Hi all,
Mitch Peacock is a commentator, play-by-play and analyst, based out of Canada. He is a subscriber of the newsletter, and a professional that I have known for many years now (four, five, probably).
We have never met in person. Basically what we have is email exchanges. He worked on a couple of games that I produced in the past, when I was in my previous job. But we got in touch and stayed in touch.
And it’s been fun to follow him, because I think he’s one step ahead in this business. He’s calling a lot of games out of his house in Canada that happen sometimes in Europe, sometimes in Asia.
One of the things we exchanged about last week is a concept that is very interesting: there are so many jobs, especially in the broadcast side and for commentators, that are never posted.
This is a topic that I also discussed in the past with Jamie Watson, who is also a subscriber of the newsletter and a talented play-by-play and analyst in different sports. With the two of them, we have always talked and agreed that the jobs for the main productions are probably never posted. They never hit the market, and they are decided on a network basis.
The hiring happens before the announcement
Sometimes you see that a network, or a production company, or a streaming platform announces their rights for X property, and immediately, or almost immediately, you see the names of the talent they are going to have in their booth to call the games. Usually when the deal hits the press, the seats are already filled.
The real window is months earlier, during the production and during the tender process. That is when you have to be top of mind with the people that are making the decisions. And you have to identify these people.
Knock on the right door
The rights holder usually isn’t the one hiring, and this is important for you.
I mention this in my course “The Global Business of Live Sports Production”: you have to know which door you need to knock on. The host broadcaster, the production company that wins the package, often books the commentators and the crew. You need to find out who produces the feed, not just who owns the rights.
Being on the call list is the win
Being on the call list is the win. It is not a consolation.
Sometimes you don’t get it the first time, or you don’t get it when the announcement hits the press, but you are top of mind and you are next on the list. And relationships built before anything opens are how you get on that list, or how you stay top of mind.
It is not who you know. It is who knows you.
The map is your own
One thing to consider is that no catalogue does this for you. Rights data exists but it’s built and priced for companies. I don’t think there’s anything for individuals.
The map is your own. You have to do your own homework. Track renewal dates, know which companies produce what, and keep in touch with the people in each company. So you are on the radar.
A suggestion for you
If you are in this business, whether you are a commentator or in any other production or technical role, you need to pick 3 to 5 properties in your sport, country or territory you want to work in.
Know when each deal ends and who produces it, and reach out to the person at each production company before any tender closes. Make sure that you are top of mind, because sometimes these production companies have more than one property they are working on. So if you have talent, let’s say, for cricket and for football (soccer), you can be top of mind for that person who needs to fill the requirements for their clients.
Available, prepared and visible
The last thing that is important here is to make sure that you are available, that you are prepared, and that you are visible. Because if nobody knows you, you can be the most talented person in the world... Discoverability is one of the main tasks you should have, independently of your talent.
Sometimes you see a lot of people and you think: “Oh, they don’t have the talent that I have. They don’t have the knowledge that I have.” But they are always booked. In some cases, it’s because they have an agent that keeps promoting them.
But if you are not there yet to have an agent, or in your position agents are not something normal, you need to promote yourself. You need to put yourself out there. You need to build your network, and you need to be top of mind.
One last thing: Learn to be resilient. You might not get the call now, but if you stop persisting, you might never get it.
The more “no” you get, the closer you are to your first “yes”.
Talk to you next week.