events Brand” on the Disc Makers Blog and check
to help them relive the moments they loved. out our book, Making Money With Music,
which explores “The 10 Qualities Every
Although it seems backward, understanding Persona Should Have” as well as
your fans and what they want starts from un- “The Six Questions You Can Answer
derstanding yourself. The best inspiration to To Develop A Persona.”
create merch starts from your musical persona:
the identity you create for yourself and your mu-
sic that you want people to carry around in their

18
The more distinct and focused your persona, • Minnows: $1 to $20
the easier it is to invent all aspects of your artist • Dolphins: $20 to $100
brand, including all the tangible elements your • Whales: $100 or more
fans can see, feel, and touch. Your artist brand
includes your logo, images, colors, fonts, and all You should create at least one merch option in
the things that make up your online presence, each category so each type of fan has something
as well as your music and merch. they can buy in their range. Minnows want in-
expensive items like stickers, while dolphins can
Everything you produce should evoke your per- afford CDs, t-shirts, and hoodies. But you also
sona and the emotions you want people to feel want to make sure your whales have desirable,
when they experience you and your music. The higher-end items to buy. In fact, for many busi-
better you understand yourself and your fans, nesses, whales account for 50%-80% of their
the easier it will be to create merch they’ll be at- income, yet, most musician’s merch tables and
tracted to and be willing to buy. online stores lack any offerings in the whale
category, such as one-of-a-kind or rare items
Once you have your persona and brand defined, which justify the higher cost. And don’t forget,
you need to classify your potential customers your whale items will make all your minnow and
by their spending habits so you can create mer- dolphin merch seem even more affordable in
ch to satisfy all of them. Here’s a quick way to comparison, so just having them available can
categorize your fans based on what they spend: improve your overall sales.

19
When it comes to what to sell, fans expect to see: merch and determine how you’ll sell it online
and at your merch table.
• Physical music and video media such as CDs,
USBs, DVDs, vinyl records, etc. Most of your merch will be based on your
• A mix of mass-manufactured and exclusive/ imagery, so consider having some of the

limited-availability merch (including one-of-a- following on hand:

kind items or limited-run items).

•
A mix of practical (i.e. clothing, lighters, • Your band logo

and bottle openers) and impractical • Pictures of the musicians

(i.e. bobbleheads). • Album covers

• Key lyrics from your songs
Having analyzed your audience and listed po- • Your mascot
tential merch options, you are now in a position • Tour cities and dates
to establish what specific merch you want to of-
fer. You can boil this down to three columns list- Before you go to production, you’ll want to test
ing the minnow, dolphin, and whale segments out your designs, so be sure to get honest feed-
and multiple rows listing the categories of mer- back before you spend money on anything!
ch items you want to offer. Then it becomes an
exercise of brainstorming which item in each We go into greater depth detailing prep steps in
category you can create that will appeal to each our book, Making Money With Music, but here’s
segment (as well as analyzing profit margins a high-level overview of things to do.
and start-up out-of-pocket expenditures). You
1. 
Research and know your online sales and
should have at least one item for each.
fulfillment partners who will help you sell on-
line.
You might not want to offer three versions of
the same item, such as the poster options in our 2. Research and know your payment vendors

sample chart, but this example shows how it’s who can handle credit and debit card sales (at

possible please each customer segment with your merch table) and online payments.
variations of the same item. 3. Reserve some money for start-up costs like
graphic artist fees, production costs, proof
2. Prep steps and creating basic merch costs, and shipping fees.
Once you have a direction, now you get
to tap into your creativity to create designs With the prep out of the way, let’s dive into some
for your merch. You will also decide who you’ll of the most common merch items people look
be partnering with to create your branded for from musicians and how to make them.

20
T-shirts Because of all this, stickers make perfect min-
If you create only one merch item, t-shirts are now items as well as giveaways. In fact, they can
an obvious choice (and hoodies are a great be used to entice people to buy other merch by
next-level item). There are endless numbers of bundling them as an incentive.
things you can put on t-shirts and hoodies that
your fans may want to buy, so make sure to test The steps to create stickers are similar to creat-
out your designs in advance at shows or on so- ing t-shirts:
cial media to determine what people actually 1. 
Choose a service partner (such as
like best. Disc Makers).
2. Use your service partner’s online tools and
Once you have a design tested and picked out, templates to create your design.
here are a few simple steps to make t-shirts: 3. Choose the type and quality. Stickers have
1. 
Choose an apparel service partner a surprising number of options—including
(such as Merchly). vinyl, metallic, glow-in-the-dark, clear, trans-
2. Use your service partner’s online tools and ferable/removable, die-cut, and many others.
templates to create your design. 4. Proof your artwork and spelling before going
3. Choose the style, quality, colors, and size mix. to production.
(Save and track these specs and sales to help 5. Place your order!
with future orders.)
4. Review your art files before you go Posters
to production. If you play out and make promotional posters
5. Place your order! for your events, why not turn all that hard work
into something you can sell? You can even make
Stickers posters for milestones you’ve achieved (new
Stickers are one of the most inexpensive and single, EP, or album release; your 50th or 100th
versatile pieces of merch you can make because show). And, similar to stickers, these should con-
they can include your website URL, social me- tain your URL, QR codes, or social media han-
dia links, and/or contact information and can dles so people can easily learn more about you
also include QR codes and Spotify, Snapchat, or and discover more music and videos.
other social media info. This helps send people
directly to your music, websites, and social pro- You’ll want to buy posters in bulk so you can
files. And since stickers are inexpensive to make, make a good margin. They’re great as incentives
you can create many different designs featuring for bundles or giveaways. The steps are similar
different information. to creating t-shirts:

