How do you NH PLAYERS approach new places to play?

Just thought it would be interesting to hear about different approaches in obtaining new NH clients or ones you haven't heard from in a while......plus doing followups to get paid after you perform to get paid after a month or so, vouchers , etc,....

Thanx

Judging by all the responses no one wants to reveal their secrets Hmmmmm?

No secrets Donny, see this thread from a while back.

http://www.synthzone.com/forum/ubbthread..._pro#Post331314

Here is a few ideas...

I don't think I've ever seen any of the karaoke type entertainers (singing to tracks) who could really sing. And it just seems SO lame to me.

I agree 100%. But I honestly believe “most people” don’t care, can’t tell the difference, and probably would prefer a karaoke entertainer over a keyboardist/vocalist. Look at the way these karaoke entertainers can work the room. That’s a little harder to do when you’re behind a keyboard.


Sorry Donny for being off topic- I do have some comments regarding NH. More to come…

I can only speak to what's going on in SW Ohio. In the last 2-3 years, several karaoke style singers have been basically dropped because the format isn't very popular. The comments all seem to involve the musical ability of the performers. Some were really good singers, but there's a lot of pretty good singers around here...so, in the mind of many AD's, why pay someone to sing over backing tracks when you hire someone different who actually plays an instrument AND sings wells. This population is used to seeing people actually play instruments...

I'm on basically a 100% referral basis. I can't remember the last time I cold called someone or just dropped in like in the old days when I was getting started. Other than my website and business cards, I don't advertise, do mailings or give any promo items away.

The ones I haven't heard from in a while have been replaced by new ones.

As far as getting paid, I find out up front what the facility's payment policy is and record that on the clients page in my accounting program. I don't do anything until we're a week to ten days beyond what they have told me to expect. At that point, I'll contact the AD, alert them to the situation and ask them to look into it.

There have been a fair number of Karaoke singers trying to make a living in the NH circuit here as well. Nealy all of them are doing other things. Those of us that play an instrument, sing and entertain the clients and residents of the various facilities are still working. And, most of us can barely handle the volume of work that keeps coming in. Over the past four months I know I've turned down at least 50 jobs because I just don't have any more room in the schedule.

As for the pay, keep in mind that the vast majority of these facilities are owned and operated by huge corporations, companies that more often than not are thousands of miles away. I bill each and every one of the facilities where I perform, which currently numbers 32. Pay checks average about 4 to 6 weeks before showing up in my mailbox. Not unlike any other business, and something that you build into your weekly/monthly budget.

At this stage of life I no longer am looking for work--it finds me. But, when I was actively seeking more locations to perform I found direct mail followed by telephone calls and visits to activity directors was extremely effective. If I were 30 years younger, knowing what I know today, and having today's technology, I could easily perform 800 to 1,000 jobs a year. I still have a reasonably good voice, but I feel my chops slowly slipping away. It upsets me a lot when I hit a bad note or slide a bit on my timing, but it's inevitable and comes with age.

Ironically, when I had my daughter with me a month ago, and she was singing several songs with me as a duet, I had ADs come up to me and offer more money if I would bring her with me in the future. Unfortunately, it's not what she wants to do, but thankfully, she was there to help me out when I needed her. In the next few weeks we hope to record a duet CD, which I will post on some of the forums. She has an incredible voice and she put a lot of emotion into each song.

Cheers,

Gary

"You've learned well Grasshopper"

Around here AD's have "resident meetings" to discuss what entertainers "they like" which always weeds out the weak acts, boring, and many of the instrumentalists who just try to walk in & play the facilities Piano, don't sing, and want to get full pay...most of these guys usually only get $50.00 to just be a kind of background music act vs a good player/singer who gets $150.00 for a 1hr show.. AD's are hip to these "walk in walk out" acts trying to get over on them.....bottom line people if your good & you really entertain the audience leaving them in AWE every time you'll get paid well and KEEP working again and again,.....if not bye Bye....it's like eating at a good restaurant, Food is great, you go back to eat over & over again, and tell all your friends to go there also, food stinks it's over and never return! Performing is a people business always was and always will be. I approach a NH with the same 110%, as I would all my big 4hr gigs I work ALL holidays also,....give em all you got!

Spot on...

No gig to BIG, no gig too small to give 110% !!!

BTW ... If you ARE going to do 'karaoke', I think the LEAST you can do is use a wireless mic set up and 'work the room' ...

Gary ... as the saying goes "Any 10 year old can do it, with 40 years experience!!!" ...

And I hope you get that CD finished before you hit the water on that sailboat of yours!!! ... I can't wait to hear it ...

Yessir. That's the way it works round here, too.

A while back there was a karaoke act in Dayton that tried to "lypsync" one of their performances without the knowledge of the client. They were caught and it hurt their rep pretty badly...

That girl in the yellow seemed pretty decent....the others, not so much...

... Had to LOVE the guy in the wig and 'Elvis' suit ...

Call them up and say " Do you know who I am? " A friend told me this approach always seems to work.

Scary part Elvis is working in nh's