Four Pitfalls To Avoid When Buying Rap Online

I love the Internet! Where else do can you source so much music, rap beats, etc so cheaply? But for all the benefits of having access to so many rap beats, there are also some traps for the unwary buyer. Here are some of the main issues to be on the look-out for - and the pitfalls to avoid - when buying rap online.

1. How good / unique are the beats
   This may be an obvious question, but it's worth emphasising. In general, you want to buy rap from a website that not only offers the sound you want, but offers a sound that isn't readily available elsewhere.


2. What is the licence?
   Here's where you might get yourself into trouble. Some beats come with limited licenses, which means you're limited to how you use them. Others are not limited enough - which means that others can use the same beats for their music.
   
   For example, while non-exclusive licences are generally cheaper... you're not the only one who can use them. So unless you can significantly differentiate your sound from someone else's by other means, I'd suggest going for an exclusive licence. It costs more (e.g. $100 - $1,000 compared with only $15 to $50 for a typical non-exclusive licence), but you'll end up having the unique sound you want.


3. Can you trust the seller?
   Unfortunately, the web is full of "fly-by-the-night" operators who are happy to take your money... without delivering what you paid for. Rap beat sellers are no different. While there are plenty of legitimate sellers, there are dubious ones.
   
   At a minium, when buying from a website that sells rap beats, make sure they offer full contact details and information about the seller (company name, the name(s) of the individuals involved, phone number, fax number, email address, postal address, etc). Do a search on their website, company and individuals to gather more information about them. Have they been in business long? Do they have a good reputation? Do they have plenty of happy customers? You might also look for "trust" symbols like Better Business Bureau (BBB), Trust-e or Hackersafe certification which indicate that a third party has verified their that the site is trustworthy and follows secure practices.


4. What is the customer service like?
   What happens if the beats you downloaded are in a corrupt file? Or you've discovered someone else with the same beats? Or you have some questions for the seller? This is where you want to make sure that the site you've bought the rap beats from offers good customer service. One way to test how responsive they are is to send them an email - or even telephone them - with some questions before you buy. Just because they bend over backwards to sell you... doesn't mean they'll offer great customer service once you've bought from them, of course, but it's still a better indication than if they don't respond at all!