What would you do?

[brooks02st 0]

I've just sat for 3 hours with me amp on 0.5 and my lighting laying idle playing sad songs, lve legends, power balads and such like.

 

8.30 backround music

9.30 I tryed to persude the bill payer to let me put the lights on. his responce was no what your playing is perfect

9.45 the owner of the pub says turn it up

10.00 Still i'm told by the bill payer thats perfect carry on

10.15 the owner is getting extremely ratty

10.30 i tell the bill payer he's an hour left till i'm off

10.45 still sat there nothing to do

11.00 my index finger is killing me as i am constantly prodding me roadie to keep him awake

11.30 i pick up my £150 and pack away

 

at the end f this "disco" if you can call it that. I had not been told put my lights on and that every thing was perfect by thr bill payer.

 

The owner then walks in with a face like a bulldog chewing a wasp telling me that the bill payer was a pain in the http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/363.gif as he didnt want any loud music. She said i should have turned it up any way

 

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

 

so what am i to do? turn it up or down? any ideas

[jimmym 0]

You did the right thing, the client is hiring you so do as they ask.

 

Well done http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/goodjob.gif

[brianmole 0]

You have a satisfied customer......he will book you again, and again... http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/fear.gif

[DJTREV 0]

Sounds like a perfect night!!Take the money and run.

You will have much harder nights than that to contend with.

I bet Andy will agree with me.

[ChrisPointon 0]

People are strange. They all have their own ideas on how to enjoy themselves. Some get rat-arsed, fight in the street and get arrested, some go clubbing and dance all night, other sit talking ignoring the fact that there is a disco in the room http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/533.gif . Occasionally you'll get a client who just wants you to play quietly in the background and use no lighting. In fact i'm finding a trend where a lot of clients at older functions are specifing more subtle lighting in their choice on the booking form.

 

At the end of the day, you were booked to provide a service, and even though the service proved to be entirely different to what you expected or are used to, the fact remains that you turned up, did what the client requested, the client is satisifed and you got another happy customer and a positive mark to your reputation. You can't put a price on customer satisfaction http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/thumbup.gif

 

If the 'owner' wants you to do what they personally want, then they should book you and pay your fee, then you'll play what they want, and as loud as they want, until then you are working for the client and not the venue owner, if they don't like it, then tough, they'll have to learn to deal with it!.

[Paul Forsyth 0]

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

 

Look at the replies, you absolutely did the right thing. And well done for not going with the venue management.

 

Vinnie

[High Fidelity 0]

The customer is always right. http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/fear.gif

 

Well, not always, but you did the right thing. The one paying the bill is in charge.

[Paul Smith 0]

Sounds to me that you gave them exactly what they wanted http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/goodjob.gif

 

PaulS

[Gary 0]

"He who pays the piper, calls the tune......." (as the old saying goes)

 

"He who pays the DJ, calls the tune, the volume, the lighting, the early finish, the lack of atmosphere, the whole thing..."

 

Its tempting, sometimes, to feel like you're a musical puppet - however, you got paid.

 

I did a disco a while back, at least 3 or 4 years ago, where I was told only during the setting up stage of the evening that they wanted background level music all night, as there would be lots of talking, and catching up on old times etc.

 

I knew something was up when several people through the evening were seen to be crying - and Joshua Kadison rarely has that effect during the background music http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/huh.gif. It turned out that the person who was holding the party, was dying and this would be his final chance to talk to everyone he knew. If I'd have ignored the guy and just kicked on the dance tunes, even the dance tunes suitable for the age group of his guests, it would have prevented conversations from taking place. Not what the hirer, or his guests wanted - I'd have been lucky to have got paid.

 

Just gotta go with the hirer... by all means "suggest", or "advise" or "give alternatives", but go with the hirers wishes.

[YourBigEvent 0]

Agreed, he who pays the bills in the boss, not the owner who only pays the bar staff, not you.

[Kingy 0]

Yes, right thing. Its all part of the job I'm afraid!

[robbiedj 0]

You were booked by your client, not the venue, so you did what you were contracted to do, supply musical entertainment as required.

 

What more can you do? http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/533.gif

Edited February 21, 2005 by robbiedj

[speedy 0]

Agreed. You did what the person paying you asked, job done http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/smile.gif

 

 

 

[Cheezy 0]

You get events like this from time to time. You did the right thing, you sometimes have to be diplomatic if your client is not the venue management. In situation like this just keep the client happy....try playing some tracks that normally don't get aired!

 

Well done! http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/thumbup.gif

 

Cheezy

[mikeee 0]

I would have told the landlord, that he could book me for the next night, or whenever, then I would do what he wanted.

These type of bookings are not that unusual, there are a lot of 40 / 50 somethings that want that type of entertainment.

If you had done what the landlord asked, the client would have been pi:cense:ed off, as would his guests, so thats 1+X that would think twice about booking a DJ in the future. All they would have done for the next week / month, would have been whinge to all their friends about how bad, loud and bright the disco was.

[partychris 0]

on nights like that give him a card from another DJ !! thats why i have a few of brian moles in my case http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[brianmole 0]

http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/fear.gif http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/bash.gif http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/sterb188.gif http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/fish.gif

 

OI!

http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/071.gif

[Mo The Motown Man 0]

http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/wacko.gif What only a few http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/188.gif

[Steve 0]

As mentioned many times you did the correct thing and kept the client happy.....I would sooner work for the client than a landlord like that!

 

 

[Jimbo55 0]

I have been giving this reply some serious thought. There is only one answer

 

The customer is right.

 

If the manger/owner had a problem with the way the night went then the booking should have been refused. However it would have been a difficult one to spot. A case for the manager/owner to review booking procedure.

 

Just one of those weird nights that gets talked about on the forums.

 

Customer happy and you got paid...... bar takings down. As the song says

 

"Two out of three ain't bad"

 

I think, profesionally, you did very well to resist the calls to crank it up,

 

Jimbo

[DJ SPARKO 0]

wel i,ve had the predicament of having a similar situation ownly the venue owners were..........

 

 

MY PARENTS. http://www.dj-forum.co.uk/html/emoticons/fear.gif

 

 

 

And they dident like the client. so that was an interesting situation trying to find a happy medium.