Maximizing Music Conferences & Industry Events | Wendy Day

Boo boo! Hi guys, welcome back! Today we're going to talk about networking at conventions. Yay! You know, the great thing about music industry events where a large number of us get together, um, especially the ones where they're not showcases and they're like panel discussions or presentations. The great thing about those is that we get to learn a lot and we get to meet people in person as opposed to just the internet. And the internet is great, I don't take anything away from it at all. My career has increased exponentially thanks to the internet, but the one thing that you cannot replace place is an in-person interaction where you get to actually read somebody's face and you get to hear the tone of what they're saying and you get to really, um, interact with them. So that if they make a comment about something, you can respond right then and there, and it may take you off like on a different tangent, a different path, um, and it just makes it much easier to converse than email. Which is very much like a walkie-talkie system where you talk a lot and then you send it to me and time passes and I talk a lot and send it back to you. Um, it just doesn't have that same interaction, that same engagement and give and take that an in-person conversation has. So, um, I love industry events and conferences and panels and presentations for just that reason. And, um, I'm just gonna share with you what works for me and what I do at conferences, and I've been doing this my whole career. I did it when I was unknown. I did it at the height of my career in the late '90s and early 2000s where I had done a shit ton of deals and everybody kinda knew who I was, and it's the same thing that I even do today where my success is more with independent artists, So hordes of people don't necessarily know who I am, and I like that. I really hate when I walk in a room and I get swarmed with people. It's very draining for me. I'm an extroverted introvert, so it's very draining for me when I have to, um, be pleasant and on all the time. It— I, I much prefer to be at my desk working. So when you see me in a group situation, just know that I don't like being there and I'm uncomfortable, but I'm going to do it anyway because it's important. Okay, I'm gonna use South by Southwest as an example, but every conference that you attend in the music industry or even outside of the music industry, you can use these same principles. A3C is a very important conference for rap, for indie do-it-yourselfers. CD Baby has a conference every year. It's usually in August, September, October. It kind of moves. Um, there's a conference in Nashville, um, with one of the music industry organizations every May, I think it is. South by Southwest is in March. And then throughout the year, there's just different events that are either one day or an entire weekend in different areas of the country. There's one in Dallas every year. There's one in Tampa, Florida, that I speak at a lot. There's one in Chicago coming up in February. And then there's people that do different legitimate events. They're not all legitimate, you understand that, right? Like, anybody can put on an event, but that doesn't mean it's legitimate. What you need to look at is who's coming, who's confirmed. I always reach out to the bigger panelists to make sure they're really gonna be attending an event. I don't do that for South by Southwest, pretty much I know they're gonna be there. ASCAP has an event every year in April. I pretty much know that people are gonna show up to that. A3C, people are gonna show up to.. But some of the smaller events that are going on around the country, I know how people put my name on flyers and say that I'm speaking at events when I'm not. So if I'm gonna go out of town to hear somebody speak, I'm for sure gonna confirm that, that they're actually going. Sometimes it's as simple as going to their Facebook page or their Instagram page and seeing if they're posting the event. Those of us who are speaking, we almost always post the event. A month or two out so that people will know that it's coming up. And if they want to hear us speak, it gives them time to, you know, make travel arrangements, purchase affordable plane tickets, etc., even though most of you do stuff at the last minute anyway. But the way that I appear— and I'm going to talk about being an attendee now, not being a panelist, okay? Um, the way that I work a conference as an attendee is I go to the website of the event. First of all, I make sure if it's a smaller event that the people that I want to interact with are going. And if they're, if they're not posting on their social media, sometimes I'll ask them via Twitter or Instagram if they're going. Sometimes I'll blow an email to them to ask them if they're going. LinkedIn is a great way to find people that are not artists that are going to an event to speak. And then once I get a response, I start planning my attendance. And most all of the events have a website. Some are extremely advanced and tech savvy, like South by Southwest. Not only does South by Southwest have a website that lists the panelists, but they've got an interactive app, so you can download their free app, S XSW 2017, and you can not only see who's attending, but there's a way