So you’ve recorded your first album, and are thinking about getting 500 CDs manufactured. Will this make you happy?

It’s not unusual for a band or solo artist to be able to record an album in their spare time and to want a CD. This is actually quite natural and part of a growing process. At first, you are happy playing your guitar in your bedroom, then you want to get on stage, then you want to be able to tell people “this is my music, listen to this CD”.

Whatever keeps you motivated to carry on doing your music is a good thing in itself, as it can be so hard juggling with your day job, family and financial and social responsabilities (how do you justify buying a new guitar when you are struggling to put your kids through college?).

So what does manufacturing 500 CDs will do to your motivation?

There are a few scenarios.

A) you give a few CDs to your friends, send a few copies to radio stations and magazines and stock the remaining 450 CDs under your sofa.

B) same as A but you also sell 10 copies at three gigs played over six months.

C) you gig regularly and always shift a few copies at each gig, as well as selling some copies from your website. After a year, 400 copies have been sold.

Well, obviously, you want it to be scenario C but how do you know it’s going to be it?

The answer is to test your market. Make 50 copies on a CD-R (perhaps not the full album but a single). Can you sell them in 5 gigs? Can  you get 5 gigs within the next month?

I’ve seen too many musicians losing their motivation after looking at 450 copies of their debut album sitting under their sofa, some 2 years after it was made (it happened to me too and it took me a while to recover). By far, this is the biggest reason for bedroom musicians giving up on their dream. So don’t hurt your ego yourself (it gets damaged by others enough as it is). Don’t get 500 CDs manufactured if you can’t sell 50 CD-Rs in 6 weeks.

No audience will judge you for not putting out a self-released debut album within your first year of playing live. They want good music, good lyrics, good performances - ultimately, they will judge you on those, and not on your ability to sell 500 CDs within 6 months.