When it comes to organising a Birthday party, wedding reception, christening, or any other type of event one of the main concerns is cost.
I have a large, close family and I have had to organise a few parties and ceremonies in my time personally.
This budget stress often makes smart and intelligent people ask questions that have no real answer , I myself have under the financial stress asked the typical "how long is a piece of string questions".
I often get calls that sound like this;
Me .. Good Morning Rob Star Entertainments how can I help?
Caller.. Is that Rob Star Entertainments?
Me.. Good morning, yes it is how can I Help?
Caller.. How much for a disco mate?
Me .. Well for me to give you a quote I need a little more information from you, for example the date of the event as I maybe already booked and the location of the event.
Caller ..so you won’t give me a price?
Me..I will give you a quotation but I need a few more details from yourself first.
Caller .. a mate down the pub said he would do it for £80 can you match that?
Me ..sorry sir but I need more information from you first
Caller.. Oh I don’t know I will call you back.
Many callers seem to get the impression that DJ’s are stalling and trying to get the most money they can from them because they won’t give them an instant quote.
This is not the case at all and I will explain why
I can’t quote until unless I know;
1. The Date of the event, I may already be booked up on that date.
2. The venue location, as I am based in Denton Manchester. If the location is the other end of the country then of course my price will be very different than if the venue is just up my street, unfortunately due to fuel prices this is not something I can absorb in my costs but I don’t exploit this as a way to charge unfairly either.
3. The times I am required, remember that most DJ’s tend to on average work 4-5 hours of performing time but also remember they are working when they set off from base, They are working when they get to the venue and set up. They are still working and then during the performance and they are still working when they are breaking down the equipment at the end of the night, they are still working and they actually finish only once back to base .So a 4 to 5 hour performance can mean 5 to12 hours actual work time depending on the location of venue and set up times. So of course a quote will vary massively depending on these factors. This is without the time involved during planning and consultations etc
4. The type of theme of event you require. Some people want a full on show , all the lights all the sound for example for a 21st Birthday , this requires lots of lighting and more amplifiers and bigger speakers so a lot more equipment , if you were to just hire the equipment and not have a DJ this would of course cost you more so my prices reflect that. If you require uplighting again these are extra costs. If you require Karaoke for example this is an extra factor in the quotation price.
Regarding the typical conversation detailed above here is the true or secret hidden cost of the £80 DJ... for many and on several occasions I have had follow up calls that explain that the £80 mate from the pub has let them down and cannot make the date and they need a D.J urgently (as in that very day!) or I have even heard stories of venues refusing a DJ access to their function room as they don’t have PAT tested equipment or lack Public liability insurance ,which of course I as a professional D.J I have, often £80 mates do not.
So they had to, at very short notice get another D.J who does have the proper certification this means that they will have to pay the going rates and sometimes with other D.J’s pay a premium for short notice professional DJ’s to save the day.
Often because callers are obsessed with the price and nothing else they do not spend time thinking about what they require or asking for free advice which I freely give.
Often they will make a rash buying decision purely based on price, we all do this in all walks of life and I genuinely understand in these tough times the importance and value of hard earned money.
Occasionally we do get an absolute bargain and get something that is very high quality, reliable at a rock bottom price but these bargains are few and far between.
We know that on average quality does cost but often not that much more than some tacky smart price budget products and services.
But I am sure I am not alone in purchasing a cheap alternative and regretting that I hadn’t spent just a little bit more to get a quality product or service and regretted it every time I used that product ( if it was still working) or looked back on photos that showed that poor budget service.
D.J’s can also fall into this line of thinking, now I know that I personally am at the lower to mid price sector but I truly believe I offer excellent value for money, as a professional I obviously know the going rate for comparable services and that’s where the crux lies “comparable” services .
I plan events, I don’t just wing it. I use professional equipment, not adapted home quality equipment. I take pride in my work and care, this is my sole source of income so I rely on giving excellent service to generate repeat customers and for them to spread by word of mouth how their event went with me as their DJ.
This is where I get most of my repeat custom and work. These customers often from the recommendation get told how I operate. That I like to visit people first, have a chat to find out all the details for your event, carefully plan what is needed, supply a detailed and very competitive quote based on plenty of discussion, then deliver on those promises.
So this is why I will not just offer a price over the phone unless you help me with a little information first.
