I got a one-line email the other day asking “what I charge for school shows.” The writer didn't even know where I was (why these people don't check first I don't know). I replied that my price depended on a number of factors, including distance, and I included my phone number. They sent another one-line email with their location.

I do not care much for these games of “20 questions” because I find they are mainly price shopping. They usually don't give their phone number so I have no opportunity to truly “sell” them on what I have to offer. It’s time-consuming and I find that they usually do not book me anyway.

How do you handle these email inquiries? Do you find them to even be worth the effort?

When I get a question like that, with no info, I usually ask if will be in North America? That usually stumps them, and that is the last I hear from them. I, too, am too busy to be bothered by an e-mail with only "what's your price? as the only request, no name, tel. no. etc.

I have not felt them worth following up.

B

Hi Timothy -

I was frustrated with those sorts of inquiries, too.

Then I had my web designer add a couple of "phone" fields (home and work), as well as a "city" field and a "type of event" field, to my website submit form, and it solved many problems. This is in addition to the "name"/"email" field, and the "additional comments" field.

The most important fields have to be filled out, or the submission doesn't work.

That's one solution.

- Donald

I have got a few inquiries like this. My guess is its other magicians that have searched your page and want to know what YOU charge so that they can compare or undersell.

Just sometimes I get that thought that it might be them

Tim,
I don't publish my email address. The mailings, directories, cards etc. will have my phone number - snail mail address and web address but no email. After they visit my site - all they will find is snail mail address and phone number. It cuts out the courious and if someone is serious they WILL call.

If anyone ask I tell them that I am out of town for days at a time and I don't check emails on the road and it may take days/weeks before I respond BUT phone messages are check through out the day. It is really the easiest for me and the easiest for them. By speaking with them< I can give them answers to questions they did not know that they even had.

Best Regards,
Signor Blitz
(I am located in Lake County also - it does really work)

Arr yes. I too have had e mails like this and I don't really mind that much but the thing which really gets me is when you clearly ask them what information you would like from them and then they send you one back with just one bit of information as if that's all I asked them for. Then all this faff makes booking a gig ten times longer than it should do!!

Thanks for this thread. Its really let me vent a little:-)

Tom.

Vague e-mail question: "Can you tell me how much you charge for a 45 minute show?"


My vague reply: "Up to $25,000.00"

True it might be other entertainers shopping you, but I think many times, people are sitting at their computer and as they ask the question, they assume you are local and honestly forget that the web is world wide.



Lyndel

I just have an set of questions stored in a draft file. When I get an inquiry like this I just cut and paste my questions to them. You would be surprised how many actually turn into legit leads.

Edd

I used to get them, but now my website says clearly says on each page I am located in BC.

If I don't have enough info, I just send back an email asking for more info and that I can't supply a price without more info.

I would also add that any email enquiry is a potential show and I never find that annoying

This is a simple question to answer
How many magic web sites don't even tell you what state the magician lives in? At least if your web site told people where you lived you would have a reason to complain.
My meta tags are "magician Philadelphia" and "juggler Philadelphia", so the people who contact me are usually my neighbors.

My answer to this kind of inquiry is $XXX if you live within 100 miles of Collegeville, Pa.

Of course if the question is "what is your cheapest price" I ask them for more details before I can give them an answer, and as stated above I usually never hear from those characters again.

Magicalartist
Is this a price question or a geography question you are asking?

But what if they just type into the search engine "magician pennsylvania" or "juggler pennsylvania"? Then your site might come up on page 50. Or the searcher might find you and not realize that they are 150 miles from you.

I have gotten inquiries from people for a birthday party or wedding who were 200 miles away from me. The only thing I can think of is they failed to properly parse their search and then never bothered to check my location. It clearly states on my home page what areas I serve. When I point out the distance, I never hear back from them.

At my last workplace, a lady wanted us to reproduce a poster for her of the shipwrecks of Lake Michigan. Besides being a copyright violation, I had to point out to her that a reproduction would be vastly inferior to the original. She complained that she looked on the Internet and could find it nowhere. I looked and found a vendor for it within five minutes. The only thing I can think of is that she failed to put the title in quotes and was overwhelmed with millions of hits, because any site that contained a single word of the title would then match her search.

Sometimes I think the general public is just barely computer literate, if even that.

The problem I am having is that many of these email enquirers are failing to narrow down their search appropriately, and then not bothering to actually read my site when they find it.

Stuff will happen
If they are looking for cheap entertainment I always answer the inquiry with a question to put the ball in their court.

If they ask a spacific question, but are vague about geographa I give them my best answer with the ending "if you live within 100 miles of Collegeville, Pa." If they live a longer distance than 100 miles my next answer to them is my original price plus travel.

There will always be challenges, but as Neale said I treat every inquiry like a potential customer.

Because there are so many referances to me out there (word of mouth, business cards, web site, agancies, Partypop) that send people to me quite often they know a lot about me before they send the email, and are only interested in my price and availibility.

There is no one answer that fits all situations but when I've got a big one I don't let them go until they say "no thank you". That is why I stay home every morning, because the AM is when the action happens.

I routinely get Birthday party requests 300km or more away. These are often legit and are willing to pay the travel. For those want to look at a map. I'm in Windsor, Ontario and perform regularly in Waterloo and Hamilton for birthdays.

Bill
You are right if you are self employed you have to be flexable. This entertainment thing sure beats a day job any day.

Not challenging you, but why do you get birthday requests from so far away? Are there no performers closer by, is your reputation so good that they must have you and no one else, or have they just not bothered to find a nearer performer?

These are often specific requests for me. I do certain things that no other performer does (at least to my knowledge).

Others stumble upon me and are often sold by the same above reason.

Even stranger that that I have gotten booked by people who did not know who to ask, so they did a world wide search, came up with my name and live a mile away from them.

I have to add to this, that I do some internet marketing in the area (kijiji and the like).