Mobile DJ Associations Trade shows for DJs Website advertising for DJs are they worth it?

                                               There are many forms of marketing and advertising but you have to decide what kinds work and what kinds waste your money. Are you into internet marketing, word of mouth, trade shows for entertainers, associations that cater to entertainers mailing advertisements. You may want to stick with 2-3 forms of advertising as it could burn you out trying to market every way in existence. Find out from your customers how they found out about you. It's good to add this onto your contract or inquiry form on your website.

                                               Bridal shows and trade shows for mobile DJs have become increasingly competitive over the years. Bridal shows have several mobile DJs, photographers and vendors competing for that customer. If you're really good at sales, speaking with people in person and know how to close deals than bridal & trade shows might be for you. If you get 60-100 brides in the door and are able to close about 5-10 weddings either during or after the show than you've managed to make a profit and get your money recouped. The bridal shows normally give you a list of the brides contact info after the show that way you can follow up with them. After 2 shows you'll know whether it's worth it or not. If you spend $900 on a booth at a bridal or trade show and only book 2-3 events out of it then it may not be worth it to you. Especially if you have several other DJs competing as well. Many top DJs have told me that getting into the much larger bridal shows have made them a profit. I beg to differ in some instances. Some of the smaller shows at local country clubs or smaller hotel chains have actually proven to be more successful. I will tell you why......

                                                 The best idea you can do to get your foot in the door is find a bridal show that's fairly new. Find out about performing the music for their fashion show. Don't charge for the time you do it but possibly ask for a discounted price in exchange for providing the entertainment throughout the show. It doesn't matter whether it's a show for weddings, sweet 16s or Mitzvahs. Being able to show off your talent at the actual show will generate double the bookings as with having just a booth. Another amazing idea is have a spinning wheel or way to win a prize at your booth. Potential customers LOVE ways to win free stuff. Raffle off a half price wedding even a free one if you get their information. You can do other prizes such as free bubble machine, fog machine, uplighting, etc. Offering some freebies is always an attention getter! If you try a trade show you'll know soon after if it was worth your time. 

                                                 What about those association and large event advertising companies such as; weddingwire, perfect wedding guide, party pop, wedding entertainer associations, mba or mobile dj assocations. Are those really worth it? On boards all over the place you'll read YES, NO, Sometimes, blah blah blah. You can disagree or agree with the opinions of these different services. About 2 out of 10 associations actually matter to a customer. You can have 50 badges on your website that say best DJ of 2013, top wedding vendor 2 years in a row, etc. Customers are looking for a benefit of actually hiring you. Registering with a School board in your area is a major plus, a Chamber of Commerce is another great place (it shows you care about your community), and amazing reviews that your customers give you can do wonders. Have your customers write a review about you. List them all on your website along with showing that you're licensed, liability insured and school board approved. This will generate a lot of extra work for you. Maybe listing top wedding dj of the year on your website actually works. The only way you know is by asking. Some of these event website like weddingwire.com are outrageous and spending that $500 or $1000 a year to get 5-10 excellent leads may or may not be worth it to you.
 
                                                 So look back on the different areas that provided you with leads to customers. Do you get business from party planners? Do you get business from bridal magazines or associations? Maybe all you need is a great business card and a website. Whatever 2 or 3 advertising incentives that generate the most leads are worth it to you. Associations & vendor websites are like car dealers. They are going to guarantee an amazing product but are you getting the results that pay the cost and give you a profit?

- Billman

DJ Stuart FL 

Xfinite Radio Streaming

A Short Post on DJ Equipment for weddings parties school dances and more

                                         Hello all you web surfers and mobile disc jockeys! Deciding on what kind of a DJ you want to be is a key factor in what kinds of equipment you want to invest your money in. After all, there is a major difference between buying cheap radio shack equipment and dj gear that will keep the party going all night long without interuption. Having the right gear for the right event is essential to accommodating the size of the crowd, size of the venue and how technical your agenda is. 

                                         Everyone's opinion of the best equipment is different, but until you've tried just about everything than you may not have as much expertise on equipment. I have tried just about every brand and model on the market. From microphones to amplifiers and speakers to CD decks. There are numerous factors to consider when buying equipment. What kinds of events are you going to specialize in? What size events are you going to specialize in? Are you an extremely interactive DJ or are you more behind the scenes? Are you going to be performing at school dances or small to medium sweet 16s?

