Author: Mike Fernino

“There’s a point where a DJ needs to become a business person and not just perform for fun.” How many times have you heard, “Would you like fries with that?” Or, “You can add on early boarding for just $30 extra?” Or even, “For an extra $125, you can upgrade to a junior suite?” Clearly the “Upsell Culture” is a huge part of our everyday process of capitalism. Everywhere you turn, businesses are trying to turn a transaction into something bigger than what you originally intended. Heck, try to get into a checkout line at the store and you are herded…

“Is it really necessary to have the latest and greatest piece every six months? Let’s explore that concept…” In February, Denon comes out with the newest and hottest DJ control system. In May, Pioneer DJ counters and raises the bar even more. July has RCF introducing a brand-new compact speaker system that can be set up in three minutes and, in October, a new DJ table knocks the industry to its knees. In response, the collective DJ culture swoons. This is a fictitious scenario; but it’s not far off from being accurate. These days, you see it all over DJs’…

Progressive pricing! Welcome to 2024, everyone. Your lunch is worth more than your mid-day snack and a frosty will cost you more at 6:00 p.m. than it would at 11:00 p.m. Yes, it’s the game that airlines and hotel/resorts have been using for years may be coming to a Wendy’s near you soon! The progressive model suggests that rates can be changed throughout the day, based on demand and, using digital price menus, the value of a “value meal” can be adjusted based on the time of day. Ever go to a hotel on the beach and request rates for…

It’s one of the great struggles in the mobile-DJ-vs.-venue dynamic: The DJ’s set-up area and its relation to all the dancefloor action. DJs for decades have been walking into venues ready to put on a great show, only to have their expectations destroyed when the catering manager tells them they are over in the corner, 30 feet away from the dancefloor and behind about a dozen tables of guests! It’s almost enough to make you want to retire and not do this business anymore! Listen, I feel your pain. In my 39-year career as a professional mobile DJ, I have…

Changes have been abound for mobile DJs — and now that 2023 is almost over — with more expected for the year ahead. Now that 2023 is almost completely in the books, I have a few thoughts about where we are in the mobile-DJ industry and where we came from just a few years ago. There is no doubt that some things have returned to the status quo, and yet other things are very different from what they used to be. Let’s start with the obvious: Holiday parties have come back from the 2020 disaster. Well, sort of… It seems…

Mike Fernino brings DJ Idea Sharing to DJ LIFE, where he discusses health & wellness, prevention, and your future.  I have been blessed with a 39-year DJ career. During that time I have subjected my body to every type of abuse, including wearing bad shoes, eating wedding food late at night, loud music, smoke, stress, heavy lifting, plus hours and hours of standing, etc. Sound familiar? When you are 25, the recovery process is fairly fast. But as you age into your 30s, 40s, and certainly your 50s, the reset is not the same. Problems begin to creep into your…

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…

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…