Booking agents...your thoughts.

[Runnerman]

Guys, my band has been approached by a local booking agent that books for a dozen local/regional bands. Up until now we have done all our own promotion and booking. We are staying fairly busy but there is still plenty of room in the calendar.

The basics of the deal are 6 month trial contract renewable after that if both parties agree. He makes 15% off all shows including shows we book ourselves, this would not include shows we already have on the calendar, but anything we book after we sign would be affected. We would keep 100% of merch sales.

My thoughts are that this is pretty low risk and the upside is that we would share some bookings with some of his existing bands which could give us opportunities to improve our fan base. Another thought, although it hasn't been discussed, we should probably ask for a minimum number of bookings in the contract for the 6 mo period.

What say you?

 

[fraublugher]

Let me be the first to say I didn't read the OP and there isn't a toilet big enough to ....[trails off].
15%= good, the going rate

Bad :Try to fix the" in the absence of our services , you will be charged anyway" part.

Maybe you could arrange a smaller % for the gigs they don't book
good luck

 

[Factor88]

Another thought, although it hasn't been discussed, we should probably ask for a minimum number of bookings in the contract for the 6 mo period.

Personally, I would not normally give an agent a peice of the action from venues I had already busted my hump to develop relationships with. The exception would be if the guy could guarantee so much more new work that it was worth the 15% cut on the existing work. And for me, that magic number would be new work needs to be twice the existing work, counted in dollars, not individual gigs. For example, if I could get $2000 in 6 months out of the exisiting gigs I book myself, the agent would need to come up an addtional $4000 in that 6 months. The agent would get paid the 15% for all of the gigs they booked, but to get the 15% for the other gigs, they would need to make that number. Again, do not let it be in number of gigs...it must be in dollars to mean anything.

You can adjust this in many ways but essentially I agree you need some sort of guarantee in the contract. If the agent won't agree to ANY sort of guarantee, no matter how trivial, RUN

 

[john_g]

I havent worked with a booking agent but in my business I have alot of similar relationships with other businesses where they send me work and make a percentage of that. The only thing I dont like is that he gets a cut even if he doesnt book it. It may be a standard clause with these types of agents, I dont know. However, thats like someone that sends me work gets a cut of the profits of the work I get on my own which I would say no way to.

One thing I recommend is to be firm and professional with your dealings and not like a bunch of starry eyed yes men and take whatever they throw at you (not that you are like that!) I would ask for guarantees in writing and just everything looks good, except for this one thing...

 

[xgator4u]

Don't forget a MINIMUM rate of pay per engagement.

Otherwise said "agent" will book you solid with MANY underpaid gigs, each of these will NET him 15% of whatever little pay there is per gig.
YOU on the other hand will get stuck traveling all over the place, and racking up expenses that will in no way affect HIS cut.

SET clear, concise limits on things like minimum $, maximum distance traveled, and number of gigs per week/month.

 

[two fingers]

I have done it with and without lots. Booking agents are great at getting you higher-paying private shows. If the guy is only talking about clubs, just keep booking yourself. Also, get in contact with your regular clubs and book out as far as you can BEFORE you sign the contract. That way you will save on that 15% charge during the time you work with the guy.

Plus, set a MINIMUM NET that you are willing to play for, as well as travel restrictions and a contract rider about power requirements, meals etc.

I am an electrician. You would not BELIEVE the crap I have had to rig at private parties over the years because the power requirements were not met. I ended up having to put a FEE ($200 paid directly to me) in the contract if I had to rig the power.

Also, if you are playing a private party, and they don't want you to eat with the crowd, they need to PROVIDE meals for you so you don't have to run around trying to find food a our away from home.

Also, discuss WEATHER restrictions. Put in the contract what you will/will not do in the event of a storm at an outdoor show. We never set up if a line of storms was on the way. Too much potential to damage thousands of dollars in gear. You can cancel the day before and we only keep the deposit, but on the day of we get paid regardless.

These are just a few things to hammer out with the agent BEFORE you sign a deal. Don't let him pressure you into doing things to make HIM look good. We have had agents tell us to wave certain clauses in our contract to make things easier on them. No way. This is how we operate. Book it or move on to the next act.

Good luck. And again, discuss EVERYTHING among yourselves and then have one or two members of the band meet with the agent to present your concerns. THEN discuss it as a band once more before signing. It can be a net positive if everything is on the table up front.

 

[Nephilymbass]

They are ussually a scam. If you to agree to pay them for shows you book yourself then you have to look at the results. If they are booking as many shows as you are on your own then you can look at it you really giving them 30% for the shows they actually do book. If they only get you one more gig a month and you book say 3 and the how's pay based on attendance. Then it a much better deal for them that it is for you.

I personally would only deal with a booking agency for touring. We've always had more luck getting out of town shows by trading shows with other bands and not dealing withe booking people or venue owners. In our own town we tend to make a lot more money and those shows we don't need a booking person for so for us its not worth it.

 

[JohnMCA72]

Getting paid for shows that you book yourselves is normal. Think about it from the agent's perspective: What's to stop the client (you) from cutting a side deal with a venue, where the venue pays less & you get more, just by cutting out the "middle-man"? Agent does the work of setting up the deal, only to be cut out for repeat business? That's not what they're in business for! It's very similar to the "exclusive right to sell" clause in just about every real estate agency contract.

