Disc Jockey News October 2017 Print Edition

Disc Jockey News OCTOBER 2017 • Issue #150

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PAGE 2 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

Kissing Frogs

By Mike Walter

Like almost everyone I know in this business, September and October are two of our busiest months. And because of that, as the summer ends, it’s an annual right-of-passage that I place some ads and look for new help.

I did this recently with much success, and it reminded me of one of the basic truths in this industry – and something I have mentioned in this article as well as in seminars: Talent Moves On. And the only way to counteract that is to consistently be looking to replenish.

Let’s start with the first part of that statement: Talent Moves On. It’s a sad reality but ignoring it doesn’t make it any less real. This month, Elite will lose a long time veteran and someone very well known to New Jersey brides and DJs across the country. Corey Fox is leaving us and moving to Miami. As saddened as I was when he told me this (years ago, by the way, Corey is the consummate professional, and he gave us plenty of advanced notice. We knew exactly when to stop booking him so no wedding or event would need to be reassigned) I went right to work looking for someone to replace him. I don’t mean “fill his

shoes” of course because Corey’s dancing shoes will be impossible to fill, but I mean replace him on staff, so we don’t have one less DJ to book. I started that process years ago and had already done it because I know full well you don’t just snap your fingers and have an MC ready.

It takes time to find someone, train them and get them going. So as Corey moves on, someone is ready to take his place.

This brings me to my most recent recruitment process where I interviewed and hired four new assistants. Four new assistants are enough to get us through the next few months, and it also gives me hope that one or two of these guys will show the right potential and be future MCs for Elite. Do I need an extra DJ to book right now? To be honest no, but I also know the reality that Talent Moves On so I am preparing for that. As I look over my roster I already know of one MC who is ending his career in 2018 and who knows, there may be more. So I can either be caught unprepared or I can be ready to respond. A good business person always thinks two or three moves ahead.

In this industry, that means always having talent ready to step up and replace anyone who is moving on.

When I’ve spoken about recruitment before I often quote the nursery rhyme that you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. I was reminded of this as I interviewed prospects for the new position. Even though I say in my ad that I am looking for upbeat and outgoing individuals, I was amazed at a few of the people who crawled, half asleep into my office. And even though I say a love of

music is essential, I always have to shake my head in disbelief when someone can’t answer a simple question like “what’s your favorite type of music?” This all goes back to kissing frogs. I don’t get frustrated by the process; I just enjoy it.

I laugh to myself at why someone who barely has a pulse would interview for a DJ position but as soon as they leave my office I move on. No point in dwelling on it right? And if I have a few bad interviews in a row and get down about it, I remind myself of the great Babe Ruth saying: “every strikeout brings me closer to the next homerun.”

So in the spirit of this article, I’d like to go back to sometime in 2002 when I met Corey Fox who is now moving on. I wish I had an exact date but this is “PreDJ Event Planner” days (how did I survive?), so I can only estimate. Corey interviewed along with a bunch of other people who I wouldn’t remember today if you put a gun to my head. I hired Corey along with a few others I’m sure. We were busy, and I needed help!

Did I spot the potential in Corey right away? I’d like to think I did. I have a pretty good eye for talent. So he started to assist, and I remember he very quickly became a favorite on staff. I had a lot of my veterans asking me “hey, can I work with that new Corey guy?” That’s often a great early sign that someone has a lot of potential. Corey eventually entered MC training, and he made his debut with Elite (meaning he headlined his first event) in

May of 2004. I was shooting my Training Video about that time, and Corey was one of the three DJs I asked to participate in it (that’s how many in the industry know him). Since then Corey has become a favorite on staff. He’s DJed at over 1,500 events and participated in hundreds of bridal shows. To say he’s going to be missed on staff is a gross understatement.

So what would have happened if I hadn’t placed that ad back in 2002? What would the Elite staff have looked like the past 15 years if I was content with my current roster back then and not looked to bring in new blood? How much money has Corey made, and has Corey made me, since then? How many wedding guests has Corey got dancing? How many brides and grooms has he made happy?

This is the potential that happens every time we recruit.

Sure, we meet a lot of unqualified people, and even those with potential don’t always fulfill it.

But every once in a while we run across a Corey Fox, and both of our lives are changed for the better. But the only way that happens is if you’re always looking for talent.

Bon Voyage Corey! You’ll be missed, but you will always be an Elite Entertainer!

Mike Walter is the owner of Elite Entertainment of New Jersey and a nationally recognized expert in the area of multisystem company development and staff training. You can contact Mike at mikewalter@discjockeynews.com.

en your bride and groom to their hotel when the last shuttle never showed up. I know my DJ’s have. And yes, these are all nice things to do for our clients when an emergency arises, but wouldn’t it be nice to have one point person to take care of the good, the bad and the ugly on your client’s wedding day?

I am working with a Mother of the Groom who is helping plan her son’s multicultural wedding next year which includes a Christian and Indian ceremo-

ny on the same day in multiple rooms at their venue in the suburbs and photographs earlier in the day in downtown Chicago. As all brides and grooms, they are on a budget and work 60+ hours per week and often travel for business. She asked me if they should hire a wedding planner. I told her 100% yes! The investment would well exceed the value of peace of mind since the wedding is

Wedding Planner: Friend Or Foe

By Tamara Sims

How many times have you heard wedding DJ’s complain about having to work with a wedding planner? I am referring to legitimate professional wedding planners, not the bride’s Aunt Susie who “loves weddings,” or the bride’s BFF who just got married and now believes she is somehow qualified to plan all of her friend’s weddings.

A professional wedding planner will not only help your clients have a stress-free day, but can also ensure a smooth day for all of the wedding professionals involved.

We have all heard from the bride who believes their venue Catering Manager will also be their Wedding Planner, and I have been in this business long enough to know that more times than not, this is just not possible. Many of our venues and hotels here in Chicago can do up to 4 weddings on any given Saturday night, which means that their “planner duties” will inevitably fall through the cracks and end up on the plate of the most visible wedding professional: The DJ! In today’s day, most DJ’s are providing both Ceremony and Reception services. And some of you, like our friends Mike Walter and Randy Bartlett, are even officiating the wedding. Wouldn’t

it be nice to partner with a professional wedding planner to assist in facilitating the ceremony and rehearsal? Who is going to keep the bride and groom on track for photos? How about dress bustling (although I have heard from several of our brides that my husband Jay can do a mean bustle!) Who will make the phone calls when the limo or shuttle doesn’t show up? I am sure many of you have made those calls, and I would bet money that a few of you had even driv-

Tamara Sims Continued On Page 4

OCTOBER 2017 In This Issue:

Page 2: Mike Walter Page 2: Tamara Sims Page 4: Mitch Taylor Page 4: Brian S. Redd Page 5: Dan Carpenter Page 5: Brian Kelm Page 6: Peter Merry

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Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 3

PAGE 4 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

Document Your Process

By Mitch Taylor

Do you have your process documented?

Now, before you say, “Yes, Mitch, everything about my sales process and presentation to a client is documented,” stop. Yes of course as a Sales Trainer I am speaking of your sales process, but not just your sales process with a new lead that comes in.

What happens if you send information to a client and they don’t respond? When do you follow up?

How do you follow up? Once they become an Active Lead in your system, what happens? When do you touch base after you send a contract but haven’t heard from them in a few days? You need to document what to do at every step. Your homework:

Think of every status that could happen in your sales cycle and where any client could fall at any step and have a plan in place for what to do. Now communicate that with the rest of your team, or if you are a solo op, with someone who could be your successor or take care of your business if you were to, unfortunately, pass away.

How about your social media calendar for marketing? What do you post each day?

When do you do venue visits? When do you follow up with fellow event pros? Take some time and write this out. What months do you want to have promotions? How can you tie holidays in with company promotions? Without a marketing plan, you’re planning on not working and not getting your name out to people that can refer you.

How about training? I know some amazing trainers, and my training program is a conglomeration of all of the training that I have had as a Master of Ceremonies and DJ. I would encourage you to check out the likes of Mark Ferrell – The Marbecca Method, Bill Hermann’s The Entertainment

Elementary School Dance Ideas

By Brian S. Redd

Something I don’t do very often is school dances. I’ve got nothing against kids; it’s just not my specialty.

I used to DJ for my daughter’s annual Elementary school dance as my yearly contribution to the PTA. My kid liked bragging about her dad doing it, and I got to feel less guilty about ignoring all of the pizza and cheesecake fundraisers she always brought home.

These dances were 2 hours long, which I always thought was the right

amount of time for an elementary school event. Figure most movies for kids are about an hour and 20 minutes long.

That’s not a mistake. Hollywood knows that if they go any longer, they have less chance of keeping the average child’s attention span. At my daughter’s school, they burned the last 40 minutes of the event by announcing the winners of the silent auction, so the timing worked out well.

Aside from the songs kids knew from the last several years’ worth of animated films and TV shows, these dances were mostly about group active songs and activities. We’d do everything from the YMCA, Chicken Dance, Hokey Pokey, The Twist, Macarena, and that great time burner, The Limbo. The other big one was Steps – 5, 6, 7, 8. The kids learned a line dance to that one in gym class, so it was always good for a replay or two.

A few weeks ago, my friend Art reached out to me about DJing a “Fa-

Tamara Sims Continued From Page 2 only ten months away and the only thing they have booked is the venue. Without a planner it’s inevitable that the parents will be chipping in to help; however, I am a strong believer that parents and bridal party members should be experiencing the wedding. How many times have you seen a mom putting favors on the tables, setting up place cards, giving away centerpieces and packing up gifts? A great wedding planner will take on those responsibilities, relieve stress and guide the bride and groom and their families into a memorable and exciting new chapter in life. A stress-free bride is a happy bride, and happy brides will be out on your dance floor all night long creating even more memories.

I know, many of you still think of the wedding planner as a foe instead of a friend, right? “But Tamara, wedding planners are bossy.” Hey, if they get the job done does that really matter? “But I like to create the timeline for the day.”

When we work with planners, we still create an entertainment timeline and have never had an objection. “But I enjoy lining up the Bridal Party for introductions.” Think of it as a night off from a few of your normal duties and work

together to create the best possible day for your clients.

