Well, it's on iTunes now for $9.99.rockstar_not wrote: 3. Keep the CD cost to around $10. I think many folks are scared off by the $25 price, even though it's cheaper per song than any on-line music service except for the illegal russian sites.
Musicians for Katrina Relief
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 2495 posts since 18 May, 2004 from ATL-USA
Anti-aliasing is for "synthmonk%ys".
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- KVRAF
- 2083 posts since 8 Apr, 2004
I think resonance sold about 185 too (though I forced a load more sales to my poor unsuspecting work colleages to up the sales some more!). I'm guessing that that's pretty much the limit of the KVR, charity CD, market! Unfortunetly, I don't think we've managed to really make many sales outside of our community. And I think that this will be the biggest problem we would have with future projects. To get past that barrier I think we need two things...
Firstly... Someone who knows how to sell and promote, who will keep pushing and pushing the product to magazines, radio, DJ's... everyone... As a group I think we are all to tame for this job, and none of us are that pushy (or have the time to be). This is probably why we are all failed musicians!
Secondly... a more approachable product. When I think of CD's that people listen to again and again and that have become popular classics.. none of them are 2 hours in length or chop and change style so much! By producing such a monolithic CD we have alienated the listener somewhat... If it was an album that people were drawn to listen to again and again, then word would spread more easily and thus more sales... etc...
Just my 2cents anyway..
.. I guess the important thing was.. (and is true with the resonance CD).. that we made a profit and thus lots of money for charities... we just need to learn how to do even better next time!
ben
Firstly... Someone who knows how to sell and promote, who will keep pushing and pushing the product to magazines, radio, DJ's... everyone... As a group I think we are all to tame for this job, and none of us are that pushy (or have the time to be). This is probably why we are all failed musicians!
Secondly... a more approachable product. When I think of CD's that people listen to again and again and that have become popular classics.. none of them are 2 hours in length or chop and change style so much! By producing such a monolithic CD we have alienated the listener somewhat... If it was an album that people were drawn to listen to again and again, then word would spread more easily and thus more sales... etc...
Just my 2cents anyway..
.. I guess the important thing was.. (and is true with the resonance CD).. that we made a profit and thus lots of money for charities... we just need to learn how to do even better next time! ben
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- Banned
- 4073 posts since 15 Mar, 2004
Yeah -- great post Ben!
Hit the nail on the head you did mate.
We'd be well-off if we actually had a real marketing outfit that donated their time for free to us -- I think it's possible we could find one if we looked hard enough.
Hit the nail on the head you did mate.
We'd be well-off if we actually had a real marketing outfit that donated their time for free to us -- I think it's possible we could find one if we looked hard enough.
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- Banned
- 4073 posts since 15 Mar, 2004
Katrina Compassion Drives Disaster Donations to a Record
By Jacqueline L. Salmon
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 19, 2006; A05
Fueled by an outpouring for victims of Hurricane Katrina and other catastrophes around the globe, charitable giving to disaster relief rose to a record level last year, according to a survey released today.
The haunting images of rising floodwaters, desperate families and ruined homes unleashed an unprecedented $7.37 billion in donations to disaster relief groups in 2005, the annual survey found.
Although that's great news for the disaster victims getting the help, nonprofit experts say, it comes with a hitch: The disaster relief industry has become so hot with more organizations -- and even state governments -- crowding into the field and vying for donors' dollars that charities with more experience are unhappy.
Disaster contributions pushed total charitable contributions last year up 2.7 percent, when inflation is taken into account, to an estimated $260.28 billion. It was the highest total since the stock-market bubble burst in 2000.
Without the disaster contributions, charitable contributions dropped slightly when adjusted for inflation.
The amount of disaster relief is "just amazing," said Eugene Tempel, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, which compiles the annual report with the Giving USA Foundation.
Contributions after large disasters have soared in recent years into territory unimagined in past decades. Before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which led to nearly $3 billion in donations for victims' families, donations because of large-scale disasters were measured in millions -- not billions.
Now, though, wall-to-wall televised images have pushed the horror of massive catastrophes into Americans' living rooms, and point-and-click giving via the Internet has made it virtually effortless to make a spur-of-the-moment donation to a cause. More than two-thirds of Americans donated money to hurricane-related causes, according to a survey by the Conference Board, and one-third gave to tsunami causes.
But the large number of U.S. households, corporations and charitable foundations that have donated to disaster causes has brought renewed scrutiny to the entire charitable sector.
Public confidence in charities fell after Sept. 11 and then stabilized, but it fell again after Hurricane Katrina when the stumbles of some of the more high-profile charities caused people to sour on them.
"If the well-known charities are perceived as failing in spending money wisely, Americans appear to believe other charities are failing, too," said Paul C. Light, a professor of public service at New York University who regularly polls public perceptions of charities.
