NO MUSIC, PLEASE

"No Music" may seem like an odd header for me, who not only DJs for a living but has been a lifelong music lover. (Indeed, my never-ending love for music is what led me to a DJ career.)

However, as I spend more and more hours on-line, there is one place where I do NOT welcome music: on websites!

What I'm referring to are websites that automatically play music when you visit them. Many wedding vendor websites do this.

I understand the thinking behind it. We all want our wedding websites to convey elegance, charm, romance, and a nice ambiance -- and music helps set the mood.

But wedding websites shouldn't act like music boxes -- open 'em up and they play a tune. Here's why.

ONE: Many wedding couples do wedding planning while at work. (In fact, TheKnot.com gets more traffic Monday-Friday 9-to-5 than during any other time slot.) A bride doing personal web-surfing in an office environment doesn't want her co-workers and boss alerted by loud strains of Sinatra when she clicks on your web page!

TWO: Many people listen to their own music while on the computer. While they surf the 'net, they might be spinning a CD in their CD/DVD drive or listening to iTunes or tuning into web radio. No one appreciates having his or her favorite music interrupted by some OTHER music popping up unwanted from a website.

I know, I know: Nearly all auto-play music websites have a button somewhere on the page that can disable the music. But by the time your visitor locates and activates the off-switch, she is already annoyed. And annoyance is NOT the "mood" you want music to foster.