Disc Jockey News JANUARY 2018 • Issue #150
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PAGE 2 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
What Are You Doing Differently? By Mike Walter
Happy New Year, dear reader. Hope you had an amazing Holidays and you are ready to roar into 2018. Because that’s the unique thing about this industry, isn’t it? We are pretty much forced to hit the ground running since so many couples getting engaged in December and start their wedding planning in the first quarter of the year. It’s why January, February, and March are three of our best months for sales and it’s also why we always wake up on New Years Day with a “Bring It On” attitude. So with this first article of the year, I want to challenge you. We all know the times are changing. Millennials shop differently and buy differently so if you woke up this January 1st thinking the same strategies that made you successful ten years ago are going to work in 2018 you are sadly mistaken. So what
are you doing (or plan to do) differently that will keep you looking fresh and new to this next generation of bride and groom? As always, this article doesn’t just pose questions; it offers some answers. So here’s my list: Pinterest: We’ve been lacking on Pinterest for years now, but then I saw Staci Nichols do a seminar at the Wedding MBA about this unique social media platform and I was inspired. I hired Staci for a private consultation with myself and my office manager Lynn, and with her guidance, I believe we are much more impressive on Pinterest than we’ve ever been. Pinterest is a uniquely feminine platform, so it’s where our brides are so we should be there. Are you? If you need some guidance, I highly recommend Staci Nichols. You can find her easily on Facebook and, of course, Pinterest. Blogging: This was actually 2017’s resolution that was so successful we are keeping it going. Last year I noticed how far Elite had slipped in SEO in our area and there was just one reason for it. Lack of new content. Mother Google loves new content, and we just weren’t adding enough. In 2017 we put over 150 blogs on our site. That’s three a week. The blogs are either event recaps or ad-
vice and suggestions about various aspects of party planning. And it has made a huge difference. We now come up on page one organically in every common search term a bride would use to find a DJ for her wedding in New Jersey. In real estate, that’s what’s known as sweat equity because it didn’t cost us anything but time and effort. You can be sure, in 2018, we are going to keep at it. Networking: I’ve taken a renewed focus on getting out on the road more and visiting banquet halls that either recommends us or should be recommending us. This is one of those tasks that should only fall to the owner and so I’ve carved out part of my week to get it done. And I’ve seen an increase in referrals from the places I’ve visited so I know it’s working and it’s something I will continue on a regular basis. Training: I’m very excited to begin a training class with three future superstars. Starting this month, we’ll be meeting once a week to get these upcoming entertainers ready to headline their events sometime in 2018. I wrote extensively about this in a recent article in this fine publication so I won’t belabor the point. Suffice to say if you aren’t always looking to add talent to your roster don’t be surprised if you wake up one day and your DJ staff ain’t what it used to be. I love the sales acronym ABC (Always Be Closing), and I also love my own: ABT (always be training). Carving Out Time for R&R: I’ve
always believed that to be an efficient manager or business owner we need to take care of ourselves first. And by that I mean to stay as healthy as possible, both physically and mentally. The physical part means eating right and staying active. The mental part means planning downtime. Our lives can be stressful, especially if you have the double duty of running a company and performing on the weekends. And while many of us (myself included at times), brush it off by saying “I love my job,” no one can be at their very best without a regular day off and a vacation or two every year. But those things don’t happen by accident. We need to plan for them. We need to block off some weekends so that we can get away and we need to schedule our weeks, so we have some downtime. It’s not a selfish thing to do. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. You’ll be better and more productive so it’s the best thing you can do for everyone around you. So there’s my list; the broad strokes anyway. What’s yours? Feel free to share it with me personally or with the world on social media. All the best and continued success in 2018! Mike Walter is the owner of Elite Entertainment of New Jersey and a nationally recognized expert in the area of multisystem company development and staff training. You can contact Mike at mikewalter@discjockeynews.com.
year one of my goals is to create a Networking Calendar. The calendar will include standing events like Wedding Wednesday and Thursday Therapy, but I will also plan on attending at least one new networking event each quarter to get out of my comfort zone meeting new wedding professionals. Spending time out of the office is just as important as spending time in the office, and this year I will make this a priority. Once I tackle my top 3 goals, I can focus on 2-3 more the second half of the year. Starting 2018 with a manageable and achievable plan leads to a successful, results-driven and stress-free new year. Happy New Year Friends! I would
love to hear about your 2018 goals, so feel free to reach out to me anytime. Let’s make 2018 the best it can be! Please feel free to share your comments with me at: tamarasims@discjockeynews.com or tamara@something2dance2.com Tamara is the Director of Sales and Marketing for Something 2 Dance 2 DJ Entertainment in Schaumburg, IL, which she proudly owns along with her husband Jay Sims. She has over 20 years experience in the wedding industry and loves creating wonderful wedding memories for her brides and grooms.
Time For Resolutions By Tamara Sims
Happy 2018! It seems like our 2017 wedding season flew by. We were blessed with beautiful weather here in Chicago including 50 and 60-degree temperatures in December. And now as the air gets much colder we begin celebrating our client’s holiday engagements with lots of sales meetings. Every year we are encouraged to make our New Year’s Resolution’s and each year only a small fraction of us keep them. University of Scranton research (cue “The Office” jokes) suggests only 8% of people achieve their New Year’s goals. So what happens? Do we lose focus? Do we feel that our goals are unrealistic? Do we create a list of 20 resolutions when we should be focusing on 3-5 goals we can actually accomplish? My answer to all of these is yes. So as I look back at 2017, I have a targeted list of goals to focus on for 2018. Branding is an important focal point for me, and I know I can do better this year by sharing our story more concisely in person, through our website, and on social media channels. I need to dig deeper to allow my clients to hear our message and to understand the level of personalized service we provide and how it will benefit them. Illustrating our brand through photographs is a top priority since our millennial clientele are much more visual. Less text, more images! Social Media, Social Media, Social Media. It doesn’t have to be scary, but for someone who was born in the 1970’s,
it has taken me some time to embrace. Luckily I am surrounded by two millennials in my office who are going to help me become more consistent in my posts. Creating a social media calendar and timeline is one of my goals that I have to see through this year. I am also (no judgment) going to learn how to use Instagram in 2018. I have procrastinated long enough! Consistency in networking. I love networking, I love meeting with wedding professionals, and I love learning from one another. I typically start out very strong in the first quarter attending networking events, conferences and meeting with vendors, but once March is over I often “fall off the wagon.” This
JANUARY 2018 In This Issue:
Page 2: Mike Walter Page 2: Tamara Sims Page 4: Mitch Taylor Page 4: Brian S. Redd Page 6: Ron Ruth Page 7: ADJ@MBLV22 Page 8: Alan Berg
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Page 9: Chris Politylo Page 10: Joe Bunn Page 10: Brian Kelm Page 11: Mike Lenstra Page 12: Dave Ternier Page 13: Keith KoKoruz Page 14: Dan Carpenter
Page 14: Top 25 Charts Page 14: Different Spin Page 15: Rob Ferre
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Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 3
