Wedding Specialist

Q. Describe the most common types of jobs you do for your clients.

A. Wedding Receptions or Wedding and Receptions.
Every now and again I even do the music for a wedding at the church and at the reception location with two different systems.

Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A. Make sure the person you are talking to is the individual that will be at your wedding. There are services that have a pool of DJ's, don't you want to speak directly with your DJ, when you hire me, I am the person you will talk with throughout your entire planning and day of your wedding, that's what I call Quality Control.

Q. If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?

A. Anybody can say they are a wedding specialist, but do they have the years of experience to prove it.

When playing music for a diversified crowd, it's impossible to please all the people all the time, so..... you must try to please most the people most of the time........

The way you do that is by playing recognizable music..

Because when you get right down to it….

People don't know what they like.
They like what they know.

(Recognizable Music)

Q. What questions should a consumer ask to hire the right service professional?

A. How long have you been in business?
Are you the DJ that will perform at my wedding?
What styles of music do you have?
Do you have all clean versions of songs?
Do you have a backup system?
Will you announce all the events?
Do you coordinate with my other paid professionals?
Do you excuse tables?
Can I make requests?
With my DJ Service, I do all of the above, in fact your quests can Text their request to 559-901-6257.
Often times people say they have never seen that before, to which I say. “Because you're talking to the Originator, not the Imitator.” (With tongue in cheek)

Q. What important information should buyers have thought through before seeking you out?

A. If sacrificing service for a lower price is a good idea for one of the most important, if not the most important day of your life.

Often time’s people don't know the difference between a Wedding DJ verses a Radio DJ or a Night Club DJ. The differences are amazing.
If a DJ has never done a wedding before, they won't know the proper way to address your guests and inform them when each special tradition is about to take place. Don't let the DJ you hire learn about what to do and what not to do on your wedding day.

Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

A. I interact with your friends and family. When excusing tables for the buffet line I will ask, "Hello, may I take your order, musical entree's." This gets the conversation starting on what style of music they like, after all when is the last time you've had both sides of your families together, and now you want to get them to dance. The answer is most likely, never. I've tried for years to read minds and I've found it is much better to actually ask them what they like to dance to, and for dinner time, what they like to listen to. It's really a simple concept, but I can't think of anyone else who does it

Q. What do you like most about your job?

A. For me music fills my soul. I truly have a love of music, when I play music for a crowd I get pleasure out of seeing people get the same pleasure out of it as I do. I feel they feed off of me, and I feed off of them, it take two to tango. After the evening is all done and the last few people remain, it gives me great please when they say I'm the best DJ they've ever seen. How can you put a price tag on that? All that and I get paid for it. How can it get any better?

Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A. When people ask, "How much do you charge?"
I first ask, "If you don't mind me asking, how did you hear about the Party Line DJ Service." I like to keep track of how people are hearing about me.
I then ask what is the day you’re interested in. After all if I'm already booked, why go any further. Then I ask, have you been to my web site yet (www.partylinedj.com) there is a wealth of information there.
Then I finally ask if they would like to meet.
There is only so much you can get across on the web or over the phone; I think it is very important to meet with your DJ to see if they are what you are looking for.

Q. Do you have a favorite story from your work?

A. After a function is over, I'll often have the comment. I've been to a lot of party's (or weddings) and I've never seen a DJ like you. I don't know what you do, but you really know how to work a crown.

To be truthful I do have a secret, but I can't place it here otherwise it would no longer be a secret. Meet with me, or hire me, and I can tell you all about it.

Q. What do you wish customers knew about you or your profession?

A. There are a lot of DJ's out there that shouldn't be calling themselves a DJ. All they do is hit a button when one song is done to play the next. In my mind, anyone can do that. It is another thing to set up a music program to create energy on the dance floor with music and interacting with the people on the dance floor.

I also think people don't really know the difference between the DJ they hear on the radio or the one they see at a night club verses a wedding specialist. That difference can make all the difference in your wedding day

Q. How did you decide to get in your line of work?

A. I began toying with the idea of being a DJ when I was in Jr. High. I had a pirate radio station out of my bedroom with a broadcast range of about 1/2 a block. Good thing one of my friends and his brothers lived just around the corner or I wouldn't have had any listeners. Then when I was a sophomore in high school I started my first radio station at the age of 15, and I've been doing it ever since.

Q. Tell us about a recent job you did that you are particularly proud of.

A. I had an 8 our setup recently. I set up at the reception location, and then I set up at the church. The two locations were about 8 miles apart. While at the reception I got all kinds of complements of how the audio presentation at the church was just right, and I was pleased to learn I had done several of the guests son's and daughter’s weddings, one over 9 years ago.

