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IT’S A FACT.

Hiring a great DJ is one of the most important parts of making your day special. Whether you choose me or not, I want to make sure you have all the necessary information critical to the success of your event. Please take a moment to learn a little bit about me and what goes into making me a great choice for your event.

ABOUT ME

My name is Randy Helfrich, and I own NightHawk DJ Service. I’ve been in business over 32 years and a brief glance at my reviews will show you how pleased my clients have been.

In addition to satisfied clients, I also have a great relationship with several other DJs in town. If I’m booked when you need me, I will definitely be able to steer you to an associate of mine and I appreciate that my fellow DJs do the same for me. Having a network you can trust is a great asset in this business.

Most people don’t have a need for a DJ on a regular basis. In fact you will only hire a DJ once or twice in your lifetime. That’s why it is very important that when you need a DJ, you get the best one. I would like to use this page to give you some important information to consider when making your choice. Whether you ultimately choose me or not, your decision will be a well-informed one.

WHY REFERRALS MATTER

Many people only have one question in mind when looking for a DJ . . . pricing! While I understand that everyone has a budget and bottom line, I need you to understand that for me to succeed, I must provide excellent service and a great price.

While a few people will find me through a web-search, the majority of my business comes through referrals and word of mouth. The excellent service I provide for special occasions keeps people spreading the word about NightHawk DJ Service. While you may not need me for repeated events, I want to impress you and your guests so much that when you hear of someone needing a DJ, you automatically think of me. I have no desire to sell you with some slick speech or an unusually low quote, I want my past success to speak for me.

DON’T BE SWAYED BY HORROR STORIES

It’s an unfortunate fact that many DJs try to scare you into paying inflated prices. Many run negative campaigns about what can happen to a customer who chooses the wrong DJ. I find it sad that the only method some people have for promoting their business is telling you how bad the competition can be. Don’t be frightened into choosing your DJ.

The truth of the matter is that in any business there are good and bad service providers. I believe my customers are intelligent enough to choose the DJ that will work for them without having to resort to “what if’s.” Again, look at the length of time someone has been in business and the reviews that they have. This will tell you a lot of what you need to know. In today’s Internet age, if someone has a bad reputation, it’s not hard to find out.

PRICING

Now you are probably asking, what do I charge and how did I decide on my pricing. You likely have (or will) received several quotes and chances are you will find some DJs who are cheaper and some who are more expensive. It is not my intent to tell you that you should spend more or less money. I will just tell you what you can expect to receive in certain price ranges and I think you will see why my services stand out. If you decide another pricing range is more suited to your event, I wish you well and there are no hard feelings.

Before we start, I invite you to visit this web site:
http://www.costofwedding.com/index.cfm/action/search.weddingcost/zipcode/62059
to see the average cost of a wedding DJ in your area. For a local Wedding DJ, the "average" price for a reception is now well above $850. Although my rates are below the average price for DJs, please keep in mind that these averages include price ranges from some very high-price DJs.

To better understand this topic, let me give you an example of the four most common types of pricing for DJs so you can see where I fit it.

1. BARE BONES DJs : At this level you are hiring the cheapest DJ you can find. While this may be the easiest solution on your wallet, it often comes with a few red flags that you should consider. Many of these DJs work part-time and have no back-up in case of injury or illness. Others may not have the necessary licenses or insurance to protect their clients. Often their personal cell phone serves as their business line.

On the other hand, it is possible to find a cheap DJ who is just getting started and is willing to accept a small fee just to get the experience and build up a network of referrals. Others may simply do the job as a hobby and have another full-time line of work.

Should you avoid these DJs? Not necessarily, it’s up to you, but I would like to suggest you investigate all your options before making your decision.

2. ECONOMY DJS : Economy DJs represent a huge portion of the market. You have everything from super large companies that have 10-20 DJs available to them at any time to independent DJs who started out as bare-bones operators and are working to move themselves up in the business.

Large DJ companies are able to make profits by hiring a number of independent contractor DJs who are essentially “on-call” when they need them. This means that you might not even know what DJ will show up at your event. However, with their large pool of resources, you can almost guarantee at least a DJ will show up. These companies have offices and administrative staff to run their organization, but you want to make sure you can select the DJ you want and meet him or her before your event.

With independent operators, make sure they have the experience that you want and referrals that you can speak to so you can see how they have performed at other events. Check for a business license, phone and insurance, you are paying more for a reason.

Remember, this is your event and you need to be comfortable with your decision. You are paying for a service, nobody is doing you a favor, they should take the time to impress you.

3. MID-PRICE TO HIGH-PRICE DJS : This is the category that I fall into. Ranging from $550-$1200 you will find this to be a relatively small pool of DJs. What we offer in this category is generally great customer service, years of experience, professional and articulate MC & hosting abilities and a can- do attitude. We are here to make sure your event goes off without a hitch no matter what that takes.

