Brian Epstein brought into the Beatles band some essential skills of management which were significant in improving the band’s image in the public and the media. This was quite beneficial in enhancing the popularity of the rock band. However, Brian had no prior experience with the players in the music business which includes; the media and the entertainment industry. This would, therefore, give room for the media and individuals in the entertainment industry to take advantage of Brian’s situation and exploit the entire music band. As a result, it would be prudent for the band manager to undertake some basic steps which are necessary in dealing with music management. To begin with, the manager would have employed a well known and respectable entertainment attorney to represent the band in any deals that would involve the media and the entertainment industry. It is obvious that the parties involved in the business would have to enter into a contract. Hence, the attorney would be important in ascertaining the credibility of the terms of contracts and ensuring that the legal requirements of the contracts are abided to the letter.
This would thus make it certain that the band is safe from any misrepresentations or ill will from the media and the entertainment industry. The entertainment attorney selected for the company must be endowed with a rich experience in the music business. Secondly, the band manager would have put efforts to acquire perfect information concerning the organizations in the media and those in the entertainment industry (Halsey & Wooley, 2000). This would be useful for the manager to have a profile of the parties in the contract to ensure that he is dealing with people of high integrity as well as individuals who can perform according to the bands expectations. Another important step that Brian could have adopted was to protect the investment of the music band. This would be accomplished by ensuring that he registers the work of the band with proper copyrights. Consequently, this step would be efficient by making it difficult for the media and music industry players from exploiting the band by taking advantage of the naivety of the manager. To ensure a proper negotiation process with the media and the entertainment industry, a band manager would require handiness in some basic skills of music management.
Conversely, these skills should not be confused with the personal characteristics of the manager that might also be essential in facilitating the negotiations. These personal traits would include; trustworthiness and passionate. One of the basic skills that a manager would require is direct marketing. The manager must comprehend how to directly market the music band and also develop strong relationships with the media and the entertainment industry. Simple band image branding would not be enough to impact on relationships with the individuals in the music business. It is important to note that the relationships developed through the negotiations would be important in furthering the career of the musicians in the band. Secondly, the band manager must also be endowed with the relevant business development skills so as to portray the professional side of handling the music business to the media and the entertainment industry. The manager must therefore exhibit some outstanding business development skills that would be responsible in creating firm business relationships and also improve his negotiation ability. Business development skills are also essential in helping the manager to secure endorsements and sponsorships for the music band.
Thirdly, as a band manager it is important to have some skills in accounting and royalties. This helps the managers to understand how to formulate budgets for the music band as well as knowing how to calculate the expected royalties from the work of the band. A manager who is equipped with these skills would find it easy participating in negotiations with the media and individuals in the music industry. Lastly, in the current world which is characterized by high technology use, it is advisable that managers be adept at usage of technology to improve their music bands. For instance, the use of social media would be effective in enhancing the relationship of the band with the media and the entertainment industry. Hence, this would also have an impact on the ability of the manager to take part in negotiations with the media and the individuals in the entertainment industry. In the game of negotiation, it is the manager’s ideology and his bargaining position that would dictate the negotiation approach to be adopted by the manager. One of the approaches that can be used in negotiating with the media and the entertainment industry is the compromising approach of negotiation.
In this approach, all the parties involved are regarded as being compromisers who all seek to gain a middle ground which would be satisfactory to all. This approach also portrays the idea of one party going to the extent of giving up some royalties so as to secure the deal on the negotiating table. However, in the case where royalties are given up it is also important to note that this process is reciprocated to the receiving party and they would also have to offer such royalties. Consequently, the process of giving up royalties would be on a bit by bit basis where parties do not get the royalties in a single moment. Another approach of negotiation that can be utilized is the collaborative negotiation approach. This demonstrates a negotiation which is aimed at providing a win-win situation for all the parties involved. Hence, this approach is effective in creating value for all parties by focusing on their essential interests rather than their bargaining positions (Fishof & Levin, 2012). Thus, this approach can be described as an exchange process where all the parties seek to gain something at the end of the negotiation.
