What should I charge for...

ProducerJC

ProducerJC

IndieHost
Business Management

I've been in the providing business solutions since Sprint PCS cell phones. The skills I've acquired allow me to find business solutions that studio owners, audio engineers, record labels, and musicians can use to their advantage. Most of the projects I've taken on are website management types, and I'm looking to expand my horizons even further. My daytime gig make me enough to live on; I need "Going Out" cash.

Today, during regular conversation, I was asked to help a musician friend to monetize his efforts. He wants to raise $10k in order to expand his career. Don't worry, this isn't some sales pitch asking for your money or anything. I'm humbling asking for professional FP advice. I'm fully capable of helping this artist set-up to make money; however, I'm not sure how much I should charge for my services and expenses; yet. Before you reply to this thread with any sentences starting with "It depends on...", please understand, I need you to be as specific as possible.

In case you're wondering, I'll be putting his music on iTunes, managing his online marketing campaigns, and selling downloads while he performs. I'm sure that he'll want me to do more once we get started but, for now, this is what we've discussed.

So what do you think, huh? What's a fair price to charge for these services?
 
One way to go is maybe negotiate a percentage of what funds you raise for him. Say 12% for example. So once the goal is reached, he'll have $10,000, but will have spent $1,200 of that on the services needed to even see that kind of money. Maybe 12% is too high or too low - I honestly don't know. You'll have to figure out how long you expect it to take to reach the goal. If you charge a flat up-front fee, like $700, you might be working for a year or more, and you might say "man, this wasn't worth it". Plus, with the percentage, you might be able to negotiate something where you can take your cut per month, and keep a steady cash flow coming in from the project.

That's my 2 cents. Best of luck.
 
Hey JC....well I would agree with what Mr.Mathews said and negotiate a percentage of the funds that you raise. I also agree that a flat fee is a very bad idea. Since you have no idea how long this will take you I would figure out an hourly rate as well. I would however set a time in which to get the money raised as well as an early bonus percentage if you raise the money before that time. So let say it's 12% if you raise it in 6 months time, but if you raise it before that it is 15%. This will give you something to work hard for and it will give your client piece of mind that you will get it done in a timely manner. Also keep in mind that this is your client now and not your friend. Well at least while you guys are doing business and let that be known from jump. I know it sounds bad, but you gotta do business that way and establish this early on. None of my friends or family ask for free studio time because I made it clear a long time ago that it is not personal it is business. Everybody pays...even my teenage daughter pays if she wants to use the studio for something. Now she just does extra chores or something, but my point is that everything you do for this friend as it relates to this agreement is business not friendship.

As for what to charge.....I would research what others charge in your area for the same type of service and I would decide how much your time is worth to you (only you know this one). But I would also use the guide lines that most venture capitalist use and that is somewhere between 12-25% as an expected return with performance goals set up along the way. Maybe at $5000,$8000 and then @ 10k. I know that you are not a VC, but you are kinda of acting like a broker so I think it is okay to charge VC prices. Anyway I thing this along with a reasonable billable rate should make it worth the time and effort that you will have to put in to it. That's MHO.
 
third the percentage... I'm doing the same thing you're doing JC ..to build my credibility to aquire sponsors and angel investors for my big plan I shared with you and Himbeats
I have problems with alot of artists/producers wanting to use my services but don't have a budget,don't know how to build a budget etc..

so if I'm going to build them from the grassroots up ..percentage is the only way to go
to secure your percentage use this service here
https://rightsignature.com/
write your contract yourself if you're going diy on the contract look at several management contracts they are a great starting point for you to add your own detail..make sure to look on music law websites for proper terms
or you can contact a lawyer and see if he has just written someone thing similar in the past and have him write you a contract for situation you could get a deep discount because the ent. lawyer doesn't have to do much work
I'm trying to now get up a contact list or great,reliable,knowledgable,reasonable costing ent. lawyer
I like to sell open-ended marketing/street team/business plans simple and easy no details ..that's for the client to do
but once you go to one on one,step by step guidance you're building someone career pretty much

it becomes complex very fast
so this is where organization skills comes in to play..
and using services on the internet to get the most out of your time and their budget they are building
be honest with the client and do all you can do because a happy client will get you word of mouth leads for new clients

as I said I run into alot of potential clients with no cash at all..so if they have talent you can turn that into some money to build from there..
if you're blessed to find a clients with some savings,a steady job I would ask for a deposit
maybe $100 bucks for lower services for sure
just be sure the clients knows exactly what you're going to do with the $100 bucks
usually $50 will go to getting things started as far as CDbaby/iTunes or Tunecore/iTunes and other services like presskits writing etc..
a upfront fee of $500 to $1000.00 plus 12% to 15% is the goal(with 20-50 clients)
$20,000 to $50,000 a year plus the percentages as they come in
12% to 20% is very reasonable
I would go for a higher % if they have no money to pay your upfront fee
and make sure you put a time limit on doing this because some ppl won't sell or start to flake off and you don't want this contract to be open-ended as far as a time-line

great info everyone who posted before me take heed
very happy to see ppl get into the business of consulting/coaching/management
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THE WALKING ON WATER MEDIA/ENT/BUSINESS COACH Antonio
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"they speak on malcolm and martin, christians lets speak on luther and calvin"
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There was a point in my life when I would constantly run into people with no budget; come to think of it, I still do.