for you to interact with them through the app so that you can set up meetings or appointments. Um, if you, if you aren't somebody that has some renown, it's going to be hard to get somebody to spend time with you unless you've got a really great pitch as to why they should spend time with you having coffee or lunch, or, you know, even meet with you in the lobby for 10 minutes. But what I do is I go through the list of panelists and I figure out, um, from that list all of the people who are speaking that I'd like to hear speak. And then I make a list of all the people that I would like to meet who are speaking. You know, sometimes I want to hear somebody speak, and then sometimes I actually want to interact with them because there's something that I feel I can offer them, or there's something that they're doing that I want to know more about. Um, especially on the tech side, there's a lot of people that I want to interact with. So for example, if I see somebody from Pandora is speaking, that's somebody that I want to interact with more than just hearing them speak on the panel. I mean, obviously I'm going to go to the panel and hear them speak, but that may be somebody that I want to take to coffee or spend 10 minutes with. So I will usually reach out to them prior to the conference. This is after I've already ascertained that they're going. Once they hit me back and say that they are, or once I see on their, on their social media that they're posting the fact that they're going to be there, then I do a little bit of research on the topic and I reach out to them and I tell them, you know, hey, I see that you're speaking at A3C or South by Southwest. My name is Wendy Day. Here's what I do. Here's what I've done in the past. Here's what I'm working on now. And I would love to have just 10 minutes of your time. You know, I can buy you coffee or we can meet in the lobby, like whatever is convenient for you. And sometimes I get a response, sometimes I don't. If I don't get a response, then I make sure that I meet up with them after they speak. And whatever questions I have, I'm gonna ask them. I'm gonna stand in that line that always forms after they speak on the panel, and I'm gonna interact with them. If for some reason we're kicked out of the room, and this happens all the time, sometimes panelists only get through like the first 10 people or so. I know this happens to me when I speak, but I'm willing to step out in the hallway and finish conversations as long as there's still people there that want to talk to me. And most people, I think, unless they've got some pressing engagement They know when they commit to speaking on a panel that that's what it means. So if you're being moved out of the room, don't just give up and walk away. Don't feel some kind of way. Just follow them and see where they're moving to, to ask questions. And even if you just walk with them to the elevator and speak to them while you're walking, it's better than not speaking at all to them, right? And again, you're not annoying them. You know, as somebody that speaks on a lot of panels, when I say yes to a panel, I realize that I'm giving up my privacy at that event. I realize that I am on display and I am open to anybody coming up and interacting with me. That doesn't mean that if you pitch me something, I'm gonna go for it, especially if it's something that's out of the scope of what I do. But it does mean that you're gonna get to ask me a question or two or interact with me or at least, you know, run an idea by me, you know, whatever your pitch is. Don't waste people's time. Don't ask more than 3 questions. I can't speak for other people, but when I attend an event, I give you 3 questions. If you have more than 3 questions, I'm gonna ask you to email me and reach out to me. I'll never ask you to call me because I'm not great at returning calls, but I will tell people to email me. This, this is me telling you that when you're interacting with somebody at a conference, ask them the best way to follow up with them. Somebody like myself, you could call me 50 times and never get a hold of me and have such a bad experience in trying to get a hold of me that you think I'm the most inaccessible asshole in the world. But if you email me, even without speaking to me first, if you email me, you're going to get a response. So somebody that emails me with a question is going to have the exact opposite opinion of me than somebody that tries to call me. It's just everybody has ways that they prefer to be contacted. Some people prefer Facebook Messenger. I don't even have Facebook Messenger. If you talk to me on direct mail at Instagram and you're not asking me to listen to music, I'll respond to you. If you're asking me to listen to music, I'll decline you. On Twitter, if you me with music, I'll block you so you won't get to ask me anything. Everybody has their own little quirks, and the way you find out their quirks is by doing the research. And if you haven't done the research, why are you trying to talk to me anyway? If you don't know who I am and what I've accomplished and what I'm currently doing right now and how it can help you or add value to what you're doing, why are you even trying to talk to me? Why are you coming up to me and handing me music if I don't listen to music? You're basically