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Archive for the ‘Property Marketing’ Category

I have to agree. I’m just switched majors from Literature/Writing to physics/biology in part because I was questioning whether I wanted to be a “professional artist.”

I think the internet is giving rise to a new Renaissance, where artists are once again connected with the audience, and create for the love of art, or for ambition, as opposed to cranking out one mediocre novel after the next so the publisher gets off my ass.

If Chaucer had a day job, and the time to write one of the most ambitious pieces of poetry in the English language, if Cervantes had a day job, and the same for most of the greatest poets and writers… what’s our excuse?

And with sites like “bandcamp”, many artists are returning to the donation system (get it for free, pay as much as you like, if you like). And the file format is lossless so sound quality is no excuse either.

I am still on my journey to becoming a writer (haven’t dropped my creative writing program), but when the day comes that I feel I have something worth publishing… I still haven’t decided if I will go the publisher way. I’d most likely offer the ebook as “pay if you want, and send it to your friends”, and a self-published hard copy aside.

Self publishing will never bring the sales that a publisher can. But e-books are still a nascent resource, and many authors are getting positive results. Plus, one has 100% control over one’s product.

Considering the copyright laws exist because Queen Anne was petitioned by publishers who had nothing to publish; a few publishers owned the publishing rights to the books and no one else could publish anything worthwhile; the turnaround to giving the few major corporations the right to own movies, books and music for eternity (or close to it if the copyright is renewed) is strange. If I design and build a chair (or any other product) why can’t I refuse to allow anyone but the buyer to sit in it and why can’t I refuse to allow anyone to look at it to see how it is made? Why must I work for a living while others live off work that may have taken them a few days? I am sick of the greed of the corporations that own the works of artists. They should have no right to hold publishing rights beyond a very limited time! The copyright should be in the hands of the artist and be limited to the time that pays for the effort and offers a reasonable profit.

Eighteenth century composer Georg Philipp Telemann, for instance, is the most prolific composer in history. A lawyer by training (oh, the irony) he was simultaneously a public servant, a publisher, a concert promoter, a conductor, and a performer, and wrote some 8000 opi. There was no copyright law to protect his works. Likewise, Vivaldi composed over 500 concerti, 43 operas, published 100 opi. Handel (who also started law school) staged 50 of his operas and 23 oratorios. Beethoven produced 849 opi (eight concerti and nine symphonies). Mozart and Bach we incredibly creative and prolific too.

Barbosa suggests that it was the total lack of any copyright protection that made these famous names such workaholics; they had to slave away at their staves simply to keep ahead of the competition. However, by the twentieth century, long after copyright laws had been laid down, the likes of Gershwin and Bernstein received amazing plaudits, awards, and no little reward for much more modest levels of musical output.

Gershwin wrote a mere 19 classical pieces, 35 Broadway shows and contributed to 22 other plays, and seven films, while Bernstein wrote just three symphonies, two operas and five musicals. All amazing stuff, but not the hundreds or thousands of their classical predecessors.

It seems that copyright laws, while protecting vested interests have simply stifled creativity. Looking at the statistics for modern composers Bernstein, Gershwin, and their contemporaries and comparing them with those of just one Telemann or Vivaldi suggests that the public has been massively deprived of the full potential of such composers. A lack of copyright protection may have seen Bernstein et al working even harder and producing an even greater musical legacy.

“The example of the 18th century composers who thrived both in cultural and market terms sheds some doubt on the dogma that without effective copyright the output of symbolic goods would diminish on a significant level,” concludes Barbosa. He suggests that a system that sidesteps intellectual property rights and copyright [Creative Commons, Copyleft, Open Source, for instance] could be more conducive to high levels of creativity.

Of course, such a suggestion would remove the members of the RIAA and MPAA from the equation, leaving the artists and creators with a direct connection to their listening and watching public. Perish the thought that artists might be able to talk direct to their public with no intermediaries to cream off a percentage.

