50 Ways to Make Money with Magic

by Andrew Mayne

From the ebook 50 Ways to Make Money with Magic

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50 Ways to Make Money with Magic
by Andrew Mayne

Please don’t make illegal

copies of this material!

Copyright 2004 Maynestream Productions

www.weirdthings.com

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50 Ways to Make Money with Magic
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#1 Street Magic for Fun and Profit

Businesses are always looking for new ways
to get information out about their services. On more
than one occasion you’ve probably been confronted
by a scary street person handing out flyers for auto
insurance or some other product. If street
performing is your thing, you can use your magic
skills to promote businesses by performing for
people and then handing out a flyer for their
company. You can do this by performing in one
place, waiting for a crowd to gather and then
handing out the flyer. People will be surprised by
the fact that you’re not asking for tips. Your final
effect should work in a pitch for the company and
end with a flyer in everyone’s hands. They’re much
more likely to remember what you’re selling and to
mention you to the business if they decide to go
there.
It’s a gutsy way to do magic, but it’s a way to
get paid to perform on the street, without having to
work for tips.

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#7 Holiday Themed Magic

Do you have a Christmas show? How about a
Hanukah show? Do you do anything special for
Halloween? Instead of trying to sell the same act to a
different people at all times of the year, come up with
different themes you can sell to existing customers.
The people that hire you to perform for their open
house might like to bring you back to do your Halloween
show. If you’re in a market with a lot of other magicians,
differentiate yourself by being topical. Most magicians
just have one act. Have several that feature different
themes. This gives you more product to offer, and
increases the chance that your potential customers
will see something they like. Saying you can do
mentalism or escapes, isn’t as marketable as saying
you’ve got a really fun Christmas themed show. People
have a much easier time imagining how they can utilize
that (for their Christmas part) than imagining what
they’d do with an escape artist.
Photos of what the show looks like will help your
clients better understand what the theme will mean.
If it’s a Halloween show, use Halloween props, etc.

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#18 The Magic-Gram

Instead of performing shows for groups of
people, you can use your skills as a magician to
deliver messages to an individual. A Magic-Gram is
a version of a singing telegram where you perform a
trick for someone and then deliver a message. This
can be for birthdays, anniversaries or other special
occasions. You can offer special services like
producing flowers at the end of the effect. Your
clients would be people who are looking to surprise
someone with something different. You can talk to a
flower shop about setting up an arrangement where
they can offer your services to customers who are
looking for “something different”.
The magic should be quick and flashy. In most
case you would want to look like an exaggerated
caricature of a magician. The point of it is to surprise
the person with your presence, your magic, and your
message.

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#22 Open House Magician

Almost everyday, some business near you is
throwing an event to attract people, and to inform
customers about their services. You can provide two
unique services for these businesses; you can
entertain their guests, and you can entertain their
children while their salespeople talk to the parents.
All too often magicians miss out on the most effective
ways to sell their skills. If it’s a business that wants to
promote its services, they often don’t want to cloud
their message with a magic show. However, the idea
of having a magician to entertain people while they
wait to take a tour of a model home, is one that a
businessperson can put a value on. Your goal is to
help them keep customers. Like working the line at a
restaurant, you can help them keep potential clients
around.
Pick up your paper, and look to see what
businesses have scheduled open houses. Look and
see what homebuilders are planning to showcase
new homes. Call them up, or visit in person and offer
them a way to increase their sales. Remember, too
often magicians make the mistake of trying to sell
their services by presenting magic as a way to attract
customers. This is often a mistake. You should offer
magic as a way to turn customers into sales.

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#31 Children’s Theatre

If your city has a children’s theatre that
specializes in putting on shows for young people,
you might want to talk to them about the possibility
of using your show as one of their events. On a
weekend that they might normally be dark, you can
offer another reason for their members to come to
the theatre. You can split the door and make some
cash. You can also put yourself in front of lots of
parents and increase your birthday party bookings.
Another benefit is the opportunity to work with people
that have an interest in entertaining. You’ll probable
find several people willing to work as assistants and
helpers who already have theatrical experience.
Sometimes the children’s theatre is part of a
larger theatre program. You might find that working
with the children’s theatre opens up other
opportunities (like getting you access to the bigger
stages in town).

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Finally…

I hope this got you thinking about

how you can make more money
with magic!

Best,

Andrew Mayne

www.weirdthings.com

Andrew Mayne is the author of several dozen books and

manuscripts on magic. He’s toured world-wide with his illusion
show and can currently be seen on television in Wizard School.

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