3 Things to Consider When Working With a Venue and Entertainment Acts
Want to ensure your working relationships with your entertainment vendors goes off without a hitch at your next event? Consider these three factors before engaging with a variety or musical act for your next event or wedding:
Budget + Time + Fees
Medium.com says “One of the most common errors event planners make is in assuming that the performance fee for the entertainer is all they’ll have to spend on entertainment. In reality, the entertainer’s fee is just one part of the overall cost of entertainment, and if you don’t plan accordingly, you might find yourself going over-budget in a heartbeat.”
It is important to thoroughly read your booking contracts and ask your Entertainment Exchange Booking Agent as many questions as you can. When you’re given the budget for booking the variety act or musical act, ask about overtime fees, vendor meals (you should definitely feed your vendors) and ask about any additional options for add-ons (like cocktail hour music or A/V set up for the ceremony or special presentations). These are all items that can add up in the long run and when working with your client, it is best to address these fees earlier than later.
Parking & Accessibility
Onsite parking to the venue is an important when booking an entertainment act. If possible, offer free parking spaces to entertainment acts. If there is a limited amount of parking spaces but you’ve booked a 10-piece band, offer 2-3 spaces of free parking and encourage the band to carpool.
Accessibility to the venue is a major consideration especially when a vendor has multiple pieces of equipment or needs additional hours to set up. Without proper planning this can affect your event schedule and perhaps be a detriment to the flow of your event. Provide a map and allot enough time in the overall timeline for your entertainment vendor to set up and do a full soundcheck.
Managing Expectations
Your clients likely have a vision in their minds for the flow of their ceremony and how entertainment acts are incorporated into that vision. Work with your booking agent to understand different factors like learning special songs, making special announcements or even changing song lists. Learning the bandwidth of your vendor early and relaying that information to your clients helps everyone to be on on accord and manages everyone’s expectations which makes for a smooth and overall amazing event.