BANZA May 2016 Issue | Page 59

Art is an expression which manifests a way of life. It can take the form of music, drawing, sports or painting. As these different forms grow and attract fans and avid followers, companies or business see this as a window of opportunity to tap into these fan bases and expand their market shares. And this is quite visible in all arts and business fields. Art has managed to strengthen business in an incredible way: stimulating sales and increasing company revenue. A big takeaway: there is always a market for everything and such avenues should be explored. Secondly, artists have proven that market research is not always a must-do if you trust your product and your ability to deliver it to consumers. It’s quite handy to note that that consumers’ needs are always changing, and market research only captures the needs of a particular people and hence results might not be representative of the whole population. It’s always about the product ladies and gentlemen. We have seen sponsorship deals in football and basketball that have made such sports billion dollar franchises since they have a huge following. What is your artistry? What are you good at? And how are you merging your artistry with entrepreneurship? Entrepreneurship has no limits. Today, YouTube, the world’s largest video sharing site, creates no videos or content. Airbnb, the biggest hotel franchise in the world, owns no real estate. Uber`is the largest taxi company, but it owns no cab. Do you see where the future is heading? Let’s join it. Take care, take heed. B Whatever you create, make sure it’s of the best quality and most appealing to consumers. Some of the world’s biggest artists such as Barbados-born American singer Rihanna, football maestro Christiano Ronaldo, and Canadian-American Rapper Drake have used their artistry to seal multi-million dollar endorsement deals with companies like Apple, Puma, Nike, Samsung, and Jordan. As an artist in any industry, you have value and the ability to impact those who follow you and your craft. Your fan base is a gold mine for businesses to tap into and influence consumers’ buying or spending habits. BUSINESS