Tap Control + to enlarge text
Tap Control - to shrink text
Join our 'Living the Dream' Newsletter below to get the updates pertinent to your musician business!
- Monthly Updates
- Musician News
- New Segments
- New Discoveries
- New Blogs
- New Technology
For Email Marketing you can trust
Back to Main Articles
Do You Qualify?
Record Label Realities
Lifestyle of Freedom
Income Streams
Music Business & Money
How Much Money
Getting Started
Pro or Amateur?
Common Pitfalls
Do You Qualify?
Record Label Realities
Lifestyle of Freedom
Income Streams
Music Business & Money
How Much Money
Getting Started
Pro or Amateur?
Common Pitfalls
 |
How to charge for gigs How much money do full-time musicians charge? How much money will set you free? How can I leave my job and play music full-time? Spending habits How much do full-time musicians spend on their lifestyle? Investing in your musician business How much do full-time musicians invest in their music business? |
| Time investment How do full-time musicians spend their time? |
|
How to charge for gigs
What you want to get paid to play and what the market allows can be two different things. You need to decide a minimum charge for yourself and stick to it as much as possible.
You must research what full-time musicians of your genre are earning in your area. Also remember that restaurants typically pay more than bars. So if you can stand to be 'wallpaper' go for the restaurants!
For us, a solo show is up to 3 hours long. If T plays with a band, it is usually a 4 hour show and a $250 minimum. Our policy is that we don't leave our house during the week for less than a guaranteed $100 fee for regular 'weekly' clients. More if they are sporadic gigs.
On the weekends he averages $200 - $400 for a solo gig. And even then he is counting on tips and merchandise to jack his night's earnings. Very few exceptions get past this policy because some gigs pay us $300 for a 45-minute solo show.
Be sure to recognize the value of a steady weekly gig and be willing to charge your minimum rate in exchange for the steadiness of that income. As you build your regular following your tips will increase as well.
The point is there is no flat fee that covers every type of gig so we need to categorize them here:
- Bars
- Restaurants
- Private Parties
- Corporate Events
- Weddings
If you're not worried that you're pricing it too cheap, you're not pricing it cheap enough.
-Roy H. Williams
How much money will set you free?
Many times throughout my working career I have had lots of time but no money. Or I'll have lots of money and no time to enjoy it. Then I figured out the formula...
Money + Time = Lifestyle
Only you can determine how much you need to enhance or replace your current income. Only you know your financial obligations and personal spending habits.
If you are not good at saving money, you are not alone. I can save money but then a year later I use it for something. Savings are just too damn accessible! So I'll tell you my secret to successful savings.
Don't wind up broke! We buy gold and silver 1 oz. coins. I have found that I don't cash them in when I'm in a pinch. Better yet our retirement savings have risen in value while most have decreased. The LEGITIMATE expert at what to buy is Mike Maloney. Click to get a great financial education!
Only you know the importance of your job's benefit package. Job benefits are pretty valuable to some folks. So remember to factor in paying for your own insurance and retirement plan if you leave it.
It will only take you 10 minutes to discover that your insurance will be much cheaper with E Health Insurance after you leave your job...maybe before! But you can customize your health plan and only pay for what you need. Click below to see for yourself.
Calculate how much money you need to make and be very detailed and honest about it. How dependent are you on a paycheck? Can you deal with the sporadic payments of full-time musicians? After all...some weeks are better than others.
I'm a little different than most people because I get no comfort or security when my sole income comes from 1 job. Heck, I'm only one decision away from having no income. And it's not even my decision. Just some boss to decide my fate.
I am used to inconsistent income because I have always been a 'commission only' salesman. I can also purchase my own insurance and I'm better at saving for retirement than my company is.
I prefer to create multiple streams of smaller income. They all add up to one decent income. Yet if one disappears it doesn't rock the financial boat so much.
Besides...I'd rather answer to 100 clients than 1 boss. That statement only seems weird to people who have never owned their own business. But one you're free...you'll see! :)
I honestly think it is better to be a failure at something you love than to be a success at something you hate.
-George Burns
Spending habits
I have first hand knowledge of what Robert Kiyosaki always teaches. "It doesn't matter how much you make, but how much you spend."
