Let me first and foremost say that without a good show and pleasant performing character as well as an efficient business sense you will battle to get the bookings you desire but as with all things if you stay focused on trying to give the best show you can and really get into character … whether it be a magician or clown, the more the children can relate, the better you will do. I feel the best kid’s performers are all grown up kids at heart and instill in the audience a childlike wonder. I feel that these performers manage to get the children as well as the adults to suspend their reality for the duration of the performance and take the audience on a journey of wonder and happiness as both you as the performer and the audience experience surprise after surprise together. There is nothing better than for a kid to see the performer in trouble or in a predicament. All these elements will be discussed more in the show content section.

The main area of advertising that I have used before the internet was the local newspaper. These publications are produced by an independent company and are localized in their news content. I placed a regular advert in the classifieds under children’s entertainment. I would also contact the editor and try and get to see him or her and get them to print a story about my performance. I would sometimes meet the local reporter at a function and would get news coverage for the event. I have learnt it doesn’t harm to ask if they could put your contact details next to your picture.

The actual advert is not simply a mixture of odd words but a carefully thought out plan as it will be one of your major expenses for the month so you want it to work for you.

I always tried to make sure my name was at the top of the list or near the top as possible. I believe people will not call more than three other performers and if you have your telephone selling down to a tee you will be the only performer the client phones. It stands to reason then that you want them to call you first!! Remember you are not only competing with fellow entertainers but with other kid’s attractions such as jumping castles, pony rides and other crazy attractions.

You have to remember that your advert might not generate much the very first day it comes out. It is very useful to make a feed back logbook so you can see how many calls you get from the adverts, to do this simply ask at the end of the conversation where they got your number. Here is something to remember, you might do hundreds of shows and forget peoples names but you are a celebrity in their mind and they know you!! So when Mrs. So and So says she got your number from her friend Gladys, don’t reply, “who??” At least pretend you remember them!!  You miss a very big chance of bonding with the total stranger over the phone. Any telesales person will tell you the same.

I have found certain times of the year are subject to less bookings and I would adjust my booking of advertising space accordingly. There is definitely a lesser demand during the holidays as most moms plan the parties during school terms so as to have access to the children’s friends. The moms will most often use the class list to promote the party. As you get more busy you will find you stop placing adverts from around November as most big companies have booked their Christmas parties and the birthday party market has dried up over December.

 It is a good idea to block out the two last Saturdays of November as they are prime Christmas company functions (certainly in South Africa )

The wording should have a catchy line to hook them and a basic USP line in the advert thereafter.

I have used the following:

A big clown for little people.

Abracadabra magic/clown show for kids

Absolute best clown for you next kids party

Take a look at the wording and you will see the alphabetical arrangement of the first few words will get you to the top of the list.

The USP or unique selling position is one that you have decided on before you have placed the ad!!  This line is something along the lines of “fun with every function” or “A successful show every time” - mine was “Kids just love him!”

 Marketing At the function

 I will do the show and then get permission from the birthday mom to display my business cards. The best place for them is on the tea table. I ribbon spread the cards making a nice display which catches the mom’s eye during tea. I generally just ask the moms who wants business cards. If you do a good show moms WILL take your card. They go to many parties and can tell a good show from a bad one.

Just a mention here about your performing character when dealing with parents and I mean especially as a clown character and you have make up on it is a good thing to become more normal if this is possible as they the moms will be looking at a rather unusual face with a big red nose attached! I have found it is better to be normal character when discussing where to perform and your needs, as soon as this is done you can move back into the clown or comedy character. As adults we are judging that person under the makeup according to our own belief patterns and rather unfairly will put you in the idiot category. I used to be in charge of my own mini circus show with other artists and being the clown I was never approached to discuss the show or if someone was interested in the performance for another function they would go to the ringmaster or the magician.

 Magicians Give away Stickers

 I also have a sticker with my clown face (if you are a magician this can be a logo or picture of your rabbit) and all my contact details on it. I feel that there is less hardcore business feel by promoting yourself in this way. For me the direct sell to the kid about booking me at the next function must be subtle otherwise the character is lost and that is what the audience will remember, not your magic skills!!

I will finish and then ask the kids who wants stickers, 99% will respond yes. I then hand out stickers to the kids telling them to go stick their sticker on their mom’s telephone directory or their phone or in their sticker book!! Watch out what you tell them, they will do it!!

I also have party bags made up and these are handed out at end of party as going home presents from the mom to the kids. Depending on the budget of the mom she will maybe add other items to your bag. These bags are sold as added items when negotiating. The bags contain a lot of cheap marketing items such as stickers, coloring books, pencils and other pre-designed goodies which all have your contact number and of course your name.

I have in the past displayed my telephone number on my table front but have stopped as I feel it’s too commercial. I see it as the same as Boggs plumbers advertising on the big black kettle in a Macbeth Shakespeare play.

 I make a big balloon animal for the birthday boy, now here I mean a multiple balloon animal as it finishes with a big display, which is relatively skillful and is a great finish for the show. It has that emotional hook factor which parents love. Now many times the other children at the party will come up and ask for the same balloon animal. I use this wanting to my advantage by saying it’s my special present to the birthday child. I then ask the child if he likes the balloon and get an affirmative and then drop him the hook, I tell him that when he has me at his party Ill make him a balloon so he must go tell his mom he wants me at his party, off he will shoot and his mother who is normally chatting with the other moms will not see the set up and will ask for my card.

