Behind the Curtain – Mar ’13

After choosing a style of music for your corporate concert event (see last week’s Behind the Curtain), you’ll need to decide how much you can spend – including costs of food and beverage you may want to provide your guests.

With that figure in mind, answer these questions:

1.Is there a concert location you can use without cost, or will you be renting a concert hall, ballroom, or other suitable location?

2.Will you need to bring in staging, sound and light systems, or will those features already be in place?

3.Will you charge guests to attend, or will your company and co-sponsors cover all the costs?

With these questions answered, you can estimate your talent budget and begin making calls to booking agents.

While a musical act’s personal manager ultimately decides which performance offers are accepted, the booking agent is the first point of contact for buyers.

The agent screens all performance inquiries, maintains the act’s calendar, negotiates talent fees and expenses, presents formal offers to management, issues contracts once deals are struck, and collects deposits (usually 50% of the talent fee, plus expenses) from the buyers.

It’s important to note that booking agents are paid on commission (typically 10% – 15% of the talent fee), so it’s in their best interest to secure the highest fee possible for each show. In some situations they’ll leverage a buyer’s inexperience, in their favor.

Agents also ask plenty of questions when dealing with buyers they don’t know, learning as much as possible about the event, the venue, the funding, the audience, the producer, the sound system, the staging and the lights. This litany of questions is designed to uncover risk and protect the artist – because dates that “look good on paper,” can easily turn troublesome as the show draws nearer.

Allowing a seasoned concert producer to make these calls on your behalf establishes instant credibility, and minimizes the long list of concerns booking agents and managers face. Another benefit of hiring an experienced producer is cost savings: credibility with the agent means less risk for the artists, less hassle for the road crew, less hand-holding as the show draws near, and often a lower cost to make the date happen.

If the agent is confident the show will run smoothly and the financials are in order, he’ll request the buyer submit a formal written offer for management’s review. It’s wise to include an expiration date on written offers, providing ample time to approach other acts if management is slow to respond or if the process stalls.

While some managers discuss offers with their artists, others decide independently. Eventually, management will instruct the booking agent to either accept or pass on the offer, or negotiate further.

How those negotiations can unfold, along with general pricing guidelines and “hidden costs,” will be addressed in next month’s newsletter. Or as always, you can call us for a personal consultation at 615-866-5003.