Jacking it all in, or will I hang about for £40 a gig?

[magicfm]

I've been thinking of jacking in the DJing due to the fact that I may be going into full-time employment very soon. Another reason is because of the phone call I received yesterday:

A manager from a local club phoned me saying that he heard I was good. He went on to say he wanted to offer me a residency for the foreseeable future. He described how the 'Goldie Oldie' disco night had only started and they were looking a decent DJ to keep it afloat.

Brilliant I thought, I'm quite good at that and can work well with that kind of audience. So after getting some details about times etc I asked the big question. How Much do you pay?

The reply .... agghhhh...well.:tumble: ..I...aghmm... I usually give the current guy £80 if we get over 40 people but because we only get about 20-30 people some weeks I hand him £40 and he's happy enough. That's all I can afford
:pants:

I replied that my minimum fee was £150 and if he couldn't match that he could go and look for another sucker.
He even asked if I could bring out less gear for that price. (perhaps he wanted me to take out one speaker and one cd deck ??) Strangely enough I ended the call and never got the job. :p

So that's the scenario that is repeated throughout Belfast and sadly another nail in the coffin for Magic FM. I can't see me in this industry after August. The £40 DJ's have won the battle.

Thankfully I've a day job to fall back on but I feel sorry for friends in Belfast who I know who rely solely on this business for their income.

(_8())

[theoloyla]

Very sad to hear you are dispirited but dont give up. Do what you do do well and stick to your guns.

[ross@rds]

Sorry to hear about that Den you were right i would not belive that lol what a Tool i dont know why people think we will work for this sort of money im sure if you called him and asked if you could hire the venue for £40 he would say no £200+ or something.

[magicfm]

I've stuck to my guns for quite a while now but every phone call is someone looking a disco for as little money as possible.

The prices are going backwards. :(

[magicfm]

Sorry to hear about that Den you were right i would not belive that lol what a **** i dont know why people think we will work for this sort of money im sure if you called him and asked if you could hire the venue for £40 he would say no £200+ or something.

They are making a small fortune on the door tax and the drink sold but can't stump up the cash. It's the same with most pubs over here now. :(

[Penfold42]

Very sad to hear you are dispirited but dont give up. Do what you do do well and stick to your guns.

:agree:

Don't give up.....get networking......
Let the bottom feeder's feed...aim higher....full of NADJ's words at the moment...but it makes sense.....:)

Not moving my car for £40...let alone tighten a bolt.

My work is steady...2 per month but for £200....slow but O.K.
Roman wasn't built in a day.

[Marc J]

Sorry to hear about that Den you were right i would not belive that lol what a :Censored: i dont know why people think we will work for this sort of money im sure if you called him and asked if you could hire the venue for £40 he would say no £200+ or something.

I can almost smell the censored stick....

[ross@rds]

I've stuck to my guns for quite a while now but every phone call is someone looking a disco for as little money as possible.

The prices are going backwards. :(


:bang: :mad: This gets my goat not that i have one :D anyway lol people will pay top dosh for a venue but dont want to pay for a disco :confused: whats with that. People aint gonna remember a night for the place it was held they will remember it for the entertainment so why pay £150 - £200 for a venue then try and find the local £80 dj surly if you had a brain you look for the £200 dj and the £80 venue i would anyway.

[ross@rds]

****

Is Content deleted swearing ??

[Penfold42]

Errrr..yes.

Not a very nice use of term mate.:)

[ross@rds]

There we go tool is a better word i think lol.

[DJWayne]

Think we all know how you feel mate it happens to us all.

Its hard to compete with the hobbyists sometimes as they have full time jobs and see their DJ'ing as pocket money , to me its a living.

They use second rate equipment which probably came from car boot sale or similar where in contrast i use a set of equipment thats worth about £10,000. Will i go out for £40 - no chance I always advise clients who tell you "joe bloggs will do my wedding for £50" to go book them as I wont do it for that price and if they want someone to make a total mess of their big day be my guest.

I have DJ'd for a long time and am not really getting any more money now than I was 10 years ago seems everything else has gone up in price except DJ's. I think a lot is to do with the advent of mp3 and people able to download music at will the number of cowboy DJ's has gone throuugh the roof making it harder for the professionals to get a fair price.

There's no easy answer i'm afraid , I get a lot of my work from repeat bookings and reputation as a lot of people know me and have seen me work but most telephone enquiries you get seem to think we will work for nothing.

[Penfold42]

Not sure what's going on today.....spoils the thread as someone has already said on another thread....I don't find it funny.....:confused:

Must be me...don't know..:)

:ontopic:

[Dragonfly]

I replied that my minimum fee was £150 and if he couldn't match that he could go and look for another sucker.
He even asked if I could bring out less gear for that price. (perhaps he wanted me to take out one speaker and one cd deck ??) Strangely enough I ended the call and never got the job. :p



(_8())


Magic don't give up you were one of the guys that helped me through a tough time last year.............

stick with it if you are getting fed up with it , take a break but whatever you do keep your gear, you are a terrifically funny guy and I can imagine your show being very imaginative and humerous , try re thinking your marketing aim at a better clientelle , i dont do pubs no offence to those that do but after being stuffed by 2 and offered as you 40 quid a night by another that was a 50 mile round trip for me nooooooo waaaaaaaaay !!!!!

my wifes reply the the man on the phone that asked the same question above .

"certainly sir for £60 he will bring out a tape deck and some fairy lights if you like?" I was sat in the room and was mortified!!!! strangely he booked at my price.

my advice mate keep in touch with us please and dont give up ...... take 6 months reinvent yourself and what you do then smack ireland in the face with the new magic fm at christmas.

[Corabar Steve]

Being as nobody has taken any notice of repeated pleas to not use any profanity on the forum, as of now offenders will be placed in the sin bin & offending content removed without notice.

[Dragonfly]

Is Content deleted swearing ??


no Ross content deleted is not swearing :D

[Corabar Steve]

no Ross content deleted is not swearing :D

That probably won't help matters.

[Dragonfly]

apologies for my flipency.

[ross@rds]

Sorry steve got cought in the moment there

Dave act your age lol :P

[ross@rds]

Im a Member of Sin Bin its just like big bro :P haha

[Dragonfly]

Ross no it isnt !!!!!!! what happens on big brother when they break the rules??? think on ...... tread a bit carefully.

[Paul James Promotions]

At the end of the day, people have a certain amount they want to spend. If the offered payment does not suit you, don't take the booking. Not all customers want to spend £40! ;)

[Key2]

Hi

I don't know if you've come across me before, but I'm a driving instructor.
I charge £22 an hour, although I think I'm worth more, and might put my prices up soon. I live in a rural area where wages are based on agricultural rates, so not a big-money area.
There is a lot of local 'competition', thanks to all the TV and newspaper ads that encourage people to 'become a driving instructor and earn £30K a year'.
I have got local companies that charge £15 an hour and another that advertises 'First 5 lessons for £25'. When they started up, I thought I was going to be out of work...but I'm not! I still get plenty of work.

Let the monkeys, who are willing to work for peanuts, get on and do it.
If they are paying the same as you for their food, petrol, rent, council tax, etc. then they won't survive, and in my experience, the customers who book 'cheapo' services are a pain in the proverbial!

Keep the faith.

John:)

[Penfold42]

I live in a rural area where wages are based on agricultural rates, so not a big-money area.

Know how that feels....:)




Let the monkeys, who are willing to work for peanuts, get on and do it.
If they are paying the same as you for their food, petrol, rent, council tax, etc. then they won't survive, and in my experience, the customers who book 'cheapo' services are a pain in the proverbial!

Keep the faith.

John:)

Wise words John....keep going MagicFm.....:)

[Twinspin]

Dont give up mate..... I know some venue managers can be skinflint and want a disco as little as possible. Your better than them.

£40 its not worth it mate.

I would explain to him. That for £40 it just doesnt cover the overheads. Those muppets who undercharge are probably using poor quality equipment anyway.

Personally mate i would say to them. for £40 you can get someone else. Because im not doing it for that. (Then when he gets someone else he will probably see how poor they probably are.

[soundtracker]

The pubs around here are the same - that's why I don't target my business towards them.

[BeerFunk]

Been there, done that. The lowest I would go out for is £80, for a walk-in job, no discussions or negotiating over it - they can take it or leave it, I know what I'm worth.

[soundscapes]

Dont give up mate..... I know some venue managers can be skinflint and want a disco as little as possible. Your better than them.

£40 its not worth it mate.

I would explain to him. That for £40 it just doesnt cover the overheads. Those muppets who undercharge are probably using poor quality equipment anyway.

Personally mate i would say to them. for £40 you can get someone else. Because im not doing it for that. (Then when he gets someone else he will probably see how poor they probably are.

There are people advertising on this site in our area charging that money, and one of em doesnt have that much of a poor rig.
its now very cheap to get pat testing and pli which is only helping the cowboys squeeze into the better venues driving prices down on the hotel jobs as well as the pubs

[soundscapes]

Ross no it isnt !!!!!!! what happens on big brother when they break the rules??? think on ...... tread a bit carefully.

ermm dont watch much big brother but dont they end up having their nominations cancelled and then get cynically kept in the house because c4 are desperate for ratings ???

[Steve 'B']

How much does that leave you after tax and NI?? How much does a bar person earn a night?? I bet its more than £40 for an out of hours night.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

How much does that leave you after tax and NI?? How much does a bar person earn a night?? I bet its more than £40 for an out of hours night.

I bet it's not!

Or if it is, it's not going to be much more!

[Creature]

im surrouned by djs who are more than happy to go out for 40.00 per nite - not me ...

i worked hard and reinvented myself and now have a clear crisp sounding rig and have constantly worked hard to try and improve my abilities and the bookings still come in. Ok Im not as busy as last year but often people who are prepared to pay what I ask im already booked for on there dates.

Locally im the most expensive disco but I still get plenty of work.

Hang in there mate im sure like others have said you will pull through.

Here in Lincolnshire and on the bike rally circuit theres a backlash slowly starting against these people. and recommendations from previous bookings and are often repeated and expanded on

[Stephen_N.I.]

I see where you're coming from magic.
At that price is just isn't worth it.
I don't see how these people can keep a decnet set-up and up to date tunes at that price.
We need to force DJ's without PLI and PAT off the scene, they are destroying it.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

We need to force DJ's without PLI and PAT off the scene, they are destroying it.

That's not really an issue with PLI and PAT being so cheap.