How To Book A Magician
A Complete Guide & Checklist on How To Book A Magician For Your Event
Booking a magician for your event has never been easier and here’s a guide and checklist for you to make sure you are choosing the right magician for your guests.
LOCATION
The first thing most people do is type in the name of their city followed by “magician”. For example, they type “Toronto Magician”, “New York City Magician”, “Dallas Magician” into Google and Google creates a list of relevant web pages.
The top results on Google when you are searching for a local magician are paid advertisements (people who pay Google to be listed) and people who have good reviews on Google Business. Based on your location and settings Google might rank the results by the closest magicians in your area just as they would with other local businesses.
Then Google will try to match you with what they consider to be the most relevant results. They know that you are looking to hire a magician for an event, looking for a magic show to attend, or looking to find more information on local magicians and magic shows. You will see a mixed result of magician’s websites, websites for magic shows, review websites, and articles on the best magicians or best magic show in your city.
Usually your journey in finding a magician to hire will begin here as your familiarize yourself with what’s available. Depending on your budget and the type of event you may choose to hire a local magician or choose to book a magician who travels from out of town to your event.
Mahdi Gilbert has performed all over the country and has a rich network of the best magicians in the world. If you would are thinking of booking a magician and don’t know where to begin please contact us so we can help you find the right match for your event.
INQUIRE ABOUT BOOKING A MAGICIAN
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MAGICIAN
PROFESSIONALISM
When you are looking at magician online the first thing you need to find out is how professional they are. Does the magician have a website and social media that is updated regularly? Do they have photographs and videos of them performing magic for clients at events? What kind of events do they usually perform at? How do they dress when they are performing magic at events? Does the magician have excellent reviews? Where are they being talked about and what are people saying about their magic and professional services? Let’s take a closer look.
WEBSITE & SOCIAL MEDIA
Take a look through the magician’s website. Does the website look fresh and updated? Does the website make you feel like seeing their magic and finding out more about them as a magician and a person? Do they have photos and videos of them performing and working at events? Are the photos and videos recent? Are they active on social media? Take a look through their Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube channel.
When you book a magician for an event they are representing you, your brand, your company, or your school. Keep that and mind and make sure that you feel that they are a good match for your branding and guests.
PHOTOS
As you look through a magician’s photos and videos try to picture your event and imagine how they will find in and mingle with your guests. Magicians should have both professional photographs of them and photos of themselves working at events.
You want to keep your eye out to look for a few things that will help you judge their level of experience and professionalism.
Does the audience look like they are having an amazing time? Are they laughing or do they have their jaws dropped in amazement?
Make sure that there are photos of them working in a variety of environments whether that is close-up magic for private events or onstage in a theater performing for a larger audience. Seeing is believing and you want to look at their photos as proof that they really are professional and competent and have experience working as a magician performing for all types of events.
VIDEOS
Although you can get a good sense of the experience through a photo you often want to see what it’s like to experience the magician performing magic at an event. The best magicians have usually had the opportunity to perform their magic on national television. These performances are usually some of their best and most iconic magic tricks and will have been seen by millions of people.
A television performance is usually short though and they only have time to perform one or two magic tricks. Many times the client wants to see more and professional magicians usually have a complete act online on video or full show available for you to watch. Watch their act or full and envision how they will fit into the event you are hosting, the size of the events and how people will be arranged or seated in the venue. Professionals magicians are used to adjusting the lengths of their performances to fit the clients needs.
DRESS
As you are looking at a magician’s photos and videos pay attention to how they are dressed.
Different occasions require different clothing. Ideally you want any performer at an event to be as well dressed or slightly better dressed than your guests and the audience.
However you want to make sure that the magician is also not overdressed and looking out of place if the event is less formal. It might not be a good look if the magician is wearing a tuxedo to a private birthday party in the summer where everyone is dressed in t-shirts and shorts.
Always pay attention to how a magician is dressed in comparison to the audience that they are performing for.
Whenever you are in the process of booking a magician it always helps to discuss the event in detail and how you expect the people attending the event to come dressed.
REVIEWS, TESTIMONIALS & PRESS
When you are considering booking a magician for your event always be sure to look at what people are saying about them. Oftentimes the magician will post testimonials from clients and audience members in writing or on video so that you can get a sense of their experience was. Google Business, Yelp, and Tripadvisor are great places to start your research. Clients can review magicians on Google Business and their Facebook Business page and audience members usually rate magic shows on Yelp and Tripadvisor. Some magicians have more reviews than others and more important than the quantity of reviews is the quality. How many stars do they have? Read some of the 5 star reviews, then read some of the 4 star reviews, and definitely read all the 3 star, 2 star, or 1 star reviews. Oftentimes you can learn more about a magician or magic show from a bad review than you can from dozens of 5 star reviews. However, please keep in mind that sometimes magicians, like other businesses are victims of sabotage from disgruntled customers or their competitors who make try to leave fake reviews to hurt the magician’s business or the magic show. Use your judgement and if you have have any questions you can always reach out and ask the magician or their team about anything you see online.
