How to make more money while working as a Hotel Entertainer

“The profession of Hotel Entertainment is magical. It opens many inaccessible doors.” ~Piotr Muszynski The most important rule of this chapter is “WIN & WIN.” Of course, it means that everyone wins! *Attention! Not everything I’m going to share will be allowed, due to varying rules in different hotels. Remember: The knowledge I’m providing is meant to be your responsibility.

 
1. How to Ask for a Pay Raise 
Did you know that the average entertainer almost never asks for a raise? What’s the maximum amount that you can ask for? Here is some advice. It doesn’t have to be a big raise to start with. You can ask for fifty or a hundred euros more per month. Multiply fifty EUROS by twelve months and that’s an extra six hundred euros. That kind of money can buy you a one-way ticket to your dream city in Europe. On six different occasions I have asked for a raise and 5 times I got an increase in my salary. These are personal tips which have worked for me: Before you ask for a raise, you have to think about what you can do to get it. I am going to introduce you to the few points you need to remember while you are talking to your supervisor: 
  • The quality of your work is very important. If hotel guests positively mention your name in the comments or on websites (such as TripAdvisor, Booking or Facebook) it can be a great help. You can copy these comments and attach them to your email or print them and give them to your boss directly. If the director or manager is satisfied with your work kindly ask them to put that in writing. Don’t forget most hotels have their own form of scoring the entertainment team.  You can use those results to prove that you’re doing a great job and deserve a raise. 
  • Your experience and the languages you speak. For example, I completed a Zumba and sports instructor course. So, I can get extra money for my qualifications. Also I speak four foreign languages, it’s always a strong argument toward negotiating your salary.
  • Duration of work in the company. If you’ve just started your career and accepted the contract’s terms you have to wait a minimum of three months before being able to ask for a raise. You should use the first 3 months of work to show your value to the company. It’s also very important to show your supervisor that you are willing to continue working with them in the future. This will help in gaining more trust and help in getting a raise.
 

If you’re working for a demanding manager (who doesn’t want to spend a penny on animation), then everything in the hotel you’re representing is old. You still stand on your head to make everything work as it should. So, use these arguments to prove your point that you should get a pay rise. Sometimes companies prefer to pay an additional fifty or one hundred euros per month. This keeps a valuable animator, instead of risking that a newly hired person wouldn’t be suitable for the job position. This point of view will help you to write an email to the company or make an appointment for a pay raise. Therefore, you’ll be appreciated. Now let us move on to making an appointment for receiving a higher salary. (I wrote this kind of message to representatives of the company for which I’ve worked for and it turned out very well. I received a raise of a hundred euros per month.) First, ask the coordinator or the owner of the company for a meeting. You don’t have to tell him why instead say the topic of conversation is not meant for a phone call. I highly recommend speaking face-to-face with your boss or the company’s owner, because by doing this, you’ll have a much better chance for success. Sometimes it can be difficult to get a chance for this kind of meeting. (Often it’s due to distance.) In these types of cases, I prepared an example email you could write. You’re probably guessing that this is much easier and less stressful. Although, there’s another side of the coin. It’s easier to refuse your request by email. Here you can see how I wrote down my thoughts: 

         Good Morning Mr. Boss, 
First, I’d like to thank you for the job at the Hotel Parque Tropical. I’m grateful for the opportunity to work here. I’ve decided to write to you because I would like to ask for a pay raise. I would like to receive an increase of a hundred euros per month. Here are some arguments to prove that I’m working hard and deserve this kind of gratitude. I’d like to point out that when I started working here the results of the animation departments score were around six out of ten. After three months, the score went up to nine out of ten. Now there are many positive comments about Parque Tropical Hotel’s animation. What’s more important is that the hotel manager has repeatedly congratulated me for excellent participation in my activities and that the guests are happy. I would also like to attach photos of two new activities which were introduced to the hotel: yoga and nordic walking. Every day, I put my heart and time into making sure that the hotel guests and management are satisfied with my work. This increased salary will be an additional motivation for me to continue cooperation with your company. 
 
Yours faithfully, Piotr Muszynski (Head of Animation at Parque Tropical Hotel) 
 
This was just an example. Add something about yourself, which makes your message sound natural. (Remember to be authentic.) Show facts and be honest. If you’re doing a good job then you are “entitled” to a raise.
Good luck! If your employer agrees – congratulations! If your employer refuses – ask what has to happen to get a raise. Maybe it’s dependent on additional responsibilities. 
 
2. Excursions 
Years of practice have taught me that if you want to sell something successfully, you have to like what you’re selling. If I have been on an excursion that I enjoyed myself it becomes much easier to recommend it to others. You’re working in an environment where many tourists talk to you every day. They are there to simply have fun. As time goes by, they’re starting to trust you – watch out! “Trust” is a keyword keyword when it comes to sales. If you want to offer someone something then you must be a person they trust. I wanted to do many excursions and attractions during my time in entertainment that I could not afford. That’s why I came up with a simple plan – in return for letting me into some of the mentioned places, I would promote their attractions to others. Follow my suggestions and maybe you will be able to go on excursions for free! First, use a web browser, for example, Google and search for the nearest tourists attractions. These can include aquaparks, cruise trips and other similar recreational activities. It’s important to find attractions that you’re interested in. I’m trying to contact someone from their marketing department. Most of the websites have this type of information like a phone number, Facebook page, email address. You can use that information to contact them. Most excursions and attractions have a certain amount of free tickets to give away to promoters and you could be one of them. As I’ve stated, all you need is to get a phone number to get started. I prefer to do it the following way: I call and introduce myself. I say that I would like to talk to a person who promotes a given service. Usually, the person answering asks me why I am interested in their offer, as well as on what scale I would like to cooperate. Then I introduced myself very often as a chief entertainer, arranging a trip not only for myself but also for my whole team. It always worked! I took with me five or six people who were extremely grateful to me for organizing a free entrance. After that conversation, I received a free entrance to Aqualand and that’s how I spent some of my days off enjoying free excursions.
 
