Mark writes: 'I plan to advertise my magic using wedding fayres. Can you give me some tips about choosing the right type of fayre?'

There have been a few email this week from magicians wanting advice about hinding the best wedding fayres to attend. So, I recorded this short video answeringsome questionsabout picking the best wedding fayres for magicians:

How many wedding fayres should a magician do?

It really depends on your diary and how much you want to work. Personally I attend around 6-8 wedding fayres over the course of a year. That will usually fill up my dairy for the following year. I don't want to only do weddings, as a great deal of my work comes from corporate entertainment, so that amount of wedding fayres works perfectly for me. I may only get 3 or 4 bookings from each wedding fayre, but each of those gigs will generate more work from referalls. The end result is usually 1 or 2 weddings each week thoughout the year. That consistant work pays my bills and puts bread on the table. The rest of the years diary can be filled with parties and higher paying corporate work.

How much work do you need for the lifestyle you want? How busy you are happy to be often depends on how much you charge, just as much as the quantity of magic gigs you take on. Check out this post about how much to charge and the amount of gigs you need to make a living performing magic.

The Location

There are large hotel wedding fayres and small independed hotels putting on their own shows. Big isn't always better. It's more important to know the expected footfall at the fayre, and the demographic of the visitors.

Large country houses near wealthy areas are a great bet if you charge a larger fee for your magic. Equally, if you are targeting a lower income audience, you may want to attend less prestigious venues. Who are the clients that most often book you? Where would THEY most probably visit to look for suppliers within their budget?

Advertising the Wedding Fayre

It's worth talking to other suppliers that attend the wedding fayre that you are considering. Ask them about footfall, and about how the show is promoted. The organisers can also tell you if the show will be advertised on the local radio and in local papers leading up to the day. Go for wedding fayres that invest in good advertising as that directly correlates to footfall on the day.

Get a copy of the wedding fayre mailing list

Many organisers will have a sign-up mailing list for brides to opt into when they enter the event. Good wedding fayres will allow suppliers to get a copy of this list, and it's worth it's weight in gold. If you can get a copy of the list, make sure you use it to send out a follow up email about your services and an invitation to find out more.