Hi friends, I posted a video recently about maintaining and building relationships with Artists, the reaction was fantastic and I received many wonderful emails and comments from you. The number one theme was ‘thanks Warren for the tips on maintaining and building relationships, but how do we create them in the first place?’.
- Build A Resume
We all know that many clients will look at your previous work and use that to determine whether you are a suitable fit for them, so how do you build that resume?
Even though I just had a humble home recording set up of a used ADAT and tiny console I put myself out there regularly by going to shows, talking to bands I liked and offering to record them. If you’re still playing in bands, talk to your band members and see what other projects they might be working on, make yourself available, be humble and be a worker amongst workers!
I found bands to work with at my local dive rehearsal studio, I was open to work, I made myself receptive and accessible. Most of the time I did a song for free to show my skills, occasionally they had a tiny budget! In the process of doing these recordings I got better and better, my client list grew and my resume grew!
Now with the internet playing such a huge role we can work remotely with anyone around the world, sharing files, mixing their songs, mastering them!
Which leads me to:-
2. Build Social Media Presence
Social Media has been the biggest change in my career, even though I’ve worked extremely long hours and built a resume, the ability to be able to connect to people online has been HUGE! We cannot underestimate the importance of getting yourself out there, making yourself available for people to find and connect with.
Make a Facebook Page, Instagram and Twitter Account for yourself and home studio, post music you’ve worked on and above all engage people! Find great articles, repost them, start a conversation, be active in the music and recording communities. If you share ideas with others and inspire creativity, you will flourish!
3. Embrace other Producers/Engineers and Mixers
Create friendships, don’t be competitive; there is enough work out there for everyone. Show respect for others who have also worked very hard to grow their business and become successful. We all got into music because we love it and want to be part of something bigger than ourselves! The people that got into it only to make money will fall by the wayside, positive attitudes will always prevail over negative rants telling people that they know best! I’ve been making albums for over 25 years and I am still constantly learning!
Jack Douglas has made some of the greatest albums and he assures me there are no experts and that John Lennon considered himself to be an amateur! For me personally I am acutely aware that I am standing on the shoulders of giants who have come before us, it’s a wonderful way for me to remain humble.
4. Be Easy to Work With
Listen to your clients, respect their vision, understand that they need to be heard and not only will they come back, most importantly, they will recommend you to others! I live in Los Angeles and there so many people here who do what I do, but what keeps me busy are clients who sing my praises, who not only love the finished result but enjoyed the process, the journey in creating the music with me!
Artists come in all shapes and sizes, they may be great singers, songwriters or great musicians, don’t judge them, help them develop! I was speaking to my friend Bob Marlette yesterday about a tutorial we are going to do together with a young band from Ireland, the Matthews, they are only 18-21 years old and he said to me ‘what a wonderful opportunity to help a young band grow’ that is the attitude we always need to bring to our sessions! Humility, encouragement and mutual learning are the hallmarks of a successful session to me!
Thank you all ever so much for your incredible support! The community we have here is incredible, the mutual respect and support we show each other is truly inspiring!
Have a marvelous time recording and mixing!
[fve]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CaWMRMY_DY[/fve]
Words of wisdom, Warren!
HI @bradymosher:disqus Thanks very much! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Having a truly marvellous day…..
Hi @disqus_8nQZT92d1C:disqus that’s fantastic to hear! Have a truly marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thanks for sharing Warren! I follow every single video you post. I’m from Bolivia, and found useful to use Facebook ad service, seems to be working OK to get potencial clients. (They have a form that the potencial client fills with personal info in order to get more info regarding the Studio services).
In Bolivia, at least, Whatsapp is very used, so I collected clients using Facebook and this phone app to answer questions. Seems to be very fast. What’s your opinion on this? Any advice?
Thanks!!!
Vancho
http://www.vancho.org
Hi @Ivan Pérez Hurtado:disqus Fantastic! So glad to be able to help! I am not to versed in Facebook Ads, but I do try to be as active as possible on it and post frequently! I will have to research WhatsApp! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thank you, Warren, for that great insight. I’m very much an amateur when it comes to recording, arranging and mixing, however as a designer I can tell you that this sound advice doesn’t just apply to the music industry. I’ve built a reputation in the design industry pretty much through the same methodology. Work hard, be humble, share knowledge, be positive. All the best, Tim
HI @disqus_DeLBA6XtI9:disqus I agree 100% with you! Your reputation proceeds you! I love the phrase ‘be a worker amongst workers’. I try to remember we are standing on the shoulders of giants! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I relate to Timothy Bell’s comment. In my day job profession I do considerable designing too. I always sit with my customers and discussed what sort of things they like and their vision. I would then discuss possibilities and practicalities. Not everything is practical but it doesn’t have to be always (just in my line of work it does need to be safe). So while I do the final design on a kitchen or bath, it is one I’ve drawn from the client. It always results in satisfaction. I guess it’s a service, whether it’s what I do or what a studio engineer/mixer does. The service is to provide a great finished product and if the experience is great too, well, that gets you call backs and recommendations (clients from recommendations are always the best to work with). I’m going on over twenty-five years of word-of-mouth. In all that time I’ve have two bad clients and a handful of poorly estimated projects that sometimes earned me less than minimum wage. But seeing the project through to a great result always paid off in the long run. Trust in always doing the right thing even though it’s hard right now and it will pay off… always. Then one day you’ll look back and see how the pieces all fell in line to something great from that tough moment and say, “Oh yeah, it does work.” You don’t get to know when, that’s where the faith come in.
