Do you know the number 1 reason businesses fail?  Cash Flow. Or to use business terminology, insufficient capital or operating funds.

Knowing how to manage your finances (business and personal), manage your cash flow and plan your cash flow management is critical to your success. In this class Debra will show you how to take your business beyond the gig-to-gig, sale-to-sale mentality and build a financial foundation that generates prosperity and a sustainable career. Are you ready for the big time?

You’ll learn:

• How to break out of the time for money trap
• How to plan for the cyclical nature of your cash flow
• The difference between good debt and bad debt
• The benefits of separating your personal and business finances
• How to make the most of your tax deductions
• Getting your financial house ready for the big time!

Additional Resources for this Class:

• Build Your Financial Foundation WorkBook, by Debra Russell
• Nolo article on business structure
• Score
• IRS – Selecting a business structure
• Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad
• Cashflow Quadrant: Rich Dad’s Guide to Financial Freedom
• The E-Myth Revisited
• INGDirect

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic

• Money Management: How to Build Your Financial Foundation
• Business Management for the Creative Mind (Or How to Run Your Art Business)
• Transitioning to Full Time with Your Art/Music Business

Register for the Class:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

One of the most frequently asked question in my Ask Coach Debra calls is how to deal with procrastination. Very often we know what we need to do.  And yet somehow, we can’t get ourselves to sit down and do it!

All of the Time Management structures and systems you’ve learned to create in the Time Management and Project Management Classes will be impossible to implement if you don’t figure out how to overcome procrastination.

Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin.  ~Victor Kiam

In this class you’ll discover:

• What is procrastination, really, and what causes it?
• Three techniques to get yourself moving when you’re stuck
• An NLP process that you can use over and over to create momentum with ease

At the ArtistsMBA, you are learning a lot about how to create a successful, sustainable and profitable business doing what you love.  But until you put this knowledge into action your dreams are fantasies.  This class will help you move past your internal blocks and into action.

Register for the Class:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

Marketing is creating an environment in which people feel comfortable enough to buy from you,  over and over again.

Sounds like a great idea, right? But what exactly does that mean in terms of day to day actions?  And how do you systematize creating that environment?

Does this sound familiar?

• You’ve got a pile of business cards on your desk, but you don’t really know what to do with them.
• Picking up the phone to make marketing calls is terrifying because you don’t really know who to call or what to say when you get them on the phone
• You know you promised somebody something, but don’t remember who or what or when
• A prospective customer/client/fan tells you to call back in three months and you promise to, but you know you won’t remember

These are all symptoms of a poor contact management system!  There’s nothing wrong with you, it’s the system that is lacking!

In this class you’ll learn:

• Why you need a Contact Management System (and why your memory isn’t enough!)
• The Key Components of an effective Contact Management System
• How your Contact Management System feeds into and energizes your larger Marketing Plan
• A review of some of the 3rd party apps out there and how to choose the right one for you

Register for the Class:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

In the “Ask Debra Russell” call, Debra will answer your individual questions about how to be successful and prosperous doing what you love.

Bring your biggest challenges and burning questions to get the personal attention you need to break through, or listen and learn (and contribute!) as other participants get coached.

To receive the call-in information for this call, submit your question to www.AskDebraRussell.com – and Debra will address it during the next call.

Whether you register to participate live or wish to download the call later, you will have your questions answered. Feel free to tell your friends about this monthly call – because it is free and open to the public!

To register, go to www.AskDebraRussell.com. At the bottom, fill out the form and Click “Here’s My Question, Debra.” You will then receive the information to call in to the teleconference. If you don’t have a question, but want to participate in the live call – just enter “No Question” in the form.

I encourage you to submit questions as they occur to you, even multiple questions. They will be answered in the next call as time allows. And if you have a pressing question in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to Contact Debra to set up a private consultation.

Not Enrolled in the ArtistsMBA? Buy the Recording!

ArtistsMBA Academy Members – Listen to the Recording

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

Artists Marketing & Business Academy Members’ questions got priority:

1. What program of auto responder for twitter do you use and recommend? (Social Media Marketing)
2. What is the best way to prioritize and make the most hay while the sun shines? (Time Management)
3. How do I use my time to increase my income?
4. How can I successfully promote my new CD if I can’t tour? (Promote Music)
5. Want to get things finished, stuck 3/4 of the way to a record and website, need to get my social media up to speed, still stuck in niche land, help… (Music Business)

Thanks for the great questions! I encourage you to submit questions as they occur to you, even multiple questions. They will be answered in the next call as time allows. And if you have a pressing question in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to Contact Debra to set up a private consultation.

