So you’re thinking about becoming a wedding magician, and why not? It’s probably the best job in the world!  You get to go to some amazing venues, perform for guests who want to be entertained.   Meet great family’s and friends and be part of something special. Who wouldn’t want to work as a wedding magician it’s bloody brilliant, and you get paid to do what you love, it’s a big win from me.

 

But before any of that can happen, you need a plan. You need to know where to find brides and grooms who want to book you. You need to know how to come across professional and how to build trust and confidence to secure your work. In this blog you will learn how to become a true professional wedding magician. I write the blog in a style that presumes you already know your magic tricks and have some performance experience. If not, check out my beginner’s guide for magicians here.

 

Marketing Everything You Need To Become A Professional Wedding Magician.

 

First things first, you need marketing material, a marketing strategy to sell yourself as a wedding magician. Where do you start I hear you ask? Well, there are several things you will need to begin with.

 

1, A logo.

2, Email Address

3, Web-site

4, Business Cards

5, Social Media

6, Packages

7, Wedding Fairs

8, The Day Before Your First Wedding

9, performing On The Day

10, Round Up

 

 

1, Logo.

 

For many years I’d didn’t have a logo, personally I couldn’t settle on one I liked I didn’t think it mattered. Well, I was wrong. You need a logo so potential clients can recognise you and your brand quickly when you market yourself across various platforms, be them physical or digital. People need to relate to you on a conscious and subconscious level when they see your brand pop up they will feel familiar you want clients to know, like and trust you, build their confidence up with your professional brand. That’s what is going to make the sale easy, plus you better be a good magician.

 

Before creating a logo you need to think about colour, design, think about what you like, what catches your eye in a good logo, do some research, spend some time looking around, take photos, draw them out. When you have your logo figured out in your head and have captured your ideas on photos or you have drawn the logo out, hire someone to create a digital high defection logo.

The best place I’ve found for logos for a relatively small cost is fiver.com check out their reviews and if they come in on budget. Send them your photos, drawing, websites you liked along with the colour you require giving them a good starting point to design your perfect logo. Who would have thought creating a logo would be so involved? It’s worth the time and effort as you will only have to do this once. Getting it right now is key to the rest of your marketing efforts.

 

 

 

2, Email Address.

 

There are some points worth noting here, everything your creating and building up is about being a professional entertainer, it’s about every touch point people have with you that’s going to sell you and your brand. With that in mind you will need to set up an email address to capture leads (leads people who potently want to book you)

Believe it or not, there is a correct professional email address and a VERY WRONG email address.

You need to have an email address that also has your web-site incorporated within them. My email address is [email protected] – or enquire[email protected] they both use my URL and look professional.

What you don’t want is anything with @gmail @AOL @Yahoo or anything like that. It automatically says cheap to a bride or groom. Think about it @magicians.com or @gmail.com what looks better in your eyes? It’s all about the detail, everything counts. The compound effect is in play where details are concerned.

 

You can by email hosting for as little at £1 per month. Or if you are going to build a web-site, then you usually get a few emails address with your hosting. I buy all my hosting from lcn.com.

 

 

 

3, Web-Site.

 

Wow, where to start there are so many ideas and options for you to choose from it can be a minefield to select the right one. It’s definitely worth considering building or paying some to build a web-site, but before you do you need to think about a few different things. So far we have our logo, brand name and colour code.

Now we need to build material that will sell you as a professional wedding magician. Do you have any professional photos or good action shots, videos of you performing at a wedding? Do you have good testimonials of recent performances? Are you a member of any clubs or even better the magic circle? If you don’t to worry, you will get some shortly.

If you do, then building a website can be fairly simple with today’s technology you need not understand html or java script anymore (bonus if you do) to build a fantastic web-site. The one thing you need to understand is to keep it simple as mentioned in creating a logo, do some research, check out other wedding magicians’ pages, check out other wedding supplier pages, get an idea of what is working for them. Contact a few ask questions. Don’t just jump into building a wedding web-site give it some thought, structure your web-site around what a bride would want to see. Think about building a website from a clients point of view. I use word press and a theme called Divi by elegant themes it cost a bit but worth the cost for me. I also hear good thing coming from www.squarespace.com.

If you struggling to create a web-site get in touch with me here [email protected] I can offer some advice and I also build a web-site for other magicians. Check my web-site www.magicianscorner.co.uk and I also built this one for the magicainsadvice.com.

 

 

 

4, Business cards.

 

To look professional, you will need business cards. Yes, even in the twenty-first century we still use business cards. Hopefully, you have created and have designed a world class logo and colour code. You will need to have the correct information on your business card in order for clients to contact you. It should go without saying you will need your phone number, email address and web-site. Don’t use a stock images, you want to come across professional, keep simple, keep it clean, keep it professional.

