Great week! Got loads done, feeling super motivated and excited! Been reading loads of pretty heavy books on the music industry and working out exactly what how I want Sharabang to operate. Been a bit like being back at Uni, studying the industry, making loads of notes and getting ready to completely re-do the business plan. But this is something I’m so passionate about, it never feels like a chore! As well as the added clarity on the industry, there have been so many developments and refinements to the concept that I'm scrapping the old business plan and starting afresh. Everything's coming together and I'm beginning to see the point where Sharabang will begin to operate really soon. Going to be real hard work, but I can’t wait!

Labels: business plan, fishbowl1, launch plans, matt, update

Matt discusses his ideas for creating and selling artwork specific to each individual track on the albums.

Labels: artwork, fishbowl1, matt, revenue, video diary

Busy! Super busy! Contracts almost sorted, designers working on art work, website in development, different meetings every day. Hard work, but big exciting! Starting to think about raising the money to buy the ol’ Sharabang now!

The plans have always been to buy an open-topped double decker bus to be used as our tour bus, but also a lot, lot more. The top deck will be converted so we can use it as a unique touring venue with gigs on top, the bottom deck will house a touring art gallery showcasing Sharabang’s artwork, hold PR events, launch parties and the like. We also want to help build a ‘scene’ and break down the barriers between fans and artists by offering people lifts on the bus from one date to the next. Think Cliff Richard on his Summer holidays, but perhaps not quite as polished!

Once we’ve got the bus, we’ll be making the most out of it, holding interviews and exclusive Sharabang sessions of established artists that will all be filmed and posted on Sharabang’s website to help drive traffic our way.

So...buying the bus! I will soon start looking for company’s that could be interested in having an advertisement on the side of the bus. The unique nature of what we’ll be using the bus for and the many different places the bus will be seen would make for a great place to advertise a business, especially one that is music/art related. We will soon be looking for potential advertisers who could help cover the initial cost of purchasing the bus. So, if anyone knows any businesses that could be interested or can suggest good ways to go about this, please get in touch!

Labels: brand building, bus, events, fishbowl1, marketing, matt, PR

Seems a bit odd getting back to work after the holidays! Back into the swing of things again now though and really ready for a super busy and successful year ahead! I began the year by visualising exactly what I want to achieve in the coming months. I’ve said this before, but having this written down really helps me focus on what I need to be doing and helps me to break down these goals into smaller, manageable chunks.

So….what’s Mystic Meg got in store for Sharabang Music for the beginning of 2010?

Contracts. BLIMIN’ CONTRACTS! These must be drawn up to be signed by the end of next week, the very latest. These are taking so much longer to do then I had planned. As there’s no real template for the sort of contracts I will be using, it’s very hard to know exactly what to include.

Sort out artists. I have a number of fantastic artists designing art work for Sharabang’s bands at the moment. I am meeting with these in the coming days to see how things are coming along. I hope to have the art style defined and getting moving on individual art pieces for each track as soon as possible.

Have website beta done by mid-February. This is quite a bit later then what I had originally planned. In fact, pretty much everything is taking quite a bit longer then I had hoped! I think this is firstly because I was being too optimistic with my first targets and timings. I’m trying to get things done to an outstanding quality, but spending as little as possible. This is going well as I am big pleased with what I have sorted already (logo, initial web design ideas, etc.) but to get these things sorted whilst spending as little money as possible is taking longer then expected.

Have web site fully up and running by Mid-March. This will be with the ability to stream/download songs for free, purchase collectors CD and Vinyl, T-Shirt’s etc.

Have full tour in place with two Sharabang Artists playing together for April (ish).

By mid 2010, I want to have a minimum of 4 bands music up on the site, with merchandise and extras to follow.

Lots more to add, but keep following so you can all pat me on my back when I’ve met them all!

Labels: 2010, fishbowl1, matt, new year, planning, setting targets, writing contracts