Recession = Cowboys

Well, it looks like with the purse strings being pulled as tight as possible, the wannabe DJs of this world are back with a vengence.

I wouldn't normally comment about the cowboys in my line of work as I do not regard them as competition. They serve a part of the market I have no interest in. That's not an arrogant statement. Their market is completely different to the customers I work for and I do not focus my marketing strategy on that area.

You will find a comment on my website that I make to anyone who's thinking about contacting me for a quote. I state that if you are looking for a cheap disco, you could make better use of your time elsewhere. That could be taken in completely the wrong way, but it's a statement that says: "I don't do cheap discos."

Instead, I provide a quality and reliable service that is backed up with a wealth of experience. There is a big difference between a quality entertainment package and a cheap disco - sadly, not everyone can see that.

You can buy a tin of branded baked beans in Tesco or Sainsbury's - the beans will be of the same quality in each store, but the price will probably differ by a few pence. However, when you hire someone to provide a service, there is usually a selection of reasons why someone is cheap. If only everyone could see that.

I respect that everyone has a budget and if my fee is above their maximum spending limit, I have no problems with that. I will give them some free advice: "Buy the best you can afford because you only get one chance to create a memorable event."

Anyway, the whole point of this message is to state that because of the recession, the cowboys are coming out of the woodwork and they are letting people down. The past couple of weeks has seen me fielding enquries from so many people who have been told that the DJ they booked cannot do their function. There is one common denominator in all the conversations I've had - they were cheap.

I would suspect that each person that has been let down has been dumped for another job that is a few pounds more. Or that the DJ has had a rough week at work and they can't be bothered to work unsocial hours after their day job.

Is there a contract in place? - NO!

Do they have an address or landline telephone number for the DJ? - PROBABLY NOT!

If the equipment has broken down, why doesn't the DJ have backup gear? - THE EQUIPMENT ISN'T BROKEN, IT MAY BE BEING USED ELSEWHERE FOR MORE MONEY!

Is the DJ bothered he's let someone down? - PROBABLY NOT!

I could go on and on, but I hope you get the message.

So, the moral of the story is: "Buy the best you can afford."

John Forbes
Professional DJ
www.johnforbes.net