“The way to get your rates up is to make them realize that you’re like the supply, and demand works in your favor if the supply is one, right? If you’re the only person doing this thing, not the only person mixing, not the only person doing, I don’t know, a Scottish Gen Z accent, I don’t know what the equivalent would be. It’s not just the only person doing that service, it’s the only person doing that service but from your set of experiences and perspectives, people are a lot more willing to pay for that. Because they’re not just getting your unique taste, your unique, like, approach to it, but it’s the peace of mind, knowing that you’ve got their back.” -- Carl Bahner

This episode is the second half of my conversation with musician, mix engineer, and sonic wizard Carl Bahner as we talk about the true purpose of music producers, the importance of enthusiasm when it comes to branding, and what it takes to succeed in today’s post-Spotify music industry.

As always, if you have questions for my guest, you’re welcome to reach out through the links in the show notes. If you have questions for me, visit audiobrandingpodcast.com where you’ll find a lot of ways to get in touch. You can also join regular Clubhouse chats in The Power of Sound House every other Wednesday (check the schedule for times). Plus, subscribing to the newsletter will let you know when the new podcasts are available, when new audio rooms are scheduled and what they'll be about, and it'll give you access to a resource called The Studio with lots of interesting sound-related mp3s, videos, educational pdfs, and exclusive discounts from previous guests.

If you’re getting some value from listening, the best ways to show your support are to share this podcast with a friend and leave an honest review. Both those things really help – and I’d love to feature your review on future podcasts. You can leave one either in written or in voice format from the podcast’s main page. I would so appreciate that.

(0:00:00) – Artist’s Guide to Music Business

The episode begins with Carl’s biggest piece of advice for up-and-coming artists: “Know what you’re signing up for.” As he puts it, record labels are in the business to make money, not to necessarily make things easier for the band. “They think that having a label is going to solve all their problems,” he says. “They can just be themselves, do what they want, and everybody has to listen to us. And that’s not how business partnerships work.” We talk about building your brand and professional relationships, and being recognized for what you have to offer. “It’s not about changing who I am to try to fit what I think that they want,” “he explains. “It’s just saying, okay, the people that are going to find the most value in what I do are going to find the most value in who I am and why I do what I do.”

(0:13:07) – Pricing Strategy for Creative Freelancers

We discuss finding your passion as a freelancer and the importance of bringing that sense of enthusiasm and genuine interest into each project. “What is it,” Carl asks, “that I just absolutely have the most passion, just, like, pouring out of me when I’m doing it, and then ask yourself, okay, well, if there’s a market for that.” He shares what he’s learned about the value of networking and building a reputation for reliability and trustworthiness, and the new role of music in today’s digital gig economy. “Your music is no longer the product or thing that you create,” he says. “Your music is advertisement for you. The music that you make on social media, it’s the...

“It was when I started figuring out, without knowing what it was called, because I also didn’t have any marketers in my life growing up. But when I was finding gigs for myself when I was the freelancer, mercenary, playing with a bunch of different people, I had to learn what these people are looking for. How do I figure out how to let them know that I can be the good fit for them? How do I find the people that I think I’m going to be a good fit for? And how do I convince them that I’m a good fit for them? Which is ultimately what the personal branding is.” -- Carl Bahner

This episode’s guest is a mix engineer, educator, and a brand strategy super-nerd on a mission to help artists and producers make great songs and help other studio pros attract ideal clients. Hailing from rural Pennsylvania, he’s made a name for himself internationally as a team-builder and sonic wizard, focusing his boundless enthusiasm on playful, memorable, vibrant music. Working with artists like The Wombats and Hippo Campus, he’s proven highly adept at producing earworms tailored to fit like a favorite T-shirt. But don’t be fooled by his youthful energy – he’s a seasoned pro who’s toured extensively and opened for major acts like Walk The Moon and Charli XCX.

In addition to mixing and production, he hosts the podcast Thanks For Thinking and is a passionate educator when it comes to sharing industry knowledge through content creation: he recently released an online course called “Communicating The Care” that’s aimed at helping studio pros clarify their perspectives and connect with ideal clients seeking meaningful collaborations.

His name is Carl Bahner. and this discussion will challenge the myth of the starving artist and give creatives some comprehensive steps to make sure they get paid what they’re worth.

