Press Release
Trailblazing Music Executive Steve Rifkind Taps SayNow toDiscover What's Hot on the Street
SayNow's innovative phone community helps founder of Loud Records and Street Records Corporation connect with up-and-coming musicians and fans
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - March 24, 2008 - Hip-hop record executive and guerilla marketing master Steve Rifkind is taking advantage of the phone-based social community services offered by SayNow to get access to hot new music trends and fans' opinions. Rifkind, who founded Loud Records and launched Three Six Mafia, Big Pun, Raekown, and Xzibit, is now founder and chairman of Street Records Corporation, where he signed stars Akon, David Banner, and Wu-Tang Clan.
Rifkind is using SayNow, which has more than two-and-a-half million members, to connect with fans, young hip-hop artists, and aspiring entrepreneurs. In the last month, Rifkind has already used his SayNow phone number to build a community, discover new acts, and even get fans' input on marketing ideas - such as naming Akon's new album and helping brands build their image in the urban community.
Using new ways to connect with what's hot is natural for Rifkind. In the late 1980s, Rifkind developed and patented "The Street Team" concept of grass-roots marketing to break new records, movies, phones, sneakers, and clothes by creating regional buzz and virally growing it to nationwide success. "My SayNow hotline is a new vehicle for me to keep close to what's new and next out there" says Rifkind. "Keeping in touch with what's hot on the street has always been important to me - we started with Loud Records in the 90s. Now, SRC and Loud.com are benefiting from today's technology to stay current and connect to our audience."
The SayNow service is easy and free to use for fans and stars - though mobile providers may charge for text messages and phone time. The service is ad-supported; stars can decide which ads to include with their messages, and SayNow shares the ad revenues with the star. It's simple to sign up or to unsubscribe at any time - giving fans access to the content they want, and stars access to their most excited fans.
As for Rifkind, his experience in involving communities in guerrilla marketing campaigns makes adopting new technologies like SayNow's blend of phone community and the web as automatic as breathing. "It's great to partner with Steve," says Nikhyl Singhal, CEO and cofounder of SayNow. "He really understands the value of getting fans' ideas and building community using the phone. For Steve, SayNow is frictionless - he can just use his mobile phone or the web to hear what his audience wants and build that connection with them. With SayNow, all fans need is a phone and Steve's SayNow number to let him know what they like and what's hot."
To get started with SayNow, a star signs up and SayNow assigns a phone number in their region. When the star mentions it in a webpage or appearance, fans can call the number to sign up. The star can leave messages for their SayNow fans using their mobile phone or by uploading an MP3 to their SayNow webpage, and listen to fans' messages over the web or via the phone. Stars can send broadcast voice or text messages to all their fans, private messages, or even call a fan directly. Stars can also create polls and contests, and create revenue-generating special offers to sell things like ringtones or tickets.
For fans, it's easy to sign up to get exclusive messages from their favorite stars. All they need to do is call a star's SayNow number from their phone or sign up online at SayNow.com. Fans can leave messages for their favorite star or each other, listen to SayNow messages on their phone or over the web, participate in polls or contests the star creates, and get access to special offers.
About SayNow
SayNow delivers voice and text messages from entertainers, community leaders, and politicians to more than two-and-a-half million fans. SayNow gives stars a phone number that fans can call to hear the star's latest voice messages, take part in polls, send messages, communicate with each other, or even buy things with a press of a button. Stars like Jonas Brothers, Tyrese, and R. Kelly love SayNow because it lets them effortlessly reach out to their best fans, while fans love the service for giving them a direct connection to exclusive content from the stars they love. SayNow was founded in November 2005 and is funded by Shasta Ventures and Tugboat Ventures.
Press Contact: Marilyn Lopez
Marilyn Public Relations
Phone: 917.969.1660
Email: mlopez@marilynpr.com