The Wedding Industry Awards 'DJ of the Year' for East of England in 2017 and last year was honoured with the Pro Mobile DJ's DJ award, voted for by his peers in recognition of his positive contribution to the mobile DJ industry.to address their concerns, you will put them at ease and selling becomes much easier. If a customer has made contact with you, it’s because they've seen something about you and/or your business that they like. Assuming you say and do the right things they will want to book you.
After all, don’t forget they contacted you so most of the hard work has already been done for you! Regardless of if the enquiry comes in by email, through your social media accounts or even over the phone, and whether the prospective customer found out about you by referral, from your website or any other form of marketing, a good conversion process is essential. It doesn’t matter what you're selling, or how much competition you think you may have in your area, the following tips will help you to maximise the potential of every sales opportunity.
PEOPLE BUY FROM PEOPLE Firstly, be personable and always SMILE. I know that sounds obvious, but you’ll be surprised how some people struggle with something so simple. ACT LIKE A PROFESSIONAL & YOU'LL BE TREATED LIKE A PROFESSIONAL Whether you are corresponding through email, over the phone or in person, always conduct yourself in a professional and friendly manner. If you act like a professional, you will be treated accordingly and customers will expect to pay a professional-level fee for your services.
This starts with what you are wearing. I always wear a shirt, a jacket and trousers when meeting with potential customers, even in the summer. If you're charging a professional fee you need to act in a professional way. If you turn up in shorts and a t-shirt you'll look like a cheap supplier, be treated like a cheap supplier and therefore struggle to command anything other than a cheap fee.
Get this right at the outset and you'll also be treated like a professional throughout the whole journey. Before you know it you'll be asked what you would like to eat and what drinks they can get you when you're working. You might even find that they want to proudly show you off to their guests, because when people invest in quality products or services they often like to brag about it! You'll soon be everyone’s best friend, which will help you when it comes to getting the party started and is also great for future referrals.
WHERE SHOULD YOU MEET? There is no right or wrong answer to this question, but it is worth giving some serious consideration to where you meet prospective clients for your initial sales consultation. You don’t have to go their house and they don’t need to come to yours. You may all feel most comfortable meeting in a neutral location such as a coffee shop, a nice quiet pub, or even somewhere like a garden centre.
As long as everyone involved feels comfortable that really is all that matters. Wherever you meet, make sure you arrive fully prepared. If you have a slideshow on a tablet or a quick video to show, make sure you plan ahead if you’ll need a power supply. Also try to avoid anything "You need to recognise that customers buy solutions, not products or services.
They are interested in what your services can do to help solve their problems or make life easier for them. They care less about the details of your product or service than how its superior features will benefit them. " that may be seen as a barrier. Even something as simple as a table between you can be unconsciously seen as a barrier; try and sit to the side, it’s so much more friendly and relaxed.
WHAT DO YOU TALK ABOUT? (SMILE) Talk on their level and start by building up a friendly rapport. Try to establish some common ground. Have you ever been talking to someone on holiday and found out that you have relatives in the same town? Or met someone when out at the pub who shares the same hobby.
Or chatted to a stranger waiting for a train and found you support the same team? Well that’s your ‘common ground’ . If you can find something in common with your prospective customers, it will get the meeting started on a good footing. If I were to ask you to talk about nuclear physics I'm pretty sure most of you would struggle to hold a conversation.
So talk about something they are comfortable with, something they know about, but what is that something you may ask, simple... it’s them! Get them to talk about themselves, after all no one knows them better than they do. This will not only break the ice but allow you to really start to get to know them so that you can then tailor what you offer to their tastes and priorities. (SMILE) Never go in with pre-planned questions, just take along a checklist of bullet points to make sure you don’t forget anything important.
Preplanned questions mean you will not be listening properly, because your brain will be thinking about the next question you’ll be asking and when you’ll be asking it. It is essential that you carefully listen to everything they say. This is not only important so that you can personalise the service you provide, but will also help you to demonstrate that you really are interested in them and the event they are planning. If necessary, encourage them to give more detail on a particular subject.
However, you'll be amazed at how easy is it to extract information without actually asking questions. If you can make them feel comfortable and get them on a roll, they’ll just keep telling you everything you want and need to know. If you've ever watched Michael Parkinson interview someone on TV he has a very clever way of keeping people talking by simple raising his eyebrows at the end of every sentence, it’s a subtle way of saying “carry on talking please” .
Have a look on YouTube and you'll see what I mean. THE most important word you can use in this conversation is WHY. Always ask WHY. Why did they choose the venue?
WHY did they choose that song for the first dance? Etc. Then use their answers to your advantage. If you know that the first dance was chosen because it was the track playing in the background in the restaurant when the proposal was made then you may be able to tell that story on the night.
TRY TO SOLVE PROBLEMS OR ADDRESS CONCERNS You know how good you are, the people who have worked with you before know how good you are, potential customers won’t have a clue. It’s up to you to demonstrate to them how good you are. As professionals, what makes us different is the ability to identify a need and provide a solution; it’s what sets us apart from the amateurs and hobbyists. We have the expertise, the equipment and the experience to solve most issues.
When the customer asks us, “What If?” , we can normally address that with an answer that will take their worry away. There’s nothing wrong in telling a bride that if the unthinkable happened and your laptop suddenly crashed that it’s no big deal as you always carry a backup so it’s not going to ruin the party, its covered! This is how you build up trust and get to the point where the customer feels confident that they are in safe hands. W Audio - A Prolight Concepts Group Company Visit for full details Increase flexibility with the optional add on belt pack kits Belt pack kits comprise of a belt pack transmitter plus theatre style, beige headset microphone and lavalier microphone to be used in place of the handheld transmitter.