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PAGE 4 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
We vs Me By Mitch Taylor
Recently I heard an “industry leader” post something along the lines of “I don’t care about the “we” it’s all about me when it comes to getting paid.” My thoughts are – that’s not a good attitude to have. It’s ALWAYS about the WE. Even if you’re a single-op DJ, it’s STILL about the WE. No one is working on an island unto himself or herself. You have “we’s” in the external
guests that you work with. External and Internal guests come from my Carnival Cruise Lines hospitality training. External guests are the guests at your event, parents, fellow event pros, etc. Internal guests would be your client, sometimes an event planner or parents if they are heavily involved in planning. The Me First and the Gimme Gimme attitude has got to stop. Without your team, you are nothing. You must treat them right, and you must know how to care about them. Frankly, it’s NOT just about money. It’s about giving your team experiences. Recently we participated and helped coordinate a surprise 30th birthday party for one of our team. We not only helped to pull it off but we surprised her with a hotel stay the night of a concert she has wanted to attend for some time. An-
System Check Tunes By Brian S. Redd
We all have our favorite sound check s o n g s . These are usually the same tracks we’re using when we test out a new pair of new speakers or are deciding which ones we want to buy at the gear shop. T h i s month, I thought I’d list a few song choices the audiophiles like to use, along with some personal selections as well. Toto – Rosanna
Like most of the songs audiophiles dig, this is a very well-produced track. There’s a lot going on here. The vocals are rich, and the horns are bright. You also get piano, bass guitar, lead guitar and a unique drum technique known as the “Rosanna Half-Time Shuffle.” There’s a lot to listen to, and for, in this recording, making it a system tuning favorite. Dire Straits – So Far Away When I was in Italy visiting FBT last year, I must have heard this song ten times on the system demo stage, and there’s a good reason for this: “Brothers in Arms” was one of the first, if not the very first major release recorded entirely on 24 track digital tape. Mark Knopfler and Neil Dorfsman used several new experimental production techniques, and along with a few lucky mistakes, created a unique sound. Beastie Boys – Brass Monkey
other team member lives over an hour away. I drove to meet up with him not because I had to because I wanted to. The purpose was to be sure he is cool with an event and to let him know I care about him. When one focuses just on the ‘me,’ it’s a selfish thought process through and through. They tend to only think about the money side of things. Sure, you may end up with a lot of money at the end of your life, but what else will you have to show for it? You may have built an empire business, and that’s great but if you die alone and weren’t able to share that success with your closest family and friends, what good did you do? Many people think that the customer is the most important person. Would you agree? Jeffrey Gitomer is fond of saying “If you and your customer were both on a deserted island and one of you have to drop dead, who do you want it to be?” Of course, you say the customer. Well, that disproves that theory. Now we’ve determined the most
important person is you. Here’s the truth: Without you or your customer, you don’t have a business. Business is a two-way street. It’s the same personally. Focus exclusively on the me, and that means you’re pretty much alone and you’re not going to go far. You may have all the might in the world, but it’s not going to replace what’s in your heart. You can’t accomplish much as a person without some sort of strong support system in place. Bottom line: it’s ALWAYS about the WE. Mitch Taylor is an 18 year veteran of the mobile disc jockey industry, starting out on the cruise ships of Carnival Cruise Lines. He is a member of the American Disc Jockey Association. Mitch owns and operates Taylored Entertainment in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and can be reached at 906.786.6967 or via email at mitchtaylor@ discjockeynews.com.
The idea behind this one is quite simple: If you can crank it up without everything completely falling apart (or catching on fire), you’ve got a system that can handle some serious bass. Here are some of my picks: Geneses – Turn It On Again This track is off of the “Duke” album. What I like about this one is that it’s mixed very well, yet sounds so unprocessed. Phil Collins drums are fantastic. He belts out these super raw vocals as well. You also get a cool analog synth layered with piano and a pretty solid bass guitar line. Joni Mitchell – Help Me I use this track for testing speaker clarity. There’s a lot going on musically in this song, so it’s easy to miss little things if you do not hear it thru a quality system. I enjoy it when I discover sounds on this one that I’ve never heard before. Skrillex – Bangarang This is kinda like my version of Brass Monkey. I rate speakers, and the anti-rattle properties of everything in my mobile rig as
ether “Bangarang Approved” or not. Bruno Mars – 24k Magic I think this is an excellent modern recording. It has it all with plenty of bright highs and deep lows. Many modern songs feel like there must always be some constant in-your-face sound happening at any given moment. Not this one. It breathes. It almost has a minimalist arrangement kind of feel to it, which I like. The vocals are very crisp as well, but what I think I enjoy the most is the punchy mid bass, especially in that scratch right after the intro. So, now you know the songs I play over & over again when new speakers arrive at my door. I hope I’ve given you some new test track ideas as well. Happy New Year & we’ll see you on DJNTV. Practice & Enjoy Practice & Enjoy! Brian S Redd is a Mobile/Club DJ in Milwaukee WI, DJ Youtuber and an official “American DJ” Artist/ You can reach Brian at: brianredd@discjockeynews.com/
Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 5
PAGE 6 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
A Colorblind Shopper Walks Into A Department Store... By Ron Ruth
I love all the fun and festivities that accompany the holiday season; time with family and friends and, of course, all of the gifts. The one thing I dread the most each Christmas, though, is shopping for my wife, Debbie. Don’t get me wrong. I love her very much. But, I also know that the gifts that make her the happiest are clothes she can wear to work. Now for many, buying clothes may not be a big deal. For me, it’s a bit more of a challenge. You see, I’m color blind. I have a very hard time differentiating between dark blues and black, browns and greens, reds and browns and so on. Over the 26 years that we’ve been married, buying clothes for Deb has never been a huge issue. I have a niece who studied fashion merchandising, and we’d always set aside a day during the holidays to go shopping together. I’d pick out one item that I thought Debbie would like and my niece would come up with a dozen other pieces of color-coordinated clothing that went with what I had selected. In the end, the one skirt, blouse, slacks or jacket I picked out magically turned into six different outfits. Although it has never been a big secret that I’ve had an elf helping me with my Christmas shopping, in Debbie’s eyes my efforts have made me a fashionista. And, even though my niece has always helped me find great deals, I still spent quite a bit of money (way more than I had ever budgeted) buying Debbie clothes as gifts. Before Christmas this past year, though, the unthinkable happened. My niece moved
away---leaving me to do the clothes shopping---On. My. Own. This past Christmas, Debbie asked for a pair of navy blue slacks. I should mention that she has a tendency to add clothing to her wish list that she can’t find in the stores on her own. I couldn’t imagine that such a request would be hard to find, but they were. After visiting a number of department stores, I finally sort-of-kind-of found a pair of the slacks she wanted. According to the tag, they were navy blue and the correct size, but they weren’t what you could call a solid navy blue. They had something of a denim look to them. Regardless, I decided they were close enough to match her request and bought them. Now all I had to do was to work the magic my niece usually provided and find a handful of tops and accessories to go with them so my wife could enjoy a half dozen outfits as she had always gotten from me in the past. So, there they I was, wandering through stores like Macy’s, Dillard’s, JC Penny’s with her slacks in a bag, occasionally holding them up to blouses, sweaters, and jackets to see if I could come up with a coordinated combo. Did I mention I’m color blind? Occasionally I’d stop a female shopper and ask “Do you think these two items go together?” Inevitably they’d look at me like I had two heads and answer “No!” The sad thing was that not one employee from any of the stores I went to saw me searching. Actually, let me change that to not one employee in over six different stores sought me out as a customer in need of assistance and offered to help. And it wasn’t just me who was lost and confused. There were a number of other guys wandering around the ladies department who had no better clue then I did as to how to properly coordinate. Although I knew what size my wife wears, I’d venture to say that many of them had no idea. What all of these stores failed to realize is that I and maybe many of my male, shopping cohorts would have gladly pur-
