In the business world we all realize how important it is to execute and deliver for a big day, whether it’s a show, meeting, procedure, or any other important event. And while that target day is a pinnacle of importance, it’s the advance work we do in preparation for it that matters just as much. Not only our own normal personal planning we go through for the actual day, but the communication and prep work we must do in advance to equip clients, associates, and others we are partnering with for success. Otherwise we are just crossing our fingers and hoping for the best, which could be setting us up for falling below expectations.
Advance prep work has been an integral part in the early stages of Songwriter City. We have had a number of successful shows, and though it can be a challenge to prepare an audience who is unfamiliar with what our songwriters do exactly, it’s essential to lay the groundwork for a successful evening. Then the talented songwriters can deliver their best show and the audience can be ready to receive it.
In setting up these songwriter-round type events, I can’t stress enough to the client and buyer that what we’re putting together is not just another average show or background entertainment. It’s so much more than that. And if they’ve never seen a premiere songwriter show in action, it can be beyond conception. So we do everything we can to help that process along. Take for instance a recent corporate show we did for a group of about 50 business professionals from all over the U.S.. Only one or two had ever seen a songwriters in the round show, so we had to do our best to make sure they were initially attentive. During the course of the performance the entire crowd went from attentive to engaged and then to captivated. Standing ovation at the end. The stuff we aim for every show.
If the time isn’t put in on advance communication and prep work, then we leave it all to chance. Risking that the crowd will be more interested in networking or their dinner than the songwriters and missing something unmatched anywhere – getting to know the songwriters, how the hit songs were born, where they got the idea from, how it got from them to the artist that recorded it, all of which personalizes the song and gives it a deeper meaning. The crowd will miss the transparency, raw emotion, and interaction with true music creators. As a result they miss the power of the song and the essence of the music. So we do our best to ensure our guests understand that this is like nothing else they’ve seen and heard, but it takes a good amount of front end work to advise the client, event planner, or destination company so they’ll get everything they can out of the Songwriter City experience.
In business it bodes us all well to take the necessary time to lay the foundation, communicate details, and walk with clients and colleagues through what our cumulative goals are. The more informed they are and the greater understanding they have about what is going to take place, the more they can partner with us in bringing everything to the highest level of success for everyone involved.