21
1. Choose a service partner (like Disc Makers). combination of CDs, USBs, download cards,
2. Use your service partner’s online tools and DVDs, Blu-ray, or vinyl. USBs are particularly
templates to create your design. flexible since they allow you to include more
3. Choose the type and quality. Posters also than just your music. You can include things
have a surprising number of options, depend- beyond what the streaming services can offer,
ing on the quality you choose, such as glossy, such as behind-the-scenes videos, alternate
matte, canvas, mesh, mounted, framed, LED, versions of your songs (acoustic versions, live
electronic, and more. The variety can help sat- recordings, demos), photos and images, doc-
isfy your minnow, dolphin, and whale options. uments (lyric sheets, recording journals, etc.),
4. Proof your artwork and spelling before going and more.
to production. 2. Choose a service partner (like Disc Makers).
5. Place your order! 3. Call or use your service partner’s online tools
and templates and follow their instructions
Physical media carefully to create the physical product you
When it comes to the margin you can make on chose.
your basic merch, nothing beats selling physical 4. Proof everything.
media of your music in the form of CDs, USB 5. Place your order!
drives, DVDs, and vinyl records. Each of these,
when priced right, can turn a significant profit. 3. Advanced merch
If you play live or hold listening parties or oth- Once you have some basic merch items avail-
er events, your fans will want to purchase your able, you can consider adding some of the more
music and videos while caught up in the thrill advanced or out-of-the-ordinary merchandise.
of the night. Although many people consume Nearly everything we buy today can be obtained
their music through streaming services, physical from a wholesaler, in bulk, with customizable
items are mementos and souvenirs—especially options. Of course, not every type of merch will
vinyl. fit your persona, but this is where your creativity
comes in. The main thing is to know what’s pos-
As most musicians know, there’s a lot that goes sible beyond the basic items. The following list
into creating a physical product, which we cover can help get you started by sparking ideas.
in detail in Making Money With Music, but the
high-level beats are similar to most merch. Here Food. You know those little candy hearts you
are a few things to consider: see around Valentines Day? Wouldn’t it be cool
if they had your band or artist name on them?
1. Decide on the type of physical product you Well, they can. You can produce those with any
want to offer based on your knowledge of words you want on them at sites like My Custom
what your fans want. This might include a Candy. Same with M&Ms. In fact, nearly every
22
kind of food with a label on it can be branded provide custom items at a low price and with
with your name and imagery, including beer and a huge number of options. This includes rings,
alcohol, coffee, sauces, and more. necklace pendants, and more with your logo,
artist name, or image.
Lighted merch. Lighted merch items are a great
choice if you play live. They stand out in dark 4. Boost merch sales with pricing strategies
venues, provide something fun for your fans to Every time you go to a store, you come face-to-
dance or move around the floor with, and create face with pricing discounts, two-for-one offers,
an item that draws people to your merch table bundles, and other strategies designed to get
since they can see it from across a dark room. you to buy now or buy more. You can use these
Even better, there are different lighted mer- techniques to help sell your products and mer-
ch options for your minnows (glowsticks and ch. Once you have things for sale, it’s time to de-
bracelets), dolphins (glowing fidget spinners, sign a pricing strategy that will trigger sales and
LED sunglasses, lighted bandanas), and whales boost the amount of money you make.
(LED Bluetooth speakers).
Below are four of the most prevalent pricing
Books. You can create photo books for spe- strategies. You can mix these up any way you
cific shows and events, coloring books based wish. In fact, we encourage you to try different
on your music, books of lyrics or poems, your combinations. Businesses do this all the time,
artwork (if you’re also an artist), or books you’ve experimenting, tracking sales, and then improv-
written (novels, memoirs, behind-the-scenes ing on what works and dumping what doesn’t.
tell-alls). Sales can spike, especially if fans
are included in photos or through quotes. Pro- Here are the things that you should do to sell
fessional books can be self-published, and ser- more merchandise, whether it’s online or in-per-
vices like BookBaby make this process simple. son at a merch table.

