Portable power
- Thread starter rickryan.com
- Start date
Even without planning to have no power, it sometimes happens .. or sometimes having the option makes it easier. For less than $1000, it's just another tool in the arsenal.
That's always the challenge - if 90% of your weddings are 200 or fewer people and you do no proms or large dances, do you really need a pair of $2000 subs? A truss full of lighitng? No.
Same probably for the genset or ceremony system..or many other things.
Not every investment/idea will pay off. I know a guy selling 4 photobooths - he sells them and pays a person to be there..most weekends he's got 3 f them out, and after expenses clears $300-400 per booth. Me? I can't sell the same booth here 6 times a year. Too late to the market? Maybe. He has a dedicated website and spends on marketing JUST the booth under it's own brand. Makes a difference. And I can do that too..no reason I can't. Other than I seem to be pretty busy with 100 other things...
Same probably for the genset or ceremony system..or many other things.
Not every investment/idea will pay off. I know a guy selling 4 photobooths - he sells them and pays a person to be there..most weekends he's got 3 f them out, and after expenses clears $300-400 per booth. Me? I can't sell the same booth here 6 times a year. Too late to the market? Maybe. He has a dedicated website and spends on marketing JUST the booth under it's own brand. Makes a difference. And I can do that too..no reason I can't. Other than I seem to be pretty busy with 100 other things...
Not every gear purchase is an "investment" .. much of it is just the cost of doing business.
Spot on Steve. Investments can make money or lose on there own .
Yes and no.
You need music, marketing, a sound system. CODB.
If you add uplighting or a genset is a CODB or not? No, it's an upsell..so it is gonna have some ROI attached to it.
Now if you NEED those items because you're in wyoming or the hills of WV where power is perhaps rare, then it's gonna be CODB.
If you're gear fits in your 1996 suburban, the car is CODB.
A new Sprinter van with a wrap is what? An investment that you expect to increase bookings. Why spend $30,000 other wise? Lots cheaper to fix the suburban or by the 94 chevy 1500 with cap for sale down the road from me for $1400.
You need music, marketing, a sound system. CODB.
If you add uplighting or a genset is a CODB or not? No, it's an upsell..so it is gonna have some ROI attached to it.
Now if you NEED those items because you're in wyoming or the hills of WV where power is perhaps rare, then it's gonna be CODB.
If you're gear fits in your 1996 suburban, the car is CODB.
A new Sprinter van with a wrap is what? An investment that you expect to increase bookings. Why spend $30,000 other wise? Lots cheaper to fix the suburban or by the 94 chevy 1500 with cap for sale down the road from me for $1400.
All of these items would be considered a CODB. As the business owner, you choose which items you want to include on your service list. Just because you personally view a generator or uplighting as up-sells, and not necessarily vital to the life of your business, does not change their CODB status.
CODB..you need speakers.
$300 ones? $2000 ones?
Why spend $2k over $300? Reliability? Assuming they both work...will customers tell the difference? Doubtful.
You EXPECT some BENEFIT from the extra $1700 'investment', right? Be that better sound, looks, portability, setup - which either saves time in setup, downtime, improved appearance which allows higher asking price or more referrals.
As a mechanic I started with craftsman tools. I could have replaced them with SnapOn and spent 3-4 times as much money. I would not be paid 3-4X higher wages, they don't let me do the work in 1/3 the time, don't last longer. I bought a few SnapOn tools - it was convenient that the guy came around once a week and they offered a few specilized items, but the extra cost wasn't in any way economically justifiable.
Same for a tool box..I have $450 in a used one, 2 different brands..vs $3000 or more in a new snapon one.
$300 ones? $2000 ones?
Why spend $2k over $300? Reliability? Assuming they both work...will customers tell the difference? Doubtful.
You EXPECT some BENEFIT from the extra $1700 'investment', right? Be that better sound, looks, portability, setup - which either saves time in setup, downtime, improved appearance which allows higher asking price or more referrals.
As a mechanic I started with craftsman tools. I could have replaced them with SnapOn and spent 3-4 times as much money. I would not be paid 3-4X higher wages, they don't let me do the work in 1/3 the time, don't last longer. I bought a few SnapOn tools - it was convenient that the guy came around once a week and they offered a few specilized items, but the extra cost wasn't in any way economically justifiable.
Same for a tool box..I have $450 in a used one, 2 different brands..vs $3000 or more in a new snapon one.
