TheKnot.com And WeddingChannel.com Reveal Results Of Largest Wedding Study Of Its Kind, Surveying More Than 17,500 Brides

-- Survey Finds That Wedding Budgets Continue to Rise, Brides Are Focusing on Guests; Plus First-Ever Same-Sex Wedding Statistics --

NEW YORK, March 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- XO Group Inc. (NYSE: XOXO; www.xogroupinc.com), a global media and technology leader and creator of the top two wedding websites, TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com, today released the results of its annual Real Weddings Study. This comprehensive report surveyed more than 17,500 US brides married in 2012. TheKnot.com & WeddingChannel.com 2012 Real Weddings Survey captures detailed information on wedding budget, style preferences, event characteristics and other key statistics related to the bridal demographic.

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"In 2011, budgets increased for the first time since the economic downturn, and this past year, in 2012, we saw that wedding budgets are continuing to rise even more and to an all-time high since 2008," said Carley Roney, cofounder of The Knot. "Couples are increasingly less concerned with the economy and are comfortable investing more than ever in the once-in-a-lifetime experience of planning their wedding and making it a fabulous experience for their guests."

2012 Wedding Statistics

 •Average Wedding Budget: $28,427 (excludes honeymoon)

 •Most Expensive Place to Get Married: Manhattan, $76,678 average spend

 •Least Expensive Place to Get Married: Alaska, $15,504 average spend

 •Average Spent on a Wedding Dress: $1,211

 •Average Marrying Age: Bride, 29; Groom, 31

 •Average Number of Guests: 139

 •Average Number of Bridesmaids: 4 to 5

 •Average Number of Groomsmen: 4 to 5

 •Most Popular Month to Get Engaged: December (16%)

 •Average Length of Engagement: 14 months

 •Most Popular Month to Get Married: June (17%)

 •Popular Wedding Colors: Blue (33%), Purple (26%), Green (23%), Metallics (23%)

 •Percentage of Destination Weddings: 24%

2012 Average Wedding Budget Breakdown

Top 20 Most Expensive Places to Get Married

Based on average wedding spend in 2012, these are the areas around the US where couples spend the most on their weddings.

 1.New York City (Manhattan): $76,687

 2.Chicago, IL: $49,810

 3.New York Metro (Long Island, Hudson Valley and NYC Outer Boroughs): $49,002, $46,300, $39,602

 4.Northern/Central New Jersey and Southern New Jersey: $48,496, $35,375

 5.Rhode Island: $47,399

 6.Santa Barbara/Ventura, CA: $42,319

 7.Boston, MA: $39,239

 8.Philadelphia, PA: $38,369

 9.Connecticut: $38,009

 10.San Francisco, CA: $35,344

 11.Los Angeles, CA: $35,308

 12.San Diego and Orange County/Inland Empire, CA: $34,136, $33,848

 13.Baltimore, MD: $33,366

 14.Washington, DC/Northern Virginia/suburban Maryland: $33,118

 15.Houston, TX: $31,978

 16.Southern Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale and surrounding areas): $31,288

 17.Savannah, GA: $30,618*

 18.Sacramento/Reno/Tahoe: $30,458*

 19.Hawaii: $29,636

 20.Illinois: $29,489*

*New to Top 20 List in 2012

Notable Regional Differences

TheKnot.com & WeddingChannel.com 2012 Real Weddings Survey can be broken down on a region-by-region basis across more than 80 markets. Regional highlights include:

 • Budget: New York City (Manhattan) has the highest average wedding budget ($76,687), and Alaska brides has the lowest average wedding budget ($15,504), excluding honeymoon.

 • Age: Hawaii has the oldest brides (33 years), whereas Utah has the youngest brides (25 years), on average.

 • Engagements: Middle Atlantic brides have the longest engagements (15.8 months), while brides in East South Central have the shortest (11.9 months), on average.*

 • Wedding Size: On average, Utah brides still have the largest number of wedding guests (209), and Nevada brides still have the smallest number of wedding guests (64).

 • Wedding Style: Wyoming has the most casual weddings (39%), while Chicago, IL, has the most formal (black-tie) weddings (44%).

 • Wedding Dress Spend: Brides in Manhattan spend the most on their dresses ($2,877 on average), while Idaho brides spend the least ($878).

