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djsarge

Mac Daddy DJ
Feb 5, 2008
3,686
316
69
Nothern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia
www.specialoccasionsdj.com
Keep in mind this is all tentative and in the very early planning stages to see if it is even possible. Nothing is set in stone right now.

Last night, the ADJA DC Chapter had an open seminar at Washington Music Center. The speaker was Randy White. After the store closed, the attending board members stood out in the cold talking with Randy about many things, one of which is his support for the local ADJA Chapters and trying to help us grow in any way he can. As many of you know, Randy is THE MAN with many connections.

During the conversation, Randy asked if we were having a Christmas Party. He then suggested that he could get us the use of a local club to hold one heck of a big bash. I don’t want to mention the clubs name since we are just thinking this through right now, but he said it is fairly close to his store, holds close to 3000 people and has the most up to date DJ and Video equipment around. Needless to say, this got our minds to thinking really big. On our drive home, we got to brainstorming, realizing we only have a few weeks to pull this off.

Our thought is to use this as a sort of ADJA Appreciation and Recruitment night. We even thought as far as trying to make this an East Coast DJ party and want to invite any ADJA Chapter, DJ organization and any other DJs on the east coast and their wives, girlfriends and significant others. Initial thoughts are for an open buffet, cash bar and a two-tiered entrance fee; one fee for ADJA members and a slightly higher fee for non-members. Tentative date right now is December 15, which is a Monday night. It was suggested by one board member that January may be a better time to do this since so many might be really busy during December.

What are your thoughts on this? Would any one here be interested in attending something like this?
 
OK here are my thoughts! Remember you asked! LOL

1. You don't have an appreciation and recruitment event by charging admission.

2. you certainly don't attract potential members by charging them more than you do for current members.

3. You don't charge your members to attend a Christmas party for the members!

4. It is the Holiday season, most non-ADJA Djs will be working and unable to attend!

From what I have seen so far by what you have written this is a fund raiser for your local ADJA chapter, call it just that and you will at least be honest with your members and others that may wish to attend.

Is the venue going to charge you for the space or just the food and bar? If the venue is charging for the space let them figure the cover charge per person then it is just another night at the club! Unless as in the previous paragraph you are using this as a fund raiser for the ADJA!

January would be the better time but then you really won't need to call it a Christmas party so Fundraiser would be the perfect name for it!

If it walks like a duck and sounds like a duck, there is a 98% probability that it is indeed a duck!
 
It's not meant to be a fund raiser. Don't let your skepticism of the ADJA on the whole taint what one Chapter is trying to do. We have a whole new board this year and we are trying. If that were the case we would open it to anyone. We also don't have the money to pay for a club that size and all the food and drink on our own. This is DJ specific. We were thinking a lower fee for the members as a little perk to membership but it is a good point we will have to think about. The fee would be to pay for the place and the food. Price would have to be determined yet. Not to say who would get any monies left over but that hadn't been discussed yet. It's just in the thinking it out stage right now.
 
Sarge,

Ain't no taint here I just responded to what I read! It would have made no difference to it being the ADJA or the NATL the response would have been the same.

Go to the club and ask what they would need in the way of a cover charge to handle to money for such an event! It will take a load off of your Chapter in trying to set it up and collect fees!
 
DISAGREE!!!!

Number 1:

Ticket sales before the event I believe will be the best way to go. We need an ACCURATE head count beforehand to establish the cost factor. Food is the main, then the entertainment. Alcohol is of course at your own expense and that's what the club will bank on for the "profit". I have done these events before, and it has worked this way!

Number 2:

This is not a scheme to get rich or famous. This is merely the DC board of directors meeting on their own time to establish a commerce or comradery between DJ's in an area where there is NO influence. If we sign a few members up, then that's great. But the goal is to expose our chapter, make it grow, and have Dj's come out for fun & appreciation of what they do. This party is geared to REWARD you for a long year of working as a DJ. If all these Dj's were EMPLOYEES, then it should be a free party, but that's not how this works in this case. ALSO, non-members are already getting the perk of being invited, and as for members - why shouldn't this be a bonus for their support? Makes sense to me!

