A Guest Post by Symphonic Distribution
The Art of Networking in the Music Industry: The SXSW/WMC Edition SXSW
and Winter Music Conference are all about networking. Networking is a
blanket word, and different people have different approaches to it.
Too
many of us leave conferences with a hazy memory of faces and a bunch of
business cards of people we don’t remember. You swarm the big-name
panelists along with thirty other eager hopefuls, confidently approach
the hot-shot speakers, but maybe they won’t accept your card and act
completely disinterested in what you’re saying. You meet countless
participants, exchange cards and some casually random banter you hardly
remember. You followed up with every single person on the cards… but you
receive little to no response. The conference passes over as if it
never happened. Life moves on. What did you spend that
multi-hundred-dollar ticket for anyway?
Sound familiar? Picture this instead:
By
the end of any conference, rather than leaving with social exhaustion
and a stack of business cards of people you barely remember, you should
ideally walk out of the building with 15 new friends laughing on your
way to the bar. You know their hometowns, their opinions on the latest
[insert hot artist] album, and you know this is just the beginning of a
long, beautiful, and mutually beneficial relationship. (And you should
still have the business cards of the people remember in your bag.)
Perhaps
this is pushing it, but hopefully you get the point. Too many people
approach conferences from a sales perspective. Networking isn’t about
forced-selling yourself to strangers. It isn’t about finding people who
can help you out. Networking is about building meaningful relationships
with people. The relationships you build have a greater chance of
translating into a label/publishing deal, a new business partner, etc.
than the 100 business cards you collected.
1. Dress to Impress. Brand Yourself.
When
you dress impeccably, you will feel like you own the room, which often
translates into you actually owning the room. First impressions are
everything. You may stumble upon a professional in the industry that
really matters and first impressions can make or break a situation.
Appearance
is one thing, but also dressing up your business cards and
marketing/promotional materials is absolutely essential. Invest in
branding USB drives with your artist or band logo/name. There are
several companies that exist to help with this. Make sure that within
the content you include a PDF with a bio, a gracious & concise note,
links, and information on how to get in touch with you. And if you’re
still on the CD train, just remember a) not to actually write on it,
brand it up; and b) new Macs do not come with CD drives.
2. Don’t be afraid. Approach strangers.
Sounds
harsh and/or cliché, but someday, we’re all going to die, and what you
did at this conference will not matter. What will matter is if you
befriended the person who eventually introduced you to the person who
got you a record deal which jumpstarted your prolific music career,
which in turn inspired the world to give you a funeral of the likes of
Michael Jackson. So don’t be afraid to approach people you don’t know.
Even more important, don’t get star-struck by the people you see as more
“important” than you. We’re all humans.
3. Be their friend, not a salesperson.
Get
to know people on a personal level before ever trying to sell
something. Smile. Relax. Be genuinely interested in the individual and
what they’re saying. Make sure your brain is wired to ingest a lot of
information – name, where they are re based, what company they are with,
their profession, favorite band, and more. And for Pete’s sake,
remember everything. If after a conversation you feel the need to write
down on the card a quick brief on the individual, take a bathroom break
and do it. You’ll thank yourself later.
4. Focus on the person.
When
introducing yourself, do not begin with a sales pitch or a lengthy,
wordy speech about yourself, your work, your life, you, you, you. Ask
the other person questions. Focus on the person with whom you’re
speaking. Really, truly listen. Make him/her feel important. Then let
the individual ask you what you do.
Remember
Tom Chiarella’s brief in Esquire on practicing graciousness: “When
wandering the world, forget your business cards. Don’t look for more
contacts. Instead, observe. Say hello to the people you see every day,
but don’t make a fetish out of it. Stay interested in others. It bears
repeating: Look around. Remember names. Remember where people were
born.”
5. Call them by their first name - repeatedly.
In
the words of the wise Dale Carnegie, “Remember that a person’s name is,
to that person, the sweetest and most important sound in any language.”
Repeat it once in your conversation, and always bid goodbye by calling
the individual by his/her name. Most importantly, don’t let yourself
forget the name immediately, so that you have to ask the person, “What’s
your name again? So many faces today!” This does not make him feel
important. You will impress her if you are the one who remembers.
6. Don’t immediately brush someone off.
If
you approach a person who doesn’t seem to be of much potential benefit
to you now, don’t immediately brush him/her off. Evolution comes into
play; you may be able to use his or her services in the future. There
may be someone close to you that may be interested in those services.
7. Know when to pursue.
If
you and a person are hitting it off, stay there and chat for a while.
Don’t rush off to meet the next contact. If you already feel like BFFs,
get the person’s number and invite him/her to meet you for coffee after
the next panel. Foster a better relationship with the people you click
with immediately.
8. Know your boundaries. Be bold, but courteous.
Conferences
usually have mingling areas for networking, and meetings often happen
in the same area. Be bold, but do not approach a clearly enclosed group
of people. Observe setting, seating, and body language. If these
indicate a set-up meeting between two or more people, do not approach.
They will consider it rude. There is a distinct line between confidently
approaching a group casually mingling in conversation and rudely
interrupting a clearly private meeting.
9. Befriend the people on your level. Don’t put all your energy into stalking establishing hot-shots.
Make
friends with the people on your level – the start-ups, assistants,
composer/songwriter peers, burgeoning bands, etc. As you progress
together through your first jobs/promotions/record deals, you’ll work
together, guide one another, and hook each other up. Eventually one of
you will be a VP/VIP. Then you all will be directors, VPs, VIPs – you
get my drift – who can help each other out. So at any conference, don’t
put all your energy into seeking out the established, big-name
personnel. Divide your time wisely. Take time to foster personal
connections with your peers and colleagues, because those will carry
with you for a long time.
10. Master the art of the follow-up.
It’s
vital to make good use of the time and money you have spent attending
this conference. Connect with them on LinkedIn. If you consider yourself
friends with any of the individuals you meet, especially around your
age, don’t be afraid to friend them on Facebook. In your follow-up
email, do not contact someone unless you truly feel you could both be of
mutual benefit to one another in some way, now or in the future. If you
don’t ask something very specific in your email, the person will not
know what to do with the email, especially if it was sent to their work
email, and will delete it. Send them an email with purpose – perhaps
with something to consume, such as a Dropbox link to 3 of your top
tracks. And of course, don’t make your email a novel. Be concise and
relevant. If you hit it off with the person, perhaps pick up the phone
and call. This makes more of a statement.
Editor's choice
Editor's choice
By Kaitlyn Raterman
Managing Director of Licensing & Publishing of Symphonic Distribution
Symphonic Distribution was launched in the winter of 2006 by a Music Producer from Tampa, Florida. The company was launched with the intention of providing new and established record labels cost effective digital distribution to retailers such as iTunes, Beatport, Rhapsody, Amazon, and more with a strong emphasis on customer satisfaction. Today, the company has paid over 3.5 million in royalties and distributes music for over 6,000 independent labels and artists, worldwide, which include, Spain, India, South Africa, Brazil and Russia, and has expanded services to Mastering, Marketing, Design, Licensing and Publishing Administration. Symphonic’s team of nine passionate individuals pride themselves on quick responses and direct one-on-one conversations and advising with clients, from the basics of managing a Social Network to providing Technical and Audio Support to clients.
When
it comes to seeking a label deal, there are some important bases I'd
say about 80% of artists are lacking, so I'll go over the top 5 aspects
labels are looking for from you that you most likely don't have or think
you've got.
