By: Connor

Normally, large stores use sales on a specific item to draw in customers who may buy other things. However, the “downsell” works in the opposite fashion. Use a unique or custom offering to your fanbase to draw in people who just want to check it out or learn more. Chances are they won’t buy it – but thats where your more affordably priced CD download is noticed. Then, for those true fans willing to pay extra for whatever you’re willing to give them, you get money and they get cool swag. If you don’t have the option, people can’t choose it even if they would like to.

We all know about the upsell: Mass Merchants, etc. lure you into their store with a low-cost item (too often, CDs) in the hopes that you leave with some high-margin item like a washing machine.

The “Downsell” is different. As I’ve discussed, the music business is now the merch business, and the way to go is to create a vast and sometimes over-the-top (like the awesome Josh Freese campaign) product array with some big-ticket (and high-margin) items that create awareness and drive people to the artist’s Site.

The reality, of course, is that most customers will look at the big-ticket item, but won’t buy. The psychology is sort of interesting. A customer is made aware of the site via the big-ticket item (Mr. Freese got a bit of press about his campaign, if you recall), looks at it, but can’t afford it/doesn’t want to spend so much. However, all of a sudden a CD/download priced at $10 seems like a bargain when compared with the big-ticket item priced in the hundreds (or thousands) of dollars.

Read more at Artists House Music

Technorati Tags: Artists House Music, George Howard, Music Business, Music Merchandise, Music Promotion

This entry was posted on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 12:35 pm and is filed under Music Business, Music Culture, Music Promotion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.