Most brides are excited about having a party with their friends and family. The wedding and the celebration is almost always something they’re looking forward to. If you knew just how detrimental hiring the wrong person could be to the success of the party, you would probably avoid hiring them. If you knew the party might not happen based on the entertainment, would you reconsider who you’re hiring? It’s well known throughout the wedding industry that more brides regret not hiring higher quality DJ’s for their wedding. If given the choice to redo their wedding, the majority of brides have commented that they would pay more attention to who is responsible for entertainment and would have hired a different DJ. The reason for this is because it’s frequently overlooked in favour of price.
The first thing that separates the DJ is the DJ themselves. Is your DJ experienced, educated, do they own equipment and practice on their own time? If you don’t meet them or know their credentials then you really don’t know what you’re getting until your wedding day. You could get someone that’s passionate about their job or someone that’s disinterested and inexperienced. There’s big difference between an experienced DJ that’s wants your wedding to be success and a new DJ. The new DJ might want the same things, however, they likely haven’t developed the advanced skills that make the party great, which the more experienced DJ’s have. Even if the company has 20 years of experience, there’s a very good chance they also have new DJs so make sure to learn about your DJ specifically.
There are other factors that contribute to what makes the night a success, but underestimating the value of their entertainment is a mistake that many couples regret. A good DJ will help to make the party exactly what you want whereas the less than qualified ones will have everyone going home early. Almost everyone I meet believes they can DJ and they probably could if they worked hard at it, and if they were willing to invest thousands of hours in training and thousands of dollars in good equipment. I get it, music inspires people, and the majority of people express a strong passion towards songs and artists they love. However, with anyone I’ve ever met, no matter how much talent they believe they possess, their early attempts to mix were spectacular train wrecks.
Times have changed, couples expect more than the traditional push, play, and wait for the song to tail off before playing the next song. Five years ago I met with a group of wedding DJs. When I got to the meeting, three of them proudly walked up to me and one said, “Nobody cares that you know how to mix.” Today large DJ companies will contact me asking if I’ll do some training for their new DJs, but I’ll only commit to very select groups. If the company doesn’t have high standards for weddings and a love for DJing I just don’t have the time for them regardless of money. We know what makes a good party and a good DJ; it takes a lot of commitment and many aren’t willing to make that investment. Most DJs learn this on the job and some never get past the basics. Only a handful will attend training or educational seminars which can really help a DJ. So if you’re only going to do one thing before hiring a DJ for your wedding, learn about their experience and credentials. A wedding should be full of fun memories throughout the night and shouldn’t be finished early so hire a DJ that will help to give you that experience.