 • Honeymoon: Savannah, GA, Couples are most likely to book a honeymoon (90%), while Alaskan couples are least likely to honeymoon (44%).

 • Registry: Brides in West North Central are the most likely to register for wedding gifts (94%), while Mountain brides are least likely to register (84%).*

*Middle Atlantic is comprised of NY, NJ, PA

*East South Central is comprised of AL, TN, KY, MS

*West North Central is comprised of MO, KS, IA, ND, NE, SD, MN

*Mountain is comprised of CO, AZ, NV, UT, ID, MT, NM, WY

Top 8 2012 Wedding Trends

BOOMING BUDGETS. Brides are spending even more on their weddings. Following 2011's trend of growing budgets, for the second year in a row since the economic downturn, the average wedding spend has grown year over year, hitting $28,427, the highest level since 2008. In this vein, fewer brides (26%) say the economy affected their wedding spend – a statistic that has continually decreased year over year, from 29% in 2011, 31% in 2010 and 34% in 2009. Wedding standards also continue to rise, as the average wedding spend per guest increased to $204, as compared to $196 in 2011 and even $194 in 2009. In fact, about 1 in 8 brides (13%) are spending more than $40,000 on their nuptials, and nearly 1 in 4 (23%) didn't even have a budget.

YEAR OF THE GUEST. Brides are concentrating on creating an experience for guests. Not only did spend per guest increase to $204, up almost $10 per guest from 2011, when brides spent $196 per guest, but also guest entertainment continues to gain popularity. This rapidly rising category only continues to grow – in 2012, more than 1 in 4 brides (27%) provided additional guest entertainment, compared to just 22% in 2011, 15% in 2010 and 11% in 2009. Additionally, while the number of brides who throw a rehearsal dinner, after-party or morning-after brunch has remained steady, brides are spending more money on these events. In 2012, brides spent an average of $1,135 on their rehearsal dinners (up from $1,078 in 2011) and $429 on their morning-after brunch (up from $416 in 2011). More than 1 in 4 (27%) are even providing shuttles and buses for guests to attend their weddings.

SAME-SEX WEDDINGS. First-ever same-sex wedding statistics released. Same-sex couples have longer engagements and are older at the time of their weddings, compared to traditional couples. They're more likely to have a casual wedding and report having fewer wedding guests. Same-sex couples spent slightly more on their overall wedding costs and more per guest. They're also less likely to host a bridal shower, bachelorette or bachelor party, but more likely to have an after-party, engagement party and couples party.

LESS-FORMAL STYLE. Casual and fun weddings grow. Wedding style continues to move toward the more casual end of the spectrum. In 2012, approximately 1 in 6 (17%) of brides said their wedding style was "casual," compared with 16% in 2011, 14% in 2010 and 12% in 2009. Throughout the past several years, brides have increasingly described themselves in less formal ways, as well. "Fun" was the number one descriptor chosen, with more than 1 in 4 (27%) brides describing themselves this way. Additionally, 1 in 4 described themselves as DIYers, compared with just 17% in 2008. "Elegant," which was the number one descriptor in 2008, when 31% of brides chose it, continues to decline, falling to just 22% in 2012.

WEDDINGS LESS RELIGIOUS. Number of weddings taking place in religious institutions declining. In hand with the move toward more-casual weddings, religious institutions are chosen less frequently for the wedding ceremony. Only 35% of brides opted to hold their wedding in a house of worship in 2012, down from 2 in 5 (41%) in 2009. Additionally, more couples are opting to have a friend or family member officiate the ceremony. In 2012, 1 in 3 (33%) couples chose a friend or family member to officiate, up from 31% in 2011 and 2010, and 29% in 2009.

HONEYMOONS ARE HAPPENING. Honeymoon planning is less affected by economy. For the past several years, brides reported that due to the economy, they were opting to postpone their honeymoons to keep wedding budgets in check. In 2009, 82% of couples took a honeymoon, compared to 77% in 2011. For the first time since 2009, this number remains steady and is no longer declining; in 2012 more than 3 in 4 couples (77%) took a honeymoon. As we see the economy's effect on wedding planning continue to lessen, the impact on honeymoons continues to lessen too.

