How to make your music career profitable: 10 business rules for DIY artists

Be SMART and treat your ART like a small business

[This article was written by guest contributor Sean Kinney, an award-winning entertainer and filmmaker. His company 1 Stooge Entertainment offers creative consulting to companies and individuals looking to take their brand to the next level.]

Most people hear terms like “the Film business” or “the Music business,” and they only focus on the first part. To be successful in business, any business, you need to be business savvy. If you want to be a working artist, you need to be as smart as any business person in a meeting, or at least smart enough to hire the smartest person in the room.

If you started any other type of business without an accountant or an attorney to guide you, you would be looked at as crazy; however, in the world of art, you are looked at as crazy if you start with them. This is a big disconnect, and you should approach your artistic career from a more logical point of view. Many great artists have lost it all on bad business decisions. The most successful artists have their most successful ventures after they have worked out the business of their art, and put everything in place before their next opportunity. Unfortunately, most starting or “indie” artists try to make a push with only their art, and the business part can be a crushing blow, causing them to feel burned out.

Starting as an indie artist myself, I worked hard, had some luck, and my accomplishments led to me serving as a consultant to many successful entertainment artists and companies. While doing so, I found a lot of repetitive issues. Here are ten tips to help you handle your business properly. Follow them with the same passion as you followed …Read the full story

Source:: DIY Musician Blog