Issue 191 - February 2018 - Performance Boosters by Mobile Beat Magazine

ISSUE 191 FEBRUARY 2018

WWW.MOBILEBEAT.COM

PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS FOR YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS

ARTICLES BY

MBLV22 PRESENTERS INSIDE

PERFORMANCE BOOSTERS FOR YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS PLAYLIST W E D D I N G B E AT............................................................ 6

How to Make Your DJ Biz Stand Out...Part 2 By Staci Nichols M I D W E E K M O N E Y......................................................... 8

The PARTY Principle By Rob Johnson

A DV E R T I S E R S F E AT U R E . . .................................................................. 10

MBLV22 Artist: Vanilla Ice By Michael Cordeiro M B L V22 P R E S E N T E R...................................................14

Why You Should Always Think Mobile in Your Marketing By Sonny Ganguly M B L V22 P R E S E N T E R...................................................16

The Law of Reciprocity By Terry Lewis M B L V22 P R E S E N T E R.................................................. 18

5 Tips for 5-Star Service By Doug Sandler

M O B I L E M AT T E R S...................................................... 22

DJ Health and Fitness

Audio-Technica

www.audio-technica.com 17

Bose

www.bose.com/f1 5

DigiGames

www.digigames.com 9

DJ Trivia

www.djtrivia.com

Electro-Voice

www.electrovoice.com

Innovative LED

www.innovativeledsales.com

MBLV22 - CrowdPleasers

www.mobilebeatlasvegas.com 20

MBLV22 - Peavey DJ Takeover www.mobilebeatlasvegas.com 21 MBLV22 - Welcome Party

www.mobilebeatlasvegas.com 19

Mobile Beat Cruise

www.mobilebeatcruise.com

ProX

www.proxdirect.com 3

QSC

www.qsc.com 7

RCF

www.rcf-usa.com

Stage Spot

www.stagespot.com

Yodabooth

www.yodabooth.com 19

By Matt Martindale F E AT U R E . . .................................................................. 24

This Year I Hope to... By Jeff Bush S C O O P....................................................................... 26

Denon SC5000 and X1800 Prime Series By Connor Wilkinson D J S H O PPE R .. ............................................................. 28

The 5 Coolest Things I Saw at NAMM 2018 By Staci Nichols

Publisher Ryan Burger Mobile Beat Editor-in-Chief Dan Walsh

Gear Editor Jake Feldman Circulation Manager Kitty Harr

Editorial Assistant / Writer Rebecca Burger Events Director Emeritus Michael Buonaccorso

TO ADVERTISE IN MOBILE BEAT OR EXHIBIT AT A MOBILE BEAT EVENT, CALL 515-986-3344 x300 OR EMAIL SALES@MOBILEBEAT.COM

Cover Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev

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WEDDING BEAT

How to Make Your DJ Biz Stand Out... WHEN IT DOESN’T STAND OUT, PART 2 By Staci Nichols

n part 1, I asked why $10,000 wedding photographer Jasmine Star says that it’s not necessarily her talent that allows her to demand such a premium price. (There are sooo many talented photographers out there.) She points out that anybody can own her same camera, editing software, pre-sets and filters. So what is it about Jasmine Star’s photography that has brides writing those fat checks? It’s HER. It’s Jasmine Star, the person—not the photographer. If you are a creative, YOU are your U.S.P. (Unique Selling Proposition). Let me explain. In part 1, we discussed why your polite branding is putting brides into comas and the importance of SHOWING what you’re about (rather than TELLING). Now we get into the soul searching...

STOP TRYING TO DISCOVER YOUR U.S.P.

more...she’s feeling now. And the wallet opens like nothing once that checklist gets shut off. No, don’t ONLY talk about yourself. She gets excited about results too; but if everyone has that generic packed dance floor photo at the top of their websites, that budget-strict mental checklist wakes up in her brain again.

HOW TO SHOW HER WHO YOU ARE Carry her away with a story. This can be done with great images, your copy, and video. You don’t even need photos to provide “imagery.” Take this quote from my home page, for example: “I am a San Diego wedding DJ who sells fist pumps, air guitar,

Don’t miss Staci’s Social Media Workshop! Monday, March 12, 8:00 AM to Noon, Tropicana Pavilion, before MBLV22 starts.

(Additional cost - NOT INCLUDED with MBLV22 registration.)

FOR MORE INFO CLICK HERE Who are you? Yes, I’m going there. Because your U.S.P. is not being Chicago’s most established DJ company or that you offer great lighting (snooooze!). You’re NOT a “fun DJ.” You’re YOU. That’s how and twerking that often involves spilling a drink.” I use words to you stand out: Be yourself. convey some very specific imagery. Yes, I talked about myself. I If I can’t get a feel for who YOU are when I’m on your website, said “I” instead of “you” (which goes against traditional copywritI’m disconnected. What song makes you have a Seinfeld-esque ing “rules”). The imagery did all the work that the word “you” “Desperado” moment (remember that guy Elaine dated)? Do would have tried to do. No harm, no foul. you have a ferret? Are you a super fan of the local team? Have To summarize, your vibe attracts your tribe. So if you want fun you been to 33 countries? Do you get misty during every single clients, be fun. If you want swanky, upscale clients, run a swanky, Father-Daughter Dance? upscale business. If you want hip, modern brides, a hip, modern Disconnected brides are a brand is a must. You better walk lot harder to snatch up (think the line à la Johnny Cash. DJ Staci Nichols is based in San Diego and cold calling) because they How to make your DJ biz specializes in spinning “country fusion,” shop by price and by quantity stand out? Stop the proliferation Latin/Spanish, and mainstream music. of 5-star reviews. Once she Her know-how has appeared in San of over-used words/expressions Diego Style Weddings, Offbeat Bride, gets EXCITED (emotionally in your copy, stop the viral spread Wedding Planner Magazine, and Book connected) about YOUR service, of polite branding, and stop More Brides. She offers consulting at the wedding planning checklist telling brides what you do. Start WeddingBizConsultant.com or check out constantly going in her brain showing brides who YOU are. her DJ biz at SanDiegoDJStaci.com. IG/FB/ shuts off. She not thinking any Pinterest/Twitter: SanDiegoDJStaci What is your brand’s story? 6

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MIDWEEK MONEY PRESENTED BY

The PARTY Principle By Rob Johnson

eddings are the main source of income for most mobile DJs. I get that. But more and more entertainers are reaching out to me, trying to enhance their business or in some cases completely overhaul it. I don’t know if it is today’s brides or the thousands of “competitors” that have invaded the industry over the years. Believe it or not: You CAN make a great income outside of the actual wedding industry.

PLAN WHAT YOU WANT TO DO

Plan Act ar B e h t e s i Ra t Step x e N e h t e T ak You

Start with a plan on what types of things you want to do to supplement your income. You might want to increase your bottom line and you might want to completely revamp what you have been doing. I have had dozens of customers ask me about this in the last couple months. They love doing game shows or trivia want to know if it is possible to make good money. If you are good at hosting trivia and game shows you can make a lot of money. You can do weekly gigs and fill your calendar. You can do bigger corporate and one-off events and make great money. Hosting game shows and trivia events can also sharpen your MC skills for other events. Find out what you want to do and make it happen.

