What my possible clients think I do: Bring some speakers and play music. Most want me to avoid line dances and country music. Total time they think they are hiring me for….approximately 6 hours. Also, do you provide a cordless mic? Yes, I do. But here is what I actually do. A minimum of 14 hours, and sometimes up to 24 hours total:
1. Spend approximately 1-2 hours trying to answer any questions through emails and phone calls
2. Drive to an in-person meeting, sometimes in the Seacoast area of NH, sometimes at the event site where the wedding will take place. Approximate time spent, 1-2 hours.
3. Type up a contract, email to client. 10 minutes.
4. Send client what they will need to provide to me at their final meeting, update an excel song list filled with tons of songs that will help them get ideas, and send that file. 10 minutes.
5. Answer any emails or phone calls until the final meeting.
6. Sometimes, create a custom edit for a 1st dance song (for instance)…for example “Ryan, we want the 1st 2 minutes of the song, but then we want the next verse taken out, and then the song to continue at 3:05″. This can’t be done unless you are skilled audio engineer (someone who also records music for a living), which I am thankful I am. 20 minutes.
7. Call up the event site and talk with the wedding coordinator about load-in times and anything else that seems appropriate. 15 minutes.
8. Make sure my equipment is always in top shape, cables are in order, lights are all working, order new equipment, computer is running great and software is up to date.
9. Schedule a final meeting, over the phone or in-person.
10. Have a final meeting. 30 minutes to 1.5 hours
11. Work on making sure I have all needed special song requests and that their file is in order, usually a few days before the wedding. 30 min to 1 hour
12. Make sure up lights are fully charged
13. Pack car. 15 minutes
14. Drive. Anywhere from 10 minutes to 3 hours
15. Unload. 15 minutes
16. Set up ceremony if needed. 30 minutes
17. Set up reception equipment. 45 minutes
18. Talk with the wedding coordinator and meet all other vendors including the photo booth vendor, photographer, videographer, etc, and discuss the time-line
19. Work the contract hours, usually between 5-7 hours
20. Have the best dance party anyone has ever been to. Priceless.
21. Be kind to guests, even the ones not being kind to me. Be kind to the wedding coordinators, even the ones not being kind to me.
22. Pack up. 45 minutes
23. Load car and drive home. 10-minutes to 3 hours
24. Send a thank you
Ever see other wedding DJ web-sites and they are littered with sayings and logos such as:
Well, here is the secret. They are all a rouse. I have been in the wedding industry for over 10 years now, after owning a large planning and design firm, so I am intimately familiar with advertising within. Advertisers will do anything to win over a vendors advertising dollar, and many times hand out “awards” such as these, when really the DJ or wedding vendor may have just gotten a certain number of reviews (positive or negative) on the advertisers web-site so they then reach out them with this ploy of giving them an “award” and then asking for dollars soon thereafter. Don’t be sucked in to these awards when making your decision on who to call, as they say nothing really about the person or company that is being awarded it.
