Sorry another little bit:

When I decided to make Madsen Studios my full time gig, I did a bunch of big and small things to make it feel official. I got a new logo, new business cards, shirts, etc. I keep regular business hours, like a job. Drafted up official looking contracts, invoices and form letters all using a waterprint of my logo. I also completely redid my accounting methods. All of this combined made me feel more legit, even if I was just starting out. It helped give me a bit more confidence when talking to potential clients. My father once said "...you want to start a business, then treat it like a job." I guarantee everyone, the moment you start charging for your services, you'll feel more serious. More legit. Now, you might temporarly lose all of your freebie clients and have no work for a little bit but that first paid job that you land will feel that much better! Plus you'll know you're on your way to making this your living.

Because at the end of the day, most people here want to make game audio their living instead of their hobby. Something to consider.

Side note: This industry is feast or famine by it's very nature. So having a few dry spells is normal. However if you find yourself going on 6 months with absolutely zero work, it's time to reconsider how you're marketing yourself. Is your music up to par? Are you marketing to the right kind(s) of clients? Are you spamming people too much? Etc. Find some successful composers/audio folks you respect and study how they're marketing themselves. Maybe even ask for advice! (Most people are very willing to help out.)

Nsmadsen clearly knows what he's talking about.
But this is exactly the problem, when I or any other developer needs music for a project, I will go to someone like your self who's done a lot of previous work and has an impressive portfolio.
So how do the small composers stand out? offer better deals? work harder?

But this is exactly the problem, when I or any other developer needs music for a project, I will go to someone like your self who's done a lot of previous work and has an impressive portfolio. So how do the small composers stand out? offer better deals? work harder?

It's pretty simple, really. Rates. You've said it yourself, and I agree, that your rates can increase as your build more experience and stature. More credentials. My rates have changed quite a bit from when I first started out and odds are there are plenty of indie games which I cannot take on at this time in my career. Boy, that sounds elitist, doesn't it? But I don't mean it as a negative or insult at all. The reality is I'm less able to take on audio jobs which might only have $50-200 to spend on the entire audio budget. In those cases, even though I may have more experience and credentials than someone just starting out, I'm not the right fit. This presents an opportunity to folks with less credentials that can take on lesser paying projects.

Believe it or not, it actually goes the other way too. I have a good friend who's well established and has worked on some major projects. Now he's having a really hard time getting small(er) projects because potential clients automatically assume he'd be way beyond their means. So the trick really is to market to the right kind(s) of clients you're after and make sure they know what you're willing to offer.

But please don't fall into the trap that you have to offer free work just to make it. You don't and your work and time are worth more than that!

As far as your other suggestions (offer better deals, work harder, etc) - yep! I firmly believe that everyone has points in their careers where they have to prove how much they want it. Life will knock you around some and you have to dig deep and show yourself (and others) that you're here to stay and that you really want it. One point, obiviously, is when you're starting out. My epiphany came in the fall of 2005 when I realized that my dream of doing audio for games wouldn't happen unless I made it happen. Nobody else could (or would) make it happen. I was in a career path that I hated and left me very unfilfulled. It wasn't easy or quick but it did happen.

I'm being long winded but look for whatever ways you can get yourself out there and make a reputation. It's just my personal belief that trying to succeed by giving your stuff away from free isn't a good approach for you or the industry.

So how do the small composers stand out? offer better deals? work harder?[/quote]

One trap new composers sometimes fall into is the belief that their skill as a composer is 99% of what it takes work as a composer. Yes, it is true that--when that first gig or two come along-- you'd better have the chops. Making sure you've done your woodshedding as a composer/orchestrator is certainly job one.

But a huge part of starting out is convincing someone that you are worth hiring. And your compositional prowess is only part of equation.
In addition to your music being high quality, if someone is going to have you do their game, they want confidence that you're not a flake, that you will deliver what you say, when you say, that you will be good to work with in the face of criticism---Remember that by hiring you they are making a bet that you won't screw up and therefore screw up their game project..
So how do you do that--- In a word, relationship.
Relationships are personal things-- it's that one on one human to human connection that lets the game developer know "If I take a chance on this composer, they won't let me down."
That takes many forms-- it's being professional and set up professionally as Nate said (web site, logo, etc.). It's being personable and exuding competence. It may include being passionate about games and gaming. I know of one composer who got their first game gig at GDC 3 years ago, simply because he struck up a random conversation with someone while playing in the indy game area. They talked for 2 hours about different games, what they thought of these indy games. That conversation gave the developer such confidence in this complete stranger that he used him on a game 3 months later. A lot of threads have discussed the importance of networking-- we're not kidding . Go to GameSoundCon-- Go to GDC-- Go to your local college's "Video game programming club" events who are generally filled with people looking for people to write music for their videogames, but don't have a clue as to where to look for them.

Building a relationship almost certainly does not include working for free. Think about that. If you work for free, the developer has exactly zero influence over you.. If something better for you comes along, you might just decide to walk away-- If you wilt at first criticism of your work and go away, that leaves them in a lurch, potentially putting their game schedule at risk. If however, they know that you'll get a check (even a small one) when you deliver, they will have much more confidence you won't flake out on them.

So even a modest, token sum will probably make the developer feel better about your relationship than a freebie will. And it really makes your relationship a professional one.

Brian Schmidt
GameSoundCon Oct 24/25 2012
www.GameSoundCon.com