THE FREE CD THING EXPLAINED

by Elm Treason

So, we’ve gotten quite a few comments and messages regarding the “FREE CD” campaign we are running right now.

Some of the feedback we’ve gotten is, frankly, perplexing.

Fundamentally, and with all due respect to those who have proffered these ignorant assertions, it shows a misunderstanding of what we’re doing.

And honestly, to suggest we are perpetrating a fraud or masking a scam, is sheer stupidity.

Here’s is how this works and why we do this…

Like any unknown band who spends every spare moment working on their music and brand, we are looking to expand our audience. We want more ears on ELM TREASON music.

Sounds reasonable, right?

Radio, as we once knew it, doesn’t exist like it did for artists like us – particularly because our sound is not Top 40 or hip hop.

Our songs are not afforded the opportunity to become familiar through repitition in the minds of listeners to the point where people may actually be interested in dropping a few dollars on our latest album or song.

Thus, we have to supply the exposure of our music ourselves. We have to make it available to ears anyway we can.

Thus….

Every Thursday, we post a video on Facebook of us performing in some way (live performance or music video) to expose what we do.

We PAY for that – much like bands used to do when printing up flyers or hawking self-produced tapes at merch tables after gigs. We drop the coin for exposure.

We pay to be seen and heard on Facebook.

That doesn’t guarantee anything, of course. We could, in theory, be paying a good amount of money to find out that many more people dislike us than we’d care to admit.

It’s a gamble.

Some dig what we do. Others don’t. Others are annoyed that they see us in their news feeds. We get that. It’s all good.

So, much like a “follow up single” used to do in the “old days,” we then pay for MORE exposure to those who dug the initial exposure.

Our hope is that people who play the songs that hit their newsfeeds more than once…or twice… or thrice… become acquainted with them enough to be looking forward to the next song that shows up.

That’s where the FREE CD thing comes in…

We decide to offer the free disc to what we call a “warm audience” – that is, people familiar with us and our music.

To be clear, the CD is, in fact, FREE to anyone who wants it. We simply ask people to pay for postage.

This is not a trick It’s not a scam.

Normally, a CD is $14.97 plus shipping.

This time it is ZERO plus shipping.

There is no ambiguity here. No slight of hand.

This isn’t a “bait and switch” of any kind. (Still not sure why people are using that term).

You may ask… why offer a free CD as opposed to, say, a digital download to music that can be accessed immediately?

A CD is something tangible. Something REAL. It is something that has value to many people.

Why?

Because it is a physical product. It can be touched, handled and possesed. It has more value than a digital file.

Yes, we could offer simple click-and-download music that would be available immediately, but we have found that it doesn’t mean as much to people as something physical. It doesn’t create as much of a connection between artist and fan.

A CD carries far more weight with most people than a simple digital download. It shows trust.

CDs cost money to make. And UNLIKE many we’ve seen from other indie artists (hate to say it this way, but it’s true), we offer a seriously high quality product in comparison to most.

We use a classic, sturdy, clear-bottomed standard jewel case.

Our CDs come with a nice, full-color 6 panel pullout, complete with liner notes (as opposed to a single slip card).

And the discs themselves are classy. They LOOK like vinyl records and even FEEL like vinyl records on the non-playable side. It perfectly relects our style, vibe, vintage feel and attitude.

We even enclose each CD in a resealable protective sleeve.

Each CD is shipped in bubble wrap in a cushioned envelope.

Finally, there is the cost to ship it out.

In many cases, we literally lose money on each free disc, especially on overseas shipping… but we know that going in. It’s the “cost” of making genuine friendships.

The point is to win over new fans. Straight up. And hopefully, sometime down the road, these new fans will eventually want to buy something else from us.

And then more…hopefully.

And maybe, just maybe, when we release a brand new album further down the pike, they’ll jump at it.

No guarantees. Just maybe.

It’s a gamble.

Starting that gamble with a tangible, physical, impressive product – like a free CD – makes it a bit more likely that’ll happen than with an ad or an MP3.

It’s simple, really.

Let’s face it, it costs money to create and maintain the quality of our work. Instruments. Software. Outboard gear. Recording. Mixing. Mastering. Printing. Pressing. Distribution. Advertising. It all adds up.

We’re not here to go bankrupt. Most people understand that.

And anyone who follows this page knows that we post very little about ourselves here. Thjis is not an exercise in vanity. We’re not constantly bombarding newsfeeds with sales offers and pitches.

How boring that would be, right? We wouldn’t have very many followers if that was our modus operandi.

That’s not what we do.

We are fairly predictable…. We post a video every Thursday.

We post a HAPPY WEEKEND photo every Friday.

And occassionally, a promotion.

That’s it.

With each free CD offer, we allow people THE OPPORUNITY to pay something extra if they want to.

Again… IF THEY WANT TO.

On the very page where we make the FREE CD offer, we say in no uncertain terms that it is not necessary pay anything above the price of postage to get the disc.

And no, we don’t jack up the postage price.

Whether folks give us anything more or not, it’s all good.

That’s the point here: to show people we’re not trying to fool them.

WE ARE TRYING TO EXPOSE THEM to our music with a high-quality “how do you do?” handshake. As stated above, people are more likely to LISTEN to something that is physical… like a COMPACT DISC.

We also offer people a few extras, IF THEY WANT THEM, with each FREE CD.

With this current “Voice of Treason” campaign, we are offering a BONUS companion CD, plus stickers and a button fora little less than $5 more…with no extra postage tagged on.

So now, with all of this said…. we ask anyone who thinks we’re full of cow dung on this… How is ANY OF THIS a trick? How is this a “bait and switch?”

How is this a scam?

So, RELAX, HATERS.

This band is an open book. We have been NOTHING but open and above board with anything and everything we do.

Simply stated, we are giving away our latest studio album on CD to GAIN MORE LOYAL FANS.

It works.

And as we have been fortunate enough to see based on how this has worked in the past, we have the greatest fans in indie music, and we sincerely love them all.

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