As always, if you have questions for my guest, you’re welcome to reach out through the links in the show notes. If you have questions for me, visit audiobrandingpodcast.com where you’ll find a lot of ways to get in touch. You can also join regular Clubhouse chats in The Power of Sound House every other Wednesday (check the schedule for times). Plus, subscribing to the newsletter will let you know when the new podcasts are available, when new audio rooms are scheduled and what they'll be about, and it'll give you access to a resource called The Studio with lots of interesting sound-related mp3s, videos, educational pdfs, and exclusive discounts from previous guests.

If you’re getting some value from listening, the best ways to show your support are to share this podcast with a friend and leave an honest review. Both those things really help – and I’d love to feature your review on future podcasts. You can leave one either in written or in voice format from the podcast’s main page. I would so appreciate that.

(0:00:00) – Early Musical Memories and Instrument Exploration

We start things off with a look back at Carl’s early memories of sound, or, in this case, the new memories he’s creating with his six-month-old daughter. “That’s way better than my early memories,” he jokes, “which is probably just listening to Sandi Patty cassette tapes in my mom’s car or something.” Carl shares his journey through music, from the piano to the clarinet, and how he discovered the guitar. “What drew it to me is,” he explains, “or drew me to it, was the fact that there was so much more variation in what you could do with it – and, I think, a lot more exciting possibilities.”

(0:12:55) – From Trumpet to Percussion

Carl shares with us his...

When you think about shopping, what sound comes to mind? It might be the carts rolling up and down the aisles, or maybe the beeps of the scanners when you’re standing in the check-out line. Music might not be the first thing that crosses our minds, but it’s almost always in the background of our shopping trips, and it can have a surprising impact. From how long we stay in the store and how much we spend while we’re there to how we feel about it afterward, sound plays a pivotal, and often unnoticed, role in our purchasing decisions that we’re still working to understand.

If you think about it, using music to change the way we think and feel about an experience isn’t all that surprising. Whether we’re soothing babies to sleep with lullabies or marching into battle with drums and horns, sound has always helped give shape and texture to our daily lives. In modern times, that’s meant music at work and out in public, such as the Music While You Work radio program that ran in the UK until 1967 or the “Muzak” that filled American department stores and elevators in the 1950s. But the science of sound has come a long way since those early days, and the commercial soundscape has become much more sophisticated. What does the latest research say about the influence of sound on our spending habits? Can sound even be used to turn us into more responsible shoppers?

During the heyday of elevator music and workplace radios, there was another famous – or, perhaps, infamous – approach to using sound as a marketing tool. That tool was subliminal advertising, and it only became possible over the last century, as vocal recordings and sound editing allowed secret messages to be layered beneath an audio track or “backmasked” into reversed snippets hidden within the melody. Those subliminal messages, the thinking went, could cause unsuspecting moviegoers to crave popcorn, or even turn ordinary teenagers into rebellious rock-and-roll fans.

The good news for free thinkers is that subliminal advertising never really worked that way. Reversed audio doesn’t create any sort of subconscious suggestion, and, while soft, layered words can leave a faint impression on listeners, it’s actually a weaker effect than just saying the words out loud in an ordinary commercial. If you’re curious about the rise and fall of subliminal audio, check out this short video from Cheddar about the fake study that started it all:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU-eUcXcaqk

We might not be able to use hidden messages to boost soda sales, but sound does motivate us as shoppers in ways that we hardly notice. Music can have a powerful effect on the brain, such as lowering our cortisol and stress levels when we listen to a soothing song, and a 2010 study found that music also releases dopamine in the brain. This came as something of a surprise to researchers, since it means music activates the same sense of innate pleasure as food, money, or even love.

Sound has a much deeper impact on us than we realize, and a UK study in 2022 showed that different genres of music lead to different behavior when it comes to shopping. Pop music motivates people to spend more and to make more impulse purchases: 37% more people were likely to try a new hairstyle in a salon that’s playing pop music. Other genres have their place, though, as 31% more diners ordered the most expensive menu items in a restaurant that played classical music. The only sound that didn’t have any upside for businesses is silence: according to a consumer survey conducted by Luxury Academy last year, 67% of shoppers would leave a store that isn’t playing any music.

Want to hear what shoppers think of store music? Here’s a short video by the Irish Music Rights Organization that interviews customers on the street, including a surprising number who make their shopping...