International Disc Publishing Projects – How To Get It Right
The devil is in the details.
Some tips and tricks for making sure that your project can seamlessly transition across borders.
Communication & Collaboration
Overcoming Language & Location Barriers
To overcome language and time barriers, email is the preferred communication method. We utilize smartphones so we are always available to respond to email inquiries regarding our customer’s projects. We are located in the US Central Time Zone and our business hours are Monday-Friday 8AM-5PM. You can reach us at 1-612-782-8200 or via email: sales@discburn.com
Overcoming Data Delivery Barriers
We utilize technologies such as FTP and other file sharing services such as Dropbox & YouSendIt to share and collaborate on your project. Please bear in mind that FTP (file transfer protocol) uploading of your master will incur a charge for creating a physical master for duplication. As always sending in a physical master is best although we realize this isn’t always feasible.
When uploading a digital file please send us a manifest with the file size, runtime, and file names so that we can verify the transfer was completed properly. Overnight uploads and frustrating timeouts are not uncommon so give yourself plenty of time if you choose digital delivery.
Payment Methods
We utilize wire transfer, PayPal and credit card for our payment mechanisms, making international transactions simple and easy.
Physical Product Thoughts
Video Formats
Be sure to think about where your product is ending up. We recently partnered with an internationally renowned traditional Chinese magician that performs on Cruise ships. Through ongoing discussions we were able to determine that his customers may come from locations that utilize both PAL and NTSC Video formats so we split the duplication 50/50 to better address the needs of his customers.
Logistical issues
If you travel extensively and sell directly you may want to select custom album jackets or sleeves vs the more traditional jewel case with insert packaging. The album sleeves take up about half the volume and are quite a bit lighter. These little things add up when you’re constantly lugging your merch in and out of auditoriums and venues night in and night out.
Sales Tips
Given the chance, most customers will opt for a shrink-wrapped product. This is what they remember purchasing from retailers in the past. Unfortunately, today’s consumers don’t purchase from retailers often (Sam Goodys and Musicland are long gone). In order to increase sales revenue, many performers sell direct, cutting out the middle man and adding value through things like autographs. Think about skipping the shrink-wrapping as it’s an additional cost and in the end may create additional hassle when you have to peel it off to sign the disc or packaging for your excited customer.
Shipping
Always remember to take the shipping cost into consideration when pricing out printing and duplication. I’ve recently partnered with a Safari video production company in South Africa. 
Many of their customers are US citizens and they have saved huge money having us produce their projects. Delivering a fully packaged disc abroad can add hundreds if not thousands to the cost of a project.
If your project is for a tradeshow or event, think about forwarding your parcels to your end location. This will save you from lugging around your product or having to pay postage twice.
Conclusion
In short – doing business internationally is more commonplace today than ever before. If you follow the above tips your cross-continental project should be a breeze. If you are located outside of the United States and have a project destined for a location inside the US, give us a call. We’d love to talk about how we can save you money and frustration.
