Your pitch is one of the most crucial components of networking. Let’s nail it then, shall we? If you can, the first thing to do is ask any presenter how they prefer to be approached. Wherever their preference lies, your pitch will usually fall somewhere along the lines of either:
Regardless of the context of how the pitch originates, there are some golden rules for talking about your work to a potential presenter:
Whether via email or phone, coming in cold can be a tough gig. It’s still absolutely worth a go – you’ll need to use a similar approach when you’re engaging publicists, journos and reviewers, so it’s a good skill to master!
The “Cold” Pitch should always start with a question. Something like: How do you like to be pitched ideas? Is now a good time to chat about an idea? What phase of your programming process are you in now? From there, cover all the bases: • Open strong – something respectful and professional, but also friendly. • Demonstrate that you’ve done your research and you know all about the kind of work the recipient has programmed in the past and how your work fits in and compliments with their programming taste. • Give a quick intro of your show and your company – try and contextualise this as a trajectory, so where you’re at and where you’re headed. • Offer comps to your show. If it is possible for these presenters to see it, it creates a call to action and shows you have a “ready” product. • Be short, sweet, clear and direct.
The social pitch may be the dark arts for some but mastering it can be very rewarding. Humans are natural connectors, much more likely to seek and sow opportunities within our own circles. Impressing people in a casual setting can be risky business though, especially if your enthusiasm begins to teeter on the edge of… annoying.
Quality safeguards for the social pitch: • Rehearse that “elevator pitch” – a few quick, sharp and conversational quips that describe your show and spark some interest. • Be ready to go with a positive, excited and thoughtful response to the question, “How’s the show going?” • Keep things light and social. Offer to buy someone a drink, don’t forget to introduce other people you’re with – work those social skills. • Remember to get some general, non-threatening, non-show related conversation going. Don’t just talk about you. • Generally, people don’t want to talk about shows at the bar, but they do want to meet people. Once you’ve introduced yourself and feel like you’ve made a positive, memorable impression, your job is done. • This should be the chance to pencil in a meeting, not the meeting itself! • Follow up with an email the next day - please note, it is important not to hassle people with follow ups, you don’t want to get presenters offside. Sometimes no answer, is an answer.
This may be one of the more straight-forward ways to pitch. These pitches are normally made in a formal context where the presenter is there explicitly to hear about potential work. This could be anything from our own Tour Ready sessions, to presenting in an industry market such as APAM or Showcase Victoria. There are pros and cons to this format! The ultimate pro is that you should not feel anxious about sharing your pitch. The presenters attending or reading these applications are looking for programming. They are the proverbial Regina George pulling up in front of you shouting “Get in Pitches, we are going touring”.
What should you be thinking about? • Rehearse that “elevator pitch” – a few quick, sharp and conversational quips that describe your show and spark some interest. • Have you met the criteria of what they’re looking for? A lot of funding ops associated with programming or tours will list requirements to be eligible, and you should think of this as an assessment. Don’t just say what they want to hear, otherwise you are setting yourself up to fail; represent you and the work exactly as it is. • Chat to the organisation that is setting up the event or organising the funding and get their insights. They want you to succeed as much you do! • Are you showing everything? Budgets, project plans, production and venue requirements, touring party size… you should have it all ready to show off. • And we mean everything… If you’re lucky you may be able to wow the other party by focusing on the positives, but often if you skip over something it will read like you have forgotten large parts of the project. It is much more sensible to state a problem and mention how you could work with the presenter to overcome it. • If you are doing a presentation, make sure it is engaging. We are in an industry of performers; it can be easy to forget that people will tune out if you don’t present well. • Have a small info pack ready or business cards, hopefully after a pitch you can do some socialising out in the foyer (refer to B – The Social Pitch). • Leave the meeting or presentation knowing what the next steps are – do you follow up, or will they get in touch with you? What is their programming timeline? Do you need to provide additional information by a particular date?