Become a Booking Agent
Booking agents are in charge of getting work for their "talent," which can be musicians, actors, writers, artists and more. They contact venues and organize events to showcase their talent. Booking agents might also be called talent agents, and the job is similar to a manager or talent scout, but is not the same. By taking steps now, like making connections with local venues, and long term steps like the proper education, you can develop the skills necessary to become a booking agent.
Contents
Steps
Connecting to the Industry
- Decide what type of booking agent you want to be. This is something that starts in the short term and may take a little while, but it is an important step to start with because it will help focus what you do from this point forward. The role of a booking agent can be carried out in a number of industries from music, to modeling, literary, acting, and more and the steps for each one might be a little different.
- Some agents will have talent that spans multiple industries, but at the start, it is best to focus on one and get the hang of what is required of you as different industries have different booking practices.
- If you get into music, you'll be scheduling gigs for bands, and most likely looking for a record label to sign them.
- If you start working with a writer, you'll be helping them find a publisher for their book, and maybe scheduling local readings or signings to get their name out there.
- Working with an actor would mean finding them auditions and eventually helping them work out contracts.
- Pay attention to the industry you choose. Whichever industry you pick to start booking for, you need to learn as much as you can about it and follow what is new and what the trends are. This can be done by researching the history of the industry, by talking to anyone you know who may have some experience, and especially by absorbing as much as you can.
- Listen to the newest music. Read authors’ debut books. Keep tabs on the latest celebrities.
- Search out blogs and websites that keep the pulse of emerging artists, writers and actors. Follow these sites devoutly to stay aware of trends that develop in the industries.
- It would even be great practice to start writing your own blog that chronicles what you are learning and thinking about regarding these industries. It is a great practice to share what you love with other people.
- Go to local events and venues often. The best way to start making connections is to go where the people you need to connect with are. Find out what bars and venues have local bands and go to the show, try to meet the bands and owners. If you want to meet local writers, find out if there are workshops or readings you can attend. Go to the local theater and scout actors who may be potential talent. Visit an art gallery and ask about local artists. The main idea is to find out who is in your area and what venues have to offer.
- Starting local is more likely to yield results than trying to land an already famous talent.
- If you do meet someone, discuss with them the possibility of working with them. If they don’t have anyone handling their booking, offer to work with them on a temporary basis to see if you can help each other out.
- After you see a great concert, you could tell the musicians, "Hey guys, I loved your set. I was wondering if you have anyone booking shows for you?" This would work best with smaller, lesser-known, up-and-coming bands - if you have friends who are trying to make it big, you could ask them if they'd like to have you on as a booking agent. If you go to a writers workshop and you hear someone who has a cool book they are working on, say to them, "Your book sounds cool. Are you already looking for publishers? Would you want some help?" You'll have to adapt it to the setting, but just asking people if they are interested in help is the key.
- Beyond just going to venues and looking for talent, make a specific effort to talk to the owners or managers and find out their methods for booking people. You may be able to offer them services in the future.
- Volunteer for community events. If your community hosts events that book any kind of local talent, get involved with the planning and organizing process as an easy way to get experience.
- Volunteer events are an excellent way to find new and upcoming talent and to promote yourself as someone who understands the industry. In addition, volunteering will allow you to learn many behind-the-scenes duties that could help you get the most for your talent.
- If your town has any kind of street festival, they would most likely welcome your help is organizing the entertainment. Maybe there is a fashion show for charity that you could scout models for. Your local library might enjoy having a reading from a local author that you could volunteer to organize. The high schools near you might be interested in you promoting a battle of the bands that students could participate in.
- If a very clear opportunity to volunteer does not present itself, take control and think of something on your own. You could organize a concert, fashion show, or reading on your own. You just need to find some place to hold it.
Gaining Education and Experience
- Get a degree. It is not absolutely necessary to get a degree to become a booking agent, but what a degree will do for you is give you specialized education that just grinding it out in the business will not. People who have made successful careers as agents tend to recommend formal education, even if they did not get one. They say that times have changed and just getting experience is, in general, not enough to make it nowadays.
- Recommended degrees are in advertising and marketing, public relations, and human resources.
- Going to school full time may be out of the question for you, but many universities offer online classes. Some college even operate 100% online, so this could be a really good option. They are directed at people who need the convenience of online programs, so they are crafted specifically with that in mind.
- Get an internship. If this type of commitment is an option, it is a great way to get your foot in the door and make connections. Large talent agencies often offer agent training programs for aspiring agents. In general, booking agents don’t just start out on their own and make it big. It is a career that tends to take time to build up, and internships are often the ideal place to start your career.
