Poll: How would YOU market Clay's new single?

[LadyC]

There has been a lot of discussion here on the board about how Team Clay should market the first single from ATDW, Without You.

And we have some truly creative and bright Maniacs here, folks!  So chime in and share your creative ideas.  For the purpose of this poll, YOU can be in charge of Team Clay ...

 

Sorry ... had a BLPT moment.  You know, the whole thought of being in charge of Clay ... and ...    ...

Well ...

You get the idea.

 

So jump in already!!!  The water's warm.   

[clayMaine-iac]

Kris, I just had to vote for Adult Contemporary Radio!!

This is where I think Clay could really shine.  I have felt this way since the very beginning.  Clay has done absolutely, amazingly well without radio in the past, but I honestly believe he does have a niche here.

I hope that Team Clay does a really, really big push of his songs to radio this time around.

I don't think Clay NEEDS radio to be successful.  He has already proven that he is a sales giant without it.  I just would like to see radio finally embrace him to give him even more credibility in the industry.

[mrs. c.]

I vote Talk Show and TV circuit!!!  Firstly selfish reasons, I'd get to stay up late and drool , secondly, Clay's personality is so much of his appeal, hearing him interviewed and then singing is a double whammy for new mass appeal!!!

[Pamela]

I voted for A/C radio too, but for a different reason.

I love seeing Clay on TV, but it's just over too soon, you know?

The reason for radio play is that people will hear the music for weeks and months, hopefully every day. Hopefully, several times a day!

It would help add a longevity factor to sales, it would bring new fans, and, it would hopefully insure more TV appearances down the road.



Great poll Kris!

[wvclayfan]

I need a none, or combination, of the above choice.

[HavinaClayAffair]

I need a none, or combination, of the above choice.

Lindsay,

Somehow I don't see the best marketing strategy for Clay as singing to YOU , personally, in your living room- as benefiting his career.

I assume that is why "None" would be a choice for you?

I actually chose TV Land...where he was first Discovered and Recognized by the masses BUT I do believe that along with that they need marketing on the AC Radio stations.

I wish the album had been a bit more Popish...more mainstream..but again, I believe this is where Clay will be the most successful for at least, this album.

Lora

[playingclay]

I said A/C radio too.

My reason is that, by the looks of things, they are going to do the talk show route anyhow which is great by me. That will get things off to a nice start.

But I agree with Pam, they got to work to make sure he gets radio play and he gets a few successful singles off this CD.  Kelly is still getting radio play from her Cd and it has been out for almost two years.  Her single was out quite a bit before the CD, so far that hasn't happened with Clay.

I DON'T want a big Sept. push and then, well, that's it.  His fans bought the CD.

[Claygirl]

I voted for AC/Radio, I would love for Clay to get radio air-play for a change, more people would hear his music, and if it's played enough, maybe Pop radio would start playing it, then he'd make a video for it, have a lot of single sales and promote it on all the TV shows!   

[Prissy]

These may be some  questions, but that's never stopped me before!!

!. Why have a single at all?  Why not just have the album come out?

2. Will this single be available to the public or just to radio and media?  Wasn't "I Will Carry You" a single and not for sale?

Most places around me that sell CD's do not carry singles.  That's what I discovered when I asked about Katharine McPhee's single.

  Prissy

[ACcountryFan]

I VOTED FOR AC RADIO BECAUSE AS PAMELA POINTED OUT, TOO, AIRPLAY IS SUPPOSE TO LAST FOR WEEKS AND MONTHS AND IS THE BEST PROMOTION ANY ARTIST CAN HAVE. TV APPEARANCES ENHANCE AN ARTIST's PROFILE IN MY OPINION, AS DO MUSIC VIDEO's SINCE IT's ALL A VISUAL THING. WITH AIRPLAY AND IF HIS PEOPLE DO THEIR JOB, CLAY's SONG OUGHTA BE PLAYED AS MUCH AS EVERYONE ELSE's ON AC RADIO WHO ARE SELLING CD's. WHEN LOOKING AT THE CHART BOOKS I HAVE IN VARIOUS FORMATS, THE MOST USUAL CHART RUN IS 13 WEEKS...THAT'S LIKE 3 MONTHS! IN AC RADIO, A LOW-KEY FORMAT, SONGS CAN STAY ON THE CHARTS FOR HALF A YEAR AND EVEN LONGER IF RADIO CONTINUES TO PLAY IT. I THINK MARKETING ON AC RADIO, ESPECIALLY, SINCE HIS VOICE SUITS THAT FORMAT, IS THE WAY TO GO AND A TV APPEARANCE SHOULD BE LOOKED UPON AS A BONUS.

PRISSY: A SINGLE AS WE ALL KNOW IS SUPPOSE TO PROMOTE AN UPCOMING CD. YEARS AGO DURING THE VINYL ERA PEOPLE BOUGHT SINGLES BECAUSE THEY WERE CHEAPER THAN THE FULL-ALBUM AND BECAUSE RADIO LISTENERS WANTED JUST THAT ONE SONG AND NOT A WHOLE ALBUM BY THE SAME ARTIST. THEN WHEN BUYERS STARTED INVESTING IN ENTIRE ALBUMS, NOT JUST A COMMERCIAL SINGLE, IT REDUCED A SINGLE's IMPORTANCE AND SO NOW IT'S VERY RARE TO HAVE AN ACTUAL COMMERCIAL SINGLE OUT. "I WILL CARRY YOU" WAS A RADIO SINGLE, NOT A COMMERCIAL ONE WHERE CONSUMERS COULD BUY IT BY ITSELF INSTEAD OF THE ENTIRE MOAM CD. ALSO, IF LABELS RELEASE A COMMERCIAL SINGLE NOW-A-DAYS EVERYTIME THEY ISSUE A SONG TO RADIO, IT COMPETES WITH THE SALES OF AN ENTIRE CD OF SONGS...AND WITH LABELS and SONGWRITERS, OF COURSE, WANTING THEIR SONGS HEARD, THERE'S NO EFFORT TO BRING BACK THE COMMERCIAL SINGLE ERA WHERE ONLY 2 SONGS WERE OFFERED, THE A AND B SIDE.

