Art. The production of something beautiful or thought provoking meant to cause an emotional or aesthetic experience within the person experiencing it. For those of us who have devoted our artistic tastes to music, we are gripped by the artistic vision of those producing the music. We spend our money buying albums, concert tickets, or gasoline in search of the next artistic vision.

But once an artist decides to make a living off of their art, it becomes a product. This may appear distasteful to us as listeners or concert goers in this post bohemian age, but it is true. No matter your intent, or the goodness of your heart, once you hope to create income in the production of your art, you are engaged in business. And there is nothing wrong with that. All of our heroes at one point had to make this non-politically correct decision- to adopt a capitalist approach to the production of their art. Once Jerry decided that he would rather play guitar than operate an electric saw, he became a businessman- an unlikely one, but a businessman nonetheless.

In the traditional business school model- the creation of the art is the production or manufacturing side. How you get people interested in purchasing, whether through advertising, product placement, pricing, or product variation or consistency- is the act of marketing. Marketing is everything that a producer can do to entice a customer to purchase a product.

Don't understand how this applies to music? Let me give an example straight from our community. Whether it was purposeful or not, the Grateful Dead came up with one of the biggest marketing ploys in modern music history. The decision to allow taping at concerts completely shaped the decades that followed for the band's business. How?

By allowing taping, the band told the target market that each performance was valuable. More than just a regurgitation of the previous night's set of music, each night would stand alone as something valuable. This lead to many implications for the target customer. If each show is valuable- is it therefore unique? What followed was thousands of performances that were deemed unique and valuable, leading hundreds of thousands of people to become repeat customers in an industry where multiple purchases had been unusual. (Even Metallica picked up on this, and allowed taping at their shows. But because the other marketing plans of Metallica didn't include incense, goo balls, and hair wraps- they didn't turn into the counter culture industry that the Dead were. But perhaps that decision enhanced other business plans that Metallica had for their music.)

The Grateful Dead's taping decision gave birth to this whole genre of music. Improvisation, set lists, tapes, tours, the whole experience! Fans began to see every show by the band, or as many as they could catch, because they knew the product would be different every time they went Each show was therefore something worth paying for. This is the exact opposite of the marketing plan that say, McDonald's created for themselves.

The mainstay of marketing for McDonald's is a consistency of product. They want the customer to be comfortable, resting assured that every McDonald's they go into will supply the same exact product to which the customer is accustomed. They even invented machines to insure the consistency of product- ketchup dispensers behind the counter which applied a totally consistent amount of ketchup to every hamburger. This helped to create their image of consistency, and built them into one of the most successful restaurant chains in history. (Personally, I don't like McDonald's and haven't eaten there in years.)

Whether or not a band is purposeful in doing so, they are engaged in marketing all of the time. The album art, the promotion of shows, posters, even the band name goes a long way to shaping the audience's perception of the art that they are going to produce. Take the Jive Talkin Robots for instance. They were a jazz funk jamband out of Portland, Oregon that self-released two albums a few years ago (Check the Home Grown Music Network or Cdbaby.com if you are interested.) Their very name helps to shape new customers experience... How so?

If you approach a music club and you see that the Jive Talkin Robots are playing- your mind makes certain conclusions about the music. Jive is a word that may connote certain things to a customer- Urban scene, or Jazz lingo, or Black culture, or whatever it means to you. Robots implies the future, technology, advancement, etc.. But these three words together also have meaning. Fans of the show the Simpsons will recognize the band's name as it appeared in several episodes ("Will there be Jive Talkin Robots" Bart Simpson in the episode that Marge appears in the musical.. I think...) If that person picks up on that reference, they realize that the band shares their love of the Simpsons, or pop-culture, or that they are just a bunch of wise asses. Either way, both on conscious and sub-conscious levels, the band's name has helped to position them to prospective customers. This is the essence of marketing.

But the band name alone is not the end of the marketing plan. Everything that a band does contributes to their marketing efforts. Take Jiggle the Handle's latest string of specialty shows as an example. For years they have plugged away doing club and festival and college shows across the country. But in the last year they have been doing several shows that are meant to shape the experience of the concert to a greater degree. Their favorite shows to produce over the last year have had marketing angles to them, attempting to garner the audience that they desire.

Shows are open to All Ages- taking place at theaters instead of in over 21 clubs is the marketing attempt in this plan. By allowing anyone who wants to purchase entry to the show, they create a new atmosphere inside. By creating themes for the shows- A Night in New Orleans, or Alien Crashdown, or a Trip to Seussville, they imply to prospective customers that the show is an experience that is greater than a bar gig. They create a unique atmosphere in which the music is just a part of the fun. By adding costumes, scenery, and even adjusting the music they play (they played an extended Cat in the Hat for the Seuss show) they enhance the product and the experience of the customer. The customer knows that they will get an experience that is greater than "What did they open with..." or "What was the set list?"

Throughout the Jamband scene you can see marketing maneuvers. By joining forces to tour together last summer, Uncle Sammy and Addison Groove Project marketed themselves as similar bands that are friendly. New fans in new markets may be tempted into the show because they get a chance to see two bands that they had been hearing about in the scene. By naming their New Years show, Y2K+1 and accompanying that with a specific logo, the Disco Biscuits imply elements of sarcastic humor and technology into their show marketing.

The Grateful Dead market different live album releases with series names- How many people feel automatically comfortable picking up one of the Dick's Picks series, knowing that it will match the high quality of the other releases on that series. Does that create a different feel than the "From the Vault" series? Even that question leads to greater purchases. By allowing people to purchase tickets directly from the band via mail order, Phish implied that their customers were more important than a relationship with Ticketmaster. This implication is further supported by surprise shows in smaller venues, meant to create a more intimate family feeling that the fans of the band thrive on.

Whether or not a band is putting their minds to their marketing plan, they are constantly marketing to their audience. Through band name, album art, tour planning, set construction, logo presentation, merchandising, stage design, radio distribution, single selection, or even the banter that they produce from stage, they are defining and placing their product in a way that will entice the customers that they most desire.

Phil Simon is a contributing writer to Jambands.com, headjams.com, and indie-music.com. He is also a booking agent at the Planetary Group in Boston, where he works for both jambands and more traditional rock bands.

These bands and organizations were mentioned in the article

http://www.discobiscuits.com
http://www.jigglethehandle.com
http://www.unclesammy.com
http://www.addisongroove.com
http://www.phish.net
http://www.dead.net
http://www.planetarygroup.com