BRIDES HAVE THE BLUES. Blue is the most popular wedding color. Blue has gained popularity in recent years, with 1 in 3 (33%) brides opting for the hue. Dark blue has actually doubled in popularity since 2008, when only 10% chose the color, compared to 20% selecting it in 2012. Purple continues to be popular, with 22% picking purple in 2012. Gray is also gaining steam, with 11% choosing the color in 2012, up from only 7% in 2011.

SAVING THE DATE. More couples opting for Save-the-Dates. In 2012, couples were more conscious of their guests and chose to send save-the-dates more than in past years – nearly 7 in 10 (68%) sent save-the-dates compared to 57% in 2009. Brides are also opting more for professionally made save the dates, as well. Two in five couples (40%) sent them, compared to just 29% in 2009. Electronic save-the-dates are also popular: 28% created and/or sent save-the-dates online, compared to just 19% in 2009.

About TheKnot.com & WeddingChannel.com 2012 Real Weddings Survey

The 2012 Real Weddings Survey captured responses from nearly 17,500 US brides married between January 1 and December 31, 2012; respondents were recruited throughout the year from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com membership, which represents nearly 80% of brides nationwide. Brides received survey invitations shortly after their wedding date and were asked a comprehensive series of questions about the event and their planning process. All qualified respondents attested that they:

 •Were 18 or older

 •Had a wedding in 2012

Survey respondents represent a variety of ethnicities and educational and income levels, and are geographically dispersed across the country. The survey and data management partner for the study was Decipher Inc.

Happy Valentine's Day. When you are sharing that romantic evening with your special someone consider creating the mood with 100 or so different slow jams from all eras and artists. 

