Becoming an In-Demand Wedding DJ: 5 Essential Tips and Tricks for Bookings

Wedding season is upon us which means Mobile DJs are gearing up for thier busiest and most profitable time of year. You’ve been tinkering around with DJ Software and your DJ Controller for the last 8 months and you’ve gotten good feel for selecting the right tracks for nice flow. However, you’ve only DJ’d a couple weddings so far and no one is banging down your door to book you.

DJing Weddings isn’t easy, while big room club DJ’s get all the attention and fans, dealing with the “bridezillas” and ebb and flow of a wedding is something that takes experience and unique skill. These things are learned in time, and being able to tag-along with a seasoned pro DJ with wedding experience a handful of times is truly paramount.

This post is about landing more gigs (or even your first Wedding DJ gig), something many newer DJ’s that want to break into the wedding market struggle with. I’ve put together these 5 tips:

Wedding DJ References

Yeah, you’ve got skills. You can beat sync your tracks so they blend perfectly, with help of DJ software like PCDJ DEX 2. You’ve become great at selecting tracks that mix well together and keep the dance floor going. However, when you take your first meeting with the bride-to-be she’s not going to be familiar with your other-worldly dj mixing abilities, nor does she really care.

Anybody with professional DJ software and equipment can claim to be a Disc Jockey, and any bride (and her father) spending the kind of cash it takes to throw a wedding is going to want to feel confident that you know what you’re doing – that you’re not going to play horribly suited music for their crowd, and fumble and stumble on the MIC all night long. So, if you don’t have references to show your potential client, in writing, or via your website you need to get on that immediately.

If you don’t have a few penned references to provide (doh! You forgot to ask), you could show video footage from a previous gig providing them a look-in at what you can do. If you have video clips from various weddings with different themes or demographics to show how versatile you are, all that much better. Regardless, nothing beats a referral. Another method that has worked great for a good friend and customer of PCDJ , try shooting some video towards the end of the reception with the bride and groom or immediate family members, ask them if they had a great time – they’re usually in a great mood and you’ll be surprised what they will share about the experience on the spot.

Selecting The Right Music

This wedding DJ tip depends a lot on your clients. Their age, demographic and musical tastes all come into play when making sure you have a quality selection of music for their wedding and reception.

The good news in recent years is that with technology allowing everyone easy and direct access to music, everyone is essentially their own DJ. Your bride to be and future hubby will help you with a playlist of the music they really want to hear. But be warned, as there will most certainly be all ages within the wedding party with very different musical tastes – the classics are still a must (in most situations anyway). Here’s a good cheat sheet of DJ music for weddings HERE

When it comes to new music and staying on top of what’s hot – PCDJ DJ software users should consider a Pulselocker Subscription . You get immediate access to 44+ Million songs directly in PCDJ – so you can rest assured you have every request imaginable.

Look Good!

Being you is important, but if being you is a lazy sloppy dresser than it’s time to _up your gam_e. Perception is reality, and most weddings are formal affairs. Unless you know differently, dress for success. Now while a double-breasted suit is not a requisite for your client meeting, don’t look like you’re heading out to the club for a night of fist pumping and debauchery. Keep it clean and neat, some nice jeans (no holes) with a button down or collared shirt is perfect – and better yet if you have a collared branded shirt with your DJ company logo wear that. It shows you’re both established and professional.

One way to know exactly how to dress for the wedding is to simply ask the bride or wedding planner. They will tell you, trust me.

Master of Ceremonies

Weddings have evolved over the last decade – they are more unique than ever. It’s standard protocol for the DJ to not only mix music and keep the dance floor packed, but to be the Master Of Ceremonies AKA Emcee. Without question, your bride will ask if this is a service you provide, and I’ll be direct with this – you better. If you don’t have experience with it or just can’t for whatever reason, bring someone with you that has the pipes for the job.

This tip for Mobile DJs looking to DJ weddings can be a make or break. The client will want to know if you’re comfortable on the MIC because being the Master Of Ceremonies means introducing the bride & groom, the wedding party, cake cutting, the first dance, the father-daughter dance and of course the bouquet toss.

If this isn’t part of your DJ repertoire and you want to DJ weddings, make it one. Otherwise start banging on club doors as it’s probably not a good fit for your skill-set.

An Idea, Man

Want to be a successful wedding DJ that gets referrals and regular bookings? You better bring ideas to the table. The client or wedding planner will have ideas about what the wedding and reception should entail. But it’s ultimately your job as a professional mobile DJ to bring ideas that meet up with their vision and expectations.

So, bring ideas to the table as a pro that knows what they’re doing. Talk about lighting (up-lighting is all the craze right now), the musical transitions, the music that will really fit the wedding theme etc. You want to show your potential client that you’re seasoned pro DJ that’s been there before – and not just an iPhone with Spotify installed.
I hope these tips for Wedding DJ’s truly help you land more gigs, and prosper as a professional mobile DJ!

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