Discussion: Will most clients choose a DJ who is "OKAY" to save $$$?

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My subaru was made in indiana. the factgory, taxes and jobs are in teh US, but the profits go to japan.
my chevy was made in mexico, so the factory, taxes and jobs are there, but the profits go to the US.

Which choice is better for the economy?

I bought EV subs..owned by a german company but says 'made in usa'.

I bought 'wholesale' not retail..so I spent less than I could have..did I hurt the economy?
 
MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
I saw a add where the bride was looking for someone who could provide a video setup for her wedding since the DJ she booked doesn't provide that. I wonder why she didn't look to book a DJ that could provide everything she wanted instead of going that route? I bet she's looking for the cheapest price she can find.
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Craigs list again no doubt. I don't do video do you?
 
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Jas said:
Craigs list again no doubt. I don't do video do you?
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He's already mastered photography, how hard could it be to add on videography? :-/
 
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Jas said:
Craigs list again no doubt. I don't do video do you?
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I bought a couple of TV's looking to do video thinking it would be easy. Once I saw all the work involved and the cost to get all the stuff needed to do video I gave up.
 
IceBurghDJ said:
My subaru was made in indiana. the factgory, taxes and jobs are in teh US, but the profits go to japan.
my chevy was made in mexico, so the factory, taxes and jobs are there, but the profits go to the US.

Which choice is better for the economy?

I bought EV subs..owned by a german company but says 'made in usa'.

I bought 'wholesale' not retail..so I spent less than I could have..did I hurt the economy?
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Personally I have no problem putting a little profit into a foreign company that makes a quality product and employs American workers to manage and complete that work. Those American workers will put that money back into the economy on a daily basis. Whatever GM profits there are, do you think they're investing them into the American economy?
 
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Jas said:
I meant I don't even have a projector or show videos any other way. I do videography, but the results have been too blurry to get hired (even by a CL bride) :)
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See .. blurriness doesn't faze Mix ...
 
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I agree with the other posters that it depends on the client and the type of event. Lots of people out there hire DJs for one-time events without taking into consideration the art and science of DJing. They don't really care about the finer points of sound quality or care how much work it is to haul your equipment to their event and set up. They just want something that sounds OK. They're just OK clients. When you're a DJ, just OK clients are better than no clients, but things like this are just part of life in our line of work.
 
PlasticinePorter said:
I agree with the other posters that it depends on the client and the type of event. Lots of people out there hire DJs for one-time events without taking into consideration the art and science of DJing. They don't really care about the finer points of sound quality or care how much work it is to haul your equipment to their event and set up. They just want something that sounds OK. They're just OK clients. When you're a DJ, just OK clients are better than no clients, but things like this are just part of life in our line of work.
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I almost agreed with you till you said having OK clients is better than no clients at all. Sometimes OK clients might hurt your business more then help it. It depends on how much those OK clients want to spend to book you. Also it's better to get paid say $1,000 to do 10 events making $10,000 then doing 20 events at $500 each. Less wear and tear on your gear. Less expenses, less wear and tear on your body. Not to mention less wear and tear on your vehicle as well.

Like it was stated earlier if you really need the exposure bad enough then I say you need to do what you need to do.
 
MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
I almost agreed with you till you said having OK clients is better than no clients at all. Sometimes OK clients might hurt your business more then help it. It depends on how much those OK clients want to spend to book you. Also it's better to get paid say $1,000 to do 10 events making $10,000 then doing 20 events at $500 each. Less wear and tear on your gear. Less expenses, less wear and tear on your body. Not to mention less wear and tear on your vehicle as well.

Like it was stated earlier if you really need the exposure bad enough then I say you need to do what you need to do.
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Getting more money for less events ONLY works if there are clients with more money and there are enough of those events to do it. Not all of the businesses here can make that claim.
 
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And if you're only doing 10 events per year you're not getting much experience at DJing. And, the price one charges to do a BBQ shouldn't effect how much one charges for a wedding, prom or Mitzvah.

The book "Selling the Invisible" has a blurb about marketing yourself as "good enough" rather than being the best.

"Good enough" is all that many prospects want or need no matter what type of event they're booking. Let's face it, only one DJ can be the best for each market.
 
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Jas said:
And if you're only doing 10 events per year you're not getting much experience at DJing. And, the price one charges to do a BBQ shouldn't effect how much one charges for a wedding, prom or Mitzvah.

The book "Selling the Invisible" has a blurb about marketing yourself as "good enough" rather than being the best.

"Good enough" is all that many prospects want or need no matter what type of event they're booking. Let's face it, only one DJ can be the best for each market.
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Besides, in many markets the best MCs available often are not the highest charging DJs. If a DJ has polished MC skills, and does a "Good Job" of putting together a great mix of music, and provides "adequate" customer service, then 98% of clients will be satisfied.

