Members TrickyBoy Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Something I've had NUMEROUS bar and club owners/managers tell me: They want the crowd up and dancing. Why? Their rational has almost unanimously been that when people come to the door, they want them to see a good time going on inside. Then again, I'll qualify this as saying this is coming from the management of the places we play, which tend to cater to the younger, dancing crowd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members New Trail Posted February 8, 2012 Author Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 ....Personally, I like audiences that dance because it makes the gig fun and energetic and a "success" for me. ..... I agree! That's the point of this thread! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members vanlatte Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Something I've had NUMEROUS bar and club owners/managers tell me: They want the crowd up and dancing. Why? Their rational has almost unanimously been that when people come to the door, they want them to see a good time going on inside. Then again, I'll qualify this as saying this is coming from the management of the places we play, which tend to cater to the younger, dancing crowd. And that makes perfect sense given the venue. Now if you were talking about a laid back bistro that is having their tables and waitresses knocked over the reaction from management would probably be different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Something I've had NUMEROUS bar and club owners/managers tell me: They want the crowd up and dancing. Why? Their rational has almost unanimously been that when people come to the door, they want them to see a good time going on inside. Then again, I'll qualify this as saying this is coming from the management of the places we play, which tend to cater to the younger, dancing crowd. i agree with you. We are joined at the hip with a bar that does the dinner show deal with a crowd thats into being entertained more than dancing. Its a different model. What people look for is a full parking lot. A full lot means this place is popular and all the cars show it. Just like the places you play ,, when you come in side, you want them to see people having a good time. We take it farther. We pass out felt tip pens and they are free to tag the walls and leave their mark on the place. Why? the next time they are back on the island ,, we know they will be back. The markeing concept is for them to make this club their hang out central when they are on south padre island. Its a fun place with a crazy atmosphere and a great staff with super food and good entertainment. A year and a half in its going strong. I think you summed it up ,, when you said. The mgmt wants people to see people having a good time when they come through the door. that is the key. Getting them to come back is the next step. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Something I've had NUMEROUS bar and club owners/managers tell me: They want the crowd up and dancing. Why? Their rational has almost unanimously been that when people come to the door, they want them to see a good time going on inside. Then again, I'll qualify this as saying this is coming from the management of the places we play, which tend to cater to the younger, dancing crowd. I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. I can see that. I think one problem is that bands typically are not privy to what the ring is at a bar they play. They get to see the crowd and whats going on in the room. What you want to watch is whats going on with the bartenders and whats comming out of the kitchen. That is where the ring gets generated. With a full dancefloor ,, odds are guys in the band are not looking at the bartenders or the trays that come out of the kitchen. When you hve a cover it changes the whole dynamics of things too. That pays the band, rather than taking it off the top of sales. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can see that. I think one problem is that bands typically are not privy to what the ring is at a bar they play. They get to see the crowd and whats going on in the room. What you want to watch is whats going on with the bartenders and whats comming out of the kitchen. That is where the ring gets generated. With a full dancefloor ,, odds are guys in the band are not looking at the bartenders or the trays that come out of the kitchen. When you hve a cover it changes the whole dynamics of things too. That pays the band, rather than taking it off the top of sales. If I ever played a place and saw trays come out of the kitchen, I'd know I was there at least 2 hours too early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jimiv Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 If I ever played a place and saw trays come out of the kitchen, I'd know I was there at least 2 hours too early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 If I ever played a place and saw trays come out of the kitchen, I'd know I was there at least 2 hours too early. LOL good one. It has its advantages ,, like early hours and no loading out at 2am. batting clean up on the prime rib and seafood buffet isnt bad either. Go in early grab a salad ,, play a couple sets eat and home by 11. Good geezer gig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mutha Goose Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. That's one of the reasons we do as well as we do... much of our regular crowd are heavily drinking bikers. At the end of the night, there's enough $ in the coffers to pay us and still put a simle on the managements' faces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tucktronix Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. True dat! We have a swing dance network here in town. They attend a lot of the blues and jazz shows and usually fill up dance floors. However, they are notorious for not buying drinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 True dat!We have a swing dance network here in town. They attend a lot of the blues and jazz shows and usually fill up dance floors. However, they are notorious for not buying drinks. In the fall and spring we get the windsurf and kite board crowd in town. all very active and in shape and they dance a lot. Truth is , that three canadians with walkers can outdrink a whole bar full of wind heads Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 If I ever played a place and saw trays come out of the kitchen, I'd know I was there at least 2 hours too early. Really? Lots of places around here sell food, multiple microbrews, and mixed drinks until at least midnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Really? Lots of places around here sell food, multiple microbrews, and mixed drinks until at least midnight. Trays of drinks. Sure. I've never played food joints until after food hours (or just at the very tail end of service.) I was just making the point that different venues and different types of bands have different requirements for what would be a "successful" night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TrickyBoy Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. I agree that the ringout is key. But I've been out on tons of occasions where I was sitting at the bar listening to a band, watched a group stick their head in the door, and decide to move onto a different venue. And that totally effects the bottom line and drives management crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I agree that the ringout is key. But I've been out on tons of occasions where I was sitting at the bar listening to a band, watched a group stick their head in the door, and decide to move onto a different venue. And that totally effects the bottom line and drives management crazy. Yep. Those nightclubs with the long lines just to get in are successful for a reason. But again, it's all about the market. A busy, hoping venue is an attraction to a certain