Extraordinary Weddings » average dj price

The Flirty Guide on DJs and Pricing

Charles E. Snyder III — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 21:50:12 +0000

Every once in a while I stumble upon a well written, well thought-out article by someone who – for lack of a better term – ‘get’s it.’ One such article was written by a wedding vendor that is not a DJ. Her name is Stacie Tamaki and she is a wedding videographer in California. Her blog, The Flirty Blog, is chock full of a lot of creative ideas for any wedding as well as containing several informative articles such as:

How Much Should Your Wedding DJ Cost

Particularly, I truly appreciate the fact that Stacie has taken the time to really do her research with this article. She talked to brides and grooms, other wedding vendors and even a few DJs too; so be sure to take a few minutes and read this article thoroughly.

It should also be noted that Stacie’s article is in fact one of the many topics the book ‘Wed Without Regrets‘ tackles in great detail. Way to go Stacie!

You Get What You Pay For…

Charles E. Snyder III — Sat, 29 May 2010 16:45:49 +0000

In my quest to find excellent examples of WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR when hiring a DJ while writing the forthcoming book Wed Without Regrets, I have been quite appalled and even disgusted at times by what I have found. This particular video demonstrates several of those completely unprofessional behaviors that I have been educating brides about for the past ten years. Aside from the fact that this DJ is either drunk and/or high while performing at this wedding, the incoherent shouting into the microphone, the mostly empty dance floor and inappropriately dressed companion with him, you will witness one of the worst acts of socially stunted behavior that I have seen caught on video to date!

WARNING: If you are easily offended, please DO NOT watch the following video clip – the content is inappropriate for minors!!!

Hard Lesson #2

Charles E. Snyder III — Sat, 29 May 2010 03:53:02 +0000

A common theme that I have addressed here on this blog is warning newly engaged couples, who are planning their wedding, to be extremely wary of the ‘too good to be true’ deals that other DJs offer. True to that warning, I was made aware of yet another couple who were taken advantage of just over the state line in Maryland. As I have been writing about in my new book – Wed Without Regrets – far too often, people do not realize the value of professional service until it is too late.

Be sure to note that this particular incident involved a DJ company based in Ohio that provides DJ and Videographer services for less than what the American Disc Jockey Association recommends as the standard price for just a DJ performing for four hours at a wedding reception! The following two videos are TV news reports about just one of many so-called DJs companies across the U.S.

DJ Pricing Made Easy

Charles E. Snyder III — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 16:53:03 +0000

It has been a very busy wedding booking season and the inquiries for 2011 are starting to really roll in too. One of the most common questions I am asked by couples planning their wedding is what a good rule of thumb is for pricing DJ services. It’s actually a pretty easy to answer question, since many of the wedding planning websites such as The Knot, Modern Bride (Brides.com) and many others have wedding budget calculators on their sites. Another great source of information can be found on the American Disc Jockey Association website too.

In a nutshell, most of these sites state that you should expect to budget 10% for your reception music. However I always emphasize that it is JUST music for their reception and does not include their ceremony or extras such as lighting. For example, the average spent on a wedding in Winchester, VA is between $16,369 and $27,282 with the median being $21,825 – 10% is real easy to figure out. Likewise, the American Disc Jockey Association website states that DJ pricing can be as much as $5,000 or more!

Either way, if you are planning a wedding, be sure to check our availability and I will be happy to sit down with you to further discuss this and your wedding plans.

Update: Wed Without Regrets

Charles E. Snyder III — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:16:42 +0000

Recently I returned from a much needed vacation in the U.S. Virgin Islands. However while I was there, I had the time away from everything else to sort out my thoughts in regards to the “Wed Without Regrets” book that I am currently working on. After an extremely busy wedding booking season for 2010, it was a great change of pace to collect my ideas.

One particular thing that I realized is that the Spring 2010 release date may have to be pushed back to the Fall of this year due to a number of delays. Although nearly 60% of the writing is already completed, getting a manuscript properly proofread and formatted for printing tends to be a pretty time consuming endeavor. Also of considerable importance is that the cover design work has not been approved yet either.

On the other hand, the good news is that I have also had more time to do more research as well as expand that research with the help of a number of industry friends. What that means for the bride-to-be is that she will have the benefit of knowledge coming from brides who have recently went through everything involved with wedding planning! Stay tuned for more details coming soon!!!

Pricing vs. Value

Charles E. Snyder III — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:24:35 +0000

In a survey that was done with brides just a few years ago, entertainment was one of the lowest priorities and lowest valued services for a wedding reception. Yet just one week later, those same brides said that if they had it to do all over again, entertainment would be their number one priority and it would have a much bigger budget.

Why such a drastic change of heart?

That is because they all realized that the entertainment is what really makes or breaks any special event, especially a wedding. In other words, most of them learned the hard way that if their entertainment is lacking, their wedding reception will leave much to be desired too. The bottom line is that these brides and thousands more just like them find out the hard way each year that the cheapest entertainment is never the best value.

The reason that there is such a great difference between the cheapest and the best value is that most people have been trained to think that all DJs are the same and just play music. Even most DJs believe this as well, but the truth of the matter is that the success of the event depends more on personality, talent and skill than it does on the biggest speakers, the best light show and a tremendously large music library. The bottom line is that anyone can buy those huge speakers, have lots of pretty lights and download ridiculous amounts of music from file sharing websites – that’s why there are so many so-called DJs.

On the other hand, most of the higher priced entertainers provide you with the best value for your money because they belong to trade organizations, they attend conferences or workshops to hone their skills and they offer you much greater flexibility with creative ideas. But it doesn’t just stop there, a better value entertainer also carries liability insurance, has attained one or more recognized certifications based upon demonstrating skills and is readily available to you during your wedding planning. I could go on, but you get the point.

Consider this, the American Disc Jockey Association – the largest DJ association in the world – states that the average price for a four hour wedding is $1,200. So when you start receiving all sorts of price quotes that are $300 – $600, ask yourself why that is.

Another consideration is this – the average wedding reception costs more than $12,000 (facility rental, catering, cake, photographer, etc.) and typically lasts just four hours. If most of your guests leave just one hour early because your entertainment provider cannot perform; you just threw away an average of $3,000 ($12,000 / 4hrs = $3,000 per hour). The absolute best value comes from an experienced entertainer with a proven track-record of successful wedding receptions!

Charles E. Snyder III,
Certified Master of Ceremonies
Extraordinary Weddings
717.718.5218