First, it's economics 101, not sales or marketing 101.
Second, the so called argument being made against the price drop 'causing' the increase in quantity sold... is not really an argument 'against it'. But, an additive. I can only speak for myself, but I definetly agree that price declines increase the quantity demanded for a product,... if the people in question demand it. So, yes, the price decline helped. But, I don't believe it's the sole reason.
The point we (on the other side) are trying to make is in regards to elasticity of demand for a product, in this case CDs. CDs by different bands are not interchangable. Just because the Britney Spears CD goes on sale, doesn't mean someone like you will buy. You may dislike her and therefore, not have a demand for her CDs at all. That's not to say, some people who kinda like her won't buy due to the decline in price. They will. A decline in price will cause the quantity demanded will increase.... but, demand won't increase. Demand only increases if an influencing factor other than price (for instance preferences change). Our argument is that Just Breathe is impacting preferences for the PJ CD. That's econ 101..... and now I'm falling asleep. If you read all that you get an A+ for the day and have a higher attention span than even I do.
I'm not following you. Price affects demand. There will be greater demand for something at $6.50 than at $11.98. At $11.98, people think they're overpaying. At $6.50, they think they're getting a bargain.
What happened here is that a bunch of people who wouldn't ordinarily buy the CD-- not because they don't like Pearl Jam, but because they don't buy many CDs-- bought it. This is not just baseless speculation. If "Just Breathe" were driving album sales, then there would be a corresponding spike in iTunes downolads of "Backspacer." There was no such spike. The sales spike is almost entirely accounted for by Target sales.
Backspacer went up to #45 because of one reason:
The lower price at Target.
Everyone who doubts this should wait for next weeks charts. Backspacer will be back to around 10.000 copies sold.
I find that REALLY hard to believe. I've NEVER bought a CD just because it was a few bucks off. People generally don't buy music because its on sale and a Pearl Jam CD isn't typically an impulse buy. Not this day in age. It probably cost more in gas just to get to the store.
nonsense. you're talking suburban, out-of-touch soccer moms coming in to grab things for xmas. i can see many of them going "i remember the name PJ, i'll buy this for so-and-so cos they used to like them/like rock/if it's got a big display it must be popular/etc." you're not talking about hipsters comparing the career catalogue of pj or jay-z, you're talking about clueless people grabbing the shiny display for cheap.
It's a little bit of this-- it's people who are aware of Pearl Jam as a popular rock band saying, "Hey, there's a cheap, fun stocking stuffer"; it's people who have been hearing good things about the record from friends or in the press going, "Hey, it's only $6.50, I'll check it out". Basically, it's people saying all sorts of things that all start with "Hey."
FWIW, I was listening to an indy rock station based in Westchester, NY a couple of days ago when they played a "new music" bumper. Sure enough, the following song was off of Bon Jovi's new album. Just kidding. They played "Just Breathe".
Speaking of "Just Breathe," the song has plummeted to 21st-most played at KROQ Los Angeles despite still being the 3rd-most requested song at the station. (It was as high as #2 on the most-played list a few weeks ago.) Meanwhile, "Use Somebody" and "Kids" (MGMT) are still among the ten most-played songs at KROQ after over a year of release. It's pathetic how calcified the playlists at commercial radio are.
Speaking of "Just Breathe," the song has plummeted to 21st-most played at KROQ Los Angeles despite still being the 3rd-most requested song at the station. (It was as high as #2 on the most-played list a few weeks ago.) Meanwhile, "Use Somebody" and "Kids" (MGMT) are still among the ten most-played songs at KROQ after over a year of release. It's pathetic how calcified the playlists at commercial radio are.
Also remember, KROQ played a "90's weekend" from Thursday to Sunday, and JB lost quite a bit of airplay. No new songs were played from any act during this period.
Speaking of "Just Breathe," the song has plummeted to 21st-most played at KROQ Los Angeles despite still being the 3rd-most requested song at the station. (It was as high as #2 on the most-played list a few weeks ago.) Meanwhile, "Use Somebody" and "Kids" (MGMT) are still among the ten most-played songs at KROQ after over a year of release. It's pathetic how calcified the playlists at commercial radio are.
