To learn to DJ can be one of the most interesting and rewarding careers in the world today.
You can turn your hobby into a full-time career, in demand work if you know what steps to take and more importantly what to avoid when you are just starting out.
If you are ready to begin your training, keep reading...
THE TIPS AND TRICKS
· Start out small and practice mixing with vinyl records and compact discs before you jump out in front of a crowd.
· Listen to your sessions to see what areas you need improvements. Be your own best critic.
· Take requests for music; it is definitely a crowd pleaser.
· Focus your attention on the songs that are danceable because these are the tunes that the majority of your crowd will be familiar with.
· Consider jumping on the YouTube.com bandwagon and downloading music videos to the most popular songs you plan to play.
· Most venues will have a projector that you can use and attach to your laptop to really get the crowd into it.
· You must be charismatic and full of energy when you do your parties. Your #1 goal is to lead the crowd and get them excited. The bottom line here is this: If you lack charisma, you'll lose the crowd.
· You have to be able to feed off the energy the audience is putting out. For example, if the energy seems to be fading out, it will be up to you to step in and make it up a notch and keep the crowd roaring.
· To make things easier, separate different styles but putting them in different sections. You could play slow jams during the opening of the event, soft music during the time when everyone is eating, slow songs again at the end.
· Up-beat songs should be played at the middle of the party or event to keep the energy flowing.
· Be creative and come up with a memorable name for yourself. Something people can easily latch on to.
WARNINGS!
· Remember where you are when you are learning how to become a DJ...never play lots of up tempo, hard rock songs at a wedding or slow love songs for a child's birthday party.
· Remember that people will come to the DJ booth to request songs, so in order to protect your gear, keep it above shoulder height. This way you won't have to worry about spills and food ruining your equipment.
· Stay clear of running other DJ's into the ground. This could be the most valuable lesson you receive as you learn how to be a dj. You may leave a bad taste in the mouth of party goers and prevent you from booking future parties.
· Come up with you own style, and never steal another DJ's way of doing things. Even though they say, "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" you do not want to take this route as a DJ.
· Avoid trying to pump up the crowd when they are eating. This is a time for conversation and relaxing.
These tips, tricks and warnings are most likely the easiest to adapt to as you learn to DJ. Do not take them lightly. Instead, use them to your advantage.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Three Tips For The Beginner DJ
DJing is very much a fun job to be involved with. For one, the social life is pretty interesting! I know this because I am a DJ myself. I have been asked to play in different clubs and venues and I've traveled and experience many things because of DJing.
So as you can imagine, Djing is an amazing thing to get into. But a lot of people that start out Djing want to know of one popular question... and that question is this... How do I become a DJ? Below are your three tips on how to become a DJ.
1. Learn how to DJ... properly.
One of the most obvious aspect of becoming a DJ is of course... learning to program your music and entertain an audience. It is also essential to learn and understand how to work your DJ equipment. This could be learning how to use vinyl turntables, CD players or software. These are the popular ways to perform your music. Pick one that you prefer to use and learn how to use it correctly.
2. What is your own music style?
Its important for you as a DJ to develop your own personal style of music. This way when people come to see your event, they will have a good Idea about what sort of music you play! Your goal is to entertain a crowd with the correct music. You want to appeal to a certain kind of music lovers. Once you master this, you will be know as the DJ who plays, rock, soul, hip hop, house or whatever music style you perform to a crowd.
3. Get yourself out there...
When you have covered the above tasks as a DJ, you then need to "Get yourself out there". What I mean by this is that you need to record a DJ set and burn it onto a tape, CD or whatever platform you wish to use. The reason for this is that you now have a product which you can promote to your crowd/audience or a radio DJ or a Club promoter. These are the contacts you need to aim for and hunt down so to speak.
For instance, If you play techno music, then you need to go to the techno clubs around your area and "give away" free cd's to the club promoters, the patrons who are at the club etc...not everyone will listen to your cd, but if you are persistent, in which you need to be... your luck will come into play and you will at some point be given the chance to play to their audience.