Need more proof as to the value of a wedding planner? True Story: As I was about to hit the “send” button to submit my article a wedding itinerary was placed on my desk, and the first page caught my eye immediately: “11 am Bride and Groom head to the venue to begin setting up. Anyone who is free and willing to help is welcome.” Fast forward to the last page ( the day after the wedding): “If you can return to the venue and assist in taking things down from the wedding, we would love your help.”

And on that note, my point has been made!

Please feel free to share your comments with me at: tamarasims@discjockeynews.com or tamara@something2dance2.com Tamara is the Director of Sales and Marketing for Something 2 Dance 2 DJ Entertainment in Schaumburg, IL, which she proudly owns along with her husband Jay Sims. She has over 20 years experience in the wedding industry and loves creating wonderful wedding memories for her brides and grooms.

Experience, Mike Walter’s Training Your Next Great DJ and Running Your Multi-Op, Randy Bartlett’s The 1% Solution, Larry Williams Customer Service A to Z, Carnival Cruise Lines Hospitality Training, Kyle Cease’s Stand Up Boot Camp and many more. Lay out what you feel is most important for a new trainee coming into whatever position they are being hired for. If it’s for a DJ/MC, decide the order of how they need to learn, what they need to learn and why they need to learn.

Maybe you’re hiring an office assistant.

What tasks do you need to have done? My good friend Matt Radicelli has a quote, and it goes like this. Decline, Delegate, Do. Say no to things that aren’t that important to you first. This frees you up to do more important things, spend time with family, or perform the tasks that are most productive for you. Delegate tasks that are below your pay grade. Now, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t know how to do every job in your company. I believe you should. However, it doesn’t mean that you have to return every email, answer every phone call, or always be the tech. Finally, Do. Do the things that make your company the most productive. Run your team. Network. Sell.

Perform. Manage. Whatever that is, do it.

Have everything spelled out in your Employee Handbook for your staff, and have a GANTT chart to manage projects for the operations of your business.

We only covered the documenting of your Sales, Marketing, and Operations processes here and frankly very briefly in this article. Is EVERY facet of your business documented? Do you have procedures in place for what to do if you keel over and die the next day? Dave Ramsey calls it a legacy drawer. Does your heir apparent, spouse or best friend know where it is and what needs to happen should that happen to you? The legacy of your business and your loved ones depend on you having these systems in place. Get to work and get it done.

There’s no reason to decline or delegate this one.

Mitch Taylor is an 18 year veteran of the mobile disc jockey industry, starting out on the cruise ships of Carnival Cruise Lines. He is a member of the American Disc Jockey Association. Mitch owns and operates Taylored Entertainment in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and can be reached at 906.786.6967 or via email at mitchtaylor@discjockeynews.com.

ther-Daughter Dance” for an Elementary school. Art is a great DJ, but he has two daughters currently attending this school. He wanted to be there as just Dad, so I stepped in.

The school had never done anything like this before, which became pretty obvious when I was told it was going to be 3 hours of solid dancing. There’s very little current Top 40 music that would be viewed as appropriate for an Elementary school dance… Oh, did I mention this was a Catholic school?

The first thing I did was create a music folder specifically for this event. I filled it with group activity songs and a few fun familiar kid safe dance tracks.

I also threw a handful of songs in there that I felt maybe Dads might take the lead on, like Shout and Jump Around.

Everything added up to less than 2 hours, so I needed some new time burning activities.

I reached out to our DJ community and got some pretty good ideas. The one that saved the day was Musical Chairs.

In an effort to pace myself, I held The Limbo back for 2 hours. That was good

for about 20 minutes.

Then, the chairs came out. This worked great on a few different levels.

The kids were really into it, we burned at least ½ hour, and the part I didn’t see coming was the Dads got involved.

They were the ones who would remove a chair each time around. When two kids tried to occupy the same chair, one dad would solve the dispute with a game of “Rock, Paper, Scissors.” Nobody asked them to do this. They just jumped in and did it.

I’d say the biggest personal win for the evening was that I was able to hold that “Frozen” track back to close the dance, which the little ones loved.

Everything went well. My only fear now is that word gets around that it didn’t totally suck and I’ll be asked to do it again!

Practice & Enjoy!

Brian S Redd is a Mobile/Club DJ in Milwaukee WI, DJ Youtuber and an official “American DJ” Artist/ You can reach Brian at: brianredd@discjockeynews.com/

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Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 5

PTDJ: Running The Rate

By Dan Carpenter

My son is a runner. Now keep in mind, he’s just eight years old, but he’s completed a few 5K runs, and we recently signed him up for a Healthy Kids Running Series. They meet once a week for five weeks and complete a certain distance depending on their age.

His group does a half mile loop.

As a parent, it can get quite frustrating watching him compete.

First off, for a lot of the other students, this is the first they’ve run any races, so they do what most kids do; the moment the starter says go, they run full bore as fast as they can for as long as they can (which usually isn’t very far). My son is competitive, so what does he do… the exact same thing. The first race he did this, he didn’t even make it 200 yards before he had to start walking.

Remember, he’s done 5K races without stopping and now can’t even go 200 yards.

Afterwards, I pulled him aside and reminded him that this was a distance race. If he wanted to do well, he was going to have to pace himself better. It’s not that he can’t go out of the gate at a run, but he needs to have a pace he can sustain for the remainder of the race. For the following races, he kind of listened to me. I still think he went out a little too fast, but he was able to keep going and not stop until the finish. Speaking of finish, the runners reading this know that you want to save a little in the tank so you can finish strong. If you can “find an extra gear” as you finish you can often pass

people who are running on empty just trying to make it.

Our wedding season is very much like my son’s race. We often have been waiting for a while to get the new year going again and we will go out as hard as we can, putting every effort into creating a bigger bang.

Then about June/July, fatigue starts to set in, and we wonder if we can make it to the end, but we keep pushing through. We try and go steady and hopefully have enough gas for the end. At this point in the year, many of us can see the finish line at the end, and it’s important to take inventory of what we can do to kick in gear and finish strong.

How we finish, helps to determine how our winter months can go. It will either give us momentum to carry on or make us question everything we did for months until the next season kicks in again. I know when I’ve had a great fall, I feel excited about what I do. I still enjoy some of the downtimes that winter brings, but when I’m meeting with new potential clients I have a smile on my face, and I’m sharing with them the joy that I have from all of the fall events. When I’ve been beaten down, and in a mood where I can’t wait for wedding season to be over, I don’t have that same joy talking to new clients.

After looking back and realizing what was happening, I found myself looking for a way to train so that by the time I was finishing my race for the year, I was still going strong. What I do is take advantage of any slow moments or downtime that I have and work ahead. I’ve mentioned before that I meet with my clients as early as two months before their wedding. That gives me the luxury to work on timelines and music collection anytime I can. Sometimes I will even sit down after meeting with the couple and immediately type up the rough draft of the timeline. I’m not expecting it to stay the same, but many of the details should be pretty close, and this way when it gets more

hectic closer to their date I’ve already laid some of the groundwork down. Because my fall season has grown tremendously, I also make sure I’m training better for this long season. It seems like everyone wants a fall wedding. Knowing this going in, I will refrain from over taxing my summer months.

I front load a lot of family vacation time so that by August I’m not trying to plan for fall weddings while out of town with the family.

The downside is that I don’t have time to relax just before the hectic fall, but it has helped with staying focused at just the right time.

I hope that this article finds you with enough time to adjust your pace and finish your season on top. Here’s to a great race with a strong finish!

Dan Carpenter can be reached at dancarpenter@discjockeynews.com.

Make HUMILITY Yours Everyday!

By Brian Kelm

None of us are entitled to anything in this industry. You have to take your passion, love, desire, and put it to good use for others without any expectation of return. Everything you do in life, as well as business, is either for you or them: the people you serve – your customers!

Look at every event, person who will mentor you, and what you can do to help others as an opportunity to help, serve, and to perform for others! Be grateful for the gift that you have been given for another day and use it every day of your life personally & professionally!

Nothing replaces hard work and taking consistent massive action. Prove your worth through the actions you take and ultimately the outcome of your events.

Remove any expectation that things

should be easy or given to you. That’s not how this industry or any works. There is no magic pill here, so tighten up your shoes and get going! In turn, you should get better every moment of every day, and over time, you will get to a level of proficiency, have a brand, and a following that keeps you in high demand.

Performing at an event is not possible without somebody or a group of people saying, “YES” and taking a risk on you. Show your appreciation for every opportunity you have been given, every chance you get! Go out of your way to let your customers know how grateful you are and will make them proud!

Learn every day. Work your tail off. Expect nothing. Get in the trenches and come out with your own following, brand, and reputation from the ground up. Be patient, relentless, and never forget where you came from & how your passion for this business started!

Brian Kelm, CWEP, CGWP, WED Guild is a 20+ year wedding entertainment and planning professional that has been all over the United States. Based in Wisconsin. Serving Anywhere. He can be reached at briankelm@discjockeynews.com

PAGE 6 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

Two Week’s Notice

By Peter Merry

Most people think of quitting a job when the phrase “two weeks notice” is mentioned. But for me, it meant dropping everything to help out a good friend in a crunch. He called me on Friday, August 25th to see if I was available for a wedding out of state on September 9th.

One of his DJs was in the military and was being shipped to Houston to help with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and was no longer going to be able to cover this September 7th wedding. So, with just “two weeks notice,” I wound up finalizing the planning process and got to know the couple via Skype…and then I showed up and knocked their celebration out of the park.

Everyone was happy, and a bad situation was turned into a “W” for the couple and my friend’s company’s reputation.

The ironic part for me was how it related to a discussion I had started on Facebook just a few weeks prior about delivering a personalized customer experience (not to be confused with good customer service) and how dramatically that overall experience can vary from one DJ service to another.

I asked when the personalized customer experience begins? Does it begin when I show up and turn on my microphone?

Does it begin when I get the planning details wrapped up? Does it begin in the first sales consultation? The consensus was that a personalized customer experience begins with their first contact or impressions they get of me and/or my services…

whether that be my first email response, my first phone call response, or seeing my web site for the first time, or seeing me entertaining at a friend’s wedding before they’ve even gotten engaged!