                                         The top DJ equipment brands in the industry are Crown, QSC, JBL, Peavey, Pioneer, Nady, Shure, Chauvet, Gemini, Numark, American DJ, and several others I haven't mentioned. But in sales and popularity these brands have been the most used in the industry. If you're going for the club style, prom dj setup than a popular system is 2 pioneer CD decks (most models do the job) or a numark ns6 or ns7, Crown XLS 602 and above or a QSC RMX amp capable of running at least 400 watts per side. A Vocopro wireless microphone or Shure wireless. LED lights from Chauvet or 2 vertigo led lights are very popular to start. Your speakers can be Mackie or Behringer but take a listen to how they sound. Some are powered speakers and some are not. I personally prefer un-powered speakers and I will tell you why. If you have an issue with a powered speaker you also have an issue with an amplifier built into the speaker. So you will be losing your amp and speaker. But if a speaker goes down than all you have to do is change out the speaker and not risk losing both. Others may disagree and powered speakers are great as well. 

                                           If you're the type of DJ who does mostly small to medium size weddings and parties than a more simple setup will do just fine. A rack case with a dual CD player combo and some standard 15 inch powered speakers would do the trick. Many people have told me that the types of speakers and equipment we buy for our company are junk. But then when they hear us in action ask how we got the equipment to sound so great. Having an equalizer such as a sonic maximizer or behringer eq system can make or break your sound. Just remember the right combination of equipment can really help your performance. Vocopro wireless microphones are great for everyday events and Shure microphones are expensive but have a great rich sound for those doing large performances. Same with a laptop for DJing. You don't need the best Mac Book Pro in existence to sound like a pro. We have Acer laptops and compaq laptops that have 2-3 gigs of ram and a 500 gig hard drive that are amazing in running programs and sound. 

                                          There is so much more to expand on and numerous combinations of equipment available. To save money go to the store whether its Guitar Center, George's Music, Sam Ash and look at the equipment you want. Then go home and order online to save a load of money. You can order the things you "KNOW" will work on ebay and the rest from the store. Save yourself a few hundred maybe even a thousand dollars. Leave your questions and comments here and I can elaborate!  

- Billman

DJ Port St Lucie

Your favorite ways to market and advertise your mobile DJ and Disc Jockey services

                                      So what do you feel is your most valuable way to advertise your DJ services? As a mobile disc jockey there are numerous ways to spread the word about your services. What are some of the top ways you bring in the business and what ways do you feel are not cutting? As a disc jockey we face lots of competition and ever changing technology. From new songs to new methods and new devices to new media outlets. But getting your niche and using that to your advantage can be the way to go!

                                     Our company has taken hold of the internet marketing revolution. We book 80% of all our events from the internet. The other small 20% are just return customers and word of mouth. We have numerous websites that showcase our DJ services and we try to link to as many vendors we've worked with and find lead websites that generate traffic. Some of these websites can be wedj.com, gigmasters, thumbtack.com, message boards in numerous bridal websites and party companies and so much more. A genuine link back to your website from another vendor is an amazing point for your company. Make sure when building or having a website built you corner the keywords in your area. For example; if your company is in the Miami area and you cater to weddings, than many of your homepage and other page keywords should focus around that area and the events that you do. Wedding DJ Miami, Mobile DJs for wedding receptions, Miami Disc Jockeys Wedding Events, etc. Your keywords and titles should focus on almost the exact types of events and service areas you concentrate. 

                                    What if I have my own work but just can't seem to get enough work for my DJs or sell them over the phone. Another great way to market your company and your staff of DJs or even 1 or 2 DJs on board is take them with you. Look for local bridal shows where you can have them interacting with brides who walk by or even getting on the mic during a part of their show for fashion shows or music entertainment. Being on the mic and showing your potential customers you can create a great atmosphere with music and announcements will help sell your DJs. Allow them to get on the mic or get on the decks (whichever their best point is) and show off what their good at. People know when they hear a great mix of music and not a bad set of songs. 

                                  Another great way to sell your company and anyone working for you is a professionally shot promo video. Having a video on your website or one you can send out with footage of your DJs in action, MCs in action or yourself is always a plus. Having ways that people can watch you without actually showing up at an event that is private is always helpful. You can even do one or two charity type events each year and invite your prospect customers to come out and see your company in action. Once those potential customers show up to see you and your guys in action they will be much more sold on using your services. 

                                 Different areas of the country use different methods to bring in leads and potential customers. Some companies use mailing services to send out flyers, some send out brochures or put them at hotels, country clubs, etc, and some develop a mailing list and use a referral system. Find out what your competition is doing whether they're on the internet, have a mailing list or at bridal shows. 

What's your preferred advertising method for your DJ service?

- Billman

DJ Miami