Post by Ceeje on Apr 16, 2006 5:53:28 GMT -5
I've been doing some research and here is what I've found. If you already know this, ignore it. If you don't, give it a read.
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from Dino:
Oh yeah, and keep in mind that certain stores are weighted, which means you get credit for 2 or 3 cds when you buy one. Store like that near Chicago are Reckless Records, Rolling Stone Records, and Atomic in Milwaukee - which is 10-1 HINT HINT. THis is how major cds get a ton of sales - buy really hitting these stores. I am not telling anyone what to do, but it may be good to find some of these stores and buy your cds from there.........
The Billboard album charts are compiled using data from Nielsen Soundscan.
Nielsen Soundscan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information system that tracks sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada. Sales data from point-of-sale cash registers is collected weekly from over 14,000 retail, mass merchant and non-traditional (on-line stores, venues, etc.) outlets. Weekly data is compiled and made available every Wednesday. Nielsen SoundScan is the sales source for the Billboard music charts. (Source)
Nielsen SoundScan clients include all major and most independent record companies, distribution companies, artist managers, booking agents, concert promoters, venue owners, traditional retailers, online retailers and digital delivery companies. (Source)
Nielsen SoundScan collects point-of-sales information from Retail, Mass Merchant, Independent Retail, Internet Retail sites, Venues, Mail Order and Digital Download providers. (Source)
SoundScan is basically the Neilson ratings for record sales. Every time you go into a major record store--Sam Goody, Best Buy, Tower, Virgin--and you buy a record, it gets scanned and it goes to a central database. It registers your market and the sale of the record. In smaller markets, they are weighted. Weighted sales mean that if you buy a record in a small town in Virginia, and there are ten record stores there, but only one is SoundScanned, they basically say, well if somebody bought it in this store, it has probably sold seven copies in the market. They weight your sale in smaller markets. In larger markets it's one-to-one. That's basically what SoundScan is. (Source)
Billboard Charts
Data for Billboard's sales charts -- which include all of our album charts -- are compiled by Nielsen SoundScan from a universe of merchants that represents more than 90% of the U.S. music retail market. The sample includes not only music stores and the music departments at electronics and department stores, but also direct-to-consumer transactions and Internet sales (both physical albums via Internet, and ones bought via digital downloads). A limited array of verifiable sales from concert venues is also tabulated.
All sales charts use the entire Nielsen SoundScan panel, with the exception of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts which uses a panel of core stores that specialize in the genre. The Nielsen SoundScan system utilizes that same point-of-sale that music merchants use to track their inventory, so you can think of itemized receipt from your last trip to the music store as a ballot cast for our charts.
Generally, charts reflect sales and airplay between Monday and Sunday of any given week. However, the mixed data charts (The Billboard Hot 100, Pop 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs) use an airplay cycle of Wednesday through Tuesday.
Charts are available Thursday on Billboard.com and Billboard.biz and reflect the date of the Billboard issue in which they appear. In the case of online-only charts, it is the same issue date as all other charts reflecting data from the same seven-day period. (Source)
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What does all this mean? Record stores in small towns should be weighted if they use Soundscan. Nielsen won't release a list of these stores, so how do we find out for sure? If we call the stores and ask, will they tell us? Any ideas or thoughts?
Stores that are weighted:
Chicago
Reckless Records
Rolling Stone Records
Milwaukee
Atomic
If you know of any more that are weighted, please let me know.
____________________________________________
from Dino:
Oh yeah, and keep in mind that certain stores are weighted, which means you get credit for 2 or 3 cds when you buy one. Store like that near Chicago are Reckless Records, Rolling Stone Records, and Atomic in Milwaukee - which is 10-1 HINT HINT. THis is how major cds get a ton of sales - buy really hitting these stores. I am not telling anyone what to do, but it may be good to find some of these stores and buy your cds from there.........
The Billboard album charts are compiled using data from Nielsen Soundscan.
Nielsen Soundscan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information system that tracks sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada. Sales data from point-of-sale cash registers is collected weekly from over 14,000 retail, mass merchant and non-traditional (on-line stores, venues, etc.) outlets. Weekly data is compiled and made available every Wednesday. Nielsen SoundScan is the sales source for the Billboard music charts. (Source)
Nielsen SoundScan clients include all major and most independent record companies, distribution companies, artist managers, booking agents, concert promoters, venue owners, traditional retailers, online retailers and digital delivery companies. (Source)
Nielsen SoundScan collects point-of-sales information from Retail, Mass Merchant, Independent Retail, Internet Retail sites, Venues, Mail Order and Digital Download providers. (Source)
SoundScan is basically the Neilson ratings for record sales. Every time you go into a major record store--Sam Goody, Best Buy, Tower, Virgin--and you buy a record, it gets scanned and it goes to a central database. It registers your market and the sale of the record. In smaller markets, they are weighted. Weighted sales mean that if you buy a record in a small town in Virginia, and there are ten record stores there, but only one is SoundScanned, they basically say, well if somebody bought it in this store, it has probably sold seven copies in the market. They weight your sale in smaller markets. In larger markets it's one-to-one. That's basically what SoundScan is. (Source)
Billboard Charts
Data for Billboard's sales charts -- which include all of our album charts -- are compiled by Nielsen SoundScan from a universe of merchants that represents more than 90% of the U.S. music retail market. The sample includes not only music stores and the music departments at electronics and department stores, but also direct-to-consumer transactions and Internet sales (both physical albums via Internet, and ones bought via digital downloads). A limited array of verifiable sales from concert venues is also tabulated.
All sales charts use the entire Nielsen SoundScan panel, with the exception of the R&B/Hip-Hop charts which uses a panel of core stores that specialize in the genre. The Nielsen SoundScan system utilizes that same point-of-sale that music merchants use to track their inventory, so you can think of itemized receipt from your last trip to the music store as a ballot cast for our charts.
Generally, charts reflect sales and airplay between Monday and Sunday of any given week. However, the mixed data charts (The Billboard Hot 100, Pop 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs) use an airplay cycle of Wednesday through Tuesday.
Charts are available Thursday on Billboard.com and Billboard.biz and reflect the date of the Billboard issue in which they appear. In the case of online-only charts, it is the same issue date as all other charts reflecting data from the same seven-day period. (Source)
[/b]
__________________________________________________________
What does all this mean? Record stores in small towns should be weighted if they use Soundscan. Nielsen won't release a list of these stores, so how do we find out for sure? If we call the stores and ask, will they tell us? Any ideas or thoughts?
Stores that are weighted:
Chicago
Reckless Records
Rolling Stone Records
Milwaukee
Atomic
If you know of any more that are weighted, please let me know.