Make More Money With CD Sales

IIf you’re like most musicians, you want to make money selling your music, and while digital music delivery (like iTunes) continues to grow rapidly, selling your music on CDs is still the easiest and most profitable choice for most musicians.

When you invest in a CD project, there are ways to be sure you are maximizing your profits from your sales. In general, they boil down to two basic principles: 1) Keep your costs low, and 2) Sell more product.

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Keeping Your Costs Low

The math is simple on this one; the less you have to pay to produce each CD, the more money from each sale counts as profit. The key here is balance. If you cut your costs too much, you might wind up with a badly-produced product, and you won’t be able to sell them; so you have to balance cost with quality. Also, printing more CDs reduces the cost per CD, but of course, if you purchase more product than you can sell, it’s harder to turn a profit — so again, it’s a balancing act. Here are some practical tips to keeping costs low:

• Simplify your packaging. A thick jewel case with a full-color printed booklet looks amazing, but it might not be all that necessary. You can get a very professional-looking product with a simple printed sleeve or wallet, for less money per unit—and in many cases, a less elaborate design is also more appealing.
• Don’t print more CDs than you think you can sell — even if the cost per unit is a little higher. It’s okay to set a sales goal, but be realistic, also. It does you no good to have those CDs stacked up collecting dust in a storage shed somewhere. You can always do another printing if you run out.
• If you need to print a smaller order, you can cut costs a little by going with a CD duplication company that specializes in short orders. Companies like these often offer a quality product at a fair price, while companies that prefer larger runs might charge much more for the inconvenience of a smaller order.

Selling More Product

Again, the math is simple: the more CDs you sell, the more quickly you will recover your expenses and go into the black. Here are some tips to help you increase your sales:

• Use free or cheap advertising to get the word out. Social networking on the Internet is a great way to spread the word virally about your CD. Google Adwords, paid Facebook ads and similar outlets are generally inexpensive.
• Put your CD on sale occasionally. Although this cuts into your profit margin a little, you’ll likely move more product by temporary price cuts, bringing you closer to the “break even” point.

You might discover other creative ways to cut your costs and increase sales of your CD. What’s most important to remember is not to sacrifice the quality of your product. Preserve your reputation by giving your fans the best quality possible for your budget.