10 Reasons why you should book your act through The Next Stage

1	Free initial advice and a free no-obligation meeting in the comfort of your own home. We'll even bring the tea!

2

We will save you the leg-work now, so you can prepare your legs for some serious work on the dance floor!

Organising a successful event requires forward planning, research and endless phone calls. Entertainment is a big part of the day and you need to get it right to finish the night on a high. Do you really have the time to phone several different bands, hope that you can get hold of all of them, wait for their promotional material to come through, chase them up, compare their prices, and more and more and more�? If you don't, you can call us and let us send you all of that in one easy go. Sound good? Well, what's more, we have so much experience in booking entertainment, we will only send out trusted acts that we have used many times before and trust with our reputation. Of course, we understand that you want to know exactly what you are getting and for that reason, we ensure that every act booked speaks directly to the client before the date of the event.

3

We can talk the talk and walk the walk...

Let's face it. If you are a dentist, you know about teeth. If you are a lawyer, you know about law. If you are a politician�well it doesn't always work. However, The Next Stage is made up of a team of professional musicians and professional event co-ordinators. At The Next Stage every member of staff has a history in the entertainment business so we know how a good band looks, when a lead singer is in tune and whether or not the funk is fast enough.

4

Under the microscope...

We place every act under fair but critical scrutiny. All of the acts on our books are vetted by us to ensure that we only send out top quality entertainment. You can rest assured that any one of the choices offered to you will be professional, punctual and of excellent musical ability. Between us, we have vetted over 200 acts and been to over 150 events this year. We know a good band when we hear one. The Next Stage List of 25 points to get your entertainment right will make sure you do just that.

5

Sign on the dotted line...

Sometimes problems arise in this industry. However, in our experience this only happens when there is a lack of proper planning and the absence of a legally binding document. We ask our acts the questions that you may not necessarily think of, such as, "Do you have public liability insurance?", "Can you definitely learn a first dance for this wedding?" or even, "How much power does your PA system need?" We will get the answers.

6

We work away, so the bands can play!

Function bands are made up of musicians, not bureaucrats. They want to perform. Let them do their job. We'll do the contracts and receipts. We want our acts to spend less time form-filling and more time perfecting their groove, so you get a better and more focused act.

7

Money, Money, Money... Can be saved!

It's sad, but it does happen. Should your band let you down at the last minute, you need to have a Plan B. We make Plan B a part of Plan A, by ensuring that you won't be left in the lurch if there's a problem. Our acts have professional deps so that you don't have to go looking elsewhere. Keep in mind that a new last-minute booking will be more stress on top of stress and probably more money, as the demand will be greater and some amateur bands will vary their prices accordingly. At The Next Stage we monitor the prices of our acts so that you get exactly what you pay for. Every act on our books goes through an initial assessment before setting a price. This can depend on experience, equipment and repertoire to name a few of the criteria, but once this price is set it is consistent. We are fair to our bands and fair to our clients, so you can be sure to understand exactly why certain acts cost more or less than others. This means there is no opportunistic mischief at work; you will pay the same price for the same band whether it's the local church fair or the Prince's wedding reception�well, unless he's getting married in Timbuktu!

8

An office that's always manned, so that everything goes as planned!

Bands spend a lot of time on the road and more often than not are teaching, recording, or practising throughout the day, so it can be very hard to get hold of them! At The Next Stage we ensure that there are always staff present to help our clients. Our team of experts will be on hand Monday-Friday from 8.30am-6.30pm and on Saturday and Sunday between 10am and 4pm to make sure your party is a success.

9

The elusive function band...

Often clients are surprised to find that a great and popular band is actually very hard to contact. The Next Stage looks after some of the best bands in the country and they are committed to the agency and its procedures. This means that a huge number of bands simply won't be booked unless it is done through an agency. You will get exactly the same band with more assurances and be able to speak to them directly, just call us and we will arrange it all!

10

A little thank you...

At The Next Stage, we like to say Thank You. If someone you know needs entertainment of any kind from a solo pianist to a dance troupe, from a magician to a jazz band or from a belly dancer to a bagpipe player, you can recommend The Next Stage and be sure that they will be looked after. The lovely part of this is that if your recommendation leads to a booking, we will send you a cheque for �25 as a way of saying Thank You!