I have also used a large cut out of ‘’ I LOVE WOODY THE CLOWN” and painted it up to look like a think bubble as in cartoon comics. I pull this out when the dad comes to photograph the kid during the part that I have the birthday boy dressed up in funny clothes.  I highlight in my selling of the show this feature. The father then has a personal photograph with your name on it with their child saying I love Woody or whatever you want on there. It is subtle and you can get away with it as its gets a laugh. I have more generic ones such as “”I love you” and pulled it out as a sight gag. It works when there is an interruption in your show such as delivery of food which does happen sometimes and works as you just stand there with this think bubble next to your head, as the parent is nearly finished and notices the catch word which says I love you, she will laugh, I immediately turn it around and it says”” Hurry Up!”” or such like. The food disturbance is more likely when performing in a restaurant and the burgers all arrive en mass.

 Photography as a marketing tool

 Just a note on photography I often tell the dad or photographer about certain key moments in the show which will make a memorable picture and generally these are the same pics that look good for your advertising or website, these are things when the bra/underpants type routine comes out of kids pants or production of rabbit or the cake from dove pan etc and of course you ask the dad to send you one!! Sometimes they do sometime they don’t. I have also in recent years used my own digital camera and taken a photo of the crowd at some point in the routine. Make sure you take of the birthday boy!! It is easy to find some excuse, I have used this in my adult shows and outdoor shows and it works well as it seems to be a gag but you are collecting memorable pics which you are orchestrating during your show for your own means. I came up with the idea while in Edinburgh performing my pole show and wanted to capture the crowd I was drawing, from on top of the pole. I went out and bought a disposable camera and I now have some awesome pics of literally hundreds of people all waving to the camera. Having your own picture of the show is also useful for your web news page and to send as an attachment when sending a thank you note. It has a big effect as it is shows you care about their show and also sometimes allows the booker who has been too busy in the kitchen or talking to come see the show and this way gives you a another hook. Sometimes I have been told that they have in turn used the picture to forward to there relatives or other friends as publicity for me. You must remember that these parents all have jobs and work with computers and nowadays this means of advertising has tremendous kick back.

  I would in fact offer a photographic service on the web where the client can access pictures from my website or refer other clients to the site to get pictures if I was doing birthday parties full time. I would create a virtual photo site and leave the pics on the site with other functions as this gives the clients a further insight into my work. I feel this can be done with birthday parties without much bother especially if you are young and have a willing girlfriend to take the photos for you. But after the show but before they get up would give you a group shot, and possible a couple of pics with kids waving and hands in air and of course the central theme being the birthday boy /girl. I would see it possible for a whole lot of comedy as you try getting the girls to kiss the birthday boy etc.

There are camera props and magic props using cameras so it is not impossible to introduce a real camera for a second.

  In the beginning you want as many pictures of your shows for publicity as you will have few referrals and pictures often say more than words.

 Follow up phone call

 In recent years I have followed up with a thank you phone call after the party, normally a day or two afterwards. It is very different to saying thanks at the door on your departure and you will find by that stage the parents have received the feedback from the show  from their friends and also more importantly they are relaxed and you can get a affirmation that they where happy. In the conversation a mention of any pictures or a note of thanks etc on email is always useful and sometimes they will mention some other function where you might be able to be used, you of course follow up with this and so possibly have a further booking from  the last  one. Here I also ask if I can put them on my email list /newsletter.

This newsletter has another advantage as you are collecting names and numbers which is very useful as it is clients of yours and will be more receptive to opening your email or advert. In the letter it can mention you will perform at such venue in school holidays or in your own show in a theater. The list of names, with pictures with your show can be presented to marketing personal of large suppliers of kid’s products in lieu of a sponsorship or booking as you can mention that you have 300 kids on your list etc. The company could use this list to promote their products. A friendly reminder can be set up in a data base program which will have a chatty letter telling them how much fun last years party was and now you have an even better/new show for them and if they book early you will reserve a time /discount or whatever incentive to have them call. I will sometimes put other info in the newsletter which might be a new venue you have performed at and is great or some new kids attraction that you recommend, I also started a booking service to help moms get some type of entertainment as I was getting very busy and instead of turning away the booking I would book out other acts. I at first was worried I would lose referrals by booking other artists but the opposite was true, I found that by helping the client with the booking I had become somebody they could rely on to sort out their needs in the business. This Agency type business is very advantageous and most artists are doing it nowadays. As I moved more into shopping centres and other corporate functions I had to upgrade my image accordingly and used this idea to promote both the business and the artist.

 Just a note on this, it is sometimes good to start with a pseudo company that is presenting you … that way you grow in the business, because as I said before it is a business you are in and will have to market yourself accordingly.

So your business cards can have the following:

Colin Underwood Promotions (or whatever the company name you chose)

Presents

Woody the Clown!!

Attitude of the  performer

One last mention on marketing and making a success of your show, in other words making a business out of your shows … hence the name show business … you have to have the drive and passion to continually want to improve and try your best. Your attitude will determine how well you do in the long term. I have seen many artists slowly dry up their well of performances simply because they have bad attitudes. Or clashes with the bookers. A good attitude reflects in the long term and is the most successful strategy