I've never charged for DMing, though I've happily accepted free snacks. But I have paid to play, so I can share some thoughts from the consumer side. It would be interesting to here what paid DMs thing about my experiences.
First, one form of paid DMing I've seriously thought of making use of, but haven't yet, is the personal convention model. There is one group in my home town that will set up half-day, full day, and two-day weekend events for groups. It include game spaces, catering, and a DM team with custom adventures and all the terrain and gaming materials. It is quite costly, even with a group sharing the costs. But it would be a fun event for a birthday or other special occasion. I've not done it yet, because of travel and budget, but it is something I would like to do.
So far all my experience as a consumer of paid DMing is with online games.
As someone with a demanding job that requires a lot of travel and long stints away from home, often in places where it is next to impossible to find gaming groups, being able to find a game run by a prepared, engaging DM to run a game online is worth paying for.
My main problem is that I am usually looking for one-shots whereas most of the successful DMs for hire tend to only be interested in campaigns. Financially, it makes sense that DMs would want repeat customers and predictable income. But my schedule doesn't allow for that. Also, many make you go through a vetting process. Usually this involves just responding to a written questionnaire, but I've also had some DMs that also require an interview by Skype/Discord.
While I understand wanting to make sure that a player will be a good fit and that they want to make sure expectations are properly set, I doesn't sit well with me, and I've never been very comfortable with, having to go through an interview process to play in a game.
In terms of finding professional DMs running games, I've not found any good platforms for this. I've had the most success with Roll20's tools for finding games. For one-shots, however, I find it easier to find last minute pick-up games for free than any for-hire DM games. But those can be very hit or miss, with many being cancelled at the last minute.
What I would love to see would be a site set up like a gaming convention site or War Horn where there would be scheduled games and you would sign up for games that had seats. Perhaps there would be a monthly subscription or you would by passes or credits and the DMs would get paid a certain amount per player signed up for their game. Such a site would track the number number of slots available and filled and make the overall process of matching sessions to players easier.
In terms of how much I'm willing to pay, USD 3-5 an hour seems to be the sweet spot.
Why would I pay / what would I expect? Pretty much what I would expect from a DM running a convention game:
1. DMs with a solid understanding of the rules, who are a good teachers, and are evangelists for the systems they are running
I don't expect perfection, but the DM should have a good enough grasp to run the game smoothly and quickly and efficiently help new players understand what they need to know to play. They should also be excited about and enjoy the system they are running.
2. Has thoroughly prepared for the adventure
If you are charging players, this should not be the first time you ran the adventure. Or, if it is, it should not be obvious that it is.
3. Expert use of the VTT tools used
Most of my experience with paid DMs is with online games. One thing I appreciate about paid DMs is that they tend to be far more adroit with VTT tools. They help get their players up and running and they have all the maps well prepped. They know the tools well enough that they can focus on the story and running the game and keep everything running smoothly. Even with players who are new to the tool.
4. Punctuality and good time management
Paid DMs should be ready to start the game on time and they are able to run a satisfying adventure in the time allotted.
5. Setting forth expectations for behavior and the game style in the game's description
For paid-for campaigns, most paid DMs will offer the first session free, which can act as a session zero. But for one-shots, like convention games, there isn't this luxury. You need to set forth expectations regarding the content, behavior, language, maturity level, etc. in the game description. It is good to reiterate it quickly at the start of the session, but players need to know what they are signing up for before they reserve a spot.
Things that don't matter much to me, but are appreciated when the DM can pull them off:
1. Voice acting
I don't expect DMs I pay to be professional voice actors. I don't expect that I'm hiring Matt Mercer when I'm paying a few bucks an hour. I can enjoy a game just as much without any attempt at voice acting. When a DM can pull it off, it can be fun, but I don't expect it.
2. Music
Some paid DMs seem to think that they need to make use of all the bells and whistles to wow their paying players, but I find they can be distractions. When done well, it can be nice, but for me that mostly means mood music and it should not distract from the game play. It can be a nice touch, but there is a danger of it just becoming an annoying distraction.
Lastly, one pet peeve of mine is the heavy use of Discord in online gaming. Maybe I'm getting old and have finally hit upon a platform I don't get, but I really can't stand Discord. First, most VTTs have voice baked in. Having to fire up a second tool/site is annoying. Second, if the VTT's voice functionality has quality issues, there are much better options than Discord. If you are charging you should be able to afford VoIP/Web-meeting tools that don't require me to sign up for another service. Third, I just find Discord to be a confusing, busy, interface that is unpleasant to use. Lastly, I experience far more connectivity and sound quality issues with Discord than just about every other tool I use. Google Meet, Google Hangouts, Skype, Microsoft Teams, WebEx, GoToMeeting, JoinMe all are far more reliable for me than Discord.