Number 3

The date is a problem as well as the time frame to pull it off. BUT, that's why we are here getting "feedback". If it seems to much, we will postpone it for next year and start the planning process 6 months in advance. Most Dj's in this area ARE part timers, but the hours we have chosen (8-12am) is doable. If that's too late, leave at 11pm! Leave at 10pm! There is no excuse not be there for 2-4 hours even with a day job unless your job depends on it or you have to get up at 3am for work. Should be doable by everyone.
 
Forgot to mention, if you are a non member and you sign up at the party, you get the difference back on your admission ticket (whatever it would be). PLUS we have an $800 Digi Games Software package to give away FREE to the next person who signs up. There will be a 50/50 cash raffle as well as door prizes & Dj gear giveaways.
 
Thank-you thank-you. Ladies & gentlemen, give a big round of applause for our secretary. I couldn't be here without this guy, you know. YEAH! WOOOHHOOOOOO!!!
 
Just a few questions:

1. how many members are there in your chapter?

2. do you have enough of them who will show up or prepay to make the venture even happen without other non-member DJs?

3. The statement: "non-members are already getting the perk of being invited" is a dead turn off! So unless you already have enough members to make this happen you may have just shot yourself in the foot!

These are just observations on how these things come across, a little more effort in the wording could go a long way to actually making this event happen. The origonal Idea put across by Sarge was "ADJA Appreciation and Recruitment night" So a more careful approach should be made to try and attract non-members to your chapter. So far to me personally, the first post by sarge and your post have come across a little course and unatractive!

So this is a christmas party with everyone invited!

You aren't looking to make money off of it!

There is going to be an open buffet!

Everyone pays for their alcohol intake!

You want to collect in advance, but don't know the cost or participation levels!

Have you considered what you are going to do if you advertise this and only get a few people interested in paying in advance?

1. Do you cancel the event after several DJs have blocked out that time to attend?

2. Do you hold the event and eat the cost?

3. Do you open it up as a general admission night for the club?

Again these are simply my personal observations and questions, they are served cold with no agenda to you or your ADJA chapter. I couldn't attend anyway just trying to give you a little food for thought!
 
The question here that Sarge was asking was to gather FEEDBACK, not KILL THE DJ. In other words, can you make it in December or would January be better? Would you be willing to pay (let's say for the sake of argument $20) to come to a full buffet dinner complete with entertainment, prizes, networking, etc.? I can say that we have 17 members (which is not enough to pull this off), but we have over 400 companies & email addresses on our list and that will grow as I research more.

This is the problem with these boards and some of the people it attracts. It's easy to tear down somebody here and have no consequence. You could seriously damage our reputation with such awful insight. Opinions are fine, but if you look deeper into what we are trying to accomplish, maybe you'll see the point. Let us handle the logistics, you just let us know if you'd be interested.
 
Jake,

I am not trying to tear you down (there you go with the negatives again) I was trying to give you some reality and perspective to what you are planning! Personally I think what you are trying to do is great and I hope it works out.

In the past I have been involved in just such ventures and have first hand knowledge of the results of a failure and what it cost us. Just trying to warn of the what if's. But since you don't want my input I will now shut the hell up!
 
I too have planned these events and have had failure & success especially when you deal with the DJ community, because it can be hard to motivate them without skepticism everywhere. Anyway, no harm - no fowl, we were merely putting our heads together and collecting intel.
 
UPDATE

LADIES & GENTLEMEN...First of all, thanks to everyone for all of the different "feedback" regarding the DJ Appreciation Christmas Party. We have decided that we will postpone this event until next year so we can have more time to plan and line up our sponsors. BUT, THIS YEAR we have decided to still have something, only on a smaller scale. We would like to invite everyone out to our ADJA-DC DJ DINNER. This will be open to members & non-members and please feel free to bring your spouse, significant other, or DJ buddy. We will have a 50/50 cash drawing, so bring some cash! Everyone will be responsible for your own tabs, and we will reserve our spot at the restaurant early, so please RSVP ASAP! Hope to see everyone there! < < < Thank-you, Jake Ritchie Membership Director - ADJA-DC >>>
 
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