I don’t have studio clients but I have a lot of other clients and I hope it’s of value to share this basic philosophy.
Where’s the video Warren?
For now…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CaWMRMY_DY
Great post Warren. I ran across some of your YouTube videos quite by accident about a month and a half ago and have been captivated by your marvelous videos, tips, advice and especially your joy and love of what you do. (It doesn’t hurt that we share similar tastes either.) Keep it up man!
HI @johnnyfuller:disqus Thanks for your extremely kind words! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren
If feel I might be able to contribute to this conversation from my own experiences. Going to shows (gigs) and building relationships has always worked best for me. However its not enough to just turn up on spec’. Don’t be afraid to reach out to the bands and people before hand or, if you know someone who knows the band, get them to go with you. I have even gone as far as helping with equipment (loaning it) and moving it (Roadie’ing) as well helping on the Merch’ stand while people take breaks. The networking opportunities than can come out of this sort of activity can be priceless. Even if you don’t manage to make contacts on the night take a good camera, take lots of photos and when you get back home choose a few really good ones, put them on Facebook, Twitter etc and tag the band and members of the band in the photos with a short message such as “great to see you guys last night loved the show and your music. Maybe we could discuss a remix sometime?”. If you did make contact, then follow up with a private message “Great to meet you last night, loved the show and in particular song X. I would love to have a crack at remixing it sometime. What do you think? Might this be possible?”. Facebook can also be a means of finding out in advance who else might be at a show. Some bands do Facebook events and invite people. A quick scan of the list for names of people you might like to talk with is always worth while. If you see someone you know or know of then a message to them could setup a meeting and a chat.
If you get back stage on an event, don’t ignore the tech’ guys. Quite often great people with great skills and even other artists themselves can turn out to help a band with a show. Don’t assume the tech’ guys are just hired help. I have met guys who have had number 1 albums and singles who were helping a friend out on the night. – I hope you find this useful, now I must get some mixing done – Have a great day – Mark
PS – Take a pocketful of CDr’s with you, with a selection of your best work on and give them out to people you meet. Also print a sheet with your contact info on and some notes about what’s on the CDr.
Hi @plap-disqus-25ddc0f8c9d3e22e03d3076f98d83cb2:disqus wow thanks for the fantastic insight! I really appreciate you sharing your experience with us! That’s a huge help to all of us in this community!! You Rock! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren
You’re welcome @plap-disqus-d3d9446802a44259755d38e6d163e820:disqus. (Edit – That link is suppose to say “Warren Huart” but something odd happened when I posted this message)
Warren, I have a question for you. In one of your videos you mentioned that you do “ear training” every night. I would like to know more about that please. Is there a video on this? 🙂
Additional to the above – I also like to go to music shows like NAMM for example. I don’t get to the US very often so the best in Europe is the Frankfurt Music Messe (fair) in Germany. Well worth a visit to find out about new industry developments in software and equipment but also sometimes you meet people as these events too. I met Earl Slick at the Frankfurt show one year which, while it did not lead to work for me, made my trip as I am a bit of a Bowie, Lennon and New York Dolls fan.
For ear training… Google SoundGym…
Great advice. I find humility and respect of the vision can really help fill in any gaps that I have technically/experience wise.
Thanks for the openness and willingness to help Warren.
Hi @plap-disqus-d9d4f495e875a2e075a1a4a6e1b9770f:disqus Agreed 100%! Humility is key! Be a worker amongst workers! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren
I totally agree with you. It’s all about serving other people, not looking for how they can serve you with a paycheck. Keep your priorities right!
Hi @timbunch:disqus Thanks for your great comment! I completely agree 100%! Be of service! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hello guys, I’m Alex from Italy. My buddy Robert and I we just recently started our own (as we like to call it) “Creative Lab”. I started working as a session guitarist back in the mid 90’s and then I “naturally” became confident with Protools and stuff till the point I started producing Others. This is a side business for us as (at least in Italy) it is REEEEEEAAALLY hard to emerge as Professionals. Music as a career is just considered stupid in Italy. We worked with many artists, from hobbists to more established ones….still….it’s tough! I swear God it’s tough. Honestly we like very much the way we’re doing business..probably..having a 9 to 5 backing us up .. is blessing us with the chance to take things less painfully as we know that for better or for worse we do have our bills paid and our stomaches by the end of the month. We are now having a Media Agency building up our media presence and we’ll soon have a website…and we really hope we can open up to the world of internet trying to make some online mixing services for Clients just outside Italy. We’d like to thank Warren for being so down-to-earth and friendly. Sometimes you get into this videos where producers and mixers talk like GOD…so distant from people… making you feel like you GOTTA have all those pieces of gear or 3 century of experience to make music a living…. this is just not the case of Produce Like A Pro.. and that’s why this is the only online academy we ever thought was worth joining. We just make music…sometimes is our music…sometimes we help artists making their music….and we’re striving to give our Clients, Friends, whatever..the Best Product possible. I’m sure this Academy will help us doing better. Thanks