Additional Resources for this Call:

• SocialOomph
• TwitCleaner.com
• UStream
• Stageit
• MUSIC INDUSTRY SECRETS – Trends in Radio Panel

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic

• Time Management 101
• Niche Marketing
• Manage Conflicting Priorities
• Twitter 101

Not Enrolled in the ArtistsMBA? Buy the Recording!

ArtistsMBA Academy Members – Listen to the Recording

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

The Panelists were:

• Moderator: Valerie Gurka, Marketing Director – Knitting Factory Entertainment
• Lynda McLaughlin Producer – Premiere Radio Networks, Founder/Partner – LYVA Music and Espresso Sounds Publishing.
• Liz Berg Assistant General Manager – WFMU Radio
• Seth Hillinger, Creative Technologist – iHeartRadio, Organizer – Music Tech Meetup
• Michael Gunzelman, Radio Host - The Gunz Show, Idobi Radio

I found it very informative.  And overall, the panel answered one of my key questions about the Music Business in the 20-teens:

Is radio still relevant?

I was happy to discover that today’s radio, as a curator of music and as a place to discover new music, is still alive and well.  And thanks to the Internet as well as local, college and NPR stations, radio still has a place in the marketing and promotional plans for unsigned, independent DIY bands and musicians.

How and where people listen to radio depends largely on their demographics and geographic locations.  People Over age 50 and/or living in rurul or suburban areas are more likely to listen to terrestrial radio in their cars and home. Younger audiences and urban audiences are more likely to listen via the internet and their smart phone, ipad or ipod.  So, knowing who you’re targeting will help to guide your decisions when promoting your music to radio.

According to the panelists, today’s music fan is still introduced to new music via radio, but unlike 30 years ago, their next step isn’t to buy the album at a brick and mortar retailer.  Now, when someone discovers new music via either radio exposure or the use of that music in TV shows, commercials or films, their next step is to listen to that band or artist on YouTube and then seek to stream or purchase their music via Spotify, iTunes or the like.

Which means that getting your music up on YouTube as well as using an online distribution center such as CDBaby or SoundCloud is critical.

They also commented that using Internet Radio and other curator services such as Spotify and turntable.fm have been great in the past for reaching an international audience, and they are currently hampered by international licensing issues.

How do artists pitch to radio?

The biggest mistake you can make is sending your CD to a program director and then calling her a million times, leaving the “have you listened to my CD yet?” message. Program directors are inundated and they don’t owe you anything.  Be respectful of their time and their process.

First research and make sure that your music is a good fit for that stations programming.  Send your CD to the music director, but don’t call over and over!  You’re more likely to get a response from targeting specific DJs.  Search the radio website to target DJs who play music like yours.  Another sources is the CMJ NMR Report

Another important aspect is to network at live events.  A personal connection is always better than a cold submission.

This panel didn’t seem high on using Radio promoters.  And if you do decide to go this route, they highly recommend that you do your research before hiring a radio promoter.  Get the list of bands your prospective promotor is working with and talk to them.  Find out if they’re happy, find out what kinds of results they’re seeing from the promotion and if they’d work with this promoter again.

Another suggestion was to use turntable.fm and be a bit sneaky.  Become a DJ and curate music within your genre, and create a fanbase as a curator, then periodically slip in your music.

The idea of people curating music for their friends creating play lists and sharing seemed both intriguing and a bit threatening to this panel, basically they felt that DJs are the better choice for learning about new music (an understandable bias).  They mentioned that Spotify had merged with Facebook, making it really easy to share play lists with your friends and requiring a Facebook profile to join.

Other Resources Mentioned:

Artist affiliation on iheartradio – Unsigned, undiscovered artists can submit to “Discover & Uncover”

WFMU Free Music Archive for creative commons – The Free Music Archive is an interactive library of high-quality, legal audio downloads.  The Free Music Archive is directed by WFMU, the most renowned freeform radio station in America.  Radio has always offered the public free access to new music. The Free Music Archive is a continuation of that purpose, designed for the age of the internet.  You can tell people it’s safe to use for podcasting and then promote your music to music blogs.

Tumblr is also getting huge for music blogging.

How does radio fit into your music promotion?

I have worked with literally hundreds of clients on the issues that a poor time management system creates such as:

• Procrastination
• Difficulties with prioritization
• Boundary issues with family and friends
• Feelings of overwhelm and fear
• Burnout

And what I’ve found is that when you start the day well and end the day well, very often the middle works so much better!

