10 Ways to Increase Your Sales on CD Baby

by Chris Robley and Andre Calilhanna

There are conflicting fundamental truths when it comes to success in the indie music universe.

It’s true, of course, that tools and opportunities exist now that did not in the past. Legitimate worldwide distribution is available through the web, shattering the barriers that existed a scant 10 years ago. Independent artists are empowered in ways that were inconceivable before, and that has shifted the balance of power in the music industry, giving music lovers and artists the ability to connect, interact, and transact without the need of a record label – or anyone else, for that matter.

But if it were only THAT easy. With this ease of fulfillment comes a lot of noise. Noise in the sense that you are competing against thousands (and thousands) of other indie and label artists who are empowered by the same technology. If you build a website, people will not necessarily visit you there. And if you simply set up a page on CD Baby, the same is true. Having the means to sell your music via CD and downloads online is the necessary first step. The next steps involve finding your market, broadcasting the news, creating a buzz, and driving sales. THEN it starts being easy.

CD Baby is the world’s largest online distributor of independent music. On top of that, CD Baby gives you numerous tools – and the control and flexibility – to sell your music YOUR way. Ready to increase your CD Baby sales? Here are a few proven methods.

1. Use CD Baby’s Linkmaker
You’ve got a website, right? (If not, you’d better get one NOW! Check out www.Hostbaby.com). Make it easy for your fans and newcomers to your site to purchase your music by adding a customized graphic HTML link on your website, blog, AND social networking profiles. You just type in the album name. CD Baby generates the graphic link. You copy the HTML code and paste it wherever you want fans to see that your music is for sale. (Check it out at www.cdbaby.com/link).

2. Analyze and understand your web traffic
From your account page in CD Baby, you can easily assess the effectiveness of your promotional campaigns, make adjustments based on real-time data, and focus your energy on the places that are bringing in the most sales with CD Baby’s “hits tracker.” Maybe there is a blog or website out there that you’ve never even heard of that is generating significant web traffic for you. If so, you’ll see it in the hits tracker and be able to establish an online strategy to engage those fans directly.

3. Set a quantity discount
Your music makes for an excellent gift! Sell more by encouraging your fans to buy multiple copies of an album for a percentage off the selling price. Choose and change the discount at any time.

4. Offer a free track
Allow fans and prospective fans the chance to download a song for free as an enticement to purchase the whole album. If they like what they hear, they’ll come back for more. Try giving away a few different tracks and see which one is “the hit.”

5. Run a limited-time sale
Since you can change your music’s selling price at ANY time, it is easy to run sales and special offers you can announce to your fan list. Once the offer expires, simply go back into your account and raise the selling price again.

6. Remember, words matter
It’s important to describe your music in an enticing way that makes strangers want to hear it. People see the words before they hear the music. Make sure your write up isn’t too cryptic or aloof, but rather is descriptive enough that it might change a semi-interested browser into someone who will click the “preview” button.

7. Tell us who you sound like
Choose three well-known artists that you sound like. When CD Baby customers search for one of those artists, your album might appear in the results! Be realistic, though. Just because you love Radiohead and the Beatles doesn’t necessarily mean you SOUND like them. It is usually valuable to get a friend or fan’s slightly more objective opinion before deciding.

8. Offer physical CDs AND downloads
Offering choices is always a good idea, and plenty of folks might be interested in buying a few songs or your entire album via digital download. So why not offer it to them? This opens up a whole new world of opportunities as well, since you can also opt to have your music available on places like iTunes and Amazon MP3.

9. Use download cards
Never be caught empty-handed. These convenient little cards can fit in your wallet and come customized with your album artwork. Sell them at shows and give them away to industry contacts. The recipient can redeem the card at CD Baby for a hi-quality download. You keep all the money!

10. Get your fans involved
Not only can your fans use social media to spread the word about your music by re-tweeting, sharing blog posts, etc., but now they can make money doing it! By joining CD Baby’s affiliate program, your fans can earn $1 from every referred sale. And that comes out of CD Baby’s cut, so you make the same amount no matter what.

Posted via email from Music Business Information