Thread: Advice Needed....

I just posted this on tribe as well, but Saturday is fast approaching, so I wanted to get as much input as possible!

Has anyone had any experience (good or bad) with online talent/ telegram agencies??

One company came up on a search that I did for belly dancers, so I sent them my information & put myself on their 'call list' several months ago. I finally got a call from them about a birthday party gig this Saturday. Great!!! Right?.........It is great, but I'm gettting strange vibes.

First of all, they don't seem concerned at all with ensuring that *I* will actually show up for the gig. No contract, no email confirmation required.....that seems unusual, especially because all they know about me is my website, my prices, and my phone number! Now, I happen to be a responsible person who will show up for a gig based on a verbal agreement, BUT wouldn't they want more assurance?

Second, the payment policy is that I call them as soon as I finish the gig, and they will mail me the check. To me, that's fine I guess, BUT without a contract or any kind of written confirmation, I feel very nervous doing a gig before getting paid.....taking a chance that they will never pay me, pay me the wrong amount, etc......

I am thinking about drawing up my own contract for THEM, and having them fax me a signed copy before I dance on Saturday......but even that won't help me much if they are not legitimate....

Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Your thoughts are right on, don't perform without the contract, or without having been paid at the door when you ARRIVe!

they didn't have you sign a contract? that seems odd. the agency thati've worked for has me under contract- general contract for gigs, payment etc. usually they only pay me if the customer opted to pay with a credit card. otherwise when i arrive i get paid.
also we started using email confirmation after they were so busy they told me the wrong time for one of the gigs i was booked for.

I've worked for a couple of agencies and never used a contract - BUT, I had solid relationships with them, the grams were pretty routine, and we both knew the drill and trusted each other. If some agency called me out of the blue for a booking, I would insist on a contract.

I've worked with an agency like this, there was always a written 'gig sheet' with the info, address, time, GOH name & any special info, rate I would be paid, etc. So I had something in writing -- handwritten by the owner of the agency, actually -- with the details on it. I figured that was probably binding in small claims court if it came to that.

I've pretty much stopped taking gigs from the these 'gram' agencies for this same reason. They always call last min (one called me for this Sat & I made a POINT of saying "THIS Saturday? OMG...I'm so sorry...but I book weeks, sometimes months in advance!) and never want to work with a contract and, yes, they do pay after the job by mail.
They also don't screen clients and the less control I have...the less I want the job. So I've been turning them away at the door.
See if you can FAX them a contract for your own protection...
Gia

One of these stupid places in DC kept my phone number 2 years after a horrible gig with them. For this earlier gig, they wanted a deal because they were hiring 2 dancers and they only wanted "ambience dancing" during this douche networking party.

The agency was so hard to work with. These tools at the party didn't even want dancing as it was too loud for their business deals, and we would get in trouble from the event planning staff for not dancing, there wasn't room to breathe, let alone dance...horrible. It taxed my soul.

Sorry for the rant, but anyway, just a few months ago, they call me on a Friday at 4:00 pm, asking me to dance at 7:00 pm. WTF? I told them that would cost them triple for the uber-short notice (around 6-700?), and that was just for me to THINK about it. DOING it would cost more. The lady on the phone said I was listed as costing $150. ..cr.:

What's more degrading, being contacted by these people or knowing that a measley sum like $150 is written next to your name? Little ****es.

This is good stuff- thank you!

I think between these great replies and those on tribe, I have a better sense of what to do. I'll send them my own written agreement, and if they refuse to agree to it, I'll just run away..... :-)

The agency did supply me with all the party info, including the contact information, and the gig itself seems fine. Plus, it's early evening, I know the location, and I would have my 'bodygaurd.' I am mostly concerned about getting stiffed on the payment.

I am glad to know that it's not just me who thinks it's weird that they didn't write up a contract......at the very least to protect their own reputation (client pays them in advance, dancer never shows, you know?)

This is my first call to deal with any such company, so I really had no idea what to expect. I feel pretty silly for not hammering out these details before I gave them my information.....

Thank you very much for the help!