Music Export Growth Scheme

About this opportunity

MEGS provides match-funding grant support to representatives of UK-based music acts (normally music management companies or record labels who meet SME criteria) to help deliver high-quality marketing and promotion campaigns linked to international tours to enable these acts to grow their international business. The scheme is targeted at artists that have achieved reasonable levels of commercial impact in the UK and are now looking to break internationally. Successful recipients can claim no more than 50 per cent of eligible expenditure for their projects. No UK activity can be funded. When applying, applicants should provide: I. Evidence they meet SME criteria. II. Evidence of domestic sales and success levels (including touring and media support); III. Experience of the domestic repertoire owner or management team; IV. Proven interest from the target market; V. A full marketing plan for the targeted territory setting out how the Scheme Grant would be used, which might include: • launch/introduction marketing campaign (inc PR costs, physical/digital advertising, plugging into radio and TV, social media campaigns etc); • showcases and other opportunities to secure international distribution deals or licensing; • personal appearances (TV/Radio media opportunities in the country); • tour support to enable the artist to travel to and showcase/perform in the targeted market; and/or • any other plans for targeting record labels/license partners, distributors, publishers, media and concert promoters in target markets; • An indicative budget for the project; and VI. A list of the UK companies (and their contact details) working with each artist /project including: label, management, publishing company, artist, digital distribution company, merchandising company and the UK agent where applicable. Funding will be tied to the ambition of the project, measured by financial commitment, sales targets and business outputs. Expenditure to be taken into account will be external costs to the label or management, not normal running costs – Outputs will be key performance indicators for the applicants such as leads generated and pursued, deals done, media coverage.