Without copyright protection creative types would not create. That, apparently, is one of the defenses put forward by the likes of the RIAA and the MPAA. These organizations chase after file sharers and attempt to gain millions of dollars of recompense each year from people who swap music and movie torrents. But isn’t this defense simply justification for a whole new industry that could outgrow the music and movie industries themselves?

It’s fairly well documented that many recording artists in the past were offered draconian record company contracts and received little compensation for their creativity compared with the company profit lines. There’s also the almost forgotten fact that decades of music charts were hyped as company A&R staff bought up their label’s records to boost chart placements. There’s also the pricing concept associated with a manufactured music disk and accompanying liner notes and the virtual download version of an “album” and how that somehow should cost the same instore and online.

Brazilian musician Denis Borges Barbosa who recently published a critique of the state of copyright in the world of music, also points out that the prime defense of copyright protecting creativity is a fallacy. In his critique he suggests that we take a look at the plight of composer-musicians stretching back to the Baroque period to see just how ludicrous a claim that is.

Intellectual Property is, unlike most people think, a problem to be solved also in the marketing department. It is part of the company strategic plans concerning the general management.

Intellectual Property should not be understood only from the juridical point of view but also from the marketing approach, furthermore, it may be a marketing strategy, can become a matter of competitor’s fight, a question of attracting and retaining the consumer. The competent and adequate execution is the problem that really concerns the Juridical Department.

However once the Marketing is open to listen to the Juridical advice and smart enough to execute it, and if the Juridical, by its turn, respect Marketing reasons, learning to be also a seller, turning both into only one team, then, they can together win the competition war.

Of course, this paragraph may sound simplistic or radical.

However it is the truth without censure or disguise.

More and more the link between Marketing and Juridical is being established; the partnership between “marketers” and lawyers are to result successfully in the market. When we talk about trademarks, patents, public image rights, competition, CONAR and many other subjects that marketing and Juridical have something in common, we become more like United States.

The other day, a high executive of a big American multinational company told me that an executive is considered good not only by what he can do but also by his awareness of what he cannot do. There dwells all juridical impasses of legislations, jurisprudence and regulations, which we are to face more and more in contemporary marketing.

An important multinational I got to know, have a rubber stamp for the approval of trademarks usage, which holds the following signatures: President, Marketing Vice-President, Marketing Director, Products Manager, Corporative Communication Manager and Market Relationship Manager.

It means, who should first approve a trademark is the top executive, because in it is all the company’s strategy. The marketing team because it has to please the consumer. The lawyers, because it must be adequately protected by the Law. Finally, the Market Relationship team because the trademark is the company’s face.

So if within you company, Marketing fights Juridical, be careful, the victim can be sales results and profits.

Time of change and a lot of movement, long ago, but much to not write on the blog, but the change of country, culture, work, new steps I took from one side to another. addition to that probably from next year, this Blog suffer many positive changes and to have your own domain, but these are my surprises for 2011.

If you recall, some time ago I started developing a small personal guide on “Ways to Buy and Sell Real Estate” where I had stayed in the figure of trust and I needed to continue with one of the forms which is usually called “From the Well” So today I continue with this methodology and as always I welcome your input and comments until we get to have a GUIDE FINAL.

Operation of the sale “From the Well”

Objective: To sell part of the building before it.

How it works

Acquisition of property, since before its construction, benefiting both parties. The construction company that raises capital quickly, avoiding paperwork with banks or financial institutions and the investor gets a property price at a lower cost than a pre-sale or sale and the possibility of interesting utilities.

Benefit to the investor:

* Ability to save 2 to 3 years, the potential gain is obtained from the sale
* Win the entry by paying less than the final value.

Profit for the construction company:

* Immediate liquidity
* Avoid dealing with banks or entities seeking capital
* Less paperwork
* Help to finish the work within the estimated time

Important:

* It is more profitable in neighborhoods or areas that are under development. Participate only in well-structured projects where development is reliable.
* In some cases there are clauses that allow the sale until a period of total construction is completed. (For resale at higher prices and avoid internal competition)

Potential gain range: Between 20% / 30%, has been seen up to 50% Read the rest of this entry »