New Years Ever 2010 - What Should I Charge?

[markyb 0]

Hi guys,

 

If you have been following my posts over the last few months, you will know that for the last few months I have been getting back into mobile discos after a bit of a break.

 

The enquiries are coming in, and Ive been averaging 2 gigs per month, which is around where I wanted to be. Price wise, I am aiming to charge a bit more next year but have been quoting £150 for most gigs as I wanted the local exposure. Typical prices where I am (near Wolverhampton) are £150-£200).

 

Anyway, I have not gone out of my way to get a booking for New Years Eve and am currently available, however my local pub has now asked if I am free. I have worked there before for £80 as a favour, however I do not want to work NYE for too little (I have spent a fortune on decent gear, PAT testing, PLI, all original music etc) and take my disco seriously so I would like to earn a fair price so to cover my costs.

 

I have a meeting with them later in the week - I was thinking of charging £250 8pm-1am, how does this sound? I know it probably seems cheap, but they are a fairly small pub (100-150 people max), and they may even think £250 is too much.

 

My other option is to try and find a gig for NYE, but I know it is a bit late now! Is there anywhere I could advertise that I am available for NYE without looking desparate? ;O)

 

Any advice?

 

Cheers,

 

Mark

[Paul The Party DJ 0]

When I came back two years ago I did NYE for a friends village club at a ridiculously low £100 just to get a run out, and as a favour to him.

 

Last year I did a Whitbreads pub for £450 - I didn't really enjoy the night although the punters and staff seemed to, and it took about six weeks to get the cheque.

 

This year I haven't taken a booking yet - I know lots of DJ's haven't - if I get an enquiry I like then I'll take it.

 

I used to have NYE bookings that would rebook at the end of the gig for the next year - and they'd done the paperwork by the end of January!

Those were the days!

 

Good Luck, Paul ;o)

[mjmac 0]

My local pub is fairly popular, i spose they get 200 - 250 punters on a friday evening and again on saturday! They offered me double time from 8 till 1am before i'd even mentioned how much i charge for NYE... so im happy with that and gonna do the night! Since booking me they now have a 2am license... (yeah right)... so if they want me to play on and im not too drunk they may get the last hour free

 

its a greene king pub and they pay on the night so dont have to worry about accounts and delays in payments either!

 

I spose 350 / 500 is a fair price bracket to be in for NYE for a regular pub... but if you have some PR tricks up your sleve then maybe a cheaper price on the night is worth it in terms of future bookings? However, i try not to do cheapies as word spreads an all the locals want a cheapie!

Edited December 1, 2010 by mjmac

[markyb 0]

Thanks guys,

 

I think I will go in with £250 as it is fairly small, right on my doorstep and there is the potential for some more work next year. Will let you know how I get on!

 

Cheers,

 

Mark

[vokf 0]

Thanks guys,

 

I think I will go in with £250 as it is fairly small, right on my doorstep and there is the potential for some more work next year. Will let you know how I get on!

 

Cheers,

 

Mark

 

Hey Mark,

 

Probably chat with the Landlord/Manager, and chat about next year bookings.

If they are running any promotions, offer to announce these, and also any other entertainment in Jan.. "next week, we've got xyz.." etc

Show you're keen to promote anything they're doing, and help out with Posters etc - anything to bring people in and make their life a bit easier.

 

Also ensure you have a good idea of the times they need you for. My local is 8:30 till 12:30 every weekend and NYE (would be happy to play until 1am on NYE... but it sounds like he's not gonna extend the licence)

 

£250 as a rate for NYE. Its better then the average Sat night pub gig in this area. If you're ok with that, go for it!

 

 

I'm in my local pub on NYE, charging less than I would a private party, but still 2 x what I charge normally.

I may have done it for less, but to be honest, I'm still getting plenty of enquiries for NYE and could better my income if I took these.

Its not so much about the money- being in the company of friends, where I have a good feel for what they want means its normally an easy night, so less work.

 

I've offered to provide some prizes, party-poppers etc - and we both expect a good busy night.

Still unsure if to do fancy dress.. but I've also offered to provide some prizes. I'm budgeting about £40 on "extras"

 

 

[Dan allanthemsdisco 0]

Hey Mark,

 

Probably chat with the Landlord/Manager, and chat about next year bookings.

If they are running any promotions, offer to announce these, and also any other entertainment in Jan.. "next week, we've got xyz.." etc

Show you're keen to promote anything they're doing, and help out with Posters etc - anything to bring people in and make their life a bit easier.