DQM 800BP (823Mhz to 832Mhz, 863Mhz to 865Mhz) DQM 600H (606Mhz to 614Mhz) Crystal clear sound reproduction Rock solid reliability Selectable operating frequency of each channel DQM 800H (823Mhz to 832Mhz, 863Mhz to 865Mhz) DQM 600H (606Mhz to 614Mhz) ADV019_ProMobile_ProLight_DQM_RadioMics.indd 1 11/04/2019 17:43 My next bit of advice is essential to selling yourself and getting you that booking. Try to let the bride (or party organiser) know that you are aware of their fears and that you can address them before she (or he) has even had to mention them to you.
This may sound like it involves some kind of mindreading ability, but in fact the biggest fears of anyone organising any sort of a party and looking to book a DJ are nearly always the same... • Will the DJ turn up? • Will the DJ play the music I want? • Will people dance? • Will people have a good time? Imagine the confidence you could instil into a potential customer if you said early on in the conversation that you'll guarantee to be there, you'll play the music they want, that people will dance and you'll make sure everyone has a great night.
You’ll have answered all of their concerns without them even telling you! WHAT MAKES YOU DIFFERENT FROM EVERYONE ELSE? If you see yourself as just a DJ, it’s a sure thing your customers will see you the same way. You become just a commodity, which makes it easier for any prospective customer to compare you to every other DJ out there simply on price.
To break out of this downward pricing spiral, you need to discover your USP (Unique Selling Point). This will help you to become more than just another DJ and therefore just another price quote. Despite what you may think, YOU do have a USP. There will always be something that sets you apart from everyone else, something that makes you stand out from the crowd.
It may be one thing, it may be many; but it’s up to you to find out what that something is and then to effectively communicate it to your prospective customers. It could be something as simple as having a superefficient planning system that allows brides and grooms to plan their wedding with you online, or it may be the opportunity to let your customers choose the music they want in advance. It could be that you’re a specialist on a specific musical genre, or just that you are so much more professional than your competitors because of your communication skills with customers.
You may have an amazing looking setup, or you may have 30 years’ experience in the industry. These are all things that we take for granted within the industry because we either know of them or use them every day, however are customers aware of them? Hopefully you've now thought of things that make you stand out from everyone else. Whatever they are, these are the things that need to be highlighted in all of your promotional material and on your website.
If you've won awards or you do something slightly different, tell everyone all the time, if you don’t it’s a sure thing no-one else will. You could even dedicate a page on your website highlighting these points with a title along the lines of ‘What All My Customers Receive’ followed by things like: • Award-winning DJ • 30 Years Of Experience • A Personalised Online Planning Account • Regular Planning Meetings • Your Choice Of Music ALL Night You must remember you have something that a party organiser wants and needs to ensure a successful celebration.
Assuming you are professional in the way you run your business, and you’re friendly and organised, then you'll already be one step ahead of the competition. If you can then grab their attention with something unique that they both want and need you'll be well on the way to getting that booking, just make sure you don’t come across as too pushy. CLOSING THE SALE When you come to the end of the meeting, recap everything you’ve spoken about. This will not only remind the potential customer(s) of everything you have to offer, but it will also demonstrate that you have been listening and appreciate exactly their wants and needs.
Some people like to ask for the business there and then, others like to give the prospect(s) time to think it over. My opinion on this is quite simple: if the buying signs are there, the customer will be expecting you to ask for the business. If you DON’T ask, they may get the impression that you don’t actually want their business or you have reservations. From my experience, if you’ve done everything properly, it will be the customer who closes the sale for you.
But DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR THE SALE, the chances are they’ll be expecting you to ask. If they say they are “not sure” , ask them WHY? It may be something very simple you failed to cover because you take that something for granted. Find out WHY they don’t want to say yes without being too pushy, it may lead to further conversation that both gets you the sale and puts them at ease that they’ve made the right choice: win/win!
SO YOU GOT THE BOOKING, NOW WHAT? This is really a topic for another time. But, to summarise, you now need to raise your game, to step it up and make sure the client is thrilled by the service you provide. You must make sure you are always accessible and easy to contact.
Continually ask yourself if you would be happy if you were in their position, are you doing everything possible to make their planning process stress free? If the honest answer is “yes” , then you’ll soon become their friend and be in the perfect position to smash it on the day. Make sure you always under promise and over deliver in everything you do. Always get reviews from previous customers and make sure you show them to as many people as you can, they are your endorsements from people who have trusted you with their event.
As I said at the beginning, if you don’t shout about how good you are and why you are so special it’s a sure thing no other DJ will do it for you! WHAT IF THEY BOOK SOMEONE ELSE? OK, so you’re not going to win them all. Not every potential client will be looking for the unique service that you provide.
But if you do a good job of building rapport with potential customers and demonstrating how your unique service can overcome their concerns, as well as meet their wants and needs, you will attract those customers you want to work with and who want to work with you. The more you practice your sales technique the more it becomes second nature when you talk to customers, ultimately resulting in more bookings! Be super proud of what you do and how you do it.
There is, and will always only be, one person in the whole world that offers exactly what you do, and that’s you. It’s also important to remember not every customer is YOUR customer so don’t take it personally if they don’t book, the fit just isn’t right for you both, stay professional and move onto the next enquiry. Just Keep Smiling! PRICE SHOPPERS DJs get frustrated when they get an email or text asking “how much?” and nothing else.
Many will disregard such enquiries as ‘just another price shopper or budget bride’ . However, I’d urge you instead to try and engage them in a conversation. Many prospective customers ask that question because they simply don’t know what else to ask! The chances are they’ve never organised a party before, so why would they not ask that question?
If you spend the time to get to know who they are and what they’re looking for, you may find that they’re actually willing to pay a decent fee for the right kind of service from a professional supplier.