- If a formal internship doesn’t work out, get an assistant job. Get a low-level “go get my coffee” job. Whatever you can do to get in the door will help you start making connections and gaining some knowledge and experience in the industry.
- An internet search of "talent agency internship" or "music booking internships" should return quite a few sites that are designated to internships. There will most likely be an application and if that is accepted you will have to interview to see if you are a good fit for the internship.
- Get sales and marketing experience. Maybe you can’t enter the agent business in a direct line, but in the meantime you can get basic experience that will benefit you. Being an agent means making people want your “product,” which in this case is your talent. So learning to market and make sales is a great foundation.
- Do you already have a job where you could ask for extra responsibility in this area? Can you practice your sales and marketing skills somehow in your work?
- Can you start a job in sales and marketing to start getting experience related to being an agent?
- You can start practicing your sales and marketing skills in everyday life, besides within a job. Think about what it takes to be a good salesmen: convincing people that they need the thing you are offering. So the next time you are picking a movie to watch, think of it as a sales pitch. Do what it takes to convince the person to watch the movie you want. Or pick an event that you are excited about going to and just start a talking it up a lot and trying to get other people interested in going to it. This may not be "experience" per se, but it will help you develop the needed skills.
Developing the Traits of a Booking Agent
- Be exceptionally organized. Keeping track of your artists’ schedules, what venues you have contacted, when you have events coming up, and records of the contracts you make are important parts of being a successful agent. You also have to manage your time efficiently so you keep on track. If you are an independent agent and not part of an agency, no one else will be telling you what to do. It’s up to you to stay on it. If you are in an agency, they will want to know you are doing your job well.
- Start organizing your personal life now to practice for when you have to organize other people’s. Make a schedule for what you do each day and try hard to stick to it. Evaluate at night how well you did on keeping to the schedule. If scheduling ahead doesn't work out well, keep a time log each day of exactly how you spent your time. This will show you if there are any ways you are wasting time and can become more efficient.
- Develop good people skills. Being an agent is a relationship-heavy job, so you need to have great communication skills and feel comfortable making connections with people. You will spend a lot of you time talking to your talent, to venue owners, and potential talent. You’ll constantly be meeting people and discussing with people in person, over the phone, and via email and social media, so get comfortable with these aspects of communication.
- Ask your friends or employer if you are already good at these aspects. If not, consider whether this type of career is right for you.
- Develop these skills by starting conversations with people more often. Not just ones where you talk the whole time, but actively try to get them to talk more and draw information out of them. If you struggle with talking to people, the only way to get better is to keep pushing yourself to do it more.
- Practice calling businesses to ask them about services or products. It will help you become more comfortable with the cold calling experience.
- Learn perseverance and flexibility. You will face all kinds of rejection as an agent, and you need to be equipped to deal with it. People will turn you down a lot and you have to keep going despite the setbacks. You also need to be flexible and willing to make things work when things are falling apart.
- Shows will fall through when venues cancel. Your talent will get sick right before an engagement. You will have travel troubles. You have to learn to accept all this with patience and keep on going forward.
- Start planning for all the possible outcomes of situations you are in. If you are about to take a trip, think about what could go wrong and consider your options to handle those things. Thinking ahead about how you'll face problems that arise will help you be more flexible and get past them.
- When something comes up that seems to waste your time or hold you up, take the opportunity to breathe and recoup. Traffic jams and long waits can be more than a time to get angry. They can be a time to plan for what is next and relax. Use those specific setbacks to practice being flexible.
- Want everyone to win. You want to earn good money and make a career of being an agent. So you need to succeed at booking your talent and making them big. They need to do well at shows/events so the venue likes them and wants them back. By seeking the success of your talent and the venues you book, you will achieve your own success.
- In your day to day life, practice solving tricky problems, especially where multiple people are involved. Find ways that everyone can get what they want from the situation.
- When a friend or family member has some type of event coming up, think about what would be the best possible outcome for them and do anything you can to make it that way. If a friend is in a play, encourage lots of people to go see them. Someone has a job interview? give them pep talks leading up to it and offer to go with them to help keep them calm.
- Being a booking agent often means wanting other people to succeed above wanting yourself to succeed. So learning to put other people first is a must.
Tips
- Take at least one of these steps as soon as you can. Putting it off will only make taking the step harder.
- Assess what connections you already have to venues, talent, or existing industry contacts.
Warnings
- Being an agent takes a considerable amount of time. You may have basic 9 to 5 hours as your foundation, but you will most likely have late nights and long weekends in addition. Be prepared for this.
- Again, remember this type of career takes some time to build, so don’t get discouraged if it doesn’t happen instantly.