I then asked if DJ “A” claims to deliver the same personalized customer experience as DJ “B” (even though DJ “A” prefers not to meet to begin the planning process until 2 weeks prior to their wedding day while DJ “B” prefers to meet 2-3 times in advance for planning purposes starting 3 months prior to their wedding date), is that claim both reasonable and true?

The responses I got back were varied.

Some misunderstood the question and said they “pull it off” with only two weeks to go all the time. Others tried to say any DJ who meets that often and that far in advance probably isn’t very efficient. But the majority who understood the actual question agreed wholeheartedly that no two DJs can ever claim to deliver the “same” personalized customer experience because it is how we all connect (or fail to connect) with each couple that truly makes every interaction with every couple unique.

It was also pointed out that with “two weeks notice” to start and complete the planning process for a wedding reception, the amount of personal trust that can be built between the DJ and the couple would be limited (building trust takes time), and their creative options and results would also wind up becoming limited (because other last-minute wedding stresses would make them more inclined to say “what do you suggest?” or “what do you usually do?” which is music to the ears of a DJ who is focusing on being efficient versus being creatively personalized). Granted this approach can make the DJ’s job seem easier (at least for the DJ…but perhaps more stressful for the couple), but that DJ could also be missing out on huge opportunities that could make that couple’s day

and moments and memories much personalized if they just had the time to invest in getting to know the couple on a more personal level.

My good friend, Randy Bartlett, likes to say, “I’ve never shown up to a wedding feeling like I am just too prepared and I know way more about this couple than I really should.”

So, 2 weeks ago, I “pulled it off” with just “two weeks notice”…but I still prefer spending more time planning with my couples and getting to know them on a more personal level leading up to their big

day because I have learned from experience, that the overall personalized customer experience doesn’t start with their grand entrance. And, if I have done my job right, it also doesn’t end with their sparkler send-off.

Peter Merry, WED® is the Author of “The Best Wedding Reception…Ever!” and the Founder of the WED Guild® He owns MERRY WEDDINGS, he lives in Kansas City, MO and he entertains at wedding celebrations across the United States.

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Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 7

Maintaining The Customer Experience In A Crisis

By Jason Spencer

“The silence is what is getting to me the most right now. It is so unnaturally still outside. No birds, no squirrels, no cars. Not even sound that may or may not be gunfire in days. It’s like a Twilight Zone episode out there.”

This was the description of Hurricane Irma from my friend Lisa as the storm passed over her home in the Orlando, Florida area during the early morning hours of September 11, 2018. That was the same day that I was to make a trip from my home in California to Walt Disney World Resort.

The airport and airlines had all shut down, and theme parks closed.

Needless to say, my trip was delayed.

Hurricanes in Florida are commonplace, though it is rare for one to impact Walt Disney World directly. Disney has many policies in place to take care of their guests, both those that haven’t left yet and others that are already in the parks. In 2009, the resort earned the Storm Ready designation from NOAA, making it not only the Happiest Place on Earth but also one of the safest locations in the United States to be when a hurricane does strike (you know, other than NOT being in the town the hurricane strikes).

Hurricane Irma forced the shutdown of Disney parks on Sunday and Monday. It was just the fifth shutdown since opening in 1971, but the second in less than a year after Hurricane Matthew forced closure in last October.

Because this affected the first two days of my Disney vacation, I was curious to see

how they would respond. I found there were many positives, along with several negatives.

Not everyone would have flexible plans, so it was quite gracious of Disney to allow travelers to call and reschedule or cancel trips without any fees imposed by Disney. A similar policy applied to special events, such as Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, which is an additional admission ticket.

Where I believe that Disney dropped the ball was for anyone that opted to change their reservation by just a few days. Instead of arriving Monday, we moved to Wednesday, maintaining our original six-day trip length.

When we reserved our trip earlier this year, we selected a package that included a 20% discount, equivalent to about a $450 savings.

After a lengthy hold with their travel agents, I was informed that the discount would no longer apply to the travel window. Only current promotions were valid, and most of those require two-months advance reservations.

Many others staying in the same window as us were there with free Disney Dining Plans, which are about $70 per person per day if you were to pay for it on its own. Similarly, this promotion was lost by most. The agent on the phone even told me that active and retired military, who receive a generous promotional rate, faced the same dilemma.

The bottom line: If you want to rebook for this week, you’re paying full price.

My agent told me that larger families that count on the discounts or dining plans opted to cancel their trips and try again next season. We were nimble enough as two adults that we forked over a few hundred dollars (after changing resort hotels) to keep our trip that week. For the rest, that undoubtedly resulted in additional revenue to Disney lost during those first few days where guests simply weren’t there due to cancellation.

When we finally arrived two days after the storm rolled through, much of the resort had opened back up to guests. In fact, with

a few exceptions, I believe that most park guests wouldn’t have even noticed things out of place. Yes, there were many trees down, but smaller things that add hints of magic were apparently gone.

The planters that hang at the Disney bus transportation queue lines had been taken down in preparation of the storm. They were still missing when we left town a week later.

Nearly all of the water features in the park, from babbling brooks to full-size fountains, had been turned off and drained. Instead, most were full of leaves, branches, and other debris left over from the storm.

Golf courses were slow to open, those that did still had trees down on them. The riverboat transportation had to avoid some potentially hazardous situations, but overall, they seemed to be operating as usual. The Jungle Cruise attraction was closed the full duration of our trip, though the cast members and skippers that would usually work it were out front of the ride spreading delight to guests that would walk by the entrance.

Although I believe Disney dropped the ball and alienated many guests with their policy not honoring promotional rates when rebooking for the same week, many great things still happened.

We learned that many of those evacuated from southern Florida were staying on Disney property. We had multiple conversations with guests that live in Fort Meyers or Miami that got halfway up the state and decided to stop sitting in traffic.

Disney opened up their pet policy, allowing Orlando and other evacuees to bring their pets with them while seeking shelter.

Some even got character photos of their dogs with Pluto and Goofy, because our pets are part of the family too, right?

In preparation for Hurricane Irma, Disney let guests know well in advance that if they were going to ride out the storm on the property to get food and water, bring it back to your room. They let guests know that they would be on lockdown during the storm.

Reminders that the power might be out for an unknown amount of time could happen. Disney was highly proactive, by days even, in letting their guests know what to expect from Disney and what was expected of them.

The Walt Disney Company is perhaps one of the best when it comes to maintaining the customer experience. While they had procedures in place for a hurricane, they didn’t quite know what to expect as one of the most powerful storms ever rolled through central Florida. Their ability to keep smiles on the face of children and adults is what makes them so magical.

It’s not unlike a wedding where your timeline was thrown off because the ceremony starts 45-minutes late and then runs another 30-minutes longer. Or perhaps a high school dance where the building gets put on lockdown because of a potential shooter situation. Or maybe that club night where two rival hip-hop groups show up and start a fight in the back room.

These are all things that have happened in my DJ career. Keeping calm and handling the situation tactfully is all that you can do, because if you panic, so will your guests.

Take the time to develop a scenario kit, a framework of sorts, with step by step procedures with what to do when a situation like this occurs. Keep it in a digital location, like on a tablet or up in the cloud where it can be accessed on the fly by you and your employees. Then when it happens to you, you’ll be prepared to maintain the experience of your client and their guests during a crisis.

Jason Spencer is a Certified Profit First Professional and founder of Profithood Academy. He has over 20 years of wedding and event industry experience and is the owner of Spencer Weddings and Entertainment in Northern California. He can be reached at 916-264-9777 or by email at jasonspencer@discjockeynews.com.

PAGE 8 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

The Photobooth Section Should I Keep My Aging Photo Printer?

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Having been in the business of selling dye-sub photo printers for over 25 years, I have seen countless printers come and go. After all, product discontinuance is a fact of life just like death and taxes, it happens. The purpose of this article is to hopefully help some of you keep a healthy perspective before and after your favorite product reaches its twilight.

You have a photo printer you love. It has always worked well, and it helps you generate much-needed revenue for your business. With that said, there is one problem, you found out recently the media for your printer has just been discontinued. If you have not prepared for this day, this could be a serious source of stress.

Unfortunately, knowing when a photo printer or printer media will be discontinued is not an exact science.

There is no exact date, and there is no crystal ball. However, there may be some general guidelines you can use to prepare for, or at least estimate, that day. Shortly after a printer is discontinued, you should ask yourself a few questions. Is the printer you own a popular printer in the industry? If so, chances are the media will continue to be made for several years to come.

In some cases 4 years and even five years, but that is pushing things a bit.

Were very few of your printers sold in the industry? If so, the media will not be around as long. Your authorized dealer should be able to give you a clue if you ask.

By Steve Behen

If you wait too long and the product is suddenly discontinued, your printer may go from being worth several hundred dollars to zero dollars overnight. Unfortunately, that is the real cost of waiting until the last minute. At some point, after a photo printer has been discontinued it is a good idea to start the transition process. This usually means retiring printers, selling them or at least saving for the day when you have to buy another.

What about buying refurbished printers? Consider your return on investment when purchasing. If a printer does not pay for itself in 3-4 months, then perhaps you should consider a less expensive model.

Used and discontinued printers are sometimes the best “value buys” in the business. However, you need to keep in mind that the media will not be made forever. Keep a healthy perspective on your purchase and always be prepared for the day when you have to replace a printer. It is never a matter of if, but when.

Steve Behen Steven Behen is the manager of sales at Imaging Spectrum. With thirty years of professional imaging experience, he is known as a photo booth guru and has helped booth businesses grow all around the world. Contact him at 800-342-9294 to help you put together a printer and software bundle to perfectly meet your needs.

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Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 9

The Photobooth Section What Is A Good Return On Your Investment

By Alan Berg

If you’re like many wedding and event pros, it was your creativity that brought you into the industry, not your business acumen.

To have a successful business, you need both.

There are lots of hobbyists who are very creative. Once you decide to sell your products or services, you need to develop your business skills and an understanding of the many ways to measure your success.

How do you measure your business success?

Some wedding pros like to brag about the number of weddings they do.

Others will talk about their gross sales.

Of course, any good financial advisor or consultant will tell you that it’s not what you make, it’s what you keep. In the early years of your business, you should be plowing back much of your profits (if you have any) into growing your business. I’ve often heard that a growing business should be investing 10%-15% of their anticipated sales, into their marketing and advertising.

