She told me - but I didn't really believe her.

Before I did this recording I met with another local recording artist for lunch. We discussed the process of successfully making and marketing a recording. She told me that I needed to allocate most of my budget toward marketing and promotion rather than production.

Being the perfectionist that I am, I didn't realy believe her. I thought, "I can't make a sloppy record. It needs to be as close to perfect as possible. Once I get it heard and played on the radio then people will buy it and it will pay for itself."

Well, she really did know what she was talking about. I had no idea how much it costs to market a product. I manufactured my CD through Oasis CD Manufacturing. Oasis offers a program called the Tools Of Promotion. It comes automatically with a sizeable CD order. It allows the artist to have a lot of free stuff and an online presence. But the conventional world of music dictates that the music has to be played on the radio and has to be available in stores before people will spend money on it. Now there are independently owned (aka Mom & Pop) stores that will sell your CDs on consignment all over the country.

But why didn't anyone tell me how much it costs to buy the nice presentation folders that I need to send the CDs in? If you want the radio stations to open your package it needs to be a very nice, professional presentation... something that will stand out from the rest of the mail that they get... something that will cause them to actually put the CD in a CD player and listen to it. You can't go with the 25 cent folders and 10 cent envelopes. You have to spend some money.

Any why didn't anyone tell me how much it costs to get the black & white photos done? And why didn't anyone tell me how much postage I would be spending to send out all of the promotional CDs?

Sounds like I'm complaining? Not really. I was just surprised at the cost of marketing and promoting a project. Now I understand why artists try so hard to get a record deal. The industry is designed for the deep pockets of record labels. Without deep pockets, you need God's favor - and thank God I have it!

So, with no real budget for marketing and promotion, we have been able to secure radio play on four radio stations in the Virginia Beach/Hampton Roads area, three stations in the Charleston, SC area and one station in the Beaufort, SC area. We have people working the Columbia/Orangeburg SC area and the Richmond, VA area. We have record stores carrying the CD in Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Portsmouth, VA as well as Charleston, North Charleston, St. Stephens and Beaufort, SC.

Doors are opening daily. I am still hearing from people in the industry that have heard the CD. There are people making contact with record labels about the CD. God is doing what I can't do for myself.

I was reading the story of the Exodus today. Exodus chapter 14 verse 14 really came alive for me today... "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Didn't I write a song about that?