We know you’re always on the hunt for ways to grow your DJ business, and that you can’t always add more events with your limited time. As a result, you need to find a way to increase your value and what you are charging for your time and services. The solution is to add additional services to your existing events. And, the best way to do this is to add a photo booth to your offerings. 

Photo booths are only growing in popularity. And they can easily make you stand out above your competitors with high-value packages that deliver on entertainment and fun, while also growing your bottom line. In fact, many DJs find that adding photo booths to their packages can increase their per event income by as much as 50-60%!

We’ll examine the pros, the cons (spoiler alert: there really aren’t any cons), and hardware you may wish to consider.

Pros of Adding a Photo Booth to your DJ Business

• People love photos. There’s no better way to collect memories from an event. New photo booth platforms like Onebooth give you a way to get the photos in guests’ hands and inboxes as well as in an online photo album/gallery.
• Millennials, in particular, love selfies. With a buying power of US$1 Trillion expected by 2020, they are an increasingly powerful demographic. Every DJ business must have packages that speak to their wants and needs, whether it’s for a wedding or party.
• New photo booth apps give you a way to blend seamlessly into any venue or event. Gone are the days of bulky boxes. Instead, you can set up shop in a way that jives with the atmosphere.
• As the DJ and/or emcee, you can direct guests right to wherever you’ve set up shop, or, your team can follow the action around.
• If guests “don’t dance” or otherwise aren’t interested in participating, you can still keep them engaged with your photo booth.
• Props can be simple and inexpensive. Think dollar store sunglasses and inflatables.

Cons & Challenges

Let’s face it. We had to rack our brains to come up with any cons. While we did find a few, realistically, when compared to the potential increases to your bottom line, there aren’t really any that aren’t easily solved.

Some graphic design knowledge is needed. You’ve got us here. If you’re creating custom graphics or custom overlays, you really do need some graphic design knowledge.
Here’s the solution: Just about every app out there will give you the specs you need for mind-blowingly good graphics. What’s more, in a recent post, we taught you how to hire a freelancer to help if this isn’t in your wheelhouse!
As a bonus: You can wrap the costs of any event-specific freelance graphic design into your package costs so that it’s included in your fee!

People leave photobooths for where the action is. Picture this: You have an area dedicated to a selfie station at a wedding, and all the bridesmaids are taking photos. Then suddenly they’re pulled to the dance floor for the Macarena. Your photo booth is now neglected.
Here’s the solution: With a portable tablet-based photo booth, you can travel around with the action. On the dance floor? No problem. In the buffet line? Head over there. Outside for a bouquet toss? The app has you covered!

Good studio-quality lighting is tricky to set up, and not portable.
Here’s the solution: We have some hardware recommendations below, including one that serves as a portable light.

Hardware to Consider for Your New Photo Booth Service

You don’t need much outside of the app and your iPad. However, here are a few optional items you may want to think about. 

• MobileMax– we’ve referenced this a few times. It has a rotatable handle for use in portrait or landscape mode (check out our photo above to see it in action). A product like this allows you to follow the action, whether it’s to the dance floor, the buffet, or even the bar! 
• Stands – you may want to consider a stand if you’re going for a more standard set up. However, you’ll probably want one that is easy to disengage so you can then take your tablet into the heart of the party.
• Greenscreen – A greenscreen is definitely optional, and may not be as practical for most of your events as a DJ, but it can help you create some super fun backgrounds and visual effects.

In the end, it’s really a no-brainer to grow your DJ business with a photo booth. By increasing your income by 50-60% per event, you’ll quickly grow your bottom line in a way that’s incredibly fun for both you and your clients. You’ll increase the value of your services, and you’ll probably start to book more of those top-dollar events.

Have you grown your DJ business with a photo booth? We’d love to hear your experience in the comments!