A lot of work and planning goes into making a child’s birthday party a reality and parents have a lot to think about; a theme, organizing invitations, appropriate decorations, food and snacks, entertainment, grab bags and the list can go on. One important element to a great birthday party is the music.
When thinking about the right music for a child’s birthday party, however, there is much to consider. Playlists need to be current, age appropriate and in-line with the tastes of popular culture. They need to be tailored to fit a child’s birthday theme and finally, parents need assurance that the songs being played are family-friendly, radio edits of the explicit original versions. With the amount of work involved to actualize these deliverables, it makes sense that family entertainment centers design music-service packages to satisfy a parent’s needs for their child’s party.
In most instances, parents want the service of a professional DJ without the expense of one. They want to create the perfect experience for their child at a fair price. So, positioning music as an important factor in that overall experience opens up a world of sales and service opportunity. By devising service packages for on-demand music selections you will create greater value to prospective clients and, in turn, add an additional revenue stream to your business.
Birthday parties are dynamic events and, in knowing this, you can work with a parent to schedule music to compliment their itinerary. During activity time the music can be upbeat and energetic, eating and gift time it will need to be quieter to calm the excitable, and after cake it should go back to being energetic again to allow kids to work off their sugar highs, before sending them home. Even if dancing is not intended for an event, background music can set the atmosphere for a party and entertainment centers should have lists ready, ranging in feel from fast, slow, soft, and quiet to fit the mood at particular times.
When thinking about implementing a music strategy that caters to your clientele there are a few important points to consider. How will you schedule the music? Will you require consultation with a professional about the right music? How will you access and ensure family-friendly, radio edits? Will the custom music for a specific event be designated to a certain audio zone or will it play through your entire space?
To implement your music service you will need to source a background music provider with a fully-licensed, on-demand library of family-friendly music, scheduling software for different audio zones, and a support staff of music consultants with expert music knowledge. Another point to consider is whether you will select and schedule the music internally or have a third-party team of professionals do it for a nominal fee, from which you can charge a premium.
As an exercise, next time you have a consultation with a client, see if you can discuss creating a custom music environment for their child’s party. Position the service as similar to a professional DJ for a fraction of the price. You may be pleasantly surprised by the reaction and realize a new, competitive advantage for your business.
