Un circo es un conjunto de artistas que se ganan la vida entreteniendo a la gente. Individualmente, estos artistas son maestros en lo que hacen, y cuando se unen en equipo, ofrecen un espectáculo soberbio ante el público. La mayoría de sus actuaciones son únicas. Desde realizar acrobacias increíbles hasta utilizar animales, pasando por alucinantes acrobacias, el trabajo de un circo consiste básicamente en asombrar a cualquier público. Pueden ser locales o desplazarse de un lugar a otro mientras entretienen a los juerguistas.

Ahora que ya conoce la naturaleza del negocio, es hora de que sepa qué se necesita para dirigir una empresa de circo.

Si está preparado, empecemos.

Para dirigir un negocio de circo, primero hay que tener:

1. Un plan

No basta con tener una idea. Si sabes hacia dónde te diriges, todo está en tu cabeza, el tipo de circo que quieres organizar, las actividades que vas a poner en marcha para conseguir aplausos y lágrimas. Sin duda necesitas más que eso.

Necesitas un plan de negocio infalible porque más allá del arte, es un negocio y si no lo tratas como tal, no lo va a parecer. Y ya sabes que en un negocio se obtienen beneficios y también pérdidas, que son mínimas. Si no tienes un plan, tu margen de beneficios se resentirá.

Por eso necesita un plan de empresa concreto. Este plan de negocio debe responder a preguntas críticas como:

• ¿Cuánto cuesta ponerlo en marcha y dirigirlo a tiempo completo? Dependiendo de la naturaleza de tu circo, puedes gastar menos o más. Si sólo hace acrobacias y está estacionado en un lugar, el coste será menor. Si se dedica a un arte más complejo y se desplaza de un lugar a otro, el coste será sin duda mayor.
• ¿Cuánto va a cobrar a sus espectadores y clientes? Tiene que hacer una encuesta y averiguar cuánto cobran otros circos por noche o por espectáculo. Los precios pueden variar según el lugar, el número o la hora. Tiene que averiguarlo.
• ¿Cuál es mi público objetivo? No puede actuar para todo el mundo, al menos al principio. Tiene que limitar su público a un grupo demográfico determinado. La mayoría de los circos actúan para clubes y pubs, mientras que algunos se localizan en un barrio donde actúan en cumpleaños o entretienen a familias que se dan el lujo de divertirse. Puedes optar por ser versátil, tú decides.

Estas y otras preguntas pertinentes pueden ayudarle a empezar con un sentido de dirección, objetivo y profesionalidad.

2. Una marca

Si quiere dirigir un negocio de circo, tiene que crearse una marca. Desde la elección de un nombre único hasta el diseño de un logotipo, tiene que diferenciarse de los demás. Su marca es su identidad única, que empieza por su nombre y su logotipo. Puede diseñar un logotipo que refleje el tipo de arte que hace, o uno general que incorpore varios elementos artísticos. Sea como sea, asegúrese de que es espectacular y de que no se parece en nada a otra marca.

Los colores también son importantes. Los colores que elija se reflejarán en su logotipo y en cualquier otro artículo de su marca, como las camisetas. También debe ser único para que la gente pueda identificarlo fácilmente, incluso a distancia.

3. Un equipo de ensueño

You need to assemble the team of your dreams. Now you should have a dream. The kind of performers you want, the places you will go to, the acts you will perform, and you can leverage the limitless possibilities of your imaginations.  But have dreams and all of them will be included in your business plan.

But now you need to find that dream team you have in your head.

You can choose to hunt for rising stars, pitch the idea to them, and congregate them. Then you focus on building your dream team out of them. This might take a while, a lot of patience, lots of commitment, and a lot of tolerance. In the end, you would have built your dream team from the ground up to where they shoot for the stars.

Alternatively, you can scout for already performing aficionados and pitch your idea to them. When they accept to form a circus with you, you can then discuss how you intend to share the profits. This is more like a partnership. If you are looking for your dream team via this route, you need to watch out for defectors from other circuses and woo them. However, you shouldn’t go about sweet-talking members of other circuses to join your new team. Wait for them to come out before playing your cards.

4. A Web Presence

In this time and age, any business without a web presence is hardly perceived as a serious one. You can run all the publicity yourself, but a web presence can help you reach out to your target audience faster and in a convenient way. You can reach out to thousands of people via your social media handles and redirect them to a landing page which is your website.

Your website should be elaborate on the kind of offerings you have for people who decide to pay for your entertainment. The charges should be spelled out as well, no need for them contacting you for such financial details unless they want to negotiate.

Make every detail concise and crystal clear. List your offerings with the most scintillating of them at the top, make the site easy to navigate, and keep your terms and conditions lucid enough.

You should include pictures and videos of the circus as well. You might need a copywriter to craft an about page for you, and a call to action that will be followed by the contact details of your circus.

5. A Solid Collaboration

While your brand is still in its budding stage, you need all the assistance you can get, and that can only be gotten via a worthy collaboration. This can be done with seasoned directors, choreographers, artists, and other circuses. There?s a lot of wisdom and experience that you can benefit from a collaboration.

Whether your dream team is ready or still trying to hatch out from its shell, a collaboration gives it the boost it needs to grow. There are certain angles you probably haven?t look at, there are certain perspectives you couldn?t see, and there are huge prospects you certainly aren?t aware of that the right association can expose you to.

Never underestimate the power of association when it comes to businesses. There?s a lot that an extra hand can bring to the table especially if that hand is experienced. You might want to call it partnership or mentorship, it’s a great step in the right direction for your emerging circus.

You can collaborate with as many artists as you want because they come with different styles, backgrounds, themes, and experiences to your rising show and business table. However, you need to be selective when making collaborative choices. You could often invite some artists to come to groom your team rather than going all out to collaborate. You can use your discretion here.

6. A Rare Act

Entertaining people is hardly like a walk in the park. It takes a lot of creativity, passion, and energy to get people glued to you. In an era where the rat race to make it big in any industry is at an all-time high, it demands even more creativity and fuel to get people engaged.

What?s the rare act you are bringing to the scene? What?s the distinction you are setting? Why will people leave other circuses and start paying for yours?

Do you want to start your circus and let it float generic offerings in shows that people have seen for times without number? Or you want to make a difference, get them stunned, and leave them craving for more?

These are the questions that need to be answered first before starting out. You can have all it takes to start a circus business, but this is the ultimate factor you need to keep it running. It’s the juice, the essence, the extra ingredient that changes the entire taste of your show and sets it apart from others.

If you?ve not thought about a rare act yet, it?s time to brainstorm. Think of a show that addresses the challenges inherent in a given demographic or a show that brings to the fore, certain hidden elements of societal change. Those are clues, you can brainstorm on more.

Por último

It takes a lot to run a circus business. Some you will find out mid-way into the business, and some you will learn of as you set your foot on the door. However, the aforementioned are substantial enough to get you started and meet fewer surprises on the way.

The most important factors you can?t possibly turn a blind eye to are your business plan, your dream team, your branding, a collaboration, and a rare act to keep you going.