Matthew Ebel » Sellaband

Why I Am Leaving Sellaband

Matthew Ebel — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:02:18 +0000

After fielding some questions and comments about the death, resurrection, and uncertain future of Sellaband, I felt the need to clarify why a modern artist really doesn’t need microfinancing of any kind. Especially microfinancing that’s badly managed to the point of declaring bankruptcy. The easiest way to cover this is a simple comparison between Sellaband and my own subscription service, Matthew Ebel dot net. Of course, by “my subscription service”, I mean “what any artist can offer direct to their fans”.

What Sellaband Offers	Matthew Ebel dot net
Artists can ask their fans for album funding.	I get funding directly from my fans on a monthly/yearly basis.
Believers are promised one new album once $15k (or whatever) is reached, if ever.	I already give my subscribers new music, live music, and exclusive goodies every single month.
If the target is ever reached, an artist can hire a professional studio, engineer, and producer.	For as little as $5,000 I can buy better equipment and hire a professional engineer in my own studio.¹
If the target is ever reached, believers get one album (retail value $10) from their artist.	Every year my subscribers get a deluxe album package, extra bonus material, and, depending on the subscription level, stickers, mugs, shirts, etc.
Sellaband holds onto believers’ money until the artist’s goal is reached, if ever. If they disappear, so does the money.	Subscribers’ money goes directly into better studio equipment, goodies for the annual goodie bags, the annual Beer Bash, touring, rent, food, etc. with no one holding the money hostage.
Sellaband charges a percentage to handle the money, on top of anything PayPal takes.	PayPal is the only middle man taking a cut, and even that may change soon.
Believers may, if the artist allows, share in revenue generated from the album if it is ever produced.	Subscribers can use affiliate links to share in revenue from referrals for as long as they stay subscribed.

I’m sure there are other comparisons to make, but frankly this was enough for me. What it all boils down to is one simple equation:

If every fan who bought a Part via Sellaband spent the same money on a Matthew Ebel dot net subscription instead, I would be able to make much better music and they would get music and goodies immediately.

This is true for any artist, not just me. It’s why I’m leaving Sellaband, and it’s why I think artists should take a much more critical look at micro-financing schemes before jumping on board with them.

Update: Updated table to reflect subscription changes after the 2010 VIP Town Hall Meeting.

1 – Don’t ask “what if I don’t own a studio?” All of the gear I use right now, including the MacBook, cost me less than $6,000 and some of it is unnecessary for a band on a budget. I recorded “Beer & Coffee” in a dining room with Apple’s Garageband and “Goodbye Planet Earth” in my bedroom.

ENN: SellaBand and The Robots

Matthew Ebel — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:38:52 +0000

ENN September 28, 2009 (MP3 download)

What budget should I set for Sellaband’s new format? I can pick anything from $10,000 to $100k, but right now I’m only at $5,000. What should I shoot for?
The robot band is cute, but is it worth it? Tell me what you think about my performances with backing tracks vs. without. I really want to know!
Of course, you can see the difference for yourself tomorrow at 6pm Eastern Time at http://matthewebel.com/ustream

SellaBand Changes (For The Better)

Matthew Ebel — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:26:22 +0000

sellaband.com/matthewebel

Earlier this week I received a call (yes, a voice from the Netherlands) about the future of Sellaband. If you’re not already aware, Sellaband was set up to help independent artists (like me) finance albums with real producers, real studios, and real promotion. I posted a more detailed explanation back in February, but the major drawback was the budget goal: $50,000 USD. Crikey.

