Perry, Sel-Mac guitars are already extremely niche, I think encouraging Craig to further specialize would in his case actually be detrimental and unnecessarily limit his already very small market.
Craig Bumgarner wrote:
- Website
- Facebook presence
- Make videos of each new guitar being played in stylistic context
- Display at germane music festivals
- Attend guitar shows such as GAL, Woodstock Invitational.
- Get guitars into the hands of "hot" players / pros.
- Setup a forum for players/builders.
- Broaden geographic name recognition, including international sales. What countries should I consider targeting? My guitars would probably be popular in northern Europe and the $/Euro is advantageous, but will import/VAT taxes take this advantage away?
- Media advertising (magazines, on-line ads) What does it cost to have my ad pop up various websites?
- Sponsorships
- Builder workships/seminars
Websites can be good if only to make yourself look more "legitimate" in the eyes of prospective clients. Don't spend too much on one, make sure it is simple and intuitive to use, make sure to have good content (photo's of your portfolio and a reasonable amount of detail on each instrument). Also make sure that your contact details are easy to find, include an email address as well as a webform contact option, telephone, location (if not your address, then at least your locality). Also make sure that you have links to any presence you have on social media.
Whatever you do, don't go for a flashy Java or Flash-based website that so many people fall into buying because they look so schmick, but cause problems with mobile device and sometimes browser compatibility issues - you want to be able to navigate through your website with the traditional browser controls. Nothing worse than a website where you hit the "back" button on the browser and it takes you back to google.
Facebook and other social media has been my largest source of clients. It allows you to engage with them. A website is good when someone wants to check you out, do some research on you, find out where you are or your prices, but they will rarely return to check on anything new that you're doing. Social media presents the opportunity to sneak in to an information stream that people already check frequently, to remind them of your existence, to keep them up-to-date with what you're doing. How best to engage people through social media is a complex topic that is constantly evolving, if you'd like some specific guidance in this area I'd be happy to share what I know and my own experiences.
With regards to making videos, try to make them as consistently as possible, either do all of the playing yourself, or hire a regular session player for all recordings. Perhaps even try to play at least one of the same songs for each instrument - and then spice it up for each instrument with their own, second song. Also record in the same room with the same equipment, list what the equipment is.
It's much easier for people to actually appreciate and enjoy the differences if you are consistent like this - so many video reviews of instruments and miscellania are almost useless because there's so little consistency that you have no idea what you're actually listening to; is the tone of that guitar really that much brighter? Or is it because they used a different amplifier this time?
Having this type of methodical routine will also simplify the process for you.
Display your wares at as many festivals as you are able to easily manage, most are cheap or sometimes even free for a table. Take along only instruments that you are happy to have handled and potentially damaged. Realise that you most likely won't make sales on the day, but you're making contacts and building brand awareness. Make sure to have twice as many business cards as you expect to need. Be committed to it, stick around all day, or pack up and go when you're tired, whatever you do, don't leave someone who's not intimately familiar with your brand to "look after" your display. If you've got someone you really do trust to be able to handle enquiries, more power to you.
Don't pay too much for a booth - if it's going to cost, it's reasonable to ask for some patronage figures from the organisers so that you know what sort of exposure you can expect. Sometimes the "fancy" gigs really don't get the foot traffic to make it worth your while.
With regards to "hot" players and professionals, make sure they pay. And make sure they pay full price. The tease of "exposure" can be tempting to people starting out, but the reality is if you're giving away your wares, it's unlikely anyone would want to pay for them, and anyone who asks for an endorsement, well, they just want free stuff.
If you do get one of your instruments into the hands of a pro, ask if they'd mind giving you some sort of endorsement, a plug, a review or testimonial, maybe a photo for your website, then you can discuss between you what is appropriate remuneration for their part in that, maybe a small discount would be appropriate then, but you want them to approach you with interest in your instruments first, most who've already beaten the path to your door will be happy to give you some level of endorsement for free.
I'm not sure if setting up your own forum would be as effective as just making a visible presence and contribution to extant communities - I am aware of a number of Sel/Mac/Manouche/Gypsy Jazz communities spread around the web, you'd have to offer something particularly special to draw those people to a new location, and I'm not sure how special, unique or drawing a new forum can be...
I have no experience going internationally, but I can tell you that the internet does break down geographic barriers. Social media in particular can help with this, as it so well brings together people with similar interests. I can tell you that there is a reasonably sizable Gypsy Jazz community in Australia.
Media advertising I would not pay for, I think it's fairly well accepted that it's effectiveness is waning, while still being expensive. Certainly print advertising has a very low conversion rate per dollar spent.
How much does it cost to have your ad pop up on websites? Well, you can set up a Google Adsense account and take a look. Once you enter all the required information, it will recommend a "bid" (can be thought of as a quote in simple terms) for you, based on the massive amounts of data they have from other advertisers with similar keywords and demographics. The same applies to Google Adwords, which is their search engine optimisation product - this can place your website in their search results based on your requirements. Again, it will recommend a bid to you. Both of these give you very powerful analytical data, and optimising your campaigns can become a full-time job in-and-of itself. You can see what people searched for that resulted in a paid click, or view, and often you'll find that a particular result is a waste of your marketing budget, and those search terms should be culled. Or perhaps the click or view came from a location that is not relevant, etc etc. It all gets very complicated. If you're considering hiring someone to do this for you, make sure that they are doing it WITH you, not for you. No-one but you will really understand what your aims are. There are plenty of professionals that can get you lots of clicks and views, but if they're not the clicks and views that are right for you, you're wasting your money.
Sponsorship is an exception to my above caveats about advertising. If you are able to find a community that you're able to establish a visible presence in, sponsorship there is an excellent investment. To take the example of the sponsors of the forum here, they are connecting directly with the people who are interested in their products/services, and it gives people the warm fuzzies knowing they're doing business with something that is giving back to the community that they're invested in.
About Builders workshops and seminars, I'm not sure if you mean joining and participating in, or starting and running. Certainly participate in any that are available, it's a great way to make contacts, and an excellent way to learn. If there aren't extant ones, then by all means try and get one going. If you're thinking of builders workshops for beginners, expect that to become your full-time business, it can quickly become overwhelming.
Anyway, those are just some of my thoughts, if you have any follow up questions, I'm happy to get into more specifics. Hope some of it helps fuel your thinking.