As far as I'm concerned anyone who has not read his book Rich Dad Poor Dad has no clue about money. This book is Money 101!
I was 23 when I started earning a (low) six figure income. I thought I was being smart with my money but I was still broke...just on a different level. When hard times hit I discovered I was only 60 days away from bankruptcy.
Something had to change! I gave myself some spending guidelines. I told myself my 'new rules':
- If you want something wait 30 days. If you still want it figure out a way to pay cash for it.
- If you can buy it used...do it.
- Only finance a home and one car.
- Do not use credit cards...at all.
- Before buying something ask yourself "Can I live another year without this?" (Be honest with yourself)
- Never make a financial decision until your emotions have calmed down and logic takes back over.
You have to be smart. The easy days are over.
-Robert Kiyosaki
Investing in your music business
Most musicians I know don't know much about business. And why should they? They are gifted elsewhere. The good news is that to be a full-time musician you will only have to know some basics.
I will keep things simple for you because I don't want you to get all cluttered up with business stuff. Just understand some basic principles you don't kid yourself when it comes to Investing VS. Spending in your music business.
You created your own job, so you are the boss. As long as your income is dependent upon your efforts you have really simply created a full time job for yourself. Not bad since you work less hours, make more money and feel totally fulfilled. And you work for yourself!
As a music business owner you will have to buy certain tools for your job. Many will use this as an excuse to purchase too much gear, too much marketing, too many CD's, etc. The truth is that they are not investing in their music business at that point. They are just making excuses to spend money.
The best rule to follow when considering any expense is "Can I make money without this?" An honest answer will alert you to if this expense falls into the 'spending' or 'investing' column.
For instance guitar strings are an investment. We HAVE to have them to make money. Same with the car. Damn the depreciation! But we need a reliable way to get to 4-6 gigs a week!
But when T mentioned needing a back up guitar for when he broke a string. I reminded him that he is not playing in a coliseum show. It would not change our income one dime if he spent 5 minutes changing a string.
Heck...he might sell some extra CD's during that 5 minutes!
A back up guitar would not be 'investing' in our music business. It's an excuse to spend money. It doesn't mean he shouldn't get one. But once he thought about it, I never heard about it again. He started talking about getting some new ink instead. :)
Residual income is my favorite type of income. I like that you can get all the work finished now and it will flow cash back to you for life. That way if something were to happen to me the money doesn't stop coming in.
If you take the time to record and set up your original tunes online you will create a channel that money could flow through. The amount of that cash flow is more up to fate, than you.
There are things you can do to market your music online. Again I refer you to Bob Baker who has more experience on that topic.
But outside of a miracle, the ROI (return on investment) is low. We do earn some cash from YouTube advertising, online CD & download sales, but not enough to retire on.
I still think that it's well worth the initial set up effort. You have to dig trenches to catch the rain that may fall one day. Luck could turn your way and dramatically increase your music's popularity.
Investing should be more like watching paint dry or watching grass grow. If you want excitement, take $800 and go to Las Vegas.
-Paul Samuelson
Time investment
Money can be replaced, time cannot. Time is valuable because you only get a limited amount of it every day and only for a certain number of days.
Similar to money, time can be...
- spent
- wasted
- balanced
- invested
When you are analyzing your results you can look at how much time you spent vs. how much money on each task. Look at it honestly, then decide if you should scrap it, adjust it or do more of it.
I can always tell a person's priorities by where they spend their time AND money. They may tell me that music is a priority, but if they spend most of their free time and money on video games...well I observe actions far more than mere words.
Don't get me wrong. I believe in balance. Time off with relaxation is very productive for any human being. All work and no play is booooo-ring!
T spends most of his free time on studying music. His priority is gaining more knowledge about music. Mine is enjoying outdoor life. So I spend most of my time camping.
Luckily we like each others priorities and can do them together.
Take a good look at where you are spending your time and money. Do they line up with what you say your priorities are?
Waste your money and you're only out of money, but waste your time and you've lost a part of your life.
-Michael LeBoeuf
Custom Search
Copyright 2012. Content Copyright 2011. Small Time Musician. All rights reserved.