8 Tips to Improve Your Wedding Dj Experience
Let’s get right down to business here. Your Dj can make a big difference on your wedding day.
These days especially, the Dj is all too often chosen simply based on price. It is very important to make sure the Dj you pick matches your expectations. This topic deserves so much more time than I am able to dedicate to it at the moment. Here are a few tips for you to consider no matter who you choose as your Dj:
1. Meet with your Dj in person in advance of your wedding day at least once if not more.
2. Make sure everything you expect from your Dj is in writing. Do not ever rely on verbal commitments.
3. Give your Dj a clear itinerary of events to follow for your wedding day. If you have a professional coordinator they should do that for you.
4. Give your Dj clear direction on the music. Not to say you should have to direct your Dj, but make sure to set clear perameters. A simple way to do this is providing your Dj with 3 lists. Must play, must not play, and general requests.
5. Prepare your own cd and give it to someone you trust to bring it to the wedding with the songs that are most important to you. I just attended a wedding where the Dj played the wrong song for the first dance and in the end did not have the correct first dance song.
6. Preparation is the key. Make sure your Dj understands any announcements or introductions you expect them to announce for you. For introductions your Dj should have all the correct names with correct spelling and know the order of introductions. The same wedding I just attended the Dj asked all the names of the bridal party just before he introduced them. That is not the time to get the information. A good coordinator will also help to ensure the Dj knows who he is introducing in advance.
7. If you are having a buffet how are the tables being released? The Dj I just saw did what we call the “Cattle Call” from behind his console, calling out the name of each table for the buffet over the microphone. The Dj, coordinator, or usually catering staff should walk to each table personally inviting them to the buffet keeping a tight cap on the number of guests in line.
8. Ask the Dj how he will dress, what time he will be there, what he needs (table, linen, power, shade, etc) and make sure these things are all in writing.
As I stated, this is a big topic and there is so much more we could go over here. If you have other questions feel free to post them in the comments and I will do my best to answer them for you quickly.
For most brides and grooms the Dj is very important. These tips can really help improve your wedding Dj experience. Simply put, if the Dj is very important to you for your wedding then don’t just go out and find the cheapest Dj you can get.
Jason Diavatis is a Certified Wedding Consultant at Bay Area Entertainment. Bay Area Entertainment has been providing Wedding Planning, Day of Coordination and professional DJ and Live Entertainment in the San Francisco Bay Area and Napa Valley Wine Country since 1993.
Tags: day of wedding coordinator, disc jockey, DJ TIps, Wedding DJ