The Ultimate Guide to Starting & Building

an Artist Management Company

SIGN AN ARTIST. BUILD A BUSINESS.

Brought to you by smartbandmanagement.com

 Welcome
Hi guys and gals! I’m Jamie New Johnson, the creator of
SmartBandManagement.com, the top online resource for artists and
managers in the music business! I’m here to tell you today that entering
the world of artist management (including self-management) doesn’t
have to be overwhelming.

Artist management is arguably one of the most exciting careers

someone can have. It is most definitely challenging, but it is rewarding.
Every day is different. You get to witness and be a part of the creative
process, travel frequently, spend time in recording studios, go to live
performances regularly, attend festivals, and so much more.

Best of all, you get to help make someone’s dreams come true,
while making your own dreams come true.

I hope this guide starts you off on the right foot, and gives you enough
motivation to continue down the artist management path.

Note: If you’re a self-managed artist reading this, put yourself in the

shoes of the term ‘artist manager’ throughout the rest of this guide.

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In This Guide

WHAT IS AN ARTIST WHO DO MANAGERS TRUE STORIES!

1 MANAGER? 5 WORK WITH? 9

HOW MUCH MONEY DO

2 DAY-TO-DAY
RESPONSIBILITIES OF 6 MANAGERS MAKE? 10 QUALITIES TO LOOK FOR IN
ARTISTS
ARTIST MANAGERS

BAD HOW DO I BECOME A I FOUND AN ARTIST TO

3 CHARACTERISTICS TO 7 MANAGER? 11 MANAGE, NOW WHAT?
AVOID

GOOD SKILLS & HOW DO I FIND ARTISTS PRIORITIZING ADVICE

4 CHARACTERISTICS TO 8 TO MANAGE? 12 FROM THE EXPERTS!
ADOPT

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What is an Artist Manager?
Artist managers wear many hats, whether they’re asked to or not.
In the simplest terms, the manager is the mediator between the
artist and the rest of the world. Managers act as the ‘buffer’ between
the industry/world and the artist, so the artist can leverage being one
step removed and focus on their art. Managers are also often called
band managers, artist managers, music managers, and talent
managers. Whichever the case, the artist and the manager
collaborate on everything.
As a manager, you help build the dream team and help the artists
dreams come true. You zealously manage that team into the future,
while the artist drives the creative bus. You are required to
wear many hats. Especially in times like the present. Managers’ roles
have evolved over the years as the music industry continues to
evolve.
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Managers increasingly become substantial decision makers and
investors. With less and less major record label existence and
financial support, managers have increasingly taken on the role of
the record label, either by starting their own record label or investing
in the artist’s career financially. In addition, managers increasingly
take on the label-related role of A&R (Artist and Repertoire). Now
more than ever, you as a manager are more likely to fill those shoes.
Managers manage. If you want to be a manager, you need to be able
to manage multiple projects and people all at the same time.
Managers also need to be well versed at ‘protecting’ their clients. It’s
important to be able to be a good judge of which opportunities your
artists should and should not partake in. You must always keep in
mind that some opportunities could harm their career or their
reputation, and others could make their reputation thrive.
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Day-To-Day Responsibilities

The main role of a manager is to develop career strategies for, and with, the artists.

You are also responsible for overseeing marketing and publicity, performance bookings and tours, production of music, videos and merchandise,
single, album and other product releases, gain funding, oversee music publishing, as well as find more clients to manage (unless you’re managing
your own artistic career, or only want to manage 1 artist).

Most managers only manage up to 3 artists at a time in their career, unless they have a large company with support staff in which case they can add
more clients to their roster. But a manager isn’t a manager unless they can find a client in the first place. Some managers have artists come to them,
some managers track down artists. Sometimes it’s an organic encounter, sometimes it’s very purposeful. Managers need to be able to assess talent,
credibility, and reputation and determine the market potential of an artist before working with them. Followed by the ability to negotiate a
contractual relationship.

