How To Start A Wedding & Events Band or DJ Business
“We do not remember the days, we remember the moments.” - Cesare Pavese
Introduction:
If you've ever been to any wedding or event, you might know the nightmare of a cheesy band or DJ. Let's face it - the days of old, worn-out DJs & Bands is behind us.
The industry needs a breath of new, young, and energetic musicians & DJs to help make weddings & events more memorable.
The best part is, starting a wedding band & DJ business is as easy as it ever was. With a few simple contracts & systems, you too can start a wedding band or DJ business from scratch.
SHA-BANG, here are 7 things you need to do in order to launch a wedding & events band or DJ business👊
1. Figure Out Who Your Want Serve, What Your Ideal Client Looks Like, and What You Want To Be Playing/DJing
As with any business or plan, you really have to establish what you're going for before you go for it. Don't overthink this part.
Look, I know your music/voice/skill is great and that anyone in their right mind would be dumb not to hire you.
And therefore you might be thinking, "Well, everyone is realistically my client. Anyone who's getting married or throwing an event is my client!"
Well, you're wrong (lol). Think about the brands that you love - why do you love them? Why do you buy Patagonia, North Face, or Gucci?
Is it because it's actually nicer than competing brands?
NO! You buy these products because of the way they make you feel.
Any successful business understands this & they understand the purchasing habits of their customers and what drives their decision making - then they advertise and create products directly for those people!
A prime example would be this:
Joey and Susan are looking to hire a wedding band. They scroll across your band's website and start checking out your content. They see that you play 90's cover music. They were born in the early 90's and absolutely LOVE 90's music. They see your videos & content and they get excited about how they love the songs that you're playing. They might even show their friends. They think "This band is unique, they're fun, and professional. They could totally help us at our wedding & give our guests an experience they'll remember. And we will hear songs that we love ALL night!"
Think about it. Joey and Susan would much rather have you at their wedding playing songs they love, vs. some lame & worn-out DJ playing the same cheesy songs that have been around since the dawn of time (yawn!).
You're fresh, young, and feel familiar to them. They would much rather hire you!
Some bottom lines Do's✅ & Don'ts❌:
❌ Make a generic profile/website/brand that's catered to everyone & anyone
✅ Create a well-worded & clean brand image that caters to a specific demographic of humans.
❌ Create generic content & playlists around what you expect to hear at any old lame wedding
✅ Craft awesome, authentic content that showcases your ability & the unique, one-of-a-kind value that YOU bring to the table
❌ Be someone/something you're not by trying to match some make-belief image of what YOU THINK a wedding band/DJ is supposed to look like
✅ Be true to yourself, what you love, and craft your brand identity & business around people like you.
2. Make a simple & easy-to-use website
In the age of the internet, you have no excuse to NOT have a website. Now you might be wondering "will social media alone be fine?".
In my professional opinion, the answer is an astounding NO!!!
Don't mis-interpret what I'm saying - you definitely need socials and you need to be active on them - but socials alone will not get your wedding business to where it can be. There are a couple of reasons for this, mainly because:
❌ Your profile is not owned by YOU, it's owned by Meta or Tiktok or another entity. Therefore what you say, post, and do can be compromised at any point. If this happens, you lose all your followers and start over from square 1. 👎🏽
❌ They traditionally cannot be advertised on Google, Yahoo, Yelp, etc and therefore miss the mark on the millions of people daily who are searching for professionals just like you.
❌ They do not display your content in an intentional way targeted at your ideal client
❌ They can not (effectively & professionally) collect retainers, payments, send contracts, etc.
❌ MOST IMPORTANTLY: They can't give your clients everything they need to TAKE ACTION on booking you now.
You might be thinking about your friend or neighbor who runs a small scale business exclusively on social media (let's call her Katie).
Although Katie might run her business on Instagram, Tiktok, or Facebook, chances are she either has a website that you're not seeing, hasn't scaled to a point where it's necessary for a website, might not be taking high ticket sales, and is MOST DEFINITELY 100% missing out on business by not having a website.
Look, it's really simple. Having a website:
✅ Helps you book more gigs, even weddings & events, because you advertise it to people who are literally looking for vendors they can trust just like you.
✅ Gives a clear statement of "This is a professional business/person".
✅The potential clients will view you as an expert.
✅ Helps establish lifelong & meaningful relationship with clients and potential clients who would hire you in the future.