There you have it... these are basically the three things you need to develop yourself as a DJ. Continue to follow these steps and you will succeed. You just need to be persistent with it, that's all. I wish you the best of luck with it!
So as you can imagine, Djing is an amazing thing to get into. But a lot of people that start out Djing want to know of one popular question... and that question is this... How do I become a DJ? Below are your three tips on how to become a DJ.
1. Learn how to DJ... properly.
One of the most obvious aspect of becoming a DJ is of course... learning to program your music and entertain an audience. It is also essential to learn and understand how to work your DJ equipment. This could be learning how to use vinyl turntables, CD players or software. These are the popular ways to perform your music. Pick one that you prefer to use and learn how to use it correctly.
2. What is your own music style?
Its important for you as a DJ to develop your own personal style of music. This way when people come to see your event, they will have a good Idea about what sort of music you play! Your goal is to entertain a crowd with the correct music. You want to appeal to a certain kind of music lovers. Once you master this, you will be know as the DJ who plays, rock, soul, hip hop, house or whatever music style you perform to a crowd.
3. Get yourself out there...
When you have covered the above tasks as a DJ, you then need to "Get yourself out there". What I mean by this is that you need to record a DJ set and burn it onto a tape, CD or whatever platform you wish to use. The reason for this is that you now have a product which you can promote to your crowd/audience or a radio DJ or a Club promoter. These are the contacts you need to aim for and hunt down so to speak.
For instance, If you play techno music, then you need to go to the techno clubs around your area and "give away" free cd's to the club promoters, the patrons who are at the club etc...not everyone will listen to your cd, but if you are persistent, in which you need to be... your luck will come into play and you will at some point be given the chance to play to their audience.
There you have it... these are basically the three things you need to develop yourself as a DJ. Continue to follow these steps and you will succeed. You just need to be persistent with it, that's all. I wish you the best of luck with it!
How to Make Profit in the Mobile DJ Business
DJ's have a simple work, right? All they do is play music while people dance, and then they collect a check at the end of the event. If it was that simple, wouldn't everyone would be a DJ? There are some tricks to making decent money as a DJ. Here are a few tips to help you be a more successful DJ.
First, package price! That is a most important phrase for your DJ business. Nobody ever got rich working by the hour. So you need to be in the package price mindset. When a client asks for a price quote, don't just give out your hourly rate. That is suicide. Put together a solid price to cover all the hours worked, equipment required, and the extra duties you are performing. When you give somebody an hourly rate, they are tempted to rush you in and out of the gig. Why? Because they want to save money! Don't let that happen to you.
Putting together a package price allows you to say, "You have me for X amount of hours. I will do this, this, and this. And the total price is $xxx." When people know exactly how much they are spending, they won't rush you out the door. Which means you can charge more than your hourly rate, and your customers will be happy to pay it - because that's all they will have to pay.
Second, learn to up sell your services. Don't settle for music, lights and fog only. Maybe your customers would love to sing karaoke. You can add on a "karaoke fee" for your services. How about making announcements for prizes, etc? That's an up sell service. Anything extra that you do beyond the basic sound/lights can be an up sell. Learn to charge for the little extras, and your basic fee will increase massively.
Finally, give referral commissions. That sounds crazy to a lot of business owners, but it is actually very smart business practice. If a customer tells his cousin about your DJ services, and the cousin hires you... shouldn't your original client be rewarded for bringing you extra business? You bet he should! And when you start tossing $20 at clients for spreading the word about your DJ business, they will start advertising for you more often. You only pay them if they make you money. That's real profit power, isn't it?
I hope these few tips have been helpful to you. Remember, the DJ business is fun and can make you a lot of money on the side or as a full time job. You just need to learn the insider information that smart DJs use to make more money.
First, package price! That is a most important phrase for your DJ business. Nobody ever got rich working by the hour. So you need to be in the package price mindset. When a client asks for a price quote, don't just give out your hourly rate. That is suicide. Put together a solid price to cover all the hours worked, equipment required, and the extra duties you are performing. When you give somebody an hourly rate, they are tempted to rush you in and out of the gig. Why? Because they want to save money! Don't let that happen to you.