looking stupid. It's basically like walking up to me and saying, "Hi, I don't know who you are or what you do, but I see other people talking to you, so I'm on your dick." It's just— it's a stupid way to try to approach somebody. So guys, when you're attending a conference, do the research. Reach out to them. If it's a smaller conference, find out if they're really going. Once you have figured out that they're going, whether you see them posting information or not, reach out to them. Introduce yourself. Let them know that you're coming to the conference, and whatever question or, um, uh, idea that you want to discuss with them, ask them for some time. Um, what I do is I go and buy Starbucks cards I usually buy them in $25 increments. You guys probably aren't at a point in your career yet where you can do that, because if I buy 10 of them, it's $250, and I'll usually buy 30, 40, 50 of them. And anybody that I stand around talking to for any length of time, and anybody that's really receptive to helping me, I'll give them a Starbucks card. And the reason that I do that is it's my way of thanking them for spending time with me because they didn't have to. You know, they're there with, you know, hundreds or thousands of other people that have questions for them. They're also there where they could be talking to people to benefit their own career, and they're spending time with me answering questions. I want to— I want to— I want to thank them first of all. Second of all, I want to stand out. I want them to, to respond to me when I follow up with them. And that's kind of my next point here. So after you have interacted with somebody, whether they spend whether they meet with you or not, whether they spend time with you after the panel discussion and you get to ask them a question, whether you get to meet them or not, I suggest that you take their card. Most people will put the card in front of them on the table where they're speaking. If not, you can stand in line in front of them, ask them for a card. They'll be happy to just give you a card and speak with you later. And then reach out to them and explain to them, I do it that night. I don't wait until I get back. I know other people advise you to wait a week and then hit them. I do both. I hit them that night from my phone in my hotel room and email them, and then I also follow up a week or week and a half or 2 weeks later when they've had a chance to like catch up and, and, you know, be back at their job and they're not quite as swamped, um, from catching up on the work they missed while they were traveling, but I follow up and say, "Hi, I'm Wendy Day. I met you today," or, you know, "I stood in line and got your card," or, "Hi, remember me? I'm the person that you spoke to in the lobby that gave you the Starbucks card." Although now that I've told you guys my secret, I'm gonna have to say that I'm the heavyset white girl that gave you the Starbucks card, because all of you are gonna do that now and totally fuck up my game. But they'll remember, and usually they'll respond and you can do one of two things. You can build a relationship with that person if that's what your goal is, if it's somebody that you feel you can add value to and they can add value to you. Remember, networking with somebody is not always expecting them to do for you— that's a mentor, right? Networking is you're able to give them something of value and they're able to give you something of value. So if you're, if you're trying to reach out to somebody that's more successful than you, you're probably going to have to do more to get them to respond than they're going to have to do to get you to respond, right? So you may want to send articles that are of interest to them, and, and you can find out what their interests are by following them on social media, going back through their feeds, find out what matters to them. Find out what their hot buttons are, you know. Even something as simple as, you know, I'm very pro-Black Lives Matter, so there have been people that have reached out to me on Instagram, like they'll direct mail me, direct DM me a meme, like a pro-Black Lives Matter meme, saying, hey, I thought you might want this for your feed. And I'll look at it and be like, oh, this is awesome. And then I'll use it on my feed and I'll always thank them, you know. And, and I get to know who the people are that reach out to me on a somewhat regular basis. I get to know the pests too. So don't, don't reach out to somebody every day. Don't make a best friend. I'm not your bestie. Don't make a best friend of someone who reaches back out to you, but reach out to them enough so that they know who you are. And always be respectful of their time. If you're talking to them by phone, ask them, "Is this a good time?" If it's not, ask them when would be a better time to speak. It might be at 7 o'clock in the evening when they're, when they're less swamped, or it might be 9 o'clock in the morning before they start their day, or it might be a Saturday or Sunday. But ask them when a convenient time is, and if they tell you, don't think that they're blowing you off. If you have to— if they say Saturdays between 12 and 3, and you have to call them for 4 or 5 Saturdays in a row to get a hold of them, then do so. And if you feel like you're bothering them, ask