Industry A Guide to Selling Your Beats the Right Way

One of the most controversial aspects of selling beats is whether or not to sell your beats cheap, or to sell them at whatever price you feel is deserved.

I think that beats should be priced on various factors, such as how good they are, your reputation, and what the current market is.

However, by taking a look at some beat-selling websites, it's so common to see beats priced very low.

Some are VERY low.

Is that good? Let's examine:

Why Sell Beats Cheap?

If you're looking to sell beats and you visit a beat-selling website and see most of the beats being sold very cheap, what would you do? Would you sell yours at the same price?

If your answer is yes, then why? Because everyone else's beats are cheap?

What happens with that situation is exactly what's going on right now. The market is flooded with beats that are dirt cheap, so if someone is looking to buy beats, they're automatically going to think that's the going rate.

For the beatmakers that have their beats priced much higher, buyers won't even give them the time of day.

I get it though. If you sell a beat for $10 and 50 people buy it then you just made $500. But that's not ideal.

Why Sell Beats Higher?

I'm a firm believer that you should price your beats at whatever price you feel is good (within reason). For example, if you want to sell your beats for $60 non-exclusive and $800 exclusive, then that's fine, but you have to be able to also justify those prices.

If you're just starting out making beats, then I would recommend you put your price much lower. But if you have lots of experience and you've made a name for yourself, or even marketed your "brand" through social media, then by all means price them higher. You've earned it.

I would much rather sell one beat for $50 to an artist that is going to appreciate it and make good use of it, rather than for $10 to 5 people that don't care about quality.

Ferrari prices their cars high because then can, but also because they're built with quality. And guess what? People buy Ferraris because they know it's going to be a great car.

So What's the Problem?

I've always looked at it like I do when it comes to other products for sale, whether that's shoes, clothing, cars, or for something that hits home with me - web design.

Allow me to go slightly off-topic for a minute.

I used to get paid to make websites. I had a decent amount of clients and I worked freelance. At first I didn't know what to charge so I asked for $200. It wasn't much to create an entire website, but I was just starting out.

Then as I got better at it and had more of a reputation, I was able to put my price up. At one point I was charging $1200 for a small website.

I was ready to go higher with my price but then something happened.

The market turned on me.

What happened was clients were starting to hire other people that were charging much less. Actually, a lot of the clients were hiring people from India, where they would ask for ridiculous prices to build a website - $20.

So, what happened to me? I gave up. There's no way to compete with that. It got to the point where I would bid on a job and put my price at $350 (just to see what they would say), and the client's response? "Too much".

Wow.

Selling Beats Can Not Go That Way

I learned my lesson and I don't want to see that happen again, especially when it comes to selling beats. It's not just for me, but also for anyone selling beats - we should be able to make a decent living from what we love doing.

Just because 90% of the beats for sale are $19.95 doesn't mean that it's the right price.

I'm going to break it down for you like this:

If you walk into an electronics store to buy a new TV and you see a Sony for $999 but next to it is some brand you've never heard of, like Suny, and it's price at $399, which one are you going to buy?

You're going to go with the Sony because it's a name you know (reputation) and you know it's going to be a good product.

So if your beats are priced higher than everyone else's but your beats are dope, people will buy them, that's for sure. The key is to find the right type of buyer.

I think one of the issues is that for a lot of the people selling beats, they just want to make a quick buck.

I get it. If that's working for you then great. But it's not for everyone. Not everyone is going to sell beats for cheap and beats that are in the style of whatever's popular at the moment.

There are plenty of beatmakers that are just making beats that sound dope and want to sell them at a respectable price. For that to happen, it's the buyer that has to change their mindset.

My Message to People Buying Beats

Don't just buy the cheapest beat, or the beat that sounds like a Drake beat. Buy something that is just dope. Something that you can picture yourself spitting over. A beat from someone that you can see yourself buying other beats from and forming a lasting relationship.

If you buy nothing but beats that are priced low, you're going to help water down the whole idea of selling beats until it's at the point where you're buying beats from a factory in India.

Respect the game.

Further Reading Related to Selling Beats

• 5 Reasons Why You're Having Trouble Selling Beats
• Learn How To Sell Beats (And How Not To)
• 5 Ways to Make Beats That Will Sell
• IllMuzik's Hip Hop Producer Guide

 

[Pug]

Dope article. I feel that the market is saturated with beatmakers, so for myself selling beats is not feasible, at least to sustain my current lifestyle. It could be a nice supplement to my regular job, but that's about it...