Whether a magician is only working private events and engagements or has a magic show for the public they will often post testimonials. Humans are social creatures and we want to experience what other people enjoy so always pay attention to testimonials. When looking at video testimonials make sure they aren’t all from a single event. You want to be sure that the magician is having successful and good performances consistently and that should show in video testimonials filmed at different times and different places.
Not all magicians get covered by the media. Sometimes some of the best magicians in the world are relatively unknown however if a magician is working consistently and has a good show you will see evidence of that in the press. You will be able to search for them and see various advertisements for events that they have as well as interviews and articles about them. Many top magicians share these through the news section of their website, their blog, and social media accounts.
Always research the person that you are considering booking to perform magic at your event and check what has been documented about them through reviews, testimonials, as well as mentions in the press.
TYPE OF EVENT
One of the first things that a magician will want to know when you are inquiring about booking them for an event is what the event is. Are you organizing a party for a company or a corporate event and looking for a magician to entertain during that event? Are you getting married and looking for a magician to perform at your wedding? Are you a parent looking to hire a birthday party magician for children? Are you a member on your Campus Activities Board looking to bring a magic show to your campus? Are you a business looking to entertain your clients or employees? The possibilities are endless and professional magicians can adapt to your vision and work with you to create an incredible event.
When you are discussing your event with a magician pay attention to how much they are paying attention and curious about your event. The more experienced a professional magician is the more that they will want to know about your event. A true professional will ask you many questions about your event and make suggestions about how they can bring their magic to your event, where in the venue the magic will take place, and when the magic will happen. You want to find a magician that cares about your event as much as you do and is committed to making it as successful as possible. If a magician isn’t asking any questions about the event you should take a step back and really consider why they aren’t interested in knowing the details, most likely it is because they don’t care and will not adjust to ensure their presence and magic fits into the space well.
Great magicians can work in a variety of environments. Mahdi Gilbert and his partners have performed and shared their magic and magic shows during:
Weddings, Private Parties, Grand Openings, Birthday Parties, Bar Mitzvahs, Bat Mitzvahs, School Assemblies, Student Orientations, Festivals, Business Meetings, Business Conferences, Corporate Events and Parties, Trade Shows, Product Launches, Networking Events, Retreats, Cruises, Executive Dinners, Roundtables, & Charity Events.
No matter what the event is a professional magician will work with you to create the best event possible so that your guests leave in delight with unforgettable memories.
INQUIRE ABOUT BOOKING A MAGICIAN
BUDGET
Probably the most frequently asked question is how much will it cost to hire a magician? The answer changes drastically depending on which magician you are trying to book and the details of you event. Nobody likes vagueness though so let’s break down what you will get for different price ranges.
$50-$500
Almost every magician begins his or her career at this price point. For a few hundred dollars you can book a local magician that will perform a magic at your event. Most professionals very quickly move past this price point and charge more than $500 for their services. Some of the busiest magicians working today charge these prices and perform multiple shows a day. You get what you pay for though and most people who are organizing an event opt to pay more money for better quality.
$500-$2500
Most professional magicians working these days charge in between $500 to $2500 for an event. This may or may not include travel and lodging. If you have a budget over $1000 you can really begin to look at booking a professional show. Many small college campuses, small businesses, and companies are used to paying in this price range for a magician to perform for them. As always, the quality ranges tremendously and you must do your research to make sure the magician you are considering booking for your event is right for you and your guests.
$2500-$10,000
Rising stars in magic charge between $2500 to $10,000 to perform a single event. The magicians in this price range usually have made a national television appearance and have years of experience performing magic for college campuses and corporate events. Within this budget you will be able to book an incredible and professional magician to fly in for your event.
$10,000-$50,000
Many of the biggest names in magic charge between $10,000 to $50,000 for an event. Usually these magicians have toured internationally, have been featured on national television in multiple countries and have name recognition. Usually these magicians are hired to perform at corporate events for large companies and at private events with big budgets.
$50,000 +
The most recognizable and world famous magicians in the entire world charge over $50,000 to perform at a single event. Only a few magicians such as David Copperfield, David Blaine, and Derren Brown and a handful of others are able to command such figures.
HIRING A MAGICIAN
Once you have narrowed down your selection feel free to reach out to a magician through their website or the phone. Always leave a detailed message with as much information as possible as well as your contact information and what date you are looking for. If the magician is any good they will have many questions for you and begin the process of designing a magical experience with you.
Mahdi Gilbert is The World’s Magician and performs his magic all over the world in shows for the public and private events. As a magician who has performed all over the world, Mahdi Gilbert has a network of the best magicians in the world and can connect you with the right magician for your event.
