do I trust my DJs? Yes, I do. Do they provide a great level of service? Yes, they do. Well then why aren't I selling them to the same level that I am myself? And I had to just really like change that mindset moving forward. If it's not a strong point for you, find someone who's good at sales and then hire them. That's my advice. Sales is definitely a strong point for me, so that's a blessing. I can do that, but if I wasn't good at it, I'd hire someone to do sales for me for sure.
Cause like that's where you're making money.
that's why I love these student stories is because it's like, you never reach the top. We're always all growing and building and strategizing and figuring out the next things. And that's what I love working with wedding pros on. That's why I love the coaching is because I'm able to say, okay, what about if we did X, Y, Z, right?
and we can try different things and bounce different things off of each other, the transition from being a solopreneur to building and selling a brand is one that is so difficult for so many of us in the wedding industry. I remember when I went through it, but on today's show, we are going to dig into exactly how Gemma Sherry, the owner and creator of Loved Up DJs has done exactly that.
Hey there, CEO, welcome to the Wedding Pro CEO podcast, the podcast to help you grow and scale your profitable wedding business. I'm your host, Brandee Gaar, and we are digging into all the nitty gritty of building and scaling a profitable brand on today's show, gemma is going to share all the behind the scenes of scaling her DJ company, what's been difficult about building a team and things she's learned along the way.
she's also going to cast some vision for us about what's to come for Luvd up DJs. trust me, I know so many of our listeners are going to resonate with this episode because there's so many points along the way that Gemma shared in her journey where you could just sit and say, Yes, I've been there. Or yes, I am there. So if you're looking just to know, you're on the right track. You can do this. You can build that successful business, CEO. Today's show is going to be an inspiration..
Gemma, I am so excited to have you on the show today and to really talk about your journey in building your business. I think that you've built a really unique business and, um, I just have gotten, I just get so excited to get to work with you throughout your company process. So welcome to the show.
Thank you. Excited to be here.
Gemma is a DJ, which I don't, I don't think we've had a student DJ on the show before. Like we've interviewed DJs, um, before, but not as part of the program. So I'm like, okay, Gemma, let's really dig in today. This is going to be so fun. But before we do all of that, can you tell us a little bit about your company and what you guys do?
Sure. So we are a boutique, a woman owned DJ company based on the East coast in Philadelphia. Uh, we cover, uh, New York, Philadelphia, DC, and anywhere like along that part of the coast. Um, we also do lighting. We've merged into videography as well now, but DJ is like our main, our main thing.
Yeah, we're going to touch on the videography thing too, cause I think that's really, really fun. So you are a boutique woman owned DJ company, which that alone, I was just like, okay, you clearly honed in on your ideal client. Tell me a little bit more about how you got into the industry. And did you decide to create, the brand that you've built now?
So it kind of happened by chance. It wasn't like I deliberately wanted to get into DJing. I kind of was trying not to get into it. Um, my husband has had a DJ business for many years and I was like, I don't really want to do that. It's not my vibe. I've got my own thing going on. Um, and he got me to fill in one day for a wedding and I actually ended up, Loving it. And I was like, this is actually really fun. And it ticks all the boxes of my skillset.
I've worked in music for many years in other, you know, other facets. But, um, I was like, this is actually cool. Like I could do this. And then I looked around and realized there wasn't any companies that were really providing the kind of service I would want to book as a bride. And I was like, why don't I just start up my own company? And so I thought, all right, I'll give it a shot. Just thinking I would get booked myself.
And then it's just ballooned and blossomed into way more than I could ever imagine.
It really has. It's, and I cannot wait for everybody to hear about what you've built, okay. So you said you were in music before you had the DJ company. So tell us a little bit about that. Cause it's not like you had never been behind a board, right? Like tell us a little bit more about that journey.
sure. So musically I studied music growing up. I was a saxophone player, classical and jazz. I studied jazz singing in New York city. That's why I moved to America. Um, I've worked in music licensing, choosing music for film and television shows for a number of years when I lived in New York. So I've worked in a lot of different facets of music, but I also used to manage events and hospitality back in Australia. So I kind of was already in the field with that.
Like realizing I was, and then all of a sudden, like they all culminated into this, like, perfect job.
I love it. Okay. And so, and then I have to jump to this part in your story where you're like, I didn't want to DJ. I said, I wasn't going to DJ. I DJ'd one wedding and I was like, I'm going to start my own company. Like what?
