While the web has undoubtedly done great things for the UK’s best magicians, it’s also made it rather difficult to know who to side with when making a booking. The reason being that it’s now technically possible for anyone with a store-bought magic set and a cheap website to advertise themselves as a corporate event magician, when they are in fact about as apt at the art of illusion as the family dog. Sadly, those who make such bookings generally don’t find out about the ineptness of the magician until it’s far too late to do anything about it – the fee is paid and they’re off on their way with no recourse on the cards.
All of the above may paint a rather unfortunate picture of things, but in reality it’s simply a case of common sense winning the day. In this instance, common sense means not taking anything for granted and only ever making a booking once you have confirmed the fact that the magician you’re considering is in fact all they’re cracked up to be. And as you’re not a magician yourself and cannot look into the future, you’ll need to carry out a few checks before deciding that this is the magician for your own corporate event.
Images
For example, it’s a good idea to look for hard evidence that they can indeed do what they say they can do, which in this case means checking for photographic evidence. It’s one thing for a magician to have all manner of photos of them doing what they do, but it’s another entirely to have shots of the crowds they’re entertaining reacting with delight. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and when it comes to selecting a corporate entertainer, this is pretty much on the money.
Video Clips
Do some magicians fabricate images to sell their services? Of course they do, though to be honest it’s usually pretty easy to spot the fakes. On the other hand, it’s pretty tricky to do the same with a video clip that actually shows the magician going about his or her business with a real audience at a real corporate event. Not all magicians make such videos readily available and some will only provide them upon request, but if there’s an option to at least see a short clip or two of how they perform, it’s more than worth taking it.
Costs
Never under any circumstances make the price of the performance the sole determining factor with regard to which magician you choose. The reason being that while there will always be those that charge extremely high rates and others that practically work for free, costs are not always reflected in the quality of the show put on. That being said, it’s usually safe to say that if you pay peanuts you cannot expect anything but a lacklustre show. But at the same time, shelling out a small fortune doesn’t guarantee you a Vegas-quality experience. Always look at the price as something of a side-issue that should be considered after all other areas of merit.
Experience
In terms of areas of merit, one of the most important of all is that of experience. The reason being that the longer a magician has been in business, the more time they’re had to improve their skills and bolster their reputation. Not only this, but it is incredibly hard to make a living as a magician which in turn means that those who manage to stay in business long-term are clearly doing something very right indeed.
Guarantees
One of the single most important hallmarks of a great magician is the provision of a 100% satisfaction guarantee. These tend to be very rare in the entertainment world and certainly not to be seen as deal-breakers, but in some rare cases a magician will make the promise whereby if the crowd is not entertained and those making the booking are not satisfied, a full or at least partial refund will be given. Suffice to say, only the most confident magicians are willing and able to offer such guarantees, so they’re more than worth looking for.
Feedback
Last but not least, never hire a magician for any corporate event without first looking into their reputation by way of past-client feedback. This is really the only means by which you can gain a fair and impartial insight into how they perform when put to the test in a real-life setting. Chances are they’ll have plenty of feedback to share via their own site, but if this isn’t the case, a quick Google search should help you find out you all you need to know.
