NAMM U - All

During “Breakfast of Champions” at the 2015 NAMM Show, Moby joined NAMM President and CEO Joe Lamond to discuss the DJ and electronic dance music explosion. The pioneering artist also received NAMM’s Music for Life Award, the highest honor in the music products industry. Weighing in on the stigma that’s sometimes attached to DJ and EDM artists, Moby pointed out that great albums are made by a range of different musicians—everyone from virtuosos to those with little skill but an abundance of creativity. “A lot of my friends who are more traditional musicians hate the fact that peop

At 2014 Summer NAMM, Robert Christie, owner of A & G Central Music, gave music retailers the straight skinny on repair shop profitability. He focused on the financial side of a successful repair department, how to apply the same sales strategies you use on your sales floor with repairs and how the repair shop interacts with your overall business strategy. “All of these contacts we have with the customers are an opportunity to sell our repair shop, increase their level of satisfaction and, if handled properly, can increase the revenues coming into our store,” Christie said. He

At 2014 Summer NAMM, Robert Christie, owner of A & G Central Music, gave music retailers the straight skinny on repair shop profitability. He focused on the financial side of a successful repair department, how to apply the same sales strategies you use on your sales floor with repairs and how the repair shop interacts with your overall business strategy. “All of these contacts we have with the customers are an opportunity to sell our repair shop, increase their level of satisfaction and, if handled properly, can increase the revenues coming into our store,” Christie said. He

CJ Averwater of Amro Music treated music retailers to his top 10 list of apps at Summer NAMM 2014. These apps have worked for his business and everyday life. Averwater focused on practical, no-frills apps that addressed retailer business practices and efficiencies—versus the top apps in entertainment, communication and mobile commerce that many already use (e.g., Facebook and eBay). He noted the majority of smartphone and tablet users in the audience and advised everyone to get started with at least one app on the list. Using his iPad, CJ demonstrated how easy and quick the mobile

At 2014 Summer NAMM, Peter Dods, owner of Easy Music Center, revealed how to market your store in a digital world—and how applying basic principles of marketing excellence will help you achieve healthy growth. Highlights from the session video: Nail Down Email According to Dods, email is still one of the simplest and most powerful online marketing tools. “Email marketing is still greater than social media,” he said. Dods advised retail owners to take a hands-on approach to email by personally responding to customers and creating relationships. “Every email request is a hot lead,”

With so much competition for your customers’ attention, how do you stand out from other businesses? Be epic! In this dynamic Breakfast Session, Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute, will show you how. He’ll reveal ways that epic marketers attract and keep customers by using compelling, relevant and consistent content. Find out how to actively engage with your customers using your own unique story and expertise. Pulizzi will reveal the secrets of getting started and share examples of companies like yours that have grown a loyal, profitable audience. See more from

With the holiday season upon us, now is the time to assess your store’s readiness to compete for customers. From product knowledge to organization, everything becomes more crucial at this time of year. Here are some proven, easy-to-implement ideas we at Larry’s Music have put into place. These will immediately improve the customer experience in your store. 1. First impressions are everything. Because we “live” in our store environments, we grow accustomed to them and miss impressions our customers may pick up at first glance. It’s easy to walk past problem areas without noticing t

In 1981, the music industry changed forever when the first video appeared on MTV. That song, “Video Killed The Radio Star” by The Buggles, turned out to be prophetic. The music industry had officially entered a new age, and in order to have a hit song, the artist needed a corresponding video. In those early days, producing a video and getting airtime was reserved for only the biggest stars. Skip ahead to 2005 and the introduction of YouTube. Musicians everywhere got an outlet to share their music with the world. On YouTube’s heels, video production equipment became digital, cheape

Do you find yourself saying, "I have too many things to do"? As a music retailer, the answer is usually “yes.” Here, I’ll show you how I use a few online tools to stay productive and ahead of the curve. In a sea of responsibilities, a combination of resources, such as Gmail, Google Calendar and other apps, keeps me on track. It’s easier than you think to manage your time—and these tools will change your day-to-day experience and impact your bottom line. Chrome The Chrome browser from Google is fast and built to work with all Google products. You can create multiple users for Chrom

Music retailers with successful lesson programs often credit their teachers, for good reason. At 2014 Summer NAMM, Gayle Beacock, co-owner of Beacock Music and NAMM’s 2013 Dealer of the Year, paid special homage to instructors in her lesson program. “We’re nothing without our teachers,” she said. Beacock’s high-energy session, “Music Lessons: How to Keep Your Best Teachers,” featured tips and guidelines for building a successful lesson program—one that attracts and keeps great teachers. (Beacock Music currently has more than 1,300 students per week in its program.) Highlights from

At 2014 Summer NAMM, music lessons guru Pete Gamber distilled 35 years of retail and music lessons experience into a candid, tell-all session. It revealed his unique approach to building a successful lessons program—one with a staggering 2,000-plus students per week. Gamber characteristically described his program as music lessons on “steroids.” He went on to acknowledge that significant growth doesn’t happen overnight. The real catalyst for his company’s success was when “we stopped giving music lessons because everyone gave music lessons. We started developing a music lesson pro

Do you take advantage of eBay? If not, you might be missing a huge opportunity. At 2014 Summer NAMM, Blues Angel Music co-owner Jim DeStafney and his eBay facilitator, Sierra Williams, presented specific eBay strategies that have worked for them—based on mistakes they’ve made since venturing into eBay nearly five years ago. Their lessons learned will help take the sting out of getting started on eBay. DeStafney cited getting involved with the online auction and e-commerce platform as one of the most important factors that spurred his store’s recent growth. “With 116 million buyers