Marketing on the Internet - Jimmy Buffett's Technical Guru
Working Away at Radio Margaritaville - Meet BubbleUp CEO Coleman Sisson ...
Working Away at Radio MargaritavilleMeet BubbleUp CEO Coleman Sisson ...Technical Guru and Internet Marketing Whiz to the Music World What do you do for an encore after you've helped create the most successful Internet radio station on the planet? If you are Coleman Sisson, general manager of Jimmy Buffett's Radio Margaritaville, you launch BubbleUp, a Woodlands, Texas based company that creates, manages and markets websites for musicians and corporations. BubbleUp was launched in 2005 and with its creation Coleman was able to combine his lifelong love of music with the expertise and experience he gained as a senior executive in the high tech field. Throw in some old fashioned, small town customer service inherited from his parents and you've got a company that creates websites that allow fans to keep up with their favorite musicians, purchase their favorite songs, sign up for newsletters, and stock up on merchandise. BubbleUp is a one stop shopping experience for the artist looking to connect more effectively with fans via the Internet. Combining music and technology is the natural evolution of Coleman's diverse interests and careers. As a kid in Arkansas, he grew up appreciating and enjoying music, and learned to play several instruments. "My first instrument was the trumpet but I discovered you can't get dates with that," said Coleman, "so I picked up the bass guitar, then the harmonica, then the guitar. I finally was able to get dates even though I was a computer nerd in the mid 70's." But his aptitude for computer science led him away from music and into a lucrative career in the high tech field. After he graduated from The University of Arkansas with a degree in Data Processing and Quantitative Analysis, Coleman was CEO, President or Vice- President of several high tech companies, including Liberate, CyberSafe, Powersoft and Compaq Computer Corporation. While these high profile jobs were rewarding on a professional level, they left him personally unsatisfied. He toiled for years at the corporate jobs not because he wanted to, but because he felt it was what he had to do. But deep inside Coleman knew he wanted more - he longed for a career in music. In 1989, fate lent a hand. Coleman was working in Houston as Manager of Customer Support of Compaq Computer Corporation. One memorable day, a phone call came in from Florida. "It was from a Compaq dealer in Florida who said Jimmy Buffett's computer had crashed with a lot of important information on it. Now I had some fun people working for me at Compaq Customer Support and they loved practical jokes. So, thinking it was a joke, I told the guy I'd make sure it got fixed but only if I could speak to Jimmy. The next day, Jimmy called. I'd been a fan of his for years. He'd been working on his second book, 'Where Is Joe Merchant?' and had the whole manuscript in his computer and his hard drive crashed. He was a little anxious, as you can imagine. I got his computer and fortunately, we were able to recover the manuscript." Coleman and Jimmy hit it off, and although he spent most of his time climbing the Silicon Valley corporate ladder, Coleman began moonlighting as a technological advisor for Mr. Buffett. "In ’97 or ’98, Jimmy called and told me he wanted to buy a Key West radio station. He was a fan of the old outlaw radio stations in the '50’s and '60’s and had the idea that he’d buy a station and broadcast whatever he wanted, from music to Cuban baseball games. Jimmy asked if I could help him," Coleman explained. "I suggested he start an Internet radio station instead because it would reach a worldwide audience. Jimmy listened to the idea and decided to go the Internet radio route. So, I just had to figure out how to make it all work. We did, and we’ve been on the air now for nine years." Coleman is still the General Manager of Radio Margaritaville, which broadcasts a mesmerizing blend of spicy Caribbean rhythms, lively beach music, rock, a little folk and lots of Buffett’s own tunes. It is so successful that in 2005, Radio Margaritaville became the first Internet radio station to cross over to satellite radio and can now be heard on Sirius channel 31, and on Dish Network television channel 6031. The radio station and BubbleUp won the 2006 Web Marketing Associations’ Best Radio Website Award. "We (BubbleUp and Jimmy Buffett) were fortunate to win Best In Class, which is the top spot, in the Internet Radio category for Radio Margaritaville," Coleman said. "We also were awarded Outstanding Web Site in the Music category for MuzikMafia.com. We were one of only two companies recognized in that category out of thousands of entries". BubbleUp’s awards carry serious clout in the Internet marketing industry. "The WebAwards, sponsored by the Web Marketing Association, recognizes the best Internet sites across 96 industry categories. Radio MargaritavilleTM captured the 'Best in Class,’ spot in the Internet Radio category. MuzikMafia.com was recognized as an 'Outstanding Web Site’ in the Music category," said Amanda Van Nuys, Executive Director of Marketing at Organic, Inc., a leading digital marketing company, whose CEO, Mark Kingdon, served as the Chair of the Web Awards. "The judges review thousands of sites, so these awards are a hardwon and a well-deserved honor." As Coleman’s dissatisfaction with the corporate world grew, Buffett’s Internet success gave him an idea – what if he could help other artists embrace the same emerging Internet technology that Jimmy did to more effectively reach their fan bases? With that simple notion, BubbleUp was born. "There are a handful of clever entrepreneurs out there reinventing the music business. Coleman is one of these individuals who sees what the future can be for musicians and is working to create that future through BubbleUp, " said Dave Kusek, author of The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution and vice president of the Berkeley School of Music Online. Having been one, Coleman knows first hand about a musician’s plight. "Musicians don’t make a lot of money from album sales," Coleman said. "They make money from concert ticket sales and merchandise, like T-shirts. BubbleUp was founded on the concept of helping artists get more money from their music, to literally help more money bubble up to the artist." Coleman draws on his past experience to create websites that attract fans and gets them involved. Giving fans easy access to the musician’s songs, merchandise and information is BubbleUp’s plan for generating more revenue and exposure for its clientele. In only two years the BubbleUp staff has grown to be as diverse as Coleman’s own career path, including hard-core computer code geeks, experienced corporate marketers, graphic designers and more than a few musicians. "I think that’s part of what makes us well-suited to work with our clients," says BubbleUp Vice President Lee Totten, whose resume includes nine years as a full-time singer/songwriter and a Grammy voting membership. "We understand the needs of musicians because we’ve been in the industry, and yet we also have the best technical and marketing people to implement the solutions we come up with. It’s the best of both worlds." And yet BubbleUp isn’t only concerned about entertainment industry clients – its list of projects includes more than its share of customers from Coleman’s previous corporate life. "I learned a long time ago that companies have fans too," Coleman explains. "They just call them 'customers’ instead of fans." It would seem the years of hard work and innovation are finally paying off for Coleman. He has transitioned. He married his high school sweetheart, Tammy, and left the career field where people told him he should be and ventured out into the field of his dreams. He remains the technology guru for Mr. Buffett. Last year, BubbleUp launched 28 new websites for customers. Its client list includes Barbra Streisand, John Mellencamp, Gretchen Wilson, Ralph MacDonald and Big and Rich. BubbleUp even expanded its base to serve businesses outside the music industry, such as Celebritycellars.com, Sam Houston Race Park, Sterling First Aid and the Retirement Pros. His business is growing, he gets to spend time in the music world, and he no longer needs a date. Things have certainly "bubbled up" for Coleman Sisson. |