2 Become One Spice Girls 

A Moment Like This Kelly Clarkson 

After All Cher/Peter Cetera 

Against All Odds Genesis 

All My Life K-Ci & JoJo 

Always Atlantic Star 

Always Bon Jovi 

Always & Forever Heatwave 

Amazed Lonestar 

Are you Lonesome Tonight? Elvis 

At Last Etta James 

Babe Styx 

Baby I Love Your Way Peter Frampton 

Back At One Brian McKnight 

Because Of You Kelly Clarkson 

Before Your Love Kelly Clarkson 

Behind Closed Doors Charlie Rich 

Believe In Me ATB 

Best Of My Love Eagles 

Breathe Faith Hill 

Can’t Help Falling In Love Elvis 

Cherish Kool & The Gang 

Color My World Chicago 

Crazy Patsy Cline  

Crazy For You Madonna 

Don’t Know Much Linda Ronstadt/Arron Neville 

Earth Angel New Edition 

Endless Love Lionel Ritchie & Diana Ross 

Even The Nights Are Better Air Supply 

Every Time You Go Away Paul Young 

Everything I Do I Do For You Bryan Adams 

Faithfully Journey 

Fooled Around & Fell In Love Alvin Bishop 

For The Good Times Ray Price 

For Your Love Ed Townsend 

Here & Now Luther Vandross 

Hero Enrique Iglesias 

How Deep Is Your Love Bee Gees 

How Do I Live Trisha Yearwood 

I Can't Stop Loving You Ray Charles 

I Don't Want To Miss A Thing Aerosmith 

I Knew I Loved You Savage Garden 

I Need You LeAnn Rimes 

I Only Have Eyes For You Flamingos 

I Swear All 4 One 

I Swear John Michael Montgomery 

I Turn To You Christine Aguilerea 

I Wanna Be The Rain RBD 

I Want To Know What Love Is Foreigner 

I Will Always Love You Whitney Houston 

If You Don’t Know Me By Now Simply Red 

If You Leave Me Now Chicago 

I’d Die Without You P.M. Dawn 

I’ll Always Love You Taylor Dayne 

I'll Be There For You Bon Jovi 

I'll Be There Jackson 5 

I'll Do Anything For Love Meatloaf 

I’ll Make Love To You Boyz II Men 

I’ll Never Break Your Heart Backstreet Boys 

It's All In The Game Tommy Edwards 

I've Had The Time of My Life Bill Medley/Jennifer Warnes 

Just The Way You Are Billy Joel 

Keep On Loving You Aerosmith 

Lady In Red Chris De Burgh 

Let’s Make Love Faith Hill/Tim McGraw 

Look What You’ve Done To Me Boz Scaggs 

Love Me Tender Elvis 

Make It With You Bread 

Moonlight Serenade Glenn Miller 

More Than A Feeling Boston 

My Heart Will Go On Celine Dion 

On The Wings Of Love Jeffery Osborne 

One More Night Phil Collins 

Open Arms Journey 

Save The Best For Last Vanessa Williams 

Since I Don’t Have You Skyliners 

Since I Fell For You Lenny Welsh 

Sleepwalk Santo & Johnny 

Someone To Love Jon B 

Sometimes When We Touch Dan Hill 

Take My Breathe Away Berlin 

The End of the Road Boyz II Men 

The Next Time I Fall In Love Peter Cetera/Amy Grant 

The 12th of Never Johnny Mathis 

Tu Amor RBD 

Theme From A Summer Place Percy Faith 

Turn Me On Norah Jones 

Unchained Melody Righteous Bros. 

Unforgettable Natalie & Nat King Cole 

We Belong Together Mariah Cary 

We’ve Got Tonight Bob Seger 

We’re All Alone Boz Scaggs 

Waiting For A Girl Like You Foreigner 

What A Wonderful World Louis Armstrong 

When A Man Loves A Woman Michael Bolton 

Wonderful Tonight Eric Clapton 

Yesterday Beatles 

You Are So Beautiful Joe Cocker 

You Send Me Sam Cooke 

You’re Beautiful Thomas Blunt 

If you have been following my blog you know that I am outspoken about things I believe in. One of which is customer service. I am a simple man. I love a great hamburger with fresh cut fries and an ice cold beer.  Treat people with respect and courtesy and provide them with a great product or service and the world can be yours regardless of the business that you are in. Life really can be that simple. 

In todays over saturated general market place, customer service and quality should be the two largest goals of any company. Couple the high competition and today’s economy and you would think that business owners would be bending over backwards for your hard earned money. The surprising thing to me is that they aren’t and I have come to understand the reason, it’s the consumer. That’s right I said you are reason. 

I know that as you are reading this, you are thinking how can I possibly be the reason? It’s simple, we as Americans have come to accept and almost anticipate bad service. When we get the most basic service we are pleased and when we get anything above that we are thrilled. Think about the last time you went into a big box retail store. Did you get any service at all? If you asked for directions toward finding a product did they greet you with a smile and walk you over or did they simply point and give you an area or some possible aisles. 

This past week, I went to Las Vegas for a conference. I flew out on Spirit Airlines. They are a price driven company and that’s all that they care about. If you Google Spirit Airlines, in their own website their meta tags and headlines all contain the words, cheap tickets, cheap flights, discount airfare……….. Nowhere in their website do they boast about their service. Truthfully they can’t. My flight out to Las Vegas was delayed 4 hours due to mechanical issues. The exact nature of these issues was never fully disclosed but none the less people were upset. I simply accepted it as I chose to fly Spirit based on trying to find the cheapest price and I got what I paid for. My flight back was also delayed almost an hour and one half due to mechanical issues as well. Either they have the worst planes in the industry that are falling apart or they have the worst luck. All I know is that neither are acceptable and I will be flying a different airline in the future. 

I took a cab last night a short distance to where I was storing my car while I was gone. When the cab driver discovered his fair was going to be only $11.00 he was pissed. He then proceeded to drive like a maniac as quickly as possible cutting across three lanes of traffic with no turn signals used. He was driving at least 15-20 miles over the speed limit the entire ride. I honestly believe he was punishing me for wasting his valuable time. I took down his cab number and once at my destination, paid him and then called 311 and reported him to the City of Chicago. He will now have to face a hearing and answer for his actions. Why did I do this? Because if I didn’t he will continue to go on treating people this way and breaking the law as well. I am not trying to ruin anyone’s life or get anyone intentionally fired. I am however making a stand. I will not allow myself to be treated poorly and I won’t patronize companies that do. I would rather pay a little more for something and get quality. 

One of my favorite companies to do business with is GoDaddy.com. Every single time I have ever needed anything from this company not only did I get taken care of quickly by their staff, but I was treated perfectly and they also asked each time if it was ok to review my account and go over a few things that might help my website get more traffic or perhaps simply help me in general. I understand that they are looking to upsell but if it helps me as the consumer along the way, I am the happiest man you will ever meet. 

