the who and a lesson for web 2.0 on how to profit from eyeballs (or eardrums)
May 31st, 2006
Few would argue that The Who is one of the best rock acts of all time. But who would have thought they’d have a lesson for the world’s Netizens and Internet entrepreneurs.
According to NME, the rock stars will be recording bootlegs of all their upcoming European shows and selling select DVDs, CDs, podcasts and downloads to fans. All the proceeds will go to charity.
Band guitarist Pete Townshend said:
If you are a corporate sponsor considering sponsoring The Who in this mammoth first ever tour webcast venture, get your head out of your arse and walk towards us. We are about to take off.
The lesson: If you can give your content away (or sell it very cheaply in The Who’s case) to an audience of people that businesses want to be in front of, maybe that’s where the best profit lies. Think as big (or targeted, depending on the case) as possible, outside your typical sphere of influence. The Who isn’t just playing to one arena. They’re playing to the entire globe.
Case in point: My e-book, Battling Free. If I had to do it all over again, I might have given my book away for free from the beginning and made my coin by having a corporate interest (or a few) sponsor the publication.
If only I had been cranking Baba O’Riley for inspiration when laying out my strategy. Well, you better you bet that I won’t get fooled again.
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Blog sponsored by Lexiqon’s Music Category.
May 31st, 2006 at 3:34 pm
This is now the second blog post in the recruiting blogosphere that I know about that references the greatness of the who. My favourite band of all time