 

[AllThingsReezy]

Dope article. This is something I'm still trying to get a handle on. I think I make music that deserves a higher price point but I also don't want to scare people looking to purchase beats. But then you have to wonder if the people that are being scared away are really taking their own music serious enough. I definitely don't want to give out beats to just anybody with a laptop mic and possibly weak bars.

 

[tieb]

I like this article, very informative.

 

[Kam HiFi]

Wow! Its a good blog or article you can say to sell hip-hop or rap beats online. I was searching for these type of blogs for my website- https://kamcartoonbeats.net/. Thanks!

 

[TL Beats]

This is a surprisingly good guide.

I am going to add to it and say, the types of numbers you should be getting per day is about 100 hits on your store. There's a catalog of ways to do this, you just have to figure out what your going to use and go with it.

 

[OldSoul1]

Great article, man! For me it's hard to know my worth. Idk why but the confidence is not that big...should work on it though! Peace

 

[wizard]

I was just having a convo with a friend about this. Its good to sell them low beats to build rep and following but, you also have to take in factor this.Under selling them is only going to attract the ones who pay for cheap beats broke artist who rap about how much money they have but can't pay for beats or studio time lol

I see it like this after paying for equipment and spending time on the track you shouldn't be under selling them just to make sales!
This is why most of the artist don't respect producers! They so caught up on making the sale and advertising full time for $10 - $20 beats and its only a one time payment. Short term income, Its great to get moving and get a buz but, if you spend time and investing on your craft than the price should be worth it. Not saying that you shouldn't sell them but, don't get hooked to a low one time payment sales. It might take longer to sell them higher end beats but you get more respect and you start attracting a different market. A market thats not broke and doesn't just want to invests in $10- $20 beats! Like how serious can a person be about heir music if they are undercutting their own sales?

i see it like this when you go to a mechanic to get breaks down you pay for someone who knows what they are doing! You might pay for the parts and labor. Do you think the mechanic wont charge for the labor? Same principal applies to producing you have factors to take in the labor and the equipment you invested! Now if you just getting started than you will need to create that following and buz. Not just for the sales but for the over all long term of income from your production.

Great article!

 

[Fade]

@wizard Well said. On one hand selling cheap gets quick cash but increasing your price puts you in a separate category from the rest. It's all about perception.

 

[TL Beats]

I

View attachment 4439

One of the most controversial aspects of selling beats is whether or not to sell your beats cheap, or to sell them at whatever price you feel is deserved.

I think that beats should be priced on various factors, such as how good they are, your reputation, and what the current market is.

However, by taking a look at some beat-selling websites, it's so common to see beats priced very low.

Some are VERY low.

Is that good? Let's examine:

Why Sell Beats Cheap?

If you're looking to sell beats and you visit a beat-selling website and see most of the beats being sold very cheap, what would you do? Would you sell yours at the same price?

If your answer is yes, then why? Because everyone else's beats are cheap?

What happens with that situation is exactly what's going on right now. The market is flooded with beats that are dirt cheap, so if someone is looking to buy beats, they're automatically going to think that's the going rate.

For the beatmakers that have their beats priced much higher, buyers won't even give them the time of day.

I get it though. If you sell a beat for $10 and 50 people buy it then you just made $500. But that's not ideal.

Why Sell Beats Higher?

I'm a firm believer that you should price your beats at whatever price you feel is good (within reason). For example, if you want to sell your beats for $60 non-exclusive and $800 exclusive, then that's fine, but you have to be able to also justify those prices.

If you're just starting out making beats, then I would recommend you put your price much lower. But if you have lots of experience and you've made a name for yourself, or even marketed your "brand" through social media, then by all means price them higher. You've earned it.

I would much rather sell one beat for $50 to an artist that is going to appreciate it and make good use of it, rather than for $10 to 5 people that don't care about quality.

Ferrari prices their cars high because then can, but also because they're built with quality. And guess what? People buy Ferraris because they know it's going to be a great car.

So What's the Problem?

I've always looked at it like I do when it comes to other products for sale, whether that's shoes, clothing, cars, or for something that hits home with me - web design.

Allow me to go slightly off-topic for a minute.

I used to get paid to make websites. I had a decent amount of clients and I worked freelance. At first I didn't know what to charge so I asked for $200. It wasn't much to create an entire website, but I was just starting out.

Then as I got better at it and had more of a reputation, I was able to put my price up. At one point I was charging $1200 for a small website.

I was ready to go higher with my price but then something happened.

The market turned on me.

