Chris's class week 5

Music In The Freelance World:

- Benefits of starting your own business
- Risks in starting your own business
- Getting started (research, idea, name)
- Online CV

Entrepreneurship benefits:


• Earn more money. Self-employed people generate their own income and profits.

• Freedom to do projects that you enjoy, movie in different directions and take new approaches.

• Use a particular talent such as a technical aptitude or creative skill.

• Be your own boss.

• Chose your hours of work.

• Take charge of your own future. Working for someone else makes you vulnerable to redundancy, closures or mergers.

• Work from home or operate out of your own separate premises or move round different locations as a contractor.

• Free yourself from the stresses of the conventional workplace – office politics, targets, meetings and constant demands.

• Live off your wits and your own efforts rather than depending on an employer.

• Receive extra tax benefits.


Entrepreneurship benefits:

• You cannot guarantee a large salary or income of any kind! Competition, economic fluctuations, and changing tastes can all affect this.

• When you start out, you may not be making much money or it might not be arriving at a predictable rate.

• You must earn enough to live, so you might need to support yourself in another way while seeing your idea take off.

• Working on your own means you are responsible for the day-to-day running of the business. This may mean doing tasks that you dislike.

• You need a product for which there is a demand. This might depend on having a certain image, technique or product.

• To obtain tax benefits, you usually need to pay out money first. You’ll also have to make your own pension and health insurance arrangements. The buck stops with you! Taking an unwise decision could dent your income.

• Expanding to rapidly or conversely not being quick to seize a chance might be detrimental.

• Your customers and clients will often dictate your hours. You have to respond to their needs or forfeit money and good will.

• Working from home is most effective when you have the space and facilities to do so. If you work out of other premises, you will have to pay rent and other overheads.

• It’s impossible to escape some pressure, especially the kind coming from clients and customers.

• By not being employed you are potentially losing a range of benefits and a support infrastructure, such as computer help.

• Setbacks may impact on your confidence and profits. Be realistic, learn from

Starting your own music business plan

• Overview: information about the sector (s) in which you will be operating, showing an understanding of the market and of the competition.

• Product: what are you offering? What differentiates it from similar items? What unique factors can you bring to the end result?

• Objectives: What qualities and quantities targets do you have in mind?

• Marketing plan: demonstrate that you know your customer base, that you have identified a niche for yourself and you have a clear idea o how to move forward and corner a share of the market in the immediate, medium term and longer term future. You should describe a well-rounded strategy for promoting your business using an appropriate range of methods and media.