Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob Lindquist.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Music has always been a vital part of my life. I’ve always gravitated towards the power and emotions that music can bring about when listening. In 2008, I started interning at an artist management company doing anything that was asked of me from social media management, video editing and graphic design. I wasn’t very experienced but I was a problem solver. Anything that needed to be done that I didn’t know how to get done, I learned how to do it and got it done. During this time, I noticed that most of our income was coming from branding, licensing and touring.
This discovery lead me to being the 3rd employee in a music licensing start up called Music Dealers. Among multiple hats worn at an early start-up, my main objective was focusing on building an artist community that appeals to some of the world’s largest brands and networks. Over the next 8+ years at that licensing agency, I built the largest pre-cleared non-exclusive artist community and used the power of independent artists to amplify global and national campaigns for Coca-Cola, Hasbro, Fanta, Airbnb, Dasani & more. This is where I learned to connect the dots between artists and brands while strengthening my love for what music can do emotionally to consumers.
Seeing first-hand the power brands have on millions of people with one song and campaign helped lead to the creation of Songfinch. If brands can make people cry with a story and song, why can’t the average person use that same medium to create similar emotions? Songfinch launched October 2016 and we’ve done around 500 songs in our first year and landed some pretty awesome partnerships with Susan G. Komen, Destination Weddings and some more big ones in the works. We’ve put around $50,000 in the pockets of independent artists and look forward to seeing that continue to grow.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Starting a business from the ground up is never a smooth road. Although I’ve been around start-ups my entire career, Songfinch has been the toughest by far. Working all night, working weekends, losing sleep trying to solve a problem or figure out the next move is a frequent occurrence but the hopes are that it pays off in the end. Start-ups come with high highs and low lows. It’s all about the balance and ability to deal with the lows which not getting too carried away with the highs. Some days the start-up grind can be tough mentally but when we read the testimonials that our customers send us almost every day, they always outweigh the struggles.
When starting a company, everything has to be well thought out from determining who your target audience is to something that seems simple like choosing your brand colors. Our team is full of entrepreneurs so this isn’t the first time we’ve built something from scratch. One of our co-founders, John Williamson, has built a few companies and he has been a key member of building what Songfinch has become. Having someone that you can bounce questions off of that has been a lifeline. Along with that, we’re all very good friends so nobody holds back their opinions which can make things take a bit longer but the end result is always that much better.
With Songfinch, we are developing a sub-market within the gifting market. When people hear “personalized songs,” they think it is a template with fill in the blanks and that isn’t what we are. We wanted to get deeper and make songs that are 100% true to the customer’s personal story and feelings. All our songs are made from scratch based on info the customer provides. So getting the word out and educating people on the product, power of the product and why they should get it has been another challenge.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Songfinch is a personalized gifting company giving customers the ability to harness that power by turning their stories, memories and ideas into one-of-a-kind songs from scratch that make for unforgettable gifts.
The foundation of Songfinch lies in our diverse, curated community of professional musicians who all share a desire to make a difference with their music and generate income on their own terms. By leveraging this growing community of over 250 artists, Songfinch is able to offer a line of personalized music products aimed at dozens of gifting occasions.
What makes me proud is all the good we are doing with each song we create. First, we’ve developed a unique service that allows everybody to connect with a loved on a whole new level. The power of every song is incredible and is hard to believe without experiencing it yourself. On the other hand, we are giving independent artists the ability to make money doing what they love instead of waiting tables. I’ve always developed my career on being “in the artist’s corner” because there are many people and entities in the music business that don’t carry that same value and it can destroy careers.
What sets us apart from others is the power of our product itself. We’ve done around 500 songs so far and have received incredible feedback. Almost every song I deliver, I get an email about how the song made them cry or it was the best gift ever or they cannot believe how personal and good the song is. These emails alone make every struggle and bump in the road worth it. It’s super fun to be a part of something that is doing good in the world and evoking such powerful emotion in strangers all over the world. Lastly, our songwriting community is a big reason how we stand apart. They allows us to do what we do on a high level by consistently delivering incredible, radio-quality songs.
What were you like growing up?
I was a bit shy growing up and my parents did everything they could to give me and my siblings everything we could need. We were not rich, but we had what we needed. I spent a lot of time outside trying to stay active and doing things I enjoyed. I played baseball, basketball, golf, skateboarded, rollerbladed, biked, anything else that would allow me to be outside. We had a swimming pool so having friends over to swim was always a summer activity.
Baseball was the love of my life along with music. I bought my first CD when I was 9 after my older brother convinced my mom it was okay for me to listen to – 2Pac’s “All Eyes On Me” (which still remains one of my fav albums). From there, I started collecting CDs and remembered getting a 500 disc CD changer that I almost filled up. I listened to everything from 2Pac and Notorious B.I.G to Alanis Morissette and The Rolling Stones.
In school, I kept to myself for the most part but had a solid friend group. I was always more concerned with quality over quantity in regards to friends, which still remains true today. I graduated high school in 2005 and went to college for one year before deciding to intern for the management company which led me to where I’m at today.
Pricing:
- Personalized Song Experience is $200 & delivered within 7 days.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1765 N. Elston Ave.
Suite 211 - Website: http://www.songfinch.com
- Email: rob@songfinch.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/songfinch/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/songfinch/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/songfinch
- Other: https://soundcloud.com/songfinch
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