What happened was clients were starting to hire other people that were charging much less. Actually, a lot of the clients were hiring people from India, where they would ask for ridiculous prices to build a website - $20.

So, what happened to me? I gave up. There's no way to compete with that. It got to the point where I would bid on a job and put my price at $350 (just to see what they would say), and the client's response? "Too much".

Wow.

Selling Beats Can Not Go That Way

I learned my lesson and I don't want to see that happen again, especially when it comes to selling beats. It's not just for me, but also for anyone selling beats - we should be able to make a decent living from what we love doing.

Just because 90% of the beats for sale are $19.95 doesn't mean that it's the right price.

I'm going to break it down for you like this:

If you walk into an electronics store to buy a new TV and you see a Sony for $999 but next to it is some brand you've never heard of, like Suny, and it's price at $399, which one are you going to buy?

You're going to go with the Sony because it's a name you know (reputation) and you know it's going to be a good product.

So if your beats are priced higher than everyone else's but your beats are dope, people will buy them, that's for sure. The key is to find the right type of buyer.

I think one of the issues is that for a lot of the people selling beats, they just want to make a quick buck.

I get it. If that's working for you then great. But it's not for everyone. Not everyone is going to sell beats for cheap and beats that are in the style of whatever's popular at the moment.

There are plenty of beatmakers that are just making beats that sound dope and want to sell them at a respectable price. For that to happen, it's the buyer that has to change their mindset.

My Message to People Buying Beats

Don't just buy the cheapest beat, or the beat that sounds like a Drake beat. Buy something that is just dope. Something that you can picture yourself spitting over. A beat from someone that you can see yourself buying other beats from and forming a lasting relationship.

If you buy nothing but beats that are priced low, you're going to help water down the whole idea of selling beats until it's at the point where you're buying beats from a factory in India.

Respect the game.

Further Reading Related to Selling Beats

• 5 Reasons Why You're Having Trouble Selling Beats
  
• Learn How To Sell Beats (And How Not To)
  
• 5 Ways to Make Beats That Will Sell
• IllMuzik's Hip Hop Producer Guide

I agree I think type beats are wack asf

 

[wizard]

I


I agree I think type beats are wack asf

we call them throw aways! lol

They are used to attract a buz and also create traffic!!
Its cool and all but i wouldn't be taking placement or label to that site with $20 dollar beats
specially if i'm doing cold or warm email marketing OMG
it just don't look right!

but,..........

its a great way to start to get traffic for some! The proper way is to pay for targeted traffic and invest so you are targeting high end clients! Instead non serous artist and the music is only going from the basement to their boys cars!! lol I have bunch of beats but i chose not to throw them out there not up to par for me they are throw aways! Now if you spend time on your craft it going to pay out more in the end so the better quality the different audience you target and this can easily been applied from fb ads google, bing, and ect even youtube and instagram!

LAWS OF ATTRACTION

You attract what you project out! Meaning if you project out $20 beats and that your base income that cool but don't expect to make more,
this, this is marketing 101 to the fullest.

Now, if you project high end and quality products and service, you will attract the high end clients that will pay you a higher one time fee and even possibly royalties! This is why most beat makers seller who have success they start low just to get the flow and a buz and than they have another website for the higher end clients this is what you call segmenting your targeted audience and traffic!

Most new sellers don't have funds to invest and also upscale their business or don't know how to build a following, so the easiest way is to get $20 throw ways out there for people to freestyle on or what ever because this creates their following and also some income that can be used to upscale the business and than start investing on paid targeted traffic!!


oh i had to come back and also add!! the fees from paypal and also what ever they using for media player myflsh or ect they take a % too!! so after paypal fees alone you ot even making $20 lmho!! have a good weekend everyone!

 

[EsquireMusic111]

Great article!!! I have lived by this for a while now, especially when I found out my target price and stuck with it! Developing the confidence in determining your worth and in never settling by underselling is the best way to go about promotion and sales in terms of your production. I would rather market to an artist that will pay for what I know I put in to a production, while maintaining my confidence that the artist will put just as much into the track as I did. The whole point is to never under-sell. Don't become starry eyed by those producers that flaunt their daily income off of dirt cheap beat sales. I follow a few myself on Twitter, and the quality of music that comes from those sales are definitely not of quality as @wizard explained in his LAWS OF ATTRACTION.

 

[DJ Monstar]

View attachment 4439

One of the most controversial aspects of selling beats is whether or not to sell your beats cheap, or to sell them at whatever price you feel is deserved.

I think that beats should be priced on various factors, such as how good they are, your reputation, and what the current market is.

