Amazon CreateSpace – testing, testing
In preparation for potentially self releasing Silent Terror when it is finished, later this year hopefully, I have begun road testing some of the new distribution channels that are opening up. One such new channel is CreateSpace, run by Amazon. Through CreateSpace you can release and sell your film, music or book via Amazon.com, as either a hard copy or digital download. You provide Amazon with the masters of all files and artwork and within a few weeks (supposedly) up it goes. There are two main benefits of this service. Firstly, you get access to Amazon’s huge user base, who have total confidence in ordering from the site. Secondly, as and when orders come in Amazon are responsible for fulfilling them, producing the DVD, CD or book and sending it off. This reduces the burden on the self-publishing artist and you don’t have to worry about storing stock, although you will obviously take a reduced cut. Every week a sales report comes in and you can monitor progress. Your job is then to market the product far and wide and get it sold!
I didn’t have a film that I wanted to release through the service, so I thought I would test it out with some music. In 2001 I taught myself to use some computer music creation packages, with the aim of making music for my films. I ended up getting side-tracked and produced a whole album’s worth of obscure material! I named the group “The Mothers of Madness Men” and the album was entitled “Let’s Have Some Fun.” The music is just that, fun. It’s certainly not serious and it is a playful album of varying genres, from classical to pop to dance, all with a unique soul and beat and comedic lyrics. After sitting on my computer for nine years, I thought now was the time to unleash it onto the World.
The process has been pretty straightforward getting it online, but it has taken a little longer than I would have expected. It was quick enough to provide all of the information online, although I went for a digital only release, being green and all that. If you want a hard copy release then you have to send CreateSpace some materials in the post, so there is a bit more worked involved, but not a lot. You then just have to wait for them to check, approve and put it online. This is where a little patience is required. Once you get the ball rolling you really want to see your product online the next day, not two months later! Admittedly, there were some unique problems for this product. It was held up when Amazon thought the files were incorrect as the music was playing too fast, with the lead singer all squeaky. I then had to inform them that the music was supposed to sound like that! This probably accounted for some of the delay, but it is difficult to say how much. The uncertain nature of when it will go online does hinder a targeted release as you are left just waiting and hoping. You don’t want to submit it too late and miss the release target, but if you plan ahead and submit early it could be released too soon. I will make a suggestion to them that when initially submitting you have the opportunity to stipulate a go live date.
Anyway, the first part of the test is now complete. From here I will monitor how the sales process works in practice, although I won’t be spending any real time on the marketing as I have a film to concentrate on, so I don’t anticipate the sales flying. For Silent Terror the story will be very different. When the film is released, the intense work on the marketing begins. Well, actually, it begins well before then, but that’s another story.
Download the Mother’s of Madness Men album, Let’s Have Some Fun, from Amazon.com now! It’s only $5.99 and all proceeds will be invested into my filmmaking, so what are you waiting for?