chased far more than we had budgeted if someone had just taken the time to help us. Unlike the majority of consumers, I didn’t care about the best deal. I only cared about making my wife happy by getting her something she liked, and I was willing to pay a premium for that. Sure, most retail stores had ample staff to ring out customers and to keep the shelves stocked, but they missed out on the opportunity to create a relationship with me (and others) as a consumer, a relationship that would have made me a loyal customer for life. How much profit could these retailers have taken to the bank if they were better observers of their customer’s needs? Let’s assume for a moment that there is absolutely no profit in holiday sales. But, what about the rest of the year when guys like me are in need of an anniversary or birthday gift for that special lady in our life? Where would we be most likely to go to make those purchases if we knew the experience of shopping would be enjoyable and we could count on receiving much-needed assistance? There are three customer care lessons to be learned from my Christmas shopping experience. First, never assume that your clients are only looking for the best deal. There are still those who will pay a premium for a product or service that will solve their unique problems, make them not only feel valued and important but provide them whatever happiness they desire. These individuals are hungry for an extraordinary customer experience. Second, seek out your client’s REAL needs and be ready to assist them in any way possible. Your customers may be experiencing frustrations that they won’t share with you verbally, but they’ll have no problem sharing them with others. Use your keen and unique observation skills to read the sometimes subtle nuances in their emotional needs and be proactive in resolving those issues. Remove potentially
harmful “flash points” that can take away from an extraordinary experience and reap the rewards that come with brand loyalty. And finally, I know many of you may be wondering why I didn’t order everything online. I did some of that, but I like to touch, feel and compare quality. More importantly, I also like being able to ask questions with an immediate response. For me, as it is with your customers, human interaction is still an important element of an extraordinary customer experience. Technology is a wonderful thing but it can’t replace the value of building relationships. Those relationships lead to the emotional connection that can transform satisfied clients into raving fans. Anticipating your customer’s needs demonstrates that you care about their business and sets the bar for customer satisfaction---which also affects repurchase decisions and customer loyalty. If a customer feels taken for granted, they won’t come back and buy from you again. On the flip-side, if you deliver a service that exceeds customer expectations, you can bet they will be more willing to pay a premium for it and will not only come back to buy again, they’ll also tell all their friends and family about the experience, too. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and wished you nothing but the best in the New Year. And, feel free to reach out to me to learn more about the process of delivering an extraordinary experience to your customers. Ron Ruth has been on the front lines of weddings celebrations for over 25 years as a Disc Jockey and certified, Wedding Entertainment Director®. He’s a wellknown speaker and workshop facilitator in the DJ and wedding industries, a client experience designer and coach and a self-described Disney “Geek.” Get Ron’s FREE e-book, “The Client Experience Demystified” at RonRuth.com. You can reach Ron at 816-224-4487 or RonRuth@ DiscJockeyNews.com
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Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 7
ADJ To Light Up Mobile Beat Las Vegas Main Stage Press Release
ADJ Lighting is pleased to announce that it will be the official lighting and video supplier for the main stage at Mobile Beat Las Vegas 2018. Taking the production at the annual trade show to the next level, the stage setup will not only highlight the dozens of seminars and performances taking place throughout the event’s four days, but also showcase ADJ’s latest cutting-edge fixtures. Gearing up for its 22nd annual event, Mobile Beat is North America’s biggest conference and trade show for mobile DJs. Attracting visitors from across the USA, as well as many other countries around the world, the show combines an intense line-up of educational content with a large equipment expo area and a series of exciting evening parties. Regarded by many leading DJs as the essential destination for networking and training, Mobile Beat Las Vegas has grown repeatedly over the past four years and 2018 is set to be the best event yet. A longtime supporter of Mobile Beat, ADJ Lighting is a regular exhibitor at the show and also often sponsors educational sessions related to the use of technology by mobile DJs. For 2018 the company is stepping up its involvement to provide all of the lighting and video equipment for the event’s main stage. The ADJ team will put together an awe-inspiring rig that will draw attention to the featured conference speakers and also provide a backdrop to the show’s musical performances, including the signature
Tuesday night MBLV22 Party. “We are ecstatic that ADJ Lighting
now used for installation in churches, theatres, clubs and other entertainment
is picking up the reins of the lighting part of the educational and main stage of Mobile Beat Las Vegas,” enthused Mobile Beat’s publisher, Ryan Burger. “Their excitement at jumping on with lighting, video and more is exhilarating and has all our staff ready to see their designs and work with them on the final show!” A D J USA’s National Sales Manager, Alfred Gonzales, added, “Over the years ADJ Lighting has grown and evolved so that our expansive product range is
venues as well as by professional touring and production companies. However, we’ll never abandon our roots in the mobile entertainment business. Our product portfolio still includes lots of affordable DJoriented fixtures and we also know that many DJs now run small production c o m p a nies, which means that they are interested in our larger fixtures. That’s why we are so excited about providing the visual production for Mobile Beat’s main stage this year. It will
allow us to showcase what’s possible using the latest ADJ lighting and video fixtures in a large event space.” At the heart of the MBLV22 stage set will be a video wall constructed from ADJ AV6X LED panels, which are ideal for use by mobile entertainers for music videos, pre-recorded bride and groom footage, and live dancefloor video feeds. This will be accentuated by moving head lighting fixtures from ADJ’s extremely popular Focus Series. The Focus fixtures are available in various sizes, to suit all kinds of DJ setups, but all offer advanced features including motorized focus and easily replaceable rotating GOBOs. ADJ’s Pocket Pro – the incredibly compact and affordable moving head with a serious punch – will also feature, as will the new Element Series of battery-powered and WiFLY wireless DMX equipped LED par fixtures. MBLV22 runs Monday 12th thru Thursday 15th March 2018 at the Tropicana hotel in Las Vegas. In addition to providing the main stage rig, ADJ will also have a booth on the expo floor showcasing products from its range that are ideally suited to mobile entertainers and small production companies. Members of the ADJ team will be on hand throughout the show to provide product demonstrations, answer questions and offer technical advice. To learn more about the Mobile Beat Las Vegas show, please visit: http://www.mobilebeatlasvegas.com.
