If you enjoy music, have a good sense of business, and have a degree in music merchandising, you’ll have various employment prospects in the promotion of musicians, music, and instruments.
Music merchandisers manage the business aspect of music and are frequently employed by record labels, talent agencies, or public relations businesses.
This covers promoting musicians, providing music-related merchandise, or developing clever marketing schemes.
This article provides all available information on music merchandisers including the job description, duties, and requirements.
Music Merchandiser: Requirements
A college education, typically a bachelor’s degree, is required to become a music merchandiser because it entails sales and marketing.
Numerous colleges offer certificate, associate, and bachelor’s degree programs in music merchandising or allow students to specialize in music merchandising as part of their music studies.
Students majoring in music merchandising are typically expected to complete the same courses as music majors do, such as music theory, composition, and teaching.
They must also enroll in relevant business-related classes, such as economics, music law, communications, marketing, and accounting.
A professional office internship that provides students with real-world experience and academic credit is often the project for several degree programs.
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Music Merchandiser: Career Opportunities
Most music merchandisers begin their careers as independent graphic designers, handling every aspect of production themselves, including designing, screen printing, and developing web shops for customers.
A music merchandiser may also decide to start licensing designs from other artists, outsource production to a different manufacturer, or maintain everything in-house.
Music merchandisers can find professionals producing and repairing instruments, recording equipment, and accessories depending on your field of education and knowledge of musical instruments.
Some of the most common jobs in music merchandising include:
1. Music Merchandiser
Jobs in this profession are typically found in the retail marketing divisions of businesses involved in the music industry, such as record labels and brick-and-mortar or online retailers.
As a music merchandiser, your responsibilities can include maintaining product inventory, placing products in storefronts and online, coming up with fresh marketing ideas, helping with product development, and writing precise product descriptions.
You can also be involved in monitoring product sales, addressing retail rivalry, and helping with social media marketing if you run an online retail business.
Market research analyst/marketing specialist and merchandise displayer are two positions specifically in this industry.
2. Music Manager
Keeping tabs on musician budgets, managing transactions, and contractual obligations, negotiating contracts, and maintaining artist money are all duties in this profession.
Music managers are in charge of locating viable venues, creating a tour plan, and keeping the artist relevant to the public.
Your job may also involve reserving recording time, spotting new talent, and keeping an eye out for methods to keep an artist popular.
3. Music Publisher
If you want to work in this industry, you might need to be familiar with the copyright regulations required to guarantee that your artists are paid royalties.
You’ll be in charge of identifying prospective hit tunes, licensing procedures, and monitoring the use of licensed music.
Editing licensed sheet music, helping to create music software, and editing music magazines are all duties of a music publisher.
4. Music Promoter
The Bureau of Labour Statistics classifies music promoters as agents and business managers of sports, entertainers, and artists, and they have the same educational qualifications as music managers.
This profession extends to radio and concert venues. You’ll have the responsibility of raising money to manage and put on a show as a music promoter.
You will be expected to plan advertising campaigns, manage start-up funding, manage talent, increase ticket sales, and draw talent to venues.
If you work with radio formats, you can be asked to create hype among the public and the press in advance of significant music releases.
Music Merchandiser: Job Description
The music merchandiser is a jack-of-all-trades graphic designer and business owner who creates designs for recording artists, uses these designs on a range of products, from T-shirts to toothbrushes, and supervises product manufacturing.
Music merchandisers use their understanding of the music industry to promote the sales of musical performers and their products.
They also promote the sales of instruments, sheet music, and musical equipment, with potential careers in talent agencies, management businesses, record labels, and public relations offices.
Distribution of goods to particular regions may also fall within the job description of music merchandisers that only deal with musical goods.
Larger towns with a reputation for having a robust entertainment sector, like Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, or Miami, have a higher availability of music merchandiser jobs.
Music Merchandiser: Duties
Music merchandisers who regularly create top-notch, fashionable artwork and produce high-quality goods eventually get a sizable clientele of corporate divisions, celebrities, top-level managers, and business leaders.
Music merchandisers handle all aspects of an artist’s merchandising requirements, including selling the products directly to customers in their web storefronts, which was previously done by record labels.
Some music merchandisers provide touring services, sending out merchandise road managers to follow up on sales and inventory while musicians are on the road.