Also remember, KROQ played a "90's weekend" from Thursday to Sunday, and JB lost quite a bit of airplay. No new songs were played from any act during this period.
But the list is relative. If "Just Breathe" didn't get played over the weekend, then neither would the 20 songs ahead of it on the most-played list. "The Fixer" was 17th-most-played, if I recall correctly. Then again, KROQ's playlist is so stagnant that some of its most-played songs might as well have been released in the '90s.
Just Breathe will be a slow burner......you guys are busting your nuts too early. Be patient, the second single off a new record often takes time to resonate and climb up the charts. Again, Just Breathe will be huge.
It JUST made it to the radio station where I live. A station that plays tons of Pearl Jam. Hits don't usually happen over night. Not unless they are expected to be a hit. Pearl Jam hasn't been expected to produce a hit in years.
The fact that The Fixer is still doing well is probably keeping Just Breathe from being played more. As the Fixer slides, Just Breathe will pick up a bit. I do not think it will be a monster it.
However, it is very cool right now that they have 2 songs in the top 20 Alternative and #12 and #21 on the Rock charts. It's great to have 2 great songs getting pretty significant airplay.
And it's starting to get more play on Mainstream Rock stations. So far it has only been played on Triple A and Alternative. Active Rock stations are the only one's who aren't playing Just Breathe.
Speaking of "Just Breathe," the song has plummeted to 21st-most played at KROQ Los Angeles despite still being the 3rd-most requested song at the station. (It was as high as #2 on the most-played list a few weeks ago.) Meanwhile, "Use Somebody" and "Kids" (MGMT) are still among the ten most-played songs at KROQ after over a year of release. It's pathetic how calcified the playlists at commercial radio are.
I don't pay too much attention to requests. Because radio stations don't play them. Maybe 1% of the time. And if you think they're playing your request. They were probably going to play the song anyway.
I'm actually surprised It's not huge. One of the best PJ songs in a long time imo aswell. Actually alot of the songs on "Backerspacer" are their best in a long time.
How can't everyone love Just Breathe though?. Makes no sense to me why It's not huge, but thats probably because I'm a huge PJ fan to beggin with. I'll never understand the lack of repect these guys still get. Green Day is bigger? U2? Kings of Leon? All of these bands should be opening for PJ.
Anyone know how many "Backspacer" albums have been sold? I've been trying to find out but never seem to get answers.
looking up...wondering if there is anything that you cannot do....
I'm actually surprised It's not huge. One of the best PJ songs in a long time imo aswell. Actually alot of the songs on "Backerspacer" are their best in a long time.
How can't everyone love Just Breathe though?. Makes no sense to me why It's not huge, but thats probably because I'm a huge PJ fan to beggin with. I'll never understand the lack of repect these guys still get. Green Day is bigger? U2? Kings of Leon? All of these bands should be opening for PJ.
Anyone know how many "Backspacer" albums have been sold? I've been trying to find out but never seem to get answers.
Hard to say what the actual number is. Unless you have access to soundcan numbers. It's probably around 360,000.
who cares what radio and critics think? radio sucks anyways. I never understand why people want everyone to love PJ. I actually wish the fanbase would get smaller and the band could play theaters someday.
Just Breathe = awesome
that's all that matters.
so let me get this straight, you want the band to become smaller so that they play theaters someday? very Selfish would you not say? if the band wanted to play theaters it would.
but i agree with you on 1 thing. Just Breathe is great
Speaking of "Just Breathe," the song has plummeted to 21st-most played at KROQ Los Angeles despite still being the 3rd-most requested song at the station. (It was as high as #2 on the most-played list a few weeks ago.) Meanwhile, "Use Somebody" and "Kids" (MGMT) are still among the ten most-played songs at KROQ after over a year of release. It's pathetic how calcified the playlists at commercial radio are.
