ChrisPointon
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Posts posted by ChrisPointon
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Your a Northerner at the top of the DJ game with a wealth of experience. Can you get £500 for a saturday night wedding?
You flatterer tongue out icon
No Steve, there are far more experienced DJ's on here than me, and some have been in the game longer too.
I cover the same areas as Paul (Hi-Fi), Mick (Derbyshire) and even occasionally yours. I'm honest and i'm not getting anywhere near £500 a night, indeed my rates are very similar to yours and Micks.
That doesn't mean however that if somebody comes up with a winning formula and a marketing idea which would work in these areas that I wouldn't try it, after all what have you got to lose?.
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but I will say that there is a noticeable difference in prices compared to where I used to live, for example, the advertising and printing is marginally cheaper around here, YP quotes are lower and even my car insurance is lower!
I don't think you can bring car insurance into the equation as it goes on risk and crime rate, and its more of a postcode lottery rather then on average earnings and how affulent the area is. By default car insurance can work the other way, and be more expensive in areas which are poorer and have a higher crime rate compared to the leafy suburbs with a low crime rate.
I will admit that I have not yet fully 'targeted' the new areas as such yet as I have been honouring the existing areas (gigs)The problem with travelling distances to better paid gigs, is by the time that you have factored in the cost of fuel, plus your hourly rate for travelling time, wear and tear on the car then on a per hour basis you probably are no better off than taking something at a lower rate locally.
For example, lets say you could get £200 locally, but are willing / tempted to travel 200 miles on a Friday Afternoon for a more lucrative £400.
Okay on the surface you are better off and doubling your money, but allowing for friday motorway traffic it will probably take you at least 3 hours travelling time there and 2+ hours back - so approx 5 hours worth of time even before you've set up the equipment!. As an example lets also allow 2 hours to set up and pack away and four hours for the actual gig.
First the £400 gig, 200 miles away.
If we also allow £50 for fuel expenses the total earned becomes £350
So a total 'working' time of 12 hours / £350 = £29.17 per hour
Now compare the local gig in your home town for £200
Total travelling time of less than 30 mins. The same 2 hours to set up and pack away and the same 4 hours for the gig.
We'll allow £5 for fuel expenses which takes the total earned to £195
So a 'working' time of 6.5 hours / £195 = £30 per hour
So in this example you are actually slightly better off taking the lower paid gig, even before factoring in the loss of an entire day and most of the night in travelling time, and the wear and tear and the more frequent servicing of your vehicle due to the higher milages involved.
Of course this example is a little off topic, and could be varied in several ways, but it applies to Dan, and other others who are thinking of UK coverage, and gives an example equation of how you should be looking beyond just the booking fee and the time on stage and be breaking down your rates and allowing journey time and other business expenses into the formula.
Of course, it would indeed be better to earn £400 locally, in any area, rather than £200 and this is what everyone is trying to achieve. However it begs the question why some DJs do travel 200 miles for a £400 gig IF they can get £400 on their own doorstep because in this scenario you are actually losing money or at best, only earning the same, so surely you should be charging far more?.
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I don't think its a North - South thing directly. I'm sure that there are places in both areas which command entirely different fees and I am sure that social statistics such as unemployment levels, average wage etc will play a big part in the difference in prices of any service. The price of a lot of things varies depending on the region that you are based, and these include Fuel, Beer, Food, Healthcare and even Electricity. Surely if it was possibly to always obtain the highest prices in all areas, then these companies would be instrumental in doing so, and the price would be uniformly high across the whole country, and not varied.
However there are at least three members who have recently upped sticks and moved to entirely different locations.
Same DJ, Same Disco, Same Business philosophy, same rates etc. It will be interesting to read what comes back in relation to the move and restarting in a completely new area, and more whether they kept the same price structure and how they get on. Maybe they would like to give some input so far?.
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Some European countries have laws which require dipped beam head lights to be used regardless of time or weather and this was first evident in even the earliest Volvos whose headlights were on constantly and controlled from turning the ignition.