RADIO SINGLES ARE DESIGNED TO PROMOTE THE ENTIRE CD SINCE THERE IS NO COMMERCIAL SINGLE TO BUY. HOWEVER, IF AN ARTIST IS POPULAR BUT DOESN'T HAVE AIRPLAY OR SUPPORT FROM RADIO, A COMMERCIAL SINGLE IN MY OPINION IS A MUST SIMPLY FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES OUT IN STORES. AN ARTIST SHOULD ONLY GO THE TV AND MUSIC VIDEO ROUTE IF THEIR SONGS AREN'T BEING PLAYED...A LOT OF POPULAR OLDER ARTISTS MAKE A PROFIT AND DO WELL WITH TV ADVERTISED ALBUMS BECAUSE THEIR AUDIENCE WATCHES MORE TV THAN LISTEN TO THE RADIO. BECAUSE TV AND RADIO GO HAND IN HAND DOESN'T MEAN THEY DON'T COMPETE WITH ONE ANOTHER FOR A PERSON's ATTENTION.

I AM HOPING THAT THE SINGLE "WITHOUT YOU" IS COMMERCIALLY RELEASED BECAUSE I WANT HIM ON THE AC RADIO AIRPLAY CHARTS WITH THE SONG and ON THE SINGLE SALES CHARTS WITH THE COMMERCIALLY RELEASED SONG, TOO, SHOULD THERE BE ONE ISSUED COMMERCIALLY.

[Prissy]

AC,

Thanks for your reply.  I do remember the 45 singles and I had a lot of them in the 50's and 60's.  This makes sense that the single getting airplay may excite people to want to buy the whole album.  If it is for sale to the public, I just hope I can find a store that sells singles!!!

Prissy

[ACcountryFan]

AC,

Thanks for your reply.  I do remember the 45 singles and I had a lot of them in the 50's and 60's.  This makes sense that the single getting airplay may excite people to want to buy the whole album.  If it is for sale to the public, I just hope I can find a store that sells singles!!!

Prissy

Hello Prissy!! I don't know how all Wal*Mart's are layed out but at the one i shop in, they sell singles. They are located near the TV monitor where a person can put on headphones and stick a CD's barcode under a scanner and it will play snippets of songs from the CD. They also have DVDs of singers in that area, too! At our Wal*Mart it says "Singles: A-Z". There's not a whole lot of singles out there but our local Super Wal*Mart sells what's been made available.

[spacekmam54]

I think I would like a poll that would let us choose more than one reply and maybe rate the responses in order of what we think is most important. Good marketing requires a muti-faceted approach

[Tessie]

I haven't had a chance to read the rest of the posts.  I debated between AC radio and TV talk circuit and ended up voting for TV.  In actuality, I would vote for both if I were able to.  I chose TV because to me a great deal of Clay's charm is his personality.  To get the full impact of Clay, one has to see him, hear his quick combacks, see how his eyes light up with laughter, hear that delightful giggle, and experience the thoughtful intelligence with which he answers questions as well as hear him sing.  One has to hear the words from his mouth, not taken out of context.  One has to see him sing and hear him sing and not just go by what the critics say.  To me, TV is the best way for millions and millions of people to experience the specialness of Clay.

That being said, however, I thought about all the people who don't get a chance to watch daytime TV or who go to bed earlier than the late night shows.  I thought about all the people who have the radio tuned in as background to their days...at work, or in the car.  I thought about how the voice would grab the attention as people heard something special and wondered "Who Is THAT?".  I thought about all the people who would be reached in this way in their usual busy days.

So, although I voted for TV for the reasons stated above, I would love to vote for radio too.  Hopefully, there will be lots of both types of promotion.

[wisconsinmaniac]

It is my opinion that to be noticed by a new fan base and to have his CD achieve "longevity", the answer would have to be AC Radio play being the priority in marketing! 

Being on TV is a "given" (I hope) because to see him sing is priceless~ and he is an extremely popular guest on most of the talk/entertainment shows.  But as others have pointed out, those appearances are "just once" and there are millions of potential fans who are not watching TV during the day or late at night, yet may be listening to the radio day in and day out!

Also, there are advantages to a having a music video of a single!  But that would not be the #1 marketing tool. Just think of how many times Clay has been introduced or mentioned, etc., with his "Invisible" video as the identifying piece of footage!  And, like it or not, the MTV/TRL viewers represent a huge market and videos are a very popular commodity.   

I think at this time, ballads have gotten more marketable in the music industry.  Think of James Blunt, John Mayer, etc.  I believe that James Blunt won at the recent Video Music Awards with his ballad. "Beautiful". 

SO - here's hoping RCA and Team Clay will be touching all bases !