In part 1 of this series, I talked about how being in sales gives you foundational marketing skills and an entrepreneurial mindset. Part 2 will bring in a missing piece that many musicians struggle with, and it is one of the most essential skills to have as a freelancer or business owner.
The Art of Communication
As producers of the arts, we spend most of our time perfecting rhythms and enhancing our playing skills; our communication is through our music. Although staying focused on finishing your projects is beneficial, forgetting or avoiding human connection can seriously hurt you throughout your musical journey.
For example, avoiding social activities can make us forget a few social etiquette necessities when communicating with professionals. We flaunt our abilities, look and sound desperate, and then become impatient to get a foot in the door, causing us to lose favorable job opportunities: no job, no money. No money, no home. No home, no sanity. It’s excessive, but do you see where I am going with this?
Our ability to network, feel confident, and be attentive can make or break your career. Working in sales as your day job can assist in gaining more of these communication skills and open many more opportunities in your career.
Gain Networking Skills 
One of many reasons people don’t want to be in sales is because they don’t want to “deal with people.” At least, that was one of my reasons before I worked as a saleswoman. However, I quickly realized if I wanted to be my own boss someday ( or be a musical rockstar ;D ), I would have to “deal” with people daily, whether it’s potential clients, the barista at my favorite coffee shop, or a super fan. We “deal” with someone online or in person every day. As Music freelancers, you will communicate and collaborate with other creatives, big or small, so cranking up some social etiquette points along the way will be good to learn.
In sales, 95% of the job will be expanding and nurturing your contact list. A great salesperson takes care of and motivates the growth of their network. A great artist does just the same. Check out this post about a new study on artists who are more likely to become famous because of who they know.
Columbia University Center for Career Education says, “Networking is the process of making connections and building relationships.”
Did you get that? One more time.
“*Networking is *THE PROCESS OF MAKING CONNECTIONS AND BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS.”
That means you are making friends and allowing the joyous and hard times to come with it. Interacting with humans is part of our DNA and essential for our longevity. It can help us grow and understand who we are and where we stand in our careers.
I am not going to sit here and say this is going to be easy. Communicating the “right” way with people, especially those with values different from yours, can be very frustrating. However, adapting to many interactions can extend your ability to communicate with all types of people, allowing your contact list to expand and open doors you never thought would be available.
Check out this article here to learn more about improving your Networking skills.
Gain Confidence
Once everyone started to go outside and socialize more after the pandemic, I continued to stay in. Not because of fear of getting COVID but because I had gained a few pounds, lost my interest in getting dressed in the morning, and quickly lost a considerable amount of energy when talking with people. My social etiquette points caused awkwardness or loss of words when talking to people at an event or a show. So, in other words, I became an introvert.
When I started my day job as a saleswoman, I balanced out those social skills. I gained more confidence in communicating with anyone around me since 95% of the work is spent communicating with customers and using tactics to sell products or services. This skill gave me a considerable advantage and separated me from other engineers and musicians.
When I interned at a recording studio, part of my job was to get people in the studio or at least make them interested in the studio’s services. I often reached out to artists I had never met or who had never heard of our studio. After reaching out to people at local shows, coffee shops, social media, etc.… I got a few clients in the studio for recording and mixing services in a short time. My boss was surprised and jokingly asked if I do this every day. I told him my day job is in sales and that I use a tactic that requires contacting people I don’t know or rarely know.
This tactic is called cold calling, and it prepared me to communicate and pitch my game when the time came to expand my network.
What is cold or warm calling?
Cold calling is when a salesperson reaches out to a potential customer whom they have never interacted with and aims for the customer to be interested in a product or service the business offers. Warm calling has the same goal, but the customer would already have some interaction with the sales rep or business.
My first cold call was hard and scary, but it became easy after the first few tries. I realized getting comfortable with this tactic and preparing yourself for rejection is a big part of the music industry, so I continued to use these tactics for practice.
The worst thing the customer or client will say is, “No, I’m not interested. Don’t call me again.” If this is the case, figure out how to approach people differently and see how that works. Changing your game IS part of communicating, so always stay fresh and flexible.
By the time I settled in as a Saleswoman, I had spoken to hundreds of people almost daily. My anxiety about saying the “wrong thing” went away, and I began to communicate in a style I felt comfortable with. Using cold calling opened my eyes to understanding how networking works in the business world.
Gain Attentiveness and Listening Skills
Listening and analyzing music is part of a routine that music creatives use to understand melodies, harmonies, and rhythms used by other artists. This ritual of listening and observing can also be very beneficial when communicating with other professionals or people we call friends and family. My main point is understanding how vital it is to listen and be attentive when communicating with other people.
How does this tie in with being a salesperson? To get the right product for customers, the salesperson needs to know what they need, why they need it, and a bit of their background. This consists of being a great listener and observer to the customer’s problem. If the customer feels that the salesperson is not listening to what they need or request, they will leave empty-handed. Imagine being this salesperson, having every customer leave empty-handed, and having a quota to meet every month.
Okay, now imagine this: an audio engineer gets a million requests from a client on how they want their track to sound. The audio engineer mixes it how they feel it should sound instead of following the client’s request. The client was particular with how they wanted their mix to sound and is now upset for wasting time with someone who would not honor their request. Thus, the client will hire a new sound engineer who will listen to the client’s request.
I am going to give it to you straight. Many musicians out there talk WAY too much about themselves and believe they should display all of their talents and trophies. It’s not necessarily bad, but it can be annoying and make people not want to be around that person.
“Learn to read the room and shut up.” – Pam
The above quote was written in my journal when I realized I talk too much and don’t leave any room for anyone else to speak. I lost potential clients, a few friends, good ones, too, and lost opportunities for collaboration and growth.
Take the chance to grow your network and learn to be attentive to the experiences and thoughts of other people. When you listen, you look more engaged in the conversation, letting them know you are interested in who they are and everything about them. This gives a beautiful character trait about you. A human who isn’t after fame; instead, someone who is humble and caring.
I hope this series guided you in any way. Comment below with what you do for your day job and what creative field you are pursuing.
It’s been quite a while since I posted. I had a big trip to Europe, a significant change in my day job, moved to a new apartment, and am currently working on an upcoming EP Christmas album. There have been changes this fall, but I am back and will be posting every month. See you guys in the next one!