Uh, I'm definitely a go getter, which you probably already know. So, um, you know, with any kind of field I get into, I sort of go all in with it. I just thought I've always want to have my own business. And I was like, this is a great thing. Why not go for it? So.
That's so funny. And you're just like, yeah, we'll start our own business. Okay. So originally were you thinking that Loved Up DJs would be an all female DJ company Like how did you decide who your avatar would be and who you would serve?
Well, initially it was just going to be me, honestly, like my husband had his own thing going on. So I was like, well, you know what? Like he'll book his own weddings through his company. And then I'm just going to do my own thing because I wanted to do my own thing at that point. but then I ended up, you know, getting lots of bookings and then enjoying the booking process as well. So I like brought him on board and I was booking him.
And then, you know, when you get more leads, as you do in any business, you're like, we don't want to say no, cause obviously something's working. So then I started bringing on other DJs on board. I did initially plan on just having it. Women DJs only, but, I'm finding that these days people just want a good DJ. It doesn't matter, you know, what, sexual orientation you are, like any of that stuff doesn't really matter.
It really just matters that you get someone who's got good vibes, who is easy to work with, friendly, and like, is able to customize the, you know, the service they're providing. So it is like suits the vision of the couple.
Yeah, I agree with you so much. And I, I actually really value What you put into training your DJs and knowing that they are going to be the best that you're sending out. I think having that boutique style is, it can be difficult when you start to grow a team. Right. And
Oh, yes,
like that's something that I've valued about, working with you so much is that you're so passionate about, you know, who you're sending out as, as many of us are. Right. But it's something that you take very, very seriously because DJs. A lot of people can call themselves a DJ, right? Um, that does not mean they all fit your style of DJ. So did you feel like you struggled at all in kind of bringing on additional DJs? Is that something that came easy to you?
Tell us a little bit about building that team.
it definitely is a struggle still today, um, finding someone that's the right fit. I mean, I'm very fussy. So some people, if you're just building a very generic company in any field, then you can get anyone.
I mean, there's always somebody you can hire, but when you really want to provide a specific service and a specific level of service for your couples and clients, then it is hard because you want to get people that are going to Do as good a job as you would, or if not better, um, and are going to be representing the brand and really have that level of care for the clients that you would have, because we really do treat like every couple, like as if it was my sister's wedding, you
know, my best friend's wedding. It's not just like, you're not just a customer. It's really like, we actually really do care about people. So, um, that, that's where the difficulty is.
Yeah. And I think again, it kind of goes back to that, you're creating a boutique style. So it's high touch, high level of service, you know, very unique and customized. And you're partnering that with scaling. And sometimes I feel like people don't believe that those two things can go together. What year did you start your business?
I believe it's in just over two years. Yeah.
crazy to me. This is so crazy. Okay. And so for you bringing that team on and still keeping that, that customized service, tell us some of the things that maybe have felt difficult if you don't mind sharing about just like, okay, well, You still want to keep that high touch level of service. What has felt hard about that?
Uh, well, it was difficult in the beginning because I really, I was doing everything myself. So when I was brought on board by you and got you to do some coaching with me, I really realized that I had to expand my team and have that support level for myself because you can't, I can't possibly give the level of service to every, you know, 200, 300 clients just on my own. It's just like, it's not possible.
So you've got to have a team that's able to like, that way you can have those touch points that are given to the couple. Doesn't have to be from me specifically, but the team are doing those touch points that way couples aren't left out of the loop and everyone feels cared for.
Yeah. I think one of the things that was fun to start working with you, Gemma, was, you really had some great DJs that you were, sending out. But like you said, like you didn't have any support. On the back end. And so you were trying to, touch, love all of these couples. And that I'm sure was something that was just like taxing you to kind of that breaking point, right?
Oh, totally. Yeah. And I, and I realized that quickly, like you made me realize that too. I was like, I'm giving this like super high touch, super high level service. And then as we're growing and the company, you know, we're getting more and more clients and it's scaling up. I just don't physically have the time to do that. So something has to give, um, and you made me realize, well, Instead of giving that up, it's more like I'm getting somebody else to help support me in that.
Yeah. It doesn't have to be you, which I think is, is really a hard thing for so many business owners to understand is that it's, it has to be somebody who cares, right. Who can do the job really well, who can make your clients feel important, but actually. It becomes more difficult for you to be the one that's doing it as, as you're really scaling, right?
