“How soon should I book you?” The answer is yes.
Conference attendees get warmed up during Danger Boat’s session (Jan. 15, 2016)
“How soon should I book you?” The answer is yes.
Booking Trends: When Clients Hire Us
Fall is a busy time of year for us. Colleges are back in session, election season picks up in earnest, and everyone decides to finally hold that conference they were putting off all summer long. For us, that means we’re in high demand for events and we’re often double or even triple booking ourselves.
That also means that when people reach out to book us for their really awesome event that's happening in two weeks, we can't always swing it. And we really want to swing it!
We recently looked through data from the past 13 years of Danger Boat shows and workshops to figure out how many days, weeks, or months before an event our clients typically sign a contract. While not our full dataset, it included contracts from 2013-2026 representing 160 Shows, including our Laughing Matters, Improv Cafe, and conference recap performances, along with 32 workshops.
Here’s what we found:
23.1% of clients booked us within 27 days of the event
29.7% book us 27-54 days before an event
27.5% book us 54-108 days before an event
19.8% book us 109-324 days before an event.
In other words, more than half of our clients book us less than two months before their event. Nothing motivates event planning like a deadline.
Danger Boat is primarily an inbound marketing business. That means we are not usually making cold sales calls or doing direct outreach. Instead, people contact us when they’re looking for a creative event experience, an improv-based workshop, a keynote, or a way to make a conference more engaging.
Our shows and workshops that we do can be hard to fully understand on paper. But when people experience them in person, they get it. A live improv performance, a thoughtful workshop, or a funny keynote tends to stick with the audience. Later, when they are planning an event of their own, they often reach out to “those improvisers they saw that one time at that one conference.”
That also means when we look at our calendar six months out, we might only have a few events booked. In the past, that made us nervous. But after looking at the data, we know that our clients are working on many different timelines. A large share of them will not contact us until they are within two months of their event date.
So now we still panic, but we do it more professionally.
When Is Our Busy Season?
Over time, we have learned when our busiest seasons tend to be. There are always some fluctuations from year to year, but we can reliably predict when demand will be highest.
That helps us communicate clearly with clients and set expectations for ourselves. If someone is interested in a date but not ready to lock it in, we’ll put a hold on the calendar and give them first right of refusal. But if another client is ready to sign a contract, confirm the date, and meet our pricing for the same date, we need to move forward.
This data also lets us know when to be firm on price and when we have more flexibility. For example, if someone asks about booking us in September or October, but has a smaller budget, we feel more confident saying no. Our historical data that tells us another client will be reaching out as the date gets closer.
How We Prepare for Short Timelines
Because so many clients book within a relatively short window, our operations have to be ready to move quickly.
We have built our systems around that reality. We maintain a standing cast of 23 performers, which gives us a wide range of skills, backgrounds, and schedule availability. We hold monthly rehearsals focused on broad themes and performance skills, rather than preparing for individual events.
That means when clients call, we are not starting from scratch.
The same is true for our workshops. We have several improv-based workshops that are built to be adaptable. In many cases, they’re intentionally over-developed, so that we can tailor them to different audiences, goals, and event formats while making the experience feel customized.
Once We Book an Event
We have been doing this long enough that most shows and workshops do not require a long planning process. For many events, we need only one intake meeting to understand your goals, one or two planning meetings to prepare, and then a handful of emails to confirm details.
Behind the scenes, we start checking performer availability, identifying a lead for the event, and building a cast that fits the needs of your audience. Once the team is confirmed, we plug the details into internal templates so everyone has the information they need in advance.
We also check whether there are any custom materials that are needed. If we can adapt something we’ve used before, we will. Other times, we make tweaks to existing materials to fit the specific needs and goals of our clients. In addition to these materials, we send a link to our Communications Kit, which includes events, photos, logos and sample introductions you can use on the day of the event. Much of this is ready to go (i.e. you can plug a description straight into the program), which makes the process easier for your team.
Do We Have Rush Fees?
Outside of our busiest months, especially September and October, we can often prepare a show or workshop in less than 30 days.
We have also pulled off much faster turnarounds. We have flown to Georgia for a two-day conference with only 25 days notice. We have even produced a full show in less than seven days.
That said, extremely short timelines put extra pressure on our systems. To make them work, we may need to hire additional contractors, increase cast pay, or shift staff time quickly. For that reason, we charge rush fees for certain last-minute bookings.
Rush fees can range from a 50-100% increase on our regular pricing, depending on the scope of the work, the event date, travel needs, and how quickly we need to move.
Conclusion
The good news is this: you do not always need to book Danger Boat six months in advance. We have built our team, systems, and creative process to handle event timelines that move quickly.
But the earlier you reach out, the more options you will have. Advance booking gives us more flexibility with casting, customization, planning, and pricing. Last-minute bookings are often possible, but they may come with rush fees or limited availability, especially during our busiest seasons.
So if you're wondering how early you should reach out to book us, the answer is yes. No matter what kind of event you're planning — a conference, staff retreat, keynote, or workshop — we will work with you to make it engaging, funny, thoughtful, and memorable. Especially if we have ample time to plan.