If you are a bride to be reading this please consider the value of the customer service you may or may not be receiving from your wedding vendors. Are they a full time company working out of an office that you can drop by if you are in the area and need to ask a question, drop something off, etc? Do they return emails quickly? Do you always talk to voice mail or an actual person when you call the company? The stress of your wedding day is going to be there regardless, it can be a lot less though with great vendors. You may pay a few dollars more but it will be worth every penny.

If you are reading this and you are on the other side of the desk. Challenge yourself.  How can you better serve your customer? Even if you think and know you are doing a great job now, the world is ever changing which means that your service needs to change and evolve as well.  

The #1 rule in business is to serve the customer.  For the past two years KCE has won the Best of the Knot. We would like to believe that it is because of the service that our company provides to our clients. 

The Keith Christopher Entertainment Group is headed to Las Vegas for the Mobile Beat 2013 Dj Expo

In an effort to bring our clients the best possible service possible, members of The Keith Christopher Entertainment Group will once again be going to Las Vegas for the annual Mobile Beat Dj Expo.

During the course of the week, we will be attending seminars from seasoned professionals within our industry as well as professional business consultants. There is a huge trade show floor showing all of the latest equipment, lighting, software, tools, etc.

Keith Christopher will also be assisting in the American Disc Jockey Association booth.

We have been attending dj expos since 1989 in an effort to remain the leading entertainment company in Chicago. 

Yesterday the president was inaugurated. While he isn’t the man that I voted for, I recognize that he is the leader and the face of this country. I find myself having very different beliefs then he and the Democratic party do, but I am still grateful that I live in a country that I can speak my mind and exercise my freedoms even if it makes some of my friends on Facebook blood boil. This is possible because of a group of men and women who chose to break away from England and banded together for a better life for themselves and their children.

What does this have to do with djing or the ADJA? It is quite simple. The American Disc Jockey Association http://adja.org/ is the largest national disc jockey association in the world. On Friday, ABC aired a lack luster 20/20 episode geared toward weddings. They portrayed disc jockeys as a bunch of greedy thieves that choose to charge more for a wedding than other events just because brides are so emotional in having the dream wedding that they will pay our inflated fees on their wedding day. 

Since this has aired, djs from all over the country have posted on Facebook that we need to all get out our pitch forks and burning torches and go after everyone at 20/20. The more logical decision is to allow the director of the ADJA, Hugo Drax the ability to draft a letter of extreme disappointment for the unprofessional way that the mobile dj industry was portrayed. Dr. Drax is the director of the ADJA and the most logical choice to be the face of the dj industry as he represents the most djs in the country.  The more djs that Dr. Drax represents, the more powerful the message is to ABC and 20/20 on our behalf. The price for this is only about $200.00 per year. How can you not write a check or hand over your credit card?

If that isn’t enough, the ADJA hosts an excellent national conference that is open to both members and non-members and is a fraction of the costs of other dj conferences. He has had top speakers in the country speak such as Alan Berg, Andy Ebon, Peter Merry, and Randy Bartlett to name but a few. They will be hosting the conference again September 8-11, 2013. You can click here for more information. http://thelasvegasdjshow.com/. This is only possible because of member’s support. How can you not write a check or hand over your credit card?

If you still need another reason, let’s talk about Marketing 101. As a member you can proudly display the ADJA logo on your website, your business cards, your ads, etc. Typically people hiring djs have never hired a dj before and have a ton of questions. The ADJA logo lets your clients and potential clients know that you are part of a professional trade organization and thus it sets you apart from the garage djs unwilling to step up. How can you not write a check or hand over your credit card?

In addition to all of the reasons I have stated so far, let’s talk about networking with other local djs and education on a local level. The ADJA has over 40 active chapters or chapters in formation. This gives you the opportunity to network with other djs in your market as well as meet monthly and learn from one another as well as from their local education they have put together. In full disclosure, I am not a member of the local Chicago ADJA chapter due to other organizations I belong to with meetings that happen on the same days. How can you not write a check or hand over your credit card?

Last but not least, the ADJA offers so many discounts not available to djs on an independent level such as insurance, discount on gear, formalwear, etc. How can you not write a check or hand over your credit card?

Your yearly dues come out typically to be less than $20.00 a month. I think that I have clearly demonstrated why I am a member and why you should be as well. 

