Wedding Fayre

[Loz 0]

Hi, I've decided to book a stand at a local wedding fayre in a couple of weeks time, but I'm not sure exactly what to do. Anyone got some advice?? http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/533.gif

[naughtydog 0]

Hi Loz,

 

Normally they will have a catwalk to demo all the wedding dresses. I would find out who are your fellow exhibitors beforehand and offer to provide background music for them in exchange for a mention at the end of there chat regarding wedding dresses etc. Somebody will normally provide commentary on the dresses as they are demo'd. "And here's Sandra looking like a big moose in this catching little chifon number" It "fits-where-it-touches" but she don't care!!

 

I used to have to do wedding fares at a hotel I worked. They were always a pain in the ass. The customers will not come to you, make sure you have some good handout material to give to them, they are all browsers and you will find it difficult to make a good impression as you wont really be able to show off your skills.

 

Communication is the key, get into your customers mind and show them you are knowledgeable on the subject and try and build there confidence in you. Offer them the opportunity to come and see you perform at the venue - just croos your fingers that your having a "good night" if they decide to pop by!!

 

Naughtydog

 

 

[Loz 0]

Thanx naughtydog, I know it's difficult trying to sell a product that you can't touch or feel. I just thought if I get one booking from it then at least it's covered the cost of my pitch. I was thinking about showing some footage on on one those combi telly things of a previous gig but my mate reckons it's a no no. I have enquired about providing the music but because it's an entertainments hall they have their own equipment and compere, booooo!!

Edited January 4, 2004 by Loz

[kazzachi 0]

Loz, I dont know how much you are paying for a pitch... but personally I would never do a wedding fayre. I am sure you could find much better use for your cash! That said, I hope you do get at least enough work to cover what you are laying out. Perhaps a better and cheaper idea for the wedding market would have been to run an ad in a specialist wedding mag or go with the local paper when they do a wedding special.

[The Spindoctor 0]

I agree with Kazz................. but now you're in it, well see how you get on and let us know. As previously stated loads of good quality handouts is a must, cards, photo's, flyers whatever, but get out in front and sell 'yourself' this is a day for suit and tie or similar. (who wants to book a DJ in jeans and trainers for a wedding) Show them how professionally and seriously you take it.

 

Just my 4d worth

 

Spin

[Hugmaster 0]

Howdy

 

I used to agree with the opinion that Wedding exhibitions were a waste of time and money.

 

However, our local paper runs a Wedding exhibition at our local Hanover International hotel. Part of the deal includes a free advert in the paper and you get the names and address of all the exhibitors andanyone who comes to browse, having that kind of contact information is worth it's weight in gold. It doens't necessarily mean you will get bookings on the day, but it will enable you to be proactive in contacting future customers and companies in the industry.

 

Check with the organisers to see if you will be getting the same kind of service.

 

Darren

[ChrisPointon 0]

Being able to attend a Wedding Fayre without being able to demonstrate your service. Hmmm, anybody else see the irony about this??.

 

Having attended several over the years, they are an expensive excercise with very little in the way of returns, in fact I rarely covered my costs. It's been some time since I attended one so things may have changed and you may have more luck in your area.

 

At least find out if they will allow you to set up your gear, even if you aren't allowed to play low level music / provide the P.A, otherwise you really are wasting your time. People like to see what they are getting for their money, and just standing around handing out leaflets doesn't sell your business - for all they know you could have a Fisher Price - "my 1st disco" at home...or even worse be using a "Home Mix"!!!! http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/scared.gif .

 

Once you have set up - people will instantly recognise you as a D.J http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif . Don't dedicate all of your time / staff to leaflet distribution - people like to chat about their event so make sure that at least one person is around to discuss prices and bookings. Consider offering a discount for people who book up there and then, or at least within 1 week of attending the event. Consider hiring a moving message display - they are attention getters.

 

Also, make sure that you have plenty of promotional stuff around. Business Cards & Flyers and get your lad or missus to wonder around handing them out.

 

Talk to other people attending the Event, Cake suppliers, Caterers, Flower Arrangers can all be useful contacts to have and offer to swap cards with them so that they will recommend you as a D.J to their customers and you will give their name to anybody requiring their services.

 

If there are any follow up publications then make sure your ad appears in them. As other members have advised make sure that you wear a tie and suitable attire at the event.

