|
|
SMITHS' DIARY NEWSLETTER Welcome to the all new Newsletter!
Many of you are probably starting
to notice that the balance of power, female verses male, is gradually
changing in our staffing, as we not only have Stuart, who has been with us
since December '96, but now the gates have opened and allowed another one
in!!! Dan has joined our happy band of diary co-ordinators,
and what a cool man he is. 11 you've spoken to him you'll have already
experienced his calm approach on the phone that we are trying to snap him out
of but let me add to your knowledge and tell you that he is also a flugel horn player who took his degree at Southampton.
Need I say more?! Anyway, he's got a wicked sense of humour,
hey - he'd have to have working with all these women, so have a chat next
time he picks the phone up! Smith Bow Peep Has Lost A Sheep Madeleine has left the flock for
horizons new and plentiful. We say 'bon voyage' and wish her big pay cheques in her new job as assistant to Hiroshi Kato,
session fixer extraodinaire! She'll be still in
touch though, booking some of you for sessions through us, so ft's not like
we've lost a work mate just that we've gained another contact!
Present Staffing The general picture of our
staffing looks like this at the moment- Isobel - Manager Plus Louise, Alison, Anne, Gill, Helen,
Celia, Stuart, Dan, and soon to join us - Heidi in June. We are open from 8am to Midnight Seven
Days A Week, three of us on at any time in the week, and two on each shift at
the weekend! We ring out all messages within a
twenty-four hour deadline - and obviously give precedence to urgent messages
first. Most of the messages are rung out between 6pm and 8pin every evening,
so it's is not a good time for you to ring with extensive schedules!!! During the sixteen hour day we check all
of your diaries up to three times for messages to make sure that nothing can
slip through the net, so if you have a message you are sure to get it! Any contact numbers, especially fax
numbers, whether in this country or abroad, that you can give us are always
helpful for getting hold of you for those short notice mega film sessions! With our further expansion we will
obviously have more people on training. It is very hard to try and remember
all 700 clients names at first so it would make things a lot easier if you
phone in on your designated string/wind(etc) line! String Line - 01306 885411 Wind
& Others Line - 01306 889537 If you speak to a new voice at the end
of the phone - don't worry, we will not have let that person free to decide
about your work, there is a three month training period and they are
monitored every step of the way to becoming a diary babe or boy - it's no
small feat! It is also helpful if you can keep your
instructions up to date so that we can make valid judgments regarding your
work. If we fax you abroad it is also really
helpful to have any response, just so we know that you've received it. Just
pop us a note back, even if you haven't a clue about the query! Please! If you want us to get back to a
fixer you must tell us, we won't do it automatically! |
|
New Special Offer For College Leavers A new and dynamic offer for students in their last year of college or
within two years of leaving college who are intending to pursue an orchestral
career. M.A.S. are offering any young aspiring orchestral musician- 50% OFF THEIR FIRST YEARS
SUBSCRIPTION FREE TONE PAGER FOR TWO YEARS FREE ENTRY INTO OUR C.V. REFERENCE
MANUAL FREE ADVICE ON C.V. PRODUCTION FREE ADVICE ON HOW TO PROMOTE
THEIR CAREER Call Richard Smith or Isobel Collins on 01306 880669 for an info pack CV LISTING Be warned, the latest edition of
our much talked about CV reference manual update is to be published soon! If
you wish to be included in the listing you will need to hurry and let us have
your CV's - NOW! This manual is produced annually,
with updates every quarter and is becoming more and more useful to fixers as
time goes on. Consider very carefully whether this service could be
appropriate for you. If you have any doubts please give us a ring. We will be
happy to talk it through with you. Remember it's not just applicable to
people who are new on the diary service or new to the freelance world. We
have very many established players included - and what's more IT'S FREE!! A LITTLE PREJUDICE TOWARDS WOMEN As there is a lot of prejudice
against women in the profession, we thought we would create a little for
women to help balance the books. It is now policy here at MAS to give a free
quarter to any of our female clients about to have a baby. IF YOU ARE ABOUT TO HAVE A BABY, LET US KNOW - WE WILL GIVE YOU A FREE
QUARTER WHILE YOU GET OVER IT - NOT THAT YOU WILL BE FULLY RECOVERED IN ONLY
THREE MONTHS!!
Fancy A Free Orange?
If you have ever thought just how handy a mobile phone could be to
telephone the diary, contact PMC for a chat, on telephone number- 01306
740077 For Free - Orange Mobile
Phones Accessory Packs Courier Delivery See Also The Free Leaflet Enclosed For More Orange Info! |
Due to a
stampede in new clients the diary has grown to a tremendous size of nearly
seven hundred, so, in order that we can fit all your diaries under one roof
we are moving to bigger premises! We are positive that this will enrich our
service and make us even more efficient. This will be happening later this
year and we will keep you informed of any developments in this area!!!
Also, if
you have any interesting news or ideas that you think might interest others
let us know and we will fry to incorporate them into this newsletter.
|
FINANCIAL TIPS I Need a Mortgage and I am a Self-Employed Musician! With some tenders
projecting property price increase of 16% during 1997, and the possible end
to negative equity by the end of 1998, there has been a considerable amount
of renewed interest in house purchase. Robert Terrell has already seen the
re-emergence of' gazumping' as property prices
increase during the conveyancing period. With interest rates still at
long term lows, now is an excellent time to lock into a fixed rate mortgage
as interest rate are expected to increase during the next few years. As a self-employed musician, most lenders will only offer you a
mortgage equivalent to the average of your last three years' NET income. That
is the income you are taxed on, NOT your total fees received. If your accountant
is doing what he is paid for, your taxable income will be very low. However,
this causes problems when you need a mortgage. The greater the deposit you have, the more options you will have
available. it is not all doom and gloom as there are
a number of lenders, including High Street Banks and Building Societies that
can be more flexible and work on affordability as opposed to a percentage of
net income. These mortgages are not available direct to the general public,
but only through applications introduced through professional financial
planners. Graeme Blair Financial Planning Ltd, under the direction of Robert
Terrell, looks after in excess of 500 musicians, many of whom have had their
mortgages placed by Robert. Further information can be obtained by telephoning
01732 743092. TAX TIPS - interim Budget
Among the foremost of these is
higher rate relief on pension contributions. Legislation is not usually
retrospective, and it is therefore essential that a careful review is carried
out to ascertain if any unused relief from the previous six years is
available, and if so, if this can be relieved before the budget, should
higher rate relief be abolished. There is also speculation the NIC
upper limit will be scrapped in the forthcoming budget. Although this is
often referred to in the press as affecting employees, it will of course
affect all self employed people as the class IV upper limit would also be
scrapped to achieve panty with employees. We await the budget with interest! For any further information on tax enquiries contact- Mike Harding, Harding Whiteman, 36 Rose Hill, Sutton, Surrey. SM1 3EU Tel: 0181641 0102 Fax: 0181 641
4002 The Diary Bulletin Board Steve Levine's new mobile number - 0966 149398 The MAS clients listed below have
recently changed address and/or telephone numbers; please check with MAS for
details. Tonia Davall Robin Smith Kathleen Stevenson Basil Smart - is on the road to recovery! For an update on where he is call
the diary! Esther Geldard has gone freelance! |
Even the
'nest politically indifferent of us must by now have cottoned onto the fact
that we have a new Newsletter Editors -
Helen Johnson & Celia Speed
M.A.S. 173 High Street,
Dorking, Surrey. RH4 1AD