The Evolving Entry Fee
I have a confession to make - the OMAs are over three years in the making and one of the biggest hurdles in the process has been the entrance fees. Personally, I hate entrance fees, and we have considered various options to reduce them. As much as I’d like to eliminate them altogether, that will likely never be an option and here’s why: If we had a feeless entry, artists would send everything they had; we would likely have thousands of entries, and the burden on the judges would be overwhelming. So, similar to a group like TAXI, the entrance fee requires artists to be more judicious about what they enter, and I think this is key to getting to the very best of Ohio music.
While creating the concept for The Ohio Music Awards, a great deal of research was done on music competitions around the country, and we finally moved forward knowing that our fee is lower than most and equal to just a few.
As you can imagine, there are quite a few expenses involved in operating The Ohio Music Awards. The largest expense, so far, has been the development, maintenance, and hosting of the website. Of course, there are advertising expenses to reach as many Ohio artists as possible, judging, and the purchase of the trophy awards that will be given at the conclusion of each year’s OMAs.
Further, I would like to share part of The OMA’s larger vision which is connected to the fees. The OMAs hopes to raise the money necessary to hold an annual live event where contest winners and other notable entrants are invited to perform. In addition, we also hope to fund a scholarship for young artists heading off to college or trade school to encourage them to continue pursuing their music.
Finally, we are pursuing corporate partnerships and sponsors to offset the entrance fee and we hope to have one or two for the 2015 awards.
So,we understand the challenge of the entry fee, but it is a bit of a necessary evil. Without it, there is no OMA, and this opportunity to highlight the best of the music in our state would not exist. With it, we can celebrate Ohio music, attract sponsors and lower entrance fees, and give Ohio artists a chance to be recognized in a field where those opportunities can be quite slim.
I have a confession to make - the OMAs are over three years in the making and one of the biggest hurdles in the process has been the entrance fees. Personally, I hate entrance fees, and we have considered various options to reduce them. As much as I’d like to eliminate them altogether, that will likely never be an option and here’s why: If we had a feeless entry, artists would send everything they had; we would likely have thousands of entries, and the burden on the judges would be overwhelming. So, similar to a group like TAXI, the entrance fee requires artists to be more judicious about what they enter, and I think this is key to getting to the very best of Ohio music.
While creating the concept for The Ohio Music Awards, a great deal of research was done on music competitions around the country, and we finally moved forward knowing that our fee is lower than most and equal to just a few.
As you can imagine, there are quite a few expenses involved in operating The Ohio Music Awards. The largest expense, so far, has been the development, maintenance, and hosting of the website. Of course, there are advertising expenses to reach as many Ohio artists as possible, judging, and the purchase of the trophy awards that will be given at the conclusion of each year’s OMAs.
Further, I would like to share part of The OMA’s larger vision which is connected to the fees. The OMAs hopes to raise the money necessary to hold an annual live event where contest winners and other notable entrants are invited to perform. In addition, we also hope to fund a scholarship for young artists heading off to college or trade school to encourage them to continue pursuing their music.
Finally, we are pursuing corporate partnerships and sponsors to offset the entrance fee and we hope to have one or two for the 2015 awards.
So,we understand the challenge of the entry fee, but it is a bit of a necessary evil. Without it, there is no OMA, and this opportunity to highlight the best of the music in our state would not exist. With it, we can celebrate Ohio music, attract sponsors and lower entrance fees, and give Ohio artists a chance to be recognized in a field where those opportunities can be quite slim.
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