The Low Down
Posted by Erik Peterson | Filed under marketing, musicians, technology
I’ve been noticing for a while that some people are confused, or not sure, about exactly what Plugola is. I have heard some people think we are a blog or band. It’s really my fault. I have failed to make that clear to you. I will be doing some rearranging, and adding some videos and tutorials in order to make Plugola obvious, as well as, helping both musicians and fans get started using our service. In the meantime, here’s the low down on what Plugola is, and why you may want to use us. Please keep in mind that we are still officially in ‘Beta’ mode and the current version of Plugola is not complete, however it is live, 100% functional and open to all.
We are…
First, you should know that we are strictly independent music only. We have no plans, nor desire to eventually bring in major acts or record labels. I know that’s the direction a lot of similar indie music services go, but Plugola was conceived on the idea that indie artists needed a home online. So we will NOT desert you when bigger things begin to happen. Of course, we have nothing against these major artists/labels, but they already have many homes.
A Digital Marketplace
The original concept behind Plugola was to provide a digital music store for indie music only. At the time it was still fairly tough to find good, non-commercial music on the web; especially located all in one place. Downloading that music legally was a whole other story. Plus, there is a whole culture of independent music fans that usually have to really search to find the music they like. Once they find that music, the only real option in sharing it with friends was to do it illegally. We are changing that.
A Social Network
We thought that Plugola needed more of a reason for music fans to visit, other than only music. Although helping artist distribute and sell their music is the main goal, we also wanted fans to be able to communicate with the musicians, discuss the music, vote on it and share it with their friends.
Music Discovery
We took a bit of a different approach for fans to discover new music. First, when music fans register with the site, they choose their favorite genre. So when they login, artists in their chosen genre are presented, rather than having to search through all the other genres. Second, all rankings and featured artists are put there by our members. We’re not suggesting to fans other artists they may like, but the community is. All music and videos can be streamed completely free, as well as the ability to share/embed them on any web site.
Why you may want to use Plugola:
We are fully aware there are a lot of options, for both indie musicians and music fans out there. We are not saying we are better than any of these service, but we ARE different. Here is why…
Sell Music & Videos
Artists can sell their own digital music (mp3) and/or music videos however they see fit. There are no upfront or service fees, but the artist is paid a flat rate of 82% of the sale price. However, this 82% includes all processing and transaction fees. A lot of services claim artists get 100%, but the fine print usually states that it’s 100% AFTER all fees are paid. Plugola handles all the payments and commission distribution, so artists don’t have yet another task they must worry about. We accept payments in credit card or Paypal, and pay-out via ACH or Paypal.
Artist Control
All artists keep ownership of all their music and rights. We want to make clear that, they are not giving up any control of any kind; and they can discontinue using our service at any time without any cancellation fees. In other words, Artists have absolutely nothing to loose. Also, our features allow artists to set their own prices, control their ‘plug’(or affiliate) commissions, approve or disapprove plugging and set their own copyrights or download terms.
Marketing Tools
One major feature we noticed was missing among other DIY music stores was their lack of marketing tools. Yes, everyone has widgets (including us!), for the most part, these days. Where Plugola differs is, we have also included some built-in options for artists to create incentives and/or campaigns in order to sell and distribute more music.
Plugging (affiliates)
This is probably our coolest feature. Not only can fans purchase and download music, but they have the option to ‘plug’ it, as well. Plugging a song allows the fan(s) to resell their favorite tunes to their friends, and even earn a commission! Essentially, fans can get all their music free and the artist still gets paid. We are aiming to keep the tradition of sharing music alive, but in a bit more controlled environment; and with incentives. Our thoughts are, would a fan rather earn a few bucks or just put that music up on a p2p network? Everyone wins using this feature.
One-Click Purchasing
For music fans who choose to use a credit card, we offer one-click purchasing. This will allow members to add their credit card information only once and can freely add or remove songs to their shopping cart at any time, until they are ready for checkout. No extra steps or leaving the web site. Paypal users must checkout for songs from each individual album.
Profiles
Profiles are loosely set-up to include all the info an artist’s press kit would include. Design/theme is completely customizable using our WYSIWYG editor and we even left some open areas where more creative members can include their own HTML. We also have a cool little feature for the events calendar where musicians can upload their concert posters/fliers.
Fan Interaction
Since we are also a social network, artists and fans have a chance to interact on a more personal level. There are not many music store where fans can communicate directly with their favorite artists.
Statistics
We have general stats that include sales, downloads, plays, affiliate sales and arists’ sales rank among their peers. However, I’ll be the first to admit that we do not have robust stats or metrics; such as a service like, Bandmetrics. Though I can tell you that this is a feature that is definitely coming in future.
——————-
Hopefully, this will clear-up any confusion about Plugola temporarily, until I can lay it out in a much more obvious fashion. It’s completely free to sign-up and get started for both artists and fans! Please let us know if you have any questions, feedback or issues with the site. We are also available if you need any help getting started or with your marketing campaign(s). You may contact us HERE.
