I interview a ton of songwriters and music publishers on my radio show, Music Business Radio and the topic of file sharing often comes up. And more of these folks are really pissed about it...
I can understand, and relate, but when it comes down to it, there are a lot of positive things about somebody "stealing" your music.
Of course, the same is true for marketers with "information products." In the end, whether you're a musician, songwriters, or book author, you're really just in the business of selling content.
The fact that somebody is actually going to "steal" what you've done is actually a great piece of information for you. Because if nobody is going to take what you've got for free, they're surely not going to pay for it.
Got this from an article called Pirates are Future Customers. It was written about computer software, but it applies to music.
- Word-of-mouth marketing. A pirate who is enough of a fan might even sell enough copies of your product to in some sense make up for the theft.
- Peer-provided support. A pirate who is expert in your product may serve as a valuable second-tier support mechanism, answering questions about your product in forums or chat.
- Market saturation. The pirate who chooses your product and shuns your competitor’s is contributing to your dominance of the market.
So what do you think? Post comments below...
