Hypothetical Wedding Quotation

[DJ JENX 0]

This makes me laugh, this forum always ends up with people arguing about fees.

 

I don't quite understand why.

 

Yes it would be fantastic for every DJ in the world to put their prices up and charge more, kind of like what tesco and Asda got caught doing recently, thus forcing higher fees on the general public and therefore setting a trend. This is never going to happen though. I admit, Im starting out and would love to see everyone around me charge £150+ as I would be able to charge around that figure and I wouldnt say no to the extra money.

 

For you guys doing this as a job, I can see the frustration you may have when another new DJ enters your market to compete, charging less than £100 per gig, and getting more bookings due to this, I can see that you would love for that to be a bit more, therefore giving you a chance to compete in price, however you must realise that new DJs can afford to charge less, or need to, in order to secure more bookings and therefore gain valuable experience. They may not even want to put their prices up afterwards.

 

If you were managing to secure 6 bookings a month, all at £100 each, for a full year. You may already have a full time job, and therfore the £600 is purely pocket money to spend on whatever.

 

Why then risk putting prices up, perhaps by 50 quid. Youd do this, and you end up losing a lot of bookings to the next "new guy" and therefore only get 3 booking per month. Youve gone from 600 regular income to 450. Why risk it?

 

If you can get away with charging £300+ for a gig then good on you, well done. But if you feel that you are having trouble to compete with the £100 DJs, then perhaps you should ask yourself if your prices are too high, not if their prices are too low. :rant:

[UKHero 0]

 

 

If you were managing to secure 6 bookings a month, all at £100 each, for a full year. You may already have a full time job, and therfore the £600 is purely pocket money to spend on whatever.

 

Dont Part timers have to pay tax on there disco income then??

 

 

Why then risk putting prices up, perhaps by 50 quid. Youd do this, and you end up losing a lot of bookings to the next "new guy" and therefore only get 3 booking per month. Youve gone from 600 regular income to 450. Why risk it?

 

OK DJ Established charges £150 gets 3 bookings per month DJ Part timer charges £100 gets 6 Bookings per month. All runnig fine and dandy. Then, DJ new boy comes along Charges £70 and gets 10 bookings per month. DJ established looses 2 and DJ Part timer losses 3 bookings to the new boy.

 

UKHero is DJ established

DJ JENX is DJ Part Timer

??? is DJ new boy

 

Still happy JENX ?

 

If you can get away with charging £300+ for a gig then good on you, well done. But if you feel that you are having trouble to compete with the £100 DJs, then perhaps you should ask yourself if your prices are too high, not if their prices are too low. :rant:

 

With my above example would you now lower your prices to say £60 to compete? and if you do what about if DJ even newer boy then comes along and charges £50. He is ok lives at home with mom and dad, dad drives him to and from gigs dont charge him for fuel or a percentage of car tax insurance running costs on car. and pays £30 per week Board and lodging inc elec gas and his mom does his laundery..

 

Still happy Jenx? Still wanna lower your prices to compete??

 

Nik

 

 

 

[NRG Roadshow 0]

The price discussion will go on and on. Im with Nik on the price thing for our area of the West Midlands, the cheapest price is all that matters,

 

When has Nik ever said that the cheapest price is all that matters? I think Nik is sitting on the other side of the fence and trying to get prices raised.

 

a couple of questions for you now

1)when you were part time and before raising your prices what were you charging

2) what and how have your service improved to reflect the increase in your price since going full time

 

ok....

 

1) Not much less than what Iam now, I didnt raise my prices because I went full-time, I raised my prices becuase my business is now 10 times more professional than it was when part time. Im really trying to make it work as a full-time business so my commitment to everything has increased and this level of service is passed onto the customer.

2) Their isnt a great deal of difference between my prices now and my prices when I was part-time, so I cant really answer this.

I charge what I charge so that I can cover my expenses and make a reasonable wage on top of that, and that makes no difference whether I was full time or part time, I would still be planning on doing this whether I was full or part time.