 

Also ensure you have a good idea of the times they need you for. My local is 8:30 till 12:30 every weekend and NYE (would be happy to play until 1am on NYE... but it sounds like he's not gonna extend the licence)

 

£250 as a rate for NYE. Its better then the average Sat night pub gig in this area. If you're ok with that, go for it!

I'm in my local pub on NYE, charging less than I would a private party, but still 2 x what I charge normally.

I may have done it for less, but to be honest, I'm still getting plenty of enquiries for NYE and could better my income if I took these.

Its not so much about the money- being in the company of friends, where I have a good feel for what they want means its normally an easy night, so less work.

 

I've offered to provide some prizes, party-poppers etc - and we both expect a good busy night.

Still unsure if to do fancy dress.. but I've also offered to provide some prizes. I'm budgeting about £40 on "extras"

 

wow thats a really competative rate! Fair play mate i think we need to be sensible and recognise the times we are in and be able to connect with the budgets people are on. I got told off for undercutting the market because i did a 2hr sat night gig for £110 on my doorstep last august!

Anyway hope it goes well & i might copy your ideas for prises on NYE should make it more fun!

[spinner 0]

What to charge does depend very much on the venue. Pubs are unlikely to pay as much as some other venues because they need to up their bar takings to cover the cost of a DJ so won't wish to pay too much.

 

Hotels are different because they will be charging a fee per guest which can be loaded to include the DJ cost.

 

For the past 10 years or so if I haven't been booked direct I've had NYE bookings from an agent with whom I'm friendly. They are usually in Marriott hotels and pay around £600.

 

This year I'm not booked and don't expect to be, so I'll make the most of it and consume some alcohol on NYE for the first time in a long time!

[markyb 0]

Meeting went ok, and we agreed on £200 for 4 hours (9pm-1pm). I know that is not a lot, however I was not planning on working at all as mr Mrs is pregannt so I didnt want to be too far away. This pub is litterally a 5 minute WALK from my front door, so very convenient!

 

Hoepfully by next year I will be more established and be able to command higher fees for more prestigous venues!

 

Thanks for the advice,

 

Mark.

[TC Entertainments 0]

Hey Mark,

 

Probably chat with the Landlord/Manager, and chat about next year bookings.

If they are running any promotions, offer to announce these, and also any other entertainment in Jan.. "next week, we've got xyz.." etc

Show you're keen to promote anything they're doing, and help out with Posters etc - anything to bring people in and make their life a bit easier.

 

Also ensure you have a good idea of the times they need you for. My local is 8:30 till 12:30 every weekend and NYE (would be happy to play until 1am on NYE... but it sounds like he's not gonna extend the licence)

 

£250 as a rate for NYE. Its better then the average Sat night pub gig in this area. If you're ok with that, go for it!

I'm in my local pub on NYE, charging less than I would a private party, but still 2 x what I charge normally.

I may have done it for less, but to be honest, I'm still getting plenty of enquiries for NYE and could better my income if I took these.

Its not so much about the money- being in the company of friends, where I have a good feel for what they want means its normally an easy night, so less work.

 

I've offered to provide some prizes, party-poppers etc - and we both expect a good busy night.

Still unsure if to do fancy dress.. but I've also offered to provide some prizes. I'm budgeting about £40 on "extras"

 

 

Totally agree vokf,

 

It's all about the people you're playing for on these sort of nights.

 

I'm resident at a local pub for their karaokes and the occasional disco (I'm there every Monday and every other Saturday), have negotiated a price of £550 for Xmas & NY eve inc my drinks with the 2 Mondays thrown in.

 

 

They always book me in Sept/Oct for the NEXT year and I know I'll be there amongst friends.

 

TC

[jay jackson 0]

Midlands have an average of 350.00 for NYE I Know this as i spent quite a bit of time ringing around for quotes

Most were 300 to 400 one was asking for 1200 although he said he would do it for 1k cash lol ;thumbdown:

[ChrisPeacock 0]

i was booked for new years eve for £350 working with a band so an easier night and it was 5 mins away from home. they cancelled on me last week as they hadnt sold enough tickets. a little gutted as i had turned down 2 other gigs as i was already booked. now im not working at all. i was going to put the money back into the disco and purchase a laptop to go with the numark cue and numark total control i have here.

