My publishing company Nashville Cool! received this email from a songwriter this morning. (Personal info has been scribbled out to protect the innocent!)
I felt so bad for this well-intended songwriter just trying to make something happen...right before I sent the email to trash. That, somehow made me laugh and feel even worse!
Music publishers are drowning in emails. My friend Gilles Goddard, Sr. VP Publishing at Anthem Entertainment says he gets 1000 emails per day. No kidding! I don’t nearly get that many emails, but I wish songwriters knew what I was going to tell you right now.
From time to time, we all need to email someone we don't know. If you’re going to email a publisher, find someone in your circle that knows them and see if they are willing to let you use their name..."Janey suggested I contact you."
If you’re stuck in a tough spot because you don’t know anyone, here are some tips for looking like a seasoned professional.
Make sure your subject line is clear as well - try something like "I'm writing about X".Make sure that your email is easy to understand.
Don't send long emails or ones that are full of jargon!
Try to include something you have in common at the beginning of the email like...Congrats on signing (name of songwriter). He's absolutely one of my favorite writers.
Don't send an mp3. But do send a link to your website or soundCloud. Something that's public. A publisher wary of being sued for copyright infringement will be more likely to listen to something you've posted for the world to hear.
Finally, follow up after sending an initial email in about 3 weeks - even if they haven't responded yet! It shows them how persistent and interested in their work you are. And who knows? Maybe this time around they'll respond!
Good luck out there!
Nancy Deckant, CEO
DiscoverSooner.com
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