Still, your choice of tool does not change the fact that they all are a cost of doing business. If you buy a tool with which to do business, it's a CODB. Now could you have bought a cheaper tool? Sure, but that's an issue of business decision with relation to ROI. There are plenty of us who bought into Bose. Could we have bought something cheaper to get the job done? Sure. However, cheap or expensive speakers, they all are still classified as CODB.
CODB has to make sense.
You COULD go spend $30,000 on a van, fill it will multiple systems, $10k in uplighting, a built in genset, etc. Easily spend $50,000 to be setup as a DJ. Maybe add a cargo trailer behind the van with even more in it. Multiple facades to fit each venue/bride, wireless DMX, etc. Buy the $50 XLR cables, mutliple high end mics, big linnerar arrays that you can fly at proms, a 40 track mixing board...
At some point you need to pay for this stuff- assuming it's not a tax haven or hobby.
Read that the avg dJ does 61 gigs a year. If you get $600 avg that's $36,000. If gear lasts 5 years and you need $10k, that's $2k/ year in gear. If you only do 30 gigs a year that $2k gets to be costly at 12% of sales.
If you NEED a genset, great. BUT if you don't, then why buy it?
To offer a service that is unique so you can ... GET MORE GIGS..make more money!!
So how many more gigs do you expect to get so that you can pay for the genset out of the INCREASED SALES and not out of your retirement savings?
If you use the 6% or 12% figures from above, you can figure out real quickly what you need to do. $800 genset has to bring in $6700 in sales (at 12%) or $3300 (at 6%) to be worth buying.
You COULD go spend $30,000 on a van, fill it will multiple systems, $10k in uplighting, a built in genset, etc. Easily spend $50,000 to be setup as a DJ. Maybe add a cargo trailer behind the van with even more in it. Multiple facades to fit each venue/bride, wireless DMX, etc. Buy the $50 XLR cables, mutliple high end mics, big linnerar arrays that you can fly at proms, a 40 track mixing board...
At some point you need to pay for this stuff- assuming it's not a tax haven or hobby.
Read that the avg dJ does 61 gigs a year. If you get $600 avg that's $36,000. If gear lasts 5 years and you need $10k, that's $2k/ year in gear. If you only do 30 gigs a year that $2k gets to be costly at 12% of sales.
If you NEED a genset, great. BUT if you don't, then why buy it?
To offer a service that is unique so you can ... GET MORE GIGS..make more money!!
So how many more gigs do you expect to get so that you can pay for the genset out of the INCREASED SALES and not out of your retirement savings?
If you use the 6% or 12% figures from above, you can figure out real quickly what you need to do. $800 genset has to bring in $6700 in sales (at 12%) or $3300 (at 6%) to be worth buying.
Needs to make sense .. relative to your business plan .. but it's still a cost. You might make a case that it's a partial investment into a new market, but in general, things that depreciate, are costs.
You'd buy a genset IF you need it often, if it's difficult to rent near you, or if, as part of your plan, you decide that having backup for power is as important as having backup for speakers or your laptop. All subjective.
Highly subjective. Just because I Cap uses Bose and I use QSC doesn't change his gear's status. It's still a cost of doing business. I'm not sure at what point the IRS bounces an item from CODB due to excessive expenditure but I'm fairly certain that everything we're discussing here, including the $30k Spinter van, would easily remain classified as a CODB.
So go spend $500,000 on gear.
Oh wait, you can't - you'll be broke.
this is a BUSINESS and it what you spend (aka invest) in gear MUST MAKE SENSE. Or you're a bad manager and losing money (to the gear companies) that you could be keeping for yourself.
So..you CAN buy a $10 cable, a $250 GTD mic and a $300 peavey speaker - that all work just fine.
OR you can buy $50 cables, $700+ mics and $1500 speakers. That all work just fine.
So you can be DJing for $2000 or $5000 out of your pocket. Assuming the same skills/music, does the GEAR make much difference? It will on your bottom line, but in SALES and CLIENT VALUE, does it?
I have used canon 300 rebel, 10d, 20d, 30d, 40d, 5d, 5d2, 5d3 and have an SL1. I have used lenses from $50 to $2400. I've used flashes from $50 to $650.
Does it make a difference?
Well, I showed up to shoot my last wedding with 5D2 (x2), 5d3, 580 flashes (x3), 16-35L, 24-70L (x2) 70-200IS L (x2), 15 fisheye, 85 1.2L, 85 1.8, 135F2L and pocket wizards and meters and off camera lighting. $25,000 give or take, in gear.
I DJ'd a few weddings recently..talked with the photogs..less than 2 years experience beween ALL THREE of them. No L lenses. No flashes for god's sake (other than built in ones in their rebels). Using kit lenses and inexpensive zooms. One guy used a hero cam for stuff. I doubt any of them had $2k in gear.