ACT ON YOUR PLAN

I did have a very successful DJ mentor who was ALWAYS willing to help me if I needed it. He was concerned about the industry as a whole, rather than just his own company. (Thank you DW for that). Take what you already know and make it better. Use professional-grade equipment to provide the best experience for your clients. Polish your skills. The more shows you do, the better you will be. Top trivia and game show hosts command $5,000 and up for their productions and experience. If this is what you want to do you will have to work at it and put in the time, but it can be done.

TAKE THE NEXT STEP

Once you decide this is the route you want to go, you can make it a major part of your company. Having the ability to provide high end events, outside of weddings, will really increase your bottom line. It gives you the flexibility to do what you want. Keep in mind that corporate clients are usually repeat business. If you do a great job you may only have to book the first event and they will come back year after year. I used to do bars and clubs. The money wasn’t life changing, per event, but it added up fast with the volume of shows I was doing. One of the best parts of this and many other options out there is the lack of competition. How many DJs are in your market? How many game show hosts? You can make a lot of money and increase your bottom line if you do it right.

Once you have decided what you want to do to supplement (or replace) your DJ income, ACT on it. Get out there and learn what you need to do. Attend workshops and trainings to improve the skills you may need. Go to Mobile Beat and other conferences to network YOU... with your peers who might be able to help you execute your plan. Research the tools needed to make this happen. If it is game shows You are the most important person in your business. You make the decisions that lead to that you decided to host, success. Find the things that DigiGames has systems starting Rob Johnson is back writing a monthly article make you happy. Learn how at $299 to get you going. for Mobile Beat after taking a year or so off. The to balance your business and RAISE THE BAR main focus is to touch on “midweek money” and personal life. You can do and how you can increase your bottom line. Rob be whatever you want, if you Think back to when you were has been the Spokesperson for DigiGames for work at it. You can choose to first starting out as a DJ. Maybe over 10 years; he has been in the entertainment be successful and happy. You you were a natural and awesome business for over 25 years and full time for 17. If can leave a legacy for those from the start. Maybe you were you have any questions, please feel free to email that follow. You only live once, more like me and learned on rob@digigames.com or call 701-710-1657. so make it count! the fly. I didn’t have any training or experience. I just jumped in. 8

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FEATURE

From Hip Hop Icon to Ambassador of Positivity

obile Beat Las Vegas has always prided itself on featuring major talent at the evening celebrations that are a key part of each event. Each artist or group that has performed at Mobile Beat has made an indelible mark on the music industry in some way; this year is no different. Making his second appearance at MBLV (the first being in 2009) is Rob Van Winkle—aka Vanilla Ice!

MBLV22 ARTIST ROB VAN WINKLE IS MUCH MORE THAN VANILLA ICE By Michael Cordeiro

DON’T MISS VANILLA ICE AT MBLV22 TUES, MARCH 13, 9:00 PM

Rob’s multi-platinum hit “Ice Ice Baby” not only helped brake down stereotypes of who a “rapper” could be, the song also made a whole new generation fans of Hip Hop, both the music and the style. Kids wanted to dress like him, dance like him and be ice cold cool like him. “Ice Ice Baby” is also a perennial entry on the Mobile Beat Top 200 chart. Heck, my mom even knows the lyrics! Not bad for a song written by a sixteen-year-old kid who hated school and worked at a car wash. Five minutes of searching on the inter web and you’ll quickly learn that the life of Rob Van Winkle plays out like a roller coaster ride at Busch Gardens Virginia. The highs of his successes have been paired with some equally painful and embarrassing lows. He is no stranger to the tabloids and the law. But the fact remains that over the years Rob has achieved great success with everything he has set his mind to do. He’s sold millions of records, made millions in real estate and won championships in motocross and Jet Ski® racing. So just who is the real Vanilla Ice? The fifty-year-old gave me a glimpse into his private world of flipping properties, making music and raising two daughters. Mike C: Hello Rob, are you excited about performing at Mobile Beat in March? Rob VanWinkle: Yeah, definitely. I’m Pumped! MC: You’ve been out touring this past year. How’s it going? R V: Incredible. I put together a whole new show and I’m playing at over 150 sold out arenas. The coolest thing is that out of all the tours going, ours has the highest alcohol sales. M C: Oh my God, that’s freaking hilarious! You must have some killer audiences? R V: My audiences are great. They love reliving the nineties stuff. It’s just dancing and smiles at every show. M C: Will you be performing just your older music or some new stuff also? R V: I’ve got my band with me and we’ll be doing a little bit of everything. It’s a great stage show. Very interactive. Bring your dancing shoes. I just did a song with Rick Ross called Vanilla Sprite (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxUUiJOq-k). Check it out. M C: Nineties music is so hot right now. Why do you think that is? R V: I think right now we have a lost generation culturally and musically. The 2000s are the age of computers and iPhones and people just have their heads stuck in them. I think pop culture and fashion are definitely lacking something now. There was so much great music that came out of the nineties, especially Hip Hop. “Ice Ice Baby” is like a photographic snapshot of that time and what it was like.

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M C: The nineties were definitely the golden age of Hip Hop. How has your record helped to define Hip Hop? R V: That song came out in 1990 and it’s been an amazing adventure. It was the first rap song to hit number one and sold over 163 million copies. I think out of all the rap songs created, that one has reached the widest demographic in the world; and thanks to YouTube a whole new young generation. I think that most of the rappers from that time period haven’t been able to grab a young audience. I have a very young following these days. M C: Ice Ice Baby is truly transgenerational. I get requests for it at elementary school dances, not to mention weddings and parties. R V: It’s just a great piece of music that appeals to everyone. My record To The Extreme sold over 3 million copies last year and that wasn’t to old people. The truth is that you can’t pick your audience, they pick you. There’s a whole Ninja Turtle generation that “Ice Ice Baby” was a part of. I had a nine-yearold girl come up to me recently and start singing every word. M C: It’s really taken on a life of its own. R V: Think about it. How many number one songs can you name from the last 25 years? Some songs just become songs and some songs become anthems. It’s like they have a little pixie dust sprinkled on them. They’re magical. M C: Many of the artists I’ve interviewed say the same thing about today’s music. Too much of it is disposable. Six months from now no one wants to hear what’s current, but you can always go back to the music from 30, 40 or 50 years ago. R V: Right, guys like Sinatra, Elvis, Otis Redding—their music will never get old. M C: Tell me if this true. I read that you had to buy the rights to “Under Pressure” by Queen and Bowie? R V: True. It was cheaper than a lawsuit! M C: Ha, that’s great! Why, though? R V: It was all the sample clearances. Sampling was around way before me, but the way we used it in “Ice Ice Baby” and how quickly it sold really messed with the record companies and their lawyers. They didn’t know how to handle it. There’s a whole building in New York now just for sample clearances because of my record. M C: You’ve had a lot of different passions in your life. Motocross, real estate, Jet Ski® racing...What keeps bringing you back to music? R V: I liked poetry even before I wrote music. It just touches me and it’s really why I started writing music. I owe everything I have to music. My songs are very intimate to me and if you listen close, my songs are like my diary. They really reflect where I was at that stage in my life. For me to write music I have to hibernate from the world for a while. I can’t just walk into a studio and say “Let’s cut a record.” My music is very personal and to be able to share that with everyone is magic to me. M C: Why Hip Hop and not rock and roll? R V: It was the generation I grew up in. I was a B-Boy and loved all the break dance movies. But even before rap came out I was more into Rick James, Parliament and James Brown than Motley Crue and Led Zeppelin. Once rap started to get

