By Stacy Zemon, Publisher & Chief Scribe
I’ll bet you didn’t know that you could spend nearly every month of the year attending a different industry trade show if you wanted to. Of course then you wouldn’t be working and making money, so it wouldn’t be very realistic to spend your time trolloping around the globe.
However, if you’d rather work “smart” than hard, continuing your education and learning new tips and tricks is a valuable thing to do every year by attending at least one or two trade shows.
Working “smart” means that you are able to charge more for your services and/or have more products or services to offer potential clients. It also means that you have successfully incorporated what you’ve learned and have more bookings and better performances.
You will not achieve this on your own. Repeat. You will not achieve this on your own. Why? Because you’ve got a limited set of “tools” in your “toolbox” and it needs to be filled. How do you fill it? The answer again is education.
From an industry standpoint, you can attend conventions, subscribe to trade publications, watch DVDs, read books (shameless plug), attend seminars and workshops, regularly visit educational websites, take some training, and join DJ associations. You can also educate yourself from materials outside our business on the subject of business and sales. Newcomers to the field would be wise to join a multi-op and learn from the ground up.
If you are not doing these things on a consistent basis then the bottom line is that you’re missing out, which is affecting your bottom line. The top mobile DJs in our business all realize the value of continuing education and if you want to be one of them, you can start today!
Here’s a comprehensive listing of every industry event in the world coming up over the next year:
2014-2015
JANUARY
Winter NAMM
January 22-25, 2015
Anaheim Convention Center
Anaheim, CA
United States
FEBRUARY
Mobile Beat Las Vegas DJ Show
February 23-26, 2015
Riviera Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas, NV
United States
MARCH
Winter Music Conference
March 15-24, 2015
Miami Beach Convention Center
Miami, FL
United States
Nightclub & Bar Show
March 30-April 1, 2015
Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas, NV
United States
Musikmesse
March 15-18, 2015
Musikmesse Expo Center
Frankfurt am Main
Germany
SEPTEMBER
The Las Vegas DJ Show
Sept 7-10, 2014
Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas, NV
United States
Wedding MBA
September 16-18, 2014
Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas, NV
United States
BPM DJ Show
September 13-15, 2014
The NEC
Birmingham
United Kingdom
Video DJ Conference
September 28-October 2, 2014
Tuscany Suites & Casino
Las Vegas, NV
United States
OCTOBER
PLASA
October 5-8, 2014
Earls Court Exhibition Centre
London, SW5 9TA
United Kingdom
Prolight + Sound – Shanghai
October 8-11, 2014
Shanghai New International Expo Centre
Shanghai
China
NOVEMBER
Lighting Dimensions International
November 17-23, 2014
Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas, NV
United States
Click here for a complete listing that includes every month.