One of the things that I thought was so fun last month that you shared with our group is that you were starting to book your DJs more than yourself, right? can you tell us a little bit about maybe what that mindset shift was like?
Yeah. So I hadn't really thought about it and you helped me realize this is that I realized when I was doing bookings, I was booking myself first. That was probably for two reasons. One is that it's easy to book yourself or I felt it was easy to book me because on the face of the company, people know you. So they had that level of trust, you know, straight away.
Um, but you helped me explain that that's probably not the best strategy because then, you know, You don't have the space in your calendar and it's just easy to book. So yeah, I just had a strategy and had the goal to book everyone else first and then book myself last if I have the time in my schedule. And it was great. I was like, it was easy that I realized it was just really a change in mindset that I hadn't had yet.
Yeah. Can we, can we dig into that for a second? Cause that,
Yeah, definitely.
so many people that are listening. So if you're listening to this, if you're CEO, business owner, listening to this and you're like, this is my challenge. Like I, when I'm selling, I feel like it's just easier to sell myself. So then I end up with so many bookings and I'm overwhelmed. Right. I know that's something you and I worked through a lot, Gemma. Tell me what your mindset was before you started doing that.
Like, what do you feel like was the biggest hurdle as to why you thought it was easier to book yourself?
Well, it was, yeah. One being that I'd focused the company around me because that's what initially it was going to be just my company. It was me DJing and I hadn't really been talking about the we, about the team. I hadn't really built that around the brand.
And so that's why it was making it hard for me on the phone calls because everyone just expected it was a Gemma Sherry show and it's not a Gemma Sherry show, it's a loved up show, um, which is a very different, like, Mindset and strategy when you're, you know, you're selling your business to clients. So I had to really, think about, do I trust my DJs? Yes, I do. Do they provide a great level of service? Yes, they do. Well then why aren't I selling them to the same level that I am myself?
And I had to just really like change that mindset moving forward.
Oh, that's so good. I love that you just asked those two questions. Do I trust my DJs? Do they provide the level of service that I expect them to, that I'm selling? And yes, to both of those answers. And I think it's so interesting because a lot of us go through this. I mean, I remember going through it as well, where it was like, well, they say they want me, but the reason that the clients are saying they want you is typically because you're leading them that direction. Right?
Oh, 100%.
Yes, it's self sabotage a hundred percent. what were some of the shifts that you had to make maybe either in your mindset or just even in your sales conversation that helped you to, um, be able to sell your DJs more last month?
So I think it's really setting yourself up for success before the calls. Um, as you mentioned to me, you know, really using the, the changing your language that you're using in emails and any kind of conversations, talking about the team or talking about we, you know, we're going to do this, not like, I'm going to do this all the time because it really is a team effort. Um, so using those language change points really helped a lot. Um, and then obviously, yeah.
And obviously just, you know, making sure that you, if you don't trust your team, then you shouldn't have your team. So really making sure you have a deep level of trust for your, your team members, making sure they're trained in the way that you want them to be so that they can execute on your vision.
Yeah. I love that. One of the things that we talked about too, Gemma, for your company was you. Had two different price points, In terms of the client could choose to book you or they could choose to book your DJs, they would just have to pay more to get you. Is that right?
That's correct. Yes.
And so is that something that you shifted or is that still how you're selling?
Uh, that's still the same. Mainly because, I mean, I'm pretty well booked up now for the next year cause I've just said, that's it. Like I need to just work on the business. Um, but yeah, I mean, it has to be for me that has to be that way because I can't do a hundred, you know, five, 500 weddings a year running a business is a whole other thing you have to do. And so it's not necessarily that I am better or that I'm providing a high level of service.
It's just that like, I can't do a certain number of a year. So that is why it's a high price point for me. That's worked for my company. I'm not saying that would work for everybody else's. Um, but I would, my recommendations to other businesses would be like, give it a go. If that's kind of, and see if that works for you. If it doesn't, then. You know, try something else. There's no kind of rules to running a business. I mean, you've got to just trial and error and see what works for yours.
Yeah. It's so true. And I think that's one of the reasons I love having the coaching component as part of all of our programs. Like there isn't one way to do anything, right? Especially in business. And so. Yeah. You know, I love having the course option in our programs where you can come in, watch videos, you know, hear what you need to get from it, take a nugget or two and go implement it.
