Things to consider before buying music instruments

In a perfect world we would all have a steady stream of income so that we would be able to buy anything we want without much thought. But in reality most of us follow a set budget; important purchases such as a instruments necessitates a lot of research and planning. This is why I often emphasize that before you go and buy an instrument you must first determine your budget, the quality of the instrument and your needs as a musician. Remember, the quality of an instrument may either make or break a musician, especially if you’re just starting out. 

Source : http://musiced.about.com/od/beginnersguide/bb/b4inst.htm

Streaming: Music to the ears

 Thanks to the rapid development of technology, music recording has expanded into a massive and flexible digital network. And with that, comes evolving and higher demands from consumers, whose lives now meteorite on the fast lane, heady and high with upbeat hip-hop that came with advances in technology. In recent years, there has been a growing need for on-demand entertainment. Many consumers, particularly the young generation now prefer to have their entertainment “on the go” as and when, and where they want it. Hence, on-demand entertainment or digital streaming is the name of the game, and is taking the world by storm given its affordability and fluid mobility. Eric Harvey of the Chicago-based Pitchfork Media points out that the idea of music streaming has been around for more than a century. He noted, in fact, it can be traced back to 1888 with Edward Bellamy predicting the idea of listening to streamed music via phone lines when he wrote his science fiction novel “Looking Backward”.

 Source: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/12/13/streaming-music-to-the-ears/ 

Kids Feel the Power of Poetry in Performance

Kids -- 12 and 13 years old -- pour their guts onto paper in verse. They spend weeks furiously writing, revising, and coaching each other, and revising again. When they are done, they stand alone in front of their peers and recite poetry, using voice and gesture to bring their words to life. This may sound like an English teacher's pipe dream, but it is becoming a common experience in classrooms across the country. In lower-income neighborhoods in cities like New York and Chicago, students are competing with words and then settling in for discussions of metaphor, assonance, consonance, and allusion.

Source : http://www.edutopia.org/poetry-slam-global-writes

A poetry slam

Simply put, a poetry slam is a competitive poetry reading in which poets perform their own writing for scores. Slams are open and democratic in nature; anyone who wishes to sign up for the competition can. The scores, which range from 0.0 to 10.0, are assigned by volunteer judges (typically five of them) selected from the audience. The highest and the lowest scores for a poem are dropped and the three remaining scores are added together for a maximum total of 30 points. There is also a time limit of three minutes and ten seconds per performance; poets may and do go over this limit, but a time penalty is assessed and figured into their scores. Poets are also restricted in how they perform; no "props, costumes, or animal acts" are allowed. Musical accompaniment, except for that which poets can make with their own body, is also usually excluded. Beyond that, poets are free to use the microphone and any other items on stage to perform their poems. At stake are titles, small cash prizes, and even gag prizes. From the winners of local and regional slams, representative teams from cities across the US and Canada (and some international teams) are certified to compete at the National Poetry Slam, which takes place annually in August.

Source : http://www.rattle.com/rattle27/somerswillett.htm

How does music benefit the brain?

Sometimes, watching a musician perform live can make us mere listeners feel like they have superpowers. Now, new research suggests brief musical training increases blood flow in the left hemisphere of the brain, but there are other benefits for listeners, too.

Researchers from the Department of Psychological Sciences at the University of Liverpool in the UK conducted two different studies to investigate how musical training affects the flow of blood to the brain.

They say their findings, which they presented at the British Psychological Society annual conference in Birmingham, UK, suggest the areas in charge of music and language share common pathways in the brain.

In early 2014, Medical News Today reported on a study that revealed brain scans of jazz musicians showed similarities between language and music. Researchers from that study said the brain likely uses its syntactic regions to process all communication - whether spoken or through music.

Source : http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/276595.php 

How I increase my business revenues?

It took me several months to successfully generated RM 1 million as my business capital. Now it is time to maintaining my profits and brainstorms ideas and ways on how I can increase my business revenues from RM 1 million to RM5 million. Before that I would like to tell you the meaning of these two terms which is majorly mistaken as the same meaning. The words “revenue” and “income” have different meanings, and become confusing if used as synonyms. “Sales” refers to the number of units of your product you sell, and “revenues” refers to the total amount money your sales generates. Below are ways on how I will increase my business revenues from RM1 million to RM5 million :

1. Make my customers buy more from my musical instrument stores and make them come to my stores and buy again.

Firstly, I need to get my database of previous customers up to date and organized. Then I need to design three or four tempting offers I could approach them with.  (It may be a new product or service, a discount on your usual products, or an expensive version of what I have traditionally offered). Then I will either call them direct, email them or send a direct mail piece about the offer, stating why it is so good and how they can buy it. Generally speaking, if I present more buying opportunities to my customers, they will buy more. As long as I don’t endlessly bother them, the more I ask them to spend money with me ,the more they will do so. Besides that, I need to work on getting more of my existing customers to come back to the cash register again. There are multiple ways to create multiple purchases. First, I need to begin looking immediately at how I can multiply my offerings. Most businesses cannot survive on just one product or service forever. The money I spend acquiring each customer can be a losing proposition if I only get one shot at one sale. So I will start by adding more products and services. Next, I need to do a better job nurturing my customers. This is because marketing is not just about leading prospects to the buying stage but it is also about keeping buyers engaged with us for years to come so you that sales can be generated.

