As a band or unsigned musical artist working without the support of a record label, networking is single handedly one of the most beneficial skills that you can employ to boost your career. What is even more significant though, is that so few artists, or professionals for that matter, actually do it. Is it because they don’t know how, they feel dirty about it, or something entirely different? Fortunately in this article, we will expose you to not only what good networking is, what it is NOT, why you should be doing it, and how!
Traditionally, the term networking has been reserved for those professionals who connect with other professionals from their industry, to uncover employment opportunities. Today however, with the rise of freelancing and the entrepreneur mindset such that a local band would have, networking properly can provide so many benefits beyond that of simply getting employed. For the context of this article, networking is connecting with people in the ‘scene’ to form a team consisting of diverse skills, that all of the members of said team are able to benefit from.
Sounds easy, right? Yet so many people fail to engage their network, or only reach out to their network when in need of something. Oftentimes though, this ‘only reaching out when in need’ practice is a good way to deteriorate the quality of a good network, because nobody likes being used!
Let me say it again for those in the back, a network is NOT a group of connections only there when YOU need something.
If you have this idea that networking is only supposed to benefit you, it’s no wonder you would be opposed to this practice and feel dirty at the thought of using somebody. If you remember back to my definition of networking though, it’s building a TEAM, and a team helps and supports itself. In fact, by properly networking, you may find yourself surprised that people will start offering their skills to YOU, unsolicited, just because they want to work with you after learning about a need you have. This happens when you begin realizing that networking is not just working, but also involves barbeques from time to time, and asking how the kids are, and more importantly, looking for ways you can help those in your network. I know, you are thinking, but Family Tree, I have so much going on how can I possibly make time to just rub elbows with somebody?? Remain calm! Good networking could be as simple as saying, “hey, I know X person with Y skill that I think could help you, let me connect you with them.” Hopefully you are starting to see the bigger picture and realizing that networking does not require any special skills or mindset. It really is all about getting to know the people you come in contact with, learning how your network can help them, and then following through. That’s it!
Every single person you meet, including bands, venue owners, and even the bartenders at shows, all know something that you don’t, and likely have more than just the single skill set you see them with currently. And don’t forget, possibly your biggest pool of resources are the skills that your die hard fans possess and will gladly share with you just for the opportunity of being included in what you are working on.