If you have never had to hire a magician before, and even if you have, there are things to be aware of before committing to hiring one!!
Does expensive guarantee good quality of service?
Should you stay away from cheapness?
Here are the top 5 reasons why you should not base your decision on price alone: 5 reasons you cannot book a magician based solely on price:
1. Newbies: When magicians start working for money, they have no idea of their value in the marketplace. As such, many will try to find out how much experienced magicians charge. They might simply come straight out and ask, or they might pretend to be a client and fill in an enquiry form. Whatever way they find out, many will think, “Wow! I’ll start charging the same or just a bit less than that.” You could very well end up hiring someone with far less experience and ability, yet charging equal to or only a little less of a fee than a Professional Magician
2. Part timers: Some magicians are semi-professional or even amateurs. However, they can be very good, but they have another revenue stream away from magic. Three highly renowned magicians were, by profession, a plumber, shopkeeper, and lawyer. Due to their circumstances, part-time performers do not always charge as much as professionals. They are happy to go out and do some magic for less money than they would otherwise, knowing their main income comes from elsewhere. While they may have the technical ability, they may not be as experienced when it comes to working at events as a professional magician will be due to the number of events, they work each year. The opposite can also be the case with their fee. Magic is not their primary source of income so they may charge an inflated price. If the client agrees then that’s great; if they don’t, it doesn’t matter too much as they are not reliant on the fees earned by performing magic at events.
3. Local magicians: you may be lucky and have a world-class professional magician living a very short distance from you. If they can drive to your event in under 20 minutes on a weekday evening at short notice it could well be worth their while taking on the job for a lower fee than normal. Sometimes events can be a 4–5-hour drive away or even a flight away so nearby events are a luxury!
4. Lifestyle choices: You could find yourself booking a magician who charges fees based not on ability and experience but on their lifestyle choices. Maybe they have high car repayments, large mortgage, club memberships or a taste for finer things and they need an income to manage them. As such you could well be paying far above what their value is to your event.
5. Your event deserves better: I am sure you have spent a lot of time sourcing everything for your event. From weddings, birthdays, client hospitality, awards dinners, Christmas parties and more, you want the event to be a great success. You don’t give your guests supermarket own-brand value chicken to eat off paper plates with plastic cutlery while listening to music on your iPad (at least I hope you don’t!). I am sure you don’t go for the cheapest venue possible either. When it comes to entertainment, the same rules about quality apply. The magician you hire needs to be right for your event. This should involve everything including experience, skill, personality, appearance, and professionalism. The fee may well not reflect any of these things.
“You get what you pay for.”
This is a well-known saying but while true for the vast majority of times, it is not always the case!
Remember: a high fee does not always equate to high quality; a low fee does not always equate to low quality. Therefore, I always urge people to check the websites of potential magicians. Are there any videos of them performing at events? Also, always, always, always phone them too so you get a feel for how they interact with people. Many magicians are technically great but lack the social skills required for professional engagements. Don’t be afraid to ask questions away from your actual event: How long have you been a professional magician? While your website says you are ‘award winning’ what awards have you won? Can you offer any testimonials from previous clients? Why do you charge the fee you do? (Only once has someone asked me this and I appreciated the person doing so.)
Final Note: As you can see, hiring a magician can be a bit of a minefield but with just a little extra effort, as I am sure you do with other aspects of your events, you can easily make sure you hire the magician that is right for your event. Recommendations from people you trust is a very good place to start!!!
Chris Yuill
Multi Award Comedy Magician