2. Accept credit/debit cards.

Accepting credit cards for payment is a benefit to potential customers and is a proven method to quickly spur sales. Firstly, I need to go to the bank or local financial institution and create a merchant account. The best place to begin when trying to get merchant status is by approaching the bank that already holds my business accounts. There are several reasons why I chose to accept credit/debit cards in my business. Firstly, it is so accessible and so easy to add point of sales equipment to my business. Secondly, there are various studies show that when people are given more payment options (beyond cash); they are more likely to make impulse purchases, join loyalty programs, and spend more per purchase – and that can only help my business to grow. Thirdly,many people prefer not to carry cash, especially when traveling. Others prefer to pay with credit cards because they know that it will be easier to return or exchange the merchandise. Fourth, it gives me the chance to increase sales by enabling customers to make impulse buys even when they do not have cash in their wallets or sufficient funds in their checking accounts. Moreover, accepting credit cards can improve cash flow because in most cases when receive the money within a few days instead of waiting for a check to clear or an invoice to come due. Finally, credit cards provide a guarantee that we will be paid, without the risks involved in accepting personal checks.

3. Add complementary services to existing products.

Adding complementary services or products may help you gain new clients, as well as maintain existing ones. In addition to selling musical instruments, I can increase revenues my business revenues and profits by providing instrument repairs, classes, music instrument rentals, and sales of related products such as sheet music. Firstly, I need to look for individuals who can handle instrument service and repair, music education as well as sales. In the meantime, I also need to ensure that I choose people who are dedicated in their work and willing to help my the growth of my business. I will provide top quality repairs that last using the best tools, supplies, and parts. I will do first class repairs on guitars and ukuleles and about any other type of acoustic instrument. My customers can be assured that their repair will be made using the finest materials, quality workmanship and extreme attention to detail.

4. Crowdfunding

The use of small amounts of capital from a large number of people to finance a new business venture. Crowdfunding makes use of the easy accessibility of huge networks of friends, family and colleagues through social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to get the word out about a new business and attract investors. Crowdfunding has the possible ability to increase entrepreneurship by expanding the pool of investors from whom money can be raised beyond the usual circle of owners, relatives and venture capitalists. In other words, crowdfunding is a new way of raising money whether for business or for charity purpose. In the early days, the only sources of money was bankloans, angel, loans from family and friends or donations. There are three popular sites for crowdfunding in Malaysia namely: Pitchin.my , SocialSharity.com and Mystartr.com.

5. Increase social media marketing strategies

Quantity does not necessarily mean quality, so careful planning, test-marketing and monitoring results maximizes sales. So, I should conduct marketplace research to learn which messages speak to my target audience. Besides that, I need to run ads and promotions in limited locations and check the results before spending my entire budget. Furthermore, I need to incorporate some way to monitor marketing communications, such as using coupons, electronic codes or website traffic statistics. Apart from that, I need to create my own business website, blog, twitter and Facebook page to reach out to my customers.

Ideas on how I generate my business capital

I have completed my business plan in order to pursue my dream. My consultant asked me to propose five ideas on how to generate 1 million as a business capital. So below are my ideas on how I generate my business capital:

FIVE IDEAS ON HOW I GENERATE RM 1 MILLION AS A BUSINESS CAPITAL 

1. Make a business plan for my musical instrument business. The purpose of a business plan is to provide us with  guidance and to help convey the business ideas to investors or lenders. A business plan should provide specific and organized information about company and how we will repay the loan. I applied for a maximum RM500,000 fund which is called Graduate Entrepreneur Fund (TUS2). It is a special fund provided to encourage graduates to venture into business. It is a financing scheme for graduates to start up a business as well as expansion of existing business. 
2. Use personal savings. Personal savings are the most common source of funds for a new business.  This is because most lenders will not finance 100 % of our business, so my first source of capital will probably be a loan from myself. Most lenders require that a reasonable percentage of our own funds be invested in our business, as an indication that we will work hard to make the business a success.
3. Borrowing from friends and family. It is a good way for new businesses to get money. It is not uncommon for relatives to make low interest or no interest loans to family members. However, I risk alienating my family if the business falls on hard times and if I have trouble repaying the loan. So I must ensure that I have a written agreement regarding the amount borrowed, the interest rate and how and when the loan is to be repaid.
4. Angel investor. It is an individual (my father's friend) who invests in business during its start-up phase who is also a supporter in the early stages of a business. They typically never put more than 1 million into a project and generally like to make investment in business that work in industry they are personally familiar with. 
5. Business partner. An individual or company who has some degree of involvement with another entity's business dealings. I chose my brother to be my business partner because we have same interest and passion in music. 
   

I WANT TO OPEN UP MY OWN MUSICAL INSTRUMENT STORE!