Not 10%-15% of their actual sales; the higher sales number that they’re trying to achieve. Then, once you’ve gotten there, you can lower that percentage to maintain your sales.

Don’t shut off the engines It’s like the analogy of how a pilot needs to have the throttle on full to get the plane off the ground and to get to cruising altitude. Once at cruising altitude, a pilot doesn’t turn off the engines, they back off enough to keep them up there. If they need to climb – maybe to avoid bad weather – they increase the throttle. Similarly, if you want to increase your sales, or you expand into a different market, or a new service/product, you need to increase your marketing/advertising budget, again.

What’s a good ROI? How do know if you’re getting a good ROI (Return On your Investment)? The short answer is that you have to measure it. In the real world, that’s sometimes easier said than done.

While it’s easy to see some online metrics, much of what happens either isn’t tracked, or you can’t connect the dots easily. For instance, when someone gets to your website and sends you an inquiry, that’s great, but where did that lead really come from? I’ve often said, in my presentations, that we don’t get any business ‘from’ our websites. We get business ‘through’ our websites.

They had to come ‘from’ somewhere to get to our sites. And, what if they were at three or four other sites before they got to your site? Now, where did that business really come from?

What are you tracking?

Too many wedding and event pros are asking the wrong tracking questions – at the wrong time. For instance, if you’re waiting for a phone, or face-toface meeting, to ask, “How did you hear about us?”, that’s both the wrong question and the wrong time. You’re too far

removed from all of those online clicks.

A better question, right on your website contact form, is, “How did you find our website today?” It’s the closest you’ll be to that last click. If you have analytics for your website, it’s not likely to be sophisticated enough to show you the path for that specific customer, before they got to your site. Marketing Guru, Seth Godin, wrote: “The last click someone clicks before they buy something isn’t the moment they made up their mind.”

Before they got to your site, they were already thinking about your product or service. You just can’t see all of those other steps.

The basics of ROI The difference between an investment and an expense is that an investment may return you more than you invested. While an expense gets you only what you paid for (gas, your vehicle, your computer, etc.), to calculate your ROI, you need two numbers: the amount you spent on that investment and the amount you got in return. You can never say whether something is expensive, or inexpensive, based solely on the price.

While one professional camera may cost twice as much as another, it may have features that will help a particular photographer make more sales. If those additional sales justify the extra investment, then it’s not expensive; however, the same camera to a different photographer – with no way to monetize that feature – may be considered expensive.

All ROI are not created equal Of course, not all investments return the same ROI, nor should they. There’s usually no connection between different investments, so comparing their ROI is an imperfect exercise, at best. What we need to do is measure each investment’s ROI, on its own merit. From a business and financial perspective, does this particular investment make sense? The opportunity cost of choosing one investment over another is the potential profit of the investment you didn’t make – if it could be higher than one you’re making now.

But, that too, is an imperfect analytic.

In the real world, it gets more complicated. For instance, let’s say you were thinking of doing a particular wedding show, so you decide to move some of your advertising dollars, from something else to that show. While that seems like a sound decision, in the real world, any couples who would have found you on the ad you dropped, won’t find you at the show, or even on a different website. The couples who choose to attend a particular wedding show, or frequent a particular website, won’t go looking for you elsewhere if they don’t see you. They’ll choose from the vendors they see where they are (on that site, or at the show, etc..). If you have a positive ROI from the ad you’re thinking of dropping (you’re making more in profit, than you’re spending), then you’re going backward by dropping it. The new investment needs to bring you at least the same profit, or you’re going backward, but you won’t know – until you try it.

Don’t bet the rent money What I suggest to my clients, businesses just like yours is to find additional money to try with the new opportunity.

Once you prove that it works, and brings you in a better profit, you can decide if you should drop something else. How-

ever, if they’re both bringing in a good profit, even if those profit margins are very different, don’t shoot yourself in the foot (or rather, the bottom line). The only time I’d drop the lower-performing investment is when the new one is filling your calendar; if it’s not, then you need both.

No one likes a rate increase Every so often, I’ll have someone complain to me about a rate increase they got from a marketing or advertising platform. Sure, none of us likes to get an increase, but I often present on getting you to raise your rates, charge what you’re worth, and account for your increasing costs. So, it’s hypocritical to raise our rates and complain when another business does it to us. What I always suggest, is to take the emotion out, and look at it rationally. Don’t look at what the rate was, look at what the new rate is, and does the ROI make sense at the new rate.

Final thoughts

One of the most important metrics is profitability. I don’t care how many weddings or events you do. I’m not impressed if you double the number of events you do, but your bottom line doesn’t increase. My goal is to help you feed your family, not your ego. I have several industry clients who’ve cut back on their number of events so that they can concentrate on more profitable business. If your ROI from two different ads, or opportunities, is the same, it’s a coincidence. Before you start jumping from one opportunity to another, take a look at your ROI for each one, not in comparison to the others, but on its own merits.

Alan Berg has been called “North America’s Leading Expert and Speaker on the Business of Weddings and Events”. Find out more about his speaking, website reviews, consulting, books, DVDs and audio presentations at http:// www.AlanBerg.com - email or call Alan, 732.422.6362

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PAGE 10 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

Celebrate Success

By Joe Bunn

This sounds more like a Marcello Pedalino article title than something I would write, but read on, I have some great tips to share! One of the things you MUST do as a DJ company (or any company) owner is to take great care of your employees.

One of the ways to do that is by celebrating success. There are several things that you can and should be doing throughout the year.

M e e t ings. I have spoken a lot about this recently on the PhDJ Podcast that I do with Mike Walter (shameless plug). If you do not have a monthly or at least bi-monthly meeting with your staff, then you are

dropping the ball (hey, it’s football season). You have to meet with them! This is a mandatory meeting for everyone. Have an agenda, things you want to talk about, issues, but first and foremost, ALWAYS start with something positive. For us, it’s the DJ of the Month announcement. I announce who it is, read out their best Wedding Wire review and then present them with a $25 iTunes card. It’s always a great way to start the meeting.

Incentives. Recently, I spoke at Wedding Wire World about our success with reviews. I’m proud to say that we have over 1,000 reviews. Leading up to the conference, we were at 956, and I told my guys at our monthly meeting (see paragraph above about the importance of meetings) that I would give $20 cash to everyone that got a review between that day and the day the conference started or up until we hit the magical number of 1,000. You wouldn’t believe how hard these guys worked to hit that goal! I set the goal on June 3rd. By the 4th of July, they were there! Did it cost

From Concept To Completion

By Keith ‘KC’ KoKoruz

Chicago’s very own Jazmine Gonzalez has officially opened her dream event space Loft 21. If you recalled a few months ago, I did an article on Jazmine and her thriving company H . Y. P. E Productions. At the time, I had explained that she had purchased a former bar/ live entertainment venue that had closed years ago.

T h e project was a 31,000 square foot building on 3 acres of land. Throughout the course of the past

two years, she has had to go through the loan process, the zoning process, architectural plans, parking variances, revisions based on the city’s guidelines, construction through the winter, selling a space based only on architectural renderings, inspections, unforeseen construction setbacks, a new roof as well as a brand new HVAC system for her venue.

In the process of pursuing her dream, she had hired an amazing woman who was a very close friend and mentor and who had years of event planning in her background to run Loft 21. Tragically she passed away very unexpectedly. She then promoted one of her staff to manage the space only to have that staff member pursue another career opportunity. Through a referral of an industry colleague, she hired Juneelise Drazba who had years of experience in event management working for a loft space in the city of Chicago. This has become a natural fit so much so that they interact like they have worked together for years and years.

Not only is Loft 21 a high-end modern industrial looking loft-styled space but it also has full audio-visual installed in it as a part of the venue’s rental price. A DJ or band can plug directly into their sound system that was custom designed by Encompass AV, one of Chicago’s best audiovisual installation companies. The entire sound system is Martin Audio Pro Series. There is trussing suspended from the ceiling supporting fixtures from Elation Professional and Chauvet. There are also 4, 159” electronically remote controlled Dalite video screens that come down from the ceiling with a flip of the switch as well as 2 Phillips 84” touch screens and 4 Phillips 65” LED HGTVs throughout the building. All of the audio, lighting, and video is zoned to be as flexible as possible for the client’s needs.

Preparing for every possible event, she also had rigging points and trapped doors installed into the ceiling to allow Arial performers to be suspended from the ceiling at events.

Andrew Vega has been with H.Y.P.E. Productions for too many years to count,

and he serves as her technical director overseeing all of the audiovisual programming needs for Loft 21’s clients.

From weddings, and mitzvahs to celebrity galas and corporate events, Loft 21 is an amazing solution for Chicago’s private event marketplace.

Jazmine Gonzalez will also be acting as the Master of Ceremony at the Marquee Show.

KC can be reached at KC@discjockeynews.com.

me $880 cash? Yes. Was it worth it? Absolutely! Not only did I promise the cash, but I promised a big cookout at my house as a bonus. We just had it this past Monday, and it was a great time. Speaking of…

Celebrations. At least two to three times a year, I try and do something fun with my staff. Sometimes it’s simply cooking burgers and dogs at my house. Other times we will have a meeting or photo/video shoot and then go out for pizza (on me of course). We have also done the whole laser tag/go-kart type stuff as well. The point of this is not only for the guys to get to know each other, but to let your staff know how much you appreciate them! For these things, don’t set an agenda, don’t talk business. These outings are all about fun and celebrating success! I’ve said it numerous times. I would be nothing without them. I simply couldn’t make enough money as a single operator to sustain my family and be full-time.

Close the Year Strong. Whatever your religious beliefs are, the end of the year around the holidays is an epic time to celebrate success. There’s just a certain feeling and vibe in the air around that time of year.

I’m pretty sure that for over ten years now,

regardless of how many DJs I have on staff, we always have a huge holiday dinner at some fancy restaurant. It’s the official end of year/holiday party, and we have the BEST time doing this. Does it hurt my pocket? Heck yes! But I have budgeted for it, and even if I stopped everything else, this would still be in play every year. At the dinner, I take maybe ten minutes tops just to run through some basics like how many more shows we did, how much our average ticket is up, things like that. Nothing heavy, nothing negative. It’s all love at the annual holiday dinner. Afterwards, a few of us usually end up staying out way too late and having more fun, but I’ll save that for another article. My point is, try and close out the year this year with something really fun, something memorable, something to celebrate all of the successes that you and your team have had. You’ll thank me later! Have fun!

