Think Like A Manager

A guide for music artists

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Whether you’re looking to find an artist manager, booking agent or just adding to your network, assembling a dream team that complements your skills and propels your career forward is important. But how you reach out can make or break your chance at adding them to your team or network. This comprehensive guide for music artists will help you with the intricacies of team building, offering insights and strategies to make reaching out effective, including some examples of how to reach out.

Want to skip to the examples? Click here.

Collaborative teams

Establishing a successful team, starts with recognizing the power of a team with a shared vision and diverse expertise. Building a team that resonates with your creative goals is paramount. Seek out fellow musicians, producers, managers and booking agents who share your passion and vision. As a music artist, the synergy created within a collaborative team that is at harmony, should be your first priority when building your team. This kind of environment often increases innovation and creativity.

On the business side

Beyond artistic collaboration, navigating the business side of the music industry is crucial for sustainable success in the music industry. This involves building a team that understands the business-side of being a music artist including registering your music, negotiations, and marketing strategies.

You should add a manager or agent into your team to handle business affairs, negotiate deals, and ensure your interests are protected. They will then serve as a bridge between you and industry professionals, allowing you to focus on your craft while they handle the business side. Therefore seek out people who will represent you professionally.

Building your digital presence

Even though it can seem frustrating and draining at times, having an online presence is non-negotiable for music artists. You are in the business of music and businesses must advertise. Seek out management who specialize in digital marketing, social media management, and content creation will help alleviate this pain point for you.

A skilled social media manager can optimize your ads, engage with fans, and strategically release your music. Additionally, having a content creator on your team ensures visually captivating material that aligns with your brand. Music artists must recognize the symbiotic relationship between their craft and digital presence to maximize visibility and reach. If you need help with marketing, strategy or content creation, reach out to me for details about my services.

Building your network with industry connections

What you heard is true: success in the music industry often relies on who you know as much as what you know. I cannot stress it enough: building a network of industry connections is the cheat code because it can open doors and create amazing opportunities for collaboration, exposure, and growth that oftentimes weren’t accessible to the public.

Include a talent scout, A&R or Sync representative on your team or seek out a manager with a background in those industries to help give you more access in the industry’s competitive landscape. Their expertise and network can assist in securing performance opportunities, collaborations with established artists, and placements in influential media outlets and on tv. A well-connected team ensures that your music reaches the right ears and can be the key you need to getting your dream deal.

How to Reach Out To Your Potential Dream Team

Now that you’ve got an idea of who to add to your team, let’s talk about how to reach out to them.

Whether you’re seeking a manager, a producer, or a marketer, the way you initiate contact will be their first impression and can be the deciding factor whether or not they take you on or even reach back out. Your reputation and career are at stake. Let’s explore the art of reaching out to ensure you don’t get ignored and left on seen.

Identify your needs

Begin by assessing your specific needs and goals. Identify the areas where you could benefit the most from professional support, such as artist management, public relations, or A&R representation. Really understanding your needs and your career goals will guide you in finding the right music professional to bring to your team.

Add value

Have you ever experienced a freeloader? Or what about the person that does nothing while everyone else does all of the work? When you add team members to your team without any value to add yourself, this is what you become. Before you start sending DMs to potential booking agents, ask yourself if you’re already booking your own shows and can you actually sell tickets? Looking for a manager? Do you have business going on for a manager to actually manage? If not, fix what you need to first, then think about reaching out to them.

Research and network

Look for professionals who specialize in the areas you’ve identified. Attend industry events, networking functions, and music conferences to connect with potential team members. Utilize platforms like LinkedIn, Discord, industry forums, and social media to expand your network and discover professionals who you feel are interesting. Remember, if there is a follow or subscribe, follow or subscribe first before reaching out.

Evaluate their track record

Before adding a member to your team, thoroughly evaluate their track record and experience. Look for professionals who have a proven history of success in areas relevant to your goals. This may include successful artist collaborations, effective marketing strategies, or securing lucrative deals within the industry. The industry is small. People don’t forget. The wrong person representing you can hurt your chances at future opportunities and can even get you blacklisted.

Establish a budget for compensation

Before asking anyone for their time and expertise, especially if it’s for a position within your team, come up with a budget that you can comfortably afford. People want to be compensated for their time and work. Coming with a budget in mind can help avoid the embarrassment later on when you are asked about a dollar amount and don’t have one ready. Having a budget in mind also signal to your potential team member you are a professional. If you are in the early stages of your career where your income is unpredictable, present alternative forms of compensation like monthly stipends.

Hold informative meetings

Arrange meetings with potential team members to discuss your musical journey, goals, and expectations. Come prepared and use this time to gauge their understanding of your vision and assess how well you would work together. Discuss their strategies, insights, and previous experiences working with artists. An open and informative meeting will help both parties determine if the partnership is a good fit. Don’t be in a rush or desperate. Follow your gut and instinct. If is telling you no, then listen. It’s better to avoid a mess later.