 

 

 

5, Social Media.

 

We all know social media has taken over the digital world. There are so many to choose from and the shifting change i of plant forms can leave you dizzy. What plant form works best? Do I need to be on all of them? Where can I find my idea client? I want this post to be evergreen, something you can read in ten years from now and still be relevant. My best advice would be go to where your age demographic hangs out? There are web-sites dedicated to this stuff. They can tell you literally the age range and best social platform to build your brand on. A good web-site I’ve found is https://sproutsocial.com/insights/new-social-media-demographics/

My advice do your research pick a two platforms and market yourself on there with good content.

 

 

 

6, Packages.

 

So you have your logo, business cards and web-site sorted. What are you going to sell? You can’t turn up and just sell magic tricks. You need to create packages – most wedding supplier have packaging they usually have a top, middle and bottom package and are prices accordingly. Think about where a magician will work best? Most magicians work during the photos, after dinner, room turn around or as the evening guests are arriving. You need to add into your packages more than just magic tricks there are plenty of ideas out there. Build your packages with your bride and groom in mind offer them something unique. This will create the bulk of your brochure, what you offer on the day of your wedding fair and also what you can email out after with offers and cold emails.

 

 

 

7, Wedding Fairs.

 

Finding your first wedding fair can be difficult. There are plenty of things to think about you don’t want to jump into your first one without doing a little reach and preparation or you could waste money needlessly. First things first, contact all your local wedding venues, find out when they are on, literally write them down. You don’t want to waste time here so reach out to the venues that look good or are near where you live to see if they will allow you to exhibit. Most will already have a magician it’s hard to convince venues to go with another magician. My rub on these couples should have a select of magicians like photographers to choose from we all have unique styles. Use that line if you come across difficult wedding planners sell them choose its better for the venue and supplier. You will get resident from other magician there as they want the fair for themselves, understandably, but this is business.

Ok so you have contacted the venue they have confirmed they have a place for you. What next? You need to find out how they are marketing the event? What kind of foot fall do they except? Listen to the answer. Does it sound as though they are advertising or just putting a banner up on the front hoping for passing trade? Has the wedding planner for the venue contacted couples who have already booked the venue for their wedding? Check out social media and advertising, does it look up to date and relevant, can you see comments and likes, tags and chatter? Look at websites like https://www.ukbride.co.uk/ and hitched.com to see if the venue you’ve selected has placed an add there. Checking out what advertising the venue is doing will pay you back in the long run, the last thing you want is to go to a wedding fair that has no one attending, it’s a waste of time and money.

How much should you pay to attend your first wedding fair?

The price different can be dramatic you can get into fairs for 0 to £3000 it depends on where you are exhibiting. The natural wedding fair in Birmingham is the biggest fair in the UK all the top venues and supplier will attend but it’s expensive to attend but I know magicians who have made the fee back ten fold over, if you’re a good magician and have the right marketing and ideas then you can smash it.

A normal wedding fair you can expect to pay between £90 – £150 for a day that starts from 11:00am – 15:00 most magicians usually get one or two booking from a wedding fair and that’s good collecting leads and for the future. Some couples are ready on the day to book, others will take their time and do research check prices and then come back to you.

Pop Up Banner

You will also need a pop up a banner with some wonderful photos and your logo and contact details. Top Tip always keep your contact details on the top of your banner if you have a table no one will see your contact details or you could block them from view with other obstacles, you get the point. People take photos to remind themselves. Keep it simple for clients to get your contact details at every opportunity.

 

Clip Board

You need to capture people’s details as you show them magic tricks. The idea is to contact them later with offers and so they know where to contact you if they change their minds. Create a simple form with email address, phone number, name, date of wedding and venue. Alternatively, you could create something online with an iPad to email them direct as they stand next to you.

 

 

Check List For Attending Your First Wedding Fair.

 

Business Cards

Brochures

Pop Up Banner

Magic Trick

Change Of Clothes

Food & Water

Mints

Clip board

 

There is no better way to enter the market yourself as a wedding magician than a wedding fair it tells the world who you are and what you do.

 

 

First booking.

 

 

You’ve done all the right moves wowed the happy couple they want to book you. Now what?

Before you even get to that point – we need to take a step back. You need to figure out how much you want to get paid, how you will take payment and what deposit you require. You will need to create an invoice with your company logo on and a way to block out dates in your calendar and have a contract ready.