audience. Other people want a low-key place where they can get some background music while they munch on nachos. So comparing the two really isn't a valid comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wardjames Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 I can't think of a single one who ever cared about anything besides the ringout at the end of the night. Dancers don't automatically pay the bills. Most club owners I've met couldn't care less if you sang Gregorian chants all night or slaughtered monkeys on stage, as long as they were slinging drinks and/or groceries and they made a profit off the band. Maybe I need to get around more. I can appreciate the owner's focus on the til. Obviously that's what they're looking for. But a band's got to try and figure out what causes that ringout to be higher. On the whole, this is going to be caused by an engaged audience, whether in the form of dancing, clapping, etc. If a band's singing Gregorian chants on stage, has no audience engagement whatsoever, and the cash register is full, the bar owners gotta think..."Why don't I just get a DJ for half the price". Seriously, if a bands not thinking about how to get audience engagement, in some form, you're doomed, and you're going to lose gigs to the band who is thinking about how to get the crowd to connect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Yep. Those nightclubs with the long lines just to get in are successful for a reason. But again, it's all about the market. A busy, hoping venue is an attraction to a certain audience. Other people want a low-key place where they can get some background music while they munch on nachos. So comparing the two really isn't a valid comparison. It still comes down to product sold. Our summer crowds can out ring our winter crowds with the same number of people in the building. Winter people dont tend to spend as much as the ones in the summer do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 It still comes down to product sold. Yes. But to argue that dance bands playing in dance clubs shouldn't use how-many-people-are-dancing as a measure of success because that doesn't work in the dinner clubs is absurd. Apples and oranges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wardjames Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 It still comes down to product sold. Our summer crowds can out ring our winter crowds with the same number of people in the building. Winter people dont tend to spend as much as the ones in the summer do. But what are you doing to get the most product sold regardless of the crowd? It seems like you're unconcerned about the impacy the band has on the registers? Ok, winter people don't tend to spend as much as summer people. How do you maximize the revenue to the bar? Is it getting them dancing, is it getting them clapping, is it getting them involved? Those are the only factors I see as within the bands control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 Yes. But to argue that dance bands playing in dance clubs shouldn't use how-many-people-are-dancing as a measure of success because that doesn't work in the dinner clubs is absurd. Apples and oranges. It still boils down to product sold and profit. Its the only thing that really matters. For a dance club ,, the nuts have the idea. Keep em on their feet standing with a drink in their hand drinking. They will drink more product doing that than dancing and the good thing is they dont have a place to set the drink down , so they will drink like fish. I understand that its good for a bands ego to have dancers and it looks good when someone sticks their head in, and people like to have fun. Its good for the bars ring to have them sloppin up product non stop. You have to go with basics... this is a bar ,, drink you bastards. This is not a fast food restaurant, if you think its taking too long , you are drinking too slow .. pick up the pace. Its not apples and oranges ,, its all the same.. move product. The people may be different in demographic , but spending money is the goal. Its not about how pretty the crowd is... its easy to get side tracked with that. The nuts run about as good of model for a party band as you are going to get,, when it comes to workin the bars. What they do works on their home turf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TIMKEYS Posted February 8, 2012 Members Share Posted February 8, 2012 But what are you doing to get the most product sold regardless of the crowd? It seems like you're unconcerned about the impacy the band has on the registers? Ok, winter people don't tend to spend as much as summer people. How do you maximize the revenue to the bar? Is it getting them dancing, is it getting them clapping, is it getting them involved? Those are the only factors I see as within the bands control. You have to be entertainers. Those are the bands that tend to pack a room and motivate people to spend. You also have to have a solid well run venue. With winter people ,,we get the same people in the bar night after night. We make them feel like family. Its their hang out. They are loyal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 9, 2012 Members Share Posted February 9, 2012 It still boils down to product sold and profit. Didn't I already agree with you? Its not about how pretty the crowd is... its easy to get side tracked with that. Depends. Pretty girls can help ring up a nice till. There's a reason why bars hire attractive cocktail waitresses (and almost never cocktail waitERs) and host"Ladies' Nights". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted February 9, 2012 Members Share Posted February 9, 2012 I can appreciate the owner's focus on the til. Obviously that's what they're looking for. But a band's got to try and figure out what causes that ringout to be higher. On the whole, this is going to be caused by an engaged audience, whether in the form of dancing, clapping, etc. If a band's singing Gregorian chants on stage, has no audience engagement whatsoever, and the cash register is full, the bar owners gotta think..."Why don't I just get a DJ for half the price".Seriously, if a bands not thinking about how to get audience engagement, in some form, you're doomed, and you're going to lose gigs to the band who is thinking about how to get the crowd to connect. Of course, I agree with all that. I'm just saying, I've played a lot of gigs where the crowd was large and going nuts and the ringout was low compared to what they did other times. It's always great if people are having fun and reacting to the band, but it doesn't mean much to the club owner if his till is low. By the way, last weekend I went to see a band play in the venue I'm booked in this weekend, a new one for us. It's a big place, sports bar like, quite nice with lots of pool tables on one side and the band on the other. We sat on the band side. My drummer, keyboard player, bass player and wife were with me. And it took us 15 minutes to get service. More people came in, and sat there waiting to get served. Some got up and left, other people went to the bar and asked for a server. The band took a break and I told them that I hadn't seen a cocktail waitress in over 20 minutes. Finally, the manager, who I'd never met before, came over and asked the band how it was going for them. I told him about the poor service and that I hoped it wouldn't be like that when we play there. I'm going to mention it again on Friday when we set up. The crowd was decent (for awhile, until they couldn't get a drink), they were responsive and dancing. Lots of times the ringout has nothing to do with how well the band does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted February 9, 2012 Members Share Posted February 9, 2012 Lots of times the ringout has nothing to do with how well the band does. Yep. Often times a club with a full dance floor that isn't selling enough drinks simply needs more cocktail waitresses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.