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Day-To-Day Responsibilities
Continued!
Develop Career Strategies
Develop artist’s creative vision, guide them through the industry, set
goals, draft business and marketing plans, pursue record deals,
agency representation, publisher representation and more.
Oversee Marketing and Publicity
Work with the artist and creative teams to develop marketing plans,
PR plans, new bios, photos, EPK (electronic press kits), websites,
advertising materials, radio tours, etc.
Oversee Performance Bookings and Tours
Work with booking agents and promoters/presenters/venues to draft
tour routings and book shows and tours. Develop touring strategies,
book engagements, develop itineraries, manage tour budgets, draft
and review contracts and develop promotional materials.
Gain Funding
Search for sources of funding such as grants, loans, investments and
sponsorships. Negotiate agreements and show advances.
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Oversee Production of Music, Videos, Merchandise
Develop a production team, location, goals, schedule, costs,
timelines, and artwork. Oversee and assist with decisions on final
products.
Oversee Single, Album and other Product Releases
Develop release strategies, branding, and dates. Cultivate fan bases
and oversee execution of releases with follow up tracking and
measuring.
Oversee Music Publishing
Register songs and publishing rights, negotiation publishing
agreements, work with publisher on new strategies.
Manage Schedules
One of the most basic yet most important part is managing
everyone’s schedules in a calendar that the artist, and everyone else
on the team (label, agent, publisher, etc.) all have access to.
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Bad Characteristics To Avoid

We’re going to get into the types of skills and characteristics you 1. Not patient enough. Stars are not created overnight. It takes a
need to have to be a good artist manager, but before we do, let’s long time.
quickly visit what NOT TO DO. 2. The manager isn’t making enough of a living and, quite simply,
runs out of cash.
I asked Rob Lanni, Co-Founder of Coalition Music (Management 3. The manager’s desire for growth and accumulating possessions
company of Our Lady Peace, Simple Plan, and many more) what may are the main reason for working with artists and the manager’s
cause an artist manager to fail. After being in the industry for almost needs are greater than the needs of the artists. Basically, he/she
20 years he’s seen it all, and has given us his insight. puts him/herself ahead of the artist.
4. Unprofessional – huge ego, poor communication, no integrity,
dishonesty, greed and deceit.
5. Poor business practices.
6. No planning for the future.

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Good Skills & Characteristics To Adopt

This is a relationship business. Networking, negotiating, etc. are critical to success. Plus, it’s not just creating relationships, it is maintaining them.
- Susan de Cartier of Starfish Entertainment
(Management company of Blue Rodeo)

Like most things in life, good skills and characteristics can be learned. If you find you’re lacking in one or more of the following areas, instead of
instantly doubting yourself, start developing yourself in that area as soon as you can. Write down a list of things you can to do become better in that
area. Like all business owners and business managers, none of us are perfect in every business aspect. Learn the best that you can, do the best that
you can do, and delegate the rest.

People and relationship skills

You must have your head on your shoulders. As Susan mentioned above, the music business is a relationship business. Being able to network and
make friends and business colleagues is critical to success. Even more importantly, it’s maintaining them that counts. The music business is a very
small world and you don’t want to go around burning bridges. This goes for artists and business people. It is imperative to be an honest (sometimes
brutally honest) and trusting person. Understanding people (especially your artist!!) is also absolutely key.

As a manager, you are the only one who is responsible for doing business with people in every single area in the business. It’s extremely important
that while being a genuine person you are building and maintaining relationships daily. Connect with songwriters, producers, musicians, studio
owners, buyers, promoters, booking agents, managers, tour managers, publicists, label reps, radio promoters, music supervisors, music publishers,
lawyers, accountants, fans, music association staff, funding body staff, royalty agency staff, photographers, videographers, makeup artists, various
types of creative and performance coaches, and whomever else you can think of.