Electronics. Similar to lighted merch, there’s Upsells. You can turn your minnows into dol-
a vast array of mass-manufactured electron- phins and your dolphins into whales by using
ics options for your minnows, dolphins, and the upsell technique. When a fan is about to buy
whales. Electronics, in particular, provide one an item, offer the next level up at a discount or
of the best ways to create high-end, customized with an incentive. Minnow items are cheap to
whale items like branded Bluetooth speakers, make, so you should consider offering them for
headphones, plasma balls, LED signs, and more. free if your customer buys something the next
level up. For example, if they are about to buy a
Jewelry and accessories. From costume jewel- magnet, tell them they can get it for free if they
ry to the real thing, there are wholesalers that buy a t-shirt. And if they are eyeing that $150
23
jacket but are on the fence, throw in a poster or Limited-time offer. Nearly every type of pric-
hat as an incentive if they buy the jacket now. ing strategy relies on the fact people hate to lose
Come up with upsells for every level of item as something they already have. The way you can
a way to entice each buyer to a larger purchase. trigger this feeling in your customers is to “give”
them something at the outset that they’ll lose if
Bundles. To get your customers to buy more they don’t act now. To do this, offer something
when they come to the table, try using the for a limited time or at a special, one-time dis-
bundling technique. Bundles are usually only count. That way if they don’t make the purchase
offered for minnow and dolphin items since right now, they’ll lose the chance. If you can cre-
it gives them incentive to spend just a little bit ate the “fear of missing out,” people are more
more money to get even more merch. Here are likely to buy.
some examples.
Another way to trigger this is to turn your
• Minnows: Get three for the cost of two (or two- flyers into a limited-time coupon offering a
for-one, four-for-three, etc.) of a combination of merch discount or special offer. If they get
stickers, posters, and other impulse items. a flyer, they’ll not only come to the concert,
they might head straight for the merch ta-
• Dolphins: Bundling a few dolphin items for a ble. There are lots of limited time examples
slightly lower price than if they bought them you can borrow from, such as the one-time
separately is a great strategy. For example, offer, while-supplies-last offer, a holi-
sell a t-shirt and hat (or two t-shirts) for a low- day related offer, an album release or
er price than if they bought both and you’ll get special event offer, the free gift,
more sales from the people who wanted to etc. If you’re creating a coupon,
buy either one individually. Just make sure you always include an expiration date.
know your margins so you still make your de-
sired profit when pricing bundles at a discount Conclusion
off the standard unit price. Merch gives you a lot of benefits beyond just
generating revenue and can even help you de-
Limited availability. While most of your mer- termine what to offer your fans for patronage/
ch will be common, mass-manufactured items, crowdfunding rewards, amp up your social me-
your dolphin and whale fans also want rare dia outreach, give you new ideas for your live
items. The more limited any particular item, the shows, and influence the release of your music.
more you should charge for it. Of course, the Consider the following:
most limited type of merch you can make is a
one-of-a-kind item. If that’s the case, then this • Use the customer segments for more than
should always be offered at whale pricing. merch. The minnows, dolphins, and whales
24
 concept can be applied to patronage/crowd- wears onstage or costumes (think Juggalos—
funding rewards and services and experienc- love them or hate them, ICP are geniuses at
es you offer at shows and events. For exam- merch sales, including makeup and costume
ple, regular tickets are for minnows, premium materials.) Lighted merch, such as bracelets,
seats or special access can be offered to dol- can become part of a fan-participation section
phins, and whales want to pay for backstage in your set if you invent a dance they can do to
access or personal time with you. one of your songs.

• Leverage the fact that your merch markets you These are just a few ideas. Beyond generating
to your fans constantly, since people think of revenue, the more you integrate merch into
you every time they see one of your merch your overall music business strategy, the more
items in their daily lives. Seeing your name or your fans will make you and your music a part
logo on their favorite t-shirt will make it more of their lives. This will make them want to expe-
likely that they’ll stream your music, visit your rience your music, shows, and events again and
site, check your feed to see what you’re up to, again—and bring their friends!
or come to your next show.

• Make every new piece of merch you create part

of your release strategy. By thinking of your
merch as a release event, you create some-
thing new and exciting to talk about and share
on social media. (To see how to make the most
of this, see our post, “A release strategy to fill
your yearly calendar,” on the Disc Makers Blog.)

• Get inspiration for more engaging stage shows

using your merchandise concepts. Some
bands sell percussion instruments so fans
can play along, others offer items the band