Once you enter this range you really need to make sure that your DJ offers the following:

  • Liability insurance
  • A current business license
  • Professional equipment
  • An extensive song catalog
  • A clear contract with a performance guarantee
  • A direct business line with timely responses to calls
  • A back-up plan for emergencies
  • A face-to-face meeting to discuss your event (at your discretion)
  • References that you can contact
  • Years of experience
  • Experience in high profile events

With regard to my services, you should know that I carry full liability insurance and have a valid business license. I have up-to-date professional equipment and offer an extensive song selection. My contract is clear and concise and there are no hidden fees. I am easily reached through my telephone or website and while I have never had to cancel an event thus far, I am happy to go over my back-up plan with you for emergencies. I am more than happy to sit down with you in person to go over any of these items and to discuss your vision for your special day. I can also provide a number of references for you that would be happy to give you detailed information about how I enhanced their events.

My goal is to make sure I am one of the best decisions you make for your special event and I will go above and beyond to make sure you have the time of your life. You can be assured that I will have all the details under control and the only thing you will need to do is to enjoy yourself.

4. VERY HIGH-PRICE DJ’S : There are a few companies in business that place a premium on their DJs and regularly charge upwards of $1500 for a 4 hour event. These companies not only provide DJs but they provide lighting, props, performers, custom decorations to hide their equipment and more. These DJs put on events of the quality you are likely to see in tv and movies. Let me tell you, if this is what you are looking for, and you can afford it, by all means, take it to the next level. However, for most people, these companies are out of their price range.

PRICING AND ILLEGALLY DOWNLOADED MUSIC

“How do I know if my DJ is using illegally downloaded music?”

First, just because a DJ may fall into the bare-bones price range, it does not mean that he or she is using illegally downloaded music. As I mentioned before, the DJ may just be getting started in the business.

For peace of mind, the best thing to do is ASK.
“Why is illegally downloaded music a concern to me?”

1. QUALITY : While illegal downloads can sound fine when played on a CD or MP3, often the quality suffers when the music is amplified to play in a large venue. Also, music that is legally downloaded can often be obtained in a higher bitrate that makes the music sound perfect when played on professional equipment.

2. AVAILABILITY : As we all know, downloading music illegally is a crime. While it may not affect you immediately, do you really want to chance hiring a DJ who may have all of his or her music confiscated the day before your event?

Thankfully, most DJs use legally downloaded music, but it never hurts to ask.

MAKING A DECISION

Well, after reading this far, you may now be able to make a decision about your DJ. If you are still stuck, go with experience. The more experience a DJ has, the more likely they are going to be to solve any problems that come up on your big day.

THE WEDDING BUDGET

While I am sure you have read plenty of articles on how to budget your money for the big day, only you can decide your priorities. Most wedding planners suggest that about 5-10% of your wedding budget be allotted to entertainment. For those of you working with smaller budgets, you have to consider how important the DJ is for you, and adjust accordingly.

I will need to know the location of your event for planning purposes, but rest assured that I do not vary my prices based on the extravagance of the location. Whether you are having your event at the most exclusive venue in town, or in your backyard, my price remains the same.

While I wish I could adjust my prices for those of you with tight budgets, I unfortunately cannot. I just ask that you consider how important your event day DJ is to you and perhaps except that you might be paying a little more to know that you will have no worries on your big day. In hindsight, I am sure it will seem like a great investment.

GETTING YOUR GUESTS ON THE DANCE FLOOR

Here is where you ask me for the magic secret to getting all your guests on the dance floor. Unfortunately, I don’t have one. Some guests, no matter how amazing the event is, just won’t dance. However, the good news is that these guests are usually few and far between.

My years of experience at reading crowds along with your input as to what you would like to hear will help create the right environment for a memorable experience. I will use interactive dances and pull out all the stops to make sure your guests have a great time.

WHAT MUSIC WILL YOU PLAY?

Well, it all depends on what music you and your guests would like to hear. What environment do you want to set? Would you like to start out slow and kick it up a notch or start right out with a party?

You might be surprised to know that at most wedding receptions there is really only about 2 hours or so of actual dance-time. The rest of the time you will be eating, making introductions, doing toasts, cutting the cake, throwing the bouquet and enjoying all the other fun traditions that make weddings special. What this means is that if you give me a list of 100 “must-play” songs, you will be lucky to hear half of them.

I suggest that the Bride and Groom give me their “Top 10” favorite songs. The favorite songs will give me a great understanding of the type of music you like and allow me the ability to accept requests from guests. Please note that since I only use the radio-edit versions of songs, the lyrics may slightly differ from any version you have downloaded off the Internet.

