The music industry’s traditional model is falling apart. Revenues have been sliding downward for years now and many bands (along with the industry powerhouses) have chosen to fight the trend to “on demand” or “music by track” choice rather than embrace it.

So with all this going on, and most bands crying the blues (no pun intended :-)) — how did a jazzy improv/Grateful Dead sounding band from Boulder Colorado pull in $14.5 million last year?

What you learn from their success can help you blend on-line and off-line channels in your small business for incredible growth.

They did it through a solid Click-and-Mortar approach. Driving off-line consumers online to make purchases, and allowing online consumers to become fans of the band without ever seeing them in person.

The band has been touring nonstop for 11 years. The devoted following that they’ve developed have definitely contributed to this outstanding annual cash flow. But the money only really started rolling in during the last four years when they implemented their Click-and-Mortar growth strategy.

From 1999 to 2004, when the rest of the music industry suffered steep declines in revenues, String Cheese Incident watched their annual revenue rise from just about $2 million per year — to 14.5 million! Not bad for five guys who love what they do and play relatively small venues.

Client-Centric Service with Click-and-Mortar touch

String Cheese Incident recently battled Ticketmaster in a lawsuit and gained the right to sell tickets to their own shows on their web site. This further reinforced or credibility with fans and gained them more loyalty with their followers by offering tickets for their shows at 10% below Ticketmaster rates. With 50% of their revenue coming from their tour dates, this has had a huge impact on their bottom-line.

They also borrowed a page from the playbook of the Grateful Dead in the arena of recordings. Where most bands jealously guard every single note that emanates from their amplifiers, String Cheese Incident took the Grateful Dead policy of permitted taping of live performances to a whole new level. Just recently the band started selling downloads of its live concerts through a dedicated web site (sciontheroad.com) for about $10 per show.

Click-and-Mortar marketing at its best

Anyone it’s ever been to a concert before the knows that the big bucks lie in the merchandise and CDs for sale at the venue. But how many concertgoers don’t have the cash in-hand, or desire to fight the crowd to wait in line? By driving their off-line fans to their web site they’ve racked up some pretty impressive numbers.

CD sales rack up $2.9 million per year. Merchandising and ticket sales another $2.9 million per year. That’s another $5.8 million that most smaller bands never see.

And String Cheese Incident is not content with the traditional profit centers associated with bands either. They’ve taken Click-and-Mortar growth to a whole new level.

Recently they saw an unmet need in the marketplace and set up a travel agency with a partner that helps fans plan trips for SCI and 20 other bands on the road. That little “side business” is good for another $1.45 million per year — all of which is done online!

If a “Grateful Dead style” band whose fans thrive on live experiential concerts can use the Click-and-Mortar approach to create a 725% increase in gross revenues, what could you do with your small business?

Coaching Corner:

• How could you expand, extend, or multiply the benefits that your off-line clients experience by bringing them online?
• How could you make your clients lives easier (thereby increasing your goodwill with them and creating raving fans) through online ordering, scheduling, or organization?
• Primarily off-line right now … what products/services could you offer online that would complement your off-line products/services?
• Primarily on-line right now … what physical product/service could you off your clients (either yourself or through a strategic partner) that would add incredible value and lock your clients in for life?

When you take the time to develop a solid Click-and-Mortar growth strategy for your small business, you’ll be able to dominate your market niche no matter how badly your competition is floundering around.

Just remember String Cheese Incident’s 725% in revenues occurred at a time when arrested the industry was getting crushed. If they can do it, you can do it too!

For more information on String Cheese Incident, you can visit their site stringcheeseincident.com, or read David Kushner’s article in this months Fortune Small Business.

John-Paul Micek
Click-and-Mortar Coach
Business Owners Coaching Club
http:/www.AdvancedBusinessBlogging.com