If there are specific gigs and/or venues that are to be excluded from the agent's commission, by all means identify them in your agency contract!

Everything in a contract can be negotiated, up until the moment it's signed.

 

[xgator4u]

Everything in a contract can be negotiated, up until the moment it's signed.

Correct.
However once it is signed, you are stuck with the wording in the contract.

After the deal is signed, that's it. No "I didn't see THAT in the contract".

 

[Runnerman]

Some very good thoughts and inputs guys, thanks.

I am good friends with a BL in another band this guy reps and he is generally underwhelmed by the quantity of bookings they have gotten. He has had to continue to do his own booking to stay busy. There could be reasons for that....they are a young band with a limited following for example....but it is an other input to the situation and something to be considered.

Another thing I have noticed with some of the bands on his roster, they don't do much of their own promotion at all...I guess they expect him to do it all but even what I see there is limited. I think this is a trap for bands in a way, I mean we have our own promotion machine that works pretty well but I would never think of giving it up and turning all promotion to an agent. I think it has made some of his bands lazy....just an observation.

 

[xgator4u]

Some very good thoughts and inputs guys, thanks.

I am good friends with a BL in another band this guy reps and he is generally underwhelmed by the quantity of bookings they have gotten. He has had to continue to do his own booking to stay busy.

You are welcome.
UNDERWHELMED is not what I consider an endorsement.

Also note that said underwhelmer is still collecting 15% of the income generated by BL.

 

[Downunderwonder]

Construct your contract so he has to bring his own efforts and contacts to bear to collect on it.

 

[Joe Louvar]

Read all the fine print, have an attorney look it over and if it’s good, sign it - just make dang sure it meets all your requirements (band payment, # of hours, how far the band is willing to travel, etc, and etc) and if you continue booking yourselves, make sure you can‘t be double booked. Congratulations and good luck.

Guys, my band has been approached by a local booking agent that books for a dozen local/regional bands. Up until now we have done all our own promotion and booking. We are staying fairly busy but there is still plenty of room in the calendar.

The basics of the deal are 6 month trial contract renewable after that if both parties agree. He makes 15% off all shows including shows we book ourselves, this would not include shows we already have on the calendar, but anything we book after we sign would be affected. We would keep 100% of merch sales.

My thoughts are that this is pretty low risk and the upside is that we would share some bookings with some of his existing bands which could give us opportunities to improve our fan base. Another thought, although it hasn't been discussed, we should probably ask for a minimum number of bookings in the contract for the 6 mo period.

What say you?

 

[invader3k]

Make sure they do some real promotion to earn that 15%, beyond just mailing a handful of posters to the club a week before the show.

 

[nortonrider]

A 15% cut whether they do anything or not........
sounds like a pretty good hustle to me!

If any of you guys would like for me to be your "booking Agent"
for the same terms, just PM me!

 

[Altitude]

Getting paid for shows that you book yourselves is normal. Think about it from the agent's perspective: What's to stop the client (you) from cutting a side deal with a venue, where the venue pays less & you get more, just by cutting out the "middle-man"? Agent does the work of setting up the deal, only to be cut out for repeat business? That's not what they're in business for! It's very similar to the "exclusive right to sell" clause in just about every real estate agency contract.

I agree, that clause is just there to keep you from competing with your own booking agent. He wants to be sure that when he finds you a great gig on a hot Friday night, you haven't sold that date out from under him. If you think this part of the contract is going to cause a lot of conflict, how much do you really need a booking agent?

The arrangement looks fair. It would make sense to establish what an acceptable booking is, though.

 

[Slough Feg Bass]

Yeah, I use an agency that runs out of Chicago. They are generally a good bunch, but I won't give them anything if they don't work for it.
And yes, sometimes the shows are not that great, but we all know the pay before the shows are approved. Generally goes that if we want to play a **** show on a monday night to make expenses, we can. If not, well then we pay for a hotel out of pocket.

If you do book your own shows, and they still want a piece of pie, then put in there that any shows you book on your own, that they will have to still do the contracting and interface with the promoter, and they will still have to advertise for it and put in the same amount of work regardless. Like if they are publishing your dates somewhere, they better include ALL dates. If you get your own show, just tell the promoter, "Here is the number of my booker, call them and discuss the details, but yeah, we can do the gig."

 

[Winterpegbass]

15% is normal.

If you have venues that already book you regularly (every 2-3 months) make sure they they are exempt from your deal.

Why would you want to pay an agent anything for a venue that you have already booked and are asked back on a regular basis for. That is like throwing away money.

The question to ask is "what can you (the agent) do for me (the band)"?

The agent's answer shouldn't be "take 15% for gigs at venues that you already have existing relationships with".

 

[the yeti]

Personally, I would not normally give an agent a peice of the action from venues I had already busted my hump to develop relationships with. The exception would be if the guy could guarantee so much more new work that it was worth the 15% cut on the existing work.

i could also see it being worth it if he can get you a nice raise at existing venues.

 

[DwaynieAD]

if they can't get you into venues that you aren't already playing and if they can't get you more pay than you're already getting then what are they worth? and i certainly wouldnt be giving them money when they do nothing.