When it comes to the DJ & wedding/event business, there is certainly no shortage of vendors! It seems as though every month, new wedding/event vendors are popping up, ready to begin their journey into the wedding world! In our area, the Austin Wedding DJ market certainly has no shortage of DJs and DJ companies. In the Austin, Texas area, there are over 150 professional DJ companies! Factor in all the DJ companies and solo DJs who do not advertise as much, or are on Facebook only, Craigslist, etc., and there are hundreds of more DJs in the business, right here in our area! On top of that, the Austin photo booth rentals market is increasing in competition, as well. It goes without saying, this is the same for just about every wedding market! So how do you stand out in a crowded market, full of new compet... [read more]

Like most of my articles, this one was inspired by a recent post I saw in a Facebook group. A DJ had made a post asking for tips and instruction on how to program his lights via DMX, which is one of my favorite topics. However, he was looking for advice specifically dealing with a hardware DMX controller, and in the comments, other DJs were repeatedly encouraging him to make the switch to a software program. "For the price," they correctly said, "it will make your life SO much easier." While today's article isn't about choosing between a hardware or software DMX controller, there is a valuable lesson to be learned in this post. Sometimes... [read more]

September is always the busiest month for my business. After a hectic, packed summer of nonstop wedding season madness, September is the final big push to close out the bulk of the wedding season. As a single-op, finishing up my eighth and final event of the month last night was a good feeling, and despite having inquiries for this coming weekend, I'm choosing not to work. In fact, I'm not working for the next three weekends. That's not to say I couldn't have worked - I received inquiries for each of those weekends. However, none of those inquiries were ready or willing to pay the prices I've set for my company's services, and I passed on thos... [read more]

I was nervous going into my wedding yesterday. I had been informed by my bride that the manager of a venue I had never performed at before wasn't too fond of DJs, having been burned by a few in the not-too-distant past. I reached out to another DJ in my area who had visited the venue recently, and he echoed the bride's sentiments. It's never fun to go to a new location knowing that you may be set up for a sour experience from the start, but I was determined to address the event with a positive attitude. When I arrived, I quickly found the manager and, with a big smile on my face, introduced myself with a firm handshake and a promise to ... [read more]

If you've ever watched a DMC DJ competition you've most likely been as blown away as I have by the crazy amounts of talent that the participants possess. From behind-the-back scratching to intense tone-play routines, the DJs seem to always have fresh new ways to mix, transition, and blend the tracks they use in their sets. As mobile DJs, we may not have as many opportunities to utilize such radical mixing techniques in our dance sets, but I contend that the fundamentals, such as beat-matching and understanding phrasing, are some of the most important skills to master. In most circles, it goes without saying that for someone to be considered... [read more]

What is an MC? Ask any DJ and you'll get a variety of answers. First, let's start with what an "MC" even means. Some will say it's for a "Master of Ceremonies," others may say "Mic Controller," and others may say "Mic Chief." In a way, these are all correct. For me, however, I believe an MC is a Master of Ceremonies. An MC is not only a host, but also controls the event flow and timeline. Yes, a coordinator may be present, and you may have the timeline, ahead of time, but it is up to the DJ/MC to ensure that the event flows as the client wants it to, especially if there is not a wedding planner or day-of-coordinator, present. So do all DJs also serve as an MC? It depends on the DJ or DJ company. Some DJs will say "I don't MC" and I don't make any announcements, at all." This is quite surprising to me, as a... [read more]

All right. DJ tips in under a minute. Ask your clients to send you the seating arrangement. Why? Because you see way back there the cake, there's a good 25 feet between the tables and the cake. So today, even though I'm not a fan of it, and I can explain that in another video if you want, I have speaker over here with a light for safety and a speaker over there and guess where my table is, that's right, I'm right there. Maybe you noticed the table right there; maybe you noticed this table right here. What you're noticing is the photographs that aren't going to happen, because that speaker's now in the way of that table. Again, speaker, table. So if they had sent me the seating arrangement, and I had asked, my own fault, I would've known to say, is it possible to give me 5, 10 feet in front of me? So future,... [read more]

Standing out is essential to building our personal brand. Excelling at the service we provide can help us to grow our business, but to truly become a well-known figure in our local markets we need to develop a quality (or multiple) that distinguishes us from the hordes of other DJs and entertainment options that our potential clients have to choose from. Some DJs are known for a specific service they provide; you may be the only person in your neck of the woods that's offering indoor fireworks or light-up LOVE letters. Other DJs are well known for their personalities. My good friend Rob Ferre is known as the goofy, outgoing guy in the crazy suits that loves to work with kids. Joe Bunn is the man with the southern accent who has an obsession with shoes. You see, what sets you apart is YOU - it doesn't hav... [read more]

This video is going out by request. I mentioned this a couple of days ago and some people asked me to expand on it. This is something that I do. This is a personal preference. This is not a rule or anything else. But I found that it works. Let me explain. When you're at a gig and you're listening to music giving it low volume or you have your volume turned down and people are still complaining about the noise, they say, oh, it's too harsh or it hurts, they put their fingers in their ears, I think this has to do with a certain pain threshold that people experience. I definitely experienced it as well. I don't believe it's in the low or the high. For me, it's in the mid. Let me show you something. This Pioneer DJM-750 has great EQ isolation, so now we hear nothing. I'm going to bring the base up. That's not bo... [read more]

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]