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Managing venue contact communications

As Tour Manager, you're the band's voice to venues. Here's how to sound professional.

The TM perspective in venue conversations​

Venues see messages from you as "[Band Name] — [Your First Name], Tour Manager." Not from you personally — you're acting in the band's capacity.

Inbound inquiries​

When a venue replies to a band inquiry:

  • Thread lands in your Inquiries inbox (if you're TM on the relevant tour)
  • You can reply directly without involving the Owner
  • Your reply goes out under the band's identity

Proactive outbound​

  • Send fresh inquiries — from the band's account, from your seat
  • Route matches to the band's P&L
  • Negotiate deal terms without needing the Owner to rubber-stamp

Keep the Owner in the loop for big decisions (significant guarantee changes, cancellations) but daily back-and-forth is fully yours.

Tone guidelines​

  • Match the band's voice — if the Owner's emails are casual, yours should be too
  • Don't introduce yourself unnecessarily ("Hi, this is Dana, TM for [Band]") unless asked who's writing
  • Sign off as "[Your Name] // Tour Manager for [Band]" on formal communications

Three-way communications​

Sometimes the Owner wants to be looped in:

  • Forward the thread to them if more context is needed
  • Loop them on final deal confirmation
  • Coordinate big decisions over band messaging before you reply to the venue

@mentions inside venue threads are on the roadmap but not built — for now, ping the Owner directly when you need them in the loop.

For fast-paced negotiations (same-day, same-hour), ask the Owner upfront for negotiation authority so you don't have to loop them on every exchange.

Handoffs​

Leaving a band mid-tour? Do a clean handoff:

  • Share venue-thread context with incoming TM (forward key threads)
  • Introduce yourself to venue contacts by name in a handoff email ("Forwarding to [Next TM]; contact them for the rest of this booking process")
  • Mintoor's audit trail preserves all history — incoming TM can review past negotiations

Still stuck?​

  • Venue trying to talk to the Owner directly. Forward their email to the Owner with context; let them decide whether to step in.
  • Owner undermining your deals. Real relationship issue. Have the conversation offline.