But also I love that we have the coaching element and that's why we have it because you might watch a video and hear, okay, this is what you need to do next. And then you're like, I don't know if that's. going to work for my business or how would it work for my business and being able to really structure each company's, you know, take on the strategies is so, so helpful. Um, and that's why we have that coaching element is part of our programs. I think that it's. It's beyond necessary, right?
So tell us a little bit about your growth. I, I'm dying for everybody to hear about how you've expanded so quickly. you only started two years ago. Can you kind of share where you are now?
Sure. So I, when we started, it was basically just myself DJing. So I think I was doing like maybe 40 weddings the first year or so, but it was a bit more. Cause I think I booked my husband a bit as well. Um, and then we've grown to 200 weddings a year, which was the previous year. So the second year, and then I think we have. Like over like mid three hundreds for the following year booked. So we're growing at a rapid rate, which is scary and exciting at the same time.
It's scary and exciting. That's right. Because you know, it's you, it's always the chicken or the egg theory, right? It's like, okay, well, do you Take the bookings first and then backfill, or do you backfill and then take the bookings? But in reality, I think one of the challenges that we have in the wedding industry, a pro and a con, is that our events book so far out. So the pro for that is we can kind of forecast what next year is going to look like, you know, pretty far out.
We can get a good idea of what it's going to look like. The con is that it's like, okay, but I, I don't have bookings today for a new person unless I start booking them, you know, like I have to start booking them now so that I can hire somebody to fill those, that position. And I think that's always a really big struggle in that scaling, right?
Yeah. But I think something I learned from you as well in our coaching and watching the calls is that. Um, you're better to book things in advance, which you can, especially with weddings and then figure it out later. And that doesn't mean you're going to book, you know, 20 weddings on one day where you don't have DJs, you only have three. I mean, I'm not, we're not that crazy.
I'm not recommending that to anyone at all, but you know, if you are a DJ or a planner, whatever the business is, and you get extra bookings, but you know, you have the trainings in place, you know, you have the structure in place to provide the service, you just need to hire an extra person. If you've got a year, you definitely can find someone in a year. I mean, you showed me that you can find someone in six months if you need to. There's lots of great, very skilled people out there.
So you just take the bookings because then it forces you to grow the company and to like strategize rather than being like, Oh, wait, so I'm ready. And then it never happens. Yeah,
or you say, okay, well, I've got to train this person for a year before I book their first event. Well, their first event isn't going to happen for months and months. So now you're trying to pay somebody, you don't have the events for it. when people hear me say, maybe just on social media or just, they hear a quick soundbite of me saying, book the events and figure it out later. That sounds so careless, right? It's like, what girl, what are you saying?
I, I think it's, it's been fun to work with you, Gemma. Cause I think that was a little bit of your fear when I first was saying that to you, right? I'm like, girl, take the bookings, take the bookings. Um, but now you've got this fear. Thriving business. And we're able to say, okay, we've got the financial resources now to hire.
We've got the financial resource resources to outsource some of the things that you've been spinning your wheels, doing like social media, bookkeeping, things that we can get off of your plate so that you can really step into the needle movers in your business. Right?
that's really right. And that's the thing is as a business owner, you want to focus on those big needle movers and not on the little nitty gritty of the day, because that's not the best use of your time. So you've got to hire that good team around you.
Yeah. I think Gemma, I actually think you do a really good job of focusing on the needle movers. Like I've, I've always found that to be a really interesting, um, trait of yours as you're like laser focus on what actually moves the needle and your business still somehow able to juggle all the other things too, which we're getting off your plate, obviously, but. Because you've grown so fast, could you kind of share, what are some of the things that you feel like are big needle movers?
Like what are some of the non negotiables that you do every single week in your business to maybe lend to the success that you've had?
That's a really great question. Um, and I think it's different for every business, but I always like to think there's like different buckets for your business and what you need to work on. You need to sort of look at them every, every day. Every week, every month, um, and, and kind of look at the wins and where you might be lacking. But I, I really think that, um, relationships with vendors and venues is super important.
So I'm always trying to fill that bucket in some way, whether that's, you know, building on an already current relationship with a venue or a vendor, um, or establishing new ones. I think you need to be working on that all the time as a business owner, because you can't rely on, even if you're on 10 venue lists, like if they all collapse or go. bankrupt or something like you've lost, you know, 10 big sources of leads.