I don't pay too much attention to requests. Because radio stations don't play them. Maybe 1% of the time. And if you think they're playing your request. They were probably going to play the song anyway.
That is basically true, on a one-off basis. But when a radio station gets tons of requests for a song, they will increase its spins. My point was that they were playing it a lot, the decision to do so was being reinforced by requests from listeners, and yet they seriously reduced the number of spins they're giving it. That's like telling your audience to go make love to itself.
I'm actually surprised It's not huge. One of the best PJ songs in a long time imo aswell. Actually alot of the songs on "Backerspacer" are their best in a long time.
How can't everyone love Just Breathe though?. Makes no sense to me why It's not huge, but thats probably because I'm a huge PJ fan to beggin with. I'll never understand the lack of repect these guys still get. Green Day is bigger? U2? Kings of Leon? All of these bands should be opening for PJ.
Anyone know how many "Backspacer" albums have been sold? I've been trying to find out but never seem to get answers.
They don't really promote themselves, and now they have no record company to do it. The album is also unavailable at every major retailer except Target, which did very little to promote its exclusive.
By the way, further evidence that the discount price drove the sales spike: Target's other exclusive, Prince's most recent triple-CD, was also discounted and, lo and behold, it re-entered the top 200 after many months off the chart.
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
Where are you getting this info?
I think its crazy that our local alternative station still has The Fixer in rotation WITH Just Breathe.. I can't remember a time their first single lasted long enough for the second single to start becoming a hit.
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
Where are you getting this info?
I think its crazy that our local alternative station still has The Fixer in rotation WITH Just Breathe.. I can't remember a time their first single lasted long enough for the second single to start becoming a hit.
Same here, both of these songs are being played on stations long enough to stick to people. In Los Angeles, we still get The Fixer about 60 times a week on the 2 big rock stations, and Just Breathe around 50 times a week.
They need to make up their minds on a 3rd single. Either Got Some or Unthought Known will be a nice hit as well.
Yeah, it's amazing that the Fixer is still going. I also cannot recall the last time one of their singles stuck around so long. It's been like 20 weeks now! And I'm not even tired of it. Usually I'm sick of the first single once the album comes out, as it usually is released 2 months before the album.
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
"Darkness comes in waves, tell me, why invite it to stay?"
It's getting a lot of spins in Philly. Looking at Recently Played on the local radio stations, it seems like they play The Fixer or Just Breathe every 20 to 30 songs. I think Just Breathe is starting to be played more than The Fixer.
I can't believe The Fixer is still being played, honestly. In my opinion, it may be their most successful single since Spin the Black Circle or Daughter. I sincerely think The Fixer got way more air play than even Given to Fly.
I think Just Breathe is being released at the perfect time. Winter and Just Breathe will go well together. Then next year.... I see one of these Got Some, Amongst the Waves or Unthought Known. Maybe we'll even get 4 singles. Who knows./
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
But on Billboard The Fixer will still be higher on the charts because it has more Active and Mainstream spins. But I also saw that The Fixer was going up in spins. Which surprised after weeks of going down.
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
But on Billboard The Fixer will still be higher on the charts because it has more Active and Mainstream spins. But I also saw that The Fixer was going up in spins. Which surprised after weeks of going down.
The Fixer still might be a bigger hit.. Top 40 could grab on to this still.
Yeah, it's amazing that the Fixer is still going. I also cannot recall the last time one of their singles stuck around so long. It's been like 20 weeks now! And I'm not even tired of it. Usually I'm sick of the first single once the album comes out, as it usually is released 2 months before the album.
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
It wasn't "yuppies" that drove the success of "Last Kiss." It was teenage girls.[/quote]
Here, Here, ex-girlfriend of mine actually owned the single. She is religiously a country music fan, that may have contributed to a downfall in our co-existence.
Yeah, it's amazing that the Fixer is still going. I also cannot recall the last time one of their singles stuck around so long. It's been like 20 weeks now! And I'm not even tired of it. Usually I'm sick of the first single once the album comes out, as it usually is released 2 months before the album.