PAGE 8 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
The Photobooth Section 3 Resolutions That Can Be Revolutionary For Your Wedding Business By Alan Berg
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The beginning of the year not only signals an influx of newly engaged couples, but it also serves as a psychological switch for many 2017 and 2018 upcoming wedding couples to resume the planning process after a postThanksgiving through Christmas hiatus. It’s also an opportunity to think about what you’re going to do differently. Here are some insights from my fellow guru and business associate, Brian Lawrence. Brian’s walked more than a mile in your shoes in his many years as a wedding center owner with multiple locations, then serving thousands of wedding business through his position as VP of a national wholesale invitation brand, and then as owner of wedding business-focused web design and marketing firm. Brian has taken things I have spoken about before and put his spin on them for you: Make your website fantastic: There are three main impressions you can make on brides or grooms visiting your website. A) Your site can have the images and the content that’s expected of a wedding business, and perhaps you’ll be brought into consideration by some of the visitors to your site. B) Your site is outdated, has too much or too little content, weak imagery and poor navigation. And whether a visitor came to you from WeddingWire or any other advertising platform, or from a referral, you’re likely to lose that customer before you even got started. C) Your site is brimming with alluring imagery, content that speaks to the bride and groom, prominent access to authentic testimonials and reviews, navigation that acts as the best virtual receptionist and calls to action that inspires them to call or email you wanting to find out more, or even make an
appointment. What would the third possibility mean to the future of your business? To have customers that are so enamored and impressed by your site, they come to you with an intention to buy. Instead of losing the vast majority of your visitors, most are interested and make an appointment. Other people in the industry that see your site trust your talent and reputation, and would have no hesitation recommending you. And lastly, think about all the money you’re investing in advertising. You’ll make the investment in every platform work better for you. Be proactive about generating reviews: One of the most gratifying validations a wedding professional can receive is a positive review. However, it does more than make you feel good; it can directly increase your business and, if you are strategic about cultivating reviews on a number of platforms, it can make a tremendous impact on your business. Here’s why: A) When the profile of your company is viewed at the same time as your competitors, the quantity, recency and the quality of reviews is a big determinant as to who they’ll contact. Whether you’re prominently placed when people search for you on Google Maps or pay to have premium listings on WeddingWire or The Knot, studies will confirm that having a wealth of reviews will both gain you more inquiries and more upfront interest from those inquiries. A WeddingWire study showed that 72% of engaged couples trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. B) Follow your clients. Spread the wealth and encourage your clients to review you on the platforms they used for their planning, as well as via email, phone call and in person. It’s sometimes better to have 20 reviews on each of four platforms than 80 reviews on just one platform. Just make sure you have recent reviews on each platform, so they don’t get stale. C) Search engines count reviews as social signals that be factored in when ranking you higher and above your competition. Make Time To Network: One marketing strategy that will never beAlan Berg Continued On Page 9
Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 9
The Photobooth Section Wedding Wire And Your Photo Booth Business By Chris Politylo
If you’ve visited any wedding vendor websites, you have probably seen a handful that have Wedding Wire badges that read, “Wedding Wire Couple’s Choice,” “Wedding Wire Bride’s Choice,” “Wedding Wire 100 Reviews,” etc. Do these accolades translate into sales for your photo booth business or are they just vanity? Wedding Wire is a website that boasts 40 million visitors a month and showcases a clean and inviting interface, but vendor reviews show that Wedding Wire may lack in customer service and in providing quality leads that lead to profitable event bookings. So the question is: will a membership on Wedding Wire boost your business? Any vendor can sign up for a free account and “Storefront” on the site which guarantees unlimited User Accounts, storage for up to 100 photos, access to Contact Forms and Inquiries and a Booking Management Tool along with Email Support during regular business hours. An upgrade to a Professional Membership at about $100/month adds storage for up to 500 photos, guaranteed placement on the site’s Vendor Directory, removal of competitor’s ads when clients are searching for photography vendors, ePayments and eInvoices, and 24/7 email customer support. The Featured membership at a bit over $200/month adds storage Alan Berg Continued From Page 8 come outdated is effective networking. For most wedding business owners networking is more of an occasional itch that needs to be scratched. Attend networking events, exchange business cards, comment on Facebook and LinkedIn groups and see what happens. Proactive networking can bear more fruit than any other type of marketing. The purchase cycle of the bride and groom is finite. They will purchase the core products and services; it’s just a matter of from whom and when. Forge relationships with businesses that are on an earlier rung on the planning ladder. Keep in constant communication with them, acknowledge and reward them for the referrals, and refer them when you can. These can all result in a perennial business funnel for you. Think about what it means to have a customer referred to you by a vendor who has already earned their trust. The nucleus of the referral process often rests at the venue. Most vendors will think of approaching them for refer-
for 1000 photos and a First Page ad in the Vendor Directory. A Spotlight membership (pricing available upon request) increases your ad visibility to “Best Possible, Top Category Ad” as users search for photography vendors. One of the biggest problems with the site, however, is that the categories are not comprehensive enough for photo booth vendors. You will need to choose if you wish to list your business under the Photography, Event Rentals and Photo booths, or Unique Services tabs. There have been complaints that the bid requests available for clients to fill out are not comprehensive enough and do not provide enough information for an accurate quote or even contact information. On the other hand, the site does provide some name recognition advertising and market infiltration so that clients who may just be browsing through the Wedding Wire site may see your name and then recognize it again on a different site, giving you some credibility. You will need to do some market research in your area to determine if vendors in your area are booking events through Wedding Wire or if other event planning websites are more popular. If Wedding Wire is not highly used in your area, you may want to stick with the free membership as a trial while focusing your advertising dollars on the sites with more rals. However, the engagement ring comes first, so why not approach the jeweler. Why shouldn’t a florist approach a photographer or a limousine company approach a bridal shop? On a final note, we know DJs, Photographers, and others, who do lots of business based on a mutual understanding with competitors whom they recommend when they’re booked. You know the old saying “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.” How about making friends with your competitors instead? Keeping resolutions like these will make a profound difference in your business life. We wish a great 2018. Alan Berg has been called “North America’s Leading Expert and Speaker on the Business of Weddings and Events”. Find out more about his speaking, website reviews, consulting, books, DVDs and audio presentations at http://www.AlanBerg.com - email or call Alan, 732.422.6362
DOWNLOAD FOR FREE AT: PROFIT911.BIZ/25THINGS
members. If you find you are booking events through Wedding Wire, you can always upgrade to a more comprehensive membership to further increase your sales. Personally, I do not advertise my photo booth business on Wedding Wire. I’ve never had a customer ask me where my review badges are, or why I’m not listed as a “Couple’s
Choice.” However, I do believe that in reviews are powerful and if you have a lot on Wedding Wire, there probably is significance to attaining future business. I post customer reviews and testimonials on my website, which I believe holds the same value. You can contact Chris at chris@ photoboothtraining.com.