25
 Part 4: Making More Money From
Your Shows and Stage
Click here to watch the video

As a musician, shows and events (album release is a great technique to help you conjure addi-
parties, listening parties, etc.) provide some of tional ways to generate more income from near-
the best revenue opportunities you have. But, ly everything you do—even online events.
while most musicians focus only on the cut of
the door, there are a ton of hidden opportuni- Let’s step back and think about the income you
ties to make more money from your shows and can make in each time block.
events. The secret? Understanding that there
are revenue streams and extra income you can Before the event
make before, during, and after each one. If you’re creating buzz before your event, you
can sell access to it. And this access is multi-lay-
Plus, once you understand these additional rev- ered because it generates income from busi-
enue streams, you’ll look at your merch table, nesses as well as fans, which stack perfectly with
stage, and even your van or transportation as each other.
anl opportunity to advertise and boost revenue.
Here are just a few ideas of what you can sell to
1. Make more money before, during, and af- fans, all of which become more desirable as you
ter every show and event progress your career and grow your fanbase.
It’s easy to get trapped into thinking we musi-
cians can only make money during our shows, • Early access to tickets
listening parties, and other events. And during • VIP seating or lounge
these events, we focus on getting as many ticket • Backstage or artist access
and merch sales as we can. Then, once it’s over, • Early online purchase of new or custom mer-
we leave and plan our next one. But if we take ch. Imagine your fans showing up and head-
a step back and think about each event in terms ing right for your merch table because you let
of making the most money from them, there are them buy it ahead of time! You can give them a
additional revenue streams that open up. The discount because there’s no fulfillment or ship-
key is to look for income opportunities before ping fees.
and after the event, not just during.
As for businesses, you can sell them access
In fact, making plans for everything you release to your stage and fanbase. For example con-
for before, during, and after specific time blocks sider offering the following options for busi-
26
ness-to-business transactions for your stage. Naturally, these are just some of the ideas you
can implement, and to uncover the right ones
• Sponsorships for you, keep asking yourself: “How can I make
• Endorsements more money during a show?”
• Product placement
• Advertising on every surface (drum head, key- After the event
boards, DJ desk, backdrop, etc.) Just because the event is over doesn’t mean
you’re done making money from it! For exam-
Although big businesses are more likely to pay ple, you should be turning in your setlist to your
for these options, you can start closer to home. Performance Rights Organization (PRO) so you
Your local bar and pizza joint want advertising can generate royalties from the performance of
too, and it’s a great way to get started with this your music. But that’s not all. In the pre-event,
as an income stream. Most importantly, all of you sold “access,” but post-event you can sell
these “before the event” opportunities come “content.” Here are just a few options:
with a perfect limited-time offer. Time is always
running out to get the deals you’re offering in • Live show album for sale or streaming
the few weeks before the event date. Using this • Live show video for sale
technique can boost your sales and business • Post show mementos (in fact, whatever was on
opportunities. stage is fair game, even things that are normal-
ly disposable like drumsticks and set lists)
During the event • VIP post-event special content like behind-the-
Beyond the standard tickets and merch income scenes videos before and after the show (these
streams, there are many more products and are great as an incentive to sign up for patron-
services you can offer during the event. Many of age or fan club rewards)
these depend on the size of your audience, but
all are available. For example: Also, the before, during, and after framework
can be used to think about promotion as well
• Charging for photos and autographs as profit. For example, pre-event, you can add
• Recording the performance to sell fans the au- the press to your guest list, which can influence
dio/video immediately after the show them to cover you even if they can’t make that
• Selling on-the-spot rewards for signing up for particular show. Events also give a reason to do
patronage or fan clubs interviews and are great material for your social
• Charging for access to the pay-per-view stream- media. Post-event, you can use the reviews, pic-
ing version of your show for your Internet fans. tures and videos, and social media posts from
Or, you can give access to these live streams as your fans to call attention to your events and
a reward for your patronage funders. create interest in your next ones.
27
To put all of this together, paint out your show surfaces and displays we can use, including:
or event on a spreadsheet. Draw out three col-
umns and label them “before,” “during,” and “af- 1. Your stage backdrop
ter.” Then use the table to plan out what’s within 2. All other areas of the stage you control, such
reach for you and what you should try and im- as the bass drum covers, amps, keyboards, DJ
plement. That way you generate more revenue booth, etc.
and promotion out of each one. 3. Your show tickets, programs, promo materi-
als, and posters
Obviously, there’s a lot to each of the revenue streams 4. Your van/car/bus that hauls your gear
we listed above, so for more details and insight, see 5.Your merch table surfaces and the backdrop
our book, Making Money With Music. We also keep behind it
researching new techniques and new ideas which we 6. Your merchandise, such as stickers, t-shirts,
share in our free Making Money With Music News- etc. which can include links, QR codes, etc.
letter, which is laser-focused on increasing revenue. 7. Your website
8. Your social media profiles
2. Grab attention and make more money 9. All of your online and mobile presences
Businesses know how to make money by at- 10. Y
 our MP3 images
tracting the eyeballs of their customers. For ex- 11. Y
 our online photo albums
ample, grocery stores know you’re coming in for 12. Y
 our business cards
milk, which is why they put it all the way in the 13. Y
 our video intros, outros, and descriptions
back so you end up browsing their shelves for 14. 
Your video chyron/bugs (those little logos
other things. They also charge their suppliers in the corner of the screen on live stream-
to sell their products and display advertising on ing sites as well as videos, which can include
the eye-level shelves or on the end caps. While web links)
musicians don’t have shelves, we have a lot of 15. Y
 our clothes

Pro Tip!

Because you have control of who gets added to your guest list, you can help create future
opportunities for you and your music, such as generating media coverage and getting
booked for more shows, by giving special, free access to the right people. For more about
how best to use your guest lists to maximize your opportunities, check out “Add Influencers
and Music Business Contacts to Your Show’s Guest List” on the Disc Makers Blog.

