We live in an age of disruption. Every week, it seems there’s a new strategy, technology or social media that’s a “must use” or game-changer for your music retail business or brand. But trust, connection, consistency and service will always trump the next app to hit the market. And at The 2019 NAMM Show, marketing rebel and branding and customer-engagement expert Scott Stratten hosted an inspiring NAMM U Breakfast Session to help NAMM members navigate this age of disruption.

Online rentals can bolster your customer service, streamline operations and, not least of all, give business a lift. Robert M. Sides Family Music now does a third of its rentals online, and in this session, Peter Sides, company president, shares his best practices and lessons learned.

Instrumental Music Center has won several awards for its customer service and sales staff, and in this session, you’ll find out why—and what you can take away from the store’s best practices. Company co-owner Leslie Faltin shares how her staff consistently delivers an outstanding “tailored” experience to every customer, every time. Walk away with ideas you can apply right away to improve the customer experience at your own business.

In the past decade, Quinn the Eskimo has become a major online seller of used and vintage horns, due in large part to its success on eBay. Here, company owner and eBay guru Matthew Stoecker shares his top tips, secrets and hacks to help you increase your own eBay business. He covers how to make an attractive listing, photography pointers, best practices for eBay’s condition categories and much more.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the most comprehensive online privacy policy to date and can significantly impact your music business. Are you prepared? Online marketing expert Peter Malick of Inbound AV weighs in on what the GDPR means to the music industry and steps you can take to safeguard your business.

Music retail may be about face-to-face communication with our customers, but we can’t overlook the importance of email. So, how do we stand out from the clutter of email marketing and make the most of our communications? Mike Guillot of Mississippi Music offers 10 quick-and-easy tips for creating effective emails that get opened, read and responded to for measurable results.

In this NAMM U session, Mark Maxwell of Maxwell's House of Music shares his vision for creating a memorable store design for little cost. Find out how he designed and merchandised his store for maximum "wow" factor and personality—and what it means to your own business. “If you create a place where people want to come to, you’ll be successful,” Maxwell says.

Are others using your ideas and affecting your profits? Are you looking for ways to maximize the value of your business? Whether you’re an artist, designer, manufacturer or person involved in building or managing a brand of products or services in the music industry, intellectual property rights are important. Knowing the basic principles of how IP rights are created and how they can be used can assist your growth and success.

Discover how some of the best-looking and most successful music stores in Nashville merchandise and design their showrooms—and what you can take away from their examples. Tim Spicer of Spicer’s Music moderated this panel discussion at 2017 Summer NAMM with the best of the best in Music City. They shared their most innovative and effective store design concepts and discussed how they made these ideas a reality.

At The 2017 NAMM Show, Kevin Cranley of Willis Music hosted a who’s who panel of music retailers, who weighed in on the biggest issues affecting business today. Panelists included Sammy Ash of Sam Ash Music, Cindy Cook of The Candyman Strings & Things, Pat Averwater of Amro Music, Whitney Brown Grisaffi of Ted Brown Music and George Quinlan Jr. of Quinlan & Fabish.