Joe Bunn is the owner of Bunn DJ Company in Raleigh, NC. He is available for consulting and speaking engagements. His DVD “Marketing the Music” is now available at www.djjoebunn.com. Contact him at joebunn@discjockeynews.com.

What I Learned From Garth

By Jeremy Brech

Every month I seem to ask myself, “What am I going to write about this month?” Well after attending one of nine Garth Brooks shows in our little town of Sioux Falls it was a no brainer. Let me give you some back story first.

Some of you may already know this, but I am not a country fan. I know what you’re thinking. You live in South Dakota and but you don’t like country music? My wife on the other hand has been trying to convert me for the last ten years or so.

A couple years ago and Jason Jani and I were creating the Las Vegas Mobile Beat DJ Show he had told me about an inspiration that he received from the Garth show a couple years back. It then inspired the idea of our show opener back in 2016. I saw Mike Walter speak about music history and he talks about the revolution of country music and how Garth made such an impact. By the way, if you have not seen Mike Walter speak on this, go to his upcoming seminar at Wedding MBA or find his next speaking engagement and listen in. Better yet go purchase his flash drive with hours and hours of great education and stories about Music History and why it is important to what we do as DJs. Now you know what kind of inspired my interest to see him perform, but let me tell you what I took away from the show.

1. Production Value – Yes imagine that from the time I sat in my seat all the way until people started leaving I had eyes on everything.

From the rigging, LED walls, to the moving trussing throughout the show I was watching everything. There were many thing that I felt they did an awesome job on and some things I think could have been improved. Let’s talk about the pros first. They did a phenomenal job with color contrasts. I loved the rich colors they used together and when it was a wash compared to a beam and so on. I think they had great use of truss rigging through the entire arena allowing the lighting to fill the space well. The movement of the trussing was a really cool effect. The LED Wall was positioned in 4 directions allowing everyone a view of the live shots as well as the ambient video during

the performance. The biggest thing I felt the production lacked was movement. There were some very high energy moments and the lighting didn’t really make me feel it. There were some strong moments to take advantage of and it just wasn’t really there.

2. Anticipation – This was the inspiration build that Jani hinted about. A simple clock ticking down seconds before Garth took the stage. Every time the spinning “G” would show the time the crowd would cheer. What really was exciting was once the lights went down the video board started to rise about the stage and a history and highlight reel started. I think I almost started to get emotional at that point. What a cool progressive explanation of what Garth has done in the music industry.

3. Performer – This was the true reason I wanted to go to this concert. Garth Brooks at the age of 55 has more energy than most people do at my age. He was running all over the stage and jumping around like a kid on pixie sticks.

He sang his songs with an energy that he had back in 1991 when his career took off. He truly is an entertainer that everyone should see live.

4. Engagement – This was my biggest take away from the entire show. At the show he had seating all the way around the stage and I felt bad for the guests who were going to have to stare at the bands back all night.

But like I said he was all over the stage gave those guests the feeling of having the best seats in the house. He truly engaged every single person in that arena and it didn’t matter if you were off to the sides or directly behind the stage, he made everyone a part of that show. He truly listened and spoke to the crowd. He would play peoples requests in the encore if they were holding up a sign with the song title. To me he made everyone feel like his best friend.

All of these things can be lessons for us as DJs. Most importantly the engagement is a lesson for us all. Do you look to engage every single person at your events? Do you strive to give everyone a moment to look at you and say, “Wow, that DJ really cared about me being there tonight.” Are you providing your clients with your best performance every night and not making it feel like the last one? As you go into your next event think about the room you are working and ask yourself how you can create one of the most engaging nights of their life not just for the bride and groom, but everyone.

Jeremy Brech is Owner/Entertainer/Lighting Designer of DJ Jer Events and Lighting Design. Jeremy can be reached at: jeremybrech@discjockeynews.com.

The Way I See It: DJs To The Rescue

Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 11

By Michael J. Lenstra

In times of crisis, entertainment is often looked to as a way to help heal the soul.

Not only are TV actors, movie stars, and singers well-known for their charitable efforts (as when Ariana Grande recruited fellow singers for a charity concert in Manchester, England, after a terrorist attack there), but even the simple act of watching a sporting event can provide people with a bit of a respite from the struggles of coping with the disaster around them. For example, the play of the New York Yankees baseball team was largely credited with helping New York heal after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. Recently, the DJ world got their opportunity to step up to the plate and give a little back as well.

The Disc Jockey News ventured into the uncharted water this past month by hosting its first ever charity telethon.

The event took place on Labor Day, September 4th (a holiday historically known for telethons), as the Mobile DJ community joined several other services and organizations to raise funds and provide relief for the victims of Hurricane Harvey, one of the two life-shattering hurricanes that hit the southern parts of the United States in late August and early September.

Hurricane Harvey devastated the coastal Texas area. The record-breaking hurricane made landfall three times in six days, dumped over two feet of rain in 24 hours in the Houston area alone (America’s fourth largest city), and did an estimated $180 billion in damage, affecting 6.6 million people in the state of Texas. Within the next couple weeks, Hurricane Irma would batter Florida,

impacting much of the state and adding further to the need for charitable relief.

Reaction and relief efforts for those affected by the storm came swiftly from all walks of life, and the mobile DJ community was one of the industries to rally for the cause. Ron Ruth deserves credit for coming up with the initial idea, and for taking steps to get the ball rolling when the first hurricane hit. John Young, the publisher of the Disc Jockey News and organizer of the event, explained how it all came about in an exclusive interview: “Ron Ruth brought this idea to me on Tuesday morning August 29th, asking, ‘Have you considered a DJNTV telethon of sorts for Houston?’” That suggestion was enough to put the plans in motion.

“We jumped on it and had the basics down in the first 24 hours,” John Young noted. Within hours of the concept developing, a team of over two dozen individuals associated with the DJ community volunteered to help undertake the task. John continued, “That included gathering DJNTV team members to be on the show, and to put the silent auction side of the website together. Things were up and changing on the website from Tuesday right up until late Monday night. I don’t think my children saw much of me that week and weekend as we prepared for the telethon!”

John went on to note: “We had nearly 30 DJs working together to put this event together and another 20+ that helped get the word out across the Internet.

There hasn’t been anything like this in the mobile DJ world where DJs from around the world (yes, some were outside the United States) came together to help raise recovery funds!”

In less than one week the telethon was organized and on the air, via the DJNTV YouTube channel. Once the event started, it took only hours for the donations and the support to start rolling in. Nearly five dozen silent auction items and another 40 donation bonus items from DJs

and sponsors alike came pouring in.

“We had over 500 register to bid for this event, and over 1,000 bids on the different items up for sale,” John reported.

“The highest bid was $1,510, which was paid for ‘The Entertainment Experience with Bill Hermann’ pass.”

Those willing to lend support were not confined to just bidding for the auction items. At least 28 cash donations were contributed, which were directed to the St. Bernard’s Project, an organization founded in 2006 after Hurricane Katrina to “shrink the time between disaster and recovery” [http://sbpusa.org/]. “Some of the cash donations came through the project’s link on the DJNTV Facebook page, and others through the link on the Disc Jockey News website,” explained John.

The endeavor raised over $16,000 for the cause.

“It was a great event, raising over $16,200 in donations!” said John. That amount was over three times more than the team’s original goal. “We initially

hoped to raise $5,000, but over time as the donations came in we were seeing the excitement in the community and knew this was going to be much larger than what we initially expected. It was very impressive to have DJs sharing the links, DJs donating items, and DJs getting ready to bid to help raise funds for the Houston area flood recovery!”

Like any new endeavor, there were a lot of lessons to learn about putting together an online telethon along the way.

John noted, “This was a LOT of work.

Coding, e-mails, calling, show prep, follow-up. I bet by the time this process is all wrapped up; I will have put well over 100 hours into this project!”

John, though, is not discouraged.

“There were a few bugs in the system, and it would have been great to have a bit more time to debug the system more.

But, overall, it went better than expected.”

For Ron Ruth, who first pitched the idea, the success of the event was more than he could have imagined.

“I think it’s safe to say, everyone was amazed by the outpouring of donations and contributions,” he said. “I believe the contributions were triple what was expected. Who would have thought, though, there would be two more devastating hurricanes right behind Harvey?”

Howie Darkstar, a regular contributor to the DJNTV-Insider group, added, “One of the most heart-warming messages I got from non-DJ friends was they didn’t realize there was such a large DJ community coming together for a common cause. They were impressed that we more than tripled our goal of raising $5,000 to help with the recovery.”

Will there be future telethons produced by the Disc Jockey News?

“I am sure there will be, “John predicted. “The DJ community has come together to help once on a major level, and I think there is such a giving spirit within the DJ industry that you will see more things in the future.”

The way I see it, it’s just another example of how truly giving the DJ industry can be.

Until next month, ~ Michael ~ Michael J. Lenstra is a 20-plus-year veteran of the Mobile Disc Jockey Industry, a full-time entertainer, and owner of Alexxus Entertainment in Dubuque, IA. He can be reached at mikelenstra@discjockeynews.com

PAGE 12 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

How I Finally Learned To Love A Wedding Show

By Dave Ternier

Wedding shows…ugh…the traditional wedding marketing event that many wedding vendors love to hate and hate to love.

Count me as one of those “many vendors.”

I finally loved one though. As in…

REALLY loved one! The approach to it was radically different than any show I’d ever participated in before. Today’s article focuses on what took place and why I viewed it as such a success.

My experience with wedding shows has brought about mixed success. I have received wedding bookings from some of them, but my love for the show itself — the preparation, the setup, the day itself — hasn’t always brought me as much joy as I would have liked.

To this point, the primary reason I had participated in wedding shows was that of the wonderful communal feel that comes from seeing all of my wedding vendor friends that work in my region. I get along well with everyone (yes, even the other DJs!) and love to get in short visits with these people at a wedding show.

