One of the things I’ve seen bands struggle with the most over the years is learning how to network effectively. I teamed up with my friend John McLucas, a pop music producer, Youtuber and All-American sweetheart. By combining his experience with what I’ve learned working at labels like Prophecy Productions, Ripple Music and Artoffact Records, as well as running a music consulting company, I hope to delve a little deeper into how bands can properly network with their peers, scene elders and professional contacts. In this article, we’ve decided to tackle 5 common questions bands ask about networking.
After all, it’s like Warren Buffett says: ‘Your network is your net worth’, and nowhere is this more true than in the music biz.
5. How Do You Initially Reach Out To Someone?
Here, John says: “I honestly don't come in with a script, as it really diminishes the authenticity of the connection. If I’m reaching out to someone, I'm likely looking for insight, time, or something else, so it's important that I create initial contact that is completely tailored to them. If there’s any sort of standard line of engagement, it will always include:
- Authentic John-ness (no need to pretend I'm someone I'm not)
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Details about their world so they know I care
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An offer to them that will make their life easier or save them time. If I can make THEIR life better, they will be more open to hearing me out.”
I think that the last point here is probably the most important. For me, when it comes to networking, I always try to remember that no one gives a shit about me and that they only care about themselves. That’s just human nature. So if you’re not going in there with a way to help out or bond, then there isn’t much of a way to connect beyond ‘Why hello, fellow human.’
4. How Do You Identify Who You Should Be Trying To Add To Your Network?
This is one I really struggle with personally because on some level, I want to know everyone. On another level though, I’m constantly trying to use my time more efficiently. John’s thoughts were pretty valuable here, stating:
I don't approach it so clinically from an ‘I need more producers/guitarists/designers’ perspective, I go more based on aligning my core values. For me, that's kindness, gratitude, and authenticity. So if anything, I’m looking for people to converse with, work with, hire, or get hired by that share those things more than anything else.
I often find that spending time with or working with people who don't value those things leads to very unsavory situations, and I am relentlessly obsessed with surrounding myself with people who make my day to day quality of life better.
Yes, I’m also looking for people who can ‘push the needle’ for me as well, but I’ve turned down many opportunities and full-on job offers from companies because they didn't align with my core values. I cannot stress ENOUGH how important that is for me.
Finding people who identify with your core values is particularly important. I think that so often we take on opportunities just for the money, or because we think it’ll take us to the next level whereas in reality, if these opportunities are all style and no substance, they may end up impeding our progress in the long run. One of the key things for me personally is finding people who come from the hardcore scene or have that kind of mindset. If they don’t ‘get’ that world, then I know that we’re going to be sort of at odds from the first.
3. How Do You Make Meaningful Connections Rather Than Just Being Facebook Friends?
For me, the notion of ‘Facebook friends’ is both really powerful and really frustrating. I think many of us are Facebook friends with people who could really change our lives, but with whom we have no actual connection other than that we sometimes like their statuses.
John’s insight was:
Give more than you take. Always interact with their content, DM them, ask good insightful questions, respect their time, share their stuff, and be a generally good human to be around. It sounds basic, but it's shocking how few truly understand this.
Especially with social media, I spend more time commenting on other peoples stuff than I do posting myself. I want to be a giver in the community, not a taker. Nobody wants to hang with or hire the selfish internet hog.
I think this is a good way to view it. If you spend a lot of time commenting, people are going to see you want to be an active part of the community. I like Gary Vee’s $1.90 method which basically suggests identifying 10 hashtags that are relevant to you on Instagram, (#DIYmusic, #deathmetal, #independentmusic etc) and dropping comments in the top nine posts for each of them. Do this regularly and you’ll start to see some serious follower growth.
2. How Do You Overcome Shyness?
This is one I had beaten out of me at a young age. I was going to a ton of shows and interviewing loads of bands as a kid in Paris — I basically didn’t have any friends in high school, so I needed some semblance of a social life. However, I think it’s something that you see a lot of people having to deal with every day. Figuring out how you’re personally going to tackle shyness is a struggle.
John got really poignant here:
Shyness is insecurity. And whoever you are, reading this, I can't tell you where that insecurity came from, but I can tell you that it’s there because somebody put it there. It could have been from a trauma, or it could be from your siblings, or your parents, or other family, but those thoughts do not define you. They are a product of your experience, and they can't be looked at as any more than that. I look at mine [long gone now] as a simple part of my story, much like walking the halls of a zoo. Observing, without judgement, and moving on.
With that, I always remember that there is literally no downside to reaching out to someone. Whether it's for a collab, to ask a Q, or anything else, if you approach it with kindness, self awareness, and gratitude, you will be fine — MORE than fine. You can get a hold of RIDICULOUSLY big people with a well thought out message.
Also, everyone is lonely out here. We crave connection, so you are welcome to say YO!
I don’t think I can express that any better. In fact – I think this should just become a key manifesto for anyone trying to grow in any creative field, anytime. Good job, John!
1. How do you make people want to engage with you?
Getting people to actively reach out to you is the hardest part. Personally, I’ve always driven engagement through two things: content creation – be that the creation of blog posts, podcasts, radio shows, videos or whatever — and commenting on a lot of things. This means that I’m someone people know about, someone who is active in the community and always out there pushing.
John has a slightly different approach:
Good easy places to start with bringing more engagement is in asking thoughtful questions. It’s a very simple way to start discussion. Maybe give an opinion on a new song, and ask what others thought (NOT YOUR OWN MUSIC, a new release from a larger artist people will be familiar with). Memes are always a good idea… because who doesn't like a dank meme? I always try to come at it from the perspective of ‘what can THEY get out of this post’ and make it very intentional.
There’s two things I want to point out here. The first is that while I agree memes are a great way to build connections, you shouldn’t rely on them exclusively, because you run the risk of establishing yourself as just a meme page, and it’s hard to deviate from that. Second – when you create content focused on your audience and the benefits to them, you’ll get a ton more traction. Remember that everyone cares about themselves, and no one gives a shit about you. So create content and give people a reason to engage.
So there you have it – five key networking questions answered, courtesy of John McLucas and yours truly. You can check out his Instagram HERE and his excellent Youtube channel HERE. A lot of this boils down to caring about the other person more than you care about yourself. I know it can be hard and sometimes, when trying to do it, you end up looking like a jackass – but that’s kind of the deal. If you want to learn more about this stuff, I STRONGLY recommend reading Dale Carnegie’s How To Win Friends And Influence People. Feel free to hit me on Instagram with any further questions you have — just follow @MattBacon666 and slide into my DM’s!
