|
|
Go to page [Previous] 1~2~3 [Next] | ||||||||||
Steve V Inner circle Northern California 1878 Posts |
No problem, just don't make her a sword, don't want violent street walkers out there.
Steve V |
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
And then she'd charge you more to let you watch her swallow it.
Steve Thomas |
|||||||||
rhinomax Regular user 188 Posts |
Wow this thread has slipped in the gutter and on Thanksgiving to
NEVER UNDER ESTIMATE THE POWER OF THE FEW TO CHANGE THE WORLD "THATS USUALY HOW IT WORKS" MARGRET MEAD
|
|||||||||
Steve V Inner circle Northern California 1878 Posts |
Some are thankful for different things than others....
Steve V |
|||||||||
Carl Skenes New user 96 Posts |
David,
You have to excuse "Steve V" as he is going thru a rather bad case of puberty. Carl |
|||||||||
Carl Skenes New user 96 Posts |
David,
You have to excuse "Steve V" as he is going thru a rather bad case of puberty. Carl |
|||||||||
Steve V Inner circle Northern California 1878 Posts |
So sayeth the guy who thinks hookers and balloon twisters are the same.
Steve V |
|||||||||
magicmanfrank Inner circle 1127 Posts |
Quote:
On 2005-11-26 00:11, Steve V wrote: Well, they do both "Blow" for a living... Oh Excuse me, did I say that out loud?????
The Early Bird may get the Worm, but it's the SECOND Mouse that gets the CHEESE!!!
Frank Thurston www.FrankThurstonMagic.com https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Magic-of-Frank-Thurston/116625117910?ref=nf |
|||||||||
magicguy67 Loyal user mEL.fLORIDA 287 Posts |
Lol. now that was funny magcimanfrank.
they thought it was impossible until they met me.
theres no reality in magic did the magician come before the assistant or the other way around. |
|||||||||
BarryRice New user Indianapolis, IN 88 Posts |
Personally I would not work for a restaurant without being paid something. I have done it in the past, but I have learned greatly since then. Getting paid changes the dynamic. The restaurant has a vested interest in you. They have spent money and care if you do a good job and respect you on a professional level. Not to mention, if you don't charge you are letting them take advantage of you. The pay doesn't have to be much, maybe just $20 for expenses and a meal after you are finished (although a good balloon artist is worth a lot more and can easily get it), but it makes you a "paid professional."
As far as charging a set price per balloon-it is not tipping. I am sure some people do that to avoid sales tax and the like. I would not do it. First of all, I want to be able to make a great big 5 balloon hat if I think it will look good on the kid. If I am charging $1 per balloon I make, I am going to be making a lot of dogs. Secondly, I feel I do a better job and frequently get better tips if I don't have a set amount. Again, it changes the dynamic. People are stand-offish with salesmen. They start trying to see what the best value is. I just don't want that. I want people to get what they want and to enjoy it without worring about it costing too much. That being said, those who charge per balloon can still be artist. They can still care about what they do. They simply have a different approach. Likening them to street walkers is unfair. They are just putting themselves into the category of craftsman rather than performer. Jeeze, I always type too much
"The magic of the tongue is the most dangerous of all spells."
-Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton http://www.amazingbarry.com |
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
Barry,
Well said...and that's a funny circle, too, since the restaurant that this whole thread is based on is right where you live! I'm not far from Memphis, and work some restaurants around there...got contacted by a chain with some new stores wanting to add some entertainment. They had mentioned the balloon artist(s) who work their other stores (we both know 'em) and that they work strictly for tips when there's a line to get in. Seems a little UNprofessional to me. Steve Thomas |
|||||||||
DanielSteep Inner circle 1409 Posts |
I was in niagra falls this summer and a guy was standing outside the rainforest Café making balloon animals he was charging between $3.50-$5.00 per balloon.
to you what should people be charging? |
|||||||||
Bill Nuvo Inner circle 3094 Posts or 2742 Posts |
I find 1 clam per balloon is acceptable to most patrons. So if you do multi balloon sculptures that equals more per sculpture.
|
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
While selling balloons at most festivals (NOT for just tips) I usually base it on a dollar per balloon, too. A big 4-5 balloon rose would be around $4...I've also found that (my wife and I argued about this until the first time she saw it work) a tip container placed prominently at a festival while I'm ballooning will take in about 50-60% of what I make on the selling price. If I make $400 selling for 5 hours, the tip container will have about $200 in it. The wife (who also twists) thought that "NOBODY will tip after paying for a balloon"...