✅ Helps you stay in touch with your future, current, & past fans/clients in one place
✅ Eliminates the risk of getting compromised because you own your website. You can post what you want, advertise to whom you want, and if for some reason it goes down, you have a list of emails & clients that you single-handedly have possession of. So you don't have to start over if you lose the site.
After selling over $600,000 worth of services, in my professional opinion it would be naive & foolish to launch any business without a beautiful, easy to use website.
What if I told you if you gave me $300, I'd give you back at least $3,000? You would find $300 (even if you didn't have it) no matter what.
That's the case with a website. You're losing by not investing.
Interested in easy to use websites for beginners?
A simple Google search will get you there, but for starters:
*this is not a paid ad. I just get down with these website providers.
3. Create High Quality Visual + Audio Content Targeted Towards Your Ideal Customer/Listener
Oh, MAN this step is exciting.
This is the part we all love & is ultimately why we're artists in the first place - because we want people to watch, view, listen, & respond to the art we create.
This can also be the most challenging & financially demanding part.
Recording songs, shooting videos, and taking photos are some of the things that you need when you're trying to book more weddings & events.
They're also crucial to your success & career in almost any industry. Music is no exception.
When it comes to purchasing anything, people want to know what they're getting.
You wouldn't buy a nice laptop unless you knew what you purchasing, would you?
Exactly, so why would anyone want to hire you if they don't know what you look/sound like?
On that note, I know investing in video & audio recording services is a hurdle.
Branding & Video packages can range from $500-100,000 depending on what you're looking for.
It's important that we set a realistic budget and figure out what we're comfortable investing.
If you only have $500 and an iPhone, it might make sense to invest in some basic free software & a pretty decent mic, camera with a good lighting setup.
If you know nothing about lighting, video, or recording, do yourself a favor and watch these videos👇🏻
💡EASY CINEMATIC LIGHTING SET UP💡
🎥7 Rules of Cinematic Framing and Composition🎥
🎤Audio For YouTube Videos🎤
🎧How to Use GarageBand - Tutorial for Beginners🎧
ALSO, read this article for high quality phone mics: https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/buying-guides/best-microphones-for-iphone
Please keep in mind that, these videos are just some ideas to help you get started.
You're going to have learn additional things & skills. Make it fun.
If you start playing at events & weddings, you're going to need to understand basic audio equipment and the fundamentals of sound. 🎛
But stop worrying and just start doing something. You'll learn the rest as you go!
One more thing to note - a nice logo & branding package are imperative and should not be overlooked. Visit a website like fiverr.com and browse some of the artists/designers on here until you find one you resonate with, and then hire them to make you a logo and branding package.
You can also build relationships with photographers, videographers, and audio engineers. These people will become resources as you move forward. Just make sure you're also valuable to them in some way (paying them or offering a skill) and that you're not asking them for things every-time you chat.
I'm going to shut myself off here because I know I could write all day in this section. Do your research and whatever you do, DO NOT skip this part.
4. Drive Traffic To Your Website
One of the most important aspects of starting a business is establishing a connection with your potential customers. You need to make sure your website:
1️⃣ Speaks to your potential client
2️⃣ Quickly & clearly showcases your talent & value as an artist
3️⃣ Has a call-to-action with a form for your client to fill out when they want to book you
If you do these things, without spending money, you could still potentially show up for your ideal client in a Google search (depending on your SEO skill).
Also, this is the importance of social media. You can put a link in your bio and people will naturally click on it and explore your work. All for a minimal cost (the investment of the videos and the website).
What I personally suggest is putting some money behind your advertisements and using Google Ads, Weddingwire, or even social media advertising to get in front of your ideal client.
Check out this video on how to drive traffic to your website:
Look, in life things cost money. If you do the first 3 steps properly, this step should only take an investment up front, but in the long run will pay you time and time again.
Trust me, I know you might not even have $300, let alone $1,000 to execute the tasks above.
When I started my wedding band company, I was in massive credit card debt!
My net worth was approximately -$20,000. Yet, I somehow scraped up enough money to invest in myself & the future of my band + career.
I'm not telling you to get into debt, I'm just being real with you. If you don't have the money, it's not an excuse.
You can find the money. You work, right? Pick up some more hours and save some money until you have a budget. Ask Uncle Steve to lend you a couple hundred dollars on an I.O.U.
If you're going the route of asking someone for some cash, tell them what you're doing. Tell them why it's going to be successful and most importantly why you're excited about it.
You'd be surprised to know that people do want to help you achieve your goals.
