Matthew Rusk Student Entrepreneur in Residence

It was amazing to hear from Emily Davies of Think, Try, Do earlier in the week to say that the University of Exeter is putting together a “Wall of Fame” showcasing student entrepreneurs past and present. I am delighted to say that a guitar that I gave to Joe Pearce when I finished my role as the Student Entrepreneur in Residence will be included in this showcase.

It was a guitar that I had bought as part of a different business idea called “Amplified Art”, where I would get local airbrush artists to airbrush famous guitarists onto guitars. I trialed this with about 5 guitars, with the one that I gave to Joe featuring Jimi Hendrix on it. While I managed to get the guitar into a local guitar shop to see if it sold the business itself never took off…turns out people aren’t really that interested in buying a guitar with a famous guitarist airbrushed onto it.

It is kind of interesting that this guitar will be used to showcase MGR Music Tuition LTD, as it was actually an example of another one of my failed ideas…of which there were many during university. So the real story behind the guitar is one of continuously trying to create business models and products. After all you only need one business model to take off – so keep making ideas and testing them out.

I would really recommend trying to gorilla test ideas and products, essentially making the lowest cost version of your product/business model to test it out. Get it out into the real world then see whether it works or not. If the answer is that it does then you can increase the investment into the idea and let the product develop from there. I have met a lot of entrepreneurs who look to gain a huge investment into their website for example, even though they have never sold one of the products they wish to feature on their website. My advice – get out on a market stall and see if you can sell the product. This is still something that I know the team at mgrmusic.com are learning – the hardest thing to do is actually get into the world and start selling, it is a lot easier to put it off. Keep focusing on developing the product etc. without doing the thing that brings in the money…which is of course the art of selling the product as it stands today.

It will be great to see how the Wall of Fame looks and I really hope that I get an opportunity to see it. If I do I will post some photos of it on here, highlighting some of the other products that have made it into the “Hall of Fame”.

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A small update this time on progress. The team has been really excited to start working with a partner in the USA to feature teachers in the USA on the mgrmusic.com music teacher database. This will hopefully help us to start generating enquiries for music teachers in America, as well as here in Europe. We also had the great news of launching the Singing Lessons Edinburgh music hub with professional music teacher Joe Revell which is tremendous news. We had previously worked with Joe in Glasgow as a singing teacher so we were delighted to team up with him again to deliver professional singing tuition in Scotland’s capital city.

Posted under Music Teachers

Most would agree that forums are a fairly old format nowadays, compared to social media or platforms like Discord, so I got to admit my interest in launching a collection of forums for music students to share tips and support might be one that never takes off. Nonetheless, as an entrepreneur it is always worth trying new things, so I have taken the plunge and decide to create a group of music forums for students to use.

This week we have launched the first of these, the Accordion Forum to connect and discuss topics related to all things accordion.

The Accordion Forum is designed as an open platform for anyone who wants to learn more about the instrument, or even start playing it. Whether they are already a master of the accordion, or just starting out on their musical journey, this forum will hopefully one day provide an invaluable resource…or it might be another ghost town forum! We will just have to see over time if it takes off.

My ultimate aim is for the Accordion Forum to offer users plenty of ways to get involved with other players and enthusiasts from around the world. From forums dedicated to reviews and tips, to virtual jam sessions and Q&As – hopefully something for everyone!

Forum Features

Users will be able to easily create threads, post comments and connect with other accordion enthusiasts.

We also have moderators who ensure the content is appropriate and relevant.

Plus, with subscription notifications, users will never miss out on an important conversation.

All this helps make sure everyone has a good experience, yet the most important aspect is whether the forum can build up the critical mass of users to make it a vibrant community – this is the aspect I am least sure about whether it will be a success.

Connecting With Accordionists Worldwide

My dream would be for the Accordion Forum to be a great tool for connecting with accordionists all around the world.

It provides an opportunity to discuss topics related to playing, learning and teaching the instrument, as well as current news in the accordion community. It would be highlighted to new students as they enrolled in one of our accordion lessons hubs, like Accordion Lessons Edinburgh, to help try to build an online community of learners.

Students could also join conversations about music theory, performance techniques and general questions they have between lessons.

Learning From Experienced Players

I hope by engaging in discussions with more experienced accordion players, we can help students valuable information about technique, composition and performing that may not be readily available elsewhere. Furthermore, these conversations provide an invaluable opportunity for collaboration and mentorship between newer players and those who have been playing the instrument longer, as well as opportunities for teachers to support students between lessons.

Yet this might all just be a pipe dream, rather than a genuine use to our community of students. I will keep this thread updated, as well as cover the launch of several other forums to see if we can progress this as a viable business offering to our music students. At this stage I really don’t know if it will be a success or just another failed business idea – the important thing is to keep trying new ideas as they come along!

Posted under Music Teacher