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Good Skills & Characteristics To Adopt
Continued!
The people in the music business are your most important business
assets. Without contacts, connections, friends, and fans you will get
nowhere. When it boils down to it, navigating the music business
means navigating the people. As a manager, it’s your responsibility to
understand all areas of the music business. Which means
understanding all the people in the music business and what they do
every day.
In my book The Music Business for Artist Managers & Self-Managed
Artists, we go much further into detail about fees, negotiating,
getting on their radar, what they look for in artists, how to get signed
by the various people in the industry, how to “cold-email” or NOT
cold-email them, and much, much more. Keep reading for more
information.
Work ethic and drive
As an artist manager, you’re carrying a very high level of
responsibility, so you must have a very strong work ethic to go with
it. You’re managing someone else’s entire career and must take that
responsibility seriously. This is a fun business but it is a business, so
you need to have the utmost work ethic and drive to keep on going
when times get tough.
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Business and financial management skills
Running a management company or even managing just one artist is
running a business, and as a manager you must understand that you
need to have the same management skills that any other business
owner has, which is heavily reliant on financial and operational
know-how. A business isn’t a business without revenue, so it’s your
job to get out there and bring in revenue for your artists, and in turn,
yourself.
Make sure they’re performing live and touring, selling records, try to
get them radio airplay if their songs fit, try to get a publishing deal
(for the songwriters) and get their songs in TV and film, set up
YouTube for ads, get their music on streaming platforms, and do
further research on various revenue streams. Once you start gaining
revenue, you also need to know how to manage it. If you’re not a
top-notch money manager, hire a business manager, bookkeeper, or
someone that’s good at managing cash flow.

Good Skills & Characteristics To Adopt
Continued!
Dedication to your artists
Managers dedicate their lives to their artists. Yes, not just their
careers, their lives. You’re the next closest relationship that you and
your artist have next to family. Your main reason for working with
artists in the first place must be for the love of music, the artist, and
their artistry. You must put your artists ahead of yourself. You must
put their needs ahead of your needs. You must understand that you
are dealing with other people’s lives, other people’s money.
Creative problem solving and fast decision making
A manager should be able to calmly and efficiently jump through
hoops daily. There are going to be problems that arise every day.
They could be good problems or bad problems, but you’re going to
need to figure out how to solve them fast, without dwelling. The
manager is the centre of the wheel, if you’re not solving problems
fast, the wheel won’t roll forward.
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P.A.T.I.E.N.C.E.
It takes years for artists to perfect their craft and it’ll take years for
you to perfect your business. You could be entering your artist’s life
at time when their craft isn’t quite ready to become a business yet, or
they may be in between album cycles and are creating right now.
You should ask yourself if you’re ready to join them in the developing
phase, or creation phase of their career. In both cases, you’ll be on
the sidelines waiting, with no income coming in unless they are
constantly performing live.
Or, let’s say you start managing them at a time where the artist is
ready to release an album and you’re sure they’re going to be a big
hit and that there’s no creative development needed; even if that
album or one of the singles does become a hit, you still won’t see any
major revenue for at least 10-12 months later. You could start to see
some sales revenue come through within 3-6 months, but for
royalties, don’t hold your breath for a year, to be safe. If you don’t
have a hit, you might not see much revenue at all.
Again, this is a long-term business. Don’t expect to pop up overnight.
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Good Skills & Characteristics To Adopt

Continued!

