FAQs
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
At your convenience we will schedule a consultation to discuss our services and outline how we can hopefully exceed your expectations. While our office hours are 8am to 6pm, Monday through Friday, with advanced notice we can usually have one of our staff available as early as 7am and as late as 9pm on any day of the week for this meeting. For the initial consultation, most of our clients prefer a phone call but we are always happy to meet with you in-person as well. During this call or meeting we will go over everything involved in the wedding DJ process and provide you with different pricing options and packages. At the end of the meeting we can pencil you in for a complimentary and risk-free hold on our calendar for 10 days. If you decide you would like to proceed with booking Pulse Entertainment, to secure your date we require a signed contract and a 50% down payment of the total contract amount. Most of the booking process can be done online. We'll send you a link to our online booking system where you'll confirm the date/time/venue, and provide us with contact information. You will then receive an email with a contract that you can print out and sign. At the end of this process you can enter your credit card on our website or pay with PayPal for the down payment. If you'd prefer to pay with check, you can mail it to our office or drop it off. About a month prior to your wedding, your assigned DJs will reach out to you with a standard questionnaire and a generic wedding timeline that has been adjusted to fit your event. The questionnaire will ask things such as what types of music you'd like to hear (or don't want to hear) as well as if it's okay to take requests from guests. The timeline will include the specific events on it such as first dance, cake cutting, etc and is something you can modify as you would like. For music planning, you can be as specific or as vague as you would like. If you have a strict playlist and want us to follow it exactly, we can do that! If you don't have a clue what type of music you want to hear and want our DJs to use their judgement, no problem either! Don't worry, we will be there throughout the planning process to assist you with everything and answer any questions that you may have along the way. We ask that couples email the completed information back to us two weeks prior to the wedding. That will give us ample time to plan and prepare song requests, go over the timeline with the venue's event coordinator, and ensure that all our staff are familiar with your wedding. If needed, we may also schedule an in-person venue visit with you to confirm all the details. You've spent months planning your wedding, so now it's time to relax and party! On the day of the wedding we will show up at least two hours early and check in with all the other vendors, and then we will begin our setup. Our goal is to be ready to go thirty minutes prior to the start of the wedding so that we have buffer time in case something doesn't go according to plan. The remaining 50% balance is due after the wedding has concluded. Most couples prefer to give us a credit card number ahead of time that we can keep on file so payment on the day of isn't something that either of us must worry about, but you are more than welcome to pay the balance with check or cash as well.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
Our founder and president, Karl Stallknecht, previously worked in the radio industry. After leaving, he wanted to work in a similar field and had always been interested in DJing. In 2008 he founded Pulse Entertainment and has been DJing ever since! Since 2008 Pulse has hired additional DJs and expanded to perform at about 250 weddings per year.
- What advice would you give a customer looking to hire a provider in your area of work?
First and foremost, make sure you hire a DJ that you feel comfortable with. If you have an uneasy feeling, listen to your gut! Unfortunately, there are many bad apples out there in the DJ world and sometimes it is difficult to weed them out. Another important question is what happens if the DJ you hire gets sick on the day of the wedding? Make sure you choose a DJ with a backup plan. While a one-person DJ could do a great job, if he/she becomes sick at the last minute, your event will be ruined since they wouldn’t have a coworker who could take their place. Lastly, do NOT pick the lowest quote simple because it is the cheapest. The saying “you get what you pay for” absolutely applies here. DJs who charge less typically do not have as much experience, or are DJing on the side (meaning your wedding is not their first priority). While we don’t recommend always going with the highest quote either, make sure you understand exactly what is included in the price you pay since not all DJ quotes are alike.