Hooking the Attention of a Gaming Agent
Edward Sanchez
Media Publishing and Distribution
Getting an agent’s attention:
In a previous post, I mention the importance
of an agent or agency in the gaming community. Recently, I was tasked to write
a “hypothetical letter”, to a real
industry professional. The letter was meant to demonstrate how to formulate a
compelling letter that can potentially warrant a response. The letter was
intended to be mailed through the United States Postal Service and was
formatted accordingly. For the exercise, I used Digital Development Management,
a company with a solid decade of experience within the industry, as the agency
to focus on. I feel their services are very beneficial and directly line up
with the goals of an independent company. Through a little research, I was able
to find a real contact to fulfill the specific requirement. Obtaining the
attention of an agent starts with finding one. Use every resource available to
you. The following is the letter broken down with a brief explanation of each
section.
- THE HEADER: Your name and contract information so
the reader knows how to contact you.
Edward Sanchez
Digital Ecstasy Games
Address
Contact Number
Email
Website
Date
- THE COMPANY CONTACT: Who you feel is best to represent you or
your company.
Digital
Development Management (DDM)
Attention:
Jami Wardman Business Development Manager
Address
Dear Ms. Wardman,
- THE SIZZLE:
A short description of
the story, which briefly peaks the reader’s interest.
A dreadful and menacing force has just
occupied a spirit plane of existence, which acts as a transition point to the
afterlife. The only thing that can save the tormented souls from the oppressive
presence is: a tiny fox spirit imbued with ancestral powers and her tremendous
courage!
- BACKGROUND: A brief description of who you are and
your experience.
We are Digital Ecstasy Games, an
independent game studio based in Orlando Florida. My name is Edward Sanchez and
together with my colleagues comprised of Full Sail University Graduates, has
embarked on the epic quest of creating an exciting 2.5d platform story driven
adventure game. Our team is comprised of game developers, designers, artists,
and sound engineers, all of whom are dedicated and focused on seeing our game
come to fruition.
- SECOND MEETING: Asking for a follow up to discuss the
project in detail.
Passion is usually a driving force with
any endeavor. However, passion alone is not ideal. Application of that desire
is where the magic happens. Currently, we are in the process of applying our
skills, creativity and knowledge to produce something that we hope is
compelling enough to pique your interest. I hope to have done that and warrant
just a bit more of your time and attention to discuss working with you and your
agency.
-FAREWELL AND SIGNITURE Saying good-bye
Thank you for pressing start and joining
the quest.
Happy Gaming,
Edward Sanchez
Tips from an Industry Professional:
After completing the letter, I was extremely curious
to find out how effective the correspondence would actually be. I decided to contact
Jami Wardman a Business Development Manager at Digital Development Management.
She was very helpful and kind enough to look over the letter and contribute her
professional opinion. She also allowed me to share her wisdom with others who
may find this information interesting.
JW-
Hi
Edward,
I
read over your letter, a few items came to my attention. First, this is
the most creative letter I have received wanting my attention. You did a
fantastic job of showing your passion for the project. However, I want
more information about the project. The italicized paragraph tells me a
bit about what I am going to be looking at, and in the second paragraph you
mention 2.5d platform story driven adventure game, but I need more to know if
this is a project I am going to want to help with. I am unsure which platform
it is for, for example. Will this be a digital console game, a PC game, a
VR experience, a mobile game, etc.? Is it similar to anything in the
market right now?
Jami points out that the letter, however creative, lacked
much needed details of the project. The “sizzle” served its purpose of bringing
attention and interest. However, the extra crucial information she would have needed
to help the studio is not presented or explained. She goes on to give a great
example of what could be added.
-JW:
Something that would be
helpful would be to send a short deck (4-6 slides: intro, who you are, what the
game is about, artwork and a contact me page) along with your introduction
email (if you are uncomfortable sending this with the first reach out, I would
have it on hand to send when you receive a response). This would give me a
little bit (one slide) about Digital Ecstasy Games. How long have you and
your team been working together? Have you created anything before? Have
any of you worked on projects I might know? The rest of the deck would
include a couple pieces of artwork from the game and a very high level overview
of what the game is about.
As an industry professional who receives
letters and emails all the time, her knowledge is invaluable. Mrs. Wardman
highlights a great way to both capture her attention, as well as provide the
key information she needs. Using her method, she would receive both the
creative teaser email, and a more detailed, visually appealing, set of slides
that can help her understand what we, an independent developer, wish to do.
After reading her beneficial critiques, I followed up with a few more
questions.
ES: What are your
thoughts on Email vs. Letter?
-JW:
I think email is better...
ES: The extra
information provided would technically be unsolicited information. Do you think
an agent would want the liability of knowing more about the project from
an un-vetted source?
- JW:
If I, as the agent, was interested in
your product I would:
a) Have a call with you to get some more
information
b) Set up an NDA so we can talk
freely.
Nothing you send should be so proprietary
that it could not get out (to protect your idea). Do not send the whole
game script or an entire GDD. You are sending enough artwork and story to
give me an idea of what you are doing, not giving me everything to make the
game (or find someone else to make the game). A good company will want to be
under an NDA, as then both sides are free to speak to each other…
ES:
What would your recommendation be for our studio?
-JW:
DDM has three distinct divisions… Really
quickly:
1. Consulting
2. Production Services
3. Game Representation
While
you may see all three divisions being of use…
…however, as a developer, you would find
the most benefit with game representation. You are not looking for an
agent to teach you how to make a game; you want us to help get your game in
front of the right people. When I said state what you want, you should
know what you are lacking. Do you have the funds to finish this game, but
want help getting it all over the world? Do you need funding for your
project? What platform is your game for? These are basic questions
we would ask on that initial call anyway; help out the person you are
requesting the time of.
Moving Forward:
Pulling it all together, we can determine that
a creative email, with an interesting teaser, brief information about who you
are, what your project is about, and what you need help with is good but not ideal
when seeking the attention of an agent. Simply attaching a detailed “short deck”
sets your company apart from the competition. If the project has merit, the
agent may give you a follow-up call to either move forward with your team or connecting
you to the right person who can help. We can also conclude that a company
should know exactly what they need assistance with. Time is important to both
parties so understanding what you need and what an agent or agency provides,
streamlines the process. The professional courtesy of not wasting time can act
as a boon and at the least, reward you with a good contact for future projects
or help.
Resources
Craft, K. (2009). ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA PUBLISHING AND
DISTRIBUTION (3rd ed.). FL.
AGENCY
SERVICES via DDM Game Studio Representation LLC. (2016). Retrieved
February 03, 2016, from
http://www.ddmagency.com/agency-services/
Jami
Wardman. (n.d.) LinkedIn [Profile page]. Retrieved Feb 04. 2016, from
Jami Wrdman. (n.d.) Twitter
[Profile page]. Retrieved Feb 04. 2016, from https://twitter.com/JamiDDM
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