Guitarholic
Booyah!
Hey fellas,
I saw threads about this popping up on a few different forums so I thought I'd put it all together in just one nice little post. To give you guys a little background information about myself: I work for Outerloop Management (Periphery's management), where I work as the Executive Assistant to our CEO and also handle all of our clients' endorsement requests. I've been to NAMM, Musikmesse, yada yada yada bla bla and I am friends with most of the A&R reps out there.
All the information I list below has been compiled from the artist application forms for companies like Mesa, Orange, Sennheiser, Yamaha, Ibanez and many many more. So ... Like I was saying in an earlier thread, the word "want" never works well when pursuing endorsements. (I'm just gonna copy/paste from that older post of mine, haha) I very often find that even well known musicians very often do not really understand why a company endorses an artist. Why do gear companies sign artists to their roster? What's the philosophy behind it?
A quick detour on terminology (say thanks to the Mesa A&R rep for this!!!): Endorsement typically refers to a partnership where the artist is provided gear at either a generous discount or at no charge in exchange for the visibility gained with that artist playing the gear at their level of exposure.
From a business stand point, a manufacturer endorses an artist because that artist is popular enough to influence many consumers. Basically, a manufacturer signs an artist so that the buying public will be influenced to buy more of their instruments. Now, in a lot of cases a contract is drawn up that locks in the artist to use the gear exclusively for a predetermined amount of time. But there are also companies that understand that being bound to use one brand might bind the artist creatively and offer non-exclusive contracts.
In either case each party benefits from something:
• The artist receives professional equipment that he/she believes is the best in supporting or representing his/her musical voice. In addition they receive the support needed in all relative circumstances.
• The manufacturer receives more sales due to the overwhelming amount of exposure and fans the artist influences. Here are some of the considerations for most endorsements:
• Excessive amount of hits on a Social Website i.e. MySpace
• CD/Record Sales approaching Gold Status or above
• Television, studio, movie and video credits
• Participation in high visibility tours
• Other Endorsements
• Teaching credentials from major university or education systems
• Major influence on musicians in a specific genre of music
So, what are the criteria to get an endorsement?
1) Popularity. As listed above an artist’s popularity is essential. How much will
that particular artist influence the buying public?
2) Company Player. Does the artist already play products of company XY? All
companies love signing artists who truly believe in their products and have
already chosen them as tools to make their music.
3) Personality. Each and every artist has their own personality, but do your
homework on the companies you want to be endorsed by. It is fine if you are not totally familiar with all their products, but at least know the general terms. And be humble and patient!
4) Talent. All companies love a talented artist. Not too much to explain here.
So again: Very few companies, if any, provide full endorsements (ie. give stuff away for free). Most actually now work from an artist pricing stand
point, which is very important. There has to be an actual value for any company to give away free gear.
I highly recommend to read this, it's Tim McKee (A&R rep for Mesa Boogie) talking about endorsements (Tim McKee from Mesa Boogie talks endorsements | Mark LaFay Dot Com). Now, even though Tim says that he does not prefer having managers call him, it depends on the management agency. A lot of the management agencies out there do have ppl now who actually specialize in endorsements and sponsorships. For example, my good buddy Michael Eaton (who works for The Artery Foundation). He's put together a NEAT little website about endorsements (PLIKM - Curious About Endorsements) Really great stuff!!!
And watch this:
And watch this:
And Fred_the_Shred nailed it on the head: "[Endorsements] do require a lot of work, visibility, and networking, as well as a business / career plan, and something that presents value."
That's what it's all about. YOU have to provide something of value to the company you want to be endorsed by.
Don't get discouraged, just know what's expected before you apply
Feel free to shoot me questions, if you have any!
Jan
I saw threads about this popping up on a few different forums so I thought I'd put it all together in just one nice little post. To give you guys a little background information about myself: I work for Outerloop Management (Periphery's management), where I work as the Executive Assistant to our CEO and also handle all of our clients' endorsement requests. I've been to NAMM, Musikmesse, yada yada yada bla bla and I am friends with most of the A&R reps out there.
All the information I list below has been compiled from the artist application forms for companies like Mesa, Orange, Sennheiser, Yamaha, Ibanez and many many more. So ... Like I was saying in an earlier thread, the word "want" never works well when pursuing endorsements. (I'm just gonna copy/paste from that older post of mine, haha) I very often find that even well known musicians very often do not really understand why a company endorses an artist. Why do gear companies sign artists to their roster? What's the philosophy behind it?
A quick detour on terminology (say thanks to the Mesa A&R rep for this!!!): Endorsement typically refers to a partnership where the artist is provided gear at either a generous discount or at no charge in exchange for the visibility gained with that artist playing the gear at their level of exposure.
From a business stand point, a manufacturer endorses an artist because that artist is popular enough to influence many consumers. Basically, a manufacturer signs an artist so that the buying public will be influenced to buy more of their instruments. Now, in a lot of cases a contract is drawn up that locks in the artist to use the gear exclusively for a predetermined amount of time. But there are also companies that understand that being bound to use one brand might bind the artist creatively and offer non-exclusive contracts.
In either case each party benefits from something:
• The artist receives professional equipment that he/she believes is the best in supporting or representing his/her musical voice. In addition they receive the support needed in all relative circumstances.
• The manufacturer receives more sales due to the overwhelming amount of exposure and fans the artist influences. Here are some of the considerations for most endorsements:
• Excessive amount of hits on a Social Website i.e. MySpace
• CD/Record Sales approaching Gold Status or above
• Television, studio, movie and video credits
• Participation in high visibility tours
• Other Endorsements
• Teaching credentials from major university or education systems
• Major influence on musicians in a specific genre of music
So, what are the criteria to get an endorsement?
1) Popularity. As listed above an artist’s popularity is essential. How much will
that particular artist influence the buying public?
2) Company Player. Does the artist already play products of company XY? All
companies love signing artists who truly believe in their products and have
already chosen them as tools to make their music.
3) Personality. Each and every artist has their own personality, but do your
homework on the companies you want to be endorsed by. It is fine if you are not totally familiar with all their products, but at least know the general terms. And be humble and patient!
4) Talent. All companies love a talented artist. Not too much to explain here.
So again: Very few companies, if any, provide full endorsements (ie. give stuff away for free). Most actually now work from an artist pricing stand
point, which is very important. There has to be an actual value for any company to give away free gear.
I highly recommend to read this, it's Tim McKee (A&R rep for Mesa Boogie) talking about endorsements (Tim McKee from Mesa Boogie talks endorsements | Mark LaFay Dot Com). Now, even though Tim says that he does not prefer having managers call him, it depends on the management agency. A lot of the management agencies out there do have ppl now who actually specialize in endorsements and sponsorships. For example, my good buddy Michael Eaton (who works for The Artery Foundation). He's put together a NEAT little website about endorsements (PLIKM - Curious About Endorsements) Really great stuff!!!
And watch this:
And watch this:
And Fred_the_Shred nailed it on the head: "[Endorsements] do require a lot of work, visibility, and networking, as well as a business / career plan, and something that presents value."
That's what it's all about. YOU have to provide something of value to the company you want to be endorsed by.
Don't get discouraged, just know what's expected before you apply
Feel free to shoot me questions, if you have any!Jan