Also many countries have a lot of long road tunnels too, which requires headlights to be used when entering them. I guess by automating the task of switching on/off lights, the manufacturers thought they were doing us a favour
Mine has the auto feature too, which uses a photocell to switch the lights on/off when the light level drops below a certain level, its mostly left in the manual position, although I have found it handy sometimes when driving around through alternate blasts of sun / showers as it helps to be visible in motorway spray.
Computers control a lot of things in cars, Air conditioning, climate control, rain sensing wipers and its great until something goes wrong. I also found out another feature I wasn't aware of, in that if you brake hard enough the hazard lights flash!.
If you have HID lights then they'll also have computer controlled self levelling systems too, which use very expensive precision stepper motors which cost a small fortune to replace - just thought i'd cheer you up! tongue out icon
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<a href="http://www.eclipse-roadshow.co.uk"><img src="http://www.eclipse-roadshow.co.uk/images/eclipselogo.GIF" alt="disco & karaoke for the east midlands"</a>
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will admit to buying it - when it's on the shelf, but surprisingly enough, I don't look at the adverts
There is a big and obvious difference between advertising in the general interest magazines compared to specialist wedding or bride orientated magazines.
Firstly magazines such as Cheshire Life are bought for a large and varied number of reasons, some people buy them for property, whilst most possibly buy them for the articles and editorials and then there are some who just pick them up in Doctors Surgeries or because they are a good general read. Either way, I suppose it is only a small percentage of readers who buy them with the specific aim to search for a services supplier of read the classified ads and so if the phone does ring, its more because somebody stumbled across your ad by chance and who was in need of that particular requirement. So on the face of it, not a lot different than advertising in the local rag or parish magazine.
For the more specialist magazines, I would say that Wedding Publications are seldom just bought for their bedtime reading qualities, and so the chances of people buying them in order to get advice, read tips or find a wedding service supplier would be much greatly increased.
Since the advertising rates are in most cases identical, then if I was advertising a wedding service then my natural instinct would be to advertise in a publication aimed almost entirely at those in the process of thinking about getting married or indeed, arranging a marriage, rather than the seat-of-yer-pants gamble which other more general themed magazines may bring.
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Can anyone explain why these bulbs are so expensive?
Probably down to the technology which in turn creates a much extended lamp life.
Just the same when comparing a £3.99 150W Halogen Lamp with a £50 MSD Discharge lamp used in lighting effects. Similar wattage, but around 20 times the lamp life which means fewer lamp changes = less revenue for the company manufacturing them.
Some manufacturers claim that their HID's will last the life time of the vehicle, others give a lamp life of 100,000 miles+.
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Yes, some of us access the forum on mobile devices and PDA's and its a pain viewing large images much beyond those of a standard banner, on 3.5" screens
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For small plumbing jobs like changing a washer, I go to Focus / B&Q and get the parts and do the job myself. For larger more specialised jobs i'd call a plumber.
For minor repairs and consumables on a car, i'd buy the parts from Halfords / Local Independant and do the job myself. For larger, more complex jobs i'd call on the services of a trained mechanic.
I apply the same anology to disco equipment. Specialist / niche retailers are there for a reason and that is often reflected in the advice and knowledge which they can give often from being involved in that industry themselves for many years.
I use Maplin myself, i've always found them reliable and cost effective and if you know exactly what you want then they are certainly a consideration. However their disco equipment range is fairly limited as are the brands available, and so just like the examples above, for larger or more complex requirements then i'd use a specialised retailer.
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Just had open wallet surgery for a new catalytic convertor at £400. New Tyre required shortly at £89.00....... So no sympathy from me :ads:.
Sorry not the bulb was only £74, I meant to say supply of bulb only will cost £74 (£92 retail, I get it trade price !!)Had been thinking about an after market HID upgrade to replace the crappy halogens but don't think i'll bother now
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Well, as Gary says, this was a question I asked the various copyright authorities in relation to another members' question back in 2006. The reply was long, yet predictable, so if you don't want to read it, then go look at something in the Arms.............
tongue out icon
As the copyright laws in the UK are ever changing and confusing at best, and I didn't know exactly whose remit it fell under, exactly the same email went to PPL, MCPS and the BPI basically asking about the legality of using very low quality, time limited clips for use on the internet.
Only the PPL sent a reply to the email, which is detailed below
Dear Chris,Thank you for your enquiry.