🚨One final but important note: You really should try to get at-least 1-3 reviews from REAL people to showcase on your website! If you have never played a show before, well you're going to want to start pitching your awesome videos to people.
Be creative with this! You can find someone throwing a party, and offer to help them with the music portion of the event for a review. Reach out to another band and play with them in exchange for a review. Do whatever you need to do but having 1-3 reviews will drastically change the scope of your success.
5. Have Pre-Built Investment Packages To Pitch To Your Potential Clients
Understanding what would be most valuable to your client and having something to pitch is an important part of the closing phase in the sales process.
Imagine you get a client on the phone and they ask you what services your offer and you're like "I don't actually know". They obviously wouldn't hire you, right?
People buy things that give them certainty. Give your potential customer certainty by having a pre-built package to pitch to them.
If you know nothing about weddings & events, this could be challenging. Every event has a different timeline, structure, and ultimate goal that they're trying to achieve/create.
One good way to understand the general flow of weddings is to establish connections with professionals in your industry, not just musicians, but also wedding and events planners, photographers, officiants, etc.
These people are on your team, and they want your help if you're fun, young, fresh, and helpful.
One thing to mention here - make sure you listen to your clients and what they're saying. Having a pre built package will help lay the baseline of what you're offering, but you really have to ask your clients what THEY'RE hoping to get out of the musician/DJ. Some good questions to ask:
What are you envisioning for the music portion of this event?
Do you need coverage for your ceremony, cocktail, and reception?
Is there a rough timeline or itinerary you have that you can walk me through?
What do you picture the ambiance of the event to be?
At the very least, these questions will establish rapport and give you the answers you need.
If you end up stuck with them asking for a price (and you don't have one yet), just ask them if you can have 24 hours to run the numbers & set up a more formal quote for them to work off of.
This will buy you time to take into account what they said and come up with a fair price for them.
I personally do not charge hourly or even offer hourly services.
What I suggest doing is setting a value on your day.
How much is a Saturday in mid July worth to you?
Be realistic especially when you're first starting out. As a DJ/solo, start anywhere from $600-2,000 depending on what they're looking for. If you have a whole band start at $3,000.
Whatever you do, always pitch with confidence & overdeliver. If you want to learn more about pitching services and closing more sales in the music industry, you can reach out to us here for a free consultation.
6. Create A System To Invoice & Receive Investment Funds
This step is crucial, but in today's world significantly easier than in the past.
In the beginning, you can do this step with any free peer-to-peer money exchanging app such as Paypal, Venmo, or Zelle.
Just make sure your username looks professional and your profile is clearly branded to you.
The most challenging part you're going to run into here is having contracts & legal agreements and knowing exactly what to ask for upfront.
Contracts & Legal Agreements
Full disclosure: I am not a lawyer. This is not legal advice. These are merely things I did that have worked. Do not take this as legal advice. 😅
For this portion, there are a ton of free online contract creators that will get you going in the beginning.
You could reach out to a colleague and ask them to check out their contract. You could ask your lawyer friend to draft you something up.
YOU could even put together a basic agreement in writing that outlines the terms of the agreement.
Whatever you do, just know that this portion is super important. Having a well worded & well covered contract saved me during the pandemic.
7. Execute With Enthusiasm
So you've booked the event, gotten paid & received a filled out contract. You mark the date in your calendar, do a quick celebration and....
Fear not! You have all of the information that you need. Follow up with your client 30-60 days before the event and make sure you have all of the pertinent details.
Some good things to ask your client:
Is there a dress code? (for weddings, just always show up looking fly👔)
Are there any special songs they need you to learn/play?
Has anything on the itinerary changed?
Are there any special queues they have throughout the night?
If you need power, make sure you ask about power sources at ceremony, cocktail, and reception.
Bring all your own extension cords or coordinate in advance with the planner/couple.
Just remember to have fun, stay cool, don't panic, and always act with confidence!
The only way to be confident is to be well rehearsed, well informed on the flow of the event, and well-versed in your gear and PA system.
If you're emceeing the event, be incredibly simple. Say only what is needed to be said to direct the event, but do it with enthusiasm!
Now you're well on your way to executing your first wedding or private event! Nice work 👏🏽
About the author:
Lucas Roy is a 6-figure wedding & events musician. He is also the founder of The Nest Recording studio. He has helped over 100 artists & music entrepreneurs achieve their goals & find lifelong success in the music industry.
He's played over 2000 shows in venues across the world. He's executed well over 200 private events & weddings. Today, he still plays shows, writes song, and helps people like you succeed. You can check out his music here.
