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An Introduction to Hireaband

From humble beginnings in our founder's dining room, Hireaband has become one of the busiest entertainment agencies in the UK. An incorporated VAT registered company since August 2002, we have experienced impressive growth year on year and are now responsible for providing many of the entertainers we work for with a very good living.

Originally providing a service almost exclusively in Scotland, we are now operating successfully throughout the whole of Great Britain.  To date we have provided the acts we represent with bookings worth in excess of £8 Million - and this is only in Scotland.  The UK population is more than 10 times that of Scotland, and we intend to be the largest marketers of quality entertainment in Britain within a very short timescale.

Q: Who buys entertainment from hireaband?

A:Hireaband specialises in providing live entertainment for weddings, corporate events and private functions.  We are looking for entertainers who wish to excel in this market.

We plan to continue our expansion and to enhance our position as leaders in the supply of first class entertainment to the quality end of the market. Demand for really high quality entertainers continues to be strong, resulting in a shortage of good, value for money acts that can provide the essential mix of talent and business sense.

Hireaband is constantly improving its service to both clients and entertainers in order to keep an edge over our competitors. As innovators and market leaders we are introducing some revolutionary ideas which will continue to win the superb entertainers we work for the business they deserve.

Our Proposals

We are aware of the unease experienced by some acts when dealing with agents. There can often be a 'them and us' culture between the two groups, which, though unfortunate is, in some cases understandable. As full members of The Agent's Association of Great Britain we are committed to a strict code of conduct and are kept aware of all the new regulations affecting our industry. We feel that a close, open relationship is the only way ahead for an ambitious agency and ambitious entertainers.

While determined to represent only the finest talent available, we also require from entertainers an awareness of good business practice. In return we promise a level of service and commitment unparalleled in the business. The solution to the age-old agent/entertainer conflict we feel is…

Entertainment Partnership

In the U.S, agents are seen as the sales force for entertainers and we are regarded as such for our acts. You can make our job much easier and our sales efforts more successful by complying with the following requests:

What we expect from you

Only acts with excellent photographs and demo material  (where applicable) will be considered for representation. For acts new to hireaband we may also require referrals or testimonials from previous clients. We may also require dates which one of our representatives can attend to see you in action. As many of our clients are based outside The UK and unable to see their entertainers first hand, a good promo package is essential. Here is a check list of our main requirements:

• From a practical point of view we will require you to have good, reliable transport and PA equipment.
• You should have current Public Liability Insurance and PAT tested equipment.
  
• If in a band, we prefer to deal with one designated member who has sole control of the diary to avoid double bookings. This person should also preferably have a daytime contact number.
• If you are booked as a result of your appearance at a hireaband engagement we expect to be informed and we will be entitled to charge commission on any subsequent bookings.
  
• VERY IMPORTANT. Our service is free to the hirer. That means that we will not "add" our commission on to your normal fee to allow you to receive the same fee as you would if booked direct. We provide you with a service and are entitled to make a charge. We will only charge our clients the same as they would pay to hire you direct. If this is not acceptable then we will not be able to represent you in any way. If this is not complied with we reserve the right to remove you from our database immediately. We subsequently reserve the right to make spot checks at any time.
  
• After every engagement we send out a questionnaire to our clients to get feedback on an entertainer's performance, these make valuable testimonials and can highlight any room for improvement. They also show our commitment to customer satisfaction.
• We need you to commit to keeping us up to date with availability, this helps us provide the fastest response time in the business.
• When we recommend you to a client, we'll advise you immediately by email of the clients name, venue and event date. You must note their details in your diary so that if contacted direct you can refer them back to Hireaband. Failure to do so will result in the immediate withdrawal of representation and may have implications on existing bookings.
• We need you to be able to perform a set of well known covers. We can't accept bands playing original material or too many really obscure covers, we're not experienced in this market and will be of no use to you.
• We will recommend you to suitable clients for any date for which you're available. However we do not make the decision to buy.  If you're being offered for a lot of gigs and not getting booked it may be because your photos, demos, set lists or fees need adjustment. We'll offer free advice on this.
  

What you can expect from us

We will always negotiate hard on your behalf for the best fee and conditions possible. This is one reason why we don't pursue pub and club gigs as they are notoriously underpaid.

• For most events, you'll be paid before you play the gig but we will expect you to have developed a track record of one or two successful events before this takes effect. If not paid in advance you will be paid the day after the event.
  
• We will provide clear instructions of each engagement in writing, with realistic set up times and detailed instructions for a smooth running, stress free gig. We'll supply directions and info on any venues new to our entertainers, with a contact name and a suggested travel time.
• We actively promote our entertainers both directly to our existing clients and through our heavy media presence and excellent web site. This neatly brings us to the main point of this article.
• Hireaband was started by musicians for musicians, our boss is still a member of the MU and so should you be. We've been through it all, the difficult get ins, the impossible hotel staff, the worse for wear audiences and wedding guests, the freezing van journeys at two in the morning, missing family events because of conflicting gigs, and, dare we say it, dodgy agents who think you work for them. We're on your side and we never forget, we work for you.
  

The Hireaband web site

Hireaband is unique among agencies in that our company name is also our web site address. Hireaband.co.uk also describes exactly what we do in a short and memorable way and directs interested parties straight to our site full of information on the entertainers we work for.

How do we promote our site?

We promote our site and therefore you in very many ways. We advertise extensively in the wedding press and are in fact the largest advertisers of any kind in some magazines. 

In the last few years we have advertised on regional television using their micro regions scheme, which brought us massive coverage. As far as we are aware we are the only agency in the U.K to have used this media. We have plans to follow this up with additional TV and local radio advertising.

We have been featured and have advertised in the national press, with articles in The Glasgow Herald, The Sun and The Daily Record

We advertise in many local publications and with local authorities at registry offices etc.

We're on the recommended list for many of the best venues in the country.

Finally, and we've saved the best till last, we are ranked incredibly high on the world's top four search engines. This has resulted in an average 600,000 hits to the web site every month, a vast number of potential buyers!

The costs involved for this level of promotion are staggering and run into tens of thousands of pounds, but we plan to continue and in fact increase our position as major buyers of advertising, actively promoting hireaband and the acts we represent. 

If you'd like detailed advice on how to maximise your earnings as an entertainer, visit Showbizguru.