The Social Network

I’m currently in the process of establishing a theatre company and what I’ve learnt is that networking is massively important and it isn’t terrifying. In the past I’ve never really been one for networking, the mere mention of it would normally cause me to break out in a slight sweat. Going up to complete strangers and chatting to them about how great I am is not my idea of fun. I’m self deprecating at the best of times. But now, thanks to Twitter I’ve managed to ease myself in.

Twitter is the coward’s way to network, you can say whatever you want and nobody can see you as you say it. You can also say it to so many more people than you would in normal life. I’ve had my qualms with this site in the past, and have a friend who annoys me no end as I get countless notifications due to him promoting his comedy company again. But then I see how successful he’s been in generating an audience for himself through social media and I let the annoyance slide.

There are, however, some rules everyone should bear in mind when doing their networking. Firstly, it really is just annoying when all someone does is command you to see their show. The golden rule of networking is to offer something in return: it’s a give and take situation. Be creative with tweeting about your show, put up a photo or leave cryptic clues.

This creative offering in return for someone giving you something to help your creativity is exactly the basis of crowd funding website WeDidThis. People pledge amounts of money to you and your project based upon the reward that amount gets them. So, for £100 they might get a date with the artist… and now networking is beginning to sound a bit more like tit for tat than the innocent situation it really is.

It’s very important to remember that networking isn’t prostituting yourself. It’s actually more of a simple exchange of friendly advice – really you’re just befriending those you share a passion with. If you remember this, you’re much less likely to break into a sweat at the prospect of networking. In other industries it may be more of a case of stamping on other people’s hands as you scramble up the career ladder. Not so in the arts. Here once you’ve established your network, and as long as you put effort into maintaining those relationships, it’s probably there for life. So really, there’s nothing left to say but get tweeting.