When one embarks on any type of career endeavor, generally he/she makes a business plan, simple or complex, so that they do not fall off track while reaching their goals. A business plan not only calms nerves when feeling overwhelmed, but it also offers a clear cut path to success.
Business plans can change and evolve as you delve more and more into your career. Phase II of my business plan for Rebecca Day Music has changed quite a bit since different opportunities have become available. It's important to understand that a business plan is not something that, once it's written, is set in stone. It's more so a written GPS to follow, and occasionally you hit the re-route button by re-writing a portion, or the whole thing if you feel it's necessary.
For a singer, songwriter, performer wanting to kick start their career, I would include different goals such as learning new cover songs, developing originals, recording strong demos, and heavy marketing(when you are ready to perform live), to your plan. And if you make a detail oriented list of these goals, and follow your plan closely, I can guarantee that eventually, you will check off every goal you had on the list.
I would recommend writing up a business plan for any aspect of your career. From album releases to mini tours to promotion, a business plan can essentially only help you.
Here are a few sites to look at that offer advice on business plan writing:
While many artists love the fact that they have a job that is different from the ordinary, one must always remember that while you get to sing or play guitar for a living, you are actually running a small business that has the potential to be as big as you want it to be. When you look at your music from that stand point, you are setting yourself up for success.
Here is a shortened version of a simple, sample business plan I have written when I was first starting my music career here in Florida:
Rebecca Day Music Business
Singer, Songwriter, Performer
Phase I
I. Promotion
- Set up social media accounts for business: Facebook Artist Page, Reverbnation, Twitter, Youtube, etc.
- Make this social sites as professional and accessible as possible.
- Create professional grade press kits to send out to different local venues
- Start a blog about your journey.
II. Live Performances
- Frequent open mic nights and perform a few songs
- Learn around 40 cover tunes(include best originals)
- Practice, Practice, Practice
III. Original Work
- Work on recording demos- make them strong
- Develop original songs to be the best they can be
- Work on releasing an EP within the next year and a half
Though this is not the full business plan, you can get a general idea of how to write up a simple, goal oriented plan. You don't have to have the most Cadillac, complex model written out, just as long as it's effective.
Rebecca Day