Um, so that's the one thing, obviously social media is a huge one, um, for developing venue relationships as well as relationships with clients and future clients, right? Like you need to have that rapport with them. So being sort of active there is really helpful. Um, what else is there? Obviously sales. Sales is a big one. Um, and I, I, that's a big focus. I think that anyone who's doing anything in the wedding industry, you need to put a lot of time in sales.
If it's not a strong point for you, find someone who's good at sales and then hire them. That's my advice. Sales is definitely a strong point for me, so that's a blessing. I can do that, but if I wasn't good at it, I'd hire someone to do sales for me for sure. Cause like that's where you're making money.
Yeah. And I think you hit all three of the biggest things that it's like, this has to be these three things, networking and relationship building. Marketing. So typically organic, right? Marketing is what most of us are doing and then sales. And what I hear so many wedding pros and you guys listen, tune in to me for a second. If this is you, I hear so many wedding pros that say to me, I have been so busy with client work.
I haven't done followups with my leads or I have been so busy with client work. I haven't been able to send out a contract or I am just so in the weeds that I don't have time for social media. Here's the thing. You won't feel it today, but you will feel it in three to six months when your leads dry up, because you've got to constantly be filling that funnel. And Gemma, I, I really am. Like, I'm always so impressed at how you, you really put these things first in your business.
And one of the things That actually just happened recently that I asked you if we could talk about on this show. So you guys, I'm not just dropping this on her, um, at the last second, but I did ask Gemma, can we share this? Is that Gemma has had ridiculous booking months recently? Like just, well, really it's just been growing for you over time, right? Like you've just been scaling every single month. And it's been really, really fun to watch.
But one of the things that was not really happening prior to a few months ago was tracking your leads. Right? Like really, really tracking your leads. And when we kind of pushed into, okay, let's start tracking your leads really with every single data point. So we can see, are you having a high enough conversion?
You're clearly making enough revenue, but if we want to scale, we have to know how people are coming into your funnel, where they're dropping off of your funnel, what your conversion is, all that. And so can you tell us a little bit about some of the things you learned about your leads once you started tracking it?
Oh yes. So I realized we had way more leads than I even imagined because I even missed some. I think you said to me, did you check out the knot leads? And I said, uh, no, I don't think they're in there either. So yes, tracking leads is important because you can't really comment on if something's working or not if you don't fully analyze the data.
So I tracked every single lead that came in, where it came from, um, whether they booked or not, how much I quoted them, whether, you know, whether they said yes or no, why they said no. Um, and it made me realize I wasn't booking as many as I thought. I was booking a lot, but it, I started analyzing the, okay, well, why would, why did the ones that didn't book, why weren't they booking? Is, is this a, is it kind of a misalignment somewhere? Was it? Price point. Was it our branding?
You know, it made me think about those things more because ideally every lead you have to spend time on and like, I don't want to waste my time on leads that really aren't qualifiable. your time as a business owner is valuable, um, especially in sales. So, you know, if I'm sending emails out, if then I've got to do a sales call with a client follow ups, I mean, that time can equal, A couple of hours and that's time I could be spending on the business.
So if that's a client that's really not going to book, there's no point in spending that time with them.
Yes. Oh my gosh, that's so good. And the reason that this is so important, you know, as Gemma and I were kind of looking at her business and okay, what's the next big thing to work on? What's the next big thing to work on? Really just understanding how are clients finding you? Where are they finding you? How are they getting into your funnel? How are they moving through your funnel? What are some things that we can do to really pour some fuel on, you know, the fire? She's already exploding.
And what's interesting about that is, I have students all the time that come into the program and they're actually already killing it in revenue. So you're not really paying attention to this data because you're like, well, I'm making plenty. Right. And that's great. That definitely makes things easier, but we want to really understand, are there things, are there places where people are falling off in your funnel?
And we did actually, we were able to identify some pretty obvious reasons people were dropping out of your funnel and that. was telling us, okay, well now let's go look at that piece of the funnel, right? We can go back and look at when are people getting pricing? Where are they, when they're finding you, are they, um, understanding what an investment would look like with your company and things like that, right?
So otherwise you're just throwing spaghetti at the wall, trying to increase your sales.
That's totally, totally right. And the thing is, yeah, you want to make sure the leads you are getting are people that will potentially buy from you or get your services. And if they're not, then that's, there's no point talking with them because it's like an, it's not a valid conversation to have and they could go speak to another vendor.
So you want to focus on the people that are really a good fit for your company and make sure that they're the ones that are coming into your funnel, not people that really aren't going to book.