I'm NOT getting 10X the money they are, nor booking 10X the gigs. Apparently good gear, and lots of it, means NOTHING to the clients these days.
I found that better gear makes my job easier, the results better - but obviously at a cost (to me). My gear is long paid for so I'm not 'going backwards' but it makes little sense to invest in that today.
Same for DJ equipment -if you can do the jobs with $2k out of your pocket why spend 3X that? Only the gear companies are benefiting.
Oh wait, you can't - you'll be broke.
this is a BUSINESS and it what you spend (aka invest) in gear MUST MAKE SENSE. Or you're a bad manager and losing money (to the gear companies) that you could be keeping for yourself.
So..you CAN buy a $10 cable, a $250 GTD mic and a $300 peavey speaker - that all work just fine.
OR you can buy $50 cables, $700+ mics and $1500 speakers. That all work just fine.
So you can be DJing for $2000 or $5000 out of your pocket. Assuming the same skills/music, does the GEAR make much difference? It will on your bottom line, but in SALES and CLIENT VALUE, does it?
I have used canon 300 rebel, 10d, 20d, 30d, 40d, 5d, 5d2, 5d3 and have an SL1. I have used lenses from $50 to $2400. I've used flashes from $50 to $650.
Does it make a difference?
Well, I showed up to shoot my last wedding with 5D2 (x2), 5d3, 580 flashes (x3), 16-35L, 24-70L (x2) 70-200IS L (x2), 15 fisheye, 85 1.2L, 85 1.8, 135F2L and pocket wizards and meters and off camera lighting. $25,000 give or take, in gear.
I DJ'd a few weddings recently..talked with the photogs..less than 2 years experience beween ALL THREE of them. No L lenses. No flashes for god's sake (other than built in ones in their rebels). Using kit lenses and inexpensive zooms. One guy used a hero cam for stuff. I doubt any of them had $2k in gear.
I'm NOT getting 10X the money they are, nor booking 10X the gigs. Apparently good gear, and lots of it, means NOTHING to the clients these days.
I found that better gear makes my job easier, the results better - but obviously at a cost (to me). My gear is long paid for so I'm not 'going backwards' but it makes little sense to invest in that today.
Same for DJ equipment -if you can do the jobs with $2k out of your pocket why spend 3X that? Only the gear companies are benefiting.
If you're getting 70 $1500 wedding gigs you don't care.
But I'm seeing a lot more requests for $300 gigs..be that Dj or photobooth, than ever before (seasonal I hope, and not a trend). If you only get 40 $300 gigs..then the cost of gear is a critical consideration.
Maybe cause I've seen the rise and fall of the motorcycle industry (currently failing/falling) and then the video store biz, TV repair shops (first job, friends were in the field), photography industry failure (this year the pro org here, est 1937, closed. 4 of the 6 mainstreet studios around 5 years ago are gone. Picture People at the mall broke their lease it was so bad. I went from 20 weddings a year to 6 at 30% lower price point).
I don't know if the DJ field will falter or fall... you'd think the low end clients would use spotify and spend nothing rather than look for $300 Djs.
We may all have to vote democratic and hope for handouts!
But I'm seeing a lot more requests for $300 gigs..be that Dj or photobooth, than ever before (seasonal I hope, and not a trend). If you only get 40 $300 gigs..then the cost of gear is a critical consideration.
Maybe cause I've seen the rise and fall of the motorcycle industry (currently failing/falling) and then the video store biz, TV repair shops (first job, friends were in the field), photography industry failure (this year the pro org here, est 1937, closed. 4 of the 6 mainstreet studios around 5 years ago are gone. Picture People at the mall broke their lease it was so bad. I went from 20 weddings a year to 6 at 30% lower price point).
I don't know if the DJ field will falter or fall... you'd think the low end clients would use spotify and spend nothing rather than look for $300 Djs.
We may all have to vote democratic and hope for handouts!
Why buy a new car when you can can just use the old bicycle ..
At some point everyone needs to make the decisions as to what is or is not appropriate for the BUSINESS PLAN they have for their business. For some, the branding and target audience might need a wrapped, $50K truck filled with $100K of gear .. for some it's an old Pinto with a $1K setup .. no right or wrong .. only that you can justify the expense relative to the income.
Better, easier, cleaner, prettier .. all relative. My opinion is different than yours and many others.
