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Business
Issues - Finances
Increasing Revenues From Your Laser
System Now that you have invested a lot of money into
laser equipment and have done some shows, you should
consider some ideas on how do to go about generating additional revenues from
your equipment:
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Many laserists find a high
demand for their services on weekends but little demand during
the week, You can try advertising special lower rate shows
on nights that would otherwise be "dark nights" to increase revenues. Remember
not to discount your show too severely
so you don't run into clients arguing "Well you can do it
for this price on Wednesday, how come you want to charge so much
extra for Saturday?". You can also try offer the show
in a "stripped down" format such as only 7 colours
or without outboard effects to justify the lower
rates.
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Some clubs and bars
have "Ladies Night", "60's Night" or other
themed promotions early in the week to bring in more
customers. If you can tie your laser show into the theme
then you can build an additional market. One other possibility
is to offer these promotional night events a stripped down
version of your show - for example without bounce mirrors - in return
for a lower rate.
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Just as some DJ's are
"residents" at a particular club or bar, you can offer
clients to be a resident laser show if they agree to sign up for
six to 8 weeks [or more] on a weeknight when you don't usually get
booked. With a multi week contact in hand, you can provide
a reduced rate to the client.
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When doing corporate
shows, always offer to do additional custom programming and
logos. Image programming is labour intensive and can be
done in advance off-site so is a profitable add-on to sell to
clients.
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Corporate clients are also used to the
idea that everything they do in a professional venue has a price
tag. While you may offer a complete package at a fixed
price to a club or dance client, you can often break this down
slightly and charge corporate clients for the smoke machine,
screen, scaffolding and other items that they would otherwise have to
supply. You have to tread a fine line here and insure that
your rates for this equipment you already have are below market
rates so they will pay you rather then another supplier.
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Corporate
clients usually have the material they want in their show in
mind well before the event date. Typically you will bring
them to your studio some days before the show to present the
show content and have them sign off on it. Corporate
clients are also notorious for wanting to add or change things
at the last minute. Make sure that once they sign off on
the show, your agreement states that any changes after that will
be done at a rate that is higher than your usual programming
charge. That way, when they suddenly substitute 3 speakers
who's names you have already programmed into the show and you
have to change the names, you can make sure you are well
rewarded for the hours of extra effort you have to put into last
minute changes.
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You can have your show sponsored by a local
business. Laser graphics are a unique form of
advertising that stays in the audience's mind and it is not something
they see every day. Consider having a regional or
national company sponsor your laser show by paying you a fee
for each show in return for advertising at that show.
Many clients hiring you will accept this as a condition if
it helps reduce the cost of the laser show to them.
-
If you own a sufficiently powerful
laser, you might consider renting it out as a "laser beacon"
on a weeknight. Placing the laser with a steering mirror
in front of it atop a store or restaurant and aiming the static beam down the
street [subject to local regulations] can be a good way to attract
attention to the business. It is also less costly for you
to do as no projector and programming are required.
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Try
teaming up with a local radio station and working with them on
some of their outside broadcasts. They often do special
broadcasts from "midnight madness" sales and other
events in order to attract people to the event. By
providing a laser show in conjunction with the broadcast, you
get your name mentioned on the air, they get their logo
projected with the laser and the package is an added incentive
for people to come to the vent, and added revenues for you if it
is on a weeknight that you are not generally busy.
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If our area has a minor league sports team, consider approaching
them to provide laser shows at their home games and playoff
games. You can also approach local teams to provide
lasers for their season opening game or for tournaments,
playoff or championship games.
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Consider
breaking into new markets that are not generally associated with
laser shows. There are laserists who have done shows at
public swimming pools and on ski hills!
Bob Ash
of New Method Laser has contributed the following additional ideas:
- Charge for Text messages: In a nightclub, you would be surprised to see how much
someone will pay to put their message on the screen... from
"FSU Rules" to "Happy birthday Mary", and
the ever popular "John loves Judy". If your system
supports "easy" scrolling text, you can offer the
service for as little as $1 to $5, and bag an extra hundred bucks
per night.
- Rent your equipment out when not in use: OK, so this is a rough one, but if you have a backup
system, a lucrative contract, and good insurance against
damage, you can make an extra couple grand every month. The
easier the system is to operate, the more of a chance you
have of renting it out.
- Intermission: It almost sounds too easy, but even a one hour show can
benefit from a short intermission. Your vendors can sell
something as trite as popcorn, or something as hi-tech as
"rainbow" diffraction glasses, or even souvenirs.
Be sure to keep the music going (at a lower level), and keep
the lights dim, to perpetuate the "party"
atmosphere. $200 to $2000 extra per show is not unusual.
- Get people to come sooner, leave later: In disco and bar
locations with permanent laser shows, don't use the Lasers all the
time. Let it be known that the most Laser activity is early
(8-9 o'clock?) and late (1-2 o'clock). People will gravitate
in earlier, and stay later. An extra hour of crowd in a bar
can bring in an extra $100-$2000 per night...do the math.
- Get advertising income: While you're projecting all those hot laser images for
peoples enjoyment, you may as well plug a non-competing
local establishment (clothing stores come to mind)... and
charge for it.
DISCLAIMER:
Some of the information in the Backstage area is provided by the persons or
companies named on the relevant page(s). Laser F/X does NOT endorse or
recommend any products/services and is NOT responsible for the technical
accuracy of the information provided. We provide this information as a
service to laserists using the Backstage area.
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