As I wrote the title of this article, I realized it sounded like an overly loud used-car-lot radio advertisement. Annoying spokesman voice aside, the call to "act now" has important consequences beyond its use in marketing. Whether we are setting goals for our company, choosing a training or education, or even just taking a quick note at an event, deciding to act now in lieu of procrastinating and potentially forgetting something is an important skill to learn. It's happened to all of us. We are at an event and suddenly a brilliant idea comes to us. Perhaps it's a song that we realize would fit perfectly with a certain playlist. Maybe it's a new way of phrasing an announcement or preparing for our next event. Whatever it is, the idea comes and, instead of acting on it immediately, we attempt to store it in... [read more]

So unfortunately, I'm turning the camera back on to do another video on this phone charging station concept. So the first thing I will say is that there are people who see this as a positive thing and they want to pursue it and they get it and they're like, yeah. What a great idea. We'll provide the service. There are others who are pretty fearful that things are going to happen to someone's phone. And what they're doing is, they're taking responsibility for everything that's happening with this phone charging station; security, for example. Some people want to put cameras up now to monitor the phones. The problem with that is with a security, you're also somewhat accountable and responsible. So if you consider that and let's say your camera doesn't get the person's face and they take the phone, then your vi... [read more]

Cont. from last week 2. Draw brides in  It starts with a pattern interrupting banner, video or display to compel brides to stop by and want to know more. It could even be you inviting brides in. Your draw is effectively your headline and is the most important attribute of your stand, so carefully plan the mind trigger you’ll use to attract brides in. What attention grabber can you create to demand a bride to think “Wow! I’ve got to stop by here”. Focus solely on the unique benefits you offer and avoid features. The benefits should be compiled of your most desirable USPs and distinguish you from your competitors. 3. A... [read more]

In order to grow your business and add depth to your client list, your goal should be to create a lasting, memorable, very positive experience for your customer. Not just on event day, but all the way through your journey to get there.  It’s not just about showing up and playing four or five hours of great music and packing a dance floor. There is way too much competition out there to be less than stellar or exemplary when it comes to delivering A+, 5-star customer service every step of the way. Whether you are a single operator or multi-DJ business, service, support, sales, operations and every other department within your organizatio... [read more]

The views in this article are entirely my own. I purchased these speakers with my own money and am not receiving any incentive to write this article. A little over a month ago, I began a search for a new powered wedding ceremony speaker. My criteria were simple; I wanted something compact, lightweight, aesthetically pleasing, powerful, and of course, it needed to sound great. After deciding I wanted a 10" speaker, I began researching every powered model on the market today. Seeing as I already have 2 main systems that were both expensive and powerful, I just wanted a speaker that could deliver clean speech during a wedding and have enough juice to play some dinner music in a remote area. After a lot of searching, I kept noticing the new Alto TS 300 series popping up at the top of my queries. Alto speakers... [read more]

When it comes to the rules of just about any business, there are three things to remember: Location Location Location For every business, location matters, a lot! Just a few years ago, brick and mortar stores were dominant and your actual physical location mattered a lot. Now, it's all about online presence. Particularly with Google, which has about 75% of the search engine traffic. Others such as Yahoo, Bing, and Baidu (search engine in China), hold a large audience at around 5-10% of the search engine traffic. Baidu is actually gaining ground, too! For now, let's just focus on Google and Yahoo/Bing. For the most part, Google is very dominant in the U.S. You have to give it to Google for their marketing and branding campaign. When your brand becomes a "verb" in the English language, you're d... [read more]

Think about the last time someone gave you a free, unexpected gift, but you had nothing to give back in return. How did it make you feel? Thankful? A little bit awkward that you could not reciprocate? Did you think “I must repay that person somehow, sometime in the future? These emotions and thoughts are all tied to reciprocity. I recently experienced reciprocity when I visited my local dry cleaners to have a button sewn back onto a jacket I needed the same day for a wedding. The owner said, “Come back in two hours it will be ready.” Sure enough upon my return he reached behind him and lifted my jacket off the bottom rail, pl... [read more]

In 2018, a mobile-friendly website is no longer a trend or a nice-to-have—it’s a necessity for conducting business, especially in the wedding industry. More than ever, couples are using smartphones at all hours of the day or night to keep the planning process moving, from searching for wedding professionals to finding inspiration for the big day. Your mobile website might be the first—and only—impression a couple gets of your business, so it’s vital that your site provides a great user experience and highlights important information that will turn prospective clients into a bookings. The tech landscape is fast-evolving. Not so long ... [read more]

Cont. from last week Looking back on the time I resonated with C:  ‘I rent spaces at wedding fairs and hope to get one or two bookings to cover the cost of my overheads. Any more is a bonus.’  I do so with a degree of disappointment in the realisation that I set my standards so unacceptably low. I managed my expectations to be happy at breaking even. It demonstrated a lack of drive and ambition to step up and claim my fair share of brides at the fair looking to hire a supplier in my category. I displayed a lack of self-confidence that I did not expect more than one or two couple’s to buy from me. I’d conditioned myself... [read more]

The world abounds with negativity. The news, for example, is a constant stream of information that is mostly centered around murders, fires, and scandals. Another place you'll find a seemingly infinite supply of negativity are Facebook DJ groups. Just two days ago I posted what I considered to be an extremely happy post centered on the growth of my company and the powerful impact the Mobile Beat DJ conference has made on my life. Sure enough, within a few comments, a DJ began to attack the credibility of certain trainers and conferences, and without provocation. I can't consider myself immune to being negative at times. When I first moved into my market, like many DJs I exclaimed multiple times "There's just no way I can earn (insert large sum of money) here!" Why does this happen? Why are some people so q... [read more]