ARMDJS 4.0 was “Textbook”….
Just like a 4.0 grade point average represents the best grade, the recent ARMDJS event in Johnson City Tennessee was a textbook example of a DJ conference done right.
The highly anticipated event saw a record number of attendees arriving at the beautiful Millennium Center located next door to the Carnegie Hotel. More than a dozen exhibitors lined the hallways leading into the huge meeting room. A large center stage, two massive video screens and a great sound system welcomed the attendees who were “pumped up” to see a line-up that was second-to-none.
Day One – An Incredible Kick Off
First up was Todd Mitchem. His return to the DJ conference stage did not disappoint. He set the tone with an inspiring talk that motivated all in attendance. Next was author Tom Haibeck who offered sound advice on Wedding Toasts. After lunch, Wedding Entertainment Director Marcello redefined the word “energy” with an energetic display of interactive routines and games that can be used at events. Day one concluded with Mike Walter. He has firmly established his expertise in hiring and training great employees. He detailed techniques from his new book and the audience loved it.
Tuesday night found DJs and guests enjoying the “Meet, Greet & Jam”. This impromptu jam session of DJ musicians has become a time-honored tradition at ARMDJS. Guests are welcomed to invite themselves to “sit in” and jam with the band. As usual, the family event was a great time for everyone!
Day Two – An Unexpected Near Catastrophe
By Wednesday morning, many were feeling this event was going to make history. After all, New York Times best-selling author Michael Port was to headline the event. But as it turned out, an unforeseen catastrophe nearly derailed the day. About 30 minutes into Rick Brewer’s wedding marketing seminar, the unthinkable happened. The entire facility lost power. Everything went dark, the sound system, air conditioning and video screens stopped. Within seconds, backup emergency lighting kicked in as a dimmed set of overhead lights turned on.
Without skipping a beat, Rick Brewer took off his coat and continued with his presentation. He projected his voice and got right back to work. But what happened behind the scenes was probably the most amazing thing of all. While convention center workers scrambled to find out what happened, event producer Robbie Britton knew precisely what needed to be done. After all, he’s a DJ and owns Funville, one of the biggest carnival-style event production companies this side of the Mississippi.
He immediately radioed his staff to retrieve three high powered generators that were located in his company truck in the parking lot. They were manually transported upstairs to a hallway directly behind the convention center seminar room. As Rick Brewer continued his seminar, Robbie’s staff was running extension cable, plugging in speakers, video projectors and other essentials in preparation to save the day. And save the day, they did! Within fifteen minutes, Robbie and his staff had the sound system and video projector up and running.
Peter Merry took to the stage to deliver his seminar “Showcasing Your Value”. As expected, his seminar was right on target with helpful tips that kept attendees taking plenty of notes. Peter worked right through the dim lights of the conference room and delivered a great speech.
Robbie continued to keep attendees posted on the situation between seminars. Because things were running so smooth, the inconvenience of a massive power outage did not seem to affect anyone. Most DJ conferences have a hard enough time with sound systems and wireless microphones. The idea of a catastrophic power outage would have derailed nearly any other event. But Robbie Britton and his staff were expertly prepared and pulled off perhaps the greatest “save” in DJ conference history.
As it turned out, the culprit was a squirrel. Apparently, a squirrel ran up a utility pole behind the Millennium Center and fried a transformer, which knocked out power to most of the block. City crews got the power restored within a few hours – but it was Robbie Britton’s quick thinking and preparedness that saved the day. Next up was David Louis who flew in from Hawaii. His presentation offered great original ideas in wedding marketing that nobody expected. Many couldn’t take notes fast enough.
The Boost Sessions
After a lunch break, everyone returned for the main event. The Boost Sessions were another brainchild of Robbie Britton’s. These would offer a one-two-three punch of business seminars that would be unlike anything offered at a DJ conference.
First up was Jeffrey Gitomer “certified” speaker Patrick Henry. Henry, a former country music songwriter, offered an entertaining and inspiring talk about customer relationships. Most astounding was the fact that he was a speaker from outside the DJ industry, yet he did his homework and completely understood his audience. His stories, interaction, examples and power-point were directly written for the DJ industry. Patrick Henry was easily the most prepared speaker (from outside the DJ industry) who has ever spoken at a DJ conference.
Author Larry Williams then took the stage and continued to lay the foundation for the upcoming keynote presenter. His seminar on customer service brought a whole new meaning to a subject that is often taken for granted. His “soapbox” moment clearly spelled out a two-decade long deficiency in ethical standards that energized attendees to take action.
The ARMDJS conference was about to make history once again. For nearly two days, nine top caliber industry leaders brought forth new ideas, techniques and routines that inspired attendees. But it was keynote presenter Michael Port that was about to knock it out of the park. Asking first for attendees to close their laptops, he had their undivided attention and proceeded to detail the four points necessary to “Book Yourself Solid”. These points, from his best selling book of the same name, had attendees captivated.
Port is one of the most sought-after professional business speakers in the nation. Here he detailed tips that are normally reserved for Fortune 500 companies and brought them into sharp focus for small business DJ owners. It represented insights that are hard to describe unless you were in attendance. It was one of those “you had to be there” moments that may never again be duplicated in the DJ industry.
DJs Have Finally Found a Summer Home
ARMDJS has proven itself to be one of the best (if not, THE best) DJ educational conference in the nation. Each year has seen attendance figures soar. Each year the seminar speaker line-up continues to impress. What started out as an experiment to bring DJs together in Eastern Tennessee, has taken the DJ industry by storm. But how can Robbie Britton possible top this? Time will tell – or maybe you just might have to attend ARMDJS 5.0 and see for yourself. Oh, did I mention next year’s keynote presenter will be Gary Vaynerchuk? Yes, history might just repeat itself!
www.ARMDJS5150.com – You’d be “crazy” not to attend!
