The RARE Online - Rock & Roll Music Community
Wal-Mart exclusive albums
Why do you think that an artist would choose to put out a Wal-mart exclusive album? I'm sure that Wal-Mart offers a pretty good financial incentive. Even still, I do think that it limits the customers that will buy the album. Maybe its just me, but I have been personally boycotting Wal-Mart for a few years, and don't plan on ever shopping there again.
I guess I will never get the new ACDC album or Eagles album.
I've also read that the new Aerosmith album could be Wal-mart exclusive.
I guess I will never get the new ACDC album or Eagles album.
I've also read that the new Aerosmith album could be Wal-mart exclusive.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Tara Priest on -
There's a few reasons why I don't shop at Wal-Mart. Mostly because of how terrible the workers conditions are over seas, and how awful the family that owns the company is in general.
The family that owns Wal-Mart donated a whopping $1,000 dollars to Hurricane Katrina Victims. $1,000?!?! THEY ARE BILLIONAIRES!!! They are wealthy enough to have their own underground hide out in case of nuclear fall out!
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Permalink Reply by Allan Hayslip on -
It's purely a numbers game. According to this site, 138 million people shop at Wal-Mart EVERY WEEK. So even if only 0.01% of those people see my obscure record, that's 1380 exposures EVERY WEEK. And if only 1% of those exposed to it actually buy the record, that's still 13.8 sold EVERY WEEK, or 717 records a year.
Obviously the percentages are much higher for well-established names like AC/DC or the Eagles, who can & will leverage that "brand-recognition" with WalMart's own marketing muscle--WalMart gets people into the store with irresistibly cheap products made by slave/child labor--half the battle (getting people's asses off their couch and into the store) is already done..after that they just have to point people towards products they may already want.
Moreover, the demographics 138 million weekly WalMart shoppers, in some cases, may be people that would normally be cost-prohibitive for the bands/labels to reach. Big bands and their labels take you and me, as WalMart boycotters, for granted. They trust that as a fan you'll figure out a way to get the record even if you're not a WalMart shopper. Because, lets face it, for every you or me who doesn't shop at WalMart there are 4 single moms who must have the cheapest prices on diapers, 2 families with a bread-winner deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan, and 3 seniors on a fixed income. Those people, for reasons of economics and convenience, aren't likely to buy anything that ISN'T sold at WalMart...they're not gonna make another trip to another store.
WalMart doesn't even have to offer "good financial incentives" over and above their biggest incentive: a locked-in market of millions and millions of people who are already there to "save" (and spend) money.
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Permalink Reply by Kate on -
Allan hit the nail on the head. VOLUME. WallMart published a goal several years ago wanting to become the number 1 retailer of music edging out Tower Records and Best Buy as their main targets. Last year, I think it was, the made a goal of beating out itunes as the number 1 music retailer online, and they are getting darn close. The exclusive release strategy is just one of the many proven strategies for success in beating out the competition.
I wish ACDC and other major market bands would give indie records stores and shops like ours just 1 week of exclusivity on their releases, then they could go to WallMart and Best Buy and the other mass market shops like the rest of them...Wouldn't that be cool!
Until then, I think I'll just keep buying my indie artist CDs direct or at shops like ours so the artist gets the most money possible. Whose with me?
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