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
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