 

Its a pity more part timers cant view it like this........if you had a part time job (other than DJing) in adition to your full-time one, would you consider going out for anything less than £10 per hour? I know I wouldnt.

 

Thankfully though, their seems to be far more people charging a resonable ammount with the above survey......

For the above gig IMO......anything less than £200 is too cheap and your selling yourself short.

 

Sub £200 = 7

Above £200 = 27

Edited March 31, 2008 by NRG Roadshow

[Reverandfunk 0]

Nik could you please confirm that in our neck of the woods the majority of punters worry solely about price lol

[andyw 0]

nick the questions i asked were not meant to be sarcastic nor was i questioning your price structure(other than trying to determine how things have changed for you since you went full time ,if it came across that way i do apologise,it was written after a very long and complicated night shift)my whole argument is around quality,quality of service,quality of equipment the way you present that equipment and yourself this is what i feel we should concentrate on this forum,we should make youngsters and newbies feel welcome and help them improve there shows, a lot of the things we think are unacceptable by people who just enter the dj world happens purely because they don't know any better and we have the chance on here to teach them,lets not drive them away with attacks on their pricing structure.

nick how have your bookings altered since going full time,this bit does genuinly intrigue me i hope you take it this way.

when you decided to go full time did you have enough regular bookings coming in that you thought is was viable,have you lost them because of the small increase or has someone setup close to and undercutting you.what is you business plan for now and the future,jamies plan(at the moment)is when he gets a full time job(and feels the time is right for him) to reinvest heavily in higher spec equipment and aim at a different market(the market he is in now WONT pay a higher rate because they can get what they want at a lower rate)

quote nrg

Its a pity more part timers cant view it like this........if you had a part time job (other than DJing) in adition to your full-time one, would you consider going out for anything less than £10 per hour? I know I wouldnt.

 

sorry about this nick but get in the real world my wife got a part time and i know loads of people with part time jobs apart from djing you won't get £10 an hour doing any part time job, a lot of jamies friends have got supermarket jobs they have to work 15 to 20 hrs a week and they don't get the same money come in as he do

nik without a c

yes part timers have to pay tax and register thre business with the inland revenue,like everyone else they only pay tax after there earnings reach a certain level so the likes of jamie only getting money in from a disco with no other income don't always reach that level.

Edited March 31, 2008 by andyw

[DJ JENX 0]

Dont Part timers have to pay tax on there disco income then??

OK DJ Established charges £150 gets 3 bookings per month DJ Part timer charges £100 gets 6 Bookings per month. All runnig fine and dandy. Then, DJ new boy comes along Charges £70 and gets 10 bookings per month. DJ established looses 2 and DJ Part timer losses 3 bookings to the new boy.

 

UKHero is DJ established

DJ JENX is DJ Part Timer

??? is DJ new boy

 

Still happy JENX ?

With my above example would you now lower your prices to say £60 to compete? and if you do what about if DJ even newer boy then comes along and charges £50. He is ok lives at home with mom and dad, dad drives him to and from gigs dont charge him for fuel or a percentage of car tax insurance running costs on car. and pays £30 per week Board and lodging inc elec gas and his mom does his laundery..

 

Still happy Jenx? Still wanna lower your prices to compete??

 

Nik

 

No I'd quit then!! Not worth it. All im saying is why does this forum always end up with established Djs critisising part timers or maybe other established Djs because they charge less?! Its business, competition. If you cant compete, and cant manage without lowering your prices then you might aswell get down your local job center and get a new job. If however you are competing regardless of all these "£100" DJs in your area then why not just leave them get on with it and do your thing without moaning every single day on the forum?!

 

If I want to charge £20 a night then I can, I will not be dictated to by anyone else on here on how to run my own business. I at the moment have a special offer, prices reduced to £100. I then have the flexablility to put them back up, and in the mean time should secure some bookings, and then put prices up afterwards. It basic marketting!

 

I know I am repeating myself now, but, I know I am repeating myself now, but.....