For the musicians, they deal with or the goods they are advertising, a music merchandiser may create and carry out a marketing strategy.
Music merchandisers may prepare promotional performances and events, set up displays at locations, or both as part of these activities.
Reading periodicals from the music industry may be a regular task to stay up to date on developments that could affect clients.
Music Merchandiser: Career and Salary Information
Many music merchandisers hold bachelor’s degrees in which business and music-related courses were taken.
Associate’s degrees, certificate programs, internships, and work experience are important to be a music merchandiser.
As of May 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics stated that the median annual income for all categories of advertising and promotions managers including music merchandisers was $133,460.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs in promotion and advertising management, which include jobs in music merchandising, are predicted to decline at a rate of 1% from 2019 to 2029.
So, over the 2019–2029 decade, it is expected that occupations in promotion and advertising management, especially music merchandisers, will decrease.
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Music Merchandiser: Finding Work
On generic job listing websites like Indeed, Monster, and Glassdoor, you can find employment openings for current music merchandising businesses.
However, many aspiring merchandisers begin by designing and producing their products in home studios, then they approach recording artists and their managers at events to build their initial clientele.
Graphic designers with some experience in marketing, manufacturing, sales, and licensing typically work as music merchandisers.
Although, they will need to be well-versed in pop culture, graphic design, and music trends to produce powerful graphics.
They must be chameleons of fashion, able to recognize the specific graphic cultures connected with various musical genres and imitate them while producing original and distinctive designs.
Active listening and effective communication skills are a need because many designs are generated collectively and some come with direct specifications from the clients directly.
Music Merchandiser: Work Life
Independent music merchandisers blend their creative process with a day job and work flexible hours.
But the proprietors or staff of well-known music merchandise companies are more likely to work regular business hours from an office or studio.
The job position occasionally includes accompanying artists on tour and overseeing their apparel sales.
FAQ
What skills do you need to be a Merchandiser?
- Commercial awareness.
- Confidence.
- Able to cope with pressure.
- Teamworking skills.
- Communication skills.
- Interpersonal skills.
- Leadership skills.
- Strong numerical and analytical skills.
What is the job title of a Merchandiser?
A merchandiser, often known as a retail merchandiser, manages the stock levels and product displays in a store. Their primary responsibilities include sending in warehouse inventory reports, removing any undesired items from displays, and keeping an eye on how well products are selling.
What are the three main functions of merchandising?
Purchasing, selling, standardizing and grading, storing, transporting, and conducting marketing research are some of the duties of merchandisers. Developing a working relationship with the manufacturers who will supply the products or services that the merchant will ultimately sell is the first crucial stage or requirement in merchandising.
What is a good objective for a merchandising resume?
Highlighting your specific soft talents and history in retail and merchandising is an excellent objective for a merchandising resume. A strong resume goal for merchandising gives potential employers a look at your prior experience, a list of all your skills, and an idea of the kinds of assignments you can handle.
How big is the music merchandise industry?
According to a recent report from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), music retail sales in the United States increased by 27% to $7.1 billion in the first half of 2021 from $5.6 billion the previous year.
How many types of merchandisers are there?
The top five merchandising categories are omnichannel, product, retail, visual, and digital. Despite being divided into five groups, they are mainly connected.
What are the 5 merchandising activities?
Personal selling, sale promotion, marketing tactics, making coupons, and discounts are examples of merchandising practices. In a broader sense, merchandising may refer to in- or in-store advertising that doesn’t include human selling and is intended to encourage consumers to make purchases.
What are the 4 P’s of merchandising?
Product, Placement, Pricing, and Promotion
Who is the biggest consumer of music?
The largest music industry in the world is found in the United States of America.
Who invented merchandise for singers?
Its beginnings are unclear, however, it is believed that the young “bobby-soxers” of the 1940s inspired its development by proudly displaying the names of their favorite bands scrawled over their clothing.
Conclusion
Most music merchandisers have bachelor’s degrees, and some with a background in sales and marketing have an advantage over others.
There are also entry-level 1-year and 2-year programs in music merchandising, followed by an internship.
Promoting artists and goods is what music merchandisers do, working on the business side of the music industry.
For job opportunities, music merchandisers can visit cities with thriving music businesses such as Los Angeles, New York, and Nashville.