Negotiate terms and agreements

We know that you don’t expect anything to go wrong but things do go wrong. Once you’ve found your team, negotiate terms and agreements that outline the scope of their role, responsibilities, and compensation as well as a clear exit clause for the both of you. Include a sunset clause that defines how compensation for royalties and work done prior to the separation gets paid out. Ensure that both parties are clear on expectations, timelines, and any specific deliverables. Having a well-defined agreement establishes a solid foundation for a successful collaboration and avoid problems in the future.

Examples of How to Reach Out to Music Professionals

Be respectful and patient

Leave your ego at the door. Understand that music professionals, especially those in high demand, receive lots of messages. We are busy! Be patient and respectful of our time. If you don’t receive an immediate response, don’t be discouraged. There’s a fine line between eagerness and bug-a-boo! Follow up after a reasonable period, reiterating your interest and rephrase your request if necessary. If you don’t hear from us again, move on or follow up months later, then leave it alone. Unless there is a clear, expressed need to bring it up again, don’t.

Your greeting

Begin with a courteous and personalized greeting. Address the professional by their name and express your admiration for their work. A genuine and friendly tone helps establish a positive initial impression.

Personalize it

Before sliding into someone’s DMs or email, take the time to research them thoroughly. Understand their background, achievements, and current projects. This information will not only demonstrate your genuine interest but also enable you to tailor your message specifically to them. Personalization makes your outreach more meaningful and increases the likelihood of a positive response. Also make sure you’re following them subscribing as this signals real intent to work and will make it easier for them to find you.

Clearly state your purpose

Be transparent about why you’re reaching out. We understand that you believe you are the absolute best at what you do, so save that line. Clearly articulate your purpose, what do you want. Let us know what it is whether it’s expressing admiration for our work, seeking collaboration, or inquiring about potential opportunities. When your message is direct and concise, it communicates professionalism and respect for our time.

Include relevant links

You want their help so support your message with links to your music, portfolio, or any relevant content. This allows music industry professionals to quickly and easily assess see what you’re up to and provides us with concrete examples all in one place. Remember again, we are busy and making us work hard to find what we need can cause you to be overlooked and miss out on an opportunity!

Express gratitude

Conclude your message with a sincere expression of gratitude for their time and consideration. Politeness goes a long way in leaving a positive first impression.

A Change to How Meta Handles DMs

Meta recently updated its policy on sending messages. These changes include, the ability to send only one message and the restriction on sending links until a sender accepts your DMs. So it’s even more important to be strategic about what you’re going to send.

Example Template to Use When Reaching Out to Music Professionals

Hello [Professional’s Name]

[Open up with a personal greeting and bonus points for mentioning something they’ve posted recently if you are DM’ing] And [mention a specific project or accomplishment]

I am [Your Genre] [mention a brief description of your accomplishments]. I do all of the work myself including the booking and marketing. I feel like I’m at the stage in my career where I’m ready to bring on a manager with marketing experience and knows how to about building a fanbase. I’ve attached a link to my recent track [Insert Link] for your consideration. Also here is a link to my EPK [or link-in-bio app like Linktree].

Thank you for taking the time to read my message. I greatly appreciate what you’re doing and would be honored to connect further.

Salutation,

[Your Name]

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What this would look like in real life:

Hey Tee Tee,

Happy new year! I’ve been seeing your dope content on social media. I had no idea that 85% of Facebook and Instagram users were using the apps on silent and I wasn’t even thinking about deaf and hard of hearing people who might actually want to follow my journey. I learned a lot from that post and have made sure to add subtitles to my reels and TikToks.

I am [artist name] and I am an R&B singer from The Bay Area, CA. I am currently working on building a real fanbase instead of using shortcuts to make it in the music industry.

My song, [insert song] is nearing 100,000 streams in it’s first two days but I have been touring and performing in my local area and surrounding cities. I 100% independent and have been doing all of the work myself including the booking and marketing. I am doing so much that I feel like I’m at the stage where I’m ready to bring on a manager so I can focus more on my music, especially with how crazy my song is going. I would like a manager with lots of marketing experience and also knows how to building a fanbase and I would like to discuss having you as a manager or can you help refer me to someone else? I’ve attached a link to the track I was talking about that’s going crazy [Insert Link] for your consideration. Also here is a link to my EPK [or your link-in-bio app like Linktree].

Thank you for taking the time to read my message.

Peace,

[Your name]

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Use the examples above as a guide to help you create your own message.

Good luck on reaching out! Let me know what you think. And if you think of anyone else this could help, share it with them.

Peace.