As I enter my 39th year as a professional DJ/MC, there is so much to reflect on – so many memories and so many experiences. One of the true pleasures has been my opportunity to attend years’ worth of DJ conferences and Expos – what a career-changer these events have been for me! So, with that, I would love to take you back in time and re-live what it was once like attending these seminal DJ shows of the ’90s… to really get an idea of what it was like then, try to imagine a world with no Facebook, no…
Author: Mike Fernino
A word of advice: If you want to dive into the very competitive world of the wedding market, you must advertise. Without effective promotion there is no way to have a consistent schedule in this market, which is the gold standard for most DJs. And when I say effective promotion, I mean marketing that will get you in front of wedding couples with quality leads. Forget these online search-engine websites that make you pay hundreds and hundreds each month, only to have a rotation banner with a hundred other DJs to get on-line leads! These sites usually over-promise and under-deliver.…
When I first started my career as a DJ, I was obsessed with running my business in a professional manner. That included everything from business cards, logos, banners, and even a custom-made DJ console. I just wanted to provide my customers a higher level of service. Because of the personal element of being in the customer-service industry, I found it imperative to get a place where face-to-face meetings could be held. But where to find the right place? A videographer friend of mine asked me to join him at his office, which was spread over 2,300 square feet. He was…
For many of you, a world without Facebook and social media is unfathomable. But, for the veterans of our DJ industry, we indeed did exist at a time where peer-to-peer communication was limited to physical get-togethers. This is a story about an educational movement that began in 2001, and it helped change the face of our industry. Back in 2001, I was just finishing a very productive period of involvement in my local DJ association here in Connecticut. The association was ending a very good run and I found myself in a creative growth period without an avenue to direct that…