In a message dated 3/8/2007 11:06:24 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, John Doe writes:

Dale,
You need to create special pricing for me otherwise I have no financial opportunity or incentive to book you on my events. All vendors in this business create wholesale pricing which would allow me or anyone else to offer the same prices found by coming across your website. Also, I would then be able to sell you as yourself and not just some generic caricaturist which would prevent clients from you looking for you directly.
Thanks,
John Doe

Doe's Entertainment Music, Lighting & Video
212.555.7790 Office 212.555.6265 Fax

Dear John,
Thanks for writing. I know there are some contractors out there desperate or stupid enough to give discounts to agents. They enable the establishment of that precedent and you may not even be aware of how unadvisable it would be for me to do the same. I want you to know there are no hard feelings here. You may have no intention of doing anything unfair.

Meanwhile, I give no discounts to anyone as a rule. You will not be an exception. It's nothing personal. This is only how I judge the best way to conduct my business. There are always some people who tell me they should get a discount, I always refuse, and somehow I still pay my bills.

Believe it or not, there are always some other agents who somehow do bring me business without getting a discount. Either way, I do enough direct booking myself not to depend on anyone else, ever. It doesn't make sense for me to compete with myself, which is what you're asking me to do. Only a fool does that. My mother didn't raise any fools. However, most of my colleagues frankly are fools who depend on marketing themselves to agents. Thank God I've never operated by that method. By the way, fools are not the most dependable, experienced, skillful & charming people to do business with. You get what you pay for. You know that.

I sent you that eMail not because I need work, but because I want to avoid what happened recently when someone called me AFTER quoting their customer based on my prices from the previous century. This is only part of my policy of trying to take care of clients as best I can. However, this policy does not include fiscal irresponsibility.

I work with people like you when someone doesn't want to make all the phone calls themselves. They are too busy & have money to burn, so they ask you to plan everything for them. Those people can afford to pay you & me fairly. Those are your customers. You've earned them.

On the other hand, people who have the time to shop around & make all their own phone calls or eMails are my customers. Anyone who wants to compete with me for them has to do what I do. They have to work hard and forget about asking me for special favors. Who does me any favors? Agents used to provide me with good directions in the old days. Now, many do not at all or they only send Mapquest.com directions (only after I ask) which are often terrible. Agents hardly seem to want to do anything to actually earn their cut anymore.

I know it's standard practice for agents to prohibit contractors from handing out their own business cards at these events, but I never have rewarded that policy with a discount and I never will.

Have a great year. Despite what you said, it actually is possible for you to occasionally book me & make an amazing impression on people. Either way, good luck and be well.
Dale
917 443-8787