Enquiry this morning

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Just lately, I have had a few like this and I wonder if people are either (a) On the wind up, or (b) Have no communication skills?

Enquiry went like this:

Hi,

Please could you quote me on Package 1 Disco costs for an up and coming adult birthday bash?

Ta
***** *******

My reply went like this:

Hi ***** *******

Many Thanks for your email regarding Disco Entertainment. In order to give you an exact quotation, I will need some more information from you which is as follows:
Date of function
Duration
Venue
Number of Guests
Occasion
If you could let me know these details then I can get back to you with a quotation.

Many thanks for contacting Shakermaker Promotions.
Regards
Gary

(I then got a reply like this. Now, on my site, Package 1 states that it is ideal for up to 60 guests. The reason I do this is because I want to offer a kind of budget package and don't end up taking far too much equipment when there is no need for it. I mention that in this case it means that the customer doesn't pay over the odds for equipment that doesn't get used so in other words, each package is tailored to the customer.)

Hi Gary,
Thanks for getting back to me so promptly. Details on the do are non existent at the mo as I am just getting a feel of what is out there. However, it will be a birthday celebration for about 70-80 people in a hall with some grub, hopefully at the beginning of September from 8-11.30pm (not including setting up times). Hope that is of some help.

I'm not sure whether this is a wind up or not? It is pretty vague to say the least. I have replied with a quote and I don't know why but I am pretty confident going on the way this is written that they won't get back to me. Funny isn't it that you can get a vibe like that from a bit of text in an email.

Anyone have any thoughts on this or anyone agree?

[Dynamic Entertainment]

Just to play Devils Advocate...Had it been well written, but still fairly vague about the event as they were just getting a rough idea on what was out there, would you consider it a possible wind-up?

Ive had one enquiry recently, for a venue that i regulary work at, for a wedding. They were looking at mid august, but didnt have a definate date...as they were waiting to see (at the venues reccomendation) if the entertainment was available. Had it not been a venue im a regular at, i would have took the fact that they were getting married, but the date depended on whether the dj was available, as a major wind-up.

[Danno13]

I get plenty like that, I also get some that don't even bother replying when you ask for more details.. move onto the next one :)

[DeckstarDeluxe]

i think its just someone who hasnt really got much of a clue about booking a service. Its why i have deposits so you dont waste too much time with anyone on a wind up

[ross@rds]

Same here sometimes a booking comes out of it .. sometimes dont get a reply. Could be other companys looking to see what to charge in your area ?

[Shakermaker Promotions]

I've put it on my enquiries spreadsheet and not even bothered putting a TBC next to it. I'll still have it noted though as it's an enquiry, wind up or not but I won't dwell on it or wait around.

Would I have thought the same if it was well written?
In all honesty, probably not. I know that sounds bad but it's kind of like reading something that is full of spelling mistakes and bad punctuation etc...I get the immediate impression that the person writing isn't all there. That sounds really bad and it isn't supposed to be.
It could well be that the enquiry is a serious one but I just don't see it like that at the moment. They may have replied but even the reply didn't give away too much information either did it.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Deckstar - I always do 'booking fees' but you have to get past the point of the initial enquiry first before you get to that stage. That comes after the completion of the booking forms and is done at the consultation. Until then, I can only go on what's been sent to me and in this instance, it's not a lot.

[Dynamic Entertainment]

it's kind of like reading something that is full of spelling mistakes and bad punctuation etc...I get the immediate impression that the person writing isn't all there.

Gawd knows what you think of us lot on there then :D

I agree, a properly presented enquiry makes all the difference, verbal or written. Its like the "You do Discos, how much?" phone call. You know that they have the yellow pages and are wanting short and sweet because they have the whole book to go through.

[DeckstarDeluxe]

Why not call them?

[Mission]

The best one's are usually in the "Teen" age range.

You get random slang words with the month of the party and the word "charge" dropped at the end.

Reply with too many questions like what is the actual date of the party and as Dan said don't expect too many replies.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

I can't call them because there was no contact number on the email.
Generally when someone adds their number to an email, I will call them aswell as email them afterwards confirming what was said in the conversation.
If they didn't add their number then I assume that they don't want me to call them.

[rob1963]

Just lately, I have had a few like this and I wonder if people are either (a) On the wind up, or (b) Have no communication skills?

Enquiry went like this:

Hi,

Please could you quote me on Package 1 Disco costs for an up and coming adult birthday bash?

Ta
***** *******

My reply went like this:

Hi ***** *******

Many Thanks for your email regarding Disco Entertainment. In order to give you an exact quotation, I will need some more information from you which is as follows:
Date of function
Duration
Venue
Number of Guests
Occasion
If you could let me know these details then I can get back to you with a quotation.

Many thanks for contacting Shakermaker Promotions.
Regards
Gary

(I then got a reply like this. Now, on my site, Package 1 states that it is ideal for up to 60 guests. The reason I do this is because I want to offer a kind of budget package and don't end up taking far too much equipment when there is no need for it. I mention that in this case it means that the customer doesn't pay over the odds for equipment that doesn't get used so in other words, each package is tailored to the customer.)

Hi Gary,
Thanks for getting back to me so promptly. Details on the do are non existent at the mo as I am just getting a feel of what is out there. However, it will be a birthday celebration for about 70-80 people in a hall with some grub, hopefully at the beginning of September from 8-11.30pm (not including setting up times). Hope that is of some help.

I'm not sure whether this is a wind up or not? It is pretty vague to say the least. I have replied with a quote and I don't know why but I am pretty confident going on the way this is written that they won't get back to me. Funny isn't it that you can get a vibe like that from a bit of text in an email.

Anyone have any thoughts on this or anyone agree?

Hi Gary,

Sounds a bit like a wind up to me.

I just think it's a bit strange for someone to ask for disco quotes BEFORE they know the venue or even the date.

Surely anyone with any common sense would decide on the date, book the venue and THEN start approaching discos for quotes?

:shrug:

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Maybe Rob but (and I'm finding myself sticking up for this enquiry by the looks of it)....Maybe, they think that come September a lot of Discos will be booked up for weddings etc? or they want to have some kind of idea as to how much they are going to have to pay and if they can save up the money?

[DeckstarDeluxe]

I can't call them because there was no contact number on the email.
Generally when someone adds their number to an email, I will call them aswell as email them afterwards confirming what was said in the conversation.
If they didn't add their number then I assume that they don't want me to call them.

Ah in that case i would guess its a wind up. Or like said another disco company enquiring about prices but then again if i was doing that i would have a venue and date in mind so every company quoted for the same details.

[rob1963]

Maybe Rob but (and I'm finding myself sticking up for this enquiry by the looks of it)....Maybe, they think that come September a lot of Discos will be booked up for weddings etc? or they want to have some kind of idea as to how much they are going to have to pay and if they can save up the money?

Possibly, but not knowing the date, there would be little point in getting your quote, as they could come back later to book you...only to find that you have no availability on the date they want. Obviously if you had the date in the first place, you'd be able to avoid any time-wasting by saying whether you had any availability at the time of the initial enquiry.

Also, as deckstar says, I think the fact that they didn't include a phone number is possibly a bit fishy.

I'm not saying it IS a wind up...just that it sounds quite likely from what you've said.

[Vectis]

Need to be careful before discounting them too soon.

Just this week I had a very hurriedly-written two-liner asking for a quote for a charity event "sometime in June, probably a Friday night" with just a name at the end. Let's say Fred Bloggs for the purposes of the example. Email address looks pretty genuinely associated with someone called Fred Bloggs.

I wrote a reply pretty similar to shaker... blah blah date blah blah venue blah blah number of guests... but then followed it with a link to the website and a very brief 1-line-each summary of the 3 packages we offer and the average likely cost for each on a June Friday, subject to availability.

The reply came back, "that's brillaint [sic] we are goin [sic] with Fri 7th at <venue name> and we want your premier pacakge [sic] - please send the booking forms to Fred Bloggs, Lecturer, IoW college" :o

Now whether the form comes back or not, with booking fee, remains to be seen. But assuming all is above board, it would be a sad indictment...

[nigelwright7557]

I get plenty like that, I also get some that don't even bother replying when you ask for more details.. move onto the next one :)

Thats why I usually give and quick and dirty quote.

Then its down to whether i get a deposit or not that decides if I do the bash or not.

The solid clients get a cheque in the post quickly the timewasters you never hear from again.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

She just got back to me 10 minutes ago by email saying that she would like to book me for 5th September. I replied saying that I already have 2 bookings on that date. She has just replied asking if I am available the saturday before, 29th August.

I think I may have been wrong with my initial thoughts on this one.

[Dynamic Entertainment]

Think you may have been Gary. Good job you were polite;)

Incidentally, ive just had one similar myself...No date, no venue. Had times and an email address. Lets see if anyone comes back to me :)

[DJ INDIE]

I get plenty of enquiries like this - I think its a good side to email - I dont think people would enjoying ringing you for a quote and have no details - they may feel a bit daft saying 'i dont know when or where' etc , but theyre more than willing to contact via email just to get a rough idea of price etc as some people wont have a clue what a disco costs, and if its too much they may scrap any plans of a party.

good stuff on the update, hope the booking works out for you.

[PropellerHeadCase]

Hi Gary,
Thanks for getting back to me so promptly. Details on the do are non existent at the mo as I am just getting a feel of what is out there. However, it will be a birthday celebration for about 70-80 people in a hall with some grub, hopefully at the beginning of September from 8-11.30pm (not including setting up times). Hope that is of some help.

I wouldn't have even thought of calling it a wind-up - it's surprising (or maybe not) just how vague some people can be when they've just had organising an event foisted on them - especially if they are not event organising types.

[nigelwright7557]

I wouldn't have even thought of calling it a wind-up - it's surprising (or maybe not) just how vague some people can be when they've just had organising an event foisted on them - especially if they are not event organising types.

I get very vague quotes to give too.
So long as I know roughly how far I can guess the rest.

You do get timewasters sometimes as i have rang up discos to get an idea of what they charge locally.