WEDDING WIRE

Last week, I attended a three-day conference presented by the Wedding Merchants Business Academy (Wedding "MBA" for short!)

Some of the presentations were a bit too "salesman-ish" for my tastes. But many of the speakers presented great ideas about how wedding vendors like me can better communicate with wedding couples through the ever-growing new social media -- blogs, Facebook, Twitter, even YouTube.

Among the best were two of the brains behind WeddingWire, which in three short years has set the standard for wedding websites. Not only were the presentations of CEO Timothy Chi and Chief Marketing Office Sonny Ganguly densely packed with useful information, Tim and Sonny came across as personable and sincere. And did I mention smart? Hearing them and meeting with reinforced my already favorable impression of WeddingWire.

As explained on their FAQ page:

WeddingWire is an online wedding community for Engaged Couples, Newlyweds and Wedding Vendors to connect with each other. WeddingWire provides cutting edge technology to the wedding industry through social networking, local vendor search, comparison shopping, and wedding planning tools.

See also their "About" page for a sense of what makes WeddingWire different. If you're not already using WeddingWire, I recommend you start doing so. It has so many user-friendly features. And it has a nice, clean look -- not overly flashy like some of the more blatantly commercial wedding sites.

DOUBLEHEADERS

I almost never schedule two DJ jobs on the same day.

It can be tempting to do, especially during those high-demand dates like Saturdays in May or June.

But I like to give each wedding client my undivided attention on their wedding day. And I don't like to expose any wedding client to the risk that, for example, I'd be running late getting from one job to the other. It's just not worth the risk -- to me or to you.

But there is one circumstance in which a DJ doubleheader could make sense, and be a win-win situation. That'd be when the same DJ is hired to perform at a day-time and night-time reception AT THE SAME LOCATION. For example, a hotel might book a noon-to-4 pm reception followed by a 7 pm-11 pm reception in the same ballroom. In that case, the same DJ could easily handle both jobs. And could offer a price break to each of those clients, since he only has to set up once for both jobs.

Not only would the DJ be right on time and right in place for the second job, he'd have a chance to relax and take a much-needed break between the two events, ensuring that he's reenergized for the later job.

I've had this opportunity-- two jobs in the same venue on the same date -- just once in over a decade of DJ'ing, and I wonder why it doesn't happen more often.

A thought: if your reception venue is a double-booking venue, ask the site coordinator if you can contact the couple holding the earlier or later event on your date. Then, ask them who they've booked for their DJ or band and see if that entertainer might be a good fit for your needs. Chances are, he'll be willing to give you a price break.

Similarly, if you're the first one to book at a two-event-a-day space, ask your site coordinator to pass along YOUR name to the other couple utilizing that space that day, suggesting they contact you to find out about your DJ or band. In that case, if your entertainer is a good fit for them as well as for you, you could share the price break with the second couple.

Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?

A bride who called me today is debating whether to schedule her wedding on a Sunday next year. She wondered if Sunday wedding receptions are less fun, with less dancing, compared to those held on Saturdays After all, Saturday is more commonly a party night, and Sunday is what we all grew up knowing as a "school night."

Good question. Here's what I told her.

Generally, Sunday night receptions can be as high-energy as Saturday night events. I've never had a problem getting Sunday night crowds to fill the dance floor.

This is especially true if a lot of your guests are coming from out-of-town, meaning that they're staying overnight Sunday rather than going back to work Monday morning. But even local guests usually seem to get into the party spirit at a well-run Sunday evening reception.

Notice that I specified Sunday NIGHTS.

I do find that Sunday DAYTIME receptions sometimes are bit less boisterous, a bit more restrained. But frankly, that can be true of Saturday afternoon receptions as well.

Think about it. How often do you or your friends go out dancing in the afternoon? It's just not something we typically do in our culture. When it comes to dancing, we tend to open up after dusk, when it's darker, like night-blooming flowers.

I'm not criticizing daytime weddings. They can be wonderful. And I've DJ'd at plenty of afternoon weddings with lots of folks cutting loose on the dance floor. But as a general rule, it's fair to say that, all things being equal, there may be less dancing at an afternoon reception.

What about Fridays? Like Saturday nights, Friday after dark is also a traditional "night out" in our culture. The only downside to Friday night partying is that your local guests might get tired a bit earlier, coming to your wedding after a normal 9-to-5 workday. (This doesn't apply to out-of-town guests who are making a 3-day weekend out of your wedding celebration.)

One advantage to a Friday OR Sunday wedding is financial. Due to supply-and-demand, many wedding vendors often a discount for those dates, compared to Saturdays.

BEATLE-MANIA

To succeed at wedding receptions, a DJ must play dance music that appeals to guests from a wide range of ages.

A good DJ does this by playing a wide variety of styles during the reception -- playing sets of music from 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and so on -- varying his selections to appeal to one age group or another.

Even better for DJs are those songs and artists so universally known and loved, they appeal to many guests of all ages.

The Beatles are one such group. I know this from experience as a DJ. But now I also know it from a recent study by the Pew Research Center, a highly respected think-tank. In its report on current trends in generational attitudes among Americans, Pew concluded that "there is one area of culture that members of every generation can agree on: music, and more specifically, the Beatles."

The 2009 Pew study found the Beatles the most popular performers in America across-the-board, with roughly half of all Americans liking the Beatles "a lot" and four out of five liking them at least "a little." No other performer scored as high.

Affinity for the Beatles is so widespread across generations that they were only performers scoring in the top five in ALL the age-groups surveyed (16-29 years, 30-49 years, 50-64 years, and 65+ years)!

No wonder the newly remastered reissues of the Beatles on CD are creating such a buzz. At the time I write this, the reissued Beatles albums hold 9 out of 10 slots in Amazon.com's list of music top-sellers.

BACK FROM VACATION

There's been a lull in my blog postings recently. I was out of town on vacation for about a week at the end of August, and since returning have been playing "catch up" in what's turning out to be a very busy late summer/early fall wedding season for me.

But I'm back in the saddle. Stay tuned for a flurry of new postings.

By the way, even while on vacation, I do stay in touch with my wedding clients via email and cell phone. No matter where I am or what I'm doing, I try to respond to clients very promptly. Sometimes within a matter of minutes. Usually within a few hours. Rarely longer than one day.