bridal show

Don't know what to take to a DJ booth..been doing shows for 8 years as a photographer and it's not hard to know what to bring LOL.
I guess if you have videos of events...but did slideshows and seen videographers with videos and nobody stops to watch.

I've brought a speaker in the past..obvious and not exciting but I guess it is our 'main' prop

As for lights unless you turn them on it serves little purpose and tehy can get overwhelming (in the room) in a hurry. Not sure..maybe fire the galaxian at the ceiling or put a wash up behind you on the wall? Light up the table skirt wiht some pars flashing?

I'm probably gonna put some music on very low on a blue tooth speaker, an annoying loop of cupid shuffle and other 'wedding standards' to help set the mood. Most shows really limit what you can do.

My booth (january) will be dj, photobooth and wedding photography. It's about time I start thinking about what I'm doing for handouts and such.

A dish of candy is nice - they'll stop to eat it. Maybe a binder/album with stills and testimonials from past gigs would be better than a slideshow/video?

OOOH... how about a stack of records??? Vinyl would be a talking point!

I don't use a table.

Randy A said:

I don't use a table.

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That's a really nice display, Randy! Can you please tell us about what's on the pole behind your facade?
It looks cool!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry about that .. had a nice reply on my mobile and it didn't come over.

Anyways, as you can see, I highlighted my equipment, but it was only presentation. Running music is so subjective with everyone having their own musical taste, so I don't play any music. There were several other companies there with their systems hooked up and running; lights and all.

The monogram was in slow fade, with about 20 'mock' monograms in rotation. My facade was lit up, with a truss and flat screen running a slideshow I created sitting behind it. The one speaker had a collage of accent lighting images, which were very instrumental in selling that service. I had free ink pens, business cards and a brochure on the speaker. It also had a candle with a flower and a heart-shaped glass with mints. I stood out front and talked with many brides at once. I didn't put my back to the aisle and engaged everyone.

I also don't have sign up for give-a-ways nor require any information for those visiting the booth. I always tell them that there is so much to take in from all the vendors; that they should gather as much info as possible from the ones that the like, take it back home in the comfort of their home and sort through it all. It's a bid day for them and that they need to make the correct decision.

I've successfully been one of the first few vendors at the show I did and watched many brides work their way through the show and then circle around back to me. Fortunately, I haven't done a show since 2011.

I'm certainly no expert on the subject but, rather than go setup audio gear, wouldn't you be better served to setup a large screen TV with a slideshow running?

rickryan.com said:

I'm certainly no expert on the subject but, rather than go setup audio gear, wouldn't you be better served to setup a large screen TV with a slideshow running?

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I think using some sort of audio equipment allows a bride to quickly identify your service. I found most enjoyed the static images that they could scan through vs the slides.

Good luck. Hope all goes well for you.

personally I would not play any music. It will only make a bride not want to hire you. Lose the speaker... Look at yor booth from a bride's perspective,,, it's not "pretty" enough.... Having the mixer up there is ok, draws the eye,,, on the laptop I would be playing a slide show or a video. A big screen is nice if you have one.

Brides go for "emotion", that will draw them. Does your booth make that emotional connection? Personally I say no, but that's me... Don't look at it from a DJ's stand point. Show this picture to some female friends that you can trust to be honest, see what they say, ask them what they think you should have...

Not that my booth is so bad ass, but this is what I did last year...

redhotdj said:

To me most brides have no idea what a mixer is and I'm pretty sure they have no idea what a JBL or a evox 8 is either.

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Exactly! Nor do they care what an peevox or a bjl is. Nor should they care.
And a mixer to them is a social event. You know, something they did at frosh week or when they were pledging frat houses?

I'm not trying to belittle the brides to be as being stupid or technologically challenged, I'm trying to make the point that they won't care.

I guarantee you if you try to explain it to them what it all does, even if you explain it in the most basic layperson's terms, you will lose them quicker than,........well you get the picture I hope.

Brides only care about "lifestyle" based advertising. Things that evoke emotional responses catering to how their perfect day will look as their prince charming marries them and carries them off to their castle to live happily ever after (yeah,right).
As hokey as that sounds, even if today's modern brides don't really believe that crap anymore, they still want it to be true and will still make emotional purchases based on that fantasy.