popular I was like “Oh. My. God!” I couldn’t get enough. I would watch all the videos and try and do the “wave.” My friends and I had a little break dancing crew. We would go to the mall on a Saturday afternoon with a ghetto blaster and a big piece of cardboard and break dance for tips. I would make $40 bucks and chase the girls around the mall. That was a lot of money for a fourteen-year-old back in the ‘80s. M C: Gotta say, I miss my high-tops and fat shoe laces. Do you think “Ice Ice Baby” became a hit because you were a young white kid doing black music? R V: No, I never looked at it as white or black music. I don’t think music has a color. Jimi Hendrix wasn’t famous because he was a black rock guitarist. He was famous because he was amazing. The same with Elvis and a thousand other artists. To me music is about what inspires you. It’s not like I was going to grow up listening to R&B and rap then go out and become a country singer. M C: (laughing) Great point! So what new ground is there left to break in the music industry? R V: I think the music industry is too saturated. Anybody can get a home studio...but they’re getting too caught up in the technical part of it. To me music isn’t rocket science. It’s much simpler than that. A great song is simply a great song. M C: That’s so true. I interviewed Alice Cooper last year and he said that we have an abundance of talented singers in this country but hardly any great songwriters. R V: A million people can make songs, but only a few will have the fairy dust sprinkled on them. Know what I mean? M C: Ha, fairy dust. You’re killing me! R V: No, really man. Only a few songs have that magic that when people listen to it they’re changed. Those songs never go away. You’ve got to have that little bit of magic in there that makes a song appealing to all people. M C: Very true. Do you see any current artists that are really changing things? R V: I think there are some amazing musicians and singers right now. I look at Bruno Mars and what he is doing. He’s got the high tops (sneakers) on and mimicking all the ‘90s dance moves. It’s working for him. He’s very talented. Then you have Justin Bieber who is really popular with the kids. I like him and think he can sing his ass off, but I don’t think his songs will be remembered a hundred years from now. M C: Do you think all the ‘90s clothes will come back? R V: Have you been to the mall lately? Fanny packs are coming back! I went shopping with my girls. They thought those were the neatest things. M C: Too funny. What do you feel is the toughest lesson you’ve learned in your career? R V: Man, there’s been so many. They’ve all helped me to grow and learn positivity. I’ll tell you what I think was toughest for me. Everything in the entertainment field is artificial. I thought it was all real when I first started. M C: What do you mean by artificial? R V: Red carpets, paparazzi, the screaming fans...it’s all part

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FEATURE of this artificial reality that you get caught up in. Don’t get me wrong, I am truly thankful and blessed for everything that has happened to me. Even the bad stuff. I had this dream of what fame would be like and the reality of life is not as good as the dream was. I had to learn to separate the two.

around and went into a hangar that was done up like Santa Land with fake snow and presents from one side to the other. When these kids got off that plane there was nothing but smiles from ear to ear. M C: That’s awesome.

M C: I think that happens to many celebrities. They don’t know how to handle fame. R V: Yes, fame hits you and suddenly you’re on a world tour, you’re on television and in movies. You start buying these big houses and Ferraris and then life hits you. To keep all that going is a lot of work. It doesn’t take care of itself. You think, “Oh, I’m on easy street now”, but it can all go as fast as it came. M C: I think that happens in any career. You reach a certain level and think that you can coast but you have still have to push hard to maintain your lifestyle and get what you want or keep what you have. R V: Yeah. No matter what you do, life comes in. Family, kids, bills...that stuff never stops and you gotta figure out what is most important to you and block out the rest. That’s real life and it’s not always so glamorous. M C: How has your career impacted your family?

M C: Do you think enough people know the real you? Do they see you as Rob or Vanilla Ice? R V: After like 30 years I’m kind of a veteran at this. I try not to take myself too seriously and live a life of positivity. I hope people can see a person who has overcome a lot of obstacles and be inspired by that and hopefully admire me for it. M C: Is that important to you, to inspire people these days? R V: Absolutely, because as a celebrity you always have nine different options in front of you and it’s so easy to choose the wrong one. At this point in my life I really focus hard on choosing the right one every day. I try to do more charity and be more positive.

R V: Yes, I’ve been working with terminally ill kids for over 13 years now through my charity Little Smiles (www.littlesmiles.org). This past Christmas we loaded up a bunch of these kids on a plane and taxied down a runway pretending to go to the North Pole. We turned 12

M C: How have you handled adversity and some of the negative things that have happened to you? R V: It’s been like a surfer riding a wave. Sometimes you catch a wave and crash into the shore. You have to get back up dust yourself off and swim out to the next one. I think people let too many opportunities pass them by. They see difficulty and walk away while other people see those difficulties as a nice challenge. I’m at the set of one of the houses we’re doing today and I’m looking around like what a mess! When it’s done though, I get such a sense of accomplishment. I love a good challenge. M C: How do you find balance in life? What is your happy place?

R V: I’ve had to explain to my daughters that what I do is entertain people. What they see on TV and hear or read about me doesn’t matter. I’m their dad and I love them. When I’m hanging out with my daughters they get the real me.

M C: You founded a charity, right?

R V: I’ll tell you man, it moves you. I am so grateful to have the power to bring joy to other people. Smiles are contagious. The more positive we are the better life is.

R V: You know man, I’m the oldest teenager in town. I mean I don’t act like a teenager, but I like to live like one. To me it’s not about politics or stock markets or war, life’s about getting from one memorable moment to the next. Nobody wants to remember all the hard work and hard times they went through. You want to remember the things that bring you joy. For me, it’s raising my daughters and doing the things I love. Even simple stuff like taking my girl to dinner or spending time with family and friends. That’s where I find my happy place. M C: Where do you see yourself in the next ten years? R V: I still have a few more chapters in my life to write. I just turned fifty and I’ve been around the world more than some flight attendants. The reality is we’re here for such a short time. From here on out I just want to live my life as positive as I can and see where the next wave takes me. M C: So Rob if this was the last interview you ever gave what would you want people to know about you?

R V: That I’m an ambassador of goodwill and smiles. I really believe people are all one. We’ve got to forget about race, politics, religion, borders. Michael Cordeiro is the owner of M.C. Entertainment, a small Anything that divides us. multi-op in Rhode Island. He has been on TLC’s Four Weddings, We’ve got to get past all hosted an episode of Toddlers & Tiaras and has opened for many celebrities. He has a degree in Entertainment and Event that. Live like a teenager. Management from Johnson and Wales University. Just be happy.

