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Jizmagic New user 85 Posts |
How do you go about setting a price for your show - do you call other magicians to find the average in your area? Also, what is the average time for your birthday party show (30 min, 40 min, etc)?
May the magic be with you!
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Dennis Michael Inner circle Southern, NJ 5821 Posts |
I took a quick peek at your website and saw you are from the NY area. The cost of living is higher up there and your range can be anywhere from $200 to $350 for a birthday party based on what you are offering.
Join your local magic club and ask around.
Dennis Michael
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
The best policy anywhere is to simply ask. If you're honest, then most people will see your honesty and respect it and will help you with the information you seek.
Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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paraguppie Elite user Forsyth Montana! 411 Posts |
Hi,
I don't mind sharing my prices so I'll tell you about my show and price. I do a 60 min show, which is about 35-40 min of magic, followed by 15 min of balloon twisting for all the kids. I usually do this part when they are eating cake. I try to keep the parties under 15 kids. For this I charge $125. This may seem low in comparison to others, but for my area it seems to be a good price. South Dakota has a fairly low cost of living compared to some places. I think I am right in line with the other magicicians in my area. If you have more questions, let me know. Hope this helps, Keith
Check me out at www.magickeith.com
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Jizmagic New user 85 Posts |
Thanks for all your insight!
May the magic be with you!
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RonCalhoun Special user Independence, KY USA 599 Posts |
Tom Frank, a comedy magician friend of mine once advised me "Ron, change what you think you're worth, but give them more then they paid for." This is some of the best advise I've ever received. Some twenty plus years ago, when I was starting out I only changed $45 for a B'day party. Believe me back then that's all I was worth.
Over the years I found a very simple way to test the price waters. Offer a choice. I started offering two shows at $45 and $65. later bumping it to $65 and $85. Each time I raised my price the clients would pick the top shows. By the way, the top show of course, offered some of higher value. My next test I offered three chioces, $75, $100, $125. Ninety five percent still wanted the top shelf program. So I knocked it up to $125, $150, $175. At these price points about 50% booked the $150 show, 40% booked the $175 and maybe 10% booked the $125 show. About this time I stopped doing B'day parties and focused on higher paying gigs. Now here is a point to remember, I personally would never pay $175 for someone to do a show for a butch of kids. BUT a lot of people will. In fact, they want, yes want to buy "the best" for their kid. If I had not kept bumping up the choices I would never had had the balls to ask for and expect to get $175 for a kids show.
Founder Heroin Doesn't Care. Find us on https://www.facebook.com/heroindoesntcare
www.heroindoesntcare.com |
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Alym Amlani Inner circle Canada 1464 Posts |
Ron, that is a fantastic idea.
Probably one of the best I've heard in a while. Thanks for the tip. Speaking of tips, do you factor those into the price of your show? Sometimes I find if I charge less, it's more than compensated in tips
Logic Defied
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
I never set my price depending solely on hoping to get a tip to get the price where I want it. Set your price to what you feel your show is worth to your clients. If you get tips, then that is just that much better.
Ron mentioned a good tip. A good gauge if you should raise your price is if every person books you and you get no one turning you down and if you're getting too busy with work. This is a good indication to raise your fees. Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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RoyHolidayMagic New user New York 85 Posts |
Once again, this is an issue that depends on location. Where I am (around the NYC-Long Island area) the cheapest GOOD magicians are about $175, with prices going up to $600 or even $800 for a 45-minute birthday party show with NO additional features. I believe most people charge around $250, with the higher ones as exteremes. I'm not sure what the situation in Poughkeepsie is though.
-Roy |
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
Roy is right. It really does depend upon your location of where you are at and possibly competition in your local market.
In some places in the country, the cost of living is much lower and so prices may have to come down to accomodate for that. If you're near a city, you can probably expect to increase prices and you will receive them because people are used to spending more in the first place. What some have done is to set a price you feel is reasonable and test it out. If everyone books no questions asked, then perhaps your fee is too low and you might want to raise it. If you're getting a lot of people cancelling out on you or not booking based upoon your fee, then you probably are too highly priced for that market and need to come down. Based upon this you try and find that middle ground where your fee is what you want to make and feel you are worth but your not turning away everyone. Hope this helps. Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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MagicalPirate Special user Shamokin, PA 828 Posts |
I unfortunately live in one of these areas. The going rate seems to be $75.00 for a children's party and there is one idiot who charges $40.00 per show. I haven't pursued it as it seemed to be too low priced. I may need to just muscle in with $125.00 and see what happens. I've done festivals, so I know that the value of the show is there and people have a great time. It just seems like a lot of shows are required to make a living at it.
I guess the other reason is the local magic shop owner tends to act like it is his market and gets upset when others compete in it. Since we are friends I've tried avoiding a conflict. However, I need to earn an income so that may have to come before friendship. BTW Ron what were you using to differentiate those tiered prices. I would be interested in knowing. Martin
Martin Blakley, CSH, DASH, CMSA
http://www.thehypnoguy.com/HYPNORESOURCES http://www.docgrayson.com/ How To Sell Anything Online http://tub.bz/?r=1z Copyright to my own words retained 100%. |
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
That is hog wash about that magic shop dealer guy. He should try and move to my area of Philadelphia. We have over 125+ members in out SAM alone and ober 60% of them are doing paid gigs.
No one ever owns a territory. You have mutual respect and I would never book for a festival I know a good friend is already working. But, not to pursue b-day shows in your local just because he thinks he owns the territory is just silly if you ask me. I can totally understand not wanting to cause problems etc., but he simply has to learn that your a working magician and trying to make a living and your local area is open and free game for you as it is for him. I would start at a price you feel you are worth and test it out. You have to test every marketing idea you do and they weight in the results from it. That is the best way to learn. Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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tropicalpenguin Veteran user 396 Posts |
So, what about a 16 year-old kid who does a 20-30 minute show featuring mostly cards?
