By Tony Schwartz, “The Social Media DJ”
Now, first thing’s first: a giglog is a GREAT piece of content to publish, which as I have wrote about before, you need to be doing. In fact, if you aren’t doing video recaps of your events yet, you are missing out on an ENORMOUS opportunity to showcase your talents to perspective clients. Producing video recaps from your events needs to be one of your New Year’s resolution for 2016.
A great giglog requires a little bit of thought and pre-planning, if you will. So, based off of viewing a couple of hundred giglogs the past few weeks - I had a lot of cookies to bake! - here are some useful tips:
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
The majority of giglogs I’ve watched are geared towards DJs. Which is fine, if you are seeking feedback and criticism. However, if you want your giglogs to go to work for you and help you gain more bookings, you need to produce a giglog that is client-focused, not DJ-focused.
KEEP IT SHORT
Some of the giglogs I clicked on were ten minutes long - and some even longer! For most of these giglogs, I watched two minutes and then moved on, because I had yet to see anything interesting. Keep your giglogs between two and four minutes total, and get to the action within the first minute. There are hundreds of DJs for clients to review; you only have seconds to impress before they move on.
DON’T SHOW EVERY. SINGLE. PIECE. OF. EQUIPMENT. YOU HAVE
Your giglog should be about showcasing the experience you create, not the equipment you have. For some giglogs, the first two minutes were all about the equipment and they still weren’t done when I had moved on. I get it; you’re proud of what you have. Use your equipment to create magic on video; but don’t ruin the magic by telling us what you used/did to create it.
KEEP THE FORMAT SIMPLE
Within four minutes - or less! - accomplish this:
0:00 - 0:45 - Logo, Quick Intro of the Event
0:45 - 3:50 (or less) - Quick Highlights
3:50 - 4:00 - Logo and Contact Info
Keep each highlight clip to about ten seconds or so. Don’t stay locked on to something for too long.
CHANGE IT UP
When producing giglogs, try to switch up the highlights you show from giglog to giglog. And most importantly of all: SHOW A PACKED DANCE FLOOR WITHOUT “THE CUPID SHUFFLE” OR “THE CHA CHA SLIDE” PLAYING IN THE BACKGROUND!!!
Why? Because that’s what every other DJ is showing in their giglog. I’m not saying don’t play the songs if it’s right for the event, but do be selective in the editing process.
DON’T BE STUPID
I was shocked when a dozen or so giglogs featured moments where the DJ said the gig sucked, lots of swearing, etc. Imagine your client seeing that?!? Better yet, imagine a perspective client questioning if you would put their event on blast on YouTube?!? Keep it positive, and if you can’t, then don’t produce the giglog.
QUALITY MATTERS
Please, don’t shoot a giglog on your cell phone. Invest in a nice camera - I use this one for my companies - and hire someone to shoot for you while you perform. Trust me, it’s really hard to shoot while mixing, and it is even worse to be that DJ holding up a camera from behind the booth.
If you don’t have the money yet to buy a quality camera, rent one. Trust me, quality videos - both from a shot and edited standpoint - will quickly net you the money to buy a nice camera.
Finally, invest time and money into a video editing program. I use Final Cut Pro, and its awesome. iMovie and Windows Movie Maker are okay for your first few, but trust me, eventually, you’ll want to step up.
FINAL ADVICE
Have fun, and be super creative with your giglogs. However, go re-read KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. It’s super important. When you are editing your giglog, keep it in mind. If you do want to show “behind-the-scenes” footage, create a special series for that. I’m all for community, but be mindful of what you are producing and publishing.
DJs: Did you like this article? Hate it? I’m on Twitter at @DJTonySchwartz - tweet me your thoughts!
