Blog 4

Music is a big part of my life. I listen to music daily. I book bands through school organizations. In the past I interned with both an LA record company and a local concert promoter. Music is something I hold dear to my heart, and I also am very intrigued by the business side of music.

Ever since Napster, the state of the music industry continues to experience turmoil. No one seems to have a sure answer on where the new business model lies. I have heard several different perspectives regarding this. Record labels have one idea. Concert promoters have another. Merchandisers think one way. Artists try to make their own way. Lawyers argue about the meaning.

The past eight years in music was marked by plummeting CD sales, major labels and businesses going out of business, and artists struggling to find their place with the consumer. The interesting thing about all of this lies in the customer themselves. Business – in all the suits and glory – lost and blamed the consumer. In any other business, would this fly? Isn’t the customer always right? I would say the answer is no to the former, and yes to the latter. So if this is true, what went wrong? And more importantly, what can the music business do to fix it? This is where I begin to tie in customer insights.

Every week I read about a new service offered relating to music. Sometimes the new service involves an iTunes competitor. I see articles about digi-pack albums that come with not only songs, but a PDF booklet, bonus tracks, and behind the scenes videos. When I turn on the TV, I hear indie artists in commercials and sitcoms that catch my attention in new ways. One article last week discussed Google’s new iPhone competitor and its partnership with Amazon music. That is just another hip new way of bringing music directly to the customer. The music industry is clearly looking for new ways to make money. The key for them is to find something of value to music listeners, such as myself. The problem lies in the underlying fact that many people no longer place monetary value on the music itself. Illegal downloading changed the value of music. Why pay for something when downloading it free is so easy?
Especially when so many people are doing it.

So considering these issues, I would like to know what customer insights are out there that could help to market new music to fans. The following are some point to consider:

• What used to work?
• What marketing techniques have been tried that failed?
• What do the businesses know about their customers?
• What catches people’s eye for new music?
• How can marketers ensure a steady stream of income from music consumers?
• What hasn’t been tried?

There are many more questions I hope to answer through my research and case study. In addition to finding customer insights, I am curious about what sort of customer experience companies set as their goal. Or do music companies even market customer experiences? Certainly some bands release creative artwork, or even some gimmicks with their albums. But is this truly a customer experience? What content are customers missing? Why are they missing it? Would a better defined customer experience help grow the value of music in consumers eyes? Or is this a lost cause?

I can’t imagine a world without music. There is no doubt the art will survive, but true uncertainty lies in where the business will be over the next 25 years. Change is necessary, and I think that the only way to salvage the wreckage of the industry from the past few years is to look to the customers. By gaining insights as to who they are, you will be able to successfully market yourself to them.