However, by taking a look at some beat-selling websites, it's so common to see beats priced very low.

Some are VERY low.

Is that good? Let's examine:

Why Sell Beats Cheap?

If you're looking to sell beats and you visit a beat-selling website and see most of the beats being sold very cheap, what would you do? Would you sell yours at the same price?

If your answer is yes, then why? Because everyone else's beats are cheap?

What happens with that situation is exactly what's going on right now. The market is flooded with beats that are dirt cheap, so if someone is looking to buy beats, they're automatically going to think that's the going rate.

For the beatmakers that have their beats priced much higher, buyers won't even give them the time of day.

I get it though. If you sell a beat for $10 and 50 people buy it then you just made $500. But that's not ideal.

Why Sell Beats Higher?

I'm a firm believer that you should price your beats at whatever price you feel is good (within reason). For example, if you want to sell your beats for $60 non-exclusive and $800 exclusive, then that's fine, but you have to be able to also justify those prices.

If you're just starting out making beats, then I would recommend you put your price much lower. But if you have lots of experience and you've made a name for yourself, or even marketed your "brand" through social media, then by all means price them higher. You've earned it.

I would much rather sell one beat for $50 to an artist that is going to appreciate it and make good use of it, rather than for $10 to 5 people that don't care about quality.

Ferrari prices their cars high because then can, but also because they're built with quality. And guess what? People buy Ferraris because they know it's going to be a great car.

So What's the Problem?

I've always looked at it like I do when it comes to other products for sale, whether that's shoes, clothing, cars, or for something that hits home with me - web design.

Allow me to go slightly off-topic for a minute.

I used to get paid to make websites. I had a decent amount of clients and I worked freelance. At first I didn't know what to charge so I asked for $200. It wasn't much to create an entire website, but I was just starting out.

Then as I got better at it and had more of a reputation, I was able to put my price up. At one point I was charging $1200 for a small website.

I was ready to go higher with my price but then something happened.

The market turned on me.

What happened was clients were starting to hire other people that were charging much less. Actually, a lot of the clients were hiring people from India, where they would ask for ridiculous prices to build a website - $20.

So, what happened to me? I gave up. There's no way to compete with that. It got to the point where I would bid on a job and put my price at $350 (just to see what they would say), and the client's response? "Too much".

Wow.

Selling Beats Can Not Go That Way

I learned my lesson and I don't want to see that happen again, especially when it comes to selling beats. It's not just for me, but also for anyone selling beats - we should be able to make a decent living from what we love doing.

Just because 90% of the beats for sale are $19.95 doesn't mean that it's the right price.

I'm going to break it down for you like this:

If you walk into an electronics store to buy a new TV and you see a Sony for $999 but next to it is some brand you've never heard of, like Suny, and it's price at $399, which one are you going to buy?

You're going to go with the Sony because it's a name you know (reputation) and you know it's going to be a good product.

So if your beats are priced higher than everyone else's but your beats are dope, people will buy them, that's for sure. The key is to find the right type of buyer.

I think one of the issues is that for a lot of the people selling beats, they just want to make a quick buck.

I get it. If that's working for you then great. But it's not for everyone. Not everyone is going to sell beats for cheap and beats that are in the style of whatever's popular at the moment.

There are plenty of beatmakers that are just making beats that sound dope and want to sell them at a respectable price. For that to happen, it's the buyer that has to change their mindset.

My Message to People Buying Beats

Don't just buy the cheapest beat, or the beat that sounds like a Drake beat. Buy something that is just dope. Something that you can picture yourself spitting over. A beat from someone that you can see yourself buying other beats from and forming a lasting relationship.

If you buy nothing but beats that are priced low, you're going to help water down the whole idea of selling beats until it's at the point where you're buying beats from a factory in India.

Respect the game.

Further Reading Related to Selling Beats

• 5 Reasons Why You're Having Trouble Selling Beats
  
• Learn How To Sell Beats (And How Not To)
  
• 5 Ways to Make Beats That Will Sell
• IllMuzik's Hip Hop Producer Guide

I have never dat much focused on thinking ohh one day I will sell beats me I think in the future to sell songs yet I put one song one time in I tunes threw tune core and stated it is trap style den searched under trap music and finally realized dey put my song in outer space as in so far to scroll from de main page dat say trap dat no human will ever reach it if dey scrolled every day all dem life