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PAGE 10 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
Wedding Show Workout By Joe Bunn
By the time you read this, it’s probably going to be early 2018, and that means it’s time for wedding show season! Bunn DJ Company stopped doing what I called the “cattle call” shows many years ago. You know the ones where there are a thousand brides, but there are also 25 other DJ companies there that are well below your most basic price? Yeah, we don’t do those anymore. However, we do participate in several “boutique” wedding shows where we are the ONLY DJ company there. While there may only be 100-300 brides at these events, our rate of booking is much higher since we are the only company there! Strive to get to that level folks! Trust me; your ROI is going to be much better. However, this article isn’t really about that. It’s about getting physically and mentally ready, whether it be a twoday “cattle call” or a four-hour boutique show. Fix Yourself. You’ve heard me, Mike Walter, Marcello, and other DJs speak about this in the past, and it’s a long-term goal, but you really should try and get in better shape (unless you’re already Marcello). Not only will you live longer, but you will also feel much better standing on your feet for hours on end at wedding shows and gigs. Plus you’re going
to look better! If you’re carrying a lot of extra weight, shows are tough on your body. They are tough on me, and I feel like I’m in really good shape! At least think about increasing your exercise and changing some of your bad eating habits as we go into the new year. I promise it makes a huge difference! Get Your Head Right. Many times, wedding shows are on Saturdays or Sundays. If you are getting home from a show at midnight or later the night before, chances are you are going to be struggling when you have to be at the convention center or wherever the show is bright and early the following day. That’s where you have to check your tiredness at the door! Grab some coffee or an energy drink and know that you can catch a nap after the wedding show. Know that you have a limited number of hours to get yourself or your DJs or your literature in front of hundreds of potential customers. More leads=more shows=more money! For the duration of the show, sleep or laziness is NOT an option. You have to push through. Most wedding shows are usually only quarterly, or some are only once a year. Keep that in mind as you hit “crash hour.” Motivate Your Team. First and foremost, always make sure to pick the right DJs to help you work a wedding show. I have some guys that are incredible at rocking parties but wouldn’t be my first choice to stand with me at wedding shows to pitch our services. You want to find the guys with the big personalities, the ones that can sell. Before you even decide to pay for a wedding show, make sure that at least three or four of them are available depending on how long or how
many days the show runs. You simply cannot go out there and do a wedding show by yourself. It’s not smart. I don’t care if you are a single op owner and the
only DJ in the company. Take your wife, take your best friend, take someone that cares about you and the success of your business. Let’s face it, if you are talking Joe Bunn Continued On Page 12
Mentors Pay It Forward By Brian Kelm
Getting started in this business can be a lonely and daunting experience given how vast and large the industry is. Who do I believe and trust? Where do I find quality information? Where do I start? Great mentors are hard to come by! Matt was my mentor in a small Wisconsin town growing up in seventh grade while he was ready to graduate high school. I was curious about how he did what he did, and so I reached out to him to learn. At first, I was a roadie: setting up sound, intelligent fixtures, truss, and anything else he needed me to do. I had to pay my dues, learn the ropes, and prove my worth that I had what it takes for him to mentor and invest time with me. Matt constantly challenged me with learning more and more once he saw that I was applying what he was teaching me. As I was entering high school, Matt was getting out of the business for college, and so at a discount, he allowed me to buy all his gear. I will never forget what he said to me when I made the purchase, “Brian, I could sell this gear to anybody and make more money, but I know you will use it best. Make me proud.” To this day, I still
remember what he told me and how it touched my heart some 24-25 years ago. The lessons I learned while being mentored were priceless and truly immeasurable. Those sparked my passion and commitment to do this for a living! Here are some of the valuable lessons received from having a mentor and the same can be created for you too. 1. Being challenged and receiving tough love is a good thing. 2. Humility, performance, passion, and heart are essential for success. 3. You can find your own answers by asking (and being asked) great questions. 4. Mentors can inspire to always take action; you learn best by doing. 5. If you are willing to work hard, be passionate, and have a desire to succeed -a shot is all you need to prove your loyalty and commitment to be taught properly. If you are serious about finding a mentor, you need to be willing to do what it takes to connect with someone you trust. They should be a mover and shaker in your market, and be honest and upfront with you about everything. Just remember to pay it forward and become a mentor to others as you establish yourself with a proven track record and develop a following of your own! Brian Kelm, CWEP, CGWP, WED Guild is a 20+ year wedding entertainment and planning professional that has been all over the United States. Based in Wisconsin. Serving Anywhere. He can be reached at briankelm@discjockeynews.com
Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 11
The Way I See It: From Tragedy To Dancing Feet (Plus DJNTV Schedule) By Michael J. Lenstra
“When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways - either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.” -Dalai Lama Thomas Heath knows a thing or two about the Mobile DJ industry - he’s closing in on twenty years in the business. He also knows a thing or two about adversity and how to rebound from it and become even more resilient. A native of Michigan Thomas followed a somewhat traditional path of graduating from High School, attending college and landing a job in the corporate world. Along the way, he also served a stint in the military, got married and started a family. He furthermore began his foray into the Mobile DJ business, creating A+ Digital DJs in 1999. But like many, it was just a part-time gig for him in those days. “It was just my fun job back then,” Thomas says. But that was about to change. He was one of the several who fell victim to the economic bust of 2008. “I was one of them who were told to come to work with a box to take my personal belongings home,” he said. And with that, his ‘fun job’ became his ‘real job.’ That set back was minor though compared to what lies ahead. In 2012, after 21 years of marriage, his wife suddenly passed away. With a Daughter (Katie 21) and a son (Brendan) still in school Thomas’ opinion on what was truly important in life began to change. He engrossed himself in his two passions: family and his business. He re-branded and expanded his business, which is now A+ Event Entertainment, hired his daughter as one of his DJs who he describes as a natural and even changed his location after his son graduated from High School. “It was time to make new memories,” he said. In 2015, after nearly 16 years in the profession, Thomas started attending DJ related
conferences and workshops. In May of the be releasing a short one to two minute Digital a new offering. “Brian and I are speaking spefollowing year, he married the new love of his Down Low tip that will have something to do cifically on the business side of the business. life, Shannon. Not only did Shannon become with phones, tablets, and laptops. It’ll be busi- We will not be discussing music, lighting, part of the family, but she also became part ness, performance or social media related,” he performing, mixing, etc.” says Keith. “We will be talking about sales, marketing, brandof the family business, working behind the says. Hugo Drax, president of the American Disc ing, hiring, firing, measuring growth and exscenes, and training to be a wedding coordinator. “I’m Tom’s wife and the CFO,” she jok- Jockey Association, will also have a new fea- panding your business. “Once a month we will be having a DJ on tured weekly show called “DraxBytes.” “It ingly says. Now Thomas is ready to take on another will be wide-ranging, mostly focusing on busi- as a “mobile of the month” to interview and new challenge and will be hosting “Deets, ness: How to build a business from a business discuss their business as well.” Michael Joseph will be moving to a biBeats and Dancing Feet – keys to having A+ plan, pricing, how to set your professional fee, Events from planning to the