Negotiation and goal setting Knowledge

The best managers are those who have mastered the industry they It doesn’t have to knowledge you’ve acquired from formal education
work in. They can see the road long ahead, while planning every little such as college or university, but you need to educate yourself. This
step to get there. They are manipulators of market demand, creating can be done through experience, attending conferences, learning
momentum for the artist’s career, who can put together the best from a mentor, reading books, reading smartbandmanagement.com,
marketing tools for the least amount of money. They excel at the art and many other ways. Either way, you must over time, be well
of negotiation to develop the best teams with the best agreements. acquainted with the following areas of the business.
They know who to negotiate with, and how far to push or not push. Tour Management
Keeping in mind that an entertainment lawyer is your best friend Music Merchandising
when negotiations come down to paper. Contracts & Negotiations
Music Publishing & Copyright
Good reputation Artist Bookings
Reputation is critical in the industry. Just remember to always be a Venue Management
good person and try your best and hopefully you’ll see some success Concert Promotions
and get by smoothly. Don’t stop on people along the way or else it’ll Music Marketing
be along fall down with no one there to catch you. It is also wise to Digital Media Studies
investigate the reputation of the artist you want to represent as well Music Distribution & Retail
(and for artists, investigate the reputation of the manager). This Record Labels
means asking people you know, doing Google searches, checking out Royalties
their social media, etc. Music Supervision
Radio & Video Promotions
Publicity
Business Accounting

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Who Do Artist Managers Work With?

LEARN:
• The roles of each person in the business Includes expert advice from real-life:
and how they relate to you as an artist or • Agents
manager • Tour Managers
• Who they communicate with daily • Talent Buyers
• What their fees are • Record Label A&R
• What they look for in artists before • Publicists
working with them • Radio Promoters
• How to contact and communicate with • Radio Station Programmers
them • Publishers
• How to get on their radar • Music Supervisors
• What they expectations are
• How to DIY before they are ready to work
with you

PLUS:
• Step-by-step guides to releasing albums, GET THE BOOK NOW!
getting on the radio, going on tour,
navigating royalties, and registering smarturl.it/am-book
songs!

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How Much $$ Do Managers Make?
There are various scenarios to work with, but typically managers
earn 15% to 20% of gross artist revenue. For artists looking for a
manager, consider this deeply. Can you afford to give away a
minimum of 15% of your earnings? Managers, is the artist you’re
considering managing making enough money for you to earn
enough commission to live? Or are you willing to invest the time for a
longer-term payoff? Either way, it will be a long-term investment. It
can take years to earn an income for your efforts, if ever. I say ‘if
ever’, because there are many reasons why the project may not work
out. Just like any investment made in any business opportunity, there
are risks. It’s up to you to establish how risky it is in the first place,
and it’s up to you to decide if you’re going to take the risk.
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Let’s say you make $40,000 per year. If you want to quit your day job
and earn that same amount, and you’re on a 20% commission rate,
your artist needs to be making over $200,000 per year. Or, you
manage 2 artists making $100,000 each, and so on.
Let’s say you’re managing one artist. They make $400,000 in one
year, and then they decide to go off the radar and not perform or
release anything for another 2 years or more. You made yourself a
comfortable $80,000 that one year, but then you’re scraping by on
royalties and random live show income for the next couple of years.
This is where you need to have other sources of income. Perhaps
you can keep other contracts or own other businesses, or work with
multiple artists that are earning well.

How Do I Become A Manager?
There is no direct path that will lead you to becoming an artist
manager, but there are essentially 2 scenarios.
1. Working at an existing company
When you work under someone else’s management company, there
are a few ways it could go.
You could be hired on as an associate or junior manager to an
existing roster on a salary (or a commission if you’re lucky), or…
You could join the management team and bring on your own roster
In these two cases, your commission rate would be less than if you
were the sole manager of an artist, if there’s even a commission rate
at all. However, if you’re working for a company, they likely
(hopefully) already have a good track record and therefore the
revenue could be higher.
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2. Starting your own company
When you start your own artist management company, you can
choose which artists you work with, define your own vision, and keep
the full management commission.
In all cases, it depends what works for you and your client(s) and
what opportunities come to your door (or what you bang down
doors for). Take a moment to ask yourself these questions:
• Would you rather have support from an existing company?
• Would you rather be an entrepreneur?
• Would you rather choose the artists you work with?
• Would you rather bust your butt starting from scratch?
• Would you rather be in control?
• Would you rather share responsibilities with someone else?
Though it’s nice to day-dream about your wants, more often than not
it’s necessary to get a job at someone else’s company to learn from
them first.