Putting together a package price allows you to say, "You have me for X amount of hours. I will do this, this, and this. And the total price is $xxx." When people know exactly how much they are spending, they won't rush you out the door. Which means you can charge more than your hourly rate, and your customers will be happy to pay it - because that's all they will have to pay.
Second, learn to up sell your services. Don't settle for music, lights and fog only. Maybe your customers would love to sing karaoke. You can add on a "karaoke fee" for your services. How about making announcements for prizes, etc? That's an up sell service. Anything extra that you do beyond the basic sound/lights can be an up sell. Learn to charge for the little extras, and your basic fee will increase massively.
Finally, give referral commissions. That sounds crazy to a lot of business owners, but it is actually very smart business practice. If a customer tells his cousin about your DJ services, and the cousin hires you... shouldn't your original client be rewarded for bringing you extra business? You bet he should! And when you start tossing $20 at clients for spreading the word about your DJ business, they will start advertising for you more often. You only pay them if they make you money. That's real profit power, isn't it?
I hope these few tips have been helpful to you. Remember, the DJ business is fun and can make you a lot of money on the side or as a full time job. You just need to learn the insider information that smart DJs use to make more money.
Promoting Your Mobile DJ Business With 0 Budget
You have a mobile DJ business but no budget for promotions? That's not a big problem. Most DJs don't put aside 100s and 1000s of dollars for promotions costs. They rely on word of mouth promotions. But there are some ways to increase even more word of mouth, and they come at an easy price - Free.
Are you using social media to promote your DJ services? If not, you are really hurting yourself. Get on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and other sites right away. Sign up, create your profile, and join the conversation that's happening on these sites. Don't spam people with in-your-face marketing messages though. That's not the point of these websites. Instead, chat it up with people in your town. Treat it like a big cocktail party on the net. Make sure you include links to your DJ website on all your profiles. Also, be sure to mention what you are working on. For instance, "Hey I'm DJing a wedding today. Wish me luck!" Or even better, "Congrats to Jennifer and Kyle on their marriage! I'll be DJing the reception tonight."
Once you have spread the word on a few websites, you can move on to other methods. My favorite and most successful method is paying referral commissions. What does that mean? Well, let's say Jim has hired you to DJ his son's birthday bash. After a successful gig, Jim recommended your services to his neighbor, John. When John hires you for his high school reunion, you can give Jim a commission - maybe just twenty five dollars.
Why would you do that? Can you even afford to pay people for this? Of course you can. You aren't paying anybody to spread the word until they have brought you a paying customer. Then you just take a bit of the new profits, and give your referrer a nice commission.
This kind of system will encourage your customers to become a sales army for your business. It is extremely useful, and you will really see results if you start using this method. I hope this little tip will boost your DJ business income. You can thank me with a nice commission -if you want..hahah!
Are you using social media to promote your DJ services? If not, you are really hurting yourself. Get on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and other sites right away. Sign up, create your profile, and join the conversation that's happening on these sites. Don't spam people with in-your-face marketing messages though. That's not the point of these websites. Instead, chat it up with people in your town. Treat it like a big cocktail party on the net. Make sure you include links to your DJ website on all your profiles. Also, be sure to mention what you are working on. For instance, "Hey I'm DJing a wedding today. Wish me luck!" Or even better, "Congrats to Jennifer and Kyle on their marriage! I'll be DJing the reception tonight."
Once you have spread the word on a few websites, you can move on to other methods. My favorite and most successful method is paying referral commissions. What does that mean? Well, let's say Jim has hired you to DJ his son's birthday bash. After a successful gig, Jim recommended your services to his neighbor, John. When John hires you for his high school reunion, you can give Jim a commission - maybe just twenty five dollars.
Why would you do that? Can you even afford to pay people for this? Of course you can. You aren't paying anybody to spread the word until they have brought you a paying customer. Then you just take a bit of the new profits, and give your referrer a nice commission.
This kind of system will encourage your customers to become a sales army for your business. It is extremely useful, and you will really see results if you start using this method. I hope this little tip will boost your DJ business income. You can thank me with a nice commission -if you want..hahah!
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