grand finale.” This discussion on copyright laws, trends and direc- weekly mixing show opposite a music show is one of the new shows that will be part of a tions. Things a Mobile DJ starting out should hosted by John Young. One week you will get the “where to use it” from John as he digs into revamped line-up for 2018 on the Disc Jockey do,” he explained. Once a month there will also be a live chat forgotten hits and shares where and what type News TV channel (www.djntv.com). “With of events those songs might be a great for tolittle changes, you can make big improve- with Dr. Drax called “Drax Unplugged.” day. Then the next week MJ will be ments,” Thomas explains. on with the “how to use it” where “In the past year and a half, Sundays: he will show methods to mix in and we have done so much to im- Sunday with Mike Show: 9:30 am ET mix out of popular songs. prove what we have done to Moving to the DJNTV channel Mondays: change our place in the marwill also be the popular shows of ket.” The show will highlight Creating Connections with Mitch Taylor and Vickie Musni: 10:00 am ET Creative Connections with Mitch just what those changes are. Interview Shows With John Young: 9:00 pm ET Taylor and Vickie Musni along with Now on the back side of Monday Night Live DJ Chat: 10:00 pm ET the PHDJ Podcast with Mike Wal40, Thomas doesn’t believe ter and Joe Bunn! Tuesdays: it’s ever too late to take new These new shows all will be risks. “Age is less relevant Deets, Beats, and Dancing Feet with Thomas Heath: 10:00 am ET joining the current DJNTV shows today than it’s ever been,” Tuesday Night with Ben Stowe: 9:00 pm ET of the Rewind Report with Michael he states. Besides, he reaJoseph, Sunday With Mike, Cresons, “I want to give back.” Brian S Redd and John Young Show: 10:00 pm ET ative License with Bill Hermann, There are so many that have Wednesdays: Wedding Chat with Dave Ternier helped Thomas along the way Socially Mobile Tips with Jared Wade: 10:00 am ET and Jeremy Brech, Tuesday Night he wants to be in that realm. DraxBytes with Dr. Drax: 8:00 pm ET With Ben Stowe, The Brian S Redd “To be able to call mentors and John Young Show, the Monday like Bill Hermann and Mitch Live Music Mixing Show with MJ: 9:00 pm ET Night Live DJ Chat show, and the Taylor friends, and know that The Live Music Show with John Young: 9:00 pm ET regular interview shows with John I can call them anytime for Wedding Chat with Dave and Jeremy show 10:00 pm ET Young. help is unreal,” he says. Thursdays: Other talent coming to reguAnd how does his new lar shows on DJNTV are Bayardo bride feel about this latest en- PHDJ Podcast Show with Mike Walter and Joe Bunn: 10:00 am ET Rugma (DJ Barr), Brandon Hardeavor? “She never says no to Creative License with Bill Hermann: 1:30 pm ET me – unless it’s about cars,” Running Your Business with Keith KoKoruz and Brian Bounassissi: 9:00 pm ET villa, DJ Kilma, Rob Ferre, Matt Peterson and Michael Anderson. says Thomas. “I’d really like Regular Shows: Let me close by wishing you all one of those two-seaters …..” a Happy and productive New Year. The way I see it, you The Rewind Report with Michael Joseph: A look at the new gear Until next month, might be smart not to push it Brandon Havrilla Show: Looking at tech and gear for start up DJs ~ Michael ~ Thomas. :) DJ Barr Show: Looking at the East Coast DJ scene Michael J. Lenstra is a 20-plusOther Shows new to DJ Kilma: Quick tips for growing your DJ business year veteran of the Mobile Disc DJNTV in 2018: The MAT: Breaking news in the DJ industry Jockey Industry, a full-time enterJared Wade will be taking tainer, and owner of Alexxus Enterthe place of Michael Joseph Stepping Up Your Game with Rob Ferre: Tips to improve your DJ business tainment in Dubuque, IA. He can be in the Monday night chat reached at mikelenstra@discjockMarquee Show producer Keith Kokuruz room. Jared will also be hosting his own show, tentatively scheduled for Wednesdays. “I’ll and co-host Brian Bounassissi will also unveil eynews.com
PAGE 12 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
Making The Conference World Go ‘Round By Dave Ternier
This article, my blog and the thoughts and ideas I share with you, wouldn’t exist, were it not for my attending Mobile Beat Las Vegas in 2011. I would never have met some of the most impactful people in my life without first attending that DJ conference. Many of the friends I have, from all over the world, are in my life as a direct result of attending DJ conferences. I like to attend DJ conferences because they provide me with an indescribable sense of family and camaraderie, business and performance motivation, technical and equipment knowledge and so much more. Often, these conferences provide the only opportunity for me to re-connect in person with many of the amazing friends I’ve met in this world over the years. My year would feel very empty without conferences like Mobile Beat Las Vegas. To make a conference happen though, it takes a lot of money…more money then any single or group of DJs is willing to pay. But fear not! Many great industry players DO step up, with huge dollars and great expense, to help make these conferences happen. In return for their valuable support, I strongly feel that conference attendees should respect and support these companies when given the opportunity. As we all know, the world of advertising has changed dramatically over the last decade. In my opinion, the recent launch of the Evolve 50 speaker by Electro-Voice demonstrated just how much marketing and sales have changed. The method by which they leveraged social media and YouTube to announce a brand new speaker lineup was nothing short of remarkable. Even though the internet is changing everything about how companies like EV, ADJ, Promo Only, DJ Event Planner, etc. promote and market their products, they, and many others like them, still support the DJ conferences and allow them to continue happening. We need to support this idea. We need to support these partners. If you’ve never attended a DJ conference, I suppose you don’t have a horse in this race. But, if you have, and that conference has positively impacted your life in some manner, you have a stake in this. I get it…I understand how attractive buying no-name products direct from China might be…but understand that thinking you are getting a great deal is only a short-term, shortsighted viewpoint of the entire product development/marketing/retail sales/DJ conference “circle of life” that keeps all of this functioning. Should DJ conferences lose the support of their vendors, the cost of the conference would go way up (thereby negating any savings you might have acquired through direct from China purchasing) or, more than likely, the DJ conference would cease to exist. Attending a DJ conference, at the time, is relatively inexpensive, but I don’t consider my investment in any DJ conference complete until I’ve purchased from one of their vendors or done something to help spread the word about some of their vendors. Purchasing from a DJ conference
vendor is a continuous investment toward my attendance of future DJ conferences. Pioneer, American DJ, Promo Only, Electro-Voice, ERG, NLfx Professional, Bose and so many more are completely responsible for making the DJ conference world go around…so let’s pile on a little love for them, shall we? Let’s pile on a little love for those who help keep DJ conferences alive! Share the love! ~ Dave Based in Manitoba, Canada, Dave Ternier is a single operator DJ/MCfor his company, Special Request Weddings and he is the founding author of aDJthought. com. Dave Ternier can be reached at DaveTernier@discjockeynews.com.
Joe Bunn Continued From Page 10 to one couple and another one walks up, they aren’t going to sit there and wait for your to finish a conversation, they are moving on, and probably NOT coming back to your booth, especially at the really big shows. They are going to be too overwhelmed as is. I’ve seen it happen over and over again. Finally, once you’ve picked the perfect team, get them all together before the doors open and give a brief “pep talk.” Explain to them how important the show is for the success of the company. Tell them that they can sell themselves if they are available on the couple’s date. Go over talking points especially are you giving pricing or not giving pricing (we do). One last thing. We do not and will not pay DJs to work wedding shows
for Bunn DJ Company. If you are an owner, and you do so, that’s your call. The way I look at it is all DJs/MCs that work for you should want to do these shows. It’s a way to get their name out, not only with couples but will all of the other fellow vendors participating. It’s a no-brainer! If I have a newbie asking to get paid to train with us or at a wedding show, it’s an automatic red flag. You should be paying me kid! Good luck out there DJs. Go and get those shows! Happy New Year! Joe Bunn is the co-founder of The PhDJ Workshop (www.pdhdjworkshop.com) and also the creator of the videos “Selling the Music” and “Marketing the Music” which can be found at djjoebunn.com.
