Sep 18, 2017

Last year I was contacted through an online booking agency (think Angie's List for entertainers) to "bid" on a company party gig. It was in December but on a Friday night. I wasn't booked that evening and I bid a reasonable fee for a comedy/hypnosis show.

I'm not sure, but I think the first thing that comes up on these "bids" is the fee the entertainer charges, not the video samples, client feedback and you'd have to guess about the entertainer's experience.

Long story shortened: The prospective client went with someone (a newbie in the business, as I later found out) for a much cheaper fee. The way the client put it was, "We are a small company (they were, but not that small) and we are going with someone cheaper."

A few weeks after the event I emailed the client and asked how the show was. Client's response: "It was okay."

If I were a company event planner there's no way I'd accept "okay" entertainment. The entertainment is what your people will remember! Not the food, not the centerpieces and not the venue. Spend wisely.

I recently read an interview with Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys. He said that every good thing that came to him in his life he thought he was overpaying for, at the time!

In retrospect all of those overpaid for (at the time) options turned out to be his best decisions.

When you're planning your next event ask yourself, "Am I willing to go the cheap route and settle with 'okay' or should I spend a little more now and have no regrets later?"

 

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