How do musicians get to be featured acts?
Plugola is designed to be completely democratized, truly putting the community in control and giving every artist an opportunity to be heard. Stronger, active artists will naturally move to the top based on cheat-proof activity from both members and non-members. We felt that those who actively use the community and whose talents stand-out should be rewarded. Activity is measured by a combination of ratings, views, plays and downloads. Plus, when fans register they are asked to select their favorite genre(s), so when they are logged-in the top artists in only that genre(s) are displayed. This will help artists target new fans of the genre and help fans to discover new music in their favorite genre. So it is very beneficial for artists to work their way into the 'featured artists' section. Artists can see how they rank in their genre and overall, in their stats.
How can Plugola help indie labels?
Of course, labels can use Plugola to market their artists' music the same way as an unsigned artist would. If a label already has it's own following, getting their fans involved with 'plugging' some of their favorite artists is a great way to spread the word and give back to their supporters. As the community grows, it can also be a great place to find new talent. At this time, we do not have a section specifically for labels to manage their roster, but it is a feature that will be coming soon.
What is your favorite service that Plugola offers? Is there a part of the site you think is being underutilized by artists?
My favorite service that we have to offer is definitely the 'Plugging' feature. However, I'm very surprised that more artists are not taking advantage of our coupon/download code system.
We came up with this after seeing so many bands passing out free CDs at their shows. What was going through my mind was; 1) I don't own a CD player anymore to listen to this; 2) now I have to carry this CD around with me the rest of the night; and finally, isn't this costing the already-broke artist a lot of money to do this? So we added the coupon code system.
This allows artists to set any number of their songs available for free download, when using the coupon code. You can print out coupons directly from the site that includes the number of songs available for free, location of the artists profile and, of course, the code itself. The idea is for artists to pass out these coupons at their shows or live events, instead of CDs. This will save them a bundle of money, accomplish the same goal and bring interested fans directly to their digital store. Fans will know where to find more of that artist's music or where to come back if they want more.
What is next for Plugola? Any new features in the works?
Plugola the community is really only the foundation of what we are building. We envision easy access and easy ownership to indie music, where musicians are still fairly compensated. Of course, I can't tell you everything we have in store for Plugola in order to remain competitive. However, some things you can expect to see fairly soon are; a lite version where music fans do not participate in the community, but still want to download music; a section for record labels to manage their roster and even more (and better) ways for artists to be heard and market themselves.
Of course, we've all seen lots of changes in the music industry over the past few years. What do you see as the biggest challenges for musicians these days? How can Plugola help them deal with the changing industry?
I really think the biggest challenge for musicians is adjusting to the new music industry. No longer can they be only musicians; the talent. They must operate their act as a business entity; marketing and selling. This can be very tough for creative minds, because they are usually not wired the same as business-minded folks. The good news is that online/digital music is still in its infancy. There are no rules or time-tested strategies that artists must follow. In other words, musicians can be as creative as they would like in how their music and/or goods are marketed. The only real catch is, whether it be our community or any other music service, artists must do the work and change with times.
Prior to developing Plugola, I had been running a successful business marketing both physical and digital goods online since 2000. In my opinion, most of the sites designed to help indie musicians sell their music are doing it wrong. Plugola gives artists the right tools in order to market their music the way it needs to be in order to generate digital music sales and help build a fanbase.
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