Steve |
|||||||||
esther_scheffer Veteran user the netherlands 316 Posts |
Stevethomas, that's great. You get tipped like 50% (on an average scale of 5 hours!). So for most people the balloon (+ probably the entertainment) is more worth than 1 dollar a balloon. Great. And I think way nicer then to charge more is to get this much tipped. (I found out getting tipped makes me feel very appreciated, whichmakes me feel very good!) (but we dutch people are certainly not very good tippers...
To answer the first question: I would not work at a restaurant only for tips. Maybe if I owned the place???? but I can see reasons to entertain for let's say the costs of the balloons + the wage of a waiter. I actually started out working as a clown (kidsshows, balloon modeling and strolling) in a theme-park and it's restaurant. For me then it was a perfect way to start performing, because I could work 4 to 6 days a week, do several shows a day, (in the beginning the shows where more like try outs)get a lot of routine and do a lot of walk around entertainment in between the shows. Also I could hand out my businesscards. |
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
I'm still running into guys in my area who work strictly for tips. I think this is similar (and it's been discussed in other areas on The Café) to doing "professional magic shows" for free. Yes, there are still people around who do that, and call themselves professional. If you were a professional physician, you wouldn't do the majority of your work free...
How can a guy sell a reasonably-priced show to a client if there's some schmuck who's willing to "do some magic" for next to nothing? There's another guy in my area who will travel 3 hours, do 2 stage/festival shows, and do a "night before" preview show ALONG WITH paying to stay at a hotel...and he only charges around a hundred bucks. How can you compete with that if the client is strictly looking at the bottom line. If you're working/ballooning for free/strictly for tips, the restaurant is definitely getting what they paid for. Steve |
|||||||||
PutASpellOnMe New user OK 27 Posts |
One time, we were at a 4th of July town event and there was this clown there who frequents several of the local restaurants. He does balloon art. I do not know what pay arrangments he has but I am a very very good tipper. I have 3 children. They went up to him. I had $25 already in my hand to pay him. He looked at them and said, "I can't do a family of 3 right now, you'll have to come back!" He was very curt and rude. I said, "Kids, come on, let's go. You aren't getting one now." As soon as he realized there was an actual adult there, he started pining, saying, "Wait, I didn't know you were there!" I said, "Well, too bad. You don't have time for a family of 3, remember."
Now, everytime I see him @ Pizza Hut on Tuesday Nights, I totally blow him off. My kids can do without the animals!!! Best bit of advice: Be nice! |
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
You're visiting the wrong Pizza Hut...come see me at one of the ones I work! Bring all the kids, and I'll treat you like I've known you my whole life and you're my best friend. No tips necessary, either! I never skip anybody because "I'm too busy"...except for the entire group of tennis campers (yeah, it's 175 kids at one time, and they're only there for 30 minutes) that come in once a year! The restaurant management doesn't even WANT me to entertain them, since it takes away from the regulars...
Steve Thomas |
|||||||||
PutASpellOnMe New user OK 27 Posts |
Steve
I'd be glad to visit your Pizza Hut!!! Where in the Southern USA are you? This Clown is @ ours every Tuesday Night. I purposefully avoid going there on Tuesday nights b/c of him. My 16 y.o. is a beginner @ balloon art. One of these days, she can run him out of there! HA! Oklahoma - Stacy |
|||||||||
Stevethomas Inner circle Southern U.S.A. 3728 Posts |
You can visit me ANYTIME (innocent flirting...don't send your husband after me!)! I'm at the Pizza Huts (two of 'em) in Oxford, Mississippi, and the one in Batesville, Mississippi (first Tuesday of the month)...I used to have 9 Huts that I rotated between (Tuesdays at all, and 3, I would do Friday nights and Sunday lunch buffets), but then I was only at each one about every 2 months, and they hated that, so did the customers!
Steve Thomas |
|||||||||
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Ballooning 101 » » To charge or Not to charge... (0 Likes) | ||||||||||
Go to page [Previous] 1~2~3 [Next] |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.03 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |