How do you deal with feedback?

[DJ Jules]

Question : How do you deal with criticism?

I'm not talking about drunks staggering up with the usual "this music is ****" comments, but constructive criticism from the customer who booked you that has clearly been thought through and sent to you days or even weeks after the event? Assuming that they are being polite and constructive, and do not appear to be immediately hunting for a refund or some kind of compensation, do you welcome criticism?

Do you have principles that you try to adhere to when dealing with criticism, or even a written policy?

Does it depend on what you think the customers ultimate motives might be?

Just curious...

[yourdj]

I have had one complaint last year. It was on the venue I work ats package.

It was completely unjustified and the venue manager pretty much said the same thing.
I did fall out with my sister in Barcelona the previous day so I may have been carrying some negativity perhaps, but I bent over backwards to meet the client at her home (no meeting on the package), added uplighting amongst other things which went completely unnoticed. No matter what - you do take it personally, and self analysis is not an easy thing.

I have a passion for my work and yes it did upset me, but I took what was said on board and have looked at her point of view and thought of anyways to approach clients like her again.

No business does everything right so you have to take it and deal with it especially for recurring "suggestions"or official complaints.

Our business is pretty fault free tbh as you can see here.
If i got a bad review I would probably leave it: http://www.yourdj.co.uk/customer-feedback.php

[Excalibur]

Ooh, good question. Disregard constructive criticism at your peril. The lightshow you may think is cutting edge excellence may appear to customers as a jumble of dots, and clashing patterns. Last week, I plugged the powerbar in, and before I'd had a chance to point the cans where I wanted, I got a complaint that they were shhining in someone's face next door.

A huge problem is that we're usually DJs, and rarely clients/guests. We are a service industry, and knowing what the average person on the dancefloor thinks is vital.

Never believe you're infallible, cos you aren't. Many many years ago, I complained to the bar manager that people weren't dancing at the beginning of a function. He replied that the guests wouldn't remember the beginning of the night, but as long as I had them dancing at the end, they would remember having a good time. Wise words.

In some ways, the advice of people who aren't DJs can be more valuable than the advice of those who are.

[musicology]

Has the OP received such a critique?
Personally, I would consider such feedback with interest and take steps if I feel it warranted.

[DazzyD]

As I use DJEP, I've built a questionnaire/survey that clients get a link to after their event. I review my business every year and use their comments on the survey to shape what I want to be doing for the coming 12 months. Any positive comments usually get disregarded as I'm not looking for praise in this exercise. I'm simply looking for ways to improve what I do. I know we've had these debates about sending post-gig questionnaires to clients and I know some people think that they're an intrusion. I.E. the gig is over, move on to the next one. But that doesn't make good business sense to me. The email that the client gets explains that their opinions and suggestions will be used to shape the future of the service I provide and I've found people are very willing to take part. I send the questionnaire link email then one reminder email 2 weeks later (I don't want to wait to long - I need answers while the show is still fresh in their memory!) and, since I started doing this, I've only had a couple of clients not respond.

But if it's spontaneous criticism you are referring to, I'd first work out if it is simply constructive criticism or an actual complaint. These are different and I would handle them differently. I do have a written procedure to respond to client complaints although I've never needed to use it! (touch wood!!)

[Daryll]

Never believe you're infallible, cos you aren't. Many many years ago, I complained to the bar manager that people weren't dancing at the beginning of a function. He replied that the guests wouldn't remember the beginning of the night, but as long as I had them dancing at the end, they would remember having a good time. Wise words.

How true is that.....

[DJ Jules]

Has the OP received such a critique?

In the last 6 years I've had three instances where I have received outright negative feedback, in all three cases they have been where I have used someone else to fulfil the gig (I've posted about one recently). I've had one additional instance that I would consider to be constructive criticism where the school didn't think it was appropriate for me to play Gangnam style

I have my own opinions about what makes a successful business - and one of them is that negative feedback and constructive criticism alike are essential if you want to understand how you can improve your business, and I invite feedback at every opportunity.

Background to this post is that I've been given sight of a conversation between a friend who represents a local venue and a DJ who performed at a recent Halloween party and both me and my friend have been astounded by the DJ's response to constructive feedback. It comes across as "if I lose your future business, never mind, I'm sure I'll fill the dates". His actions on the night weren't that bad and wouldn't have affected either his reputation or his relationship with the venue, but his response to the feedback has definitely damaged both.

Julian

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

The only thing even remotely closing in on negative feedback in the past couple of years has been a comment in my form about "sometimes hard to hear what he was saying." my response was to turn my mic up and make sure it's set that bit louder than I think I should be

[yourdj]

A huge problem is that we're usually DJs, and rarely clients/guests. We are a service industry, and knowing what the average person on the dancefloor thinks is vital.

Anyone who has been to Derek Pengelly has probably seen my very old and very wrong way to introduce a bride and groom. I thought I was doing things perfectly then, but that was not the case. Luckily I had it on video to look at. Videoing yourself (from the other side of the room) has to be the hardest but also the most constructive way to improve things and notice that perhaps your lights, track selection or behaviour is not to the liking of the guests. Its nerve racking seeing people shrugging their shoulders and walking off the floor, while all the time your looking at your mac completely oblivious.

I have my UK wedding next week and I actually think that for a family function good use of colour fades works better than lasers and gobos. I have opted for my wireless 135 watt up lighters, mirroball & lanta, blue cluster. Cant wait to sit at the back and watch it from a clients point of view as all we had for the Polish wedding.