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Articles in the press about Danny
Archer
The Dossier:
And Poof! It's a Moneymaker
By Eleena De Lisser, Wall Street Journal article
Part of a series on creative ways entrepreneurs do business
Entrepreneur: Danny Archer
Title: Corporate Conjurer
Business: Danny Archer Magic, Denver
Web Address:
www.dannyarcher.com
What he does:
He performs customized magic tricks at corporate
meetings and seminars to drive home a business concept like teamwork,
cost-cutting, or boosting sales. "Companies want to have an exciting
meeting and they want people to remember what they've seen," says Mr.
Archer. "Using a live entertainer works, especially when you can link
the magic to their message."
Abracadabra:
For Valu-Pak, the coupon company, he does a trick
that turns paper coupons into real $5 bills. Of course he won't say
how. Many of his tricks involve "mind reading" and "mentalism," as he
explains it; they confuse one's brain and eyesight.
How he got into it:
A former computer salesman, Mr. Archer started
using magic as an icebreaker with clients. "It was getting results,"
he says. After suffering a heart attack at age 39, Mr. Archer quit
and devoted himself to being a magician full time. That was five years
ago. "To go and do tricks was a tough leap to make," he says. "I
created a magic trick that I sold, called the Eye Exam. It's a card
trick. You show four cards, one at a time, and all the backs change to
red. It's a very visual trick and eye-popping."
No top hat and tails:
Mr. Archer blends into the scenery by wearing
a business suit. His prop case is actually a small suitcase. And no,
he doesn't travel with doves, rabbits or any other live cargo. At
business meetings, he generally isn't presented as a magician but as a
sales, marketing or financial whiz. "I'm usually introduced as an
expert or executive from outside the region. If it's the West Coast,
I'm from the East Coast. If it's the East Coast, I'm from the West."
Hold that tiger!
He once got a request from a computer company to do
a trick with a tiger as the centerpiece. The jungle cat was to
represent speed and agility, two attributes the company wanted to
confer on a new product it was launching. Upon consideration, the
client got cold feet, deciding it didn't want to spend the money, at
least $6,000, to rent a real-life specimen for its button-down
meeting. So Mr. Archer improvised. He bought a toy tiger and made it
appear from a small box. "It still got the impact," Mr. Archer gloats.
"And they saved thousands of dollars."
Strangest "trick" he's been asked to perform:
A pseudo mass firing at a company dinner. The
president of the company introduced the Corporate Conjurer as his
replacement. Mr. Archer proceeded to talk about how "nobody's job is
safe." "One guy's knees buckled," Mr. Archer says. "Another guy caught
him and helped him into a chair." Sounds sadistic, but Mr. Archer
says the president got across his message of not resting on your
laurels.
Have wand will travel:
Although based in Denver, Mr. Archer spends most
of his time on the road lecturing to other magicians and performing in
front of business groups. He is currently on a seven-week tour in
California and the United Kingdom. He did about 50 corporate meetings
last year. His daily rate is a minimum $1,000 plus expenses.
Biggest misconception about magicians:
-
"They all aspire to perform in Las Vegas dressed in black spandex."
-
"People don't realize the
opportunities to use a magician in a corporate setting."
-
"Don't bother trying to get him to perform at your kid's
10th-birthday party."
Little known fact about him:
Archer is a stage name. "It keeps me in
the A's when things go alphabetically." Even his two young children
call him by his stage name. "When I've got my suit on, the kids say
'Break a leg, Danny Archer!' "
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