Each potential client who contacts you is planning a special event. From corporate parties to anniversaries, these are days that will be remembered by many. Naturally, they want this event to be perfect but they’re also working within a budget. As you are communicating with clients, put yourself in their shoes and use some practical writing tricks to get booked more often!
Prepare yourself for bargaining.
Potential clients, upon finding out your price, may try to bargain with you. It’s nothing personal! Events can get expensive quickly and potential clients would simply like to pay a little less. You should expect to discuss pricing and be prepared to know your limits and back up your worth.
Many planners first come to GigSalad because they don’t already have the connections for the services they need. Be aware that because of this, they may not have any idea how much your service/talent typically costs to book. Take this as an opportunity to educate and be ready to convince them that you’re worth your rate!
Share your glowing past reviews, display great media, and communicate clearly to set potential clients at ease. Prove to them that they will be guaranteed a flawless performance. By offering a wonderful experience prior to booking, you’re showing that a wonderful performance is sure to follow.
Of course, you shouldn’t lower your price beyond your comfort level. Adjusting your price slightly to suit a potential client could help you seal the deal for the gig as well as a great review and future referrals. But ultimately, you decide when it’s worth it.
Make a great first impression.
Spelling matters. Poorly written responses can make you seem unprofessional. Creating a well-written response to a request displays your attention to detail and can help you appear more reliable overall.
If you’re not the best speller, don’t worry! Utilize spellchecking software to catch your mistakes. Grammarly is a web app that can be downloaded for free and used within Google Chrome. The app checks for spelling as well as grammar errors and offers you corrections as you write.
Take your time writing your response. Take advantage of GigSalad’s saved messages and quote settings feature to pre-write responses to ensure that each one is error-free. You’ll need to tweak each response for clients, but this will allow you to save the basic structure of your most common responses.
Show kindness.
“If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all” is a saying we’re all familiar with. We encourage you to go one step further: “If you can say something nice, say it!” Being pro-active about displaying kindness within your quote and messages can go a long way in landing the gig.
Here are a few practical tips for your messages on GigSalad:
- Express gratitude for the initial contact.
- Let them know that their event sounds wonderful & you’d be thrilled to be a part of it.
- Be thorough. Explain the process and your services well.
- Let them know you’re willing to answer any questions. Respond timely and kindly when they do.
Conveying kindness in your writing comes easier to some than others. To appear friendly without inflection or flashing a smile can be difficult at times. Here are a few tips for your written responses:
- Don’t end short statements with a period. Instead, use exclamation points to display inflection and enthusiasm!
- Use emojis when appropriate. You’ll want to sound professional and reliable, but you’re also providing a fun service! Be relatable and conversational by using the occasional smiley face. :)
- Keep responses concise and clear. Responding with too much information can be overwhelming. It’s better to keep it simple and let the client ask questions if they have them.
Be understanding.
For many of your clients, this is a once-in-a-lifetime event. A 90th birthday, a Quinceanera, a wedding day, or a 20th anniversary. These are important moments! Try to imagine what their concerns may be and keep them at bay.
- “Will the performer be on time?”
- “I hope everyone at the event will have fun.”
- “I’m not sure about booking someone I’ve never met.”
- “Does the performer have experience with this kind of event?”
When a question does come up, let them know you understand their concerns, and reassure them that they’ve hired a professional. Answer it thoroughly and politely. No matter how silly you think the question is, remember that this is a personal day and event for them. They want everything to be perfect.
Written communication can certainly leave room for misunderstandings. However, employing great communication practices can lower risks and make you look great. By being empathetic, kind, and helpful, you can demonstrate to potential clients that you’re the performer they need!
Attract more clients & communicate easily with a GigSalad PromoKit!
Communication is everything! Whether it’s with friends, professionally, written or verbal – being polite is definitely a road to success and well, we all need a bit more kindness in our lives :)
Forget “Expect Bargaining”! Bad advice!!
If you are providing a quality specialized service there are no negations, your service isn’t a used car. Your fees are what they are.
Too many trying to get into the entertainment business will play in the How low will you go? NO!
If you are a talented performer the client is fortunate to have you and you provide a great service.
Conversely after you’ve committed to performing NEVER drop a client or pass them off to another act so you can perform for a higher paying client.
A client is hiring YOU, YOUR ACT. Not a interchangeable commodity
I agree that high-quality entertainment is worth every penny, and I personally make a point to educate people about that whenever I can. But for those who have never booked a performer, they oftentimes don’t know what to expect and some will try to negotiate to keep within their budget. That doesn’t mean you have to lower your fees. That just means they’re unaware of all the work, traveling, time, cost, and investment that goes into each gig. You can either talk with them to help them understand or simply decline and move on to the next gig. It’s up to you. We just recommend preparing for those conversations.