I have never dat much focused on thinking ohh one day I will sell beats me I think in the future to sell songs yet I put one song one time in I tunes threw tune core and stated it is trap style den searched under trap music and finally realized dey put my song in outer space as in so far to scroll from de main page dat say trap dat no human will ever reach it if dey scrolled every day all dem life

dat is when I joined de dark side after dat I felt really not good about life and have bin on de dark side ever since den because I don't understand how to get noticed I mean people told me you have to play live shows yet dats not what I do I am not a DJ I make music I want to sell it and spend my time making it how am I going to DJ and make it seeen dats why DJ play music because if dey made it dey have no time to play it so is band camp for real or what

I think if one of us in your illMusic becomes dope den you maybe have de know how to take dem further big up maybe you need a gang of dope producers and den you know what to do

 

[Beaubeats]

Great article. A lot to think about for me for sure.

I started a service company a few years back. I had twelve years experience in my field at the time and held the highest license for the trade. I charged people a lot of money for my services and I would explain why when they questioned the cost. It always attracted and retained the right kind of clients. The ones who are looking for quality of affordability. I specialized in working for wealthy people and that was my target market when advertising so it was usually an easy sell because they understand the supply and demand of performed work and price usually matches time spent and quality of workmanship. I needed to price things accurately so I could actually afford to stay in business and continue to grow.

Now for the Beat industry, I have a hard time using those same basic principals. I am not at the point of investing into marketing because I just haven't hit that level of quality yet for todays listener so I also have a hard time pricing them. I have just started to get a little attention and feedback from artist and the producer community. I feel though that the time of people paying for beat leases may be coming to an end soon due to over saturation. That doesn't mean there isn't money to be made from it, just means we need some new approaches. For people who already have a solid following of talented artist and the attention is on them I think you can still charge what you charge and they will be happy to pay for the consistent quality you provide.
I hope to get to that level one day and really don't want the internet to destroy this market too. Unfortunately, as we see in every industry today, I don't think there is anything we can do to stop it. We can only adapt and hope to find new approaches to bring in a solid income.

 

[Fade]

I feel though that the time of people paying for beat leases may be coming to an end soon due to over saturation. That doesn't mean there isn't money to be made from it, just means we need some new approaches.

Well said. It's crazy how everything moves so quickly and changes constantly. With that in mind, it's only a matter of time for the beat making community (aka selling beats) is about to change. I've always believed that it's best to work with the artist directly rather than sell a beat as a product, but it is what it is. The weird thing is we have the internet which gives us instant access to each other, yet I don't see collaborations happening as they should.

Maybe it's just because of money, which explains all the beat selling going on.

 

[Beaubeats]

Well said. It's crazy how everything moves so quickly and changes constantly. With that in mind, it's only a matter of time for the beat making community (aka selling beats) is about to change. I've always believed that it's best to work with the artist directly rather than sell a beat as a product, but it is what it is. The weird thing is we have the internet which gives us instant access to each other, yet I don't see collaborations happening as they should.

Maybe it's just because of money, which explains all the beat selling going on.

There are definitely too many people doing it for the money these days. Thats all the rappers talk about and everyone wants that payday. It is an unrealistic approach in my opinion. The passion for creating has to be the drive, not the payday. If it is all about the money you will usually give up long before you reach that goal. Thats another reason I still offer cheap leases. Simply for the exposure and the chance to test the market. Im so new to this industry and I'm trying to find my place in it all.
Like you said, working with an artist directly is still the best way to create a vibe and make something together that stands out as a great project. I have done a bunch of collabs with producers lately for that same reason. I don't really see them as my competition but rather people I can learn from and maybe teach a thing or two if the opportunity presents itself.
A few months ago I was renting a spot at a local studio with super talented artist. It is the best way to make a beat for someone because you can read the body language and really get an honest opinion of the track. The problem with this studio is they only focus on one aspect of the craft, making good music. Talented producers and engineers with great skills. The problem is they don't focus any energy on the business side of the music industry (arguably 80% of the leg work to get your music into the ears of the world is centered around a solid business model and marketing). When I can afford to get back in there I will simply for that organic approach to making a record. There are hundreds of thousands of producers on the online market making it very hard to stand out without putting in serious work.
These threads are super helpful for me though. Hopefully I can learn a lot here and help others when the time comes.

 

[BeatMaker80]

I just seems that most people don't care about quality most just want to be heard, don't really see a future in it to invest, so they'll rather steal a beat from YouTube where the levels are so high there's not much the engineer can do with it, but to start all I want is my beat to be used by someone who takes this music as serious as I do I wouldn't mind giving away a few beats to a person like that. Great article by the way✌