I saw this video online and while it is aimed at photographers it can easily apply to any event service: caterer, live band, musician, florist, table decorator and of course, magician, silhouette cutter, caricaturist or any entertainer.

It very nicely sums up the situation when it comes to being asked to work for free. The key word is ‘work’ because that is what it is for me. Being a magician is a job and at every private party or corporate event that I work, I give 100% (If I were on a talent show or doing sport it it would be 110%).

While I do not work for free, here is what I do for different events:

Charity Event – If you would like to book me to entertain guests at a charity event, I will charge a slightly reduced fee. What I also do is raise money at the event. In my contract I will state the minimum amount that I will raise. If I do not make it up in donations, I will write a cheque to the charity for the balance. In this way, the charity gets top quality entertainment at a vastly reduced rate and I get a sensible fee at which I am happy to work. It’s a win/win situation.

No budget but lots more work – Sometimes I am told by a potential client they have no budget for entertainment at their event but their guests have lots of parties and I can give my card out to them.

It is strange how there is a budget for catering, decor, music and venue but not the entertainment. Also, I give out my card at events for which I do receive my fee. My priority though is not self-promotion at events in order to get paid work but to provide an amazing atmosphere and present thrilling magic to the guests. That is what clients pay me to do. If I do that for free, it undermines those who receive the same experience but have paid my fee.

If I am asked to do an event for free because the guests are “wealthy and have lots of parties”, here is what I do. I tell the client what my fee is for their event. I will write into my contract that if I get another 10 events from the guests at their party, I will return their fee as commission on those 10 other events.

My time, effort, rehearsals, education, purchases, knowledge, performance skills and impact on the guests have a value.

That value is not zero.