I am looking to get my name out, and my mother thought it would be alright to charge about $20-$30 I never dreamed that $45 dollars would be extremely low!
-The penguin has spoken
-How could 52 pieces of cardboard ever bring so much joy? |
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Paddy Inner circle Milford OH 1571 Posts |
Actually $100 is extremely low price for a party.
Peter |
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magic4u02 Eternal Order Philadelphia, PA 15110 Posts |
In my localation if your doing an average 45 min birthday party show for kids.. the average price rate STARTS at $125.00 and can go up to as much as around 175.00- 200.00. This is in a Philadelphia area and suburbs.
Penguin, My question for you is to really learn and figure how what you want yout intended market to be. If you plan on doing kids parties, then 20-30 mins of card related magic may not cut it. Kid show magic requires soemthing a lot different as young kids do not often understand cards. Kids enjoy the magical journey more then they do the magic itself. This means they love to laugh, giggle and have fun. Just something to think about. Define what markets you want to work and we can work with you. Kyle
Kyle Peron
http://www.kylekellymagic.com Entertainers Product Site http://kpmagicproducts.com Join Our Facebook Fan Page at http://facebook.com/perondesign |
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RonCalhoun Special user Independence, KY USA 599 Posts |
Quote:
On 2004-08-12 23:51, tropicalpenguin wrote: Listen to your mother. No really, she's a mom and your shows will be booked by other moms. Second $20 to a 16 yeard old for a 20-30 minute show is GREAT Money. I have a wife, 3 kids, 2 cars etc, etc. I need a little money. Break a leg Ron Calhoun
Founder Heroin Doesn't Care. Find us on https://www.facebook.com/heroindoesntcare
www.heroindoesntcare.com |
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Andy Wonder Special user Auckland, New Zealand 747 Posts |
Your aim should be to charge as high a price as you can. You should aim also to to the best show you can do as well. You may have different goals and that is fine of course.
There are two main factors I used in determining my value & the fees I can command. Try this simple equation. Multiply the number of shows you would usually do in a week by 50 weeks (or less if you take more time off). This is the number of shows you could do in 1 year. Next decide how much money you will need over the next 12 month to cover all the expenses. As well as business magic type expenses factor in, personal expenses and savings would like. (hint use a retirement calculator to find out how much you need to save annually) Divide this by the number of shows you can do in one year. That is the money you need per show. High isn’t it? When I did this equation I got $550 per show. I don't have the guts to request fees that high for kids parties so I obviously need to do extra shows outside of my weekends to earn the money I require, or get into a higher paying market, or get some guts. The fees I charge are alreday roughly double what the average is in my market. It is not unheard of is some markets to have the highest paid entertainer charge 3 or 4 times more than the average fee of his competitors and still be quite busy.
Andy Wonder, Auckland, New Zealand
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MagicalPirate Special user Shamokin, PA 828 Posts |
Well Andy, your little exercise is quite an eye opener. At 47 working till I am 70 years old I will have to set aside $50,000 a year to build a retirement chest of $2,000,000. Now that sounds like a lot but when you look forward 23 years before using it and factor roughly 25 years of it paying out for at least my wife it really isn't all that much money in those terms.
Now to make enough to cover putting that away, a decent income and the tax expenese to cover it I will need to make 125,000 per year for the next 23 years to succeed. Obviously birthday parties and daycares are really going to make it tough to meet that number. I'll have to focus on higher paying gigs. That level of income will require 6.25 shows at 400 each for 50 weeks to meet that income. That means I will need to focus on school shows, fairs and fundraising shows for charities to fund my future. Thanks Andy, it really makes you have to take a realistic view of your business and what you need to do with it to meet your goals. My wife has been after me for years to do this. I guess when you returns next week from being gone for 2.5 months with her convalescing father she will have some good news. Martin
Martin Blakley, CSH, DASH, CMSA
http://www.thehypnoguy.com/HYPNORESOURCES http://www.docgrayson.com/ How To Sell Anything Online http://tub.bz/?r=1z Copyright to my own words retained 100%. |
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Andy Wonder Special user Auckland, New Zealand 747 Posts |
Wow, I'm glad to hear I have made a difference. The trouble with just charging fees similar to what others charge is they may not have not done this exercise. Your competitors may not be saving money for their retirement. They could be broke and you may never know. Many will be part-timers & not relying on their magic income for anything. If you are a full time performer then don't follow them, let them follow you.
Charge the fees you need to & don't be afraid if they are very different to what your competitors charge. If you have a good show & a good marketing system you should be able to command the fees you need. The other guage you can use is measure how many of the refferals you get are put off by your fees. If all the people that have either seen you before or call you from a refferal are booking your show then you are definately too cheap. If you are getting maybe 10% or a little more of your refferal inquiries not booking you because you are too expensive for them your fees may be about right, but consider increasing them again soon.
Andy Wonder, Auckland, New Zealand
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NJJ Inner circle 6437 Posts |
Quote:
On 2004-08-08 21:36, RonCalhoun wrote: I think that if YOU don't think a kid's show is ever going to be worth $175 then you'll never be able to charge that much! Be careful chargin VERY low and then bumoing your price up. People will expect you to be cheap and then get angry when six months later, your price is higher. I don't ever charge what I think I'm worth. I charge what my customers think I'm worth. Offering three different packages is a good way of doing this! |
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