Karaoke Forums

sheit... RENT them the truck! No brainer! If they don't cough up the dough up front, then NOOOOOOOOO is what you say!

ESPECIALLY in today's world of high gas $$

I agree with you - it sucks on both counts - they expect it cheap/free and you don't get to "join in" so to speak. Same when someone asks you to video their wedding, etc - you end up behind the cam watching people all night.

And yeah, I get the same as a tecchie - "Nik can you fix my PC for me" then they give me a beer and say thanks. Fine - come plumb my house for me, lay my carpet, cook me dinner - all those things that people don't just offer to do.

I sometimes will do it, usually charge - but if I want a way out I make up some BS like "It's not MY equipment, it's COMPANY equipment. If I were to do it and not charge - the company would be lending me the gear, it wouldn't be insured etc"

Thank you everyone for your great responses. I'm feeling better about the whole thing already !

The friends that asked me to do the birthday party brought it up again last night. They seem to understand my position and are actually planning the party on a Sunday so I can come too.

I think it made them realize how often I am unable to just relax and have fun myself because I am usually the entertainment. I don't think they really understood this before.

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I'm big & easy at times but I do take care of my customers and regulars. We have a young college couple (he graduated this spring with a degree in meteorolgy) that have supported us over the last year. He approached me a couple of months ago and said they have a DJ friend who would do their reception for free, but his show would be boring in comparison to ours. Also he doesnt have any karaoke.

I told him our min is $500 but for regular customers I will cut a deal. I'll do it for $300. When I got home tonight here is a reply to email exchange.

Am I nuts? The relationship from a deal like this makes money downstream....

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ok I have a confession to make. I agreed to do a 2hr thing for one of my really good customers tonight. He is a local radio personality and quite well known and recently went through a really bad divorce...I mean baaaaad! He finally managed to purchase a home on his own after all of this mess and wanted to celebrate with an open house for his friends. I agreed to do it for no charge....one I figured he deserved it and second there were some really good contacts there, kind of a who's who in Portland sort of thing. I suggested that a tip jar would be appropriate for the occasion and that they have a supply of my favorite adult beverage on hand.

It was a really great turn out, some of my Thursday regulars were there and I made like $65 in tips. The point is that I normally never do this sort of thing and have not for like 3-4 years. It was well worth the effort and I made a few nice contacts although my wallet does not reflect it.

I'm thinking that it was a good investment in regulars as well as for a good cause.

Just thought I would come clean, as I stated that I always charge my normal fee. This was not the case here.

I'm off to play golf in a few short hours so I need to get some sleep.

Enjoy your Sunday!!

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FlipSide Karaoke
Scott

There's certainly nothing wrong with being nice, in my opinion. I'm a firm believer in karma. I've truly never done anything nice for someone and not had it come back to me down the road. Money isn't everything. The problem, of course, is time and practicality. I have so little time that I haven't fostered a lot of friendships. I have no friends to turn down. I get the deal-seekers from my karaoke gigs big-time, though.

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Flip,

did a similar party for the Mayor one time... we made a lot of changes that we would normally charge for, but since this was a huge publicity event, we didn't.

Everyone had a great time, many of the Trailblazers were there then (this was a few years back, when I was partnered with Dave Albertson of CDEntertainment), and we got a couple extra parties off that one, and they tipped us VERY well...

Again, every scenario is different. Connections and referrals are something you can't buy. I think every host has to consider these two issues when making a decisions about doing something for a relatively low cost or for free. After all, we are in business, and if we didn't take care of the business end of what we do, NOBODY would get to come to our shows.

k

I have a 23 year old son, who is an awesome musician/singer, and surprisingly, even at his age he say's the same thing. Seldom does he go to a party, and not be asked to perform at some point during the night, but sometimes he is just not into it. Meaning that he would rather just mingle, dance, drink a few, and party like everyone else, instead of being the entertainment. It was hard for me to imagine that at first, but it is true. Also since music is his sole livlihood, the "freebies" can be too much, too often if not kept in check.