[YourBigEvent 0]

All hotels around here wedding fayres, I am lucky in the fact that I do not have to do anyand they still give me the work, there is also one VERY big fayre in Exeter once a year, it costs £600 to get your stand, but it is a big stand. Luckily I can share a stand with my wife (those who don't know, she creates wedding cakes). We tried it for the first time last year and I myself have covered the costs alone. We did put a lot of effert into it thopugh, remember it is not just the price of the stand, but literature, backdrops, pictures, signs etc etc etc. It is going to be the only one I do again this year

 

 

Don't forget to put your price up if it is a posh venue, I was going out for £120- £150, but all my gigs from the fayre were quoted at £200 and they booked most of them.

[kazzachi 0]

...any contacts you find at wedding fayres can always also be found in the yellow pages! A major thing that put me off paying anybody to try to get work was years ago, a bride said to me that "she would never book a dj through a wedding fayre as if they had to pay out money in order to obtain work then they obviously were either very new to the business or just not very good!" And remember, they are run by a company out to earn money - they are not done purely for the benefit of the would be bride and groom!

Edited January 5, 2004 by kazzachi

[Hugmaster 0]

Howdy

This particular exhibition will allow me tos et up my entire system and play low level background music.

 

Working on the assumption that any DJ who has to pay for advertising must be crap or new doesn't hold water. If that were the case, I might as well just dismantle my website and destroy all my literature.

 

Darren

You can get customer anmes and addresses from the Yellow Pages? Must try that http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif

 

 

[ChrisPointon 0]

QUOTE

Working on the assumption that any DJ who has to pay for advertising must be crap or new doesn't hold water

 

Yes Karen...that was a bit harsh http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/bash.gif

 

We can never have TOO much work (Unless your Andy! http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif )

 

I've just handed in notice at a residency. I've been pondering whether to do this for some time (as older posts reflect) but I decided that a New Year, New Start etc, was time to take a Gamble and a risk and get out of there. No reason other than a manager who wasn't playing it straight with regard to bookings and the deal we had. Now I find myself with every other Saturday to fill http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/533.gif . It will get filled eventually but I will find myself doing a little website promotion to do it. Nothing to do with my professionalism - purely due to a change of circumstance http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif .

 

Reading the December Bookings thread proves that other people have cancellations to fill, or with more time on their hands than they first thought or expected - it happens and as a business we have to fill the gaps any way we can.

[partychris 0]

Well i have done the same wedding fair for 3 years now,one plus point is the money i pay for my stand all goes to Cancer Research, but that aside i have always had very good returns from the wedding fairs and have always covered my costs plus a few extra bookings. The one i do has 2 fairs a year one early in the year and the other one much later, i find i see quite a few of the same people, the first time they may just ask as there wedding is not till the following year then the second time will be with a booking.

As a lot of people have said, make sure you have good quality flyers and dress to impress, also it is a good idea to have someone with you that can help you will find you get busy periods and if your on your own you could be loosing custom !

 

Its a long day but make the most of it, im sure it will pay off..

 

http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/beer.gif

[Ian Stewart 0]

In the past i have done wedding fayres, and each one that I have attended I have made a profit, (the record was 16 confirmed bookings on the day).

 

I suppose its down to your ability to sell yourself, if you stand back and wait for them, they ain't gonna come to your stand, but grab them talk to them, sell to them, close the deal

 

sorted

[YourBigEvent 0]

Sell yourself, close the deal with a deposit of some amount, non returnable of course.

[Loz 0]

Thanks for all your advice, the size of the pitch I've been given is 5ft x 10ft not a large amount of room I know but it's paid for now so I'd best make the most of it. I can see where people are coming from with regards to having to advertise I suppose I would be the same if it was me getting married. But sometimes things need a little push to get them moving, the problem I have is having 28 years experience but all with other companies. Anyway I'll let you know the outcome of it all in a couple of weeks.

[kazzachi 0]

Hold on! Darren and Chris, Could you go back and re-read my post! It was a bride who I was quoting... (shall go back and insert quotation marks!)... and useful contacts I was referring to was that of other people in the industry! Hope that has cleared it up for you.

