Get Me In, Part 4: Create a Plan to Monetize a Song
V J L
Mus 320
February 18, 2016

Get Me In, Part 4: Create a Plan to Monetize a Song
In week 3 we were asked to create a publicity, marketing, and promotional strategy designed to introduce the specific artist we focused on. My artist was Adele; Adele is a well-known music artist and songwriter. The purpose of week 4’s paper is to create a sales and distribution plan that will help Adele generate more income.
When it comes to describing Adele and a specific brand it can be rather complicated in a sense that she (Adele) has made it clear and in fact “The word may be everywhere now, but Adele doesn't want to be called a "brand." “I don’t like that word,” the record-breaking singer said of "brand" in a new interview for the cover of Time magazine. “It makes me sound like a fabric softener, or a packet of crisps. I’m not that" ("Business Insider ", 2015). She went on to say that “She believes that artists should strive to be deeper than a "brand and more like a package for their fans” ("Business Insider ", 2015). With that being said and honoring the wishes of my artist I will begin to explain how Adele has been able to remain on top without being “branded” per say. She sticks to her roots and what she is comfortable with whether it is her style, her drive, her music, and her sound and as uncommon as that is for an artist today she has managed to outsell and outshine almost every artist to date. Maybe it is the stance that she takes in reaming true to herself and who she is that makes people fall in love with her.
Adele’s primary record label is XL Recordings which is based in her home country, the United Kingdom and has been operating since 1989; However Columbia Records is the label that solely assists in distributing Adele’s albums in the United States. Adele’s partnership with XL Recordings has benefited Adele tremendously; she has received the upmost support from her label and has built a relationship with them. Another benefit of being signed to XL Recordings is that Richard Russell who is the CEO of the company keeps his roster small, which allows more time to focus on the individuality of each artist. It is important to note that to date Adele has not collaborated with any artists but we are hoping that she will in the near future.
Technology in this day and age has helped generate exposure for artists around the world; in Adele’s case we will continue to use the television, internet, and social media. Exposure on television includes tv shows, commercial’s, and movies. Appearing in movies has already been a success for Adele, “Adele won her 10th Grammy at the 2014 Grammy Awards Sunday night on Jan. 26, Adele won the award for Best Song for Visual Media for the James Bond theme song Skyfall” ("Axs", 2014). In regards to the internet we can create a webpage that is dedicated to Adele and her fan base; this will provide Adele’s fans with upcoming information on appearances or concerts. The social media aspect will continue to give Adele’s fans a slight insight as to what she does in her free time, or sneak peaks inside the recording studio.
Additional creative sale tactics and distribution strategies that we will use will align in our current business model, we will continue to set sale goals, focus on the target market and gather the opinions from some of Adele’s fans as to what they would like to see her do next. Adele has already succeeded in being s standout artist and her team continues to bring her constant success.
Creating an official Adele website that contains strictly merchandise will also help generate revenue, Adele will assist us in this process by creating unique items. The website will offer the standard fan t-shirt, coffee cup, and key chain, however we will also provide limited edition pieces like cell phone cases, jewelry, headphones, notebooks, pens, and license plate holders just to name a few. Creating and providing limited pieces will allow her fans to feel a bigger bond with her. These items will be available on line and some will be made available at her concerts. The reasoning behind this current merchandising strategy is that we want to provide Adele’s fan base with items that are not all the same, because they support her so much.
Adele has already been featured in movies, her work is well known throughout the industry and she has a Grammy to stand behind it. Adele’s music is known worldwide, she is in a category of her own. She has the ability to win fans over no matter what their back ground is and continues to break records with her soulful music. She has proven that she is not confined to one genre of music by the air play her songs receive.
In conclusion Adele is an extremely talented artist; she is well rounded and has stuck to her roots. She has continued to shatter record sales and according to "Hello Magazine” (2015),
Adele had no reason to be concerned about her new music; she has broken records with her latest single, which topped the charts in over 100 countries, while her upcoming album 25 topped the iTunes pre-order chart in 93 countries. Implementing the ideas mentioned above will help increase revenue as well as sales.

References
Business Insider.(2015). Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/adele-on-success-and-branding-2015-12
Axs. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.axs.com/adele-wins-10th-grammy-for-james-bond-theme-song-skyfall-15383
Hello magazine . (2015). Retrieved from http://us.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/2015111328223/adele-songwriting-secrets/