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MBLV22

Why You Should Always Think Mobile in Your Marketing By Sonny Ganguly

n 2018, a mobile-friendly website is no longer a trend or a nice-to-have—it’s a necessity for conducting business, especially in the wedding industry. More than ever, couples are using smartphones at all hours of the day or night to keep the planning process moving, from searching for wedding professionals to finding inspiration for the big day. Your mobile website might be the first—and only—impression a couple gets of your business, so it’s vital that your site provides a great user experience and highlights important information that will turn prospective clients into a bookings. The tech landscape is fast-evolving. Not so long ago simply having a great website could put you ahead of your competition. But today, it’s no longer enough to give you a competitive edge. No matter your industry, you must be aware of the new platforms and tools used by your audience. If the majority of your audience is using mobile (and they are!), you should make the investment in mobile optimization and prepare for the Google mobile-first index.

MILLENNIALS ARE PROGRAMMED TO THINK MOBILE As we know, smartphones have significantly changed consumer behavior, and their impact on the wedding industry is no exception. Roughly 90% of adults in the U.S. between the ages of 25 and 34 own a smartphone, meaning that the majority of engaged couples are active on mobile devices. Today’s society is accustomed to instant gratification, and the same holds true for couples in the wedding planning process. Smartphones allow couples to search for information during

It’s critical to provide the content they’re searching for when you have their attention! their commute, while at the gym, or pretty much anywhere at anytime of the day. It’s critical to provide the content they’re searching for when you have their attention! If a couple can’t find the information they’re looking for on your site, they’ll quickly move on to the next.

MOBILE OPTIMIZATION IS ESSENTIAL Gone are the days when a business could get away with displaying their desktop layout on mobile. The moment a prospect needs to magnify text on their smartphone, you’ve lost a client—and if they’re willing to stick around, you’re certainly not providing the

amazing experience your brand deserves. Instead, your business should have a responsive website, meaning that the content on each page adjusts to the device being used, so you can provide the best experience no matter how visitors are viewing your site. If you just redesigned your website and it’s not responsive, no need to panic! Until you’re ready to fully optimize your website, take the following actions to improve how your site appears on mobile without a responsive template: • • • • • •

Keep your color palette and branding consistent Stick with a simple layout and avoid multiple pages Resize your font and images to be mobile friendly Reduce the amount of text displayed Use large clickable buttons for calls-to-action Understand how customers interact with your mobile site

Each week, couples spend over 30% of their time planning their wedding from a mobile or tablet device, which is about 40 minutes a day. During this time, couples are searching for things like wedding checklists, planners, colors, themes, websites, venues, budgets and more. Couples feel that these searches are less “risky” actions to be taking on mobile. While all businesses need to have a strong mobile presence, it’s important to recognize if the product or service you provide is better suited for a desktop or mobile interaction and adjust content accordingly. While a couple might not create their wedding invitation on a mobile device, they will certainly browse for design inspiration on mobile. Think about what is most valuable to your clients and how you can deliver a great experience, while highlighting the most meaningful content (like providing contact information or sharing inspiring imagery). A good mobile experience does not need to replicate your website but should offer content that makes prospective clients want to take the next step.

BE READY FOR MOBILE-FIRST SEO By optimizing for mobile, you are setting yourself up for mobilefirst search engine optimization. Now that mobile searches outnumber desktop searches, Google has been working on a rollout that will create and rank search listings based on the mobile version of content rather than the desktop experience. This project is most likely to launch sometime in 2018 and could negatively impact your search rankings over time if your site is not mobile friendly. You must ensure that your mobile site is at parity to your desktop version. Having a mobile presence for your wedding business will change the way potential customers interact with your business for the better! Keep these advantages in mind and you’ll reach more couples and keep them coming back to your business.

CLICK FOR MORE INFO... on Sonny Ganguly and his session, “Tech Turntables: Staying Ahead of the Curve.” 14

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MBLV22

The Law of Reciprocity By Terry Lewis

hink about the last time someone gave you a free, unexpected gift, but you had nothing to give back in return. How did it make you feel? Thankful? A little bit awkward that you could not reciprocate? Did you think “I must repay that person somehow, sometime in the future? These emotions and thoughts are all tied to reciprocity. I recently experienced reciprocity when I visited my local dry cleaners to have a button sewn back onto a jacket I needed the same day for a wedding. The owner said, “Come back in two hours it will be ready.” Sure enough upon my return he reached behind him and lifted my jacket off the bottom rail, placed in on the counter in front of me and pulled up the clear plastic cover to reveal my button perfectly sewn back onto my jacket. “I’ve even put a bit of steam through it for you to freshen it up!” Reaching for my wallet, I said, “Wow thank you, how much do I owe you?” He replied, “Nothing...it’s on me. Enjoy the wedding!” His small act of kindness had such a big impact; it triggered reciprocity deep within me. To date, I’ve not used anyone else for my dry cleaning. I tell everyone I know needing dry cleaning to use him. I even have to drive past another dry cleaner to give him my business. I happily do all this because of that one act of kindness. Reciprocity is powerful, and if you don’t already employ it inside your wedding business, I implore you to create an unexpected gift you can give to your brides and grooms, BUT your unexpected gift must do three things: 1. Be of LOW monetary cost to you but of HIGH perceived value to your prospects.

2. Present you as a friendly and likeable expert. 3. Be helpful and wanted by the recipient. All three criteria were encapsulated in that button being sewn onto a jacket! Imagine the reciprocity you can create when you put your mind to designing an unexpected gift Mr. and Mrs. Prospect will love.

To get fired up about reciprocity, before each prospect meeting I repeat this mantra: “Whether they book me or not, they leave with a much better blueprint for their wedding, compared to the ideas they had, before seeing me.” Reciprocity is so powerfully effective in building future goodwill I don’t want to leave you empty-handed. Which is why I’m giving you just one idea for a free gift that you can give away at your next meeting. Something that meets the three

CLICK FOR MORE INFO... on Terry Lewis and “Seven Influencers That Motivate High-Paying Clients To Book.” 16

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criteria above, like the timeline pictured here, for example. The more detailed your timeline, the more valuable your couple will find it. Just imagine how thrilled they would be if you helped them visualise their day by putting approximate times against each activity illustrated here? The best way to do this is to ask your couple the start time of their wedding before meeting them, then working the times out from there. As an expert, having performed at weddings many times, you already know how long each segment will take. This revelation alone will thrill your couple. What if you customized their timeline a little more by adding their names, wedding date and venue? Do you think this might make them warm up to you even more?

By unexpectedly walking Mr. and Mrs. Prospect through their wedding, you’ll generate paid-forward thanks, and guess who they’ll view as their knowledgeable, likeable and trusted expert? Take a moment to think of other free and valuable gifts you could give away to make your prospects feel more confident and excited about hiring you for their wedding. This is just the tip of the iceberg of what I’ll be revealing at Mobile Beat Las Vegas. Hope to see you soon!

