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So your
getting married soon and you
and your future spouse
decide it’s time to start
planning for the big day.
Besides the venue, the
caterer, photographer,
wedding gown, rings, cake,
flowers, and more, you have
to get a DJ or a band for
your musical entertainment.
Let’s say you decide to
choose a DJ over a band. A
lot of top-notch
professional wedding DJs get
booked anywhere from 6
months to 18 months in
advance, so start looking
early especially if your
wedding date is in May or
June.
Now that you know when to
start looking for a DJ you
need to know where to find
them. You can find DJs from
a variety of sources.
Friends, family, the
internet, print ads,
recommendations from other
vendors, etc. A common
mistake most people make is
that they tend to believe
all DJs are pretty much the
same. This couldn’t be
further from the truth. Just
about every DJ has their own
unique style and level of
professionalism they bring
to the table. When looking
for a DJ, look for one that
specializes in weddings. If
they do other types of
events, that’s fine as long
as they have a ton of
experience in weddings (At
least 100 weddings). A large
variety of music is
important, everybody has
different tastes, and more
than likely so will your
guests.
Now that you know where to
find a DJ, and the basics of
what to look for, it’s time
to start contacting DJs and
start making appointments
for interviewing. Remember
to keep in mind you want a
professional for your
wedding, not a hobbyist.
This is your wedding day and
you only get one chance to
do it right. As soon as you
start to contact DJs you’ll
know very soon which are
professionals, and which are
just “weekend warriors”. If
no one answers the phone
when you call, or they don’t
return your inquiry
promptly, (no later than 24
hours), move on to the next
one. Why? If a DJ can’t
return your phone call or
E-mail promptly, that shows
a lack of reliability and
professionalism. If they’re
too busy to return your
inquiry, more than likely
they may be too busy for you
when you have questions,
plans, or issues which will
arise. Now you have to look
at your budget, what
percentage of your wedding
budget should go towards
your musical entertainment?
On average most brides spend
about 5% on a DJ, but
numerous articles in bridal
magazines and the internet
stated that most brides said
that if they could do it all
over again they would have
spent probably 10%-15% of
their wedding budget on a
better DJ. So the price of a
DJ shouldn’t be your only
factor in choosing a DJ.
Make sure that the DJ has
references, is willing to
meet with you, see the
venue, has quality
equipment, and probably most
important, has a written
contract. I receive about 5
phone calls a year from
brides who’s DJ never showed
up, or cancelled at last
minute - and the bride never
had a contract with the DJ
to begin with. Before
signing a contract, discuss
any overtime fees, your
plans for your wedding,
special songs, their back-up
plans for personnel,
transportation, and
equipment, etc. After
signing a contract with any
DJ, the key to a successful
wedding reception (and
sometimes the ceremony) is
communication. I can’t
stress this enough, don’t
wait until the last minute
to inform your DJ of exactly
what and how you want
something done. Most
professional wedding DJs do
much more than just play
music; some are pretty much
the wedding coordinators
also. They make sure that
everything goes smoothly and
all your wedding events such
as the cake cutting, toasts,
garter and bouquet toss,
special dances, etc get done
in a reasonable time frame.
So stay in contact with you
DJ. Keep him/her informed.
This way you’ll both be on
the same page for your
special day.
Article is the copyright
of Starr Productions 2005
About the Author:
Sean Thomas aka DJ Kazmere
has been a professional DJ
for over 15 years and has
performed hundreds of
weddings.
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