Mobile Beat Las Vegas 2011 – Part One
Something magical happens every February in Las Vegas, Nevada. Professional DJs from all over the world descend upon the Mobile Beat Show & Conference, a three four-day adventure of both performance and business education, networking, equipment expo, trends, organization meetings, and parties. I am almost always inspired by several speakers or events that happen at the conference, and this year was a no holds barred situation.
Because not everyone fully understands what it takes to be a professional entertainer, especially in the wedding industry, I thought I would recap some of the highlights from my week. This certainly isn’t everything, but only because I can’t give away everything to those not willing to invest in themselves, their company, and even their own clients.
There was a lot going for MBLV this year, which is why I’ve also chosen to break this up into two posts. If you are concerned you might miss out on the remaining stories, I encourage you to bookmark or subscribe to my blog now.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Buca Di Beppo Annual Dinner
This is a tradition that dates back a number of years, but surprisingly only my second year attending. It’s a bit of a “super secret invite” situation where we pack the banquet room in the back corner of Buca Di Beppo for some shenanigans, great family-style food, and perhaps the best unofficial networking event of the whole trip. Some of these people I’ve never met, or only met via Facebook connections. It’s great to sit at a table with possible strangers and see how things work in their market, who inspires them, and how they ended up at the dinner. Perhaps one of my favorite parts, at the very beginning we are serenaded by one of our own, Jim Cerone, usually by a crooner classic. This year was no exception.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Mitch Taylor | Ace of Sales
This wasn’t really in the full schedule, but actually a “bonus” presentation as part of the DJ Event Planner room. Mitch is a great friend of mine that I first met a few years ago at Mobile Beat. He has begun an intense relationship with author, professional speaker, and business trainer, Jeffrey Gitomer. A new service, Ace of Sales, is designed for smaller businesses (like those in the wedding industry) to connect with their clients on a one-to-one level through electronic communication. Too often, other email marketing tools are designed to blast spam out their lists. Ace of Sales takes a different approach, offering tools to fine tune the content and make it customized to the individual recipient. We are not shooting fish in a barrel, we are generating a connection with out brides and grooms.
While I have not committed to the Ace of Sales system, it is very new (just a few months live) and shows great potential. I look forward to picking the brain of Mitch as time goes by and seeing how much closer his clients are as a result of using this communication system.
Mark Ferrell | You Only Get One Song
This was the #1 reason I attended Mobile Beat. As you will see in this series of posts, there are many great speakers and reasons to attend. However, Mark Ferrell is one of the most awe-inspiring presenters you will encounter. He and his wife Rebecca are known for their MarBecca Workshops, which educate the determined entertainers on topics such as Master of Ceremonies and Presentation of the Love Story. Looking through my chicken scratch, I took 3x more notes during his presentation than anyone else this year.
It didn’t take long for Mark to connect with everyone in that room, and he only needed one work to do that: TALENT. He reminded us that we all do the same things, and that it’s “how” you do those things that differentiate you from the masses.
“‘DJ Good’ is no longer good enough,” said Ferrell.
He reminded me why I’ve been in this industry for sixteen years. It’s no longer a gig. It’s not just another contract. I love what I do, and my clients are the reason I care so much about what I do. This is not a superficial relationship. It is one reason I will insist on meeting with my clients before even discussing the booking agreement. It is a passion. It is my passion.
Does that make me unique in my market, perhaps. Think about the other vendors you meet. Consider the discussion you had with them. Were they getting to know you, your needs, and your expectations – or were they just trying to put another date on their calendar? This applies whether you are a client or another vendor.
In case you are curious, all of that came from page one of the notes. I’ve got three more that I do not intend to share with the world. 🙂
Two more days of chaos are coming!
You’ve just read about the first two days at Mobile Beat Las Vegas. There are still two more to come, so be sure to check back later this week for the next installment, where I’ll talk about Larry Williams, Randy Bartlett and the Wedding Entertainment Directors Guild.