Here is an example of what a message could look like: 
Good morning, 
My name is (your name and surname). I’m a chief entertainer (or an entertainer) in the hotel (the name of the resort). I’d like to cooperate  with your company because I think I can promote your attraction to the guests in my hotel. Every day tourists ask which places or attractions are worth visiting and I would like to promote you. I’d like to ask about the possibility of receiving one free entrance to your facility so I can test your attractions by myself. I’m going to take a lot of pictures and videos to be able to show to others in the future. I hope that you will agree to cooperate. Please, send me your email address or a phone number to discuss more details. I’m looking forward to your response. (You can give your phone number or email address where they can send you an invitation.) 
 
Best regards, Animation team (Write your name, surname and the hotel for which you are working)
 
Add a photo of you with clients if you have any.) Most of the business owners agree to these kinds of agreements because they also profit from them. It’s especially profitable when the hotel where you work is nearby. In this case, your chances of success increase significantly. Personally, I brought clients to more than forty different attractions: everything from dolphin tours, catamaran trips, and horseback riding. 
Now it’s your turn to try it out!
 
3. Night Clubs’ Free Drinks 
I remember it as if it happened today. I landed in beautiful Greece. I went there to start a new job as an entertainer at the Mikri Poli Hotel. I started having amazing connections with hotel guests, and everyone started to get to know me. As time went by, tourists were asking me to have a drink with them outside of work. This is where the adventure began. It started with free entrances to the nightclubs and invitations to big parties on the beach in exchange for bringing hotel guests. I took the first group of people (my four new friends) to a bar called Status. When the bartender saw that I brought new people to his place, he came up to me and we had an interesting conversation. He was curious to find out what my job was and wanted to get to know me better. Of course, I introduced myself and told him that I’m from Poland and am working as a hotel entertainer. After hearing that, he offered me a drink and I asked for a Jack Daniels with Coke. Right after that conversation, I had an idea. Every time I go out I will start bringing people with me who want to party and bring them to the bar Status in exchange for free drinks. As a result of that, I was able to drink for free during my time there. Don’t forget I was only earning 600€/month and this gave me the opportunity to save my money and still enjoy a good time out while making new friends..
 
4.Boat Party 
When I finished being a hotel entertainer I started looking for other opportunities. It wasn’t long before I started to sell boat parties. I know people who make a good amount of money selling boat parties especially in places like Mallorca or Ibiza. These boat parties I’m talking about take place on a Catamaran during the summer months all over Spain. These boat parties are a great opportunity for you to earn some money by recommending them to guests.
 
5. Tips from Clients and Magic Box 
I worked in fifteen different animation teams and everywhere the tips were divided differently. For example, some people left a tip specifically for me and other times the money was to be split between the team. In some hotels, we had a special box in the backstage that was used to collect the money given to us by the guests. When the “money box” filled up we usually went out for a team dinner. Which I thought was a brilliant idea! During my season in Malaga, most of the tips were left by older guests. During my yoga, stretching, and Pilates classes, I had a small Magic Box on the table in the corner of the room. It had a picture of one of my dreams on the front for which I was collecting the money. It has had the world thank you written on it in multiple languages. The magic box brought in a lot more tips than if I didn’t have it out. Most of the people who go on holiday to an entertainment hotel think that we were earning a good salary. While in reality, we were earning one of the lowest salaries from all the employees in the hotel. So the magic box was an opportunity for us to earn a little more money. 
 
6. Create Extra Products 
You have to remember that there are hotels where selling anything is strictly prohibited. You can offer the hotel an extra way of earning income. This profit can be shared fifty-fifty. If you explain correctly how you will share the extra income, then it should not be a problem. Still, it’s always better to first ask the manager if you can do that kind of activity. Mini-disco CDs – This is one way you can earn some extra money. Some hotels let us sell mini-disco CDs from our company to the guests and by doing that we generated a little extra income. T-shirt painting – This is probably the easiest way to make a little extra money and it’s a great activity that kids love. The whole process is quite simple. We printed black and white pictures of famous characters and animals. After printing the stencils it’s important that they are laminated so that they can be reused. Then we put the laminated stencil under the T-shirt and fastened it. Now we are ready to outline the contour of the picture with a black marker. After that, the kids are ready to paint! 
 
Write your own eBook – Write about entertainment or a topic you love. This eBook is a great example. If you would like to write your own book in 90 days and publish it within 24 hours on amazon, book with me a free 15 min phone call on Wednesday, to see if we can help you.

Muszynski, Piotr. Hotel Entertainment: Tips & Tricks – How to become a great entertainer, make more money and become true leader!

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