them. Say, you know what, you said that, that I should call you on a Saturday between 12 to 3. I noticed this is the 4th Saturday in a row that I've had to leave this message. I'm really not trying to aggravate you. My email address is thisiswendyday@gmail.com. If you'd prefer me to stop calling you, I will. If you're tired of getting these messages just let me know. But if you don't let me know, I'm gonna be assertive and I'm gonna keep calling you. My intention isn't to drive you crazy, so just let me know. Most people are pretty cool about letting you know, you know, hey, I just don't have time, or, you know, you're looking for a mentor and I'm not trying to be that, or, you know, I see that you're trying to network with me, but I'm in the midst of a big project and I just don't have the kind of time to interact with you that you need. Or just straight out, you're emailing me too much. And I'm, I'm a little bit more in your face than most people are. I think most people won't tell you that you're being a pest, but if somebody is giving you the signs that like enough's enough, take the hint. Okay guys, um, so meet them before you go, interact with them before you go if you can, see them there and try to meet them face to face there. If not, at the bare minimum, get a business card from them so that when you reach back out to them, you can tell them, you know, when you reach back out to them to follow up after the event, make a comment about something they said on the panel or something you learned from them or an aha moment, something so that they know that you got value from what they were doing. Be succinct if you're asking them for something. Don't send them a page and a half email just to ask them to refer you to distributors or to, you know, whatever you're trying to get from them. You know, be succinct, be respectful of their time, and don't, don't look at them like they're your new best friend. They're not. They're a networking opportunity. They're not somebody that's trying to hang out with you. So just understand the difference between business and personal. Follow-up is key. I gotta tell you, as somebody who speaks on panels, the number of people that follow up with me afterwards is minuscule. So they really stand out. When I spoke at South by Southwest— I didn't speak last year, um, the year before I did a panel with DJ Ski and Travis O'Guinn, who runs Tech N9ne's label, and Dame, who runs uh, Funk Volume. Um, we spoke on a panel, and after we spoke on that panel, like, it was an hour long, and then we probably had like an hour's worth of questions. Um, we were inundated for like an hour and a half after the panel in the hallway answering questions. I would say after that panel, probably 10 people followed up with me, maybe less. I might be being generous by saying 10 people. So don't feel like, like, oh, I'm just one person and a million people are reaching out. Most people don't have follow-through. Most people aren't speaking to somebody because they really, they really have something going on and they really need something. They're speaking to somebody because they want to take a picture with them to put on their Instagram to say, look, I stood next to somebody that other people think is famous, and that's just bullshit. So I hope this helps you in preparing for conferences. Go to as many as you can. I know it gets expensive. Like, I see the price of Revolt. I see the price of South by Southwest. A lot of them that are overpriced, I don't go to because I don't support that. I just feel like if it's more than $150, you're charging too much and you're thinking too much of yourself. But if you can't afford it, you know, reach out to them and see if there's something that you can do to volunteer. You know, maybe you can volunteer for half a day each day and help them, and it gets you into the conference for free. Let them know which panels matter to you to go see, and then maybe you can volunteer your time for other events, you know, other panels that they have going on that you don't care about. And that way you get into the event for free. It's certainly superior to spending $800 to attend an event if you don't have, you know, the money to spend. 'Cause remember, it's not just the price to get in, it's the price to get there, you've gotta eat while you're there, you've got the hotel every night, you know, you may wanna take somebody to lunch or dinner, you need to have some sort of budget for that. You don't wanna just, you know, you don't wanna just drag somebody to McDonald's if you're buying them dinner and it's somebody that is, you know, like Jimmy Iovine at Apple. You know, you're gonna— not, not that Jimmy Iovine is gonna want to have lunch with you, but if he does, you're going to want to take him someplace other than McDonald's. And if you can't afford it, suggest coffee. You know, most people can find something to drink when they're, um, in a coffee shop, even if they don't drink coffee. Okay guys, That's it. Enjoy the event. Learn as much as you can. Um, don't just take our word for it. Do more research. Get a lot of opinions on every topic. Um, and then choose what seems to be the truth for you. Apply things that you think will work. If they don't work, try something different. If it does work, keep doing it. Okay guys, take care.