What is "Export-Ready" ?
SaskMusic’s Definition of “Export-Ready”
We offer some programming that is specifically intended to develop our export-ready artists. To help determine if an artist is at a place in their career where they are ready to engage in potential export opportunities, we have created a set of export-ready criteria.
First,
- All export-ready artists must have promotional material available to the public online, including a web homepage and/or social media presence.
- Additionally, all export-ready artists must have a business and/or marketing plan.
Your business and/or marketing plan as an artist
An artist business plan outlines the goals, objectives, and methods an artist or musician intends to follow to achieve success in their career. While business plans are commonly associated with traditional business ventures, they are increasingly important for artists to help them navigate the market's complexities.
A typical artist business or marketing plan may include things such as:
- Detailed information about the artist - including background, musical style, influences, achievements, and unique qualities.
- Overview of the artist's brand and image.
- Notes on the current state of the music industry relative to the artist's genre.
- Identification of target audience (ie who is your typical fan).
- Clear and measurable goals for the artist's career, including short and long-term objectives.
- Plans for marketing the artist through channels such as social media, live performances, radio, playlisting, and collaborations.
- Opportunities anticipated such as showcasing, sync placements, music sales, merchandise, and sponsorships.
- Description of the artist's team, including key band members, managers, agents, and collaborators.
- A timeline of anticipated activities.
Note: If the artist has applied for marketing or career development grants, you may have already prepared much of this information. If you don’t already have a plan, you can set up a consult with SaskMusic staff or (for current members) one of our many Music Mentors to help you get started.
Export-ready checkpoints
In addition to a web presence and business or marketing plan, the following criteria may be used to determine if an artist is export-ready. This list is subject to updates, so please review it when applying to any new export intake.
Typically, an artist will be considered export-ready if they meet 3-4 of the following checkpoints (depending on the opportunity details posted).
Artist has:
- Released at least one commercial album’s worth of material in the past 24 months. (Minimum length of 6 tracks or 20 minutes, either as singles or as a package, widely available to the public via streaming and/or download sites.)
and/or
Plans to release at least one commercial album's worth of material in the next 6 months. (Minimum length of 5 songs, either as singles or as a package, widely available to the public via streaming and/or download sites.)
Many showcases or festivals prefer to book artists who are supporting a release.
We are partially relating this criteria to FACTOR’s requirements for their Live Performance Program grant.
- Established team members, including at least two of the following: artist manager, record label, publisher, booking agent, radio tracker, and/or publicist.
- Public and/or industry support (demonstrated through video view counts, press or blog mentions, tour dates - including tours as a supporting artist, award recognition, etc.).
- Been approved for a music grant in the past 5 years (e.g. FACTOR, Creative Saskatchewan, SK Arts, Canada Council).
- Received national award recognition (e.g. nominations for JUNO Awards, Folk Awards, Maple Blues Awards, Canadian Country Music Awards, Covenant Awards)
- Reached >3000 combined streams of individual tracks released under this artist name.
- Reached >2000 combined song downloads of all tracks/recordings released under this artist name. (ie if artist has two albums out of 8 songs each, and each album has been downloaded 125 times, that is >3000.)
- Significant social media followers (>10,000 followers on Instagram or Facebook, >15,000 followers on TikTok)
- Been invited to showcase (under the current artist name) at a national or international industry event in the past 5 years.
- And for live performance opportunities, such as showcase events: The artist’s plan demonstrates significant experience performing live and the ability to take advantage of international opportunities, such as invitations to perform/tour outside of Canada, in the next 6-24 months.
These checkpoints are intended to provide a general impression of the artist’s export-readiness, but are subjective; additionally, our export partners may have varying views on what constitutes ‘export ready’ for a specific event. Where intakes are juried, SaskMusic staff reserves the right to determine if an artist meets export-ready criteria and thus shall go forward to jury. Alternately, we may send the application forward to jury and allow jurors to make this determination.
Additional requirements for SaskMusic-supported showcases
Significant resources are allocated to our annual export program to help develop international markets for Saskatchewan artists.
Artists performing in SaskMusic-sponsored/co-presented domestic and international showcases agree to participate fully in any associated business-to-business meetings and conference components offered for their benefit during the event. Additionally, artists agree to provide written final reports and feedback surveys to SaskMusic within 30 days of the event’s conclusion. (These may consist of similar final reports to those being prepared for grant agencies who funded the artist’s showcase travel.) These items assist SaskMusic in reporting to our own funders and judging the effectiveness of the event(s).
All artists participating in SaskMusic events shall agree to and abide by our Code of Conduct.
If you have questions about your export-readiness, or expanding your audience outside of Canada, please contact our Export and Program Manager Kaelen Klypak, kaelen@saskmusic.org.