How do I turn my private studio into a business?

[TheGreatBeyond]

I've been engineering for years for my own compositions and I think I want to start doing this part time along with playing drums, or possibly full-time. I've interned at a few studios, so I'm not "fresh meat".

I figure starting a website would be a good place to start, and a server should be my first purchase.

I'm not going to try and offer recording because there is no reason why I should compete with local million dollar tracking rooms. Right now my room is set up for mixing anyway.

I downloaded the audio files from the rock mix-off so I could show my abilities on a track you all might be familiar with.

Take care and thank you for your insights in advance.

[sameal]

first, start slow and expect to be doing this part time for fun and maybe a little side cash in your pocket.

second, diversify yourself. offer things that would interest musicians, but that other studios in the area may not offer.

third, look at the market and studios around. base your decisions on what they are or are not doing. if you can corner the market in a place they are not and make them your friend rather then your competition you will see better success i think.

fourth, don't quit your day job. this profession isn't a sure thing cash cow.

[TheGreatBeyond]

Originally Posted by sameal

fourth, don't quit your day job. this profession isn't a sure thing cash cow.

My day job (more like night job) is playing drums. I already know how unscrupulous music jobs are, but I figured I should diversify.

[erikdrink]

Don't quit your job. At day time a work with asphalt.
Good with variation

[frans]

You kind of answered your own question .. not having very clear ideas how to do it you should start slow.

[TheGreatBeyond]

Originally Posted by frans

You kind of answered your own question .. not having very clear ideas how to do it you should start slow.

I'm clear how to run the business when it's rolling, I just need it to start rolling. How exactly do I communicate with labels and artists that I'm here, and in business? Press kits? Sorry I didn't make myself clear.

[oldeanalogueguy]

Originally Posted by TheGreatBeyond

I've been engineering for years for my own compositions and I think I want to start doing this part time along with playing drums, or possibly full-time. I've interned at a few studios, so I'm not "fresh meat".

I figure starting a website would be a good place to start, and a server should be my first purchase.

I'm not going to try and offer recording because there is no reason why I should compete with local million dollar tracking rooms. Right now my room is set up for mixing anyway.

I downloaded the audio files from the rock mix-off so I could show my abilities on a track you all might be familiar with.

Take care and thank you for your insights in advance.

dont buy a server
use 1&1 (1 to 1?) with ads in most every magazine.
cheaper better faster yada yada
software to help do your site
ebiz help for taking ccs etc

i think your first step should be a complete biz plan
then start thinking about websites etc

[oldeanalogueguy]

Originally Posted by TheGreatBeyond

I'm clear how to run the business when it's rolling, I just need it to start rolling. How exactly do I communicate with labels and artists that I'm here, and in business? Press kits? Sorry I didn't make myself clear.

once you have a biz plan
and have identified your target clientele
then you should be able to target them
without guessing and wasting money

why would labels care about you?
what artists? gagabieber or the guys at the local bar band?
your biz plan needs to spell out what benefit you bring so they want to use you.

[wcb123]

Plz don't use 1&1. I'm not arguing for the sake of it but they are rubbish and they try to rip you off further down the line. Although more expensive, mediatemple.com are next level servers. Service is great too. Go Daddy quite good and abit cheaper but still not on par with mt. Very important you get that right if your hosting your own music.



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[joeq]

Originally Posted by TheGreatBeyond

I figure starting a website would be a good place to start, and a server should be my first purchase.

no offense, but somebody says they want to start a studio business and the first thing they want to do is spend a couple grand on something that doesn't make any SOUND, I have to wonder how much of a gearslut ARE you?

the money you spend on a server could buy mics or compressors or speakers or headphones or comfortable chairs or a million other things you will NEED for opening your place to clients.

you can get a web host for less than $10 a month. I think you may be overestimating the traffic a recording studio website will generate.

I'm not going to try and offer recording because there is no reason why I should compete with local million dollar tracking rooms. Right now my room is set up for mixing anyway.

.

Keep in mind, this is just as tough a row to hoe as tracking. All the big-time studios that closed have released their big-time engineers into the Wild, and wouldn't you know it, they too have opened up their own mixing rooms.

The difference between them and you may very well be a Grammy Award or two.

Be prepared to do whatever work will fit in your space, with whoever walks in the door.

If you own one world-class mic, one world class-preamp and treat your room, you actually CAN compete with any room when it comes to a single vocal or guitar overdub. You may discover, for example, that your potential clients want to do relaxed guitar-layering sessions at your place, and want to Mix at the million-dollar studio on their SSL with their house engineer.

Or not, but the point is, don't be too rigid in your thinking of where your business is going to end up coming from.

