Are You Ready To Be A Professional Wedding Musician?
The Wedding Industry is rich with Acoustic singers, string musicians, and wedding cover
bands. Let's assume that you've already got an instrument and are looking for the ideal
client to hire you to do their wedding. That said, I think you might be asking the wrong
question. Instead of "how do I start my own band", ask yourself why you would even
consider doing such a thing.
Why would anyone pay you to sit around playing guitar while people dance? Is it really
worth it? Are you willing to put up with the crap that comes along with having a job
playing gigs at weddings? Will you ever actually enjoy performing?
These questions aren't rhetorical; they're real questions that every aspiring performer
needs to ask himself before you start down this path of becoming a Professional
Wedding Musician.
Here's the TRUTH - Most bands fail within the first three years.
They either quit after realizing that they hate the whole idea of making music for a living,
or they go broke trying to keep afloat. Either way, they end up quitting. Now, maybe you
love playing music and feel confident that you could succeed at it. But if you haven't
thought about whether you would actually enjoy it, then you probably won't last very long.
In fact, many performers wind up hating their jobs so much that they eventually give them up altogether.
Ask yourself, why do you want to play weddings full-time? Do you truly believe that you
can earn enough from weddings alone to support yourself? Or are you just hoping that
someday you'll hit it big and never have to worry about paying rent again? If you answered yes to the latter, then you should seriously reconsider pursuing this line of work. If you decide that you still want to pursue this dream anyway, then congratulations!
You now have two options:
1) learn everything you possibly can about weddings,
2) join a band that has been working together for several months and see if they'll take you under their wing. Both of those paths will lead you to success, though neither guarantees anything.
If you don't want to spend years struggling as a professional musician, then you need to
make sure that you have the right mindset for this work, and the right tool-kit in place to
have a long, sustainable, and profitable career that you enjoy.
Some of the most frequently asked questions:
How To Get Your Career Started As A Wedding Singer
Preparing Demos?
How To Attract New Clients And Find the Best Gigs
Vital Business Tools You'll Need
How Much Should I Charge For A Wedding Ceremony?
How To Be A Professional Musician
How to Advertise and Market Yourself To Grow Your Business
Do I Have What It Takes To Be A Successful Wedding Singer
How Do I Get My Career Started As As Wedding Singer?
Finding work as a wedding singer requires a lot of groundwork, but once you establish
yourself and your business, your client base will grow by and word of mouth will spread
during wedding season. If you’re looking to make money singing and playing music for a
client's wedding day, the right advice can go a long way to fast-track your success and get you booked faster.
What Are Demos?
To sell yourself as a wedding singer, you need audio or video demos to share with
potential clients. Your demo should include songs that show your range, not just show
you performing one special song. Showcasing your work in the best possible light is the
primary goal of an effective demo that keeps on getting you booked for weddings. But
there's a vast array of marketing tips and tricks that can elevate your demo from the
ordinary lounge-room video shot on an iphone, to a high-quality and high-value music
promo that gets you booked regularly. Even without spending thousands of dollars.
How To Attract New Clients?
You'll need a few tools in your marketing toolkit to get you started. It's not just about
having a fancy instagram account. You should set up a basic website that includes
streaming audio or video demos, as well as your photo and contact information.
Additional information about your packages and booking processes will be handy too.
Working out what to price yourself and understanding your niche are something we can easily discuss and help you to clarify, so you can start attracting and booking your next
potential client.
What Vital Business Tools Do I Need To Run My Business?
The first thing you need is an website, email address, bank account, ABN, book-keeping
system and CRM. Not to mention insurances and registrations as well. Social media
profile are also handy too, but not essential. If you have any equipment or a vehicle, make sure they work well enough so that you don't have any musical emergencies on a gig.
There's also a handy list of things you should have on you, in case of emergencies (like
wet-weather). We can work through those things together to ensure you're fully prepared for anything at your next wedding gig.
What Do I Need To Know About Music?
If you want to sing at a wedding ceremony or reception, you're expected to have a high
level of musicianship. This doesn't mean you need to be famous or a professional just
yet. Nor do you need to have done a previous wedding. It means the more knowledge you have about music, the better prepared you'll be to play whatever style of music you
choose. You should also familiarize yourself with as many popular songs (and eradefining songs!) as possible and be ready to perform a variety of songs from different
genres. We'll also chat through what wedding songs you'll need to play throughout a
wedding day, and when.
How to Advertise and Market Yourself To Grow Your Business
Warning! When you're starting out, lots of wedding directories, expos, and local news
directories will want your money to advertise. You may wish to place ads in the wedding
section of your local newspaper or local bridal magazines, but often this isn't necessary.
