Hi everyone, my name is Matt. I'm excited to find this site, I was a member of another site for many years but the mobile section was just a sub forum, and traffic is pretty limited these days. The professional perspectives I see in these forums look to be a great resource.
Here's the story. I'm sure it's going to be long, so thanks for your attention.
Background (skip this if you want to)
From 2008-2012 I built a mobile DJ skill set and generated some good side income from it. I hosted a radio show for this time, did a bi-monthy vinyl night for nearly 2 years, some various other gigs, and started getting into weddings. I'm 34 so my friends were getting hitched and it started that way. First free for friends, then discount for friends ($200), then discount for strangers($400), then full price for strangers ($600). I know $600 is not really full price for a pro DJ, but I only had 2 RCF Art 312 tops, a corded mic, two turntables, my macbook and serrato. Yes, I am old school. Started with hip hop. Can beat match and all that.
I stopped doing it. As a second job, I realized just how much work it was to be a good DJ. I also realized I would need to invest further in equipment to make the next steps. I decided to invest in my primary career (non profit management) and let the DJ thing go, so that I would have some free time. I also moved to a rural area for a great job. Not alot of DJing opportunities here, plus I don't need the $, so that's nice.
I'm going to make a career change, though. I'm a middle manager, and for a variety of reasons would like to switch fields. I'm considering further education, etc, but I am also considering investing in a career owning and managing a mobile DJ business.
I always loved it, and I was good, particularly at weddings. I took a lot of time with the couples to figure out how to build my playlists, and I had a good niche as a "non-cheesy" wedding DJ. I played some of the tried and true stuff, and sometimes a lot during dancing, but I was always very successful with people who didn't want line dances and a cheesy overbearing MC and the same Sinatra and Sarah Vaughn and Jack Johnson songs at dinner, etc... But as you know, the real key to the whole thing is customer service. Professional appearance and interactions. Prompt replies during planning. Well-prepared. Clear expectations. And then and only then choice song selection that is not too snobby to pack a dancefloor and not too cheesy to turn some people off. My strength was that my weddings felt personal, like a hand-crafted experience that was unique to the couple and their friends and families. Not just the same-old. And I loved it. It was exhausting, but I loved it and learned A LOT.
The meat of the question:
What's the process like to build a viable career out of this? I have management experience, am comfortable with accounting, essentially I have a decent skill-set for a small business owner. I'd like to target an income (once established) of 50K minimum. Quickly running the numbers it seems I'd really have to build up the AV equipment warehouse, hire on a couple people, and aim for 75-100 gigs annually at an average of $1200 a gig. That's A LOT! Just figuring to clear 50K I'd have to have a business income of around 100K anticipating expenses to be around half that (payroll, insurance, debt accrued in initial years, equipment, vehicles, marketing, taxes).
Again, that seems like A LOT! Not only a lot of work, but an ambitious goal.
I know you probably don't exactly want to open your books on this forum, but do you think I'm generally correct in my assessment? How many gigs do you target annually? Do you have employees? Is this your only job? Can you support yourself and a (dual income) family on it? How many years of rough times did you have before getting a good economic foothold in the industry? Of course anecdotal stuff is great too, if you knew someone else in these kinds of circumstances.
Is this a fool's errand? I know the marketplace is competitive, and that doesn't scare me honestly. But if the market is flooded, that's another thing. FYI I'd likely look to establish myself in Boston. I have some connections to build on out there.
Importantly, one of the primary appeals of this (should the math prove viable) is the flexibility that comes with owning your own business. Do you feel that freedom, and get to take advantage (vacations, relaxed work weeks, good work-life balance)?
Thanks for reading, and with any luck, responding! I hope this thread can be useful to others in similar situations. I know a lot of us do it part time for side income and whatnot, and may think about the next step, the big show!
Here's the story. I'm sure it's going to be long, so thanks for your attention.
Background (skip this if you want to)
From 2008-2012 I built a mobile DJ skill set and generated some good side income from it. I hosted a radio show for this time, did a bi-monthy vinyl night for nearly 2 years, some various other gigs, and started getting into weddings. I'm 34 so my friends were getting hitched and it started that way. First free for friends, then discount for friends ($200), then discount for strangers($400), then full price for strangers ($600). I know $600 is not really full price for a pro DJ, but I only had 2 RCF Art 312 tops, a corded mic, two turntables, my macbook and serrato. Yes, I am old school. Started with hip hop. Can beat match and all that.
I stopped doing it. As a second job, I realized just how much work it was to be a good DJ. I also realized I would need to invest further in equipment to make the next steps. I decided to invest in my primary career (non profit management) and let the DJ thing go, so that I would have some free time. I also moved to a rural area for a great job. Not alot of DJing opportunities here, plus I don't need the $, so that's nice.
I'm going to make a career change, though. I'm a middle manager, and for a variety of reasons would like to switch fields. I'm considering further education, etc, but I am also considering investing in a career owning and managing a mobile DJ business.
I always loved it, and I was good, particularly at weddings. I took a lot of time with the couples to figure out how to build my playlists, and I had a good niche as a "non-cheesy" wedding DJ. I played some of the tried and true stuff, and sometimes a lot during dancing, but I was always very successful with people who didn't want line dances and a cheesy overbearing MC and the same Sinatra and Sarah Vaughn and Jack Johnson songs at dinner, etc... But as you know, the real key to the whole thing is customer service. Professional appearance and interactions. Prompt replies during planning. Well-prepared. Clear expectations. And then and only then choice song selection that is not too snobby to pack a dancefloor and not too cheesy to turn some people off. My strength was that my weddings felt personal, like a hand-crafted experience that was unique to the couple and their friends and families. Not just the same-old. And I loved it. It was exhausting, but I loved it and learned A LOT.
The meat of the question:
What's the process like to build a viable career out of this? I have management experience, am comfortable with accounting, essentially I have a decent skill-set for a small business owner. I'd like to target an income (once established) of 50K minimum. Quickly running the numbers it seems I'd really have to build up the AV equipment warehouse, hire on a couple people, and aim for 75-100 gigs annually at an average of $1200 a gig. That's A LOT! Just figuring to clear 50K I'd have to have a business income of around 100K anticipating expenses to be around half that (payroll, insurance, debt accrued in initial years, equipment, vehicles, marketing, taxes).
Again, that seems like A LOT! Not only a lot of work, but an ambitious goal.
I know you probably don't exactly want to open your books on this forum, but do you think I'm generally correct in my assessment? How many gigs do you target annually? Do you have employees? Is this your only job? Can you support yourself and a (dual income) family on it? How many years of rough times did you have before getting a good economic foothold in the industry? Of course anecdotal stuff is great too, if you knew someone else in these kinds of circumstances.
Is this a fool's errand? I know the marketplace is competitive, and that doesn't scare me honestly. But if the market is flooded, that's another thing. FYI I'd likely look to establish myself in Boston. I have some connections to build on out there.
Importantly, one of the primary appeals of this (should the math prove viable) is the flexibility that comes with owning your own business. Do you feel that freedom, and get to take advantage (vacations, relaxed work weeks, good work-life balance)?
Thanks for reading, and with any luck, responding! I hope this thread can be useful to others in similar situations. I know a lot of us do it part time for side income and whatnot, and may think about the next step, the big show!
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