Agents
George O'Brien - Arizona Correspondent
This is a series of articles on building an Irish/Celtic band in Arizona.
Part 1 "Do You Really Want To Be A Professional Musician?" and "Do You Really Want To Do Irish Music?"
Part 2 "Can You Fill The Role Of Band Leader?" Who Is Going To Handle The Operational Tasks Of The Band?
Part 3 "What Kind Of Irish/Celtic Band Do You Want To Build?" and "What Performance Style Should You Have?"
Part 4 "Who Should Be In The Band?"
Part 5 "What Is Your Repertoire?"
Part 6 "Do You Have Stage Presence?"
Part 7 "Do You Have The Equipment To Run A Band?"
Part 8 "How Will You Find Your First Gig?"
Part 9 "How Do You Plan To Build Your Fan Base?"
Part 10 "Do You Have Media/Marketing Kit?"
Part 11 " Who Is Your Target Market?"
Part 12 "Are You Prepared To Become A Pub Band?" And "How Do You Get The Attention Of The Pub Owner" and "How Do Rock Venues Differ From Irish Pubs?"
Part 13 "How Do We Make A Cd To Sell?"SHOULD WE GET AN AGENT?
One of the most complex issues facing start-up bands is whether they should get an "agent." Some local bands have had good success with agents while others have been very dissatisfied. While every situation is different, there are some guidelines bands should use when considering an agent.
WHY DO MOST AGENTS FAIL: The reason most bands want to have an agent in the first place is because marketing the band is hard work. The reason most agents fail is because marketing the band is hard work -- more work than they are willing to do.
The key to making the relationship a success is by establishing a clear outline of what the agent should be doing and what the agent will not be doing. No matter what the overall relationship is between the agent and the band, the relationship is a business relationship and must be treated as such. This means written contracts, explicit reporting of activities, and detailed accounting of expenses. Behind every failure is a breakdown in expectations.
TYPES OF AGENTS
There is vast range of agents from "Contact Agents" to full fledged Producers. The type of agent will depend on the goals of the band and where they are in the development cycle. A start up band is unlikely to need a world class producer agent unless the players all came from famous bands such as happened when the Irish band Lunasa was started.
In most cases, startup bands will use band members to perform the role of an agent. The use of outside people happens only when there are good reasons to do so.
CONTACT PERSON - The simplest form of support is to have someone serve as the "Contact" person for the band. This means keeping up the band schedule, answering and returning telephone calls and e-mails, making sure the band is available, and letting the venue booking person know they are available. This works best for bands that play a regular collection of venues such as pubs or contradance events so there is no need to negotiate money.
It is rare for the contact person to be paid very much. The job is not terribly time consuming, but it requires someone with a cell phone or pager that can respond quickly to inquiries. Someone with a job that prevents accepting calls or takes the person out of town is probably not a good choice for this job. Many gigs will be given to the first band that responds, so someone who does not return phone calls hurts the band.
BOOKING AGENT - The booking agent does everything the Contact Person does, but has a lot more responsibility. This includes putting together the media kit, calling on the venue clients, sending out letters to prospective clients, negotiating terms with the client, and collecting the fee. A real booking agent should be able to sign contracts, although it is not uncommon for them only be allowed to issue "letters of agreement" that precede the formal signing of the contract.
Setting fees is a very complex process. Band will often have a different fee for a pub than for a wedding, for mid week gigs versus weekend gigs, for corporate events versus regular venues, etc. The booking agent must have a clear idea as to what the band is willing to do. The first time the agent agrees to a booking that the band vetoes, the agent might as well resign.
Most booking agents usually get fired because the band does not feel the agent is doing his/her job. Paying an agent for gigs that were generated by band members is a recurring problem with pub bands. Some of this can be solved by paying the agent less for "house accounts" such as the Irish pubs or only for gigs generated by the agent.
Another problem arises when the agent represents more than one band. This can be a messy affair when one band feels the agent is working harder for one band versus another. Unfortunately, it is easier to find gigs for established bands than startup bands, so the agent is likely to push the easier to sell band. All of this can avoided by developing a clear understanding of what the agent is doing and how the band is being marketed. None the less, it is something that should be addressed right from the start.
BUSINESS MANAGER - The term "business manager" has somewhat different meanings in different contexts. For a major touring band, this person handles everything the contact person and the booking agent does, plus he/she pays the bills, handles travel and lodging arrangements, etc. Often the business manager directs the processing of the CD's and printing of shirts and the like. This person has a tremendous amount of responsibility, so it is essential that this person has the total trust of the entire band.
Local bands are unlikely to justify having a business manager, but once they decide to tour it becomes an important option. The music industry is loaded with stories of bands being ripped off by their business managers, so it is crucial that the work of this person be monitored and even audited.
PRODUCER/MANAGER - In the movie, The Commitments, the band was organized by a guy who recruited the players, defined what the band would sound like, and organized the rehearsals. His role was that of a "producer/manager", although I am sure there are a variety of other titles this role can be given.
On the Irish music scene, it is extremely rare to see "producer/managers" outside of the extreme elite where people such as Donal Lunny and Seamus Egan have helped put together bands they did not play in and produced their recordings. The reason these guys can do this is because they are widely respected performance stars in their own right. Irish is not like rock or country/western where industry guru's routinely create bands from scratch.
Some Business Managers and Booking Agents will give their input into the way they think the bans should sound. This is not the same as with a Producer/Manager who has the authority to actually change the way the band sounds.
MANAGING THE AGENT
As previously mentioned, the main problem bands have is when their agent does not do what is promised. In practical terms, agents have to be managed the same as outside sales representatives. This means the following:
SET UP A PLAN FOR EACH WEEK - This may mean visiting a certain set of venues, making a certain number of phone calls, sending out a certain number of letters, etc.
SET UP A REPORTING PROCESS - This means documenting what steps were made on the achieving the goals set in the plan as well as reporting on what the feedback was on the contacts made.
Test the System - Ask friends to call the agent to determine how quickly the agent returns the call. Contact people the agent supposedly talked to in order to verify if the contact was actually made.
MEET WITH THE AGENT OFTEN - It is easy for problems to fester if there is not opportunity to discuss issues in a timely manner. Concerns should be addressed and resolved before a blowup occurs.
[This is the 14th in the series "On Building an Irish Band in Arizona"]
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