Yeah, yeah. Agree. A hundred percent. And it's so fun too, because I love data anyway. I know you do too. So it's like, okay. Once you get the data, you're like, Oh, it's telling me a whole story. Right. But it
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. It opens your eyes to so much.
Yeah. But I love when you said that if you are doing well in business, you don't tend to look at the data. Cause you're like, Oh yeah, we're getting bookings. And that's, that was my opinion. I was like, Oh cool. We're making lots of bookings. We're getting heaps of leads. We don't need to look at the data. But I was like, well, wait a minute. You know, let's, let's say for example, we were getting 20 leads a month, for example, and we were booking 10. And you're like, Oh, that's cool.
But if you look at the data, well, you could be doubling that, that income every month Why isn't that happening? Right. Cause like, ideally you want to book as many of those leads that come in as possible. So the way you do that is make sure those leads are really qualifiable and they are a good fit.
Yeah. Yeah. And to Gemma's point earlier, every lead that you spend time working is taking, Time. And that's great. Like every lead's not going to book. So there is going to be some, right, that you're, you're answering leads and they don't end up booking. But if you're getting a lot of leads that are unqualified, for instance, and this happens sometimes when you're advertising with one of the advertising sites, right, that we have, sometimes that can be the case there.
Or sometimes it could be that your branding doesn't match your pricing. That's a lot of times what I see too, is that you have a kind of a messaging issue, and so you're getting a ton of leads, but they're not qualified leads. And now you're just spending a ton of time working leads and that's taking forever, right? Instead, if you could get a third of the number of leads and they're uber qualified and you're booking all of them, I would much rather have that. Right.
Oh, definitely. And if the really good leads, the people that basically want to book you on a spot, because they already have seen your brand, they've already read what your vision is as a company. And so you have that call with them and you ask them to the sale call, like, Hey, Like, do you want a book? I'll send the contract. Like, yes, let's do it now. And they pay within five minutes. And like, that's the goal as a business owner, that you like have those really good leads that are keen.
They love your vision. It's like a good alignment.
Yep. I love that so much. Okay. So Gemma, you obviously your business is on fire. You've doubled your number of events every single year, which is insane and so exciting to watch. So you're in our next level group. What made you decide, okay, I need help. Like what made you decide to kind of reach out and invest in growing your business?
I think that it's incredibly valuable to be surrounded by people that are doing Better than you and, and really achieving in any field that you are in. And I think by being surrounding yourself by, you know, successful people that are wanting to grow, then you like innately grow with them and you learn from them and they can learn from you too.
But like all of, all through my life, being part of a really cool group like that, that's doing well, that wants to grow, wants to be educated, wants to like, You know, expand themselves personally and as a business, it's like, there's so much value in that. So, and when I heard about you, I was like, this is the perfect thing. Like you've got great people in the group. Everyone's in different parts of the wedding industry, but you know, you can learn something from everybody.
And I love the way that Brandee and I could like single praises to everybody, but you really have this way of. Connecting and helping business owners in a way that's very personal and not like, Oh, I do it this way. It's like, not that at all. You really just give you suggestions and then work with you. So it's been, it's been amazing.
Oh, you're so sweet. I, I genuinely love getting to work with wedding pros who are serious about growing their business. I think that's one of the reasons I, I, I just have so much fun working with you when we're on our calls. I'm like, yes, because I know whatever we strategize together. In like five minutes, you're gonna be like, I did it. I've implemented it. We're, we're running with it. I'm like, Oh,
Yeah.
It's so great. But you're right. I think. Especially right now in the economy that we're in, right? And that's, I've been shouting this from the rooftops. It's not just the wedding industry across the world. The economy is dicey right now, right? And in this economy, I think there's so many people telling you, You can't do it, or it's hard, or leads are down, or no one's winning in the wedding industry.
And being part of a group of people who are doing it and who are winning and having some of their best months, and even if it's not revenue wise, but you hire a new team member, or you've learned a new strategy to sell, It's so exciting. And I, I value it as well to be around people who can show you, Hey, we're all killing it together and we're working together to bring the industry up.
So I'm glad that you touched on that because I think the wedding industry as a broad scope is, is kind of a downer at the moment. I think there's a lot of people telling you it's not possible to win in this economy and I'm like, but you can, I'm watching it happen right before my eyes.
it's, it's funny anywhere else. I look online, people are saying, Oh, leads are down, all this bad stuff happening. Everyone's very negative. And then I go to your page and you know, and I work with all the people in the next level group and everyone's killing it. Like everyone's positive. Everyone's like, you've got to be an action taker in your business. these people that are saying it's down, it's like, well, what are you doing in your business to grow your business?