How Do I Find Artists To Manage?
Depending on where you’re at in your journey to starting an artist
management company, you may or may not have an artist roster
yet. Just like any company, you don’t have an artist management
company without any clients so if you don’t manage any artists yet
get out there and start looking. It could take a while. You could see
100 bands and only fall in love with one of them, or you could go see
a band tomorrow and fall in love with them. The important piece to
note here is that you need to ‘love’ them, and they need to love and
trust you back. As mentioned above, you dedicate your life to this
person/these people and the best motivating factor for dedication is
love. You need to love their music, their songs, their vibes, and them
as individuals.
The good news is, there are PLENTY of ways to find talent to manage.
The hard part is finding the one, or the next one.
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• Work with or for artists and/or managers in any capacity
• Become a student manager (while in a music business school
program)
• Search online for cover videos and new music and reach out to them
• Search for hashtags i.e. #torontohiphop
• Get involved with radio
• Help an artist friend out
• Go to lots of live shows
• Attend music conferences and festivals
• Work at a recording studio
• Get suggestions from another artist you’re already managing
• Get suggestions from artist friends
• Get introductions from industry friends
• Get suggestions from booking agents
• Work at a concert promotion company
• Start your own promotion company
• Work in the music industry in any capacity and keep your eyes and
ears open

True Stories!
Here are a few super quick stories about how 5 top artist managers (Larry Wanagas, Joel Carriere, Rob Lanni, Eric Lawrence,
and Ron Kitchener) discovered and signed their artists to management.
1. Owned a recording studio
Larry Wanagas (Bumstead Productions) landed his first clients
because he owned a recording studio in Edmonton, called
Homestead Recorders (which, as of this writing, is still there under a
different owner). Because of this he worked with a lot of local bands.
His met his first management client, and then his second and more
notable client, Grammy Award Winning k.d. Lang, at the recording
studio. After the success of an artist like Lang, Wanagas’ doors
opened for artists like Colin James and several years later, The Trews.
2. Watched breakfast television
One morning in the early 2000’s, Wanagas was watching the local
breakfast television news station, and saw The Trews performing. He
contacted them, went to see them perform live that evening, and
approached them about management. To this day he is still
managing them.
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3. Friends with artists
Joel Carriere (Bedlam Music Management/Dine Alone Records)
landed his first client because he was friends with him. Joel was
already working in the music industry in different capacities; show
promotion, at a label, at a record store, and was a DJ, which allowed
him to meet and befriend a lot of artists. During this time Joel met
and became friends with artist Dallas Green. They worked at the
same mall and had the same passion for music, which led to Joel
managing a band Dallas was in called Alexisonfire, and then Dallas’s
solo career, City and Colour.
4. Related to a band member
Rob Lanni (Coalition Music) became a manager when his brothers
band asked him to take on the role. Eric Lawrence (co-founder of
Coalition Music) and Rob were friends at the time, and Eric became
the bands tour manager, which later resulted in Eric becoming an
artist manager.

True Stories!
Continued!
5. Suggestion from another artist they were already managing
Joel began managing Monster Truck after Jordan from Alexisonfire
and another associate manager brought them to his attention. As
mentioned above Joel was already managing Alexisonfire.
6. Introduction from an industry friend
Joel began managing The Sheepdogs after a close industry friend
secretly arranged for Joel and the band to meet.
7. Suggestion from a booking agent
Ron Kitchener (RGK Entertainment/Open Road Recordings) began
managing artist Doc Walker after one of his booking agents told him
about him. Ron went to go see Doc live and eventually signed him.
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8. Sometimes it’s a fate thing
After having experience managing for a couple of years behind their
belt, Rob Lanni and Eric Lawrence began working with Our Lady
Peace, because Rob’s cousin met Raine Maida (lead singer) on a ski
trip.
9. Worked at a concert promotion company
Joel Carriere met and began managing Attach In Black, Arkells, and
Bedouin Soundclash while he was working as a show promoter.
10. Owned a concert promotion company
Before signing artists like Doc Walker and Dean Brody, Ron Kitchener
landed his first clients because he owned a concert promotion and
event marketing company. Ron purchased a banner from a sign
shop to promote a band he was booking, and the shop attendant
told him about Jason McCoy.
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True Stories!
Continued!

