party contracts and tips, help please?

Yay! I just fot my first booking (from a non family member) for a birthday party. Does anybody have a sample contract I can review?

How about any tips for making it run smoother? Do you have a standard email you send to moms with a set of standards/guidelines/what to expect?

Thank you so very much!!!

Summer

I don't use a contract so I don't have one for you to view - although some people swear by then - here in Australia most people wouldn't be bothered to get them back to you....

The only rundown the mum's get from me is how many kids I paint within the booked time - whether they can supply a table for me or not - and how and when they are to pay me.... I used to ask if there was a theme but experience has showed me the kids never stay in theme.

If you get there and are inundated with kids - paint the birthday kid first - allow them to pick the next kid and then get the others to line up and get numbers.... they will not come back in their numbers so basicly this is just to keep them happy so they don't spend the whole party waiting in line.... I always paint the kid that hangs around rather then keep them waiting while I call out for a number who's too busy playing to come.
Try no to be to nervous....
kids are like animals in that they can feel your confidence - or lack of it.
Blame your shaking hands on being really rushed that day and excited about the party.
Other then that - have fun! It's face painting and all the kids will love it no matter how you feel about it - I promise.

Tash wrote:Try no to be to nervous....
kids are like animals in that they can feel your confidence - or lack of it.

And then they'll attack!!!!

I didn't do bday contracts up until last year when I got burned on 3 parties. I showed up at one, left my family at the campground to attend the party, approached the hostess and she responded with "oh, didn't anyone call you? We don't need a face painter anymore." I had talked to her two days before and been in contact with her eight times in total prior to party day. That was the final straw for me.

I just use a basic; party date..........., artist will arrive..........., expectation for artist............., stipulations of artist................, deposit required..............., payment required in full on day of party............

I scoured the web and looked at lots of other face painters' contracts on their websites and took which elements I liked and then reworded them to suit me. I made sure to keep the contract to one page. I saw several online that were pages and pages and i thought if i hired an entertainer for my kid's party and received a six-page contract I would probably be suspicious and annoyed.

Contracts are very important for your protection as a business. If there was ever a dispute over your services as to what was or was not promised or what the agreed upon rate or the protection terms, you would have nothing to prove your case. Their word against yours. the contracts is both for the benefit of the customer, but moreso for yourself. It is also a physical back up record of how many jobs you worked for tax purposes.

I give the client a choice of doing a hard copy thru the mail or an email copy, either way the terms and agreement are documented.

Do you have a standard list of guidlines you email to the client? Ie, I need 6 ft of space in a corner, you have to wrangle the line, ...?

Shannon Fennell wrote:

Tash wrote:Try no to be to nervous....
kids are like animals in that they can feel your confidence - or lack of it.

And then they'll attack!!!!

LOL - so true on both counts