More than 40 percent of the American public has "no confidence or not much confidence" in U.S. charities, Light said. Before Katrina, that figure was about 33 percent.
Nevertheless, as the survey demonstrates, falling confidence hasn't yet translated into fewer donated dollars.
The study continues "to affirm that the American people are very generous," said Richard Jolly, chief executive of the Giving USA Foundation, the research arm of the American Association of Fundraising Counsel.
Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma and Rita, which laid waste to a large swath of the Gulf Coast, swallowed most of Americans' disaster generosity last year. Overall, individuals, households and charitable foundations shoveled an estimated $5 billion -- far higher than previous estimates -- into hurricane causes.
Individuals were the primary sources of that largesse, kicking in 85 percent of the total.
Recovery efforts after the Southeast Asian tsunami, which killed more than 160,000 in late 2004, drew close to $2 billion last year, and collections after October's Pakistani earthquake, which killed 70,000, hit $150 million.
Those megadollars are increasing competition in the disaster field as more charities jump in and scoop up some of that beneficence. In the past nine months, almost 500 new charities aimed at helping Hurricane Katrina victims have been approved by the Internal Revenue Service.
But long-established disaster charities say that such work isn't for neophytes.
"It has attracted people who are good in other arenas but should not be working in disaster relief, because it takes years to acquire those kinds of skills," said Richard M. Walden, chief executive of Operation USA, a 27-year-old relief and development organization based in Los Angeles. "It's ridiculous."
At least six states have also begun soliciting donations for government-run disaster funds. Florida's Hurricane Relief Fund, started by Gov. Jeb Bush (R) after four hurricanes struck Florida in 2004, has raised $23 million.
Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas have also recently started relief funds.
An alliance of disaster groups, National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters, has asked state officials to stop accepting private donations. "We believe that they may be deflecting contributions to disaster-relief organizations," said Ande Miller, the alliance's executive director.
Mindful of research showing that people are more inclined to buy products from philanthropically disposed companies, the corporate world anted up plenty last year. Its donations soared almost 20 percent, adjusted for inflation, to an estimated $13.8 billion, the Giving USA report found -- a slightly larger slice of the pie than average. Researchers attributed the increase mostly to companies' donations of cash and goods to disaster-relief efforts worldwide.
Some corporations are going even further.
This year, global shipping company DHL created a division to help relief organizations get supplies to where they are needed.
In a major disaster -- DHL expects six to 10 each year somewhere in the United States, Asia and Latin America-- up to 80 DHL employees sort, organize and track the deluge of donated material, operate warehouses and handle the other complicated logistics of getting supplies to victims. DHL covers the costs of the operation, said Dan Ludwig, senior vice president of humanitarian affairs and emergency management.
"This is a donated service," he said.
© 2006 The Washington Post Company
By Jacqueline L. Salmon
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 19, 2006; A05
Fueled by an outpouring for victims of Hurricane Katrina and other catastrophes around the globe, charitable giving to disaster relief rose to a record level last year, according to a survey released today.
The haunting images of rising floodwaters, desperate families and ruined homes unleashed an unprecedented $7.37 billion in donations to disaster relief groups in 2005, the annual survey found.
Although that's great news for the disaster victims getting the help, nonprofit experts say, it comes with a hitch: The disaster relief industry has become so hot with more organizations -- and even state governments -- crowding into the field and vying for donors' dollars that charities with more experience are unhappy.
Disaster contributions pushed total charitable contributions last year up 2.7 percent, when inflation is taken into account, to an estimated $260.28 billion. It was the highest total since the stock-market bubble burst in 2000.
Without the disaster contributions, charitable contributions dropped slightly when adjusted for inflation.
The amount of disaster relief is "just amazing," said Eugene Tempel, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, which compiles the annual report with the Giving USA Foundation.
Contributions after large disasters have soared in recent years into territory unimagined in past decades. Before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which led to nearly $3 billion in donations for victims' families, donations because of large-scale disasters were measured in millions -- not billions.
Now, though, wall-to-wall televised images have pushed the horror of massive catastrophes into Americans' living rooms, and point-and-click giving via the Internet has made it virtually effortless to make a spur-of-the-moment donation to a cause. More than two-thirds of Americans donated money to hurricane-related causes, according to a survey by the Conference Board, and one-third gave to tsunami causes.
But the large number of U.S. households, corporations and charitable foundations that have donated to disaster causes has brought renewed scrutiny to the entire charitable sector.
Public confidence in charities fell after Sept. 11 and then stabilized, but it fell again after Hurricane Katrina when the stumbles of some of the more high-profile charities caused people to sour on them.
"If the well-known charities are perceived as failing in spending money wisely, Americans appear to believe other charities are failing, too," said Paul C. Light, a professor of public service at New York University who regularly polls public perceptions of charities.