In this class you’ll learn:

• What are Time Management Bookends and why do we use them
• How to design your unique morning and evening Bookends?
• The three most important components of successful Bookends
• How to install your bookends into your daily life

I strongly recommend listening to Time Management 101 in advance of this class.

Additional Resources for this Class:

• Time Management from the Inside Out

From the Admin Resources Section of Artist’s EDGE

• Procrastination is Keeping Me Waiting
• Time Management 101 - The Art of Juggling
• Get the Learning - the 5th Key to Maintaining Focus in the Face of Chaos
• Manage Your Emotions - the 4th Key to Maintaining Focus in the Face of Chaos
• Ask for Help - the 3rd Key to Maintaining Focus

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic

• Procrastination is Keeping Me Waiting
• Time Management Bookends - A Framework for Success
• Time Management 101 - The Art of Juggling
• Systems Creation - Work Smarter, Not Harder
• Managing Conflicting Priorities

Listen to the Class/Interview:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

Social Media is everywhere and it’s clear that there are some Artists and business owners in the Arts & Entertainment Industry (including the Music Business, Film Industry and Publishing) who are using it to build real world success.  But there are a lot of people who are overwhelmed and confused by it, and whatever they’re doing isn’t working.

I believe that Social Media Marketing offers you an enormous opportunity never before seen.  For the people using it correctly, their success is no accident.  So, how do you apply it to your business?

In this class, we’ll explore:

• What is Social Media and why do we care?
• How to use Social Media Marketing as part of your overall marketing plan
• The Do’s and DON’Ts of Social Media Marketing
• The differences between Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube and why it matters
• How to wisely use your time on Social Media

Additional Resources for this Class:

I will be adding additional resources shortly

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic:

I will be adding additional ArtistsMBA classes shortly

Listen to the Class:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

There are 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. That won’t change. So how do you use what you have to create the life that you want?

The solution isn’t by figuring out how to do more stuff.  It’s figuring out how to adjust your choices and decisions so that you’re doing the right stuff at the right time.

Time Management is a skill and as a skill, you can learn it.  The problem for most people is that they were never taught.  Instead you’ve been shamed for not already knowing how to manage your time.

“Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”
H. Jackson Brown, Jr. quote

Don’t you think it’s time for you to get a handle on your time?

In this Class, you’ll learn:

• How to figure out what you’re doing right so you can do more of that
• How to set up a system that really works with who you are
• Several tools to help you make the most of your time
• What to do with that To Do list!

Additional Resources for this Class:

• Time Management from the Inside Out by Julie Morgenstern
• The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be Jack Canfield

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic

Time Management 101 is the pre-requisite for all of these classes

• Motivation and Momentum
• Systems Creation – Work Smarter, Not Harder
• Project Management – The Key to Getting Stuff Done!
• Managing Conflicting Priorities

Listen to the Class:

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.

Artists Marketing & Business Academy Members’ questions got priority:

1. Can you list which systems for our business do you recommend we should develop?
2. How can I keep my motivation up? (time management)
3. How do I find A&Rs, Managers and Agents?
4. We have written a love song. Jango play testing shows a fan base of 35-54 year old women.  What methods can be used to break this down into a smaller niche? (niche marketing)
5. How can I sell my cd from my web site that should be up in about two weeks. (internet marketing)
6. Do you have any tips to give my first real YouTube video a good starter push? (internet marketing)
7. What’s the best way to market my songs to music supervisors?
8. How do you get over the fear of failing?

Thanks for the great questions! I encourage you to submit questions as they occur to you, even multiple questions. They will be answered in the next call as time allows. And if you have a pressing question in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to Contact Debra to set up a private consultation.

Additional Resources for this Call:

• Sarah Gavigan
• Taxi.com
• Multiple Streams of Music Income Self Study Program
• Create Your Vision
• www.twellow.com
• The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea
• Ask and It is Given, by Abraham-Hicks
• NLP and Hypnosis with Debra Russell

Additional ArtistsMBA Classes on this Topic:

• Motivation and Momentum
• Social Media – The Art of Engagement
• Systems Creation – Work Smarter, Not Harder
• Time Management 101 – The Art of Juggling
• Project Management – The Key to Getting Stuff Done!
• Overcoming Fear
• Transform Your Belief – The Key To Success
• Music Licensing with Sarah Gavigan
• Multiple Streams of Music Income advanced classes

Not Enrolled in the ArtistsMBA? Buy the Recording!

Academy Members – Listen to the Recording

Thank you for your interest. This content is visible to ArtistsMBA Foundation, Professional, Professional_mentorship Program members only. Click here to access.