 

Seriously if a DJ, "who lives with mam and dad" can afford to charge £5 per night there is nothing we can do about it just because another DJ with a family of their own and their own bills etc cant afford to lower their prices. TUFF!

[BK Sound 0]

Its business, competition. If you cant compete, and cant manage without lowering your prices then you might aswell get down your local job center and get a new job. If however you are competing regardless of all these "£100" DJs in your area then why not just leave them get on with it and do your thing without moaning every single day on the forum?!

 

If I want to charge £20 a night then I can, I will not be dictated to by anyone else on here on how to run my own business. I at the moment have a special offer, prices reduced to £100. I then have the flexablility to put them back up, and in the mean time should secure some bookings, and then put prices up afterwards. It basic marketting!

 

I know I am repeating myself now, but, I know I am repeating myself now, but.....

 

Seriously if a DJ, "who lives with mam and dad" can afford to charge £5 per night there is nothing we can do about it just because another DJ with a family of their own and their own bills etc cant afford to lower their prices. TUFF!

 

+1

 

Pretty much exactly what i was going to post.

 

I'm peed off with the influx of budget dj equipment on ebay from Hong Kong sellers, its messing with my turnover & profit on the sales side of my business, but moaning about it is a waste of time.

 

Business is business, get over it.

 

 

[NRG Roadshow 0]

And this is exactly the problem.....

Too many people with your attitude, Im cheap because I can be........makes me wanna vomit.

 

I despair with you lot......I dont wonder why the divide and rivalry between hobbiests and professionals exists though with attitudes like this around.

 

I give up.......discussion over as far as Im concerned.

[Paul Smith 0]

I don't really want to close this topic but if it becomes a personal spat then under the Code of Conduct it will have to be closed.

 

Can I say this before it is though smile icon If you compete on price then there will always be someone out there who will quote lower. Those who want to raise their prices should forget about the DJs who go out for 'pocket' money and instead compete on level of service & quality - after all if you want to charge more you have to offer something for it. You will then be competing in a different market and voila you won't worry about people charging low prices.

 

I'm afraid that trying to get those who charge little to up their prices so that everyone else can then raise theirs pro-rata will never work (I did try it many years ago). If you want to charge more then work on doing so yourself - raise your own game, analyse and improve your skills, study your market and put together a marketing compaign that targets and suits your market.

 

smile icon

 

 

 

 

[andyw 0]

 

I give up.......discussion over as far as Im concerned.

 

i will leave it at that as well.all had a say on the subject and no one has changed their views and not likely to.so unless someone wants to go round the block again or really wannts to make nick ill( :fright: ) shall we leave it for now because we are all just :wall: :wall: :wall: :wall: :wall:

[UKHero 0]

Yes I have had enough of this debate... Your all wrong and im right so nothing more to say lol :dan+ju:

 

Im outta here ...

[Reverandfunk 0]

Last post on price promise lol

 

I am a part timer and offer a professional service, plenty of contact with clients, playlists, cards at christmas, sorting out the running order, good selection of music, decent gear etc etc.

 

What extra service would a full-timer offer?

 

The fulltimer needs to charge more because it is there only source of income whereas I do it as a sideline, which ultimately means I have less overheads. No different to someone who designs web sites in their own time, runs a little business from home etc etc. Its a fact of life that any business sector where the entry capital is fairly low is going to have

a lot of entrants.

 

[Mr P 0]

here here! same here as with Reverand Funk.

Mind if i could up my prices i would then, i would DJ full time and pack in my NHS job.

[NRG Roadshow 0]

Mind if i could up my prices i would then, i would DJ full time

 

Firstly......you can up your prices.......and provided you sell yourself properly you will get the extra money!

 

Why would you want to give up a full time job to be a mobile DJ........too many hobby djs at it to make it worth while

 

Damn.....I said I wouldnt post again on this thread and I have......oh well sorry I just couldnt resist.

 

[aaadisco 0]

Guys,

 

If you want to get more money for your gigs, work on your sales and marketing skills!

 

Do you come across as a DJ that is positioned to service the top bookings?

