A counter example is a recent experience I had with a really good systems tech from a local sound company.
I mentioned Scott Boers of AE Productions (a regional sound company in Albuquerque) in a previous article (here). He was terrific on that job, and found the perfect balance of deferring to me (I was FOH) most of the time while getting in a few good suggestions at the same time.
Scott obviously has a very good sense of what can and perhaps should be said without being intrusive. He knows gear and brought along everything that was needed, plus a few extra items.
When I asked questions, he had answers. In turn, he asked some good questions about certain things, which caused me to think a bit more. For example, he suggested adding a mic on the upright basses, and I thought it was worth a try. It resulted in an improvement, and wouldn’t have happened without his suggestion.
The main thing about his approach is that it put me, the customer, at ease. I had no doubt he was A) good at his job, B) sensitive to our needs, and C) paying attention to what was going on around him, i.e., the job at hand.
Psych 101
A big part of what we have to do as pro audio practitioners is think a few steps ahead of our customers—both the patrons and talent, including their BE or ME if they have them.
If we’ve been working with an artist or group for a while, we’ve hopefully gotten used to their quirks and can maybe even read their minds some of the time. If we’re working with a new client for the first time, building trust must happen quickly and is often based on this elusive idea of bedside manner.
We have to be chameleons, changing our colors with the client’s needs, with the style of music being presented, and with the times. Technology is constantly changing, and we need to constantly change as well.
Nothing builds trust faster than a client feeling that they’re being heard and understood, and that you’re doing everything in your ability to get it right. Sure, there are some jerk artists out there that have fired people for a single mistake. But the more common story is where something goes wrong, the tech fesses up but promises to get it fixed, and fast, and does so. This kind of approach is usually what gets us re-hired.
As in sales, role-playing can be a good tool to work out some of your responses, questions and approaches. I suggest finding a trusted co-worker or colleague or two, and trying it out. Come up with solid, realistic scenarios and work through how you’d respond.
If you work with an old road dog, get him to share some “war stories” (what old road dog doesn’t love to tell war stories?). In addition to being great to hear, they usually offer a lot of learning potential.
And, most of all: have fun. Developing a winning bedside manner doesn’t come naturally to many of us. But it can be learned and cultivated, and enjoying the process along the way usually leads to a far better result.