This is a better approach given the fact that the music business is coupled with risks which would incur huge losses to a given party. However, this approach protects the involved individuals from undergoing loss since everyone has something to gain. Conversely, the approach requires that individuals involved in the negotiation must possess high levels of flexibility so as to identify similar circumstances amongst them. Finally, an accommodating approach of negotiation can also be utilized in the given scenario to ensure effective negotiations. This approach asserts that the accommodating party in the negotiation would drop its bargaining position so as to satisfy the concerns of the other party in the current time. This approach is applicable where the band has some interests in given individuals in the entertainment industry or the media. Thus, the band would be accommodative to those parties so as to achieve its interests in the future. The plan of contract negotiation must be drafted properly to ensure that it is comprehensive enough to point out all the important aspects of the contract. In order, to develop that comprehensive plan of contract negotiation the band manager has to formulate some strategies which are utilized in the entire process of negotiation.
In this plan there have been three strategies which have been developed to sustain the contract negotiation process. The first strategy to be adopted in the plan is preparation for the negotiation. The band manager must be well prepared to get the most out of the opportunities that are presented in negotiation. This strategy points out the necessity for the manager to rank his or her priorities together with the possible alternatives. This helps to ensure that the manager would be able to discuss all the important aspects with regards to the contract. However, it is believed that the manger has the right to return back and add any other items which are top priority to the music band. This helps to ensure the success of the contract. The second strategy that is adopted in the plan of contract negotiation is acquisition of a legal team for the negotiation process. Hiring a legal counsel is important for the manager to understand the legal aspects of the contract as well as determining the credibility of the contracts based on the fundamental principles of contract.
The legal counsel would also provide some significant insights regarding the contract which would have given impacts on the negotiation process. Hence, this strategy aims at ensuring the safety of the music band in entering into the contract as well as ensuring that a legal process is followed in the negotiation process. The third and final strategy to be applied in the plan of contract negotiation is developing a belief system. The manager must be confident in his capabilities and his position in the negotiation process so as to secure a lucrative deal. However, before adopting the belief system the manager would first have to known his or her bottom line in the contract so that they may be able to walk away in case the situation is not satisfactory (Appleton & Yankelevits, 2010). It is also prudent for the manager to assess the level of any potential risks and liabilities before believing in the contract. Therefore, the manager must not have any internal problems which would affect their self belief since this would result to failure of the strategy. However, managers who are not comfortable with the contract should never sign it and it is advisable to walk away from the negotiation.
Conversely, this strategy is based on the fact that managers should believe in their talents which are meant to help them negotiate a better deal for the music band. It is important for the negotiator to set the terms of the contracts due to some fundamental reasons. To begin with, it is important so as to ensure that the opposing negotiating team does not set terms which would be undesirable for the music band. It is thought that the opposing team would formulate terms that are favorable to them at the expense of the negotiator. Another reason behind this is because the negotiator knows the top priorities of the music band as well as their interests and hence it would be significant for him or her to set the terms which are in accordance with the priorities and interests of the band. Lastly, it is vital for the negotiator to set the terms of the contract so as to avoid any kind of collusion that would develop if the opposing team was given the opportunity of creating the terms of contract. I would also not allow the industry members to set the terms of reference due to lack of utmost good faith amongst the industry members. This would result in misrepresentations in the terms of contract which would have consequential impacts on the band.
References
Appleton, D., & Yankelevits, D. (2010). Hollywood Dealmaking: Negotiating talent agreements for film, TV, and new media. New York, N.Y: Allworth Press.
Fishof, D., & Levin, M. (2012). Rock your business: What you and your company can learn from the business of rock and roll. Dallas, Tx: BenBella.
Halsey, J., & Wooley, J. (2000). How to make it in the music business. Tulsa, Okla.: Hawk Pub.
