Dipping my toe

[Glen Goergen]

that each and every emcee realize one very simple fact!

"if you bargain with life for a penny....Life will pay no more"

I just have to say that while I know absolutely nothing about this industry and it's inner workings it would seem to me that there are certain things that would be constant.

Amount of capital investment in equipment, cd's, software, mics, lights, monitors, mixers, players, amps, speakers etc

Travel and setup time

Show time

teardown and travel time

transportation expenses

trailer expenses

Fuel

Insurance for auto and trailer

Public liability site insurance

clothing/props

song books

Now! if you add all those things up and devide by $300 that should tell you how many shows you need to do in a year to just barely break even, provided of course that you don't increase the amout of songs you have or invest in more equipment.
Still want to work for $250 a night??

When I have all my stuff setup and ready to go, I know I will not do a paying gig for less that $450 a night and that is for a 4 hour show and I don't care if others are charging $150, what they do has no effect on me or my productivity. If I am denied my price I'll book shows at local nursing homes and do those for free before I would permit some barkeep to devalue what I have to offer!

From all the things I've read about payscales and value it seems clear to me that few if any folks have a clear understanding of what it takes to run a business, and/or how to promote their own value to a potential client.

Just my 2 cents worth

Warmest regards
Glen