That’s all changing. SellaBand is becoming less like a make-your-own record deal and more like a straight-up micro-financing site for musicians. I’m excited about this and more convinced that this is how I want to finance my next album. Read on for details…

Major Changes at SellaBand

They finally posted their plans on The SellaBand Site, but I’ll give you a breakdown of how this will affect you (my fans and investors) and me (the guy making all the noises in the studio)…

The Goal Is Now $10,000: Actually, the goal can be anything from $10k to $100k, it’s up to me (and you). I made Goodbye Planet Earth for about $5,000 including duplication, so two or three times the budget would mean I could hire a real engineer, more than one other musician, and maybe even a producer to help me improve my sound.
I Can Set My Own Incentives: Now I can add things like remixable tracks, posters, stickers, house concerts, or whatever I want as incentives to invest. Want to contribute $500 to the cause? You’ll get the deluxe box set with a video documentary about the album’s creation. $1,000? I’ll write you a custom song. It’s all up to me (and you) now!
Revenue Sharing Is Optional: Most of you who signed up have already told me you don’t care about the .01% (or whatever) of the net revenue you’ll get from album sales. Good, ’cause that posed two problems: It’s an accounting nightmare to keep track of all that. Also, it meant I had to sell exclusively through SellaBand’s store so they could do the payment processing. Fortunately…
I Can Use CD Baby, iTunes, and Amazon: I can distribute the album any way I want, which means it’ll still be available via iTunes, CD Baby, and at live concerts when it comes out. If there’s revenue sharing involved, it’ll be up to me to handle the accounting, but SellaBand is now willing to trust the artists to run their own business. Shocking, no?
“Artists will always own the master recordings and keep 100% of publishing rights.”: I put that in quotes ’cause the direct line from SellaBand is explanation enough.
Sellaband’s Fee: 10% of the goal: They will not keep any revenue from CD sales, just a tenth of whatever goal I set. Sounds fair to me considering I’m already at $5,000.

That last comment is the important one… Your contributions have put me at about $5,000 right now- exactly what it cost me to produce my last album. If we can double or triple that budget, I could create something truly stunning. I think Sellaband could be the best thing to happen to indie albums since the iTunes Music Store.

These changes won’t be enacted for another month or so, but I’m assuming it’ll take me longer than that to generate enough cash to produce “Songs for Geeks” (or whatever I’m calling the next disc).

WILL YOU HELP ME GET THERE?

Photo by Barton Creative

ENN: My weekly audio updates begin now!

Matthew Ebel — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:49:36 +0000

I think I’m going to call this ENN, the Ebel News Network. Not very original, but I don’t care…

ENN September 21, 2009 (MP3 download)

I want to try and update YOU, my fans, once a week by a quick and dirty audio post. Via the miracle of podcasting, you can get these little blurbs from me by adding http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MatthewEbelBlog to your iTunes or other podcast catcher. This week I’m covering:

New recording to be released today: Waking Up Alone
Now booking shows via Virtual Assistants
Sellaband is changing… not sure how or why. Stay tuned!

Feature Article on Sellaband.com

Matthew Ebel — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:57:07 +0000

You recently made me Sellaband’s Artist of the Week and, as a part of that package, they interviewed me for a feature news article on their site. Here’s a short clip:

…you can have the ten greatest musicians on stage with you- string players, guitarists, drummer, bass, singers, etc. -but if you aren’t reaching someone and speaking to them directly, you’re just making noise.

Check out the full article right here.

Please Vote at Sellaband

Matthew Ebel — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 17:50:14 +0000

UPDATE: Hooray! I just made Artist of the Week! Thank all of you who voted, this is your victory!

Last week I made the #2 slot for Sellaband’s Artist of the Week contest. This week I’m back and I need your help to make #1 by Monday morning! Here’s what you need to do:

If you haven’t already, sign up for Sellaband as a Believer.
Once you’ve got an account, go to my page at http://sellaband.com/matthewebel
Click the giant button on the right-hand side that says:
BONUS: If you’ve invested any money in any artists (like me) on Sellaband, you can vote every day this week. Please do!

If I make it to the #1 spot this week I’ll get $200 towards my next album from Sellaband as well as a bunch of other promotional opportunities. So far they’ve been VERY good about not spamming people, too, so don’t worry. Please help by voting, thanks!