Bill, Donny doesn't advertise, but I do and it has been extremely effective. I agree with him that if you provide a great entertainment package, you will get a lot of repeat business. But things tend to change over the years, activities directors are often replaced by younger people that don't have a clue what good entertainment for seniors consists of, and new facilities are springing up every year.
I constantly look for new locations to perform. I've always been a firm believer that in this business you have to be a salesman, businessman, bookkeeper, accountant, agent, etc..., then you can practice your trade as an entertainer. No matter what any says, it's a business and must be conducted as a business of you won't make a living - it's that simple.
Each and every year I purchase 50 appointment wall calendars from National Pen Company that cost me $1.19 each. They are a great investment and pay for themselves with just one job a year. Additionally, I purchase high-quality pens from them as well, usually 100 to 150, and my cost is just .39 cents per pen. Everytime that perspective client looks for a date on your calendar there's your name, telephone number and email address right on the bottom of the calendar. When they write an appointment on that calendar, they're doing it with your pen that has the same information.
After each and every season I mail out a personalized thank you card. I purchase them from Vista-Print, and they're dirt cheap - just a couple pennies each and include an envelope. I also purchase my custom made business cards from the same outfit. The cards are of the highest quality, there's no setup charge, and the price is usually less than $5 per 250 plus shipping, which is very reasonable.
I utilize the internet to find new locations that are either proposed or recently open that are relatively close to home. I try my best to stay within 20 miles, which currently provides me with 32 locations to perform for at least once or twice a month at each location. I do my best to avoid doing doubles, mainly cause I'm too damned old and my lungs are shot to hell, but it's very difficult to turn some of these nice AD ladies down when they're in a bind.
Private parties come on a regular basis, and are usually booked by someone visiting a relative at one of the assisted living facilities, nursing homes or retirement communities. Most are 50th wedding anniversaries, but I manage to do some poolside parties, cookouts, Jimmy Buffett parties, etc..., as well each year. I charge the same hourly rate for private parties that I charge for my NH and Assisted Living jobs. No one blinks.
Each October, I visit each and every activities director in the area, some of which at locations where I do not perform. I set up the visit with a simple telephone call, give them a new calendar and pen, and sit down with that new calendar and pen and book the upcoming year's performance dates. Then, when I get back to the home office, I sit down at the PC and send each AD a confirmation letter confirming the dates for the upcoming season. It's not a contract, though, it's just a confirmation letter. At the very end of the year, I send each facility a full contract, which I've posted on this forum several times, which they sign and send back to me in a postage paid, self addressed envelope. Never had one that was not signed or returned.
I mail out advertising fliers at least four times a year, mainly to locations where I do not regularly perform and wish to include on my regular schedule. The fliers are one page only, have neat headlines and graphics I created using Print Shop 12 on the PC, and then follow the mailing up with a telephone call a week to 10 days later. You would be amazed how effective something this simple can be. For example, at the top of one the headline reads "50 Reasons To have A party." Then I list all the holidays on my calendar, and a couple dozen other reasons to have some sort of celebration with musical entertainment.
I give away about 100 CDs every year. Yes, give them away - not sell them. Some are in the form of a present that goes along with the thank you card I send to the ADs, while others are given to perspective clients. While some folks will tell you it's a waste of money, I know better. Several years ago I did one that was just Christmas songs. They are played at each and every facility where I sent them, usually on the house sound system, during the month of December. Those CDs, which I burn and print right here in the office, have my telephone number and email address on them.
I have always strived to keep my act as fresh as possible. I do this by trying to learn one or two new songs every week, songs that I'm relatively confident my audiences would enjoy hearing and so far, over more than 50 years of playing, I've managed to meet that goal. I love it when guys like Don Mason, DNJ, Tony M and others suggest songs for me to perform. It stirs those creative juices, and I have fun putting those songs together. Most of the time, they come out pretty darned good and the audiences love them. Some, I really had to work at, as witnessed by my first rendition of Merry Christmas Darling, which I should have, obviously worked harder on.
Back to the advertising. There was a time when I did some of the things you did - play the first job for free, which produced some jobs, but it produced more when I upped the ante to half-price for the first job, full price for every performance after that. And when I played that first one for half price, it was also for half the time - just 30 minutes, so in reality, I was being paid the regular, hourly rate. If you play for free, you quickly develop the reputation as "The guy who will play for free." And, for some reason, those ADs never seem to be able to find room in their budget for you for more than a couple times a year. Just not a good idea.
Over the years I've dealt with many agencies - I would never use another agency. Of the four that I used, they didn't book enough jobs to make the time spent with them worth while. Most agencies are booking DJs for weddings, a few private parties, and most are looking for younger performers and bands - NOT OMB entertainers, despite the level of talent. For the most part, I don't believe they have your best interest at heart. As I said at the onset, YOU must be your own agent, and YOU, obviously, have your own best interest at heart.
So, how much should you charge for a one-hour NH, Assisted Living, Retirement Community performance? This will depend a lot on what area of the country you live. In the southeastern U.S., $75 an hour is considered top pay, and very few performers get that rate. This is mainly because there tends to be a lot of retirees in those areas and many of them are trained musicians that just want something to do during their retirement years - those guys will play for free and often do. Consequently, this results on a lower rate of pay. In the Mid Atlantic Region, Richmond to New York, the rate ranges $100 to $125 an hour, and from what I've been told, it's the same in New England and on the West Coast, California, Oregon and Washington.
So, if you work 5 days a week, one job a day, you will gross $32,500 annually - obviously not a very high salary. From this gross amount, you must subtract all expenses - ALL EXPENSES! You can only do this if you keep meticulous records, which is actually pretty easy using Quick Books, Quicken, Turbo-Tax, and similar programs on your PC or Mac. NEVER use cash for any transaction, including tolls, if you don't have to. Most states have transducers that mount on your car's windshield that will automatically pay the tolls, then you get a statement at the end of each month. Some tolls, such as the Parkway, may require cash for tolls, but it's imperative that you maintain written records of those cash purchases, and also maintain a written automobile log book to record each and every trip. As a working musician/entertainer, you have nearly 1,200 legal deductions you can utilize to make the business profitable and keep much more of your hard-earned money at tax time. Again, and I can't stress this enough, this is a business and must be treated accordingly. Treat it as a fun, pastime where you might make a few bucks on the side and you'll end up loosing your a$$.
Hope this information is beneficial to everyone,
All the best,
Gary
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