31 Tips To Turn Into A Sync Pro

General Tips & Facts

Golden Rule: Always provide cleared music with metadata, stems, and easy-to-access links. Your job is to make it painless for supervisors to say yes.
Don’t Bother Admins: Licensing admins don’t pick music—they handle paperwork. Go to supervisors.
Quick Turnarounds: Supervisors often need music immediately. Be prepared for fast responses and tight deadlines.
Match the Mood: Fun, adventurous, or nostalgic songs get synced most (think Go Your Own Way by Fleetwood Mac).
Be Professional: Supervisors talk. Build a reputation for being reliable, responsive, and easy to work with.

Feel-Good Vibes Only: Brands love positive emotions (Walking on Sunshine) and sentimental tracks that tell a story.
Under-the-Radar Wins: Indie songs with emotional depth often deliver big impact for smaller budgets.
Decision Time: Big brands involve focus groups to choose their music—offer 2–3 variations of your song to increase your chances.
Custom Work Pays: Be flexible. Agencies love bespoke compositions (e.g., an acoustic folk track for an outdoor campaign).

Seasonal Pitching: Focus on pilot season (early year), holiday tracks (late summer), and summer hits (mid-year)—timing matters.
Trademark Your Band Name: Studios check trademarks before crediting you—avoid legal headaches.
Research Styles: Study networks like Netflix or Hulu to see what’s trending in their shows and aim to match those vibes.
Background Music Rules: Producers often need affordable background cues for montage or filler scenes—your moody instrumental could be perfect.
Music Supervisors: They know what they want and work within strict budgets. Be ready to adapt and deliver.

Buyouts Are the Norm: Most video game companies pay upfront without residuals.
Start Small: Indie developers are easier to approach and a stepping stone to bigger studios.
Know the Game: Match your music’s vibe, themes, and lyrics to the game’s style—your epic cinematic instrumental could be perfect for an action RPG.
Spotify Help: Use Spotify’s Gaming Portal to study trends and popular tracks.
Stats Matter: 30% of music in games comes from indie and major artists. Landing a sync here can boost your visibility tenfold.

Myth-busting: Trailer music isn’t pulled from the film score. Trailers need multiple campaigns—up to 90 placement opportunities per film!
Cues Galore: Up to 7 cues (songs + score) can fit into a single trailer.
Instrumentals Required: Don’t send songs without instrumental edits. Period.
Residuals: Only trailers aired on TV pay residuals—not theatrical ones.
Stand Out: Unique riffs or rare melodies? Highlight them! Supervisors love what they haven’t heard before.
Build to Big: Trailers are structured in three acts, each building in intensity—your soaring orchestral build could be perfect.
Covers Work: Fresh takes on familiar songs are in high demand—think a haunting piano cover of Sweet Child O’ Mine.

Sending generic, un-personalized emails—show you’ve done your research on the project or supervisor.
Pitching songs that don’t match the tone, genre, or vibe of the project.
Forgetting to clear rights ahead of time—if you can’t license it immediately, you’ll lose the opportunity.
Including overly long intros or unfinished demos—get to the hook or highlight quickly.
Overloading supervisors with too many tracks at once—send 2-3 focused options instead.

"Don’t let your music collect dust—let it collect royalties.”

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