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cougar New user 30 Posts |
I have a question about ethics. Perhaps this is common practice so forgive me if I am off base. Is it ok to list yourself with an agency as being a local entertainer to a particular area when you truly are not? An example of this would be an enterainer lists himself or herself as being a local entertainer in Des Moines Iowa on a site like Gigmasters when he/she is in fact from Minnesota. Do a lot of entertainers do this? I understand stating that you are available in that area, but it seems wrong to state you are local to that area if you are not.
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danielellis_5 Loyal user Sheffield 211 Posts |
I don't see any problem with that as long as you don't then cahrge the client for travel.But that's just my opinion.
Dan
Best quote from a spectator"I know how he did that,it was sleight of hand"(spectator then sits back looking pleased with himself)
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cougar New user 30 Posts |
Thanks Dan. I am surprised I have not gotten more responses. I am certainly open to any and all opinions.
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danielellis_5 Loyal user Sheffield 211 Posts |
No problem.I thought this topic might spark off some great disscussions.
Dan
Best quote from a spectator"I know how he did that,it was sleight of hand"(spectator then sits back looking pleased with himself)
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Blair Marshall Inner circle Montreal, Canada 3660 Posts |
Not sure if you say you are willing to travel, whether you come up as a "local" performer in the search.
Or...are you saying that when you view their profile on Gigmasters that they say they are local. Or do they just come up whenyou google "your area" "magician"? Blair
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tacrowl Inner circle Maryland 1633 Posts |
On Gigmasters, some acts do that so they will appear higher in searches. It costs them to create the extra profiles for each "area". It must work for them or they wouldn't do it. As for the travel expenses - they are either rolled into the fee or quoted separately. A client can look at the fee/expenses and decide if the act is in their budget. I'm not certain I'd call it unethical.
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Gerry Walkowski Inner circle 1450 Posts |
I don't know if I would call it unethical but it does have an element of sleeze about it.
I will say this, though. I think the potential client will quickly find out they're not local as soon as they get a price quote. |
tacrowl Inner circle Maryland 1633 Posts |
This discussion hinges around the "local" aspect. Everyone is assuming the client "wants" a local act. That isn't always the case. They want the best act they can get, that fits their budget.
Since Gigmasters is the only example that Cougar listed, lets look at that. Gigmasters allows a client to search for performers that work in their area. (That doesn't mean they are local.) Because 10 requests for bids are usually submitted, an act that has a profile in a selected area has a better chance of getting one. Based on the ranking and coverage areas, a national act that performs in the client's area may not come up high enough in the search to get a request. Without the bid request, the act doesn't have a chance to get the date. By creating "area" profiles, the performer is simply expanding the coverage area of their advertising. (And they are paying for it!) The way it must be done is more a fault of the gigmasters system. Think of it as an act that advertises nationally versus an act that only wants to work in his or her hometown. Does that mean the national act won't advertise there? No. If a client called an act and said "Where in XXX do you live?" and the act lied about it - THEN it would be an ethical situation. |
Brian Lehr Inner circle Edmonton, Canada 1605 Posts |
Just to take this discussion is a slightly different direction ...
Last month I was in Florida on vacation. While spending a couple of days in Ft. Lauderdale, I decided to visit a local magic shop or two. I checked the yellow pages, and found what looked like a nice magic shop listed. So I got all excited, got my gps ready, and decided to call them to see if they were open. One of the first questions the guy asked was where I was calling from. When I mentioned Ft. Lauderdale, he said, "Oh, we are located in [forget name of state]." I said if you're located in a different state, why are you advertising yourself as being in Ft. Lauderdale? He said they used to have a shop there, but moved "many years" ago, and simply decided to keep the yellow page ad with the 800 number. Then he tried to convince me to go to their website and order items from there, since I couldn't make it to his shop. No thanks. I ended up finding another shop in Lauderdale, and spent several hundred dollars there. I just found it very strange that this shop in another state was advertising his business as a local Ft. Lauderdale business. Brian |
Dan Paulus Veteran user Utah is isolated from the real world by 343 Posts |
I don't see it as any different than paying for a yellow page ad in a different city.
If the prospect is willing to pay your price they don't care where you come from. If you prefer you can build the travel cost into your fee. You just happen to be more expensive than others in the same listing... perhaps you are better!
There is no great genius without a mixture of madness. - Aristotle
Aristotle www.danscomedymagic.com |
Gerry Walkowski Inner circle 1450 Posts |
For what it's worth, years ago I remember the florist industry being quite upset by this same thing. The big guys were running ads in other states saying something like, BOSTON FLORIST SHOP when in fact they were operating a national chain out of texas. Of course, this is just an example but hopefully you can follow this.
Back then, the Mom & Pop dealers were crying foul. I see this as sort of the same thing. |
cougar New user 30 Posts |
Quote:
On 2008-11-25 17:20, Blair Marshall wrote: Thank you all for your thoughts. I was referring to a magician or act listing himself or herself as being local to a particular city in a state that they do not live in. It makes sense that if someone is willing to travel that it may make it ok to do so to expand the search coverage on a site like Gigmasters. It is true that not everyone may be concerned about having a local entertainer perform at their function. I would only be concerned that if the person hiring the magician never asks about the entertainer’s location, it may not be disclosed. While that isn't an out right lie, it would be a lie by omission. I am glad I asked the question as it has given me more insight about the subject in general. It seems a bit less unethical to me now that I understand it a little better. |
tacrowl Inner circle Maryland 1633 Posts |
Quote:
On 2008-11-30 15:47, cougar wrote: Cougar, I'd think the location of the performer would be disclosed when the contracting is handled. I highly doubt an act coming from another area would chance doing so on a verbal agreement. At least, I wouldn't. Tom |
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