 

will go to watch a mates band instead as i aint seen them as i always work when they are playing

[gadget 0]

i was booked for new years eve for £350 working with a band so an easier night and it was 5 mins away from home. they cancelled on me last week as they hadnt sold enough tickets. a little gutted as i had turned down 2 other gigs as i was already booked. now im not working at all. i was going to put the money back into the disco and purchase a laptop to go with the numark cue and numark total control i have here.

 

will go to watch a mates band instead as i aint seen them as i always work when they are playing

 

Did you have a contract with any cancellation clauses in it? I hope at least you kept the booking fee part of the total amount...

 

Cheers,

 

David - house party tomorrow at a friend of a friends :)

[ChrisPeacock 0]

nope no cancellation clause. i got booked through a mate who does disco's for this workingmens club on a regular basis. he is trying to sort out some kind of cancellation fee for me as they have let him down aswel as me

[Dukesy 0]

nope no cancellation clause. i got booked through a mate who does disco's for this workingmens club on a regular basis. he is trying to sort out some kind of cancellation fee for me as they have let him down aswel as me

 

 

Unfortunately, whilst our own unique version of the 'paperless billing' / zero contract policy continues in this industry, clients and venues alike are always going to exploit it and perhaps view us as a second rate industry, who can be bought, sold, bartered and cancelled at will - their will.

 

We are now just the Leisure industries' Eunuch aren't we!!!!???

 

As you have found, there is only one loser in this equation - the DJ. Or in this case, 2 DJ's, as your mate is also let down by them.

 

Had either of you, got the details in writing, or at least taken a deposit, then you would have at least, got something out of it. Okay, it wouldn't have been a gig or your full fee, but it would be something, it may also have made the W.M.C think twice before cancelling their entertainment.

 

Lets face it, the client in this instance is on to a good thing aren't they?. They can arrange a party, hope to sell a few tickets, and there is no risk, because they can just cancel the DJ without any cost or penalty, whenever they like, if it doesn't work out.

 

I also know how Social Clubs work, a bunch of people would have agreed / been pressured into selling tickets, the initial enthusiasm would continue for about a week, before they lost interest in pushing the event, and the tickets end up in an abandoned pile on the kitchen table. If they were in debt to the DJ to the tune of a £50 deposit, then attitudes towards making it work, selling tickets and actually going ahead with it, might be a little more forthcoming as the stakes are higher. But they have nothing to lose do they, certainly not a deposit. Now, unless you are lucky enough for the W.M.C to show some festive spirit, you are unlikely to see a penny for the inconvenience of losing your NYE income.

 

In the meantime, no doubt, the Social Club will have probably opened as normal on NYE, despite not having the Disco. Money would still be taken over the bar, and they are happy. However the DJs are left without a pot to urinate in, with little chance of getting rebooked by another client for the night, and doesn't even have the deposit money with which to drown his sorrows on his unexpected NYE off.

 

Ticket events are always very risky, especially the ones where there is little or no obvious advertising, and selling of tickets comes down to perhaps a few lazy folk on the comittee selling tickets to their equally unenthusiastic friends and family. Due to the high risk of later cancellation, we should perhaps be asking for a significant chunk of the booking fee upfront for these types of events.

 

There are other reasons for getting the details in writing also. Working as a third party on behalf of another third party, rather than directly for / with the client themselves, poses lots of risks. What if your 'mate' had told you that the booking fee was £300, then you did the gig, and a crooked landlord came up to you at the end with £80 in cash, telling you that was the original deal?

 

What have you got, to prove the fee otherwise?. You could easily find yourself £220 down on the deal, with absolutely nothing in writing to prove anything else had been agreed nor to take the matter further, and little option but to accept the £80.

[ChrisPeacock 0]

i totally agree with your statement above. from now on i will be getting it in writing. especially new years eve. i also went to the WMC yesterday and walked in, they dont know what i look like so i had a look around at a few posters. They were still advertising a disco and band and a sign was also on the pinboard stating 'HURRY ONLY 20 TICKETS LEFT' when their reason for cancelling me was because they hadnt sold any tickets.

 

there was nobody around for me to speak to so i contacted me mate who had booked me and he had said he would ring them to question the posters. they have agreed to pay me a cancelling fee with him now after i have gone there and seen the signs. they stated that the signs were put up to scare people into thinking that there werent many tickets left when there actually was more left.

 

i would rather have worked NYE but ended up staying in and having an early night.

 

i will take this as a lesson and learn from it