More than 40 percent of the American public has "no confidence or not much confidence" in U.S. charities, Light said. Before Katrina, that figure was about 33 percent.
Nevertheless, as the survey demonstrates, falling confidence hasn't yet translated into fewer donated dollars.
The study continues "to affirm that the American people are very generous," said Richard Jolly, chief executive of the Giving USA Foundation, the research arm of the American Association of Fundraising Counsel.
Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma and Rita, which laid waste to a large swath of the Gulf Coast, swallowed most of Americans' disaster generosity last year. Overall, individuals, households and charitable foundations shoveled an estimated $5 billion -- far higher than previous estimates -- into hurricane causes.
Individuals were the primary sources of that largesse, kicking in 85 percent of the total.
Recovery efforts after the Southeast Asian tsunami, which killed more than 160,000 in late 2004, drew close to $2 billion last year, and collections after October's Pakistani earthquake, which killed 70,000, hit $150 million.
Those megadollars are increasing competition in the disaster field as more charities jump in and scoop up some of that beneficence. In the past nine months, almost 500 new charities aimed at helping Hurricane Katrina victims have been approved by the Internal Revenue Service.
But long-established disaster charities say that such work isn't for neophytes.
"It has attracted people who are good in other arenas but should not be working in disaster relief, because it takes years to acquire those kinds of skills," said Richard M. Walden, chief executive of Operation USA, a 27-year-old relief and development organization based in Los Angeles. "It's ridiculous."
At least six states have also begun soliciting donations for government-run disaster funds. Florida's Hurricane Relief Fund, started by Gov. Jeb Bush (R) after four hurricanes struck Florida in 2004, has raised $23 million.
Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas have also recently started relief funds.
An alliance of disaster groups, National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters, has asked state officials to stop accepting private donations. "We believe that they may be deflecting contributions to disaster-relief organizations," said Ande Miller, the alliance's executive director.
Mindful of research showing that people are more inclined to buy products from philanthropically disposed companies, the corporate world anted up plenty last year. Its donations soared almost 20 percent, adjusted for inflation, to an estimated $13.8 billion, the Giving USA report found -- a slightly larger slice of the pie than average. Researchers attributed the increase mostly to companies' donations of cash and goods to disaster-relief efforts worldwide.
Some corporations are going even further.
This year, global shipping company DHL created a division to help relief organizations get supplies to where they are needed.
In a major disaster -- DHL expects six to 10 each year somewhere in the United States, Asia and Latin America-- up to 80 DHL employees sort, organize and track the deluge of donated material, operate warehouses and handle the other complicated logistics of getting supplies to victims. DHL covers the costs of the operation, said Dan Ludwig, senior vice president of humanitarian affairs and emergency management.
"This is a donated service," he said.
© 2006 The Washington Post Company
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- KVRAF
- 4908 posts since 10 Aug, 2004 from Colorado Springs
Hello, is this thing on? tap, tap, tap......
Hopefully we're all still subscribed to this thread.
An idea for marketing recently bubbled up in my head:
I was reading Mix magazine and there was a short article about an organization called MusiCares and how they have Katrina Relief efforts going on.
It's a much bigger organization than our rag-tag bunch of caring musicians, and I'm wondering if they would listen to our story and put up a link on their Partners page.
Have a look:
http://www.grammy.com/MusiCares/Hurrica ... tners.aspx
We would possibly have to change our donations to go to MusiCares. At this point in time it really doesn't matter to me. It does raise a question for Kovacs - Did we ever get copies of receipts for the donations posted on the site? I don't see it if they are posted there.
What do you all think? Should I contact them?
-Scott
Hopefully we're all still subscribed to this thread.
An idea for marketing recently bubbled up in my head:
I was reading Mix magazine and there was a short article about an organization called MusiCares and how they have Katrina Relief efforts going on.
It's a much bigger organization than our rag-tag bunch of caring musicians, and I'm wondering if they would listen to our story and put up a link on their Partners page.
Have a look:
http://www.grammy.com/MusiCares/Hurrica ... tners.aspx
We would possibly have to change our donations to go to MusiCares. At this point in time it really doesn't matter to me. It does raise a question for Kovacs - Did we ever get copies of receipts for the donations posted on the site? I don't see it if they are posted there.
What do you all think? Should I contact them?
-Scott
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- KVRAF
- 16154 posts since 2 Dec, 2003 from Nashville, TN
Hey guys. Long time, no talk! It's been crazy and I still read this, but I've been busy and don't always get around to posting here.
It's good to hear that the CD did pretty well so far. If there is more work that I can do for this, let me know.