 

Does your website make you look like a true professional?

 

Do you have a confident phone manner?

 

There are loads of books out there on sales and marketing that you can read..

 

If you want better bookings then work on the way you run your business because perception is everything and you don't need the best rig / the most tunes / 20 years experience to get the best bookings!!!

 

I've been a House DJ for years and only got in to mobile DJing a couple of years ago, however I've worked in Sales all of my life and have found that this has really helped me.

 

I started a couple of years back with some second hand equipment from ebay and way charging £120 for my first few bookings. These gave me the confidence of playing out and learning about all the other genres of music.

 

After 6 months, I realised that I was good at it, sold the gear on ebay and bought a new rig - Star cloth, prolight stand, isolutions lights etc...

 

I then started charging £150 - £180 and kept upping the price slighly.

 

Now I charge £225 for a local booking 7.30pm - 12.pm and more if I have to travel. Weddings I charge £300 - £400 depending on where they are and similar if not more for corporate events.

 

When I get an enquiry, I sell my services / experience etc and sometimes they will say it is too expense and I say sorry I can't help and thats it. However other times, they are looking for a professinal DJ who will turn up and give them a good night and they are happy to pay more for the reassurance.

 

I work full time and do discos as a hobby because I love to play out, however I would rather do one or two a month and earn £500 - £600 then be out every weekend for the same amount.

 

How many of us started undercutting the market to get our first bookings?

 

What changes? We get better gear, more experience etc.. but really it is how we sell ourselves!

 

Just my thoughts :-)

 

[UKHero 0]

Guys,

 

If you want to get more money for your gigs, work on your sales and marketing skills!

 

Do you come across as a DJ that is positioned to service the top bookings?

 

Does your website make you look like a true professional?

 

Do you have a confident phone manner?

 

There are loads of books out there on sales and marketing that you can read..

 

If you want better bookings then work on the way you run your business because perception is everything and you don't need the best rig / the most tunes / 20 years experience to get the best bookings!!!

 

I've been a House DJ for years and only got in to mobile DJing a couple of years ago, however I've worked in Sales all of my life and have found that this has really helped me.

 

I started a couple of years back with some second hand equipment from ebay and way charging £120 for my first few bookings. These gave me the confidence of playing out and learning about all the other genres of music.

 

After 6 months, I realised that I was good at it, sold the gear on ebay and bought a new rig - Star cloth, prolight stand, isolutions lights etc...

 

I then started charging £150 - £180 and kept upping the price slighly.

 

Now I charge £225 for a local booking 7.30pm - 12.pm and more if I have to travel. Weddings I charge £300 - £400 depending on where they are and similar if not more for corporate events.

 

When I get an enquiry, I sell my services / experience etc and sometimes they will say it is too expense and I say sorry I can't help and thats it. However other times, they are looking for a professinal DJ who will turn up and give them a good night and they are happy to pay more for the reassurance.

 

I work full time and do discos as a hobby because I love to play out, however I would rather do one or two a month and earn £500 - £600 then be out every weekend for the same amount.

 

How many of us started undercutting the market to get our first bookings?

 

What changes? We get better gear, more experience etc.. but really it is how we sell ourselves!

 

Just my thoughts :-)

 

You make some very interesting points and I agree with many things you have said.. How ever again you are from Stevenage and not from my area... If there is a DJ on here from Wolverhampton Walsall or Dudley who would care to offer a differing view from Myself, Mr P or ReverendFunk then please post.

 

:damn: Did not want to post here again.

 

[Reverandfunk 0]

Nik this thread is like a car crash, you don't really want to be here but are strangely drawn towards it......lol

[NRG Roadshow 0]

Nik this thread is like a car crash, you don't really want to be here but are strangely drawn towards it......lol

 

I think you meant Nick maybe

 

But yea your so right, and that made me laugh out loud

 

 

[Paul Smith 0]

Guys,

 

If you want to get more money for your gigs, work on your sales and marketing skills!

 

Do you come across as a DJ that is positioned to service the top bookings?