Please don't take this as me trying to destroy you, but to be brutally honest, if you show up at the bridal show just as you have the setup pictured there, you will not hold anybody's attention for very long.

Put away the mixer and the evox, rent a short throw projector if you have enough booth space or a big screen tv if you don't, and as Rick mentioned, display a slideshow of lifestyle images of people dancing and having a good time on the back wall of the booth. Even if you don't have pics of your own events to display, get some stock photography.
Maybe have a small speaker hidden under your table playing upbeat dance tunes at very low volume.
Have some ambient mood lighting or up-lighting in the booth somewhere if you like, but skip any of the room or atmospheric effects. That would make it look cheesy, imo (although Chuck's pic of what appears to be a starfield laser or a bliss light under the table looks kinda cool.

As Ice mentioned, get some candies for bait and also have a promotion like a draw for free up-lighting or free ceremony or similar for each bride that books with you. Something that won't cost you alot of out of pocket expense but is still valuable to a bride to be.

Sell them on what their perfect day will look like, not how it comes together on a technical level.

Best of luck!

Oh yeah, one more thing. I don't know if you accept credit cards or not but regardless, make sure you are ready to take a booking onsite if you have a bride ready to sign.

I know this should go without saying, but make sure to not only have your availability calendar on hand but also have a few contracts with you and for god's sake a receipt book. When I used to do bridal shows years ago for another wedding related business, you would be amazed at how many vendors spent so much time preparing their booth for the show and then couldn't even give a confirmation for a date or give a receipt when they had attendees that were ready to make a purchase on the spot.

Good Luck!

redhotdj said:

Don't know what to take to a DJ booth

I didn't say I didn't know what to bring, I asked what do you think about the set up

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I offered a few things, but felt like your response indicated you weren't interested. So, I happily removed my thoughts. For me personally, your setup is typically of most and doesn't stand out. I would not use a white linen, unless I was accenting it with a runner and other decor. I would not use use a simple sign board. I would not have my mixer or other gear. I do like your speaker setup and feel it is enough to make people passing by know you're a DJ.

redhotdj said:

All your info is good thanks. To me if your a baker you bring cake, cookies ect, photographer pictures of your work, this is why I bring some equipment and have it playing. I am trying to sell myself and the up lighting that I offer

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Selling uplighting in a lit room on a small scale doesn't work the greatest...thus, the suggestions to have a slideshow or printed images of the final result of a wedding reception.

Your interaction with a potential bride is where you sell your services the best. Make sure you know what you want to say and practice saying it, so it rolls off your tongue naturally. Don't stumble over your words, be confident and reap the rewards.

But, I can promise you if you decide to stand out and not be the 'norm' .... you're success rate will be better. I've done it your way and I've done it my way (not really my way, but ways I seen others do it) and the proof is in the bookings.

On the subject of standing out, I had a conversation at a recent Jewish community vendor show (my first booth) with a drapery vendor. This guy is a mainstay in this market and does all the major shows and he had some interesting things to say. First off, he said he makes sure to use every square inch of his booth effectively. I take that to support the argument of no audio gear. I'd also argue against even a short throw projector as it will chew up booth floor space. I had a 42" flat screen TV against the back wall of my booth and it worked perfectly. The other thing he mentioned was that he does a supplemental set of P&D, bringing in 15-foot (tall) poles. He said if you tower your display over the others, it will attract more of them to your booth. I do agree with TJ that you need to play to their emotions. They don't care about gear or watts or blinky dance lights (in a fully lit tradeshow floor). Have lots of photos showing on a large screen, a few tasteful decor pieces and maybe some candles, then have the card swiper handy. Thanks for opening this discussion. Very valuable info being exchanged.

rickryan.com said:

The other thing he mentioned was that he does a supplemental set of P&D, bringing in 15-foot (tall) poles. He said if you tower your display over the others, it will attract more of them to your booth.

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That's interesting and something I hadn't really thought about but it makes perfect sense.
If you are in a standard size booth in a row with other vendors and as a result can't expand your booth horizontally, then go vertical to attract more attention.