Even though my days of gigging with a steady-working Top 40 cover band are practically gone, I still get a phone call or email about once or twice a week saying, “Hey, how much to have a band play at my [fill in the blank]?” And thus the negotiation begins. It’s something that we all have to do at some point, because let’s face it, not everyone we know if a musician but most of them enjoy live music and would LOVE to have you entertain at their party, wedding, or whatever. Now, normally when a “professional” gig comes in (meaning that it’s from a contractor or musician I have previously worked with and not Joe Shmo who thinks it would be nice to cram a 4 piece band onto a 4’x4′ deck patio) there is no negotiation; the budget has been set and the price is firm. You either want it or you don’t. But when the Everyman calls you up you need to respond right then and there with a price, and if you’re not used to doing this you’ll feel a little uncomfortable, ESPECIALLY if you know this person.

So how do you deal with this person? You can’t say “I’ll call you right back once I check with everyone,” because that INSTANTLY makes you sound like you’ve never done this before (and probably you haven’t) thus convincing them not to hire you, or worse, to hire you for much less than they were going to pay you. So you need to give them a number right away.

But what if it’s too high and I offend them?

I don’t want to scare them away.

What if it’s too low and we get screwed on the deal?

How can I make this beneficial for everyone?

These are all thoughts that went through my head in the early days of negotiation, and I’m sure you’ve had them as well. So what do you do? I’ll let you know how I took care of this situation back in the day and also how I deal with it nowadays.

When I was younger and much more hungry to gig I took just about any offer. $50 a person, $75 a person? It didn’t matter. I knew that we needed to get experience, exposure, and create a demand. Sometimes I even worked for free, especially in my college days. That lasted for a few years, and after I got tired of getting home at 2 am with not enough coin in my pocket I decided to draw a line. My Point of No Return was $100 per person; if I couldn’t get $300 for a 3-piece or $400 for a 4-piece then it was a no-go. I love doing my job but I can’t afford to not pay this month’s rent, ya know? So that became the new “norm” for years, and I would make occasional deals here and there. For instance – a $75 per person gig was ok if there was dinner, drinks, and a gas-buyout included, or something like that. Some bars and restaurants would also provide a gift certificate of some sort, or a hefty tab.

But again, after a while I got tired. Though $100 per night is decent, it’s not good, and certainly not livable. When you do the math, $100 not that much for someone who has learned a craft or trade professionally (think of a licensed contractor, plumber, lawyer, doctor, etc.) who depends on their earnings for a living (duh!) when they’re basically making $12 per hour. I start the clock from the moment I leave the front door. It’s usually a 4 hour gig; add the 2 it takes you to drive there and back (1 hour each way), PLUS the extra hour you have to wait since you needed to get there early and set up before their guests arrived, AND the extra hour it’s going to take you to set up and tear down your gear. That’s a 8 hour work night, so you’re basically making 12 bucks an hour. Still above minimum wage, but not enough to pay your mortgage, utilities, and gas tank on that kind of coin.

So nowadays I don’t take any gigs that don’t pay enough. Not because I’m a snob or because I’m only “in it for the money,” but because I simply can’t afford to. And don’t forget to factor in a figurative opportunity cost. In other words, what’s it costing you to do this gig? For me it’s usually a nice Friday or Saturday night at home alone with my wife. To me, that’s worth MUCH more than 12 bucks an hour. I still take plenty of free or low-paid gigs for the sheer fun of it, especially when it’s with cats I love playing with, but I need to balance that out so that I’m not spending all of my time away from home.

And if people haggle you on price (“Woa! That’s way too high! I was thinking like $300 or something…”) just do the price breakdown I just gave you and ask them, “Would you go to work your job full time on a Saturday night for $12/hour?” They usually say, “I didn’t think of that… I guess not.”

So how do you negotiate? If you’re hungry (not just for money but also for experience) then take everything you can get. When you get used to how this game works start making some demands. And when you need to start turning work away because you NEED to then you’ll know when that time comes. Nowadays, I can make what I used to make in 4 gigs a week doing just 1, which is nice because I can make the same amount of bread in 1/4 of the time. Build up a reputation and a demand NOW and you’ll be glad that you put in the time.

And don’t let people’s responses get to you. Your prices aren’t too high, they just can’t afford you. And there’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve never gone to a Lexus dealer and shouted “This costs WAY too much! I demand you lower your prices!” The Lexus isn’t too much, it’s just out of my price range. Go get a Chevy if that’s what you can afford.

But the Lexus is nice 🙂

What do you think?