Make 2018 Your Best Year By Giving Back
Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 13
By Keith ‘KC’ KoKoruz
Life is filled with ups and downs; There are good decisions and bad decisions that affect everything we do. On November 13, 2009, I was the victim of one my own bad decisions. I trusted s o m e one I shouldn’t h a v e and was forced to pay the price. I made a business d e c i sion that I should n e v e r have, and it resulted in me having to start all over again at the age of 40. I was dead broke and was starting over with nothing but my experience, reputation, and a very strong work ethic. Fast forward to November of 2012, I was in my office reviewing the year with one of my staff, and we both took a moment to realize that I was no longer
my time and skills as a DJ whenever I could. I have walked in numerous 5K marathons, bought raffle tickets, etc. just like everyone reading this. I, however, felt the need to do more. In three weeks my staff and I organized our first toy drive. We put the word out to friends, family, and industry colleagues and we were able to collect four boxes of toys
dead broke. I was in fact booked solid for 2013. My DJ and my new bridal show company were doing incredibly well, and I had more money in my bank account than I could remember in a long time. Most of all, I was grateful. I have always felt that helping others is important. I have always donated
our first year. Since then each year we have tried to make it larger and larger. Last year, the Marines informed us that we collected more toys for Toys for Tots than the Chicago Bears did. This year, my goal was to double what we did last year. With the help of countless people who volunteered, do-
nated, and attended our 5th annual Toy Drive, we were able to donate two 15’ box trucks filled with toys and bikes for needy kids. The Marines were amazed when we pulled up both on Friday and again on Monday just a few days after our actual Toy Drive event. I thought I was done for the year. I called a friend to tease her for not attending my toy drive since she had told me that she was coming and never made it. She informed me that she had a conflict and that she was also “charity’d out.” In addition to running her wedding business, she also works as a kindergarten teacher’s aid in a lowincome area. She said she finds herself reaching into her own pocket weekly to help her students since they simply need the help. I asked her how I could help. I told her I had a few hundred dollars left from the toy drive that I was simply going to buy toys with and drop off but if I can help her, I would. She explained that she needed hats and gloves/mittens for her kids. I thought she was doing an arts and crafts project and decorating them for Christmas. She wasn’t; she needed them for her students since they were being sent to school without hats and mittens. Their parents simply didn’t have them. I made some calls to people who had promised to donate but didn’t come through. I posted on my social media, and within 12 hours, I had raised $800. This money along with my leftover money bought
135 kids hats, mittens, coloring books, crayons, and I had Keith Christopher Entertainment drawstring backpacks that we put everything in for each student. On December 21, 2017, I got to hand them out to these amazing little kids that screamed and hooted in delight. I honestly don’t know who was happier, the students or me. My friend called me on her way home and said all the kids wanted to do all day was color in their new coloring books. A simple coloring book and crayons made these kids so incredibly happy. If you are friends with me on Facebook, you know that I also volunteer my time DJing for two days the weekend before Thanksgiving for my friend Mike Cozzi. Mike started a charity called Caring Patriots. He went to the local VA office to see if he could help volunteer in some way. While he was there, he couldn’t understand how so many veterans were in need of assistance. During the Thanksgiving holiday, there were veterans who couldn’t even put a meal on the table for their family. Mike Cozzi was not going to allow this to happen. I need you to understand who Mike is; he is a truck driver with no business friends in high places who can simply write him big checks and call it a day. He started with a goal of feeding 100 veteran families in honor of their service to this great country. His first year, he begged people for their money, their time, and any canned goods items they could donate. He purchased turkeys, carrots, apples, pies, etc. from a Chicago based grocery store chain that would later become a huge ally to his cause. Today, he feeds 1,000 families every Thanksgiving. Each veteran gets six bags of canned groceries, a 2-gallon container of laundry detergent, soda, fresh vegetables, potatoes, pumpkin pies, and a huge turkey. This undertaking takes hundreds of volunteers to organize, collect, sort, and hand out all of these items to these veterans and their families. I am not writing this article to try to convince you what a good guy I am or to impress anyone. Instead, I am trying to impress upon you how powerful a small donation of your time, money, connections, etc. can be toward a cause that you are passionate about. I am producing the Marquee Dj and Photo Booth conference in Chicago this upcoming July. A portion of all of the profit will be donated to the new 501c3 charity that I am starting. The goal of this entire charity is to help kids and families in need. As you make your New Year’s resolutions / goals for 2018, I hope that giving back to something that you are passionate about makes your list. KC can be reached at KC@discjockeynews.com.
PAGE 14 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018
PTDJ: How Many Backups? By Dan Carpenter
During the last couple of events of my fall weddings, I had a situation develop with my controller. It wasn’t acting the way that it should, sliders moving in the software even though they were still on the controller and some other weird dropout action. It’s technology, and sometimes errors happen that need to be fixed. Since it’s a relatively new controller I took advantage of the warranty and sent it in to be repaired. However, the manufacture and their repair team take a little time to fix things, as would be expected. In the meantime, I have a vow renewal and reception on my upcoming performance schedule. Easy enough, I’ll just
use my backup controller and all should be good. Fast forward to the event, we get through the special events and into straight party mode, when out of nowhere I hear *pop* and everything goes silent. My eyes get extremely wide, and I go into “fix it” mode. I bring the faders down and back up, I play from a different deck, and nothing is working. Now I’m starting to panic. Since my main rig is getting fixed, I don’t have a backup for my backup. I grab one of the speakers I had from the ceremony portion of the night and plug into that. Still nothing. I feel like I’ve tried everything, and I’m about to just give up not knowing what else I can do. Fortunately, I restarted my computer another time and this time opened another DJ software that I have loaded on the computer, and everything came back to life. In hindsight, I’m pretty sure the issue wasn’t my DJ software (I’ve used that software a bunch even with my backup controller), but in all of the restarts and changes that I was doing in a short time, something got me back up and running. The good news, the couple didn’t know
what was going on, but they saw me trying to fix it. When the event was over, they asked if I knew what happened and I had to confess that I had no idea what caused it, but fixed it as quick as I could. They were impressed I fixed it as fast as I did. I reassured them that even if things wouldn’t have come back to life, I had another system in my trailer ready to go (though it’s my ceremony system, so while technically we can call it a backup, it’s not geared towards a reception). They looked at the venue owner and me and gave a thumbs up, saying “And this is why we knew we did right by picking you.” The bad news, I don’t have a good backup for my backup. **Update* I’ve since purchased the Numark DJ2Go2 so that I have a smaller controller I can hook into my system when I don’t have my ceremony rig with me. The fact that it doesn’t take up a ton of space it’s easy to just keep in my laptop bag.** So is the answer to this whole situation carrying three copies of everything we have? No, I think at some point we are getting ridiculous, but I do think we need to have a plan; a plan for being ready in the face of adversity. What will you do when your system acts up? If you think it never will, let me note one thing about my problem: in my sixteen years of doing wed-
dings, this is the first time I’ve ever had to go to my backup, and as I’ve noted it happened on the night I was already using my backup. I don’t think it’s enough to simply plan for something to happen; we need to practice putting it in place. Set up your system as you normally do, and keep your backup in the same type of place you normally do during an event. Then fake your controller going down, and see how long it takes you to get your backup in place. Now do the same with one of your speakers (or even better, with all of your speakers). How long did it take you? Is that amount of time acceptable to you? Would it be acceptable to your clients? I’m sure they would be happy that you got everything back up and running, but would they be ok with the length of time it took you? My guess is you need to speed it up, and how you do so is up to you. The slower you take for your setups, the closer your backups should be to you. Two things I hope you learn from my experience: 1. you can never be too prepared and 2. If you are using your backup because your main rig is in for repairs, don’t assume you’ll be fine; make sure you have something else ready to go. Dan Carpenter can be reached at dancarpenter@discjockeynews.com.
