Photo: the genius Caroline White of carolinewhitephotography.com.
Bracing myself, I open my email. And there they are: rows and rows and rows of unread messages, with subject lines like,
TRACK
NEW MUSIC!
MADE IN CHELSEA – MUSIC?
BAND FROM THE SOUTH
NEW MUSIC FOR TV
It was 2013 and I’d spent a few years doing the sexiest-seeming job I’d ever had: choosing music for big TV shows and movies.
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I say “sexiest-seeming” because it was honestly a lot of me sitting around in my underwear on my bedroom floor, surrounded by scraps of paper, feeling stressed out, and making suggestions to directors who then, half the time, went with one of their own choices anyway.
But TELLING people “I choose music for big TV shows and movies” definitely elicited the kind of impressed response that made it feel worth it.
A downside of the job was my email inbox. By 2013, bands were already learning that one of the only ways to make money as a musician was through getting your music “synched,” as they call it. As someone who loves new music, you’d think I wouldn’t have been so bummed out by getting sent so much of it. The problem?
The same problem that EVERYONE being pitched — whether it’s for a music supervisor or a big deal podcast host or a journalist or publication editor — has:
I literally didn’t have the physical time to read every email and go through every pitch.
And most of the pitches were terrible. Because most of the pitches made the same CARDINAL mistake:
They made the pitch all about themselves
Now, that might sound absurd. “Marsha, if I’m pitching you because I want to be featured… shouldn’t I be talking about myself????”
And yes, you should *eventually*. But if you want your pitch to stand out, you should do a few other things first. We’ll get to them.
Back to 2013, I despondently clicked on a couple of emails. They all started the same.
“Hi, I’d love you to feature our music! We’re a four-piece from…”
All about them.
Then I started reading another, and a big smile fell across my face.
Not because I remembered this person (I didn’t — the Xfm she mentions was a radio station I worked at for 7 years and she was one of hundreds of people that could, in theory, have said the same first sentence in the email you’re about to read). But because the email was like a MASTERCLASS in good pitching.
It said:
“Hello Marsha!
You might remember me from a few years ago when you said some kind words about my last band when you were at XFM. Charlie Irvin pointed me in your direction as someone who might be able to help with syncs. I also signed up for your newsletter yesterday -melikes the eye contact advice, skills [this was back when I was teaching networking].
I’m just wondering if you’re ever in the market for syncs etc? If so, here’s the album, it ended up doing pretty well with 6 out of the 12 songs so far being played on 6 Music and some Radio 2 and BBC London outings too.
Full album set (with vox): https://soundcloud.com/
Instrumentals (lots of eerie, atmospheric stuff there): http://soundcloud.com/
Album download – https://www.dropbox.com/s/
In brief:
– ‘pop’ songs: Day Like Any Other, Sing You Through The Storm, Sunrise, Menage A Moi, Vampires.
– atmospheric eerie stuff: Little Boy Blue, Lamentine, Don’t Sleep, Dark Waltz, Hunger That Never Sleeps, Scoundrelle.
Also attached is biog.
Best things to you!! Yours hopefully,
Rebekah x
I almost punched the air I was so pleased to get this email.
Assuming you’re interested in pitching anything to anyone ever — you as an interviewee to a podcast host, or your business to a publication for press — let’s break down what she did right.
1) She reminded me I’d met her before. As I said, I had ZERO memory of this. But my subconscious is going to be like, “Well PAST Marsha trusted her, so I guess I should too.”
2) She mentioned a mutual person. Charlie Irvin was not a close friend. He was a PR rep I’d gone to like 3 parties with 10 years previously. BUT we’re still Facebook friends. So by mentioning him, I suddenly think, “Oh, I better listen! Because what if Charlie asks me about it and I haven’t! It will be so embarrassing!!”
GENIUS move.
3) SHE SIGNED UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER! And read my blog!
Even if she LITERALLY GOOGLED ME in the 5 minutes before emailing me, this is more than ANYONE ELSE who emailed me that week had done. Ten points! Gold star!
4) Her ask was CRYSTAL CLEAR. I can’t tell you how often I used to get pitched and have no idea what that person actually wanted.
5) The links she gave me were a) clearly signposted and b) WHAT I WANTED! (when you’re doing syncs, you sometimes need vocals and sometimes need instrumentals. Very few people sent me both). She also then listed songs that had different sounds, so I could jump straight to what I needed.
Crucially, she took the time to understand what my job is and how to make it easier.
And finally,
6) She smiled through her email (click on that link to see what I mean)
[If this has piqued your interest in Rebekah, you can find out more about her and listen to her lovely music on her Facebook page, here: https://www.facebook.com/therebekahdelgadopage]
Thanks for reading!
You rule!
xx (Yes Yes) Marsha
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