- Jalifig
- 9 years ago
I accidentally psted this on the Miami board. Hello all, I just thought I would vent regarding a DJ experience we recently had. First I wanted to say that every single person I spoke to recommended this guy as a DJ. I am not calling him names and we werent under contract but still I need to vent. We met with him sometime at the end of last year. My Fiance did not like him to begin with because he only spoke to me, until it came time to discuss fees when he looked at Fiance. However, he never a gave us a copy of his fee schedule which is fine whatever.
A month later, he e-mail me and asked if we wanted to book him because he had an inquiry. I e-mailed back and said that we had not made our decision so feel free to book that date.
Recenlty, I e-mailed him and asked if he was available, he said he should be but then asked me when it was. Then I called him and he said he was renting out equipment or something “small” or as he put a “simpleton event.” He said he would try to contract that out and would get back to me by Monday (this was a Thursday or Friday). Keep in mind this guy always is soooo busy doing events and going to charity events and has to always explain why he couldn’t pick up the phone. I don’t need your excuses just answers. So, on Monday I called him back, and he said he was 99% percent sure that he could do it and would get back to me the following day. In the interim I e-mailed him about the fees for the ceremony and reception and just the reception. He came back with one number which I thought only pertained to the reception which is higher than what he originally quoted. I will paste the corresponce in this post. At that point, he still had yet to respond to whether he could even do it or not. Then the day before yesterday my Fiance called he said he could do and that he already e-mailed me the fees. Keep in mind we were NOT under contract with him, but he said he could do it. Then I get this e-mail yesterday.
DJ: Base rate is $695 + $100 each additional hour; In your case that would be a max of 5 hours due to the 11PM noise ordinance (6-11). Only other possible fees would be $100 additional charge if second story event with no elevator and $100 per hour additional if equipment must be set up on sand (i.e.: Beach Wedding). No additional fees for setup, tear-down, music downloads, etc..
Me:Can you give me two quotes including all fees for the following?Ceremony music on the beach, ceremony begins at 5 p.m. and will last maybe 30 minutes. Reception will be in the beach house and will begin at 6 and end at 10 p.m. It is on the second floor, but we have an elevator. And just he reception in the the beach house from 6-10. Additionally, do you have your own table or will we need to provide this for you? Thank you,
DJ: As per below, $795 for the reception…as for the ceremony, how far is it from the reception? Are we in extension cord distance or is a generator necessary? I have my own table & linen, By The Way.
Me: Can you tell me what the additionally $100 is for? In an ealier e-mail you said your base rate for 4 hours is $695 and in a telephone coversation you said there would be no charge for the second floor because there is an elevator in the house.Regarding the ceremony, it will be on the beach. I’m not sure of the distance, but it wouldn’t be right in front of the home. How loud is your generator?Can you send us over a contract?
DJ: I have reviewed all of my previous e-mails to you, and was unable to find where I gave you that quote. You are correct, there is no additional fee since there is an elevator. As for the additional $100, I was actually offering you a discounted rate on the beach wedding, which is normally an additional $295. “What it is for”, is for the extreme difficulty of hauling a good amount of heavy, durable but still electronic equipment in multiple trips over long distances in a sandy and sometimes wet environment, including cables which have to be individually towel cleaned before they are put away. It makes for very difficult set-up and tear-down, and the environment is very hard on very expensive equipment. The generator is a quiet and dependable one, but…there is a fee, which I am sure you are not going to be happy to hear. I am at this point convinced that it would be best if you retain the services of another DJ rather than myself for your wedding & reception. As I am already under agreement for a “Non-DJ’ing” event, I have tried to make arrangements to bring in other resources and make this work, but I am beginning to feel that (no matter how simple the other event), it would be best if I focused on the client I already have under contract, and help you find someone who can focus solely on you two that day to make it a great one. It is important to me to make sure my client experience is always first-rate and focused on quality and satisfaction–which is the reason I always contact clients I have previously met with right of first refusal when I have a second inquiry on an event, as I did in your case. I am sorry it did not work out–let me know if I can help you with a referral. Please know I wish you nothing but the best for a great wedding day. Kindest Regards,
Can you believe this e-mail. First of all, he never sent a sheet with a list of prices. Second of all, he did quote $695 and confirmed that it was for four hours over the phone. I asked him for 2 quotes and he only gave me one for the reception, which was higher. I think that I am entitled to ask for a breakdown of what his services include. And I actually just read that comment about the generator. Why is it necessary to tell me that I am not going to be happy to hear that it is an additional fee WHEN YOU CLEARLY ARE NOT DOING THE WEDDING!!! He was not convinced the day before when he told my fiance over the phone that he could and would do it. Why is it necessary try and make me feel like I am lowballing him? I need to know what I am paying for exactly. I shouldn’t have to justify why I want to know how much it is going to cost in total. The ending to his e-mail just makes it worse like he really wants to help. ARGGHHHHH.
I am so angry at this guy who is in Pensacola, Florida. For those who want a name e-mail me.
Angry bee!