Top 25 Songs From 2017
The Weekly Printable Charts (Top 50 and Recurrent) are available at http://www.discjockeynews.com/charts for Subscribers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Pop
ED SHEERAN Shape Of You BRUNO MARS That’s What I Like ZEDD & ALESSIA CARA Stay KYGO X SELENA GOMEZ It Ain’t Me CHARLIE PUTH Attention SHAWN MENDES There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me... THE CHAINSMOKERS & COLDPLAY Something Just Like This LUIS FONSI & DADDY YANKEE Despacito f/Justin Bieber LIAM PAYNE Strip That Down f/Quavo NIALL HORAN Slow Hands ZAYN/TAYLOR SWIFT I Don’t Wanna Live Forever THE WEEKND I Feel It Coming f/Daft Punk JULIA MICHAELS Issues IMAGINE DRAGONS Believer THE CHAINSMOKERS Paris ALESSIA CARA Scars To Your Beautiful MGK X CAMILA CABELLO Bad Things JAMES ARTHUR Say You Won’t Let Go RIHANNA Love On The Brain HALSEY Now Or Never MAROON 5 Don’t Wanna Know f/K. Lamar CLEAN BANDIT & ANNE-MARIE Rockabye f/Sean Paul DJ KHALED I’m The One f/Bieber/Quavo... ARIANA GRANDE Side To Side f/Nicki Minaj THE CHAINSMOKERS Closer f/Halsey Urban KENDRICK LAMAR HUMBLE. MIGOS Bad And Boujee f/Lil Uzi Vert FUTURE Mask Off BRUNO MARS That’s What I Like DRAKE Fake Love YO GOTTI F/NICKI MINAJ Rake It Up CARDI B Bodak Yellow KHALID Location
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GOLDLINK Crew f/Brent Faiyaz/Shy Glizzy DJ KHALED F/RIHANNA/B. TILLER Wild Thoughts MIGOS T-Shirt FRENCH MONTANA Unforgettable f/Swae Lee GUCCI MANE Both f/Drake BIG SEAN Bounce Back YFN LUCCI Everyday We Lit f/PnB Rock KENDRICK LAMAR LOYALTY. f/ Rihanna CHILDISH GAMBINO Redbone SZA Love Galore f/Travis Scott JACQUEES B.E.D. CHRIS BROWN Party f/Usher & Gucci Mane LIL UZI VERT XO Tour Llif3 J. COLE Deja Vu RAE SREMMURD Black Beatles f/Gucci Mane TRAVIS SCOTT Goosebumps GUCCI MANE I Get The Bag f/Migos Adult Contempory MAROON 5 Don’t Wanna Know f/K. Lamar ED SHEERAN Shape Of You JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE Can’t Stop The Feeling ADELE Water Under The Bridge ALESSIA CARA Scars To Your Beautiful SIA Cheap Thrills SHAWN MENDES Treat You Better P!NK Just Like Fire ADELE Send My Love (To Your New... JAMES ARTHUR Say You Won’t Let Go THE CHAINSMOKERS & COLDPLAY Something Just Like This RACHEL PLATTEN Fight Song DJ SNAKE Let Me Love You f/J. Bieber CHARLIE PUTH One Call Away WALK THE MOON Shut Up And Dance TRAIN Play That Song DNCE Cake By The Ocean
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THE CHAINSMOKERS JUSTIN BIEBER MARK RONSON MEGHAN TRAINOR ADELE ELLE KING ED SHEERAN SHAWN MENDES
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SAM HUNT JON PARDI BRETT YOUNG LUKE COMBS DYLAN SCOTT DUSTIN LYNCH BILLY CURRINGTON BLAKE SHELTON JOSH TURNER JUSTIN MOORE OLD DOMINION THOMAS RHETT LADY ANTEBELLUM JASON ALDEAN DAN + SHAY LUKE BRYAN DARIUS RUCKER KANE BROWN MICHAEL RAY COLE SWINDELL MIDLAND LITTLE BIG TOWN RASCAL FLATTS LAUREN ALAINA BLAKE SHELTON
Country
Closer f/Halsey Love Yourself Uptown Funk f/Bruno Mars Like I’m Gonna Lose You Hello Ex’s And Oh’s Thinking Out Loud Stitches Body Like A Back Road Dirt On My Boots In Case You Didn’t Know Hurricane My Girl Small Town Boy Do I Make You Wanna A Guy With A Girl Hometown Girl Somebody Else Will No Such Thing As A Broken... Craving You f/Maren Morris You Look Good Any Ol’ Barstool How Not To Fast If I Told You What Ifs f/Lauren Alaina Think A Little Less Flatliner Drinkin’ Problem Better Man Yours If You Want It Road Less Traveled Every Time I Hear That Song
Zoom Into Engagement Season By Rob Ferre
‘Tis the season for inquiries from all of those newly engaged Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years holiday couples. For my first article with the Disc Jockey News, I am sharing some of the ways I communicate with my clients. We can all agree, we see a lot of inquires come through this time of year, and it takes more than an initial email response to seal the deal. Enter the consultation. If prospective couples are contacting me via email, messenger or text, I want to either get them on the phone, in person or have a virtual consultation. I often deal with destination couples who are planning their wedding from out of town, so virtual consultations are increasingly becoming the best option. I get to see the reactions on the faces of my couples when they talk about what they are looking for and to the solutions I can bring to their wedding. Their body language and expressions help to clue me in as to how I can direct the conversation towards their vision, or if I am falling off track. We can also screen share documents, pictures, videos and tutorials from how to use the client features on my website to Pinterest boards of their ideas. I have integrated the playlist and planner features from an online DJ planning system into my website. Destination couples find this an invaluable resource, and I’ve booked more than a handful of couples
because of the added benefits of this feature. There is an abundance of different platforms you can use for virtual consultations: FaceTime, Skype, Google Hangout, GoToMeeting, and Zoom to name a few. All of these platforms, except Google Hangout, have apps that you need to download. FaceTime is native to Apple users through a phone or computer. This is not the ideal option because both users must have an apple product to communicate. Google Hangout is free if you have a google account and use the G Suite, which provides enhanced features that integrate into your account. You don’t have to download an app; it can be used through your web browser. One feature I love about his platform is the meeting reminder emails sent to both user Gmail accounts. Skype has been around for a long time and is reliable. Both users must set up an account and add each other as friends to connect. Not everyone has a Skype ac-
count, so while this tech has stood the test of time, sometimes clients will not want to
Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018 • Page 15
set up a new account. Remember, we have to make our clients’ lives as easy as possible. Skype works well with Microsoft Windows operating systems. Skype also allows you the option, based on your plan,
tomatically switches to the screen of the individual speaking. Plus, I can screen share my desktop when I want to share photos and a view of my website. These platforms mostly share the
to provide scream share. GoToMeeting is popular with a lot of the same perks as Zoom. It is the most professional grade of the virtual meeting platforms. They do have a 14-day free trial if you’d like to check out the full version before paying. Zoom is the platform I like the most because of the great features available even at the free level. If you are doing lengthy consultations and involving multiple connections, I suggest using the paid version. I can keep my initial consultations to 45 minutes, enabling the free version to work for those purposes. I know some of my colleagues delve into creative collaboration meetings, requiring an hour or two, which would edge into needing the paid services. Zoom allows you connectivity on your phone, multiple party invitations, and confusion-saving technology that au-
same base functionality, so I suggest you become familiar with all of them. Then, find the one that you find most intuitive, user-friendly, and that you have received positive feedback about from clients. Most of my clients already use at least one of these virtual meetings. I am proficient in all of them to empower clients to choose their preferred platform. We need to create a sense of ease and instill in our clients the knowledge that we will take care of them from the very first communication. Start using virtual platforms for your consultations and start to sign more clients. Put yourself in a position that shows you are on top of the latest technology, flexible with their needs, and have the personality that matches their vision. Here’s to the engagement season! You can connect with him at RobFerre@discjockeynews.com.
PAGE 16 • Disc Jockey News • JANUARY 2018