Like if you're just sitting there going like, Oh, like I'm getting no leads or this is not happening. I'm like, well, what are you? What are you doing? What could you do? And I love that the next level group is about taking action. What are your next steps looking towards the future rather than just being like, this is how it is. I'm just going to deal with it.
Oh my gosh. I could not have said that better myself. We'll just use that transcript and just post it everywhere. That's so good, Gemma. I love it. Okay, so tell us what's next for Loved Up DJs. Like what's your next big goal? What are you working on right now? And we can cheer you on for that.
Yeah, that's great. Well, I think as a business owner, you never feel ready, like done already, right? There's always more to do. I didn't even want to do the call today, um, which I wanted to like say to our viewers that like, when we first spoke, I was like, I don't know if I'm ready yet. Like, I don't feel like I've ticked all the boxes in my business, but you reminded me that.
You know, all the things that I have, all the wins we have had as a business, and that you're never done as a business owner. You're always growing. So, um, and that's what people want to hear, right? That's what you want to hear as a new business owner. Um, the future for Loved Up. Well, I would love to grow it more. That's the plan. Uh, and You probably grow into different states. I'd love to have, you know, like satellite offices in multiple states in America, possibly internationally.
Um, and obviously I have my video business as well, which I started, so I'd love to grow that more and have that a bit more as an established, arm of the, of the main company.
Yes, I love that you're adding on video and you're not just adding on video, but you're it. You're doing the super eight video, right?
Yeah, Super 8 and like VHS camcorder. So all vintage retro, um, videography.
Which the reason I, the only reason I touch on that is because it matches your brand so well, like it's so on brand for you. When you first told me, I was like, that just actually makes so much sense. And you know, sometimes we just like grasp at straws of additional revenue streams to add into our business. So if you were just kind of like, yeah, I mean, we added on videography, And there was no branding to it. This fits your brand so well. It perfectly fits your clientele, I think, as well.
So it's like a really easy add on for you guys.
Yeah, that's what I, that's why I do love videography. It's a passion of mine. That's why I started it. But I also did think it was a really good alignment with the brand and with the DJ business. So, cause I see some businesses just add on products because I think it's trendy or like they just want to make extra money. It really wasn't that for us. It was more like, I'm passionate about this and it aligns with us.
Yeah. It's a passion project for sure. Um, going back, I wasn't sure what, I wasn't going to bring it up and I wasn't sure whether you would either, but I do want to touch on for a second that Gemma was very anxious about doing this show in terms of just like, she was like, I, you know, I want to be able to be like your star student. I want to be, you know, the one I want to have reached the pinnacle. And I was like, what pinnacle? Like, there's no, there's no, I've reached the top.
And what's so cool about doing these student stories is there are so many wedding pros that are listening right now. I'm sure some of you have listened to this and been like, Oh my gosh, like, this is me. This is what I've gone through. This is what I'm going through. This is what I'm afraid of. And that's why I love these student stories is because it's like, you know, you never reach the top. We're always all growing and building and strategizing and figuring out the next things.
And that's what I love working with wedding pros on. And that's That's why I love the coaching is because I'm able to say, okay, what about if we did X, Y, Z, right? And, and we can try different things and bounce different things off of each other, but I'm so glad that you brought that up, Gemma. And I'm, I'm thrilled that you agreed to come on the show and share your story because I resonated with this story today. And. I'm really, really excited to see where you go from here.
Like it in next year, at the same time, are we going to be like, wow, Gemma's now in 10 states? I don't know, but it's going to
I hope so.
Yeah. It's going to be really fun to watch. Okay. Gemma, where can everybody go say hi and tell you that they heard you on the show?
Uh, you can come to our Instagram, um, which is at luvdupdjs, L U V D U P D J S. definitely send me a DM and say hi. If you are a wedding pro and struggling and feel like any of this like resonated with you, please DM me. I'm happy to chat. Um, and I also sing. Brandee's praises and please come and join the next level group or any of the groups that Brandee has, because it's just been invaluable for me growing as a business owner and feeling supported and know that I'm not alone in this journey.
I really hope that this conversation has helped other people. you can do it.
Yes. Yes, it definitely has Gemma. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us today. I appreciate it.
That's right. Thank you so much.