Pricing Your Bay Area DJ

How much is your DJ worth?

Here’s some of the things a DJ can do that truly makes them worth the price.

1. Provide all styles of music, any song, any artist.

2. Switch up the music according to the tastes and requests of your guests. (Play what THEY want to hear)

3. Play to the flow of your event. How about Jazz, Light Rock or Easy Listening during arrival and dinner? Add some cherished “oldies” or “theme dances” to get people on the dance floor. Something special for your parents and grand-parents before they leave?

Ready to switch it up for some real dancing? Heavy or Classic Rock? Disco? Hip Hop? Salsa? A good DJ is ready to take it where you want it to go.

4. DJ’s don’t take breaks the way bands need to.

5. Provide interaction with your guests depending on your needs such as announcements, games, drawings, etc.

Some Interesting Statistics *

1. When asked, an average of 81% of guests say, the thing they remember most is the entertainment. Good or bad.2. During wedding planning, Brides say their highest priority is their attire, followed by the reception site and caterer. The entertainment for the reception is among the lowest priorities.

3. Within one week after their reception, 78% of Brides say they would have made the entertainment for their reception a much higher priority.

4. 65% of all couples that chose a band over a DJ for their reception, said, if they had to to it all over again, they would have chosen a DJ.

5. 72% of all brides say they would have spent more time choosing their reception entertainment. Almost 100% of those said they would have spent more of their budget on that choice.

* These statistics were published in the St. Louis Bride & Groom Magazine in 2003.The magazines sources include, Brides Magazine, 2001; National Bridal Service, 2001; Simmons, 2001; The Knot, 2002 and USA Today, 2002.

All DJ’s are not the same but the basics are. Here are some things to consider before you decide on your’s:

1. Are they “Professional”? What does that mean? Do they have long running experience in the music/entertainment business? (Big Mike has well over 20 years in the music/entertainment field. His DJ associates have a minimum of 10 years)2. Do they belong to any professional DJ associations where they are continually trained and kept up on changing trends? (We belong to several associations and attend seminars and meetings, and subscribe to the best trade publications in order to stay on top of our field)

3. Do they use “Professional” equipment? Not home stereo equipment with a limited music library. Not their iPod with some home iPod speakers attached? (We use nothing but professional equipment. Top brand amps, speakers, mixers, CD players, microphones, computers and lights.)

4. Are they Full-time or Part-time? Not that Part-time makes them all bad, but do they spend enough time preparing for YOUR event? (We are Full- time DJ’s although some of us may have part-time jobs on the side! LOL!)

Seriously, most of the time what you see as the client is the 4 hrs or so we are actually playing at your event, but as professionals we spend anywhere from an additional 4 to 12 hours going over your song requests, putting together your playlists, game ideas and other preparations. Plus travel time to and from your event (average of 1 1/2 hours), as well as 2 hours of set-up and tear-down time which means we spend an average of 16 hours per event. (So we are actually charging an average of about $30 an hour per event. That’s about $15 per hour for vehicle and equipment maintenance and $15 per hour for the DJ!)

We charge the low reasonable rates we do because we are full-time DJ’s! We’re not trying to squeeze out the highest dollar we think the “market will bear”, we just want to make a fair living doing what we love to do! So we charge what we feel can provide us with enough money to keep our equipment in good shape, continually update our music library and still make an adequate living.

YOU CAN PAY MORE BUT……

be careful because the old saying “you get what you pay for” does usually mean the lowest price is not always the best. But it also means the highest isn’t either! If you were going to buy a TV set off eBay and there were 5 brand new identical brands and models for sale from $299 to $699…. Why would you pay $699? Paying more doesn’t always mean your getting more.Thanks for taking the time to read all this! Bay Area DJ Big Mike