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Consider using these surfaces you can also sell access to
to market your website, latest Pro Tip! them to businesses who can
single, show calendar, patron- advertise and sponsor content
age site, new merch, video, at your shows and events. The
playlist, and more. All of it is To see how easy it is to use ability to generate revenue
your ad space. And while phys- a QR code, point your smart- through advertising and spon-
ical surfaces such as your mer- phone camera at the QR code sorship generally comes when
ch table can include marketing image below—it’s a link to all you achieve a consistent audi-
for what you’ve got for sale and the video versions of this guide! ence draw, but there’s nothing
everything else you’re trying to preventing you from doing it
promote, keep in mind all your now.
surfaces can also draw people
into your digital world by using For example, you may be able
QR codes which can send fans to generate advertising reve-
directly to any URL you want nue by showing an ad or logo
them to visit. Some services, such as Snapchat for your favorite local late-night fast food joint or
and Spotify, have created their own special QR coffee shop on the stage during your shows, since
codes to allow people to instantly see your chan- live music fans tend to be a great target market.
nel or listen to your latest single, EP, or album. Backdrops with ads are inexpensive to make, and
All of these are accessible by fans with smart- you can also sell advertising on your digital spaces
phones simply by pointing the camera on their using services like Google AdSense and Taboola.
phone at the code. Or, put sponsored messages in your feeds once
you have a few thousand followers using social
To create your own QR codes, check out QRCode media monetization sites like Sni.ps.
Monkey that can make customized QR codes
with embedded images such as your logo, which Conclusion
you can add to posters, flyers, business cards, Your shows and events allow you to make more
and more. You should create QR codes for your money by unlocking revenues streams before,
revenue sources such as your online store, pa- during, and after each event and monetizing your
tronage or tipping site, and more. This can turn surfaces. The next time you look at your merch
a live music fan in your audience into a monthly table, van, or stage, think of where you can place
Patreon funder, especially if you offer the right your URL, QR codes, social media glyphs, and Spo-
rewards and take a moment to call out the QR tify codes to make it easier for your fans to dis-
code from the stage. cover you onlinec. Most importantly, make small
changes one at a time to your live show and keep
Beyond using these surfaces to market yourself, what works and dump what doesn’t.
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 Part 5: Nine Free Revenue Streams
for the Working Musician
Click here to watch the video

The old saying, “It takes money to make money,” collects sound recording performance royalties
isn’t true when it comes to making money with for non-interactive streaming services, which
music. There are many music revenue streams is simply a fancy way of saying “streaming ra-
you could be tapping into that cost $0 up-front dio,” where the listener doesn’t control the feed.
and still lead to new ways to generate income. (Spotify and Apple Music are interactive and pay
you through other organizations.) But SoundEx-
Since they don’t cost anything change can’t pay you unless
out-of-pocket, why not start they know who you are and
tapping them right now and see Pro Tip! where to send the checks.
if you can earn more income? Considering it’s free to join,
You’ll start earning profit from there’s no reason to wait, just
the first dollar that comes in. Sign up for a “Both” account sign up here.
If you’re both the copyright

1. Collect non-interactive owner of the sound recording 2. Generate YouTube Ad-

streaming royalties and the artist performing Share revenue
You can make money every the music, you should sign up If anyone on YouTube is using
time your music is played on with a “Both” account on your music in their videos, you
streaming services like Spotify SoundExchange. should be collecting AdShare
Radio and Pandora or digital revenue. To tap this revenue
radio services such as Live365. stream, you’ll need to sign up
If you have our book, Making Money With Music, for ContentID and, of course, be the copyright
you should already know the 12 ways to register owner. You can apply directly through You-
yourself—as songwriter, performing artist, pro- Tube, but note that they’re particular about ac-
ducer, etc.—to ensure you earn every penny of cepting direct applications. If YouTube doesn’t ac-
the royalties you’re entitled to. cept your registration and you want an option to
get this revenue without up-front costs, you can
Although you’ll incur fees to sign up with some of sign up with Audiam or AdRev. While they don’t
the services and providers that grant you access charge up front, both of these services charge a
to royalties generated by your music, SoundEx- percentage fee for any royalties collected—and
change has no associated costs. SoundExchange it may be a higher rate than other for-pay ser-