 

Does your website make you look like a true professional?

 

Do you have a confident phone manner?

 

There are loads of books out there on sales and marketing that you can read..

 

If you want better bookings then work on the way you run your business because perception is everything and you don't need the best rig / the most tunes / 20 years experience to get the best bookings!!!

 

 

Absolutely smile icon It's takes time and effort but it pays off. For those who want to raise their prices and are blaming cut-price DJs/their area as reasons they can't - get reading...

 

PS I've just started another thread with some book suggestions.

 

 

 

[andyw 0]

problably put the cat amonst the pigeons again but anyone who wants to increase prices and improve the quality of there show i would recomend watching the randy bartlett dvd the 1% solution.i am not claiming this to be all things to all men but some very interesting tips on it ,if you take it as tips and adjust things to suit your situation.there are plenty of old threads dicussing this dvd so do a search if you've not heard of it :hide:

Edited April 1, 2008 by andyw

[NRG Roadshow 0]

i would recomend watching the randy bartlett dvd the 1% solution

 

Never heard of him Andy......

 

But he sounds like an American and for that reason I will pass.....

Cant be doing with all that "yehaw, woop woop here we go" nonsense.

tongue out icon

[Paul Smith 0]

Never heard of him Andy......

 

But he sounds like an American and for that reason I will pass.....

Cant be doing with all that "yehaw, woop woop here we go" nonsense.

tongue out icon

 

I like people who write ideas off without even looking into them tongue out icon

 

[andyw 0]

in the past there have been some heated debate on here about him,so i dont want to go down that road.yes he is american but it is worth a watch.don't get me wrong not everything is suitable for over here but if it helps anybody improve their show and eventually their price it is a good thing.loads of people on the forum have watched it,some have learnt from it and some have thought it is rubbish,i am in the middle some very good tips and some funny videos of how not to do things,as i say each to there own

[Dukesy 0]

I wonder if there is a UK version? Who's the UK guru version then?

[dh140770 0]

I was born and worked in Stourbridge DJing for many years. Now living near Warwick so just south of the midlands. Down here, the price thing comes into play, as people seem to have a maximum price they want to pay for a DJ. Especially if they have not seen you play. Around here that seems to be £120 - £150 for parties, more for weddings. If people have seen you play, they are prepared to pay more to get you than Mr Traffic Light Disco chancer down the road, so it's not solely on price of course.

 

I voted for £250 for the wedding for the work involved and distance.

 

I think I like many others are getting a bit tired of the price discussions, so i am going to state here and now. I am part time. I am a hobbyist!

At the risk of getting flamed, I'm not paticularly interested in doubling my prices by adding extra value. I enjoy DJing and I feel that I do that well (so I am told) and I will do whatever is required to give the customer a good time, but I'm not worried or bothered about embracing them in the whole entertainment experience. I'm not the Mercedes showroom. I'm the Ford showroom :dan+ju:

 

But I am totally in favour in doing something about the cowboys in this business. I'm PAT and PLI and above board, because I think it is the right thing in any business to be above board.

 

Right now, anyone with a laptop, an internet connection and a maplins store card can give DJing a go and although this encouranges 'free' spirit which i'm all for, this really should be confined to family and friends at most. If you are working a venue then you should be licensed to work, in the same way that a plumber or cabbie or whatever are licensed.

 

Now realistally, there are always going to be part timers in this business. I'm not convinced that the market would support the prices that a country full of full time DJ's would need to earn, especially as Friday and Saturday are the only real 'paying' nights.

 

So for the license to work, the price needs to be high enough to prohibit the cowboys from coming to market and it should only be issued with the requisit requirements for a DJ in place, PAT, PLI, proof of source of music (if this is possible). It also needs to be cheap enough that those of us who are only doing 12-15 gigs per year (i'll bet there are few!), don't need to stop doing something we enjoy and are passionate about.

 

There i've said my piece!

Sorry if anyone takes offence, but I felt I ought to defend us legit part timers who just want to DJ.

 

All the best