I bought whatI did because I wanted a vehicle I could depend on. To me it makes no sense to keep spending money on a vehicle that's a money pit. My last straw with the van I had was driving on the highway to pick up a friend and the van broke down. I had it towed and found out the water pump went. So after getting it fixed and already having issues back to back to back, I decided to get rid of that van and get a newer model.
The one I had before this onewas a 2002 and I bought this one in 2015. So the other van was 13 going on 14 years. Just not worth keep spending money on a headache. Since I've had the 2012 the biggest thing was having to buy 4 new tires. I had a blow out on the highway and the next day I bought 4 new tires. The next thing is getting break work done either at the next oil change or the one after that. Normal wear and tear. Things that are expected expenses after a while.
My point is no need of keep spending money on something when you don't have to. For me I decided to get a more reliable vehicle then take a chance on my way to a gig and can't make it because my transportation craped out on me and me having to refund a client their money and have them spread the word to not book me to do a gig.
YOU buy a car because of style or ego or keeping up with the joneses.
BUSINESSES buy vehicles based on ECONOMICS. Nothing more. More efficient, less down time, etc.
BUSINESSES buy vehicles based on ECONOMICS. Nothing more. More efficient, less down time, etc.
DOWNTIME. That's why you bought a new vehicle.
A new truck today is around $35,000 - see here
You want no downtime, you buy new.
You can buy used with 50-60k for $13k or so - see here
so you buy new, right?
No? Why not?
A) you just don't have the money (borrow it!)
B) it's not worth is...by what definition? ECONOMICS? Why spend $35k when $13k will do THE SAME THING?
EXACTLY!
That $35k will not make you more money, nor save you more money, than the $13k one - if you disagree tell me WHY you think differently.
Maybe you buy it for 35k and drive it 2 years and sell it for 20k ($15k total cost), vs 13k and in 2 years spend 2k on repairs and sell it for 4k (11k total cost)but figure teh new car smell or showing up a newer van means something to prospects.
It makes VERY BAD buinsess sense to buy the new van because, well, you had $35k laying around and no other use for it.
Same for a genset or anything - it's a BUSINESS - your capital has to earn you a profit. If that genset cost $800 and you use it 5 years and sell it 10 times at $80 you got your $800 back.
BUT you coulda put that $800 in the bank at 2% interest and MADE money, instead of breaking even.
A new truck today is around $35,000 - see here
You want no downtime, you buy new.
You can buy used with 50-60k for $13k or so - see here
so you buy new, right?
No? Why not?
A) you just don't have the money (borrow it!)
B) it's not worth is...by what definition? ECONOMICS? Why spend $35k when $13k will do THE SAME THING?
EXACTLY!
That $35k will not make you more money, nor save you more money, than the $13k one - if you disagree tell me WHY you think differently.
Maybe you buy it for 35k and drive it 2 years and sell it for 20k ($15k total cost), vs 13k and in 2 years spend 2k on repairs and sell it for 4k (11k total cost)but figure teh new car smell or showing up a newer van means something to prospects.
It makes VERY BAD buinsess sense to buy the new van because, well, you had $35k laying around and no other use for it.
Same for a genset or anything - it's a BUSINESS - your capital has to earn you a profit. If that genset cost $800 and you use it 5 years and sell it 10 times at $80 you got your $800 back.
BUT you coulda put that $800 in the bank at 2% interest and MADE money, instead of breaking even.
As I recall, something was recently mentioned on here about it being worth it to buy a genny just to have it for uses around the home both as backup power and for remote work on your property. Since the prices have dropped by about 50% in the last 5 years or so, it makes the decision to buy even easier as not only will get the benefit of the uses already mentioned, you will also have a tax write-off. 
For those getting ready to purchase, one of the most often overlooked specs is the volume of the fuel tank which subsequently affects the average run time.
If you will only be using it for ceremony work or short jobs then it's immaterial.
If you need it to power a full length event, then something with a big enough tank for a minimum 8 hour run time should be in order.
Having to carry an extra piece of gear (a gas can) to the site is not saving you anything imo.
For those getting ready to purchase, one of the most often overlooked specs is the volume of the fuel tank which subsequently affects the average run time.
If you will only be using it for ceremony work or short jobs then it's immaterial.
If you need it to power a full length event, then something with a big enough tank for a minimum 8 hour run time should be in order.
Having to carry an extra piece of gear (a gas can) to the site is not saving you anything imo.
Yes! A tool that you'll rarely use, but have to drag around all the time.
A tool that needs to be filled with gas to be valuable.
Not something I want sitting in my trailer.
For me, it's not worth it, for that "once in a blue moon" use.