30
vices. They may also hold funds until a minimum publisher to collect the other half of the royalties
amount is earned and have minimum qualifica- (which you should do if you own your music re-
tions to meet before taking you on as a member cordings).
(e.g. number of daily views.)
Royalty revenue streams like these are passive
Another potentially free option leverages your income, or “mailbox money,” and they stack per-
existing distribution partners. For example, CD fectly on top of other income streams like mu-
Baby’s Social Video Monetization service is au- sic sales, live shows, and patronage, so it makes
tomatically included with both its standard and sense to spend a few minutes to register your
pro distribution packages. Plus, CD Baby’s service music. Note: this won’t generate income unless
helps earn money from your music in videos on your music is getting performed, streamed, and
Facebook, Instagram Stories, and others. Check played consistently, so it’s up to you to promote
to see if any service you’re already paying for pro- your music. Done right, these campaigns gener-
vides an option to collect ContentID at no addi- ate more royalty income, grow your fanbase, and
tional cost. even create more followers who are excited to
hear your latest release, so they are worth your
As with anything you sign up for, make sure you time. Just make sure to sign up to get royalties
read the terms and are comfortable with all asso- first or you’ll be missing out on the income.
ciated fees and services
4. Earn affiliate sales
3. Collect songwriter performance royalties You could be making more money on every sale
You’re entitled to royalties when your music is of your albums, products, and merch by using af-
played on terrestrial radio, performed live, played filiate links. These are special links that Amazon,
on TV, and more. The money is split in two: 50 iTunes, and others let you create to provide an
percent to the songwriter and 50 percent for the incentive for you to send your audience to their
publisher. (If you’re not sure if you have a publish- stores. They allow you to make an extra cut on
er, it’s probably you.) If you want more info about the front end of each sale by way of a special code
how this works, read the Licensing and Royalties inside each affiliate link that lets them know who
chapter in Making Money With Music. sent the customer. In essence, they pay you to
send shoppers to their store. Most affiliate pro-
You have your choice of societies to join, but if grams are free, which is more reason you should
you’d like to get started and don’t have a lot of be using them to sell everything you can.
funds, BMI allows you to sign up as a songwriter
member for free, so you can start collecting the Typical affiliate programs start with you signing
songwriter half of the royalties. And, once you up and using their tools to create affiliate links
have funds, you can use those funds to join as a for all the items you sell. Use these affiliate links
31
everywhere you drive merch and music sales: on Once you’re approved, each affiliate partner will
your website, social media, and other online pres- send you instructions on how to create affiliate
ences. These links don’t affect your customers— links (here’s info about setting up a “perfor-
they won’t notice any difference by clicking the mance partner” link for Apple.). You’ll need to
affiliate link you provided so they can buy your create these special links for each of your albums,
album (or whatever)—but the store will track the EPs, and tracks. (We advise you keep track of
link and give you a percent of that sale. This front- them in a spreadsheet for easy access).
end cut is tacked on to your standard back-end
cut through the retailer or digital aggregator. It Once you create the affiliate links, update all your
doesn’t matter to the store that you’re making online presences with them instead of the gener-
money on both ends. They just want you to send ic non-revenue-generating ones. Be sure to use
the customer their way and the percentage cut affiliate links every time you post to Instagram,
they give you is a reward for doing it. Twitter, Facebook, etc., so when fans click the link
and make a purchase, you’ll automatically get
It gets even better: you also get a cut of everything your extra cut. A weekend of work can make you
in the customer’s shopping cart. In some cases, more money on every single sale.
they’ll give you a cut of everything the customer
buys within 24-48 hours of clicking your link. That 5. Crowdfund to raise money for your next al-
means if they decide to purchase other items be- bum, tour, or project
yond your music—such as food, books, or that If you want to record your next album, go on
large flat screen TV they’ve been eyeing—you get tour, or create an inventory of merchandise and
a percentage of that total purchase! don’t have the cash on hand to make it a reality,
crowdfunding can help. That’s where free fund-
To do this for your digital music, you’ll want to raising services like Kickstarter, IndieGoGo,
sign up as an affiliate at every site you have your Launchpad, and ArtistShare come in.
music up for sale, such as iTunes and Amazon.
You might also want to sign up with affiliate ag- These services allow you to ask your fans and
gregators to make affiliate links to other types the public to help fund a project or product. You
of products and merchandise that fit with your set an overall target dollar amount you’re trying
band and brand—music gear or lifestyle prod- to raise, create rewards to encourage people to
ucts you like, for example. These services partner pledge higher amounts of money, and choose a
with tons of vendors and stores across the globe fundraising time limit. These services handle col-
(including instrument retailers like Guitar Center, lecting all the money for you as well as provide a
Musician123, and more). Two of the biggest ag- communication platform so you can market your
gregators include CommissionJunction and project or product to your backers. In exchange
Rakuten (both are free). for this, the platforms take a percentage of the
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 Pro Tip!

Always have a $1 reward!

There is a lot that goes into planning your crowdfunding rewards to maximize the amount of
money you raise. But one key is to always have a $1 reward. Everyone can afford it and it’s
an easy way to hook people in who are only casually interested in your project.
Once they commit $1, you can message them to keep them up to date with what you’re
doing as well as upsell them to higher rewards. Also, remember that even the fans who only
pledge a dollar might know people they can forward your latest messages to. For a good
low-barrier $1 reward, try choosing a single downloadable track.

total amount you raise. This means no up-front great marketing that sells the project tend to not
costs for you. only reach their funding goal, but exceed it.

Crowdfunding does two things. First, it allows 6. Make recurring monthly income through
you to pre-sell your music, albums, merch, or patronage
tour dates to fans so you get money up front. If you like the crowdfunding model but are in-
This helps reduce your risk of taking on the cost terested in something bigger than one-off, proj-
of a new album or tour by lowering the amount ect-based initiatives, patronage could be the way
of money you need to come up with. Plus, you to go. One platform that can help you achieve
know who’s going to buy it up front. Second, this is Patreon, which is free to use, charging a
crowdfunding gives you the opportunity to pull in percentage of the total amount you raise each
larger backers—especially if you choose enticing month (no up-front costs to you!).
rewards and stretch goals to get them to pledge
more than they would normally pay for a regular The goals and mechanics behind patronage are
album, event, or show. almost identical to crowdfunding: get as many
pledges as you can—at the highest levels possi-
Although crowdfunding doesn’t cost money up ble—by offering a variety of rewards. But, since
front, it does take considerable time and effort to patronage requires pledgers to pay you monthly,
run a campaign, so it’s not something you want your job is to create rewards that provide value
to jump into without a plan. In fact, more than 44 for their money every month. With patronage,
percent of music campaigns on Kickstarter fail. you’re creating a long-term relationship with your
However, musicians who plan their campaign, most dedicated supporters, so the rewards you
create compelling rewards, and put together offer need to vary month to month.