Follow them on Facebook and see what they are doing. http://www.facebook.com/4ADJA

Last week I blogged about my frustration with Wedding Wire’s extremely unclear way of determining their Bride’s Choice Awards. I said in that blog that I cancelled my account for other reasons that I would expand upon in another blog, this is that blog.

My issues over all with online reviews is that 3^rd party reviewing sites like Yelp and Wedding Wire sadly don’t offer a very fair way for vendors to represent themselves. In the case of Yelp, I can say anything about anyone for any reason and they will publish it. They then have a mysterious algorithm that no one has a clue of how it works even the sales people at Yelp. Some of the reviews are published and others are filtered. There have been hundreds of news exposes about the legitimacy of Yelp.

Wedding Wire’s only criteria for a review is that the reviewer can supply a contract to them. If you have a contract, you can say anything you want about the vendor regardless of if it is true or not. It is your opinion and Wedding Wire is only publishing your opinion.

We all make mistakes. We are human. The way that you choose to handle your mistakes is what takes you from being a business to being an amazing business.

My originally assigned sales representative from Wedding Wire was Stephanie Minton.  As a sales representative, she was horrible. She never returned phone calls, never returned emails, and never completed anything that she promised unless you sat on her to do it repeatedly. She always had a “The dog ate my homework excuse.” I finally had enough and emailed Wedding Wire asking to have her replaced as my sales representative.

 My new sales representative was Rosie Kalonaros. I had no problems with her. The few times I needed anything she was great to work with.

In September of 2012, I attended the American Disc Jockey Association’s national conference and a mutual friend introduced me to Sonny Ganguly. Sonny was aware of whom I was through mutual friends and that I produced bridal shows in Chicago. At the conference, he suggested that Wedding Wire sponsor our bridal shows. I asked him what he was looking for from me and what Wedding Wire could offer me. We were able to offer him exposure at our bridal shows to our brides as well as to our vendors and Wedding Wire would send broadcast email blasts to their brides letting them know that our bridal shows existed and had promo codes for complimentary tickets. An agreement was drawn up by Wedding Wire, emailed over to me, reviewed and signed by me immediately and we were now proud to have both The Knot and Wedding Wire as sponsors of our shows while our direct competitor had neither. We announced this new sponsorship to the Chicago wedding market with excitement. On November 28, 2012 I received an email from Christina Fields saying that they could not sponsor our shows due to the fact that the emails that were promised to us in the agreement drawn up by them had been “accidentally” sold. Upon further investigating, they conveniently but “accidently” had been sold to my direct bridal show competitor. This was almost a month after we had signed our agreement with Wedding Wire. I didn’t even get the decency of a phone call from Sonny it was in an email from someone else. Naturally I was upset and called and emailed Sonny wanting to know how and why this happened. He claimed it was an “accident”. If this is the truth, clearly Wedding Wire has internal issues so much so that they can’t keep track of a simple email campaign schedule. If it isn’t the truth, they simply took my competitor’s money and dumped us. In my mind they were either greedy or incompetent.  I will let you decide for yourself, either way is not good sadly.

Through a series of discussions with mutual friends and directly, Sonny offered to do a few email campaigns to promote my shows at no charge and wanting nothing in return. I was confused now because they all of a sudden had dates available to promote my show when a week earlier they didn’t.  I took them up on their offer regardless.  

 I received an email on Friday December 15 in the afternoon asking for all of my materials for the email campaign with no notice for an email to go out Monday morning. Apparently Wedding Wire doesn’t know that wedding vendors work on weekends. We got them everything and Monday the campaign went out promoting our upcoming shows. It went out to 4700 brides in Chicago compared to The Knot’s list of 40,000. I received 4 brides that used the promo code in the email for complimentary tickets.

I shared this with Christina and her response was that perhaps the email could have had a better more direct landing page. Please visit www.windycityweddingshow.com to reference what is next. The only logical page for the email to land on is our homepage. Clearly Christina had never taken the time to even look at our website and was simply using a generic excuse that I can only assume she uses with other clients. Since I hadn’t paid anything for the email campaign, I could only laugh internally knowing  that our direct bridal show competitor ran out to buy these campaigns away from me and was now spending all of his money on a campaign that would draw him nothing.