Any use of copyrighted material on-line, such as commercial sound recordings, will be subject to the copyright laws of the country where the material is exploited (i.e. the territory in which it is streamed or downloaded). In the UK and most other territories around the world, you would require permission and a licence to use copyrighted sound recordings in any form of broadcast, download or streaming service, including the streaming of short clips. The idea that you do not require permission or indeed a licence for short clips or promotional uses is something of an urban myth I'm afraid.
PPL represents record labels and performers in the UK in licensing a variety of public performance and broadcast rights. We are currently expanding our licensing schemes to cover a range of on-line services such as Internet Radio and we are in the process of developing a licence to allow the use of our members' repertoire in the form of streamed 30" clips. We hope to launch this licence before the end of the year.
I have made a note of your interest in this area and will forward you details of the licence as and when it is made available.
I hope this information serves to answer your question.
Kind Regards,
Matt McAleer
Broadcast Licensing Executive
Rights Negotiation PPL / VPL
1 Upper James Street
London. W1F 9DE
T. 020 7534 1205
F. 020 7534 136
Remember, that this reply was sent in October of last year, so I have no idea whether the above mentioned license is now available or whether they have done a U turn and now allow the use of clips without permission or license requirements but nothing is detailed on their website.
Although i've no definitive reply from the MCPS. I did however find this on their website relating to the use of music clips on websites, and it does state that a license is required. The cost of this licence is annual, and the basics are detailed below
Clips (used in direct promotion of licensed music products/services) £100 +vat1-500 Clips made available at any one time
Clips - £200 +vat1-500 Clips at any one time
I suppose whether the music you use on the website is classed as promoting the artist or promoting yourself or your services could make the difference between the figure of £100+ Vat or £200+ Vat per annum and would be judged in what context you use the music on the actual site!.
Again its not 100% clear whether this licence is £100 / £200 + Vat per clip or whether its a blanket fee covering upto 500 clips.
The MCPS information can be found Here
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Its still better for them to be learning to DJ, than sat in front of the Xbox / PS2 / Computer
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Didn't actually pass any money over the counter, managed to blag it Andy !
Doesn't surprise me!, he blagged mine as well and that was two years ago
We see more of halley's comet than we do of Andy's Wallet :wall:
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Check the inside carpets are dry under the dash and around the heater matrix
Could be the cylinder head, although with that much water in the oil i'd have expected the engine to have died by now or at least be running rough
Any faults with the climate control?
It could still be the thermostat though, if the engine has seriously overheated on just its block water, then it could have evaporated enough through pressure to warrant replacement of 2 fills of the header.
When it overheated do you remember the electric fan running on the radiator?, if not then I suspect the thermostat as the water would not be circulating through the front radiator. If it happens again, then check to see if the large hoses into the radiator are hot, if not then its almost certainly the mechanical thermostat.
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If you are looking to use front page then you obviously don't need to the site builder package included in the Easyspace deal. Go for something like Knownhost as they offer everything that you need including front page extensions and their hosting has fast support and excellent uptime.
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Thermostat sticking. Take it to any garage for a replacement, should only be a 30min job
Sometimes the stat opens okay when the engine reaches normal running temperature and water flows through the front radiator and heater, other times it sticks closed and just recirculates the water already in the engine block hence the overheating.
If it overheats and the radiator fan doesn't kick in, or the front radiator is still relatively cold, its usually a good indicator that the stat is knackered
P.S - you have topped it up with anti freeze recently haven't you!
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www.dj-forum.co.uk is the correct URL smile icon
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sorry......I really need to get a website done for myself.....can anyone recomend decent hosting that provides a .co.uk domain name......
I already have hosting though with NTL World......I could use that but need to know if anyone provides just the .co.uk mask for it....
Just an important tip for anybody thinking of registering a domain / building a website.
Always register the domain with a separate company, and don't be tempted to buy hosting package which comes with a free domain name. The reason for this, is that if the hosting becomes reliable or vanishes you can easily switch seamlessly between hosts simply by logging in and changing the DNS information from within your domain control panel.
