It's not uncommon for a new music artist to release a song for free to gain a following. In fact, iTunes offers "Discovery Downloads" for free all the time. I recently came across a link for a free download of a new song by a new artist named Aaron Fresh. The catch is that when you download the song, it connects to your Twitter account and tweets about the free download. This essentially accomplishes two things at once - both a free trial and a viral marketing launch.
Is this a good idea? What do you think?
Here is a link to see what I'm referring to. (This link doesn't connect to your twitter - there is another link to click on the website if you want to download the song.) http://bit.ly/aH4pT5
Free products can be a very effective introduction strategy as we have learned in class. I mean, if you want to sell a premium product; to hand it out for trial to start, or to sell it at an introductory price, are both very clever techniques that maintain a high price upon actual mass penetration. A good music by an artist that is free to start, and then incorporated in an album with other good music, can act as a jet propulsion for future sales. What do I think about this idea? One word, brilliant!
ReplyDeletePlease see my comment on Cristian's blog about this strategy; its novel and effective. However, I think it will inevitably lead to artists' loss of rights, not to mention money, on their music because consumers will refuse to pay for music. Perhaps my view is pessimistic,but I see this as a slippery slope for the music industry. After taking several classes on business ethics, legal studies, and microeconomics, I've learned a few professors share my sentiments. If only artists could encrypt and track their music? But I believe that has been done already, and that attempt failed.
ReplyDeleteI think you guys are missing my point ... The subject of interest here is not the free download. In order to download the song, the website asks to connect to your Twitter account. Then, when you download the song, it sends out a tweet to your friends about the song you just downloaded. It basically forces word-of-mouth marketing, and - for a new artist without a following - that type of marketing may be the best way to attract attention.
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