My next issue was a few weeks later when I saw all of the posts on Facebook from friends who had won the Bride’s Choice Awards and I called my sales representative Rosie to inquire about what happened that we didn’t win. Sadly she had no idea at all. She didn’t know any of the criteria for winning.  If you haven’t read my Bride’s Choice blog yet, you can by clicking in this link.

http://keithchristopher.com/blog/entry/wedding-wire-s-bride-s-choice-awards-not-really-much-of-a-choice.html

Once again I found myself upset and disappointed with Wedding Wire. Sonny Ganguly and I once again went back and forth about the way that Wedding Wire has treated me over all. In an email that I sent him before we spoke on the phone, I asked him to be ready to answer one very simple question.

“Based on the way that I have been repeatedly treated by Wedding Wire, how would you feel if you were me?”

Sonny never answered the question. He said, "I thought it was rhetorical." I told him it wasn’t and asked him to answer the simple question. He again chose not to. The most frustrating about everything that I have had to deal with Wedding Wire and Sonny Ganguly is simple; Wedding Wire made mistake after mistake and never once simply came clean and simply sincerely apologized. It apparently isn’t in their company culture since no one I have ever dealt with there has ever apologized.

There are always three parts to any apology. It starts with the words “I’m sorry” It then shifts to the acknowledgement of knowing that their actions have caused you pain, frustration, hurt, etc. The third part is reconciliation that we want to do something to make it right and in this learning process can assure you that it will never happen again.

I asked Sonny to remove The Keith Christopher Entertainment Group completely from Wedding Wire. I have really good reviews. He told me that he could cancel the account but could not remove me from Wedding Wire. He explained that the brides who reviewed me owned the reviews and not Wedding Wire. I pointed out the fact that I owned my company name and at this point that they are using it without my permission. My attorney now is looking into the legal ways to remove it. We all know it is simple HTML code and can be removed without any issue. 

He once again offered to finish the email campaigns. He offered to refund two months of advertising. I just want everything about and regarding Wedding Wire to go away and I want KCE to be removed from their website.  I want everyone reading this to also know that I am not mad. I am frustrated and I want this to be finished. Sonny clearly chooses not to listen to his customers. I was and am willing to walk away from his complimentary email campaigns. I never asked him for a refund. I will take the refund as I feel that just my time alone trying to end this deserves the financial compensation. I will then simply reinvest my Wedding Wire budget elsewhere.  

I just read an interview with Timothy Chi, the CEO of Wedding Wire where he explained the four most important success factors. #2 was carefully listening to the customer. Apparently Tim needs to hold a company meeting. 

In Sonny’s final email to me he wrote, “I wanted to once again say that we‘re sorry for the frustration you have had with your account.“ Sadly he just doesn’t get it. He should be sorry for the repeated mistakes, lies, incompetence, poor service, and bad choices made by himself and his staff with the way that he has treated a paying customer. The really sad part is that I have been overwhelmed by the amount of people who have commented on my blog, social media pages and groups saying the exact same thing.  

But just like the people that review vendors on Wedding Wire, that’s just my opinion.

I know a lot of you reading this wonder why I am blogging about this at all. I am doing it because people need to know what my experience was with Wedding Wire so that they are better informed when they are making their marketing decisions. It is a very competitive world out there and brides are looking for value more than ever before. You need to have as much information as possible when spending your hard earned marketing dollars.

Please Google Wedding Wire Scam or Wedding Wire Better Business Bureau. You will find that Wedding Wire has had 10 complaints filed against them with the BBB. Currently they have disappeared but of you look around you will find them.  If you Google Pissed Off Consumer, they have 14 complaints.

I am clearly not the only one that has not been treated professionally by Wedding Wire.  

Last night 20/20 did an expose on the various things that go into a wedding.  One of the things that were touched upon was wedding vendors charging more for a wedding than they do for a party.  They alluded to fact that some vendors charge more for a wedding simply because it is a wedding.  In the interest of dramatic television, they cut one of the DJs off as he started to explain why he charges more for a wedding than he does for a party. I can only assume to try to prove their point.

In the scenario that 20/20 used one event was a wedding and one event was a 40^th birthday party. I have had a full blown wedding at a banquet hall with 200 guests as well as a 40^th birthday party at a banquet hall with 200 guests. I am also a DJ who services brides and private parties every weekend.  I can tell you that even at my own wedding the DJ simply had to work harder.

