Seth Godin compares two marketing models in a recent post that distinguishes between products marketed horizontally and ones marketed vertically. The models are general and work for most any product, from soda to consumer electronics, and yes even music. There’s a very clean cut way to apply the vertical/horizontal layer to the music business. See below for Seth’s description, followed by examples in the music business.
“Vertical marketing means the marketer (the one with money) is in charge. Vertical marketing starts at the top and involves running ads, sending out direct mail and pushing hype through the media. Your money, your plans, your control. It might not work, but generally the worst outcome is that you will be ignored and need to spend more money.”
This is the major label pop model. Examples include Rihanna, Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, etc.
“Horizontal marketing, on the other hand, means creating a remarkable product and story and setting it up to spread from person to person. It’s out of your control, because all the interactions are by passionate outsiders, not paid agents.”
This is the independent music model, which sometimes ends up feeding into the major model if a record is upstreamed. Examples include Adele, Bon Iver, Arcade Fire, Robyn and others. Note that both Adele and Robyn are released by major labels (in the US), so it’s not necessarily as clear cut as just saying indie vs major label.
We see a direct parallel between these two methods of marketing and the idea of being either a transaction-based artist or a relationship-based artist. More about this in the related reading links below. Remember these are choice every artist makes, whether they realize it or not. Think about it in advance as you plan your career, and make sure you understand the difference.
Related Reading:
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