How to Convince Your Boss to Send You to The NAMM Show

If you’re in the business of music, pro audio, entertainment technology and live events, you know that The NAMM Show connects you to all things musical. With more than 1,200 exhibitors representing 3,500 brands, people attending from 120 countries, hundreds of educational sessions and over 150 live bands, it’s where the industry’s pros go to discover the latest products, learn trends, grow business and find inspiration.

You don’t want to miss your opportunity to be in the mix, but you’ll need your boss’s approval before you can secure your spot at the show. To convince your boss, you’ll need to make a clear, strong case about how your attendance is going to add value to your company. By showing your knowledge of the show and its benefits, and by providing specifics about what you aim to learn, you’re more likely to be successful in your request.

Here are five steps for how to ask your boss for approval to attend The NAMM Show:

1. Research the event in-depth and discover your options

Understanding everything that’s being offered at the show will give you the ability to talk about the benefits more confidently. Review The NAMM Show’s website to learn about the agenda, key speakers and sessions. Specific events and learning opportunities will begin to stand out to you.

2. Draft an agenda of the top sessions you’d like to attend

Create a list of the educational sessions or other events you’d like to attend. With hundreds of learning opportunities, it helps to have a focused plan that reflects the top things you want to do at the show. An example agenda is a great way to provide your boss with further evidence that the show is relevant to your role and will equip you with valuable learning and networking opportunities. Find the full list of events and sessions on November 6 by visiting the show website or downloading the NAMM Show+ app.

3. Write down three goals you’d like to achieve

Now that you’ve pinpointed learning opportunities you’d like to take advantage of, write three goals you’d like to achieve by attending the show. Providing your supervisor with specific goals will help them understand how you will take the experience of attending The NAMM Show and turn it into tangible benefits for the company.

Your goals can be about how attending the show will help you learn and grow in your role, will support your company’s mission, or will help solve specific problems at your company (including issues your boss is a stakeholder in).

Write your goals using action words: “learn,” “network,” “gain” and “discover” are some options. Here are a few example goals:

  • Meet our top five target customers and introduce myself and our brand
  • Attend the Music Analytics session to learn effective analytics and metrics techniques
  • Compare tools and make a recommendation to our team for a solution

If you do attend the show, focus your time on achieving your goals so you can deliver a strong report to your boss showing that you accomplished what you said you would.

4. Outline the costs

Be clear about the full cost of the event so your supervisor can make an informed decision when considering their budget. Be sure to write down the registration fee, hotel fee and travel costs. Providing your boss with all the cost details will streamline the decision-making process.

5. Send a formal request to your boss via email

You’ve done all the legwork — now put it in writing. Your request to attend The NAMM Show should describe the benefits of the event, provide details about when and where it’s being held, and make a strong case for how your attendance will deliver value to your organization. You can include your three goals, your example agenda and a breakdown of costs. To help you get started, we’ve created a sample letter you can use as a template to draft your request. You’ve got this!

Get sample letter

What if you don’t get approval?

There are other options you can turn to if your boss isn’t able to approve your attendance for the upcoming show.

  • Ask if there is budget for you to apply for individual membership with NAMM. With an individual membership, you can participate in livestreams of select NAMM Show events and sessions using the NAMM Show+ app, access educational sessions through NAMM U Online, participate in networking opportunities, including NAMM Young Professionals (YP) and Women of NAMM (WoN), access professional development opportunities, and more.
     
  • Follow NAMM’s rich library of content, including the Playback blog, Oral History interviews, The Music History Project podcast, and ReVoicing the Future — the Women of NAMM podcast.

We look forward to seeing you at The NAMM Show!

Ready to get in the mix? Register for The NAMM Show today.