How music Distributors Work
Music distributors goal is to get the album into retail stores, and get them sold to the public in order to earn a profit, much like the record labels goal. Distributors also advertise the product they are selling, using in-store displays, posters, and media advertising. The price of the product and the placing of the product in the store all comes down to the distributors sales representative, that deals with the retail side of the physical copy of the music. As the sales representative will be dealing with the similar stores all the time, relationships are built up, allowing better/cheaper deals and more exposure to the people that enter the shop. Retail stores can either buy the product, or on consignment, meaning they only pay when the CD has actually been sold.
Despite the fact purchasing music online is now much more popular with iTunes for example, the job of the distributor is still the same, to get the hard copies sold in store. The distributors jobs is extended to online pop-ups, e-mails, and newsletters, so that the consumer hears about the latest music being released.
Here are a few ways music can be distributed to its customers
Distributors work by purchasing CDs from a record label or band, and sell them to retail stores so consumers can buy them. The record label will sell the CDs to the distributor as 50% of the retail price. The distributor can then increase the price of the product to then sell to retail stores and to the public. The more CDs get sold, the more money the record label and the distributor make. The distributor usually doesnt pay for the CDs until they have actually been sold, this is a consignment.
Distributors require information from the band such as a short history of the artist's background, selling points on the CD, and some information on what genre the music on the CD is. Distributors prefer the artist have some history in selling music, for example through iTunes, previous retail experience, or Live shows and gigs. Distributors want this as they do not want to be wasting their time getting the product into the retail store for it not to sell, as it also wastes the record labels time and money.
Despite the fact purchasing music online is now much more popular with iTunes for example, the job of the distributor is still the same, to get the hard copies sold in store. The distributors jobs is extended to online pop-ups, e-mails, and newsletters, so that the consumer hears about the latest music being released.
Here are a few ways music can be distributed to its customers
- Major / independent distributors
- National, regional or international
- Online, Internet or digital distributors
- Niche distributors - ( Deal with certain genre of music)
Distributors work by purchasing CDs from a record label or band, and sell them to retail stores so consumers can buy them. The record label will sell the CDs to the distributor as 50% of the retail price. The distributor can then increase the price of the product to then sell to retail stores and to the public. The more CDs get sold, the more money the record label and the distributor make. The distributor usually doesnt pay for the CDs until they have actually been sold, this is a consignment.
Distributors require information from the band such as a short history of the artist's background, selling points on the CD, and some information on what genre the music on the CD is. Distributors prefer the artist have some history in selling music, for example through iTunes, previous retail experience, or Live shows and gigs. Distributors want this as they do not want to be wasting their time getting the product into the retail store for it not to sell, as it also wastes the record labels time and money.