I'm just wondering out loud here... for those that employ DJs while providing the equipment and music, what or how do you determine their pay?
How do you pay your DJs?
- Thread starter jokerswild
- Start date
The only time i sub out work is for bar gigs...
in that case i have a few other dj's that i trust to cover shows for me...they all have there own equipment and music & videos
I pay them whatever i would get payed from the bar...and i have the bar pay them at the end of the night just like i would.
I've told them all the same. You get payed the same as i would as if i did the show myself. I want them to be happy, and go keep MY
clients happy. I've had 1 jackhole try to take my work in 6 years...so i'm doing o.k.
I told them all that lowering the price is dumb, I've worked hard for the last 4 years to raise them to where they are now, So why be dumb??
I guess it works for me
in that case i have a few other dj's that i trust to cover shows for me...they all have there own equipment and music & videos
I pay them whatever i would get payed from the bar...and i have the bar pay them at the end of the night just like i would.
I've told them all the same. You get payed the same as i would as if i did the show myself. I want them to be happy, and go keep MY
clients happy. I've had 1 jackhole try to take my work in 6 years...so i'm doing o.k.
I told them all that lowering the price is dumb, I've worked hard for the last 4 years to raise them to where they are now, So why be dumb??
I guess it works for me
I don't "employ" anyone. Like Brian said, I will sub out to someone who I know and trust. I usually pay them upfront and add a $100.00 Bonus because more than likely I will be someplace else making much bigger bucks.
I have a DJ Buddy of mine when he works for me, which has been quite often since my wife injured herself. I pay him 250 dollars I picked the pay which he was quite happy with. He works with me and never does events by himself. He is pretty much a glorified helper but that is what I need. I learned if you have good help and pay them well then you will continue to have good help when you need it. ) Since I get paid in advance, I also pay him in advance. But again he is also a friend whom I trust quite a bit.
I pay my DJs based on a percentage of the booking. Ranges anywhere between 40% and 55% depending on their experience.
If I supply the gear, they get half the take (they keep any tip). If they supply the gear, they take 2/3. Seems to be working out fine, so far. I had a guest at an event a few months back who said he used to DJ for the big boy multi-op in Knoxville. He said they paid $75-$100 and their base booking rate was $700.
Hmmmmm, think I know who your referring to but I thought their base price was $1500 :tribiggrin:
Probably is. Dude's been around a long time and abuses, er, uses a lot of college kids for his DJs. Boys for da boyz.
Rick, In the last few years, the boyz have changed their biz model. I think they went to a seminar and and all of a sudden their prices went from $500 to $1500 overnight.
Man...been awile! I have 7-8 guys working for the company and after trying out a lot of different ways to get everyone paid quickly and easily for the client this is what I do. Depending on the gig I take anywhere from 25-35% so I make that the deposit to secure the booking. The client mails in a check for the deposit amount along with the contract upon booking, and pays the balance due (written to the DJ directly) the night of the event. That way I eliminate as much of the 1099 burden I need to worry about at tax time, the DJ is happy to be paid for a job well done and all is well. Have a great St. Pattys weekend everyone!
Welcome back Kris. If the Client is paying the DJ's portion directly to the DJ and you also acknowledge that you are trying to bypass the 1099s, then you need to quit using terms such as " I have 7-8 guys working for the company ". That in itself is an acknowledgement of an "Employee Status". You may want to use the phrase I have X amount of guys working WITH me.
Also if the Contract is in your (Business) name, you will have to answer to the IRS as to where the whole amount of money listed in the contract went. This is the very reason why they created the 1099s in the first place. Are you consulting with a Tax Attorney and CPA about all this? I am neither of the two so don't just take my word for it.
I'm 99.9% certain that during an IRS audit, no auditor is going to ask you for copies of the contracts with your clients. That would take far too much time and not be productive for them. They'll only want to see proof of monies received by you and whether you've accounted for those correctly. The only time they might ask you for the contracts if you're stupid enough to blurt out, "I have the clients pay the DJ directly to avoid paying taxes."
Thought I'd add in something here. Use Paypal to pay your DJs. You can send the money as a personal gift and it avoids the 3% service charge. Using paypal also gives you a way to download a spreadsheet of all transactions for the year. Makes it incredibly easier to get an accurate listing of who got paid how much. All my guys will be getting PP this year.
Of course, I issue a 1099 once the $600 threshold has been met. My point was that paypal lets you download a spreadsheet of all transactions, which can easily be sorted by name (DJ's name). I imagine that in the case of an audit, you should be able to simply hand a copy of the spreadsheet to the IRS for verification of accuracy.
DjDennis
RIP- My Dad (2011), Sister (2013) and Mum (2017)