[The Byre]

To be able to give anybody any advice, I would have to know a great deal more about you. You could start by looking at the business pages on www.audiotalk.org but the general advice to start small and slowly is good.

The bottom end of the market is about one hundred times over-subscribed, so you need to find your USP (unique selling point) NOW! Just being able to record stuff is not a USP.

[oldeanalogueguy]

Originally Posted by The Byre

To be able to give anybody any advice, I would have to know a great deal more about you. You could start by looking at the business pages on www.audiotalk.org but the general advice to start small and slowly is good.

The bottom end of the market is about one hundred times over-subscribed, so you need to find your USP (unique selling point) NOW! Just being able to record stuff is not a USP.

only a hundred ???????

i would have guessed with cheap digital gear making everybody a "pro" trying to compete with cheaper rates if only to pay for gear (just like digital cameras did to pro photogs) that the competition was more than 100x needed work.

[tsvisser]

I think that in the past, "if you build it, they will come" type of business plan worked quite well. The fact of the matter is, that the modern studio is much different. The "dinosaur" capital studios of the past, are slowly dying out, and the ones that do still exist, do so because of various micro-economic reasons, one of those being the engineers that either own or operate out of them. The modern studio landscape is now dominated by the high performance project studio. The engineers have moved from working out of large capital studios to smaller project studios or even multiple project studios.

If you are a top engineer that draws a lot of clients, it's not because of your advertising, the gear you own, or even you knowledge, but because of historical repeat business and reputation (which of course is affected by these mentioned elements over time). Your real clientele that you should keep in mind when building a new studio, are those experienced engineers and producers that you can bring into the studio with their clients.

I say again, the studio is an outreach of the needs of an engineer, to provide a place to work. Look around your neighborhood, if there are already other studios that provide this service / capability, what will differentiate yours from their facilities? Will it be a nicer space, better equipment, lower rates? All of these require an outright expenditure or a reduction in revenue, and you must calculate the ROI and operating ability.

If you don't have any of these assets available, and can't predict a stable operating cash flow, then you should only continue with little or no investment, as that is the only way you can reduce your exposure to sensible levels. This presents you with a "go big or go home" type of scenario, which is unfortunately true with most any new business ventures. Ultimately, I'd recommend that your energy would be better spent becoming a top tier, highly coveted engineer, rather than as a studio owner. You will end up putting yourself into a much more flexible / agile position rather than sinking your effort in putting value into a real estate situation, put it instead into yourself.

[surflounge]

Network at your local music scene with a smile. Be known as a good fellow that cool folks want to hang with. Be very nice and reserved. Don't act a fool. Pay attention to higher skills. Shut up and listen! We've all heard too many loud mouths. Laugh with the hot talent and treat them as regular people. Get lucky and have lunch and meet their families.
You've arrived when you are asked to help work on major demos that involve superstars. Advance to connections along the network. Don't sweat it at home in your little studio. After meeting your destiny you'll know what to do. Go big.

[Louis Bernstone]

Spend 2 grand on an awesome coffee machine!!


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[jimmyboy7]

Originally Posted by tsvisser

Ultimately, I'd recommend that your energy would be better spent becoming a top tier, highly coveted engineer, rather than as a studio owner. You will end up putting yourself into a much more flexible / agile position rather than sinking your effort in putting value into a real estate situation, put it instead into yourself.

If possible, do both simultaneously

This has worked fur me so far, mainly because the big studios in town already have head engineers and only want interns to fetch coffee.

I preferred to invest in equipment and get to work instead if kiss some studio owners ass and get tested like dog. Nevertheless, some people have a great experience as an intern and can learn much from this experience.

[The Byre]

Originally Posted by TheGreatBeyond

I'm clear how to run the business when it's rolling, I just need it to start rolling. How exactly do I communicate with labels and artists that I'm here, and in business? Press kits? Sorry I didn't make myself clear.

Basically, you have to tell everybody and their mothers-in-law!

That means -

1. Having a pukka website. Never mind all the YouSpace MyTube BS, you need a website that acts as you very own on-line brochure.

2. Having simple A4 or A5 flyers and getting them out to bands and agents and managers and everybody in between.

3. Compiling lists of all the above and doing mail-shots and email shots.

4. Be a have-box-will-travel guy (your own portable DAW and know how to use it to ninja level Deathcom 5) and tell studios and anybody else that is out there and still breathing, that you are available. i.e. be the go-to guy for a brilliant engineer who can bar-beat edit on the fly and solve all their problems and pull the hot chestnuts out of the fire!

Getting the ball rolling reminds me of what Hilaire Belloc said of the ketchup bottle -

"Oh beware the ketchup bottle.
First nothing comes and then a lot'll!"