In preparation for the Westman Wedding Expo earlier this year, I happened to have a conversation with Stacey Gabriel of Stacey Gabriel Photography (formerly Stacey Luce Photography; she got married!) and mentioned that I wanted to have my booth next to hers because we love to have fun together and really appreciate each other’s work. Next thing you know, we started brainstorming ideas and in the end, produced a uniquely creative booth!

We removed the wall between our booths and in its place, set up a coffee and cookie station. The coffee was a massive hit and the cookies, even more so. We enlisted another wedding friend, Brett from Well Dressed Cakes, to create custom cookies for us with our logos. The coffee cups also had our logos on them; Stacey’s logo was on one side of the cup, mine for Special Request Weddings was on the other side.

Our booths were also designed to have a similar look and feel. We both used the same wood wall backdrop and we rented a single piece of 10’ x 20’ carpet, as opposed to two single 10’ x 10’ pieces. We wanted people walking by to question what it was they were seeing. The hope was that this would affect the type of conversation we would have with brides and grooms.

The results from this collaboration were remarkable.

1) When people approached me to begin a conversation, I would first tell them about Stacey and the remarkable photography she produces. This led to a “less pressure” conversation about what it was that I did. Stacey carried out conversations in a similar manner.

This enabled us to use the incredible value of “word of mouth” marketing right inside our booths as we talked about each other first and ourselves second.

2) The social media attention we received because of our cookies was awesome. In fact, Brett from Well Dressed Cakes even posted a teaser photo of the cookies to her Instagram account ahead of the show. She tagged both Stacey Gabriel Photography and Special Request Weddings in that post. If you know anything about how much attention the typical cake baker has on Instagram, you know this is a big deal. While these cookies cost us a lot more than more traditional options would have, the extra money was easily worth the social media attention we received as a result.

3) The coffee cups with our logos helped to keep our names top of mind around the wedding show. I remember another DJ

friend, Rhoni from Trident Music Inc., humorously telling me that he was speaking with a potential bride at the wedding show when he noticed her coffee cup…and there was my logo staring him in the face! (Thankfully, he’s a good friend, so there weren’t any hard feelings!)

4) The very idea that Stacey and I worked together to create a unique experience for everyone that saw us that day also communicated to our potential customers that we both love being team players. Rather than coming off as the slightly isolated type of person that DJs are sometimes viewed as, this projected the complete opposite. Trust is maybe the single largest part of people’s purchasing decisions and the trust Stacey and I have for each other was on full display that day.

5) The “party square” created around the cookie and coffee station also played host to

impromptu dance parties and many wedding vendors came over for a visit and a coffee.

This created a very positive energy and attention for our booth(s).

Both Stacey and I booked work from this wedding show and, in part, credit our collaboration for accomplishing that. In every interaction of ridiculous fun, Stacey and I were essentially auditioning. We were giving them (people) an idea of what working with us looks like.

Having really cool cookies at a wedding show has now widely become known in this region as Dave & Stacey’s thing to do. We are already hard at work figuring out what next years sweet treat design will look like!

There you have it…collaborate with a wedding vendor friend whose work compliments your own and think outside the box for what that collaboration might look like. Don’t

simply do what we did. Be creative!

If you were like me and struggled to love wedding shows, I hope this post has helped inspire you. If you want to communicate your uniqueness to potential clients, do that with a uniquely creative approach to your wedding show booth experience.

Stacey and I are already working on plans for the next show in February 2018. We are brainstorming what things will look like and new ways to change up the experience for everyone who comes to visit us.

For all of the details on that…stay tuned… ~ Dave Based in Manitoba, Canada, Dave Ternier is a single operator DJ/MCfor his company, Special Request Weddings and he is the founding author of aDJthought.com. Dave Ternier can be reached at DaveTernier@discjockeynews.com.

Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 13

Altering Lives

By Dean C. Carlson

I am curious if you the readers agree that we hold the power to create life-altering events?

The older I get, and the longer I push into this journey of being an entertainer the more I learn that what we do is so much more than just music, yet the music is that which defines our role.

Music also has periods of up and downs, and for that reason, I strive to add more than just being a music player to my job description.

For me, music is no longer the driving force of why I do this as my life work.

I know, an odd statement for a DJ, but honestly the ability to affect people’s lives drives me more. And when we are given the keys to such an important and historic day as someone’s wedding, we should be searching for ways to enhance said day.

How do you become a life-altering event provider? Well, first and foremost you must admit that you are more than just music. You must treat this profession with all the serious care of that which says a doctor might put into his or her craft. That means training, practice, and application. I take as much training as I can afford, usually around $2000- $4000 a year. I practice the things I want to be accomplished at, so that there is no doubt in any guest, or clients mind I am a cut about the norm. Practice in itself is a whole different article.

Application deserves a full breath here. I want to encourage you to be fearless in your

application of your talents. You will never know the limits of who you are and what you can do if you never apply them. My dear friend Barb Allee always comments about how I will sell an idea to a client without ever having done it before. Commitment to a plan is 90% of actually achieving the results. The ability to get it done is the easy part.

So I want to share a story with you that happened on September 16th, well, in reality, it started way back in January. This story will talk about altering lives, and the steps I used to achieve these results. Back in January, I received an email from a DJ colleague of mine from the Twin Cities, Mike Anderson asking if I had a date open. Mike Anderson is one of those get it, DJs. He lives what I am talking about here, and is one of very few DJs from my home state I would refer clients to, because of that. So the bar was already set high because they had seen him work before. I got excited, and after an initial meeting the clients seemed to be a perfect match for my style, and they booked me.

Trust is the first thing you need to establish with clients for them to be open to allow the potential for moments that truly can exceed anyone’s expectation. I live 190 miles away from them, and instead of dealing with them over the phone or skype I met with them face to face, not once but four times before their wedding.

During their initial planning consultation in March, the bride, Kelsey let me know that she was adopted from Korea and that her adopted dad had passed away eight years prior. So she couldn’t have a father-daughter dance. If you were to poll 100 brides most of them would say that is the 3rd most important moment of the day.

This is where taking every ounce of training you can afford comes into the mix. Back in November of 2016, I took Bill Hermann’s Entertainment Experience along with his Custom Recording Workshop. This workshop gave me a new set of skills, and the ability to share them with my clients. Bill teaches ways to utilize the custom recordings for the bride and groom first

dance, mother son dance even final dances, not to mention father-daughter dances.

After a bit more discussion Kelsey, my bride said that she wanted to honor her father.

Anyone who is a DJ for any length of time knows how done wrong this can put a shadow and dampener on an otherwise over a joyful event. After some thought and another meeting in May, I made a suggestion that changed the lives of 150 people. I asked if she had any video of her father speaking to her, and said if she did I could extract the audio and create a voiceover song. She obviously was shocked that I could do anything like that, and after discussing it with her mother, they came back to me with 5 DVDs. Her mother was quite excited that I could do this also.

With their help, we located the pieces of the DVD that had her father speaking to her, and I pulled the audio. I used the skills I had been honing over the summer while doing the custom voice over’s for other clients and creating the voice over to the song “When You Say Nothing At All” by Alison Krauss.

Next, we had to decide how to use this. By this point, she had already decided that she wanted to dance with both her grandfather and her brother. The bride would not hear what I was doing till the event itself, and after creating it, I knew this would be a powerful moment, heck I was crying while making it and I had never met the man before. I knew she would need some support and I suggested that we play this song while she was dancing with her Grandfather and halfway through switching to her brother. At the event I let both Grandpa and Brother know to be ready that we had something very special planned, and gave them both tissue, which they used.

The night before I was to be at this wedding I threw a blurb up on facebook about it, and Randy Bartlett gave me some of the best advice, be sure that you give this moment its due, and properly set it up with the audience.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it is every daughter’s dream to dance with her father on her wedding day. And as you all know that isn’t quite possible tonight, so Kelsey has help to create

this special moment to fill that void as she will dance with bother her Grandfather and Brother.”

I cued the song as the entire room was riveted on her and her grandfather… 25 seconds later the first sound of her father’s voice came across the song, and the entire room’s presence shifted. As the song’s final moments started to fade her father would say to her “Kelsey… I Love You, “ and then you heard a two-yearold Kelsey say “I love you too”… There was no eruption of applause… only mom running to the dance floor to hug her daughter in front of 150 guests. The silence stretch on for a minute or two and then mom let go of her daughter and came directly to me and gave me the greatest hug ever.

It was at that moment that I realized once again how important our job is to families around the world. This family had a fatherdaughter dance. 150 people’s lives for 5 minutes ( actually a lot more ) were altered. No less than five people came to me after that show asking if I would send them a copy of the song.

This is why we must treat what we do with such care and reverence. We must take every piece of training we can find because you never know when it might become something more.

We must practice and become masters of our craft so that when life gives us these moments we don’t just pass them by, but we excel, we rise to the top This is how we change public perception.

Above all you must, let me say that again, you must become fearless in your application.

I had never done anything like that before, yet in my circle of peers, I expect excellence and they, in turn, must expect it of me, and we must help each other reach higher. In turn altering your client’s lives has an amazingly awesome impact on your life as well. I am blessed to be doing this for 29 years.. good luck and great shows.

Good Luck and Great Shows.

Dean Carlson can be reached at deancarlson@discjockeynews.com.

PAGE 14 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

Top 50 Charts for OCTOBER 2017 http://www.discjockeynews.com • http://www.djntv.com

Pop 1 NIALL HORAN Slow Hands 2 LIAM PAYNE Strip That Down f/Quavo 3 CHARLIE PUTH Attention 4 SHAWN MENDES There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me...

5 TAYLOR SWIFT Look What You Made Me Do 6 PORTUGAL. THE MAN Feel It Still 7 CHEAT CODES No Promises f/Demi Lovato 8 FRENCH MONTANA Unforgettable f/Swae Lee 9 IMAGINE DRAGONS Believer 10 DEMI LOVATO Sorry Not Sorry 11 JUSTIN BIEBER & BLOODPOP Friends 12 LOGIC 1-800-273-8255 f/A.Cara/Khalid 13 MAROON 5 What Lovers Do f/SZA 14 KESHA Praying 15 DJ KHALED F/RIHANNA/B. TILLER Wild Thoughts 16 P!NK What About Us 17 SAM SMITH Too Good At Goodbyes 18 HALSEY Bad At Love 19 MACKLEMORE Glorious f/Skylar Grey 20 SELENA GOMEZ Fetish f/Gucci Mane 21 TAYLOR SWIFT Ready For It 22 MAX Lights Down Low f/Gnash 23 DUA LIPA New Rules 24 CALVIN HARRIS Feels f/Pharrell/Katy/Big Sean 25 J BALVIN Mi Gente f/Willy William 26 MAJOR LAZER Know No Better f/T. Scott...