I will run you through my process. I use an online CRM (customer relationship manager) called Giggio this software has an automatic contract generator and booking process built in. Once the client has filled out their details, I log into Giggio dashboard, generate a contract and invoices one for the deposit and one for the final balance. Then I add the client’s date to my calendar. I used to do all this manually, but it was taking up way too much of my time. In the early days you will have to do this manually as it the most cost effect way. You will need to pay for a CRM – like 17hats.com or getgiggio.com

The way I take payments in though bank transfer – I take a deposit of 25% of my fee.

 

 

8, The Week Before Your First Wedding.

 

 

Get in touch with the bride and groom. Ask them if everything is ok. Ask if they have questions for you? Confirm the times you have agreed. This about building a great client relationship. You want them to feel confident and comfortable.

Check out the parking situation, don’t park anywhere where you can get blocked in. The amount of times I’ve been blocked in at venues is unreal. Learn from my mistake, you’ll thank me for it later. Make sure you have your agreed fee paid up front, you don’t want to collect money on the day, it’s unprofessional.

Time for an inventory check. Make sure you have all your magic tricks together and rehearsed well. Ensure your suit is fresh and your shirts and trouser are pressed, shoes are shined and you know where all your magic tricks live in your pocket. Check payment has cleared and your ready to go a week before.

Work out how long it will take you on Google maps. Google maps is a great tool, it will workout the average road volumes on your predicted travel time and day, you can also calculate how long it will take to travel to the venue and back also taking a note on mileage for tax related expenses.

 

 

9, Your First Wedding Performance.

 

 

Plan to arrive early, allow for delays. If you’re booked for 14:00 and your total travel time is 1 hour, you need to be leaving your house at 11:30 – 12:00. Allow for delays. There has been countless times I’ve been a delayed or diverted on route or you’re lost in the middle of nowhere with no signal. Take my advice and plan to leave early. If you get there early, you can use that time wisely to make new connections with the venue, more on that later.

Before you set off, I always load my jacket with my tricks so I know where everything is and if I need to reset or replenish anything, it’s taken care of, no stress. I never travel in my performing clothes, always want to be as fresh as I can before I get there (depending on travel time) – Always have two shirts just in case something happens. Have a wash bag in your car with all the excesses, toothbrush, deodorant aftershave. Make sure you have some money and loose change for parking. Have a second close up case with five solid effects that lives in your car permanently. Plenty of bottled water and paracetamol in the car. You will need to stay hydrated throughout the day to protect your voice and levels hydration levels. Buy slow burning carbs snacks, bananas, protein bars, you will burn up a lot of energy on the day and they may not offer you any food.

 

Build a contingency plan, think about everything you will need just in case things don’t go to plan.

So you have arrived early, everything has gone to plan. It’s nearly time to entertain, but before you do, check in at reception. Ask to meet the wedding planner, see if everything is running to plan and they know what time you will perform. Right now it’s show time. You are a professional magician; the venue/staff need to know who you are and what you can offer. It’s time to meet the happy couple. If you can always introduce yourself to the couple and the person who booked you. It’s their special day you want to make sure they know you’re there. Tell them you will be over later to show them magic when things settle down. Congratulate them and ask how they are doing and go to your first table or group.

 

 

Time To Perform.

 

You’ve been building up to the moment. Look around the room, look for guests that are having fun already, you can usually hear them. Approach the table with energy and the air of fun. Introduce yourself as the magician and entertainment, I always ask if people want to see magic, they can turn it down, but nine times out of ten they won’t. Perform like it’s your last ever performance you’re strongest set make them laugh, create powerful memories and leave them amazed. Get that room buzzing. Weddings work in slots of time, you will only be with guests for short periods of time make the most of it enjoy the occasion, you’ve worked hard to get to this point.

 

 

Top Tip.

 

Always make friends with the photographer, exchange business cards and ask if you can get any photos or video footage. Say to them you don’t mind paying or promoting their work. This is how you will build up great photos for your website and marketing martial.

 

 

That’s it. Time to leave.

 

At the end of your performance find the happy couple thank you for having me I hope everyone has enjoyed their time with me and my magic. Make sure they are happy, say goodbye to the guests and the staff and leave.

 

Top Tip.

Let the dust settle for a week or two send a follow up email thanking them for booking you. It’s time to ask for a review. I collect all my reviews on Facebook or Google always offer two options so it’s easy for them to write. You can write the review yourself or ask what you want them to include – you want to make it so easy for them to write they can’t say no.

 

 

10, Round up.

 

It takes a lot of hard work and thinking before you get your first wedding gig. If you follow this guide, you won’t go far wrong. I didn’t know any of this before I started, little or nothing about marketing myself, all I knew was magic tricks and that will only get you so far. I guess this is like a mini marketing plan that can make you a lot of money if done correctly.

 

Thank for reading if check out our other blogs about magician related topics.

 

Phil

 

 

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