If you domain is part of your hosting package, or has been given free as an incentive, then the chances are that the host has put their own name and details on the domain registration and can effectively hold it to ransom in the future to either keep your hosting custom, or sell it you back at a silly price
. If you have hosting with your ISP, you can still register your domain name with a company like 1&1 for about £1.99 a year - they give you full, individual access to a control panel which will allow you to divert it to a url like www.mysite.ntlworld.com simply by entering the information
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I've just followed the same trend as Mikeeee and Andy Westcott.....
My avatar picture is 27 years out of date :joe:
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Sorry, but I don't subscribe to the branded is best philosophy at least not as far as reliability goes!, and i've found this out several times, over all kinds of products that a good brand = flawless and faultless service is a falicy many times, usually to my cost.
To take the car brand analogy earlier as an example, both my own vehicle and the one that I use at work are German manufactured and are supposed to have a reputation for reliability and satisfaction of ownership. Unfortunately, more toys and gadgets usually means that there are more components to go wrong and that its more expensive to diagnose and rectify when it happens, and in my experience that is far more often than the two UK manufactured cars which I owned before.....hardly a week goes by without some warning light coming on they may as well just paint pound signs on these indicators.
.My experience of disco equipment was much the same, I have told several times of my experiences of a certain 2000-F dual CD player which spent more time in the workshop than it did out on the road, compared to a lowly budget manufactured Soundlab player costing very little which handled the abuse of hire for many years without encountering any problems whatsoever. Providing you don't need, the bells and whistles and the features, judge for yourself which gave the most value for money on a £ by £ basis. The pioneer which I didn't own but used in a residency wasn't exactly the last word in reliability either!. But then again, how you look after your kit also applies into the equation too.
Of course, I could just be unlucky, I am sure that there are many DJs owning branded equipment that have never had issues, but to say that buying branded equipment will grant you exclusive rights to a club where nobody has any problems with their equipment now or in the future, sadly is a myth, as a quick search of the technical area of the forum will prove. To my knowledge no manufacturer gives a lifetime warranty on their products.
Unfortunately the cost of parts and ownership also increases as does servicing on 'Brands' too. Back to the car analogy once again, I've just paid £600 for a catalytic convertor which was a dealer only part, compared to £200 for the same component for a previousy owned model which could be fitted by Kwik Fit. At the end of the day they do the same job, you just get stung on the 'brand' itself and dealer labour and this seems to apply to any goods carrying a name.
The same applies to consumables on Branded AV equipment. A replacement fader on a Maplin Mixer could be available off the shelf from RS or Farnell for a fiver whilst the branded version may use a penny and giles part which involves a three week lead time and open wallet surgery.
Since the late 90's I have been using mid-range brands (Ohm, Stageline, McGregor, NJD, Constella etc) they are not budget names, but then again they are certainly not the most expensive or 'branded' either. They are just unassuming pieces of kit that fall under neither banner but do the job gig in gig out without any expensive repairs or catastrophic failures either and that suits me down the ground - thats my choice.
But like the majority, I have access to back up equipment for the most vulnerable equipment, and that should apply whether you pay a lot or a little for your kit.
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Yes, as mentioned on another thread Aplan Insurance is very good, and unlike the larger companies the same people who deal with your quote deal with any claim too
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Just hope that you don't ever have to have to claim off them, regardless of blame!
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Also notice that the people who own them are out most weekend too ?
So you were exaggerating how busy you were BEFORE buying them Andy? tongue out icon
cos it's certainly getting very tedious nowAgreed, and not just on this thread
Come on folks. lets cut the juvenile crap shall we, you aren't doing your industry any favours.
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Next time you order a meal or a pint in a pub ask for a discount / haggle and see how far it gets you.
When you get your tax bill, haggle with the revenue and see how far it gets you.
Set your prices and stick by them, if you have faith in yourself and your service(s) then why not?, but if you can't convince yourself that you are worth £XXX and sell your business at that level then how the hell are you going to convince your clients that you are worth that figure?.
There are always opportunities for you to negotiate discounts for block bookings - this is our version of a bulk discount, however for a one-off then it shouldn't really come into the equation.
I've Found A New Uk Wedding Web Site
in D.J and Karaoke Chat
Posted
Hopefully I, and others can take inspiration from that!.