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
Given to Fly was #1 which The Fixer wasn't.
Yield was also riding off of Ten's success. Pearl Jam were still VERY relevant in mainstream back then. Not that they aren't now, but it was still the nineties and only a few years after Ten.
Just Breathe has officially passed The Fixer on the charts.....sitting comfortably at #16, and #17. Just Breathe also gained about 135 spins in the last 5 days with 830. Even The Fixer went back up in spins!
But on Billboard The Fixer will still be higher on the charts because it has more Active and Mainstream spins. But I also saw that The Fixer was going up in spins. Which surprised after weeks of going down.
The Fixer still might be a bigger hit.. Top 40 could grab on to this still.
Allaccess had it on the Hot AC chart. But it got maybe 200 spins at the most. And was 49 or 50 for about a week. Hasn't been on since. Just Breathe was added to a couple of Hot AC stations a couple weeks ago. Hopefully by next year that'll change.
Yeah, it's amazing that the Fixer is still going. I also cannot recall the last time one of their singles stuck around so long. It's been like 20 weeks now! And I'm not even tired of it. Usually I'm sick of the first single once the album comes out, as it usually is released 2 months before the album.
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
Given to Fly was #1 which The Fixer wasn't.
True, but did it hang around this long? I can't remember. I know it was a big hit but we're working on like 5 months of the fixer being in the top 20 rock / alt rock songs.
"Darkness comes in waves, tell me, why invite it to stay?"
Yeah, it's amazing that the Fixer is still going. I also cannot recall the last time one of their singles stuck around so long. It's been like 20 weeks now! And I'm not even tired of it. Usually I'm sick of the first single once the album comes out, as it usually is released 2 months before the album.
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
Given to Fly was #1 which The Fixer wasn't.
Yield was also riding off of Ten's success. Pearl Jam were still VERY relevant in mainstream back then. Not that they aren't now, but it was still the nineties and only a few years after Ten.
Yeah Imagine how much bigger those songs would've been had they not shunned the media. I think that's why they released NAIS instead of Insignificance as the first single off of Binaural. To not ride off the success of Last Kiss. Or maybe why they didn't include Sad in Binaural.
Comments
I'm not following you. Price affects demand. There will be greater demand for something at $6.50 than at $11.98. At $11.98, people think they're overpaying. At $6.50, they think they're getting a bargain.
What happened here is that a bunch of people who wouldn't ordinarily buy the CD-- not because they don't like Pearl Jam, but because they don't buy many CDs-- bought it. This is not just baseless speculation. If "Just Breathe" were driving album sales, then there would be a corresponding spike in iTunes downolads of "Backspacer." There was no such spike. The sales spike is almost entirely accounted for by Target sales.
It's a little bit of this-- it's people who are aware of Pearl Jam as a popular rock band saying, "Hey, there's a cheap, fun stocking stuffer"; it's people who have been hearing good things about the record from friends or in the press going, "Hey, it's only $6.50, I'll check it out". Basically, it's people saying all sorts of things that all start with "Hey."
Missoula 6/20/98
Alpine Valley 6/26/98 & 6/27/98
Alpine Valley 10/8/00
Champaign 4/23/03
Alpine Valley 6/21/03
Missoula 8/29/05
Chicago 5/16 & 17/06
Grand Rapids 5/19/06
Summerfest 6/29/06 & 6/30/06
Tampa 6/12/08
Chicago 8/23/09
Indy 5/7/10
Alpine Valley x2 2011
Wrigley 2013
Milwaukee 14
Telluride 16
Also remember, KROQ played a "90's weekend" from Thursday to Sunday, and JB lost quite a bit of airplay. No new songs were played from any act during this period.
But the list is relative. If "Just Breathe" didn't get played over the weekend, then neither would the 20 songs ahead of it on the most-played list. "The Fixer" was 17th-most-played, if I recall correctly. Then again, KROQ's playlist is so stagnant that some of its most-played songs might as well have been released in the '90s.