27 KELLY CLARKSON Love So Soft 28 IMAGINE DRAGONS Thunder 29 CAMILA CABELLO Havana f/Young Thug 30 SABRINA CARPENTER Why 31 KHALID Location 32 WHY DON’T WE Something Different 33 HAILEE STEINFELD & ALESSO Let Me Go f/FGL & Watt 34 HARRY STYLES Two Ghosts 35 HEY VIOLET Hoodie 36 CARDI B Bodak Yellow 37 BLACKBEAR Do Re Mi 38 CHILDISH GAMBINO Redbone 39 PRETTYMUCH Would You Mind 40 DEJ LOAF No Fear 41 NICK JONAS Find You 42 FIFTH HARMONY He Like That 43 ED SHEERAN Perfect 44 LOUIS TOMLINSON Back To You f/Bebe Rexha...

45 THE SCRIPT Rain 46 ALL TIME LOW Good Times 47 FERGIE You Already Know f/Nicki Minaj 48 THE REVIVALISTS Wish I Knew You 49 LAUV I Like Me Better 50 RITA ORA Your Song Urban 1 CARDI B Bodak Yellow 2 YO GOTTI F/NICKI MINAJ Rake It Up 3 KENDRICK LAMAR LOYALTY. f/ Rihanna 4 DJ KHALED F/RIHANNA/B. TILLER Wild Thoughts 5 GOLDLINK Crew f/Brent Faiyaz/Shy Glizzy 6 SZA Love Galore f/Travis Scott 7 21 SAVAGE Bank Account 8 JACQUEES B.E.D. 9 TK KRAVITZ Space f/Sexton 10 FRENCH MONTANA Unforgettable f/Swae Lee 11 24HRS What You Like f/Ty$/WizKhalifa 12 MEEK MILL Whatever You Need 13 FAT JOE So Excited f/Dre 14 TY DOLLA $IGN Love U Better 15 TRAVIS SCOTT Butterfly Effect 16 FUTURE Incredible

17 2 CHAINZ It’s A Vibe f/Ty Dolla $ign...

18 LIL UZI VERT XO Tour Llif3 19 CHRIS BROWN Pills & Automobiles 20 GUCCI MANE I Get The Bag f/Migos 21 RICH HOMIE QUAN Gamble 22 A BOOGIE WIT DA HOODIE Drowning (Water) f/Kodak Black 23 DJ ENVY F/FETTY WAP/DJ SLIINK Text Ur Number 24 METRO BOOMIN No Complaints f/Offset & Drake 25 BRUNO MARS Versace On The Floor 26 MIGOS Slippery f/Gucci Mane 27 YOUNG THUG Relationship f/Future 28 QUALITY CONTROL Too Hotty f/Quavo, Takeoff...

29 PLAYBOI CARTI Magnolia 30 WIZ KHALIFA Something New f/Ty Dolla $ign 31 YFN LUCCI Heartless f/Rick Ross 32 DAVE EAST Perfect f/Chris Brown 33 JHENE AIKO While We’re Young 34 BAKA NOT NICE Live Up To My Name 35 BRYSON TILLER Run Me Dry 36 LENNY GRANT On & On 37 JAY-Z 4:44 38 DEJ LOAF No Fear 39 JAZMINE SULLIVAN/BRYSON TILLER Insecure 40 MIGUEL Sky Walker f/Travis Scott 41 PLAYBOI CARTI wokeuplikethis* f/Lil Uzi Vert 42 SZA The Weekend 43 FRENCH MONTANA A Lie f/The Weeknd & Max B 44 MONEYBAGG YO Doin’ It 45 G-EAZY No Limit f/A$AP Rocky, Cardi B 46 KENDRICK LAMAR LOVE. 47 2 CHAINZ 4 AM f/Travis Scott 48 FABOLOUS/VELOUS & CHRIS BROWN Flipmode 49 THE WEEKND Die For You 50 LYRICA ANDERSON Don’t Take It Personal Adult Contempory 1 THE CHAINSMOKERS & COLDPLAY Something Just Like This 2 ED SHEERAN Shape Of You 3 SHAWN MENDES There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me...

4 MAROON 5 Don’t Wanna Know f/K. Lamar 5 JAMES ARTHUR Say You Won’t Let Go 6 ALESSIA CARA Scars To Your Beautiful 7 DJ SNAKE Let Me Love You f/J. Bieber 8 P!NK What About Us 9 ZEDD & ALESSIA CARA Stay 10 ED SHEERAN Castle On The Hill 11 SHANIA TWAIN Life’s About To Get Good 12 KEITH URBAN The Fighter f/Carrie Underwood 13 ROD STEWART Da Ya Think I’m Sexy f/DNCE 14 BRUNO MARS That’s What I Like 15 CHARLIE PUTH Attention 16 SAM HUNT Body Like A Back Road 17 SAM SMITH Too Good At Goodbyes 18 IMAGINE DRAGONS Believer 19 NIALL HORAN Slow Hands 20 KELLY CLARKSON Love So Soft 21 TAYLOR SWIFT Look What You Made Me Do 22 THE REVIVALISTS Wish I Knew You 23 KATY PERRY Save As Draft 24 KYGO X SELENA GOMEZ It Ain’t Me 25 MAROON 5 What Lovers Do f/SZA 26 PORTUGAL. THE MAN Feel It Still 27 SPENCER DAY 72 And Sunny 28 ED SHEERAN Perfect 29 JULIA MICHAELS Worst In Me 30 LUIS FONSI & DADDY YANKEE Despacito f/Justin Bieber 31 KESHA Praying 32 JUSTIN BIEBER & BLOODPOP Friends 33 LINDSEY STIRLING Love’s Just A Feeling f/Rooty

34 LOGIC 35 THOMAS RHETT 36 COLBIE CAILLAT 37 CHARLIE WILSON 38 JULIA MICHAELS 39 IMAGINE DRAGONS 40 CALVIN HARRIS 41 THE CHAINSMOKERS 42 CORBETTE JACKSON 43 HALSEY 44 SIA 45 LADY ANTEBELLUM 46 FOR KING & COUNTRY 47 PHILLIP PHILLIPS 48 RACHEL PLATTEN 49 DAYA 50 SELENA GOMEZ

1-800-273-8255 f/A.Cara/Khalid Die A Happy Man Never Gonna Let You Down Smile For Me f/Robin Thicke Issues Thunder Feels f/Pharrell/Katy/Big Sean Don’t Let Me Down f/Daya Open Door Now Or Never The Greatest f/Kendrick Lamar Bartender Priceless Miles Broken Glass Hide Away Good For You f/A$AP Rocky Country 1 KENNY CHESNEY All The Pretty Girls 2 JON PARDI Heartache On The Dance Floor 3 DUSTIN LYNCH Small Town Boy 4 JASON ALDEAN They Don’t Know 5 KANE BROWN What Ifs f/Lauren Alaina 6 KIP MOORE More Girls Like You 7 CARLY PEARCE Every Little Thing 8 LUKE COMBS When It Rains It Pours 9 THOMAS RHETT Unforgettable 10 CHRIS JANSON Fix A Drink 11 BROTHERS OSBORNE It Ain’t My Fault 12 MAREN MORRIS I Could Use A Love Song 13 GARTH BROOKS Ask Me How I Know 14 LUKE BRYAN Light It Up 15 LANCO Greatest Love Story 16 ERIC CHURCH Round Here Buzz 17 LOCASH Ring On Every Finger 18 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE Smooth 19 BRAD PAISLEY Last Time For Everything 20 BLAKE SHELTON I’ll Name The Dogs 21 CHRIS YOUNG Losing Sleep 22 EASTON CORBIN A Girl Like You 23 BRETT YOUNG Like I Loved You 24 RUSSELL DICKERSON Yours 25 AARON WATSON Outta Style 26 BIG & RICH California 27 WALKER HAYES You Broke Up With Me 28 MIRANDA LAMBERT Tin Man 29 DEVIN DAWSON All On Me 30 KELSEA BALLERINI Legends 31 GRANGER SMITH Happens Like That 32 BRANTLEY GILBERT The Ones That Like Me 33 CHRIS STAPLETON Broken Halos 34 SCOTTY MCCREERY Five More Minutes 35 HIGH VALLEY She’s With Me 36 LEE BRICE Boy 37 JORDAN DAVIS Singles You Up 38 ZAC BROWN BAND Roots 39 MICHAEL RAY Get To You 40 DAN + SHAY Road Trippin’ 41 BRETT ELDREDGE The Long Way 42 LITTLE BIG TOWN When Someone Stops Loving You 43 LAUREN ALAINA Doin’ Fine 44 OLD DOMINION Written In The Sand 45 PARMALEE Sunday Morning 46 DARIUS RUCKER For The First Time 47 JOSH TURNER All About You 48 COLE SWINDELL Stay Downtown 49 CHASE RICE Three Chords & The Truth 50 DYLAN SCOTT Hooked

Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017 • Page 15

Recurrent Hits For The Dance Floor For OCTOBER 2017 http://www.discjockeynews.com • http://www.djntv.com

Pop Recurrents 1 G-EAZY Me Myself & I f/Bebe Rexha 2 ADELE Water Under The Bridge 3 JUSTIN BIEBER Love Yourself 4 MAJOR LAZER Lean On f/M 5 DNCE Cake By The Ocean 6 JASON DERULO Want To Want Me 7 ARIANA GRANDE Into You 8 HAILEE STEINFELD & GREY Starving f/Zedd 9 CALVIN HARRIS Slide f/Frank Ocean/Migos 10 FIFTH HARMONY Work From Home f/Ty Dolla $ign 11 SHAWN MENDES Treat You Better 12 THE WEEKND The Hills 13 FLO RIDA My House 14 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Heathens 15 SHAWN MENDES Mercy 16 RIHANNA Love On The Brain 17 JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE Can’t Stop The Feeling 18 MGK X CAMILA CABELLO Bad Things 19 MIKE POSNER I Took A Pill In Ibiza 20 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Stressed Out 21 ZAYN/TAYLOR SWIFT I Don’t Wanna Live Forever 22 THE WEEKND Can’t Feel My Face 23 JUSTIN BIEBER Sorry 24 CALVIN HARRIS This Is What You... f/Rihanna 25 THE CHAINSMOKERS Don’t Let Me Down f/Daya 26 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Ride 27 DRAKE One Dance f/Wizkid & Kyla 28 DJ SNAKE Let Me Love You f/J. Bieber 29 CLEAN BANDIT & ANNE-MARIE Rockabye f/Sean Paul 30 JULIA MICHAELS Issues 31 DJ KHALED I’m The One f/Bieber/Quavo...

