Question for Vendors or Bands...

[Heavenly Call]

I'm a little ignorant as to how this works...

I was looking at my CD Wishlist getting ready for ProgPower the other night and I thought: "When I buy a CD at ProgPower, am I helping the band?"

What I mean is, I pride myself on not downloading music and purchasing CDs from bands I like. But, when I buy a CD from a vendor, how does that help the band? Is it that if everyone does that the vendor will order more and THAT will help the band? Once a vendor has the CD the band never knows if it's sold or not correct?

Can a vendor or band respond?

 

[Harvester]

Labels like Century Media and The End Records actually submit sales at the festival of their own artist to Soundscan. I defer to the indy vendors for their input.

 

[General Zod]

But, when I buy a CD from a vendor, how does that help the band? Is it that if everyone does that the vendor will order more and THAT will help the band? Once a vendor has the CD the band never knows if it's sold or not correct?

I don't have any special insight into the record industry, but it sounds like you're asking a pretty basic supply chain question. When a vendor sells his supply of a given CD (or any product), that vendor then purchases more copies of that CD from the distributor. The more CDs that move through the supply chain, the more money everyone makes.

If what you're asking is, is there some additional benefit to the band or the vendor from you buying it in person at the festival, as opposed to simply going onto one of the vendor's web sites and purchasing it there, I don't see how that could make a difference.

Zod

 

[TychoCelchu]

If what you're asking is, is there some additional benefit to the band or the vendor from you buying it in person at the festival, as opposed to simply going onto one of the vendor's web sites and purchasing it there, I don't see how that could make a difference.

Zod

From what I understand the vendor pays a flat fee to set up shop at ProgPower. I don't know if Glenn or Center Stage sets the fee. But if you buy direct from the table at the fest, that money goes directly toward offsetting that cost for the vendor, whereas ordering from them online separately does not. This of course doesn't affect anything from the band's perspective. From my own perspective as a buyer, I think browsing those tables in the packed vendor room is a much more fun shopping experience than clicking around online From a vendor's perspective, having things out on display also increases the chance of impulse sales, whereas when I'm shopping online, I pretty much just go with the specific item I have in mind.

Speaking of which, has The End been back lately? The last ProgPower I went to they were not there.

 

[General Zod]

This of course doesn't affect anything from the band's perspective.

Agreed.

Zod

 

[dcowboys311]

Speaking of which, has The End been back lately? The last ProgPower I went to they were not there.

They were there last year...picked up a few cool items from them (and a free shirt!). I hope they return this year because out of all the vendors, they fit my taste the most.

 

[SharkBlack]

Do any of these vendors work on consignment?

 

[lasercd]

What Zod said.

 

[TribunalRecords]

Speaking for a record label and band (though we would never be performing at PP)...

RECORD LABEL - sales are sales and any sale of physical product in these times is good. buying directly from a record label's website is much better for the record label and in turn the band itself, but if buying from a vendor/distro it's back to my opinion of a sale is a sale. vendors make it easier to pick up product from various labels all at once and with ease. my label has an estore, but we also wholesale out to vendors like Century Media, The End Records, Relapse Records, etc. the more avenues the better.

BAND - when my band tours each year we hope to sell more CDs than shirts, but that never happens. We do however still sell CDs and it's great to sell product directly to our fans. So if there is a band there selling their albums buy it from THEM for the few extra bucks because those few extra bucks are going to get into their pockets.

just my two cents.

 

[Pellaz]

It's good to know that the labels report sales of their bands to SoundScan; I'd been wondering about that.

Speaking as someone who has seen a report he signed directly affect the Billboard charts, I know it can make a substantial difference.

 

[Heavenly Call]

Thanks all. The soundscan information was what I was curious about as well. Good to know there is some reporting going on!