… And a few examples of my own experiences:
11. Prior experience working with/for artist managers
I became an artist manager after working for the Music Managers
Forum, a background which helped me land my first client. Because
of that same job, I was then asked to co-manage 3 acts with a
colleague, for his artist management company.
As you can see, in a lot of cases, these managers had no prior artist
management-related experience at the time of landing their first
client but had music industry experience in other areas of the
business. In one case, they didn’t have any prior music industry
experience. I am the only person on this list that had prior artist
management-related experience.

12. Attended music conferences and festivals

I found my first and second independent clients because I went to a
festival showcase.

13. Introduction from an industry friend

My most recent client was introduced to me through her producer,
who is an industry friend of mine, who I met through another
industry friend.

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Qualities To Look For In Artists
Finding an artist to manage is like finding a spouse. Both parties
should fall in love and see some serious potential in the other party.
There are managers and management companies out there that sign
artists without much relationship development first, however, most
people that I know make sure they build a relationship first. Some of
them undertake a trial period before signing an act to management,
for good reason - it's such a close relationship. Some of them I’ve
seen sign on first meeting! This is extremely rare. You are involved in
every area of the artists’ life for the most part. You need to get to
know a person first to make sure they're the right fit before you
marry them, right? In any case, there’s no guarantee it’s going to
“work out”.
In the same sense if you're wondering how to find a manager, it is
quite like finding someone to date. You need to put yourself out
there. Get your music heard by as many people as possible, network
as much as possible, and often the manager will find you. If you are
an aspiring manager looking for an artist or an artist looking for a
manager, here are 8 things that will help you get what you’re looking
for in no particular order.
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Originality
Managers (and fans) want to see acts that will lead instead of follow,
and think outside the box.
Talent
It needs to be exceptional. Everyone has their own taste and their
own opinion of good music, but you should truly believe in the talent
of the artists you decide to manage. The songs, songwriting, vocals,
stage presence, how they carry themselves, and their level of
professionalism count. Managers want a full-package that will grab
people's attention. The manager needs to LOVE the artists’ music. If
you're not in love with artist or the artists’ music you should not be
managing them.
Determination and Hard Work
Managers want to manage artists who work just as hard, if not
harder, than their management. When you pick a client to start
working with you’re going to want to see that they’ve already put in
an outstanding amount of time and effort into their project. To be
successful in this business you need work all the time and so does
your artist.

