How/what do you charge for private functions?

[irpacynot]

Hey folks,

 

Did my first private gig this past Monday (playing acoustic fingerstyle guitar for the grand opening of a Sun Trust bank). I think I made out okay for my first time doing this, but feel like I really should try to do better in the future otherwise it doesn't seem worth it for me.

 

Most of the gigs I do are designed for a singer/songwriter format and I don't mind going without for a while in hopes of getting the word out, but when doing private functions there's really little promotion I'm doing except for the word-of-mouth I get from the actual performance. That's only worth as much as how much the next gig pays.

 

I put together a priliminary price list based on what I feel I need to cover costs and still make a few bucks for myself. Was curious to find out what some of y'all are requiring and how you divvy it all up on paper.

 

Thanks

[dotcom]

We do lots of weddings. We get no less than $125/man and we have five pieces. Many times we get way more than that. Weddings are bread and butter for lots of groups. It's nothing for a three or four hour wedding to pay a large group (5 pieces and up) $200+/man. The mother of the bride wants their little baby girl to have the very best and that's what we are. We can and do play anything and everything they request or might want to hear.

 

For smaller gigs like jazz trios or quartets I charge (and get) less, but never less than $100/man, usually for 2-3 hours tops. Jazz is a different kind of sell. With jazz you get lots of home-a-rama's (new real estate showings), museums, art gallerys, etc. You have to work a lot harder though in a trio, and not quite as hard in a quartet. Those type of groups cost less becasue we're playing the kind of music we like and want to play as opposed to YMCA, Chicken Dance, Polkas, Electric Slide, Margaritaville, etc.

 

Clubs always pay less than private functions. Private functions generate lots of WOM (word of mouth) work too so carry lots of business cards. Learn to sound perspective clients out over the phone too. Ask for lots up front but if you suspect you just gave them sticker shock and they might pull out as a result, be ready to counter with a "special deal" for them that'll cost them less but still snag you the gig. It's a bit tricky at first but you get good at it after a while.

 

I'm great at talking to bride-to-be's mothers. You could say I give them great phone. I'm sincere and always sound like I'm on their side and understand all the hassles they're getting from everyone else (caterer, florist, rental hall, photographer, etc.) I let them know now that they've contacted me a lot of that will go smoother because I know what I'm doing and help plan the entire reception for them.

 

I even email them a free reminder checklist that I came up with just as a courtesy freebie for them to make sure they have considered all the different things that will occur during the reception (receiving line, first dance, cake, toast, garter, bouquet, etc.) You'd be surprised how many people give no thought at all to that kind of stuff. You appear on the scene and seem like a knight on a white horse since you know all the proper etiquette and protocol about all that stuff.

 

Plus you guarantee up front that the band will be there all in black tuxes on that particular day, will be on time, will be sober (no profanity), will be professional (no nose picking on stage) and will play whatever first dance they may want even if you have to learn it. The more worry you take away from them the more they are going to want you. I always ask for 25% as a non-refundable deposit to reserve that day for them. Even if they cancel, you keep the deposit (after all, you penciled them in on that day and could have gotten another gig if you hadn't reserved that day for them. It's fair.

 

Can't even remember my last "public" gig in fact.

[irpacynot]

Thanks, man. Great reply.

 

Definitely some things to think about. It hadn't occurred to me to ask for a deposit up front.

[Parallex]

dotcom that's pretty accurate and fair advice if I were to give any. The idea of a deposit is a pretty good idea however......I'd have to give that a little more consideration.

 

These are strictly my opinions, but as the person handling all the affairs of the band, I am careful to not put a lot of emphasis on money, so it looks like we're more fan and music driven. Of course this is true, but when you have expenses and cds to pay off, money is very important.

 

I have a five piece, and we're a motivated college band that *has just* started working on become a regional presence. As a general rule I'd charge $150 for playing a 45 min to 1 hr set, and I believe that's pretty fair considering we're not mainstream professionals but we are still quite talented and successful. That seems to be the going rate too out here in Iowa.

 

For shows where we have to play longer than an hour, I usually go by $100/hr as a rule of thumb. Again we aren't in the band for personal financial gains; we make our sacrifices so that the band may grow and expand. That means some of this money goes to any expenses for the show (if you had to rent a soundsystem or gas, albeit most of the guys pay for their own gas off their own accord) but most of it goes to a conglomerate band fund that we'll use as expense money for a future tour, petty cash, or producing a new album. Or for the present, paying off the remaining credit on my credit card from our cd

[MDLMUSIC]

In most cases, the type of venue dictates how much you can make. For private parties and wedding receptions, the no-less-than $100 rule seems about right. Depending on how fancy the occasion is and how much extra the band needs to do (announcing the bridal party, learning new songs, emceeing, etc.) you can jack up the price considerably.

 

Public gigs, like bars and clubs, usually pay quite a bit less. Out here in northern LA county, most of the small places pay between $150-$250 a night for the whole band. That's why you'll see a lot of trios; it's not so much for the sound, but that so each member can make at least $50 for a four hour gig. Of course, there are often some added perqs, like tips, free beer, and loose women.