To get the most out of The Feedback Room, here’s five quick tips on how best to ask for and receive feedback. By following these steps, The Feedback Room should be a genuinely useful resource for you and your upcoming projects.
1. Be clear about what you’d like feedback on
Rather than asking people what they think of your tune overall, pinpoint a few aspects that you’re not sure about and hone in on them. For example, rather than creating a post that simply asks:
Any feedback on this tune?
Be more exacting and give listeners some specific things to focus on when critiquing the track. For example:
Would love some feedback on this tune. In particular, I’m not sure if the snare sound is working - thinking it should have more of a 90s hip-hop vibe. Also, I’m not sure about the synth melody in the second verse - does it overpower the vocals? Would appreciate some thoughts.
By giving listeners a couple of elements to focus on, you’re giving their listening session some purpose and clarity. As a result of this, their feedback should be of genuine value to you and your track.
2. Be friendly and conversational in your approach
The more personal and engaging you make your post, the more likely it is that people will want to help you. Rather than simply posting a link to the track and asking for feedback, why not tell people a bit more about yourself and what you’re working on. Knowing a bit more about the project and what the music means to you can go a long way in encouraging feedback from other members of Community.
For example. You could start your post with something along the lines of:
Hey everyone, my name is Dan and I’ve been producing beats for about 5 years - mainly UKG and dubstep stuff, but I’m trying to expand my skills and branch out a little. I’ve been working on this track for a couple of months and I’m just not sure where to take it. My original intention was to do something reminiscent of early dubstep, but it’s definitely morphing into something else entirely.
This gives people a bit of context as to who you are and what the track is about, and opens up the door for a genuine conversation.
3. Dig a little deeper
If you’ve received feedback from someone and you’re interested in digging into it a little deeper, don’t be afraid to ask some follow up questions.
Perhaps you’ve been given some mixing advice but it’s a technique you’re unfamiliar with, or perhaps someone has suggested adding some instrumentation that’s outside of your skillset - why not probe a little deeper and ask for some clarification? Or better yet, why not find out if they’d be willing to help you? The great thing about asking for feedback is that it can lead to some exciting collaboration opportunities.
4. Gracefully accept feedback
As stated in our guidelines, try to detach yourself from your art (easier said than done we know!) Criticism of your work isn’t criticism of you. We’ll be monitoring responses carefully to ensure people aren’t cruel with feedback, but we’re pretty confident our members will be respectful and engaging with their critiques.
It’s fine to disagree with someone’s feedback. But rather than responding with something like:
Hmm, I’m not sure you know what you’re talking about. I appreciate you taking the time to listen but your advice is just plain wrong.
Go with this instead:
Thanks for taking the time to listen! Some interesting thoughts there. I see where you’re coming from although if I’m being honest, I’d say I’m not entirely sure about the synth suggestion for the outro - purely because I think it might overpower the bass. I’ll definitely have a play around with it though and see how it sounds.
You can disagree with someone but still be respectful and conversational.
5. Return the favour
The golden rule of the Feedback Room is that if you’re asking for feedback, return the favour to two or three other members who are also after a critique of their work.
If we can all agree to that, The Feedback Room will be an engaging and genuinely useful area for everyone to enjoy.