33
Think of your patrons as your fan club: you need pay electronically through their phones, you can
to offer this paying group of fans access to either (and should) bring your online tip jar to all your
yourself (online chats, behind-the-scenes videos, real-world events, like gigs, listening parties, and
blogs, etc.) or unreleased material, live record- street performances. For the real world, services
ings, concert footage, or other exclusives that you like PayPal.me or Square Cash allow to you
don’t share with the public (or will let them see share a link and let others pay you. Mobile apps
first). like Busk.co also make it easy for fans to tip you if
they have the app installed.
As with crowdfunding, you always want an en-
try-level, low-end reward to hook people into Even if you don’t use the online tipping jar, if you
supporting you on a monthly basis. Even at $1 or have a Patreon page or crowdfunding project in
$2, you’re really asking for $12-$24 a year, which the works, create a QR code that points fans to it.
are common crowdfunding levels of commitment. Doing so can turn someone in your audience into
If you can get pledges between $5-$25, that’s $60- a monthly patron or project backer.
$300/year. Of course, don’t forget to offer higher
reward levels, like $75-100+ ($900-$1,200/year), 8. Partner with a charity and earn money
since you never know who might fund you. It also while helping a cause
makes the lower levels look more reasonable and You can always promote a cause or charity for
appealing. free, but if you play live or tour, you can make
money and underwrite your touring and record-
Patronage stacks nicely on top of of the other in- ing costs by giving certain charities access to your
come you make. It’s free, and it doesn’t get in the audience to promote their cause.
way of the money you earn from your other rev-
enue streams, like shows, music sales, royalties, Similar to how large corporations set aside mar-
merchandise, licensing, video advertising, etc. keting and promotional dollars, many large char-
ities do as well. These promotional budgets help
7. Collect cashless donations and tips organizations focused on eliminating world hun-
The simplest, free revenue stream is to have an ger, ending poverty, rescuing at-risk children, or
“online tip jar” on your website. All you need is assisting with women’s issues build awareness of
something as simple as a PayPal or Venmo link. the problem they’re tackling, spread the word as
These services take a cut of every transaction, but to how they help, grow donations, and ultimately
the rest is all yours—and it’s free to sign up. help them do more good.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking these dona- By growing, they can do more for their cause.
tions can only be used online! As more people While these organizations usually place ads on
and businesses are going cashless, opting to television, radio, and the web to spread the word,
34
there’s a growing number of charitable institu- investigate further, check out Jackson’s inquiry
tions, such as Worldvision, that also set aside form page.
funding to sponsor musicians who perform live.
While this includes huge acts who tour and fill 9. Rent out your gear, rehearsal, and record-
arenas across the globe, they’ve found that local, ing space
grassroots advocacy helps their cause as well. If you find your instruments, lighting and PA
equipment, or recording gear is sitting unused
To make it cost-effective for the charity to sponsor for long periods of time, why not turn that down
you, they require you play live at least 25 times a time into money? Using a service like Fretish, the
year, since it’s all about being in front of a certain “Airbnb of gear,” can open up a whole new reve-
amount of people to plug their charity and get nue stream for you.
sign-ups. Since it requires commitment on your
part—taking time on stage promoting the cause SparkPlug acts as a marketplace for gear and stu-
of the and collecting sign-ups and donations at dio space. It has a large inventory and a great lo-
your merch table—to tap this type of funding, you cation-based search engine. It’s very convenient
need to have a passion for the work the charity is for musicians who are on tour and don’t want to
doing. And, it goes without saying that partnering carry their equipment everywhere or are looking
with a charity and promoting its cause has to fit for that perfect piece of gear to use in the studio.
your persona and brand as well. But if it does and
you meet the requirements they’re seeking, you Sparkplug works like any peer-to-peer trust-
can do good and earn money to pay for travel, based sharing service. After creating an account,
tour support, gear, and recording. you create a page for whatever you want to al-
low people to rent and set a time range for when
Tapping this revenue stream is not as simple as it’s available and for how much. When someone
signing up at a “charity artist matching” site. It’s contacts you through the site to rent your gear,
about making connections. In fact, one of the key Sparkplug walks you and the renter through the
connectors in the space is Tom Jackson, the live entire process: scheduling, pick up, payment (in-
music producer, who also helps charities connect cluding withholding a security deposit from the
with the right independent artists. One artist Jack- renter), and the return of the equipment (and rat-
son worked with performed house concerts, at ing one another).
small venues, and in coffee shops about 45 times
in a year and earned between $8,000-$12,000— But this service is not just for music gear: if you
all while helping feed, educate, and bring medical have studio or rehearsal space, you can rent
care to about 750 people. If you’re sincere about it out when you’re not using it. In exchange
helping a charitable cause and you’re willing to for this, Sparkplug takes a percentage cut of
put in the work, this avenue might be for you. To the transaction.
35
Sparkplug also gives you a lot of flexibility in the Conclusion
terms. For instance, you can set the price and du- Each of these free revenue streams are out there,
ration of the rental—per hour, week, or month— waiting for you to take advantage of them so you
to whatever you think is appropriate. If you want can make more money with your music. While
to offer delivery to your renters, you can set a fee these nine ideas are a good place to start, there
and the delivery radius you’re willing to travel to are even more opportunities to explore. Once
transport the gear. You can also charge fees for you see which ones work the best for you and
optional services (changing strings, providing ex- you earn enough income, you can reinvest in your
tra cables, tuning) and create custom quotes for music to unlock even more income sources.
one-off rentals.
For example, there are many other worthwhile
As with any sharing/renting service, there’s always revenue streams beyond these free ones that re-
a possibility of your equipment getting dented or quire money up front. For instance, to register as
scratched or even lost or damaged, so you need a publisher with a performance royalty organiza-
to be careful about what equipment you’ll want tion (PRO) such as BMI or ASCAP, there’s a sign-up
to make available. Also, since you’re dealing with fee. But, being a member allows you to tap addi-
the public, there’s an element of customer service tional royalty income your music is earning.
you need to focus on as well. Since there’s a rating
system, you’ll want to make sure your customer is Bear in mind that many free revenue streams take
pleased with the entire experience—this includes a much larger cut of your income on the back end
the collection/delivery process, how responsive to make up for the lack of up-front fees. So while
you are, and the condition of the equipment the free options might be a good place to begin,
you’re renting. once you start earning money, you may want to
pay for the fee-based options so you can make
That said, turning your gear into a revenue even more. Evaluate the revenue streams you’re
stream can add up. For instance, musicians in cultivating and services you’re using on a regular
Austin who rent equipment during SXSW earn, basis to see if the money you’re making can buy
on average, $700 during that week alone. If you your way into better options that will make you
have music festivals in your city, making your even more money.
equipment available to rent could provide some
good income.