Often, the under $800 DJs are displaying characterizes lower than average in at least one of those areas. Sometimes they lack in 2 areas

1. MC skills
2. Music Program Production
3. Customer Service.

For example: If a client is fine with the DJ having sub par MC skills, but great at Music Programing and provides them with good customer service, then they will be fine with their decision of going with a lower priced Wedding DJ.

The above $800 DJs will be expected to be "GOOD" in all 3 areas.

With the other 2% of clients...they want over the top production, and a very high level of customer service. Those are the ones that are only willing to book a high priced DJ for their event, and not consider the lower priced DJs in the market. They will typically spend $1,500 or more on a Wedding DJ.
 
problem with reputation is it only goes so far.
And if there were 10 DJs in your town, great - but google DJ and you'll get 40 or more.

Maybe YOU Have heard of them but typical client has not. Thumbtack and oterhs exist for this reason - 'don't know who to call? come here and we'll get them to send you bids!' In such a situation they don't know anyone to call - so don't know your rep.

And as you'd expect, nobody says they're anything but the best..so how is a person to decide?

On another forum it was said don't send clients to 'go see my reviews on wedding wire' as you're sending them to 'the other djs advertising there' which is true, but if YOU were looking for reviews would those on my website or some third party site be more reliable? Or fair..I'm not going to post mediocre reviews on my site...and you won't post them on yours either. So how much of a sales benefit is it?

IF everyone has glowing reviews on their sites..does that influence the prospect?

I did a photobooth at a wedding with a DJ that I'd heard good things about, and he talked himself up quite a bit before the event to me when we talked.
And then...disappointment.

MC? hardly.
Customer service? He was supposedly a family friend of the bride and never not once mentioned her name on the mic 'can the bride come to the dance floor for her first dance' - didn't even get up to go get her (as in he sat all night).
Music choice? Dance floor? I've seen worse and I've scene a whole lot better. Don't know what the bride wanted..but doubtful a 22ish bride wants the first 30 minutes to be doo wop car cruise music. Or the twist played twice during that time.

Maybe wedding's aren't his thing and this was a favor. Just been a very long time since I've been to any event where the dj puts his speakers on the floor and not on stands.

To MOST prospects a DJ is a DJ until they learn otherwise - and even then I'm not sure it matters.

I did a few dances last year at the school - got asked back, paid more, rave reviews. Chaperones and principal were impressed kids dance as they told "kids never dance at these things"... yet I didn't get asked to do their dance last night.

MANY factors go into choosing where to buy something, loyalty, price, convenience, quality, repuation, past experience, WOM, marketing, timing and probably more.
 
IceBurghDJ said:
And as you'd expect, nobody says they're anything but the best..so how is a person to decide?
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By checking references not simply reviews. Anyone can write a review, only a person with true conviction will take the time to provide you a reference. I give serious prospects the opportunity to speak directly to one or more past clients who have hired me for the very same type of event.
 
Proformance said:
By checking references not simply reviews. Anyone can write a review, only a person with true conviction will take the time to provide you a reference. I give serious prospects the opportunity to speak directly to one or more past clients who have hired me for the very same type of event.
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And anyone can charge a friend or family member to provide a reference. Easily offer $$$ to someone to be a good reference for them.

Online websites such as Wedding Wire do not let vendors write their own reviews as they can track them. Sure, a vendor COULD get people to write up fake reviews on their behalf, but I doubt that is what's going on. Those people would not be able to sign up to write other reviews on a web site such as Wedding Wire or The Knot.

Seriously...In the last 6 years I have literally had 2 Mitzvah client ask to speak to references, and I have had ZERO wedding clients ask for references. References were asked more often prior to 2010 when online reviews were not quite popular yet.

Millennials do not ask for references when it comes to their purchasing practices.
 
references..no.
reviews? sure.
How often and how high your name comes up on google? yep.

If they google you and only your site comes up, or your name on sites with no reviews vs another DJ that comes up with reviews and such? The guy with reviews gets the edge.

They say the internet leveled the playing field so anyone can comppete with the big names..and to a degree it has, but the ability to pull up histories and reviews and forum talk on vendors - or not for new vendors - is a factor we didn't have to deal with in the olden days.
 
IceBurghDJ said:
references..no.
reviews? sure.
How often and how high your name comes up on google? yep.

If they google you and only your site comes up, or your name on sites with no reviews vs another DJ that comes up with reviews and such? The guy with reviews gets the edge.

They say the internet leveled the playing field so anyone can comppete with the big names..and to a degree it has, but the ability to pull up histories and reviews and forum talk on vendors - or not for new vendors - is a factor we didn't have to deal with in the olden days.
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You know there's a real world with real life that exists independent of the internet, right?
The internet did not level the playing field - it leveled the players who think it's the only game in town.

When it really matters qualified buyers contract services from local businesses they trust. They ask their friends and associates for recommendations and referrals, and the internet is just a phone book.
 
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