Becoming a professional music composer or sound designer for film, television, and new media can be a daunting task. While the licensing and use of custom music for media is evident everywhere, an aspiring audio professional may be overwrought with choices on where to find gigs, how to market themselves, and how to eventually build a profitable business in the world of sound. Following is a simplistic, but tested and true, step by step method of going from a talented and skilled bedroom composer or sound artist to a paid professional.

1. Create a demo of 30 second clips of all your previous mixes or sound effects organized according to genre, mood etc. for distribution to potential clients either through CDs or better yet posted on online.

2. Make a website that has demo samples, credits to date, a brief but telling bio, and a video reel if possible.

3. Hunt out low paying or even free gigs in order to gain credits and experience, establish business relationships, and build your resume, using your demo and website for demonstration of your work.

4. Build a database of prospective paying clients by contacting producers, directors, video editors, animators, and post-production companies for film, tv, and web. Seek out these prospects by asking family and friends, joining professional organizations, finding gigs online, networking through online film forums, and cold emailing aforementioned companies.

5. Follow up on prospects and check in every few months via email and send out a periodic e-newsletter regarding your work, your services, and interesting industry information or tips.

6. Continue to learn different aspects of the audio industry such as audio sweetening and technical skills such as video conversion, FTP use, and sample rate and file conversion.

7. Create simple contracts for professional use such as music release forms and invoices.

These 7 steps will allow you to establish a career as a music composer or sound effects designer. The work is out there in many forms, music is licensed daily, and the entire world of media production can be accessed through the internet. This process may take a couple years but will bear fruit if your skills and talents are in order and you maintain forward momentum. The market for music and sound is huge but often hidden. Though, when the opportunities you create meets your preparation, your success will be imminent.