How to Effectively Book Entertainers for Your Business Party

Are you throwing your first business party? Learn how to book awesome entertainers and make sure to get what you pay for. Use this comprehensive guide.

A business party is an amazing opportunity to build your brand, celebrate success, or expand your presence.

By avoiding the stuffy exterior of business meetings or conferences a party turns advertising into a fun event. This doesn’t mean that stops being work, especially if you’re the one doing the planning.

As wonderful as business parties can be, they’re also filled with potential pitfalls. You’re in charge of how your company will be viewed by a wide number of people, here’s how to make sure you’re remembered for all the right reasons.

Getting Your Business Party Ready

Types of Entertainers

The most important part of hiring is deciding what type of show you want to have. With the right entertainment, your business party and your brand can be remembered with excitement for years. The same goes if everything goes wrong.

You will need to match the entertainer to fit not only your brand but those who will be in attendance. Nothing is worse than a child hearing something they aren’t supposed to.

Stage shows are traditional and have the ability to reach a large number of people fast. There’s a variety to choose from such as:

• Musicians
• Comics
• Keynote Speakers
• Dancers
• Magicians

Entertainment ideas for corporate events can even become interactive. Your business party can quickly become a networking tool with a personalized experience for your potential clients.

Don’t be afraid to book an entertainer who will move about, it makes an impact and leaves others open for chatting. They can even become an asset at your next trade show.

Never be afraid to be unique! Your business party will give your clients and staff something to talk about in the days to come. It’s important to show off your personality and flair.

Finding Quality

You’ve figured out your angle? Good, but you’re not done yet.

Just as important as finding out what kind of entertainment you want is the specifics of how they work.

A business party is a risk, one with amazing benefits, but it must be handled carefully. You want to find someone who is experienced and professional, preferably with corporate events under their belt.

 

In the case of comics and keynote speakers, this is particularly important. Your entertainment should either have a set that’s fitted to a corporate environment or can adjust to fit.

Finally, you want someone who will work with you to promote your brand. You shouldn’t be afraid to make special requests, such as having a hard-working employee mentioned or featuring a new product.

Make sure your additions don’t seem forced, you’re looking for subtle promotion.

Build a Plan

A plan isn’t just for the benefit of your business party, but your talent as well.

Do you want the act to attend your entire event? Will it be a single show? Should they mingle with the guests?

The more you request the more you’ll be paying. You have to be careful not to get overexcited.

After all, you won’t just be paying the performance fee.

Unless you have a local performer in mind, you will essentially be hosting the talent for the duration of your event. You need to remember the cost of their travel, hotel room, food, drink, and travel to and from your party

Depending on who you book you may be paying these costs for more than one person.

This may make local talent seem like the best choice, but that isn’t without additional costs. Your entertainer will still require equipment such as props, sound, and lights which is your responsibility.

It is possible to cut down on these charges to your business party.

If you book a venue that comes with equipment provided it saves on rental costs. You can also try to time your event so that it coincides with any tour your entertainment might be on. If they’re already in your area you can decrease the price further.

Making Contact

Now that you’ve found a skilled entertainer who fits your business party perfectly, it’s time to secure them.

You’ll rarely be reaching out to your entertainment personally, instead, you’ll look for their agent. This is especially true if they’re a celebrity.

Their agent is responsible for finding work for the entertainment and negotiating the contract on their behalf. Remember, you aren’t the only request the talent is receiving, the agent can easily deny you. Your offer might not appeal to them, they could be booked, or they just don’t like the cut of your jib.

It happens.

You must contact the agent of your choice early, months in advance, to make sure you’ll be considered.

To up your chances of being accepted you want to be to the point in your request and make sure you follow up. This is also why having a plan is so important. If you approach the agent with a clear description of your needs the process is much simpler.

This doesn’t mean you won’t have to negotiate.

You don’t have to take the first booking fee you’re presented with. If you’re confident in your bargaining ability you can save a lot on your costs.

It’s a careful balance. You must know when to push and when to back away, otherwise, you risk getting a reputation that will keep your entertainer, and others, from wanting to work with you.

There’s always the chance it still won’t work out and that’s fine! You should always have a backup in mind. Nothing is guaranteed in the entertainment industry and you need to be prepared to adjust if your business party will be a success.

Enjoy the Event

Follow these guidelines and you’ll have all the tools you need to create a fantastic and memorable business party for your guests to enjoy. More importantly, your brand will be passed by word of mouth along with their experiences generating plenty of attention!

And, if you’re looking for more fantastic business tips to help your company shine, don’t forget to check out our blog.