We had some time to interview Evan Reitmeyer – one of our favorite DJ’s! Check it out!
How did you get started in the wedding business?
By accident. Seriously! Coming out of college with a background in IT, I was struggling to find a job. It was right after the dot-com bubble burst, and the market was saturated with people who had much better resumes than I did. I took a job as a contractor doing some cross-platform database development for a DJ agency near Baltimore. I was there a couple weeks when they asked if I’d be interested in becoming a DJ, and I thought it might be fun. I turned out to have a natural knack for DJing, and particularly for weddings. I quit the agency after being there almost four years and started MyDeejay.com – the rest is history!
What do you do when you are not working?
I don’t understand… what do you mean “when you are not working?” I’ve never heard of that… I work a lot. MyDeejay.com is a family business, both me and my beautiful and talented wife Jennifer work on the company full-time. Building and maintaining a successful business takes a lot of time, but when we’re not in the office we spend as much time as possible with our uber-cute son Colin.
How would you describe your approach to weddings?
Our approach is all about honesty, trust, and results. The DJ is typically the vendor that couples are most worried about, because they’ve either seen a bad wedding DJ or have heard horror stories. We really strive to be the antithesis to the stereotype. Each couple meets their DJ, in person, before we even give them a contract. We place a premium on building a strong relationship with our clients, which enables us to serve them better and give them exactly what they want on their wedding day. The proof is in the pudding – our online reviews are consistently fantastic, and our clients refer us like crazy to their engaged friends.
What inspires you in your work?
Being the best. I don’t mean that in the sense that I just want MyDeejay.com to be better than the other DJ companies in the area, I want us to be better than every other DJ company imaginable. We compete against ourselves, and constantly challenge ourselves to be better. Our mantra is “doing business the right way,” which means that we are always looking for ways to improve and provide better service to our customers. This includes everything from the advice on our website to the clothes we wear when we are setting up our equipment – every aspect of our business is designed for one purpose: to provide the best customer experience possible.
What do you find the most rewarding about your job?
Knowing that we’re making people happy and delivering on our promises every single weekend. Most of the time, couples have no idea how important our job is to the overall success of the reception – they don’t realize our impact until the end of the wedding. Getting thank-you notes and emails, great online reviews, and referrals from our former clients is incredibly satisfying, because it means that we’re actually accomplishing our goals.
What’s the one thing you wish everyone knew about you or your business?
You know, even though we put a ton of information on our website, there is still a lot that we don’t talk about. I wish everyone knew how much time and effort we put into each wedding, each couple, and our company in general. We make it look easy, but it’s a lot of work. Our customers don’t know about our cutting-edge management backend (that nobody besides us will ever see), our internal policies and processes, our incredible DJ training program that we make EVERYONE go through – even if they’ve done 500 weddings, or the continuous education and group training we do with our staff. I like to say we’re stuck in a “company improvement feedback loop” because it’s a process that never ends.
What do you think sets your company apart from other wedding DJs?
Basically our entire approach – we’ve designed our entire business to give our customers the best experience possible. We give couples all of the benefits of working with a single-operator DJ like excellent customer service and the ability to meet their DJ before they sign a contract, and add all of the advantages of working with a larger company, like a huge music library and a rock-solid emergency backup program. I think we stand out from other DJ companies because we don’t have any weaknesses, and we have an impeccable reputation that we are extremely proud of.
What do you love about weddings?
Everything! Well, almost everything. Honestly, this is the best job in the world. It’s still incredible to me that, when I go to work, the people I’m working for are having the happiest day of their lives, and it’s my job to make sure that everyone has fun. I love music, I love happy people, and I love the sense of satisfaction I get at the end of the night and the bride and groom tell me how much fun they had. Weddings are incredibly rewarding emotionally, because you have a chance to make someone’s special day an amazing experience.
What’s the best piece of advice you can give to couples when planning the music aspect of their wedding?
Do your homework. You probably don’t realize it, but this is basically the most important decision you’re going to make in terms of the overall impact on your reception. If you have great entertainment, your wedding will be a smashing success. If you have not-so-great entertainment, your guests will probably leave early. It pays to do some research, check references, and check online reviews.
Who is your favorite artist or band?
I ask people this question all the time, and I can’t answer it myself. I love too much music. How’s this? A six-way tie between Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Outkast, Mos Def, The Cure, and Thievery Corporation. And Diana Krall. And Brad Paisley. And Sade. Nevermind, I give up. I can’t do it.
What is the worst song of all time?
It’s funny you should ask! Speaking of segues, I have a 4-part series on my blog (http://www.mydeejay.com/blog/2009/08/worst-songs-ever-40-worst-songs-of-all-time-part-1) that answers this very question.
Open mic, final thoughts:
Planning a wedding should be fun, or at least not un-fun. Try to remember that you’re celebrating your love, and it’s not about making other people happy. Other people will be happy for you if you’re happy, and if they’re not, then they shouldn’t be on your guest list. Other than that, just hire professionals and people you can trust. Take their advice, follow their lead, and it will be great!