And it's starting to get more play on Mainstream Rock stations. So far it has only been played on Triple A and Alternative. Active Rock stations are the only one's who aren't playing Just Breathe.
I don't pay too much attention to requests. Because radio stations don't play them. Maybe 1% of the time. And if you think they're playing your request. They were probably going to play the song anyway.
How can't everyone love Just Breathe though?. Makes no sense to me why It's not huge, but thats probably because I'm a huge PJ fan to beggin with. I'll never understand the lack of repect these guys still get. Green Day is bigger? U2? Kings of Leon? All of these bands should be opening for PJ.
Anyone know how many "Backspacer" albums have been sold? I've been trying to find out but never seem to get answers.
Hard to say what the actual number is. Unless you have access to soundcan numbers. It's probably around 360,000.
The actual number is 383.596.
Agreed.
Especially with ATW.
I'll ride the wave where it takes me...
so let me get this straight, you want the band to become smaller so that they play theaters someday? very Selfish would you not say? if the band wanted to play theaters it would.
but i agree with you on 1 thing. Just Breathe is great
That is basically true, on a one-off basis. But when a radio station gets tons of requests for a song, they will increase its spins. My point was that they were playing it a lot, the decision to do so was being reinforced by requests from listeners, and yet they seriously reduced the number of spins they're giving it. That's like telling your audience to go make love to itself.
They don't really promote themselves, and now they have no record company to do it. The album is also unavailable at every major retailer except Target, which did very little to promote its exclusive.
I think its crazy that our local alternative station still has The Fixer in rotation WITH Just Breathe.. I can't remember a time their first single lasted long enough for the second single to start becoming a hit.
Same here, both of these songs are being played on stations long enough to stick to people. In Los Angeles, we still get The Fixer about 60 times a week on the 2 big rock stations, and Just Breathe around 50 times a week.
They need to make up their minds on a 3rd single. Either Got Some or Unthought Known will be a nice hit as well.
http://www.allaccess.com/alternative/mediabase
I don't know if Just Breathe is going to be a smash, but it's probably already done enough to warrant a 3rd single. And charting where it is now while the Fixer is still strong is really impressive. They have 2 songs getting signficant play at the same time. This definitely didn't happen with WWS / Life Wasted, I am Mine / Save You, or NAIS / Light Years. You'd probably have to go back to Given to Fly / Wishlist, and I don't even know if it happened then.
I can't believe The Fixer is still being played, honestly. In my opinion, it may be their most successful single since Spin the Black Circle or Daughter. I sincerely think The Fixer got way more air play than even Given to Fly.
I think Just Breathe is being released at the perfect time. Winter and Just Breathe will go well together. Then next year.... I see one of these Got Some, Amongst the Waves or Unthought Known. Maybe we'll even get 4 singles. Who knows./
<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/28998869"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/28998869" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object> <span><a href=" - In the Fire (demo)</a> by <a href="
But on Billboard The Fixer will still be higher on the charts because it has more Active and Mainstream spins. But I also saw that The Fixer was going up in spins. Which surprised after weeks of going down.
Given to Fly was #1 which The Fixer wasn't.
Here, Here, ex-girlfriend of mine actually owned the single. She is religiously a country music fan, that may have contributed to a downfall in our co-existence.
Allaccess had it on the Hot AC chart. But it got maybe 200 spins at the most. And was 49 or 50 for about a week. Hasn't been on since. Just Breathe was added to a couple of Hot AC stations a couple weeks ago. Hopefully by next year that'll change.
True, but did it hang around this long? I can't remember. I know it was a big hit but we're working on like 5 months of the fixer being in the top 20 rock / alt rock songs.
Yeah Imagine how much bigger those songs would've been had they not shunned the media. I think that's why they released NAIS instead of Insignificance as the first single off of Binaural. To not ride off the success of Last Kiss. Or maybe why they didn't include Sad in Binaural.