I've decided that I would no longer waist time explaining to people the importance of having a budget. Because, if they want work with me, they must be willing to pay the necessary cost. The way I see it, I give away plenty of valuable information online for free. And, I provide opportunities for those whom are ready to take it to the next level.

Successful people find ways to make things happen, even in impossible situations. This is why I've avoided management for so long, to avoid dealing with stupid and ignorant people. I'm not interested in being famous, I'm interested in making money. And for that to happen, I need to work with people who are interested in the same thing. For that to manifest, I've taken on specific responsibilities and challenges. People who aren't successful rarely achieve the goals they talk about. They rarely deliver any measurable results.

I'll keep my services specific and create packages, with training if necessary. I like to move at a faster pace than most. Now that I've mastered the art of driving traffic to a website, it's time for Phase 3 of my business plan.

EXPANSION...:cheers:

I took the advice of IanMatthews because it was pretty straight forward. If he agrees, I'll have the contract drawn up myself. If he disagrees then I'll know how serious he is. Most people have never had ten thousand dollars at one time, but almost everyone made it over time. Besides, why would I make him $10k when I can make me $10k. I'm almost positive that he's wasting my time by trying to sell me a dream.
 
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A man will always put his money where his heart is. I can only take other people seriously when they are able to show me their commitment level and abilities. Talk is cheap on my side of the planet. People are finally understanding that the level of my integrity. I don't mind being contacted with questions about the game. I'll be reaching out to more studios, here locally in 2012 and suspect the question will start pouring in by the dozens. The goal is to show people the real duties of a record producer while providing production techniques to enthusiast.

I'm weary of most people who want my services; especially, those who seem overly enthusiastic about making music. To me, the creation of music is only a piece of the entertainment industry. Those who want to make a living in it should realize this reality, you know?
 
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I do a little bit of this myself what I do personally is get a general idea of how much money i can bring my client. I need to make sure that my services will bring business that will be worth while for the both of us..

I look around and see what the competition is doing. Most of the time it' simple stuff (for me at least). Then I simply undercut the competition then I outsource the work as needed. A lot of times I can handle the work myself but there are times when I pick up too many clients and I outsource the work.

I stick to getting my clients on annual agreements for example. I do a lot of SEO for businesses and I do a fixed rate of lets say $1,300/yr (just example) and I rush out and pick up 5-10 clients. Sounds easy well it is easy rough part is starting out new because you either don't have the experience or you don't have the resources to go with the trends but with you it shouldn't be too hard...

I say undercut your market and get an upfront commitment (annual fee) this way you can pick up cash easy... In my fields 3k a year is nothing that's a drop in the bucket and very easy to bring someone more than 3k in business..

Someone mentioned charging a % this is a good idea but I would stray away from doing anything where you marrying your client. I mean don't get me wrong it's nice to collect a % on things but a lot of people will flock to you if you are not constantly in their back pocket. That's how I've been able to sway people to work with me over other professionals.

Big company $xxxx a month or upfront me plus X %
Me Smaller annual fee easier to turn around and liberal terms


Just my thoughts there is some good information in this thread my best suggestion is find out what you can do EASY under cut the market and get paid. I say start with the easy stuff this way you don't overwhelm your self you can always build from there
 
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Undercut the competition, huh? Sounds aggressive and to the point. I love this idea. Thanks for your input Cyko! This is right up my ally, for real.
 
yes as I mentioned if you go the % route you need a timeline...for sure.. or you'll be stuck with a client for a long time..
it could be great or it could be doing alot of work for peanuts...
blessing to all
we need to understand the art of turning leads into actual paying clients..
I'm about to start getting aggressive about getting local clients get off the internet and actually talk to some folks and do some door to door,shop to shop door hangers, etc...
low cost marketing ...go to the stops where ppl actually have money to spend
great,great thread
 
I'm selective about who's taken on as clients. This is why I do my research before approaching anyone with a partnership type arrangement. I'm not interested in working with incapable, ignorant, lazy, or poor people. I have no desire to control the career of others. I'd rather help those who help themselves.

How to turn leads into paying clients.

This concept is pretty straight forward. People experience difficulties due to a lack of preparation and experience. First of all, "Leads" are actually people who can make buying decisions. Don't waste time talking to people who are unable to buy from you.

Sales is a career based on numbers. The more people you meet with per day, the better your chances are of getting new clients and making new sales. I've been involved with businesses, at an executive level, for quite some time now. In the beginning, I would get nervous when walking into random business with the intention of sell something. And, to tell the truth, I still get butterflies when cold calling. Regardless, I push through this initial fear and eventually overcome it at some point during the day. I try to visit 30-40 businesses per day.

Of those 30-40 businesses, I'll meet 10-20 business owners and decision makers. Once I meet these professionals, the goals is to learn more about their business so that I can match my services to their needs. I'm in the communications industry, so I can match my services to almost every business. By the end of the day, I'll have 1-3 appointments set with interested and engaged business prospects. During the appointment I professionally present my services in a way that applies to their business. The purpose is to provide solutions that speed up productivity, increase profits, and to be their single point of contact regarding business communication solutions.

This has been my profession for 10+ years and I don't plan to leave the industry anytime soon. Music production is an alternate source of income for me, which is why I can be so selective with who I work with. Otherwise, I'd be forced to work with anyone.
 
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