Established wedding singers can market themselves without spending excess money on
ads on Facebook or Google, and there are other ways to attract clients to your website
and social media profiles.
Wedding Musicians: How Much Should I Charge For A Wedding Ceremony?
There's no one right answer here because it depends entirely upon who you are, where
you live, and what kind of clientele you're targeting. The average rate for a wedding
musician ranges per hour depending on location, travel time, experience, availability, etc.
A standard fee for a wedding musician is $100/hour for a musical performance but the
opportunity to earn is far greater than that when you consider the additional package
options you could be providing. Adding extra value to your packages and going beyond
just the earnings from your wedding ceremonies is a key revenue generating strategy we'll discuss in our sessions.
Do I Have What It Takes To Be Successful As A Wedding Singer?
Yes! Just like being successful in business generally requires hard work, dedication,
persistence, and focus, becoming a wedding singer takes all these qualities plus some
extra ones. Being able to adapt quickly when faced with unexpected challenges is
important. Having good communication skills is vital - both verbal and written. And finally, knowing how to manage stress effectively is crucial. All of which are areas we can cover in our sessions. So let us know if you'd like to find out more about getting into the
wedding industry by booking a session with Josephine today.
Looking for career advice on how to become a wedding singer?
The wedding industry offers a lucrative opportunity for musicians looking to perform and
get paid. However, breaking into this competitive space takes business savvy and
marketing skills on top of musical talent.
That's where Josephine Ison comes in. As the Director of Event Entertainers and lead
Vocalist of the popular Sydney wedding band Duke Music, Josephine has successfully
built a career performing at weddings and events.
Now, she's sharing her insider knowledge by offering personalised one-on-one-coaching
sessions for musicians wanting to develop their own successful wedding music
business. You can learn the ins and outs of developing a quality wedding brand and a
reputable wedding business, all whilst earning a living from performing as a professional
musician.
From someone who has been there and done that, you'll find out exactly how to build the
foundations of a profitable career performing at Weddings, leaving you more time to work on your craft, or just enjoy life. If you'd like to book a 60 minute coaching session, just click here.
In this exclusive 60 minute session, you'll discover:
1) How to create an effective brand and promotional materials to attract
clients
2) Pricing strategies and ideal packages to offer
3) Top tips for managing bookings and communications
4) Josephine's recommended workflows for running a profitable wedding
music business
If you're ready to start booking paid gigs and establish yourself as a sought-after wedding performer, don't miss this opportunity to learn from an experienced pro.
About Josephine Ison
With over 10 years of experience in the wedding industry, Josephine Ison is perfectly
positioned to provide actionable advice to help musicians thrive with her business
coaching services.
She first started performing at weddings in her early 20s as a way to supplement her
income while pursuing a degree in music. It wasn't long before she realized she could turn her passion into a full-time career.
After graduating, Josephine founded her own wedding entertainment agency, Event
Entertainers. Through smart branding, marketing, and leveraging her connections in the
industry, she quickly attracted clients and expanded her roster of musicians.
Today, Event Entertainers books over 100 weddings every year across Australia.
Josephine also leads the popular 5-piece band Duke Music, who perform at high-end
weddings nationwide.
With such extensive experience building and running a successful wedding music
business, Josephine has a wealth of knowledge to share. Her coaching sessions provide
personalized, practical tips that can give any musician a headstart on achieving their
career goals.
Business Coaching Session Details
Josephine's 60-minute coaching calls are tailored to each musician's specific goals and
needs. However, some common topics covered include:
Crafting an effective brand identity and style for your wedding business
Producing professional-quality audio/video demos to showcase your skills
Optimizing your website and social media presence to attract clients
Determining your pricing and package offerings
Managing bookings and communications with clients
Creating workflows to streamline your business operations
Expanding your client base through referrals and marketing
Filling your calendar with dream clients
Josephine will provide honest, constructive feedback on your current materials and
strategies. She'll offer practical recommendations on areas to improve and provide
examples based on her own tried and tested methods and coaching for musicians.
You'll walk away with a clear roadmap and action steps for establishing your wedding
music business. Josephine's advice is based on her own experiences starting out and
rising to become a sought-after industry leader.
FAQs
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions and info about Josephine's
business coaching sessions:
What's included in the 60 minute session? The session will be a one-onone video call going over your specific business, brand, materials, strategies, and goals. Josephine will review your current offerings and provide feedback and recommendations tailored to you.
How much does it cost? The 60 minute coaching session is $80 + gst. When are sessions available? Josephine currently has flexible availability throughout the week. You will be provided with a link to Josephine's schedule and can select your preferred time slot after booking.
What if I need more time? You can purchase additional coaching session
if needed.
How do I book? Just click here.
