Thread: entertainment agency

when you work with an entertainment agency, do you ask/know what their % or fee is. i dont mind the entertainment agency getting a nice fee, but i'd kind of like to know how much it is. is it allright to ask about that? (to the agency ofcourse, not the client).

do you generally know what the client will be paying?

Sometimes I know, sometimes I don't. Really only if they tell me - I don't ask because as long as I get my usual fee, I don't care what they charge the client! I don't give a discount on my fee if an agency books me, so they'll need to add to my fee to get their cut. They can charge as much above my fee as they want - more power to them if they can get a lot!

What Daniela said...I think that's the norm...so long as I get a fee that I'm happy with...

Back when I worked for an agency, they sometimes asked me to pick up the check for them from the client, so I knew the full fee and what % was mine. I see no harm in asking them what their cut is.

Good question. I know there's a difference between the agent getting his cut and the entertainer just plain getting hosed....but not all agents will spell that out for you.

For instance, I typically charge $250-300 for a gig, but one particular agent that I've worked with in the past always balks at paying anything above $175, even for gigs that require upwards of an hour of travel time. I can understand the agent raising his prices to ensure that we're both happy, or shaving a reasonable amount off of my rates, but for $175, it's not even worth putting on my makeup. I've had several conversations with him about this, still with no success

Either I'm being an unreasonable diva about rates as usual, or some people just don't seem to get it.

Artemisia, I'd say you're well within your right to at least inquire about the agent's cut. Especially if their fee puts you significantly below the going rate.

Good luck!

Lisa

i'm more worried it puts me far above. i'm getting paid my usual fee, i wouldnt dance for less than that, i'm just curious how much MORE the client is paying. as i'm talking corporate here, and i'm just not sure how much to charge. we're being paid 200E per dancer for 15 min, (what i asked for) so that's fine by me.

I would say you should ABSOLUTELY know how much of a cut they are taking and how much they are charging the client. It could look bad on you if the client realizes how much more they paid over what you usually charge. You should know what kind or people you're doing business with - your reputation is at stake. I'm not sure how the agencies work where you are but I have a contract with the one I work with here. In the contract, i have to charge the same rate that they do and the percentage they take was never concealed.

If your agencies are charging a lot more - means you should be too in my opinion.

When I first started teaching I was asked by someone to teach a class offered to women in a large office building in the office gym. I asked for my usual hourly rate without asking how much they were charging each person for the class. I felt foolish afterwards not knowing how much they were charging for the class - who knows how much they were making and I could have asked for a lot more or prevented them from over charging and making me look bad.

Well those are my two cents worth - Never sell yourself short ;)

i work for an agency from time to time. i always quote a rate based on the gig that they are presenting me with- which of course they have figured out and try to give me as little details as possible. i found out how much THEY charge by having someone call to book a dancer. It was about 20% more than what i charge, i think there was also an additional fee if the customer paid via credit card. it could have gone up from that, i havent called in a while... hmm... perhaps i should