32 SAM HUNT Body Like A Back Road 33 THE CHAINSMOKERS Closer f/Halsey 34 THE WEEKND Starboy f/Daft Punk 35 ARIANA GRANDE Side To Side f/Nicki Minaj 36 THE WEEKND I Feel It Coming f/Daft Punk 37 ALESSIA CARA Scars To Your Beautiful 38 BRUNO MARS 24K Magic 39 ED SHEERAN Castle On The Hill 40 MAROON 5 Don’t Wanna Know f/K. Lamar 41 THE CHAINSMOKERS Paris 42 SIA Cheap Thrills 43 HALSEY Now Or Never 44 JAMES ARTHUR Say You Won’t Let Go 45 THE CHAINSMOKERS & COLDPLAY Something Just Like This 46 BRUNO MARS That’s What I Like 47 KYGO X SELENA GOMEZ It Ain’t Me 48 ED SHEERAN Shape Of You 49 ZEDD & ALESSIA CARA Stay 50 LUIS FONSI & DADDY YANKEE Despacito f/Justin Bieber

Urban AC Recurrents 1 DRAKE Hotline Bling 2 ADELE Hello 3 JOE So I Can Have You Back 4 VIVIAN GREEN Get Right Back To My Baby 5 MAXWELL 1990x 6 JILL SCOTT Can’t Wait 7 KEITH SWEAT Tonight f/Silk 8 BABYFACE Exceptional 9 MAXWELL Gods 10 KIRK FRANKLIN Wanna Be Happy?

11 CHRIS BROWN Back To Sleep 12 TYRESE Shame 13 JAZMINE SULLIVAN Let It Burn 14 RIHANNA Work f/Drake 15 DRAKE One Dance f/Wizkid & Kyla 16 SOLANGE Cranes In The Sky 17 ANTHONY HAMILTON Amen 18 JANET JACKSON No Sleeep 19 MARY J. BLIGE Love Yourself f/Kanye West 20 JOHN LEGEND Love Me Now 21 JAHEIM Back In My Arms 22 MARY J. BLIGE Thick Of It 23 YUNA Crush f/Usher 24 CHARLIE WILSON Good Time 25 FANTASIA No Time For It 26 YUNA Best Love 27 THE WEEKND I Feel It Coming f/Daft Punk 28 LETOYA LUCKETT Back 2 Life 29 GUORDAN BANKS Keep You In Mind 30 TYRESE Waiting On You 31 MARK RONSON Uptown Funk f/Bruno Mars 32 CHANTE MOORE Real One 33 THE WEEKND Earned It 34 RIHANNA Love On The Brain 35 KEM Nobody 36 LA’PORSHA RENAE Good Woman 37 DALEY Until The Pain Is...f/J. Scott 38 JOHNNY GILL This One’s For Me And You 39 KEVIN ROSS Long Song Away 40 LEELA JAMES Don’t Want You Back 41 MAJOR. Why I Love You 42 AFTER 7 Runnin’ Out 43 MARY J. BLIGE U + Me (Love Lesson) 44 MAXWELL Lake By The Ocean 45 CHARLIE WILSON I’m Blessed 46 TLC Way Back f/Snoop Dogg 47 BRUNO MARS 24K Magic 48 RO JAMES Permission 49 LALAH HATHAWAY Angel 50 TAMAR BRAXTON My Man

Hot Adult Contempory Recurrents 1 JUSTIN BIEBER Sorry 2 THE WEEKND Can’t Feel My Face 3 MAROON 5 Cold f/Future 4 FITZ & THE TANTRUMS HandClap 5 HALSEY Now Or Never 6 FLO RIDA My House 7 TAYLOR SWIFT Style 8 X AMBASSADORS Renegades 9 TAYLOR SWIFT Wildest Dreams 10 RACHEL PLATTEN Fight Song 11 TRAIN Play That Song 12 ELLIE GOULDING Love Me Like You Do 13 SHAWN MENDES Stitches 14 MAROON 5 Sugar 15 THE WEEKND I Feel It Coming f/Daft Punk 16 THE CHAINSMOKERS Don’t Let Me Down f/Daya 17 ADELE Hello 18 CALVIN HARRIS This Is What You... f/Rihanna 19 X AMBASSADORS Unsteady 20 ELLE KING Ex’s And Oh’s 21 JASON DERULO Want To Want Me 22 DNCE Cake By The Ocean 23 MARK RONSON Uptown Funk f/Bruno Mars 24 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Ride 25 JULIA MICHAELS Issues 26 SHAWN MENDES Mercy 27 ZAYN/TAYLOR SWIFT I Don’t Wanna Live Forever 28 JUSTIN BIEBER Love Yourself 29 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Heathens 30 RIHANNA Love On The Brain 31 WALK THE MOON Shut Up And Dance 32 JAMES BAY Let It Go 33 SHAWN MENDES Treat You Better 34 BRUNO MARS 24K Magic 35 TWENTY ONE PILOTS Stressed Out 36 P!NK Just Like Fire 37 DJ SNAKE Let Me Love You f/J. Bieber 38 ADELE Send My Love (To Your New...

39 THE REVIVALISTS Wish I Knew You 40 MAROON 5 Don’t Wanna Know f/K. Lamar 41 THE CHAINSMOKERS Closer f/Halsey 42 ED SHEERAN Castle On The Hill 43 ADELE Water Under The Bridge 44 SIA Cheap Thrills 45 JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE Can’t Stop The Feeling 46 ALESSIA CARA Scars To Your Beautiful 47 BRUNO MARS That’s What I Like 48 SAM HUNT Body Like A Back Road 49 KYGO X SELENA GOMEZ It Ain’t Me 50 JAMES ARTHUR Say You Won’t Let Go

Music: Do You Discover Weekly?

By Brian Buonassissi

One could make the argument that music is our most important tool as a DJ. I certainly agree with that assertion. That’s why it boggles my mind that it tends to be one of the things DJs spend very little time on. Don’t get me wrong – marketing, sales, operations, etc. certainly are important but if the music is what defines what we do, that surely can’t take a backseat.

W i t h the cost of production tools as affordable as ever and online music pools so accessible, the sheer number of edits, redrums, remixes, etc. for DJs are numerous. Some might say there’s too much music out there. There’s also the comfortability factor. If you’ve been in the business for a while, you know what does/doesn’t work, and you could phone in an event with your regular “sets” so the need to stay up on the latest music may not seem necessary. For mobile events, in most cases, we aren’t supposed to

“break” new music. While I agree with that premise to a degree, bringing a freshness to an event – whether it be a new mix or edit of a party classic or just a different way of mixing it – is one way to separates yourself from other DJs. So with that in mind, I thought I’d share my tips on staying up on music regularly. #1: Spend 30 minutes a day digging for music – It sounds easy to do, but you’d be surprised how easy the day can get away from you. For me, I schedule it in my calendar as an appointment. If I have a lighter day, I may push that time to an hour. This doesn’t mean you have to scour the internet or music pools – it could be as simple as jumping on Mixcloud or downloading an iTunes podcast and listening to somebody’s mix or doing some of the other things listed below. #2: Get Spotify – it’s a free download as a desktop app and mobile app. They have a feature (which happened to be the inspiration for my article title) called “Discover Weekly.” Spotify will curate about 20 or so tracks for you based on your listening habits and put in a playlist for you every Monday. I’ve found a ton of tracks mixes, and artists I’d never have heard without it that were

so good. Spotify is this generation’s “Pandora.” If you’re not using this, get on it. This is my Monday 30 minute “dig.” #3: Do 4-5 track edits a month – I save my playlists from events, and I’ll go through the last month’s events and pull 4-5 tracks that I seem to be using a lot and I’ll make some edits. I use a free editing tool called “Audacity.” This doesn’t require any remixing talent. You just need to know how to cut and paste. I’ll do a few edits of 1 track – maybe a short edit, a super short edit, an extended mix, or a chorus first edit. It gives me a ton of options to play at an event based on the moment. This works out to be one track edit a week and becomes my “dig” time on a certain day. #4: Work on a mini-mix – This has nothing to do with new music, but how you use the music you already have. I have decks set up at my house and in my office. I will try out different transitions and mixes for a 4-5 song set just to stay fresh with the way I’m mixing certain songs. It has paid huge dividends for me, and I use my 30-minute “dig” time for this once a week. #5: Subscribe to music pool(s) – The only “pay” suggestion on the

list. Getting your music legally is important. With so many pools out there, try out the one that fits you best. I endorse Promo Only and have been using them since I started in 1996. Music pools are for DJs so they will typically release the tracks to their pool members before the general public can buy them. They also include DJ friendly intros and outros which makes mixing easier than using the radio edit or album version.

These tips have kept me from being backlogged at the end of the month with lots of music to sift through where it felt like more of a chore or a task. Try one or two of these things, and I promise you’ll see your shows improve. Keep rocking those events!

Based out of NYC, DJ Brian Buonassissi is a successful internationally traveling DJ/MC specializing in luxury destination private events. He runs a multi-city mobile DJ/event business with offices in Southern California, Destin, FL and New York City.

You can connect with him at brianbuonassissi@discjockeynews. com.

PAGE 16 • Disc Jockey News • OCTOBER 2017

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