So you want to make some serious dough as a mixing engineer? You may not know it, but you're in luck. With the right strategies, you can make a good living mastering tracks for your clients. Here are a few tips on how to turn your skills into cold, hard cash.
Know Your Worth
First and foremost, it's important to understand the value of your work and time. Make sure that you charge enough to cover your costs while still allowing you to be competitive in the market. A great way to figure out what’s fair is by researching what other mixing engineers are charging for their services. This will give you an idea of what rate is standard and also let you know if there’s room for negotiation or special offers.
Market Yourself
You need to get your name out there so potential clients can find you and hire your services. Make sure all of your social media profiles are professional and up-to-date with the latest projects and news related to your business, then start looking for opportunities wherever possible; join online forums, attend conferences, or create partnerships with other music industry professionals who might be able to refer work to you.
Digital Products - You need to be able to earn money passively as well as actively. Passive money is when you make money without being in the room. For example:
- Selling vocal presets - Vocal presets are the new boom product. Mixing engineers are making huge bank selling ready made vocal presets and templates to other engineers and artists. Once you create these templates, you can sell them over and over again. Click here for more information
- eBooks - eBooks sell like how cakes. but why ebooks? You being a master at mixing, there are plenty of upcoming mixing engineers who want to know your secrets, your ideas and your teachings which you can put into an ebook. now you might be thinking 'im not giving away my secrets, this will create competition'. Who cares if you creating competition, the goal is to earn more right? and whats cool with sharing your ideas in an ebook is this establishes you as a true expert which means you can go back to people who bought your book and sell them more ebooks products and trainings and they'll buy.
Don't Be Afraid To Network
Don't be afraid to reach out directly (or through mutual connections) when looking for new clients or opportunities. Always remember that many people in the music industry network with each other so if someone doesn't have an immediate need for mixing services they might pass on your information when they come across someone who does need help in this area. It pays off big time!
Conclusion
Making money as a mixing engineer isn't easy but it is certainly doable with some hard work and dedication. You just have to make sure that you're charging what you're worth while also marketing yourself effectively (and don't forget about networking!). If done right, mixing engineering can be lucrative business and provide long-term financial success! Good luck!