(Image : Google courtesy)

Although there are a number of musical instrument stores in Malaysia, I have always dream of having my own musical instrument store. What differentiate my music store from others is that I will separate my store from my main competitors by giving extra attention to my customers and educating them about the products they need or desire before, during and after the sale. Besides that, I am going to offer my customers with creative programs to reward my customer loyalty thus providing them repair service for the item they have purchased. Moreover, I will also make a community events by giving a free lesson and do a competition.

There is one quote which I really love:

"Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world"

-Joel A. Barker

My favourite poet

(Image courtesy ;Google)

Some of you might be wondering how do I know this guy. Well, I went to AvenueK to attend this event called OhhSOME Fest on 13th December 2014 (Saturday) with my friends. It was a social media festival which meant to be a festival celebrating the glory of social media in Malaysia. While waiting for the song performances, we sat at the stairs that leads to the rooftop and listened to a few talks on how to educate everyone on the who, what, why, and how of using digital & social media advertising tools in an inspiring manner. I was in awe when he started speaking. So he talked about why he writes and all that jazz. Honestly, I am so moved by listening to him that day, I even had "maybe I should start writing" thought in my mind. Lol. Anyway, below is a little bit of his biography that I took from his Facebook fan page and I did paraphrased some of the words. 

A trilingual Malaysian, Jamal Raslan who can't decide between Bahasa Melayu and English as his fundamental dialect, is a poet who is an extraordinary illustration of the problem that is the current Malaysian youth – advanced, uncovered, liberal however yet attempting to discover a feeling of having a place in the personality emergency that shakes each English-talking Malay Muslim. Just as at home speaking and thinking in Bahasa Melayu and English, he used to compose solely in Bahasa Melayu as Jamal Raslan didn't think he has an English composing "voice", up to this point. 

Intensely motivated by talked word writers far and wide, from pummel artists to Def Poetry to the expressive and emotive neighborhood African artists at Poet's Passport, Jamal Raslan expounds on the difficulties that the nation and its kin face in its interest for advancement and Wawasan 2020 in a manner that he hope will one day help form a unique "voice" that is Malaysian spoken word. 

What is poetry slam?

How playing an instrument benefits your brain

When you listen to music, multiple areas of your brain become engaged and active. But when you actually play an instrument, that activity becomes more like a full-body brain workout. What's going on? Anita Collins explains the fireworks that go off in musicians' brains when they play, and examines some of the long-term positive effects of this mental workout. 

Lesson by Anita Collins, animation by Sharon Colman Graham.

The beauty of music

(Image : google courtesy)

For me, music is a part of life that cannot be separated. Music gives a lot of meaning in my life. Something that fills the day - my day. When I am doing assignments, when I cook or wash even when I write. Music is something that makes me smile. Music is something that is always there when I'm happy or when I'm sad.

Music is one way to express ourselves. There are variety of ways to express ourselves. Some people opt for a painting medium of expression. Some prefer to write to channel their ideas, opinions or another form of self-expression. Among the various ways of expression, one of my ways to express myself is through music.

Since I am the only 'princess' in my family, I can say that I am pretty much influenced by my brothers because they play music instruments; drums, guitar, ukulele, bass, keyboard, you name it. To make it short,as soon as I finished my diploma, my little brother taught me how to play a guitar. In the meantime, I also watched a lot of video tutorial on YouTube. It took me a couple of months to master the basic skills. One day, I picked up my brother's ukulele and learned it by myself. It wasn't as tough as the first time I learned to play a guitar because once you have the guitar basic skills, you will be able to play any strings-music-instruments. The chords are different but playing a ukulele is much easier because it only have four strings compared to guitar, six strings. There's a saying,

"When there's a will, there's a way"

Apart from playing music instruments, I also love to sing. People often ask me random question like "Did you go to any vocal class?" I can't help it but laughed. The answer is no, I haven't attend to any vocal class before nor do I have intention to attend one. My brothers and I often have this "busking session" or "siblings bonding" time at home to kill the boredom. One would pick their instrument and followed by another and together we jam to our favourite songs.

A fresh start

Assalamu'alaikum. Hi everyone! I don't remember the last time I went here. I created my blog when I was in high school back in 2008. After a few years blogging, I get pretty bored and decided to moved to Tumblr and deleted my blog. 

Setting up a new blog is kinda hard because I totally forgot how to use this. Everything has changed on Blogger. The reason I created this blog is for academic purpose. I have been assigned by my E-Commerce lecturer, Sir Nizam to create a blog and write about my interests. Sounds interesting, huh? 

Sir asked every students in class,

"What's your interest?"

And when it came to my turn, I answered this:

"Umm music and slam poetry"

He asked what does slam poetry means and I answered,

"It is a type of poetry where a person express their personal story, thoughts, experiences, or even struggles usually in an intensely emotional style. They actually vocalize it and not just keep it on paper like a normal poetry" 

Not to forget, I need to link my blog feeds to my Facebook page. And please do follow my blog. It is not about gaining a popularity or whatsoever, strictly for academic purpose.

Thank you! :)