I’ve been looking at the new Shearwater limited edition package (elements of which are depicted above) for their forthcoming record, and it got me thinking – what’s better than making money off of selling music? Making more money off selling music.
It’s no surprise that deluxe packages are big business in music. Take a look at Trent Reznor’s numbers for his Ghosts I-IV release in 2008 – in the first week the album made $1.6 million off of 781,917 transactions using a tiered release model. At the high end of his pyramid was the deluxe package which, at $300 for a limited edition of 2500, sold out within a day. Do the math. Deluxe packages make good financial sense (we discussed this before).
Here’s the rub though – after the fanboys/girls have parted with their $300, what are they left with? In the case of Nine Inch Nails, a photo book and some beautiful Giclee prints – in the case of the Flaming Lips, ‘a popcorn box with “real Flaming Lips popcorn stuffed inside of it,” an “Eat Your Own Spaceship” bumper sticker, a replica of the tickets from the screenings of the film earlier this year, trading cards of the band’s members, and a t-shirt.’
What are your audience left with when they buy deluxe packages? At best, a book they’ll occasionally refer to. At worst, a bunch of useless shit that will be admired briefly for novelty value, then consigned to a deep, dark section of their closet. As the people that are buying these are most likely the artist’s best off and most loyal acolytes, the opportunity to more effectively proselytize to them is huge, and in most cases missed.
A few questions to ask yourself when designing bonus materials
Does it enhance the brand? – This is a no-brainer – the bonus material should legitimately improve the experience of consuming the featured content. If it doesn’t enhance the experience of the content, it should enhance the strength of the brand – bumper stickers, etc. are fair game if they’re beautiful.
Will it last? – Artistically – is the piece a worthy thing of art in its own right, enough so that it people will save it? Is it something you would look at more than once? Physically – is it sturdily constructed? Is it beautiful?
Is it fun? – Just because something is functional doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.
Is the experience cohesive – While the bonus material has to stand on its own, it should be cut from the same cloth as the content it’s ‘improving’. You should embrace a single experience.
Pulling the onion back one level deeper, the best kind of bonus content is interactive content.
Mastodon included a score in the release of their album ‘Crack the Skye’.
A bonus package could include a picture book that has time indications where pages correspond with different sections of music.
A bonus package could grant you access to an online community where you can interact with the artist.
Make your stuff useful.
Make your stuff beautiful.
Make your stuff last.
Great thoughts Kyle. It’s easy to feel the pressure to simply have a premium offering in one’s product mix…great reinforcement here on what filling that spot in a meaningful way entails. It’s some of the most loyal fans that will be buying – very much worth it to take the time to make sure you don’t piss them off.