 

Personally, I dont do them because I do not want to part with any money to wedding fayre organisers... most of whom I have been contacted by "rent" the hotel - and I very soon learned that although B&Gs may go and visit these fayres, when it comes to choosing their dj for their wedding, they usually go with whoever the venue recommend (usually their resident dj) or somebody who has been recommended by a friend/family on the dj front. Also, the target market is weddings so your potential customers are limited.

 

Great if you manage to cover your costs by getting signed and sealed contracts on the day.... but you cant guarantee it!

[Paul Smith 0]

I only do one fayre a year (poetic or what) which doesn't cost me any money - apart from travel, cost of flyers, refreshments and of course a whole Sunday afternoon/ early evening of my otherwise free time. Every year I always say that if I don't get at least 2 gigs from it I'm not going back and each year I'm back so it does work but I wouldn't pay extra for the stall/pitch.

 

Loz you've been given lots of good advice here what can I add???? The punters will arrive in what seems like the bus load - that is the place is full and buzzing for an hour and then empty for the next. During the time when it is buzzing make sure that everyone who passes your stand at least gets a business card. Use the slack periods to talk to other stall holders (including DJs) and do some networking.

 

One other tippet which may apply - I noticed that when I was busy some punters were able to bypass me by walking between 2 tables (the room was set up as per a reception with the stalls around the outside) so at the first opportunity I re-arranged the chairs to block this escape route http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/rolleyes.gif

 

PaulS

[mick 0]

I did a wedding fair once just to provide the music as they had been let down. Go dressed to impress, take plenty of cards. make a note of any inquiry and offer to go and see the couple when you have more time to decide on what they want.

make them feel extra special because they are !

I always go and see a couple who are booking me for a wedding because it is a special day for them and it is a lot better to meet them and know a bit about them.

They are usually prepared to pay a good rate as it has to be done right.

Have a good fair

 

[djslt 0]

A little tip a wedding fayre's if your have a stand or not. Go and flier all the cars in the car park as they are all potential wedding customers. You can do this at any wedding fayre even if you don't have a stand. Just turn up and stick your leaflets under their windows advertising your disco service.

[YourBigEvent 0]

Sorry djslt but if I was looking for a service and they stuck a flyer on my windscreen I would go out of my way NOT to book them, they must be desperate for work etc

[djslt 0]

QUOTE

Sorry djslt but if I was looking for a service and they stuck a flyer on my windscreen I would go out of my way NOT to book them, they must be desperate for work etc

 

True to some extent, but then we are all DJ's. But would the average customer think this. Its free advertising to a whole car park of potential customers looking for wedding entertainment and services. Its gotta be worth a go for 20 mins work and see what comes of it.

[ChrisPointon 0]

Must admit nothing annoys me more than coming back from Tesco's and finding half a rain forest under my wiper. Worst still if it happens to rain and there is nothing but mush under the wiper!.

 

I would certainly go out of my way to avoid ANY business which did this - especially as at least half of them will end up blowing around the car park as litter,

[YourBigEvent 0]

This happened at a wedding fayre once, so I collected every piece of paper I could find and returned to the 'company' but unfortunately forgot to put a stamp on it, so he had to pay the full postage to get back lots of rubbish !!

[The Spindoctor 0]

Well I'll go half way and back djslt a little. IF IT WORKS!

 

Point being 300 cars all with leaflets or colour print of your lightshow or whatever even IF 5 out of 300 enquire and 3 go on to book then you will have paid for your printing and then some!!!

 

Telephone sales annoy me intensly BUT after talking to the guys who did our windows it is the most profitable way for firms to make money. YES everybody says they hate it, but facts prove that 75% of their workload comes from Telesales. 1000 calls if 2 people go for it they've made money!

 

Just my 4d worth

 

Spin

[adenondj 0]

QUOTE (Loz @ Jan 5 2004, 01:19 PM)

Thanks for all your advice, the size of the pitch I've been given is 5ft x 10ft not a large amount of room I know but it's paid for now so I'd best make the most of it.

your deck should fill that space with 2 speakers on a stand and a few lights, always remember to make it clear that you can cater for larger and smaller rooms.

 

also remember that Finding DJ for £50 will not be a problem, but he will probably attend in a pair of jeans, look scruffy, and not know how to turn on the microphone, leave alone sounding enthusiastic to other guests. Refuse to take requests, play too loud, have faulty equipment and no public liability insurance tell people that you offer a nights worth of entertainment not just agadoo and a few flashing lights!