36
 Making Money With Music
While this guide has tons of ideas you can implement, you shouldn’t try to do them all, and certainly
not all at once. It’s actually advisable to pick a handful and try implementing those. Most businesses
keep it simple: create a small test version of an idea, implement it, then track the results to see if it
worked. Then, they keep what works and dump what doesn’t and then try their next idea.

You should do the same for your music business. That way you won’t overwhelm yourself as you try
these new ideas and find out what makes you more money.

One way to do this is to discuss these revenue streams, methods, and techniques with your team or
band members (or whoever is helping you). To help, share this free guide with them so you can brain-
storm what will work for you.

If you want to amp up your income even more, there’s much, much more in our book, Making Money
With Music. We cover even more income streams involving merch, gigging, music releases, licensing,
royalties, and more—and we give you the steps and background you’ll need to get it done. Also, sign
up for our free Making Money With Music Newsletter, which is laser-focused on helping you make
more money with your music.

37
About the Authors
Billboard magazine called Randy Chertkow and Jason Feehan “the ideal mentors for aspiring indie
musicians who want to navigate an ever-changing music industry.”

Chertkow and Feehan are musicians, authors, columnists, professional speakers, and consultants.
They’ve written three books: Making Money With Music (Sept 2018, Macmillan); The Indie Band Surviv-
al Guide: The Complete Manual For The Do-It-Yourself Musician (Macmillan); and The DIY Music Manual
(Random House). They’re the also creators of the 15-hour online educational course, “Making Mon-
ey With Music” on CreativeLive, are regular contributors to Electronic Musician magazine and the
Disc Makers Blog, and are working on their 21st album with Beatnik Turtle, their band of 21 years.

Randy Chertkow, M.S.

randy@makingmoneywithmusic.com
Beyond being a musician, Randy is also an enterprise-class IT professional
with over 20 years’ experience as an infrastructure architect in Fortune 500
companies. He’s a consultant and has worked as a pre-sales systems engi-
neer for a major software vendor as well as a start-up. He has a business
bachelor’s degree and an M.S. in Computer Science: Data Communications,
with a secondary concentration in Artificial Intelligence.

Jason Feehan, J.D., PMP

jason@makingmoneywithmusic.com
Beyond being a musician, Jason is also a licensed attorney and a business
professional who specializes in project and program management, product
management, change management, business operations, technology, and
consulting. He has a Bachelor of Science in Political Science & Psychology, a
J.D., and is a certified Project Management Professional.

Beatnik Turtle is a horn-powered pop-rock band based in Chicago that has

released over 500 songs and has written music for TV, commercials, films,
podcasts, theater (including Chicago’s world-famous Second City), and has
licensed music to Disney/ABC Family and Viacom.

38