well I do do freebies...ok lets say I did do freebies. I know I have mentioned the launch of the new ford falcon...well that one was a freebie.
I do limited numbers of freebies per year for friends and for charity, cos its a darned good form of advertising and I have always rated myself to get a paid gig from a free one.
The launch, hugely sucessful...everyone raved about the fantastic visual display and what have you.
Thing is, when the bloody dealer came on stage to do his talky bit, he thanked everyone else but me HOw can I get a gig from a gig when no-one knows its my gig??
His brother asked him later that night...I thought Vicki did tonight for you? He said yeah she did, didnt she do great?
His brother said, then why didnt you thank her?
The dealer has been falling all over himself to make it up to me but the deed is done...the Big Wigs from Ford have gone away not knowing who's idea it was or who brought it together.
I have to be honest and say I did get a gig from the gig (a 60th bday), and will probably get another (the dealer's staff function at the end of the year) but it doesnt alter the fact that I was just 5 days out of hospital after the operation and was supposed to be resting yet I put everything into the show for no acknowledgement.

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"Be who you are and say what you feel... Because those that matter... Don't mind...And those that mind... Don't matter."

That has happened to me a few times - really, really annoying. Sometimes just a wee thanks for running the board (turning mics off and on, up and down, hitting music, etc.) would be nice - this happens particularly when you offer to do any sort of benefit - hubby's band played at a benefit....played their hearts out as usual....No mention at all of the band during the entire evening. The guy called again to ask if they would do another benefit ... responses? "Nope, no freebies anymore." Wonder if he got it? Probably not...

Sorry that you didn't get your deserved accolades, but happy that you did manage to procure a few gigs out of it...and those will probably multiple too.

k

thanks Karen...yeah the gigs (singing) will flow in regardless...but the actual production was done as part of my day job. It was an example of what I can achieve if a client wants a function outside the "box"
I do all sorts of stuff...murder mysteries, theme nights, etc
But only if they ask for it and my services on behalf of the hotel are charged out accordingly as part of the hotel experience

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"Be who you are and say what you feel... Because those that matter... Don't mind...And those that mind... Don't matter."

sure sorry to hear about the snubbin'... Man, if that had happened to me, I probably would have not reacted propertly! ESPECIALLY for a freebie!

Vicki I totally understand what that feels like. I did a benefit for free and everyone was thanked but me. The funny thing is the announcement was made on my system with me standing right behind him at the board ! I worked from noon until 9pm making all their announcements, doing their raffles and drawings, and karaoke. I kind of saved the day because the bands outside had no people. It was pouring rain all day and even with the nice big tents outside no one wanted to be out there.

I felt good about doing a good deed though - it was a benefit, I wasn't expecting to get jobs out of it, so no great loss.

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[updown]~*~ MONKEY BUSINESS KARAOKE~*~ [/shadow][/updown][/glow]

Kind of makes a person feel less inclined to do benefits. I now carry an appropriate 'ad sheet' that lists who I/we are, where we work, what services we provide, and that they can thank us for the event by coming up and introducing themselves if they appreciate what we've done that day. Sad that organizers think so little of us in these situations - I have mentioned it after the fact and they're usually embarrassed, but it's a case of if things are going right, the sound is done right, etc., etc., it's almost as if that is one thing they CAN forget about.

k

http://www.ford.com.au/servlet/ContentS ... &c=DFYPage
For those who are wondering what a Falcon is. The US hasn't had this in their line up of Fords since the early 70s. Vicky, sorry you didn't get the "props".

Sorry to hijack this thread Babs, but I have a soft spot in my heart for the Foreign (Australian) version of the Ford Falcon, as do many other 30 and 40 something males I'm guessing, although some may not know specifically why. The Aussie Ford Falcon has one big claim to fame. Anybody care to guess?

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]

Would that be being the vehicle of Mad Max? The Last of the Interceptor V8s! As far as freebies, I as well got no thanks when I did a well known event that occurs every June. I mean, when you stand at your equipment for well over ten hours and through the middle of the night outside, a little thank you would have been nice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heTikpkV ... re=related

could be

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]

No worries - I think we've talked out the situation any way. Awww, men and their cars.

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[shadow=pink][glow=deepskyblue]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[updown]~*~ MONKEY BUSINESS KARAOKE~*~ [/shadow][/updown][/glow]