MBLV22

5 Tips for 5-Star Service By Doug Sandler

n order to grow your business and add depth to your client list, your goal should be to create a lasting, memorable, very positive experience for your customer. Not just on event day, but all the way through your journey to get there. It’s not just about showing up and playing four or five hours of great music and packing a dance floor. There is way too much competition out there to be less than stellar or exemplary when it comes to delivering A+, 5-star customer service every step of the way. Whether you are a single operator or multi-DJ business, service, support,

sales, operations and every other department within your organization must work in tandem, delivering the same amazing service to your customers to keep them happy and coming back for more. The habits that you create today will have a lasting impression as they come in contact with your brand, dozens or even hundreds of times. Here are five top tips for providing 5-star service.

TIP 1 - BE RESPONSIVE On social media, you better respond to your customer and prospective customers quickly. Depending on the social channel they reach out to you on, response time should be reflective to the norms on that channel. For example, waiting 24-hours to respond on Twitter would be a mistake. Response time in 2-3 hours is acceptable, but remember expectation is everything. If you want to maintain a presence on social channels like Twitter, be prepared to be quick to respond or you can expect to crash and burn. If, however, you are responsive and can get back to inquiries in just minutes or better yet, immediately, your social influence will be positively positioned. When my Nice Guys message

was just being launched in 2013, I spent many hours a day working my social media channels to beef up the customer experience. The payoff was huge. Its impact has lasted since changing my approach to response time. Be responsive to your customer: They want to know you care about them—quickly.

TIP 2 - ANTICIPATE YOUR CUSTOMER’S NEEDS While no one expects you to magically predict the future, you should be considered the expert in your industry and therefore, you should be able to anticipate the needs of your customers. Look at it this way: When you initially get an inquiry call from a prospective customer, don’t you innately know most of the questions they are going to ask? If you don’t feel you know everything about your product or service, do a bit more research on your industry or the company you represent. Write down each and every question you would have if you were looking at buying what your company sells. Additionally, write down every question you would anticipate you would ask if you were using your product. Keep a notepad or running list of questions and the answers you feel best answer the questions. Include questions in each area of concern for your client: sales, service, support, accounting, operations, management and more. The companies that break records over and over understand not only what their customers want today, but can anticipate what their customers will want tomorrow.

TIP 3 - BE HONEST, BE TRANSPARENT AND HAVE PERSPECTIVE How would you want to be treated if you were buying services from your company? You’d want someone in sales, service, support and every other department to be honest with you and open to helping you. You also want to feel like the person you were dealing with was a part of your team; so why wouldn’t you treat a customer that same way? Whenever I speak to a company about the products or services they are

CLICK FOR MORE INFO... on Doug Sandler and his session, “Skyrocket Your Business (Nice Guys Finish First.” 18

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selling me, if confronted with an issue I always ask them the same question, “If you were me, what would you do?” It doesn’t matter what department I am speaking with, I try to get them to see things from my perspective. You should do the same with your customers. Be honest, provide a consultative approach to sharing information, and allow for the customer’s best interest to be your best interest.

TIP 4 - BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION Mistakes are bound to happen; it’s what happens next that really counts. Take responsibility and own up to any errors you or your company has made. Don’t pass the buck. Work on a solution until your customer is happy. Be open and honest about plans to resolve any problem that arises, and stay in touch and communicative with your customer. Once the problem is resolved, follow up and make sure your customer’s needs are exceeded before labeling the problem as solved. Under no circumstance should you have a conflict with a customer. Even if you win, you lose.

TIP 5 - BE POSITIVE, PRESENT AND POISED TO HELP YOUR CUSTOMER If you have a positive attitude, your customer will want to be around you and will reward you by giving you more business. Even over the phone, a smile can be felt from miles or even countries away. Remain upbeat and focused on what your customer is telling you. Some of the biggest problems I have seen over the years regarding customer service include a lack of caring and lack of listening. It is very challenging to remain positive about a relationship you are building with your customer if you do not listen to them. If your attitude is, “My job would be so much easier if not for my customer,” you should think about finding another dream, because the one you have has obviously soured. Be eager to help your customer, even if it doesn’t mean cashing in on a sale today. Be patient: The money will come, but first, build the relationship. Nothing about 5-star service is average. It’s not easy to provide that level of service, but if done right, the rewards are incredible, and can include a lifetime of endless business. When you provide 5-star service, customers will care less about what you charge because they know the products and services you provide will also provide huge value for them. When you provide 5-star service, customers will consider you an investment and not just money spent. Businesses carrying the 5-star rating get endless referrals, have raving fans, and are in the business for the long haul.

MOBILE MATTERS

DJ Health and Fitness YES, DJS NEED IT TOO—HERE’S WHY By Matt Martindale trips up ramps, and through a “back of house” maze to the far end of a hotel in Vail, CO (altitude of about 8,700 feet). I got all my gear in, tested, taped, and with perfect sound and lights within 90 minutes. (No, I don’t have a roadie.) I know, I know, I can hear it now: “You should’ve left earlier.” I did. The mountain highway was unexpectedly closed due to substantial snow. When it re-opened, traffic was gridlocked for hours! My time to load in time was significantly condensed. When I arrived though, I didn’t quite expect “that” type of load in. The hotel also recently changed their vendor load in policies and procedures that now also include a 30 minute window with their security team to be let on the property. Unfortunately, the Sales and Catering Manager failed to reply to my repeated phone calls and emails leading up to the wedding to confirm details, timeline, etc. I had to hurry. Yes, unexpected things happen at events. When I was loading in at 1.47 miles each way, pushing gear at a t’s easy to hit the fast food joint on the way home literal jog at 8,700 feet, I wasn’t exhausted. I wasn’t out of breath either. I just kept thanking my personal trainer, now friend, and after an event or have that extra slice of cake at a former Army Ranger (Tim) for continuing to push me so hard wedding. Believe me, I know. It’s also easy to sit on since I made that commitment in July 2015. His workouts aren’t the couch and not exercise too. It’s a choice, just like easy, but they are rewarding. This load in was just another day at including exercise and healthy food in your daily routine. the gym for me. (I also now train and teach Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do two days per week elsewhere). Am I perfect? Nope. Not even close, but as I close in on 30 The load-in that day made me understand what Tim Grover years in this profession, I’m coming to grips with the fact that I’ve meant in his must-read book, Relentless: From Good to Great to spent far too much of it being so busy that I neglected my diet Unstoppable. and exercise. Slowly, those results of accumulated bad choices “Do. The. Work. Everyday, you have to do something you began to change my mood, habits, and waistline. These choices became more apparent when I needed it most: load in, the don’t want to do. Every day. Challenge yourself to be uncomfortmental and physical stamina for long performances, and difficult able, push past the apathy and laziness and fear. You don’t have to love it. You just have to believe it’s worth it in the end.” load outs. Being fit and working out In July 2015, I drew a line is a choice. It’s nothing more in the sand. I made the choice than a mindset we choose. It’s (and commitment) to work Matt Martindale has been a professional about attitude and aptitude, out at least three days per DJ and MC since 1989, performing at more and the two best DJ industry week. I still do. I’m glad that I than 1,600 wedding receptions since then. icons that model this mindset do, and here’s why: Along with running his award-winning, are “Big Daddy” Sean McKee multi-DJ company, Amoré DJ Entertainment I just had the mother of and Marcello Pedalino. (www.amoredjentertainment.com), he has all load-ins a couple of weeks accumulated extensive entertainment experience “I’m 63 years old, and ago: including training in audio production, sound I have a lot to live for,” says A grand total of 1.47 engineering, lighting and design, improv comedy, Big Daddy. “I did 400 events miles of pushing gear each voice over artistry, magic, and much more. between two cancers, and still way with six fully loaded cart

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worked out off and on, but that didn’t stop me, even with chemo. I did it regularly. It’s about looking at why you do things, the hard things. I want to live for my kids, and be active for my grandkids. So I face forward, and never look back. I work out once per week at home now. Doing it by yourself, that’s okay. It’s also okay to train with a buddy. I train twice per week with the trainer too. We get my heart rate up, because, let’s face it, you have to have stamina to be in this business. You also look and feel better. You have to feel the part. “What we do is such a joy, and I love it! When I work out, it helps get the aggression out. Those bad things in your heart or head, and it resets the mind. It helps us focus. It matters how I feel, and I feel great when I work out. It helps me smile loudly! It helps me to focus on the positive. It helps me to be the wizard and help everyone in the room forget about everything else. I’ve wasted too many years not doing what I am supposed to. Life is too short. Give yourself a reason to get up every day and then go do it.” Three tips from “Big Daddy” Sean McKee: • Drink as much water as you can. • Eat right and try to stay away from cocktail food. • Focus on the love, find the why and help in any way you can. In my interview with Marcello, he responded to to two key questions: 1. Why should a DJ exercise and how does it improve one’s performance? “A DJ, like any entrepreneur, should exercise to reap the stress reduction benefits and all the positive feelings that are triggered by the release of endorphins. Also, it’s no secret that the better you look, the better you feel, and the better you feel, the better you perform. “Whether it’s a challenging load-in or an extremely interactive event, a mobile entertainer is often in situations that require a lot of physical energy. Maintaining an optimal condition allows you to be ready and effectively handle anything that comes your way. Many people forget that mental fortitude, discipline, and determination are all positive side effects of being in the best shape of your life.” 2. What motivated you to start and what keeps you motivated when you don’t feel like doing it? “Fortunately, I never had to start. Being active was the lifestyle norm that my parents established in our home. I’m very grateful that my parents encouraged us to get involved with sports and to create our own outdoor activities with friends. As I got older, I gravitated towards people who were driven, fun to be around, and enjoyed being outdoors. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that almost all of these folks were all fitness enthusiasts. As far as the motivation, the key for me has been having accountability partners. Knowing that my friends from the YMCA are depending on me to show up on specific days for our group Sean “Big Daddy” McKee

circuit training basically guilts me into me showing up on the mornings that I don’t feel like getting out of bed. Another huge motivating factor is my wife, Jill. Not only is she ultraconsistent and reliable when it comes to reminding me that fitness is a priority, she’s also dialed in to sleep, hygiene, and nutrition. You are who you surround yourself with, so Marcello Pedalino choose wisely.” So, I challenge each of you to find your big why. Look at the people you love. Look at the things that bring you joy. We have the best profession on the planet! We get the opportunity to create smiles, joy, laughter and memories. To make people happy. What we do, and how, is a result of making choices. Make those small choices with what you eat, and how much. Start with a small amount of daily exercise, even if it’s just a brisk five-minute walk, and 10 push-ups or sit-ups. It’s a start. Then, try adding five minutes next week and a push-up and sit-up each week after that. Keep going, start small and, don’t give up. The key is to start. “Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.” ~Brian Tracy (world renowned motivational speaker, author and trainer)

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FEATURE

This Year I Hope to... [ INSERT ANSWER HERE ] By Jeff Bush

magine closing your eyes, throwing a dart at the Wall Street Journal to pick a stock you had to invest your entire savings in. You can't look at the price until the last day of the year. Nervous? But yet, this is how most businesses plan. They choose one time a year, develop a plan, put it in the drawer only to review it at the same time the following year and hope they achieved their goal. This approach is not a good investment strategy, nor is it a good business planning process.

uously redeployed through the process. The first step in any execution strategy is to define the issue in sufficient detail such that anyone in your organization will intuitively understand the incremental activities necessary to achieve the goal. If you cannot break the goal down into actionable steps, you need to continue refining your goal. A goal is only actionable when it is evident to everyone in your business what those actionable steps are. The most straightforward example is a sales goal. Most business plans will state a specific numeric goal, like “$50,000,000 in product sales.” But if your organization doesn't understand the connection of that goal to their unique job duties it will likely never happen. Instead, restate the goal to something more actionable, “Maintain 100% client retention of profitable $1mm clients while sourcing, vetting and closing one new client that will average $5mm in sales each week.” If the goal is restated in such a way to that every department of your company understands their role in achieving that goal, it is much more likely to happen. A sales goal is not going to get a person in accounts receivable to change their behavior. Arguably, an overly zealous receivables person could be detrimental to your goal by collecting in such a way that drives clients out the door. By changing the focus of the goal to an action statement, it changes the way your organization views their role in executing their part in the process. It focuses a goal into a philosophical change with obvious incremental steps. Now list the steps, as few or as many as it takes, but it must be actionable and measurable.

Everyone has heard the saying, “hope is not a plan.” That’s because it rings true. But equally true is that your life is only limited by the work you don't do. You work to achieve. Achievement is the manifestation of executing more consistently and methodically. Are you ready to achieve your goals? Are you prepared to get your business back on track? Try this strategy. A more fluid approach to business planning is more realistic in the “real world” vs. the one-and-done way you’ve always done planning. Business planning should be a living, breathing process that follows a cycle of brainstorming, winnowing, executing and measuring, which naturally leads to the next planning opportunity. This process can be as short as weeks or as long as years. Each part of a business follows different timelines and the planning process for each should match. Just as New Year's resolutions fall away quickly because of a lack of an execution strategy, business plans succumb to the same fate; destined to collect dust on a shelf or occupying the ignored 1. Identify five leads weekly bottom position in your inbox. Why? Because these methods lack 2. Qualify three prospects per week from the leads a quantifiable execution and measurement strategy, which is a pivotal portion of the planning 3. Close one client per process—the part of the week with a potential process where most fall short. average $5mm in annual Jeff Bush, Wall Street’s Washington insider, is a dynamic and insightful speaker on tax and sales per month (keep in Whether you're well on fiscal topics, and the author of American mind, if you onboard a your way to achieving your Cornerstones: History’s Insights on Today’s new client late in the year, business goals and you are Issues. A 28-year veteran of the financial industry, they likely will not do ready to shoot for something Jeff works with executive teams, business owners, $5mm in sales this year.) bigger, or you've fallen short and high income individuals to proactively of expectations and you are 4. Reduce new client prepare their organizations to succeed in an ever looking to get back on track, a onboarding time to three evolving-market place. For more information on measurable execution strategy business days Jeff Bush, please visit www.JeffBush.net. must be deployed and contin24

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5. Prioritize our customer service model, so we are spending 80% of our time with those clients making up 80% of our sales. (Once again, the old 80/20 rule) 6. 100% on-time shipping every day. 7. Reduce accounts receivable to 45 days.

You have more control over your success than you think; and sometimes it is just about having a definable goal and doing the work consistently.

Secondly, you have to do the work. While this seems obvious, the majority of goals find their way to the scrap heap for the most basic of reasons. The work was done intermittently, but honestly, the work was not done. Someone first said, “What gets measured, gets done.” And they were right. So measure your action steps. Use technology to help keep track of your progress. Reminders on your phone work, but some prefer something more visual. Use a spreadsheet program to come up with a customized action tracking sheet. A suggestion would be, at the end of the measuring period, color code the boxes to highlight successes and challenges. Distribute the finished sheet each period to all stakeholders. “What gets measured gets done.” And finally, you need to have a consistent and honest accountability system. Accountability to do the small, necessary

steps to accomplish your goal, both in quantity and quality. The danger of the spreadsheet of reminders is that we can lie to ourselves. As human beings, we have a horrible ability to lie to ourselves and, worse yet, believe our lies. So how do you manage this fault? Have an accountability partner. Find that person who cares enough about your success that they won't tell you what you want to hear or make you feel better about only halfhearted work. Share with them your spreadsheet each week and go over every single event. Mutual accountability works well. Find a fellow salesperson, manager, significant other or business owner that is working on their own goals and be accountable to one another. It has been said, “If success were easy, everyone would be successful.” While it is not easy, you have more control over your success than you think; and sometimes it is just about having a definable goal and doing the work consistently and being honest with the quantity and quality of your efforts.

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SCOOP

In Prime Mixing Position A LOOK AT DENON DJ’S SC5000 PRIME MEDIA PLAYER AND X1800 PRIME MIXER By Connor Wilkinson

hen I first got to see and try the Denon SC5000 and X1800 at Mobile Beat Las Vegas 21, I was blown away instantly. It was clear right away that Denon was ready to take a full-blown swing at the industryleading Pioneer CDJ 2000NXS2 and DJM 900NXS2. Now, this review is not going to compare these two setups directly, but I will be pointing out along the way where Denon did things better than Pioneer. First and foremost, I have extensively been testing these media players for the past five weeks, both in the studio and on the stage, with multiple varieties of music and mixing styles. I have about 20 or so performances on them in the wild, and about 35 hours of practicing in the studio. Which brings me to my first point: Set Up. Now, if you are used to a media player setup, then have no fear, nothing has changed! But for me, someone who has

always used controller setups, it’s a big change in setup time and portability. I found myself planning 20-30 minutes before and after sets to make sure I had enough to set up and tear down.

DENON DJ X1800 PRIME MIXER This is, hands down, the best club mixer I have ever worked with, and that goes for audio quality, effects selection, fader and knob sensitivity, and software usability. The sound card is magnificent, producing incredible sound through any system. You have 10+ effects to choose from: Echo, Delay, Transformer, Filter, Phaser, Roll, Reverse Roll, Scratch, Beat Break, and SNDRTN. The effect that stuck out for me the most is the Beat Break. It’s like a transformer on steroids, with 16 patterns you can choose from, and the ability to create your own patterns as well. It’s quantized as well, so you can really make some unique chops with your songs! The Sweep Effects are incredible as well, allowing you to choose between Noise, Gate, Dub Echo, and Wash Out. The Wash Out effect has quickly become my favorite feature on the X1800, allowing me to create some extremely unique and eerie transitions if used alongside the BPM effects onboard. Speaking of BPM Effects, there’s a nice big button near the bottom of the mixer to activate and deactivate the effects. You can customize the color of this button as well. The faders are silky smooth, with just the right amount of resistance, and all the knobs are a hard rubber with a fair amount of resistance, which prevents you from accidentally bumping a knob and ruining the EQ or effect. Denon’s Flex Fader is a dream come true for scratch DJs. On the top left of the X1800, you’ll find your Mic 1 input, which is either 1/4” or XLR, and your standard High/Low adjustment knobs. You also can use effects on the mic channel! There are 2 USB ports at the top of the X1800 which allow you to connect 2 PCs for side-by-side play back with Serato DJ, which I will touch on below. On the back of the X1800, you’ve got 4 Phono and 4 Line inputs, 4 Digital Inputs, 5 LAN Ports (4 for players, 1 for PC), Master XLR Out, Unbalanced RCA Out, Record RCA Out, Send & Receive 1/4” for external effects modules, a second Mic port, and MIDI Out. Denon did a bang-up job on the X1800 Club Mixer overall. It’s the most accessible mixer on the market, and took first time users only about 15 minutes to fully understand the mixers full functionality and potential. When paired with 2 SC5000’s, the X1800 really shines!

DENON DJ SC5000 PRIME MEDIA PLAYER First off, the SC5000 looks and feels incredible. It’s unbelievably light (no CD Drive!), the 7” multi-touch screen is crisp and clear (55FPS!), it’s well built, has 3 USB ports and an SD Card slot, an 8” Jog Wheel that lights up around the edges with a color of your choice, a screen in the middle of the wheel for either album art or your logo, 8 controller-style pads for Hot Cue, Loop, Roll, and Slicer, Onboard Track Analysis thanks to the multi-core processors on board, and the biggest feature of them all: Two layers per player,

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meaning you can have 4 tracks playing at once with 2 players. Who says you need a 5-figure setup for 4 channels? The built in software, Source Engine Prime, is chock full of features. To begin, it has the ability to analyze tracks on the fly, at the cost of about 25-45 seconds per track, depending on its length. Once that’s done, you can set cues, loops, rolls, and even change the beat grid. Now, to avoid the wait time to analyze, you’ll want to head to Denon DJ’s website, and download the Engine Prime Music Management software. It is similar to rekordbox, minus the ability to use it to play music. Once you have that, you transfer files into the library, it analyzes them, and you can set meta-data for your tracks prior to uploading the music to a USB drive or SD card of your choice. In the system, you can organized your music by Artist, Album, Title, Key, or BPM, making finding your next track a piece of cake. Once you find your track, you can swipe left to put it into a prepare folder for later, or right to load it onto the deck. From there you can zoom in and out of the beat grid with either the select knob to the right, or with a pinch gesture on the touch screen. Let’s move on to the hardware itself. The 8” jog wheels feel awesome, along with the ability to adjust the tension of the wheel itself to fit your playing style. The colored ring allows you to personalize your SC5000, and the screen in the center of the wheel is HD, so your logo or album art shows up crystal clear. This screen also shows the beats if you set a loop over the logo/art. You have either the Auto Loop knob to the upper-right of the jog wheel, or the loop buttons at the bottom to set and adjust loops. The Auto Loop function also allows you to set the amount of beats the loop will be, which also sets up how far you can “beat jump.” Which brings me to my favorite feature: the Beat Jump buttons. These allow you to jump through the song while its playing or paused, allowing you to create unique mashups when timed properly, set cues on the fly for a new track, and skip slow parts of a song and get to the build-up or drop quickly and without hiccups. Above the Beat Jump buttons, you have the track skip buttons, which allow you to skip to the next song in your playlist or collection when the track is stopped. Below these are the standard Cue and Play/Pause buttons, which are a hard plastic with a nice audible click when used. Next to those are the 8 controller-style pads, which are a nice, soft rubber with no audible click. They are extremely responsive and I found no trouble using them for setting cue points and making beats off of cues I had set. These pads functionalities are almost exactly what you would expect from standard DJ controller, such as the Denon DJ MCX8000 or the popular Pioneer DJ DDJ SX2. Below these pads is a recessed portion of the player, which houses 1 USB slot and 1 SD card slot. Because it’s recessed, there’s added protection to keep your USB flash drive from being knocked out or broken. The other 2 USB ports are located on the back of the player. Now, the 2 layers. I didn’t find myself utilizing the 2 layer option that much, and I chalk that up to me not ever needing to layer more than 2 tracks at a time. I did find it handy to keep one specifically for scratch samples to jump on too. The only time I ever saw the software lag was when I was playing a track on

one layer, and was analyzing a track on another layer, but that’s something you normally won’t be doing once you’ve analyzed your tracks. Last but not least...Serato. Just before my time with these players ended, Serato released support for them. Surprisingly, it’s quite responsive in this mode. The screens become your library, and just that, and all functionality moves to Serato, just like with a controller. I didn’t expect very many changes since these players were designed with a controller in mind. After a few hours of use, I found myself wanting to go back to using the built-in software instead. It was at that moment that I realized Denon DJ had won my heart. I have nothing but good things to say about these bad boys, and that’s simply because they’re that good. I truly believe Denon DJ has the ability to win back the industry with these players, just based on the fact I’ve witnessed many DJs using them, and within 30 minutes, they were having no issues. The learning curve is so small, and the potential for unique mixing is so great. I truly look forward to what else Denon DJ has in store for us in the future. If you’re on the fence between the Denons and the Pioneers, choose the Denons. Did I mention they were about $500 cheaper too?

www.denondj.com/prime-series

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DJ SHOPPER

The 5 Coolest Things I Saw at NAMM 2018 DJ STACI SCOPES OUT THE BIG GEAR SHOW By Staci Nichols #1 - THE NEW GENERATION III BIG SUPERSTAR I30

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Finally, somebody is making a battery-powered, cordless Shure-55-inspired microphone on a stand. This means an attractive bride- and photographer-approved mic for toasts that did not require you to run a cord across the room. Gear bliss! Caveat: The manufacturer, BBS Prosound Limited from China, did not have a speaker connected to this when I walked by...and I suggested making an all-black or all-white version. Email: connie@bbsacoustics.com

show” arena with a software addtion and the RB-DMX-1 interface. Yep, control your whole light show right from your DJ software (that is, if you are a rekordbox DJ). Aside from the obvious convenience factor, you can easily sync the light and the music. Imagine when you upload a new song, your DJ software analyzing the track for BPM... AND creating a corresponding light show. Also coming from rekordbox: pre-progammed song lyric videos for VDJs. Now there’s no excuse not to sing along! www.pioneerdj.com

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#4 - AUDIONAMIX XTRAX STEMS

#2 - 3D DOUBLE TUNNEL DANCE FLOOR & 3D SUPER TUNNEL DANCE FLOOR Do you know how much you’ll pay, minimum, to rent an illuminated, 10’x10’ dance floor in the US? $1,000. Do you know how much you can buy one for from Brave Stage LTD in China? Less than $2,000. These LED dance floor panels cost just $50 each. Shipping from China for a full dance floor is about $300. And the flight case is only $100! It comes with 99 preprogrammed light shows or can be controlled with DMX. I DJed in Mexico for 7 years...LED dance floors are the photo booth of Mexico! I absolutely L-O-V-E-D doing weddings with them. I invited the sales rep, Ivy to MBLV in 2019—fingers crossed! Don’t miss the video on her Instagram (BravoStageIvy) of the SUV driving over one of the dance floor tiles. www.bravoledfloor.com

#3 - REKORDBOX LIGHTS Just like SoundSwitch for Serato and VirtualDJ, rekordbox is entering the “automated light 28

Blue does make collapsible headphones, I like how these stand up for easy grabbing without a need to manipulate them at all before getting them back on the ears: www. bluedesigns.com/ headphones I know no list of gear porn would be complete without a subwoofer, so here it is, your centerfold: QSC’s K-Sub. Hernia-proof? Check. Less bass coming back on you and more directed to the dance floor? Check. Slim and sexy? Check. Buy one this year to help QSC celebrate their 50th anniversary! www.qsc.com

AND FURTHERMORE... TRENDING: Column-style subwoofer/ speaker sets like the Bose L1 system. This is clearly the direction in which mobile DJ gear is moving. The battery-powered JBL Eon One Pro column system will be HOT this year! And look out for tons of knockoffs racing to catch up. www.jbl.com

Listen up Traktor DJs, with this program you can quickly, easily, and automatically turn one song into three stem files (i.e. you can separate the vocals from the music for fast and fresh mash-ups and remixes). Remember, Native Instruments’ stem file format is only compatible with their own Traktor controllers. www.audionamix.com

#5 - GAFF CLUB If you’re like me, two or three times a year there are frenzied runs to Guitar Center on the way to a gig because you’ve run out of gaffer’s tape and forgotten to buy some online during the week. Well, those days are done. Now get very affordable gaffer’s tape delivered to you at set intervals just like a shaving/razor club. I tried out the tape: sticky but not gummy, sturdy but not stiff—perfection! Use the code: NAMM40. www.gaffclub.com

HONORABLE MENTIONS Rubber knobs: for speaker stands, etc (instead of breakable plastic ones) by EHC Knobs. www.ehcknobs.com Void Acoustics’ Incubus System: Yes, boys, it is possible to make speakers that don’t look like tanks rolling off a WWII assembly line. www.voidacoustics.com Blue brand headphones: Esquire Magazine called them “the perfect headphones.” While MO BI LE BE AT.COM ▷ F EBR UA R Y 2018

WHAT I BOUGHT AT NAMM: Earasers HD Ear Plugs by Persona Medical. Instead of clogging up the ear canal, leaving things sounding muffled and cloudy, it simply reduces the sounds we hear. Everything is still sharp—just quieter. Regularly $49.99, I paid $30 with the NAMM show special. www. earasers.net BEST DJ SWAG AT NAMM: Door hanger from Hercules DJ (www.hercules.com/us). One side reads: “The DJ needs a crowd, come in.” The other side reads: “Do not distrurb, mixing.” It’s super cute and made of a really heavy card stock. Thanks Hercules DJ! Runner-ups: a trip through Shure’s GIF-maker photo booth and the ADJ fidget spinner (my daughter loves it!)