Qualities To Look For In Artists
Continued!
Trust
Not only does the artist need to trust the manager, the manager
must trust the artist too. It's a two-way street. You need to trust that
your clients are going to work harder than anybody else 24/7 and
never give up, or give up on you as a manager if you’re doing a great
job. And the artist needs to trust that the manager is going to do a
great job.
Communication
You'll hear it again and again - this is a marriage. It's extremely
important to find an artist that you can communicate with, and you
need to feel that you can communicate openly with your artist. You'll
both need to be very honest with each other and occasionally have
some tough conversations.
Reputation
Most good managers have influencers such as venue bookers,
agents, label reps, their current artists and others who share new
talent with each other. If you’ve found a new artist that you want to
work with, do some research to find out if they’re a good
person/good people.
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Existing Success
Something must make the artist attractive. And I don't necessarily
mean looks or beauty, although, depending on their style of music
that can help. What I'm talking about is if there's something already
clearly working, their business is growing, and they’ve already gained
a bit (or a bunch) of a fan base. Most artists need to be kicking some
serious ass before any well-known manager will want to work with
them. It also helps if they’re already making some good money. After
all, managers work on commission. Managers like to see how many
tickets artists can sell to their shows, what their social media,
YouTube, sales, and streaming numbers are at, or if they’ve already
had radio play or film or television placements.
Aligned Vision
The managers and artist’s definitions of success both need to be the
same. Managers spend time finding out what exactly it is the artist
wants, and then they need to believe they can truly deliver and get
them to where they need to go.
 I’ve Found An Artist To Manage,
Now What?
Don’t quit your day job
DO NOT quit your day job to become an independent manager….
yet. If you’re reading this, I’m assuming it’s because you’re
independent and not already working at a management company.
Keep your day-job, or contracts, or part-time job, or whatever else
you’re doing to earn a living, until your artists are making enough
money to replace it. Is your current roster, or prospective roster
making any money yet? Before you start managing someone you
need to find out how much money they are making, so that you can
decide if your 15-20% cut of that is worth it for you. If they aren’t
earning enough money yet, then you need to be willing to dedicate
time and energy as a longer-term investment to gain profit later. Find
ways to earn money for your artist, which will in turn earn money for
you.
Date
Let’s say you’ve found an artist you want to work with (or maybe
you’ve already started working together) but don’t know them all that
well, spend sometime in the ‘dating phase’. Go out on business dates
and get to know each other. Get to know the artist as much as you
can to find out if you’re the right match for their manager. Then, you
can begin to get to work on the top priorities based on where your
artist is at.
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Sign a contract
A lot of business in the music industry is done over a handshake, but
it is simply better to cover your butt by signing an agreement. You
can make the agreement as simple and as easy as you’d like. Just get
something, anything, in writing that you’re earning a certain
commission as so-and-so’s sole world-wide manager for a certain
amount of time or a certain number of singles or records; and save it
in a safe place. We have example contracts for you at
smartbandmanagement.com/the-vault.
Don’t sign anything without a lawyer
If you’re doing more than just sending an email confirmation back
and forth about your agreement, which you should, then you’ll want
to find and hire an entertainment attorney to ensure you agree to a
fair deal memo or long-form agreement. In the future, you’ll also
need them to aid you with all contracts you’ll be dealing with when
doing business on behalf of your artist. Entertainment law is
extremely specialized, so be absolutely sure to hire an entertainment
lawyer with a great reputation, not a lawyer from any other
specialization.
 I’ve Found An Artist To Manage, 22

Now What? Continued!