I just found a new website for selling CD's that may help for the future, and it doesn't take $4 per CD like CDBaby does. It's actually came HIGHLY recommended by someone in the industry and is ran by industry professionals. And they get you on more then iTunes. Read about it, it's actually very, VERY cool, and I'll be using it for my own music soon.
http://www.tunecore.com
I REALLY think that it can help any further efforts. No rights are signed away at all, and they can help for free with barcodes and such. And there are no minumum requirements or anything. We can even use it in addition to CDBaby, if their contract allows it(which I've heard it doesn't).
I'm serious when I say that this is HIGHLY recommended. Let me know what ya'll think.
And no, I have NOTHING to do with the site. I just found it tonight myself based on the recommendation.
Cheers!
Brent
It's good to hear that the CD did pretty well so far. If there is more work that I can do for this, let me know.
I just found a new website for selling CD's that may help for the future, and it doesn't take $4 per CD like CDBaby does. It's actually came HIGHLY recommended by someone in the industry and is ran by industry professionals. And they get you on more then iTunes. Read about it, it's actually very, VERY cool, and I'll be using it for my own music soon.
http://www.tunecore.com
I REALLY think that it can help any further efforts. No rights are signed away at all, and they can help for free with barcodes and such. And there are no minumum requirements or anything. We can even use it in addition to CDBaby, if their contract allows it(which I've heard it doesn't).
I'm serious when I say that this is HIGHLY recommended. Let me know what ya'll think.
And no, I have NOTHING to do with the site. I just found it tonight myself based on the recommendation.
Cheers!
Brent
My host is better than your host
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- Banned
- 4073 posts since 15 Mar, 2004
Hey Brent!
Cool mate -- we still have quite a few CDs left -- so I reckon any sort of help in marketing them is way cool.
Particularly -- if there are any charities that would advertise our participation and provide links, etc., to our site then I don't see anything wrong in moving funds on to them/another charity.
I guess we need to coordinate this with the old viking Kovacs, but before we pester him, we should gather all further details & requirements first and then submit them here.
Let's power on budsters!
Cheers,
Alex
Cool mate -- we still have quite a few CDs left -- so I reckon any sort of help in marketing them is way cool.
Particularly -- if there are any charities that would advertise our participation and provide links, etc., to our site then I don't see anything wrong in moving funds on to them/another charity.
I guess we need to coordinate this with the old viking Kovacs, but before we pester him, we should gather all further details & requirements first and then submit them here.
Let's power on budsters!
Cheers,
Alex
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- KVRAF
- 2744 posts since 5 Dec, 2003 from Harlan's World
Checking in! I have for some reason not received updates to this topic in months!
Nice to be mentioned, xander.
anyway, I'm all up to do my bit of course.
Nice to be mentioned, xander.
anyway, I'm all up to do my bit of course.
My Soundcloud Too many pieces of music finish far too long after the end. - Stravinsky
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- KVRAF
- 2744 posts since 5 Dec, 2003 from Harlan's World
Holy smokes...I just searched for "kovacs" on iTunes store and lo and behold, down the list was my song Brief Relief...and when I click on it I get our beautiful Chrysalid record. 
*mutters "published artist"*
*mutters "published artist"*
My Soundcloud Too many pieces of music finish far too long after the end. - Stravinsky
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- Banned
- 4073 posts since 15 Mar, 2004
Hey Tormod! Nice to see you around!
Don't worry -- you're a popular and important man!
Let's see if we all (the re-united team) can breathe some more life into this project -- we still have a couple hundred CDs left!
Cheers,
Alex
Don't worry -- you're a popular and important man!
Let's see if we all (the re-united team) can breathe some more life into this project -- we still have a couple hundred CDs left!
Cheers,
Alex
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- KVRAF
- 16154 posts since 2 Dec, 2003 from Nashville, TN
Well, I'll do what I can! I do think that looking into that site would be a good idea. It doesn't cost more then a few dollars to submit an album. Of course, there is a lengthy FAQ for anyone interested.
I'm only excited about it because I've been looking for a good solution like that. Sorry to mention it again!
I'm only excited about it because I've been looking for a good solution like that. Sorry to mention it again!
My host is better than your host
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- KVRAF
- 16154 posts since 2 Dec, 2003 from Nashville, TN
Oh, and it has Sony, iTunes, Napster, Connect Rhapsody, and more to download the music from.
And on top of that, the site is partnered with some HUGE players that can get your stuff in TV, movies, etc. as well as satellite radio. And there are merchandising partnerships.
Ok, I'll shut up now.
Brent
And on top of that, the site is partnered with some HUGE players that can get your stuff in TV, movies, etc. as well as satellite radio. And there are merchandising partnerships.
Ok, I'll shut up now.
Brent
My host is better than your host
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- KVRAF
- 2744 posts since 5 Dec, 2003 from Harlan's World
TuneCore sounds good enough. As long as we don't rack up lots of costs when there's no more cash in the coffers.
My Soundcloud Too many pieces of music finish far too long after the end. - Stravinsky