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Originally Posted By: eddie1261
<...snip...> You are in a spot. You HAVE to answer your business phone. I don't answer my phone if the call is not from someone in my contacts. If it matters, they will leave a message.


Yes, I have to answer the business phone, and it can't be on the do-not-call list so even the ethical who check the list will call me.

Plus as a business, I get all kinds of B2B calls about "my free google listing" (that's the most frequent), credit card merchants accounts (I'm fine with the one I've had since the 1990s), business loans (I don't want to borrow money if I have to pay it back, and if I did, I wouldn't trust a spam call), and the list goes on and on.

More often than not, I try to keep it short so as not to waste my time. Robocalls are easy, I just hang up. Big commercial calling houses are treated the same (that silence for a few seconds after you say hello is a giveaway), if it's just a poor person wanting to make ends meet by taking what must be the worst job in the world I say "No thank you" and hang up, and if it's a local company doing their own calls, I'll be a little more polite before I hang up.

But my own personal policy is I don't go for any unsolicited calls, e-mails, or direct mail ads. If I need something, I'll seek out a vendor. I'm too skeptical to trust someone who tells me I'm pre-approved for a $250K business loan and doesn't even know my name.

Answering the spam calls is an inconvenience, but at least they aren't door-to-door sales people or those religious proselytizers that make me leave my work space to say "No thank you".

The lesson for me is to not let the interruption bother me, but to take it in stride and end it as soon as possible. Sometimes that's a difficult thing for me to do.

Insights and incites by Notes


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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Wow,I feel a bit like having simply picked up a lose pebble and unleashed an avalanche! grin


Just because you can, doesn't mean you should!
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One thing leads to another wink


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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Ahhh yes... the dastardly "song sharks" of yester-year.

They are still out there with a different angle. They search the music posting sites, telling you how much they love your song. They will always tell you how good you are before they ask you for the money to "demo" the song. Many beginners, hearing how hard it is to get songs out, fall for the BS and get sucked in.

Many years ago I wrote a few co-writes with a guy who had a dozen boxes of records he got as a result of buying into the scam. His song was one of a dozen others on the record. Famous unknown writers from Nashville or some similar name is what they named the album. Supposedly sent "hundreds" of copies out to radio stations across America and I guarantee that not a single one ever got played one time.

I worked with what appeared to be a legit publisher. He used the Songwriter's guild song contracts..... once upon a time "THE" contract to sign for a single song. He signed 2 or 3 songs and had one set up to be recorded. Some time later, I got a contract from him that said essentially, he could make me a star in Nashville. There were 3 levels..... the $25k level, the $50k level and the practically guaranteed success level of $100k. They all involved sending him large sums of money for Nashville coaching, recording, writing sessions, and a few record company showcases. The contract was worded carefully so that you thought you were going to be the next big thing but the words weren't exactly saying that. Needless to say, I had a good laugh and filled the papers away chalking that one up to just another scam looking for a sucker with deep pockets.

Most of the scams want you to pay for the demo session to make your song sound professional. You have to wonder about the character of musicians who know they're working in such a studio. And it doesn't matter how sucky and amaturish (poorly written) your song is.... they will convince you, or at least try, that your song is so amazingly wonderful and destined to be song of the year, and win a grammy.......if you'll just send the money for this demo session.....


a few words to the wise:

Do legitimate publishers ever solicit songs through the mail or by advertisements? NO.
The legitimate publisher never solicits songs through the mail or by advertisement. As it is, the publisher is being besieged night and day by aspiring songwriters, both professional and amateur. If anything, he suffers from a superfluity of material. To solicit songs by mail or advertisement would only be adding to his troubles.

Will publishers pay any attention to songs "serviced" or submitted by song sharks? NO.
The only answer to this question is a quite definite "NO." The publisher is doing everything in his power to enlighten the general public about the activities of the song sharks and will do nothing that in any way might encourage their activities. If a song is submitted by a song shark, or if it shows that a song shark has had anything to do with its construction, the legitimate publisher will immediately throw it out.

Why is it not only foolish but dangerous to do business with song sharks?
The song shark operates on a "wholesale" basis. His profit lies in having his work turned out by "hackwriters" cheaply, quickly, and in great quantities. The "hackwriter," or arranger cannot possibly write an original melody for every "song poem" submitted, and often resorts to using parts of copyrighted or published works. If the owner of this "hack" composition should ever have it published or publicly performed, he would run great danger of being sued by the copyright owners on whose works his composition has infringed.

Where can a songwriter obtain information about song sharks?
Such information can be obtained by writing to the Music Publishers Protective Association, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, or The Song Writers Protective Association.

Last edited by Guitarhacker; 01/11/18 08:55 AM.

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Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
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The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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So I guess we can sum this up by saying this sounds fishy to EVERYBODY else.

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Sounds legit to me.




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Bob, you have any of those StarMaker machines left? I would like one.




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This is the company:


https://www.nextgenpromotions.org/


They can't really compete with The Starmaker Machine. grin


Regards,

Bob

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Oh my cod!

I thought of doing it for the halibut

then I said "oh crappie."


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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Originally Posted By: Notes Norton
Oh my cod!

I thought of doing it for the halibut

then I said "oh crappie."


Don't be koi, Notes, as you sit on your perch....

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Originally Posted By: eddie1261
Originally Posted By: Notes Norton
Oh my cod!

I thought of doing it for the halibut

then I said "oh crappie."


Don't be koi, Notes, as you sit on your perch....

... practicing your Scales...


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We're floundering in puns, but I think it's just a fluke.


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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[video:youtube]https://youtu.be/6l1GvDWtccI[/video]


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Originally Posted By: Notes Norton
We're floundering in puns, but I think it's just a fluke.


And to stay with the theme, I am listening to some old Salmon Dave.

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Then.... there's this:

Paramount

where no song is ever turned down if you have enough money for the demo session. contracts offered to everyone.

they have some nice reviews in the music scams web sites.....


You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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