GET BOOKED by Benji Bruce

Get Booked is a book from Colorado Springs based mentalist Benji Bruce on how to get gigs, available in both e-book and hardcopy formats. Over the years I’ve read lots of books and posts in forums, as well as watched DVDs and talked with other entrepreneurs on how to create a solid business in the magic market. A few good ideas here and there, but nothing that—for me—ever formulated into “the perfect plan.”

What Bruce presents in his book is a full “battle plan” on how to take your magic business from concept to full-throttle machine. This is a complete blueprint on how Bruce went from restaurant performer working occasional private gigs, to full-time corporate performer charging high-end fees. And in a much quicker time than it seems to take the majority.

Bruce holds nothing back in his book, giving detailed advice and examples on business cards, website design, and even sample (anonymous) emails of correspondence with potential clients turned clients. The real meat of the book is in the advice Bruce offers on copywriting, social proofing, and the importance of taking action. Unlike many books, which simply present ideas that leave the reader to figure out how to put them into action, Bruce provides examples of the exact steps he himself took to turn his ideas into action, leaving the reader few to no questions about what he should do when he’s done reading the book. Other topics Bruce covers are hotel crashing, the importance of testimonials and how to get them, phone scripts, pricing, how to perform like a businessman to increase bookings, and time management. Bruce also puts a heavy emphasis on inspiring the reader to take the battle plan he’s presenting and really put into action. “Everything you do today is for tomorrow,” says Bruce.

What I enjoyed about Benji Bruce’s book is the thoroughness he put into delivering the information and the focus on he kept on presenting practical and valuable advice on building a successful magic business and how to generate gigs. Bruce is someone who is walking the walk and not just talking the talk, and he has the credentials to show. Whether you’re someone just considering starting to perform paid gigs, or a seasoned pro looking to pull in more gigs at higher prices, the information is all here from the groundwork up. I’ve already used some of the advice in Bruce’s book to secure the highest paid contract I’ve ever gotten.

Everything is here.