Q. Do you do any sort of continuing education to stay up on the latest developments in your field?

A. Every single week I update my computerized system on all the charts.

The Hot 100 (Is all styles, Top-40, Hip-Hop, R&B Alternative and Country)

Pop Songs (These are strictly the Top-40, actually if the Top 50)

Adult Contemporary (These are the songs you hear on soft rock stations)

Country (Exactly that Today's Top Country songs)

R&B Hip-Hop (These are the song you hear on Urban Stations like B-95 and Q97)

Adult Rock (These are song with a rock sound that are not hard rock a little more alternative)

Active Rock (These song are more on the heavy side)

Christian (Inspirational Top-40, again actually Top-50)

Regional Mexican (This is Banda, Nortena and Duranguense)

Tropical Latin (These are Merengue, Reggaeton, Bachata and Salsa)

It's very time consuming, but it's the only way to stay on top of all styles of music.

Q. What are the latest developments in your field? Are there any exciting things coming in the next few years or decade that will change your line of business?

A. Computers are getting faster; the newest ones coming out soon won't have moving parts for the memory.

Memory has really come down in price, I have to Terabyte hard drives that hold all my music. They are small enough to fit in my back pocket and can hold over 200,000 songs.

LED lighting has made major advances recently as have laser lights.

Q. Describe your most recent project, what it involved, how much it cost, and how long it took.

A. That's the amazing thing about a wedding specialist. When I tell a Bride, "I don't know about other DJ's but after everything is said and done, I will have spent anywhere from 25 to 30 hours on your 5 to 6 hour function.

First there is the initial phone call, that can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 45 minutes. Often time after words is the meeting.

Depending on where it's located, I can drive up to 1 and 1/2 hours, then the meeting itself is usually another hour and a half.

After that there is the writing up of the contract, the updating of the web site and sending the contract.

Then every week I get a new mp3 disc from my music service, I have to add it to my two terabyte hard drives.

Then every week I keep track of the charts

The week of the event we will do a phone interview or meet once again to do the final agenda. If no songs have been picked yet, it can take up to two or three hours, as we listen to all different types of suggestions. Then there are times I have to edit songs, sometimes several songs for the introduction of the wedding party, depending on what is asked for.

Finally the day of the event if it's just a one system set up I will get there 2 hours in advance,

If it's a two system set up at the same location without lights I will get there about 3 hours in advance.

If it's a single system set up with the Gold Light Package I will get there 3 hours in advance, add the second system and now it's 4 hours in advance, upgrade to the Platinum Light Package and I will get there 4 hours in advance, if with a second system set up 5 hours in advance, and if the second system setup is across town up to 8 hours in advance.

Then don't forget the load time moving the equipment from the office to the van. There is another 2 hours.

The actually playing time is 5 to 6 hours.

Then the cleanup can be as short as 45 minutes or up to 2 1/2 hours. Then there is the travel time back to the office and then the unloading of the van back into the office.

True it's a lot of work, but hey, look at all the money I save by not having to go to the gym.

:)

Q. If you have a complicated pricing system for your service, please give all the details here.

A. You are charged for the playing time
From Start Time to Stop Time.

3 hours is 650.00
Each additional hour is 65.00
.50 cents a mile both ways out of the Visalia area.
Anything over two hours away requires a hotel stay.

2 System Set Up Same Location One Time 125.00 fee
Two System Set Up Different Locations 200.00 fee
Rehearsal Fee 75.00

Gold Package Light Show, Onetime 100.00 fee
Platinum Package Light Show, Onetime 200.00 fee

The Start time is not the time I show up, but the time I start playing.

The Stop Time is not the time I leave, but the time I stop playing.

On The day of the event, extra hour 75.00 per hour.

Q. If you were advising someone who wanted to get into your profession, what would you suggest?

A. Start out cheap, that way you'll get a bunch of gigs from those people that are only looking for price, and you can learn from those experiences. After a year or two, you can raise your rates as you become better and more specialized until one day you can demand top price because you too will be a specialist. Beware it does not take over night, and it cost thousands of dollars for equipment and music.

Q. What is your greatest strength?

A. My ability to play to any crowd in front of me.
And my great organizational skills. I can make and agenda with over 12 items on it flow seamlessly, because I'm always one step ahead

Q. What are you currently working on improving?

A. Letting people from all over California know about my DJ Service. People are going to the web more and more. It isn't too often I get a booking from an ad in the Yellow Pages. It's the web or word of mouth, or by handing out business cards at functions I do. I also get a lot of repeat business.

Q. Write your own question and answer it.

A. Does your DJ have a backup system?

It's Imperative your DJ have a backup system. This is the most important day of your life. Should anything happen with the equipment, a backup system should always be available.

Q. Write your own question and answer it.

A. Is your DJ coordinating your event?

If your DJ is only playing music, you need to have someone do the announcements and you need to have someone help coordinate the day of the event. The Bride and Groom should not have to think on the day of their wedding, and to be truthful often times they can't. It can create a very stressful day, when it should be a very relaxing, memorable day.

Q. Write your own question and answer it.

A. Does our DJ have all styles of music and clean versions?

The last thing you want playing at a wedding reception with mom, dad, grandma and grandpa, and kids around, not to mention the pastor, is some song with an S or F bomb in it.