Build your knowledge and your network Get organized

Always be building your knowledge and your network. Always. You must be the one that’s the most organized since you’re the one
Forever and eternity! Read books, read music business news, stay organizing the artists career. Firstly, get a calendar that is synched up
on-top of business trends, research what the biggest companies are with your phone and all devices and all your artists’ devices.
doing, take courses, go to conferences, go to networking events, Additionally, have all the right documentation and systems in place
reach out to people, and make friends in the business. All of this is to keep track of all your business functions appropriately. The one’s I
completely imperative to moving forward. recommend starting with are:
• Master metadata
Make a name for yourself • Contact directory
Literally and figuratively. Now that you have a roster and a plan, • Tour budget
come up with a business name and register it with the government. • Booking advance sheet
This should also allow you to open a checking account under your • Tour itinerary
business name. It is important to keep business and personal • Merchandise sales register
separate. Different managers have distinctive artist management • Merchandise sales tracker
methods. Think about what you stand for as a manager. Don’t be • Email sign up form
afraid to be yourself, while you may also want to think of ways to • Tour settlement notes
brand yourself to stand out. If artists do it, why can’t you? Get • Assets inventory
business cards, a website, a new email, a Facebook page, Twitter • Bookkeeping
account, Instagram account, and any other means to promote • Cashflow forecasting
yourself as a professional manager, which is also another means to • Annual profit and loss
promote your artists. Additionally, make sure your name keeps a
good reputation. You want to be known for someone who Luckily, we have these documents and spreadsheets readily
represents outstanding talent and is great to do business with. prepared for you on our website. Head to
smartbandmanagement.com/the-vault to get yours instantly!
smartbandmanagement.com
 I’ve Found An Artist To Manage,
Now What?
Hire an accountant and a bookkeeper
Now that you have all the documents you need to be organized,
you’ll want to discuss accounting procedures with your accountant
so that you can organize your documents effectively. I also
recommend finding an accountant that works specifically in the
entertainment business, as there is a whole different set of tax write-
offs available to you (at least there is in Canada). You should also
consider hiring a bookkeeper depending on the volume of income
and expenses you have, and depending on how well you you keep
your own books.
Make money
We work in an industry that prides itself on working for the love of it,
and not for money; especially artists. But the reality is you don’t have
a business without money and you can’t live without money. This is
business. The artist is a business. If you want to manage artists as a
full-time career then you need to understand all the different ways
that you can get your artist earning money, and therefore earning
money for yourself. The quickest way to earn money is through live
performance. Make sure your artist is performing live all the time
(without over-saturating the markets they’re playing in), aim for radio
airplay, learn about royalties, learn about publishing and synch
licensing, learn about brand sponsorships and many other ways to
make money.
smartbandmanagement.com
23
Continued!
Be patient
As mentioned earlier.
Every person I know with a successful company didn’t just start it up
with tons of clients making money right off the hop. Unlike other
industries or types of businesses, with artist management you can’t
just register a business name, get a website, and start advertising
your services. You don’t have an artist management company
without artists and artists and managers are hiring and firing people
all the time. Plus, it takes a LONG … time … to … build. It’s possible,
but rare, to skyrocket to success quickly. Most artist managers keep
their full or part-time jobs for a long time until their artist roster is
making enough money that they can quit. Sometimes this can take
up to 10 years! It all depends on what’s going on with your artist and
if they’re making enough money. As their manager, this lies heavily
on you. If you’ve got the right connections (YES, this has a lot to do
with it), and if your artist is talented enough, you could be a full-time
artist manager before you know it.
I know a guy who quit his full-time salaried day job to start an artist
management company with 5 indie bands at the same time. A year
later, he made absolutely no money, and lost 50% of his artist roster.
Two years later, he lost 100% of his roster and nobody knows where
he went. Don’t be that guy. Start with one and do it REALLY well.
 I’ve Found An Artist To Manage,
Now What?
Draft a business plan
The true value of a business plan is the work that goes into creating
it. Even if you don’t actually use it for anything (such as to give to
investors), going through the process of creating it can really help
you clarify things by asking yourself questions you may not have
otherwise asked.
If you’re reading this right now there’s a strong change our free
music business plan template was included with the free download
of this guide. If not, please contact
hello@smartbandmanagement.com.
Get to work developing and growing your artists career
Start busting your butt and do anything you can to help your artist
reach their dreams. Be realistic. Set goals. And get started doing all
the things we’ve talked about so far in this guide, including
purchasing my book. If you already know everything about the
business, but don’t know how to reach out to people to build your
artists team, then buying the book is a must.
smartbandmanagement.com
24
Continued!
Prioritize
I asked the managers of JUNO and GRAMMY Award-nominated and
winning artists including Pentatonix, Kongos, Metric, Serena Ryder,
Tegan and Sara, Walk Off The Earth, The Trews, k.d. Lang, City and
Colour, The Sheepdogs, Alexisonire, and more for their top artist
development priorities, and have summarized them for you here!
1. Strong material (THE MUSIC!)
2. Strong, unique talent
3. Passion, drive, and commitment
4. Strong grasp of artists’ self-image and vision
5. Strong commitment to live performance
6. Positioning (the best winning opportunities for your artists
always)
7. Make sure the artist is happy
8. Understand artists’ long-term goals
9. Getting the right team in place (agent, label, publisher,
publicist, etc.)
10. Direct-to-fan relationships (email subscribers, social media,
VIP’s)
 Thanks for Reading!
Remember to head to our website for more advice, expert interviews, celebrity release strategies, and more!

Contact us:

www.smartbandmanagement.com hello@smartbandmanagement.com