SUMMARY

I hope you have found this page helpful in your journey to hire a DJ. Whether you choose me or not, I am sure you know a little bit more about the hiring process and I wish you great success with your event.

Randy Helfrich, Your St.Clair County area Wedding DJ

Testimonials

  • We were nervous going in to it because many of our married friends said that the DJ can make or break the reception. But, in our case the DJ definitely made it a wonderful and fun celebration for everyone. Randy was very respectful of our likes and dislikes and was great about requests. There was never a time during the reception that the dance floor was empty! Everyone in attendance had a great time!

  • Randy you were wonderful. We\\\'ve gotten so many compliments on him from our guests. He had people out there dancing that I have never seen dance before. He was great and so easy to work with during the planning process. He would always contact me to make sure everything was going good. Definitely a class act.

  • I just wanted to thank you again for doing such an amazing job at DJ'ing at our wedding! The aura that you brought was just something that could have not been accomplished by anyone else! Still to this day (2 months after) I am getting the highest compliments about how great of a job you did at keeping everyone involved and dancing! YOU ROCK BABY!!! With much appreciation,

  • We truly enjoyed our wedding night and a big majority of that was due to you! We had a blast and I think everyone there was exhausted from dancing by the time it was over. We think that you did an outstanding job and I will definitely recommend you to any of my girlfriends getting married. Thanks again for everything! Sincerely, KELLEYy & BILL WUEST

  • We thought everything went awesome! Randy was very professional. Our guests thought we had a reception coordinator because everything went so smooth & stress free. There were so many people on the dance floor & much interaction and the games were great and will be remembered for years to come. We loved the garter toss where the guys all sung the top gun theme! THANK YOU!

  • With planning everything for our wedding, everything got a little crazy. Our DJ was the one thing we did not have to worry about. The DJ's we had were amazing! Six months after our wedding, we are still hearing how great of a time people had at the reception, all thanks to our DJ's. A few couples who came to our wedding said they will definitely go with NightHawk . Thank you sooo much! We can't begin to thank you enough for making not only our day memorable to us, but also to all of our guests.

  • With planning everything for our wedding, everything got a little crazy. Our DJ was the one thing we did not have to worry about. The DJ's we had were amazing! Six months after our wedding, we are still hearing how great of a time people had at the reception, all thanks to our DJ's. A few couples who came to our wedding said they will definitely go with NightHawk . Thank you sooo much! We can't begin to thank you enough for making not only our day memorable to us, but also to all of our guests. THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!

  • With planning everything for our wedding, everything got a little crazy. Our DJ was the one thing we did not have to worry about. The DJ's we had were amazing! Six months after our wedding, we are still hearing how great of a time people had at the reception, all thanks to our DJ's. A few couples who came to our wedding said they will definitely go with NightHawk . Thank you sooo much! We can't begin to thank you enough for making not only our day memorable to us, but also to all of our guests. THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!

  • I was a bridesmaid in the Hempfling wedding and just wanted to tell you what a great job you did...we had so much fun!! I liked the way that you did things. I liked the way you "started" the dance, by getting everyone out there to watch Dean and Erica and then the music starts and you instantly had the dance floor filled instead of waiting for the reception to be half over with before they get up to participate. I will definitely recommend you to anyone I know who is in the market for a Belleville Wedding DJ service. THANKS AGAIN FOR A GREAT TIME !!!

  • We love the way were able to personalize the music the way we wanted it. I cant forget the feeling me and Brian had as we heard our names announced for the first time as Mr. & Mrs. I would say the best investment we made was the entertainment . Any one looking for a Belleville Wedding DJ Nighthawk DJ service is a great choice. BRIAN & RACHEL

  • Thank you so much for the incredible job you did DJ’ing our wedding day!!!! The music was fantastic and thanks to you everyone was dancing and having a great time! It was an absolute pleasure to work with you and we truly appreciate all of the time you took to help us create the “perfect entertainment!” We will be sure to refer you to any friends and family in the future. Thank you again for sharing in our special day and helping us create memories that will last a lifetime. Sincerely, TIM & JESSICA

  • We want to thank you so much for all of the hard work you put into our wedding. You really helped to make our reception everything we had hoped for. You did an amazing job from the first day we met with you until the very end of our wedding night. We had a great time planning with you and we really appreciated all of your help and input. You are the best! We would recommend NightHawk DJ Service to anyone. You helped make our night so much fun and you got everyone up on the dance floor! We hope you had fun too! Thank you for everything! LOVE, JEFF & SARAH

  • NightHawk DJ Service was more than a DJ, you really ran the whole event. You helped us know what to do & when to do it, I don’t want to think of what might have happened without you. Also, you did a great job reading the crowd & playing songs to get them dancing, while still respecting our requests. Thank you! SCOTT & DEBBIE