I can say that it is my belief and my experience that in the 25 years that I have been doing events, 99% of the vendors I know charge a fair price and do not gouge a bride simply because she is having a wedding. From a DJ point of view, when I have DJ’d birthday parties in the past, they are typically a referral from someone who has either seen my company or they are a customer that has used us. The sales process is typically over the phone and not in person. The details of the party are discussed a week or a few weeks before the party typically over the phone again. When you compare the amount of time for the sales process and the detail meeting for a wedding that time alone can be anywhere from 2-4 hours compared to perhaps an hour for a birthday party. Some DJS are far more detailed than others and those meeting can be even longer in both cases but weddings still require more time as there are more moving pieces. When you know that this is the case a business owner needs to add the appropriate financial dollar amount for their time invested in each event. This is simply one example of why a wedding would naturally cost more.

Typically most birthday parties will have an excellent DJ and are not on the same scale of a wedding and the amount of work needed by a client is also less. What 20/20 never said is that most clients having a private non-wedding event will typically use phrases like, “It’s not going to be as big or elaborate as a wedding so do you have something more cost effective that would fit our budget.” Today’s bride is 29 years old and today’s groom in 31. Compare that to 20 years ago when they were 23 and 25. They are more settled in their career and typically have already purchased a home of some kind together.  I also think that between their age and the information available to them on the internet today, they are more educated than the average bride was 20 years ago.

I am posting the 20/20 episode link for you to watch for yourself if you are interested but overall I thought that the show was a simple entertaining puff piece since we are currently in the first quarter of the year which I like to call bridal Christmas. It is now that we see a larger percentage of our bookings happen.

http://abc.go.com/watch/2020/SH559026/VD55265676/2020-118-wedding-confidential

It is rather ironic that 20/20 would do a show accusing special event vendors for charging more for doing the same exact job, but we all know that if Oprah, Oj Simpson, Lance Armstrong or any other coveted ratings boosting celebrity were to be interviewed for the same 60 minute TV show, the cost for the commercials would be higher. They would argue audience delivery but you could also argue the same amount of work. 

Sunday night was the beginning of the awards season with The Golden Globes. The cameras always cut to two or three gentlemen showing locked aluminum brief cases with an accounting firm’s name on them as a neutral third party. Throughout the course of the show one celebrity will come on stage and explain how the awards were selected and the process that was done to insure their validity.

We are also in the NFL playoffs where every call, every second, every play, and every inch of grass can change the outcome of the game and one team’s chance to move forward.  Even the NFL has been wise enough to add instant replay. They do so because they understand that the referees are human and make mistakes. 

Even when local papers and news show runs “Your Town’s Favorite…..” you know it is a popularity contest some of which is determined by business owners ability to get friends and family to vote for their business but at least you know that winner was the one that got the most votes. 

Online reviews are the life blood of today’s business. Consumers today not only take the time to look at your company website, they also take the time to look at third party reviewing websites like Wedding Wire. 

Last year we were proud of the fact that Wedding Wire recognized The Keith Christopher Entertainment Group with their Bride’s Choice Award.  Being the diligent business owner that I am, I make sure to stay aware of our reviews on all websites. I have to say that once again, my staff did an amazing job with our clients and our reviews on Wedding Wire are amazing. Upon reviewing our 2012 Wedding Wire reviews, our company scored a 4.77 out of a 5.0. We aren’t perfect but based on an educational grading scale we have a 95.4% which is a solid A. I am very proud of my staff.

Even with 23 reviews with an average review of 4.77 we didn’t receive the award this year. I was shocked. How could we have 23 new reviews, 16 professional endorsements and still no award?  I looked up the Chicago market to see that 81 djs had won the award. Now something just didn’t seem right. I looked at multiple award winners, added up their 2012 reviews and found several with a lower average score than ours. 

I called Wedding Wire and asked to speak with my sales rep. I explained what I had found and even she didn’t understand why I hadn’t won. Sadly, she also didn’t know the criteria for winning. HOW CAN AN EMPLOYEE OF A COMPANY GIVING OUT AWARDS TO THEIR CLIENTS NOT KNOW HOW IT’S DONE? I was dumbfounded. She called me back an hour later and said that my score simply wasn’t high enough. I explained to her that I went through other companies and could prove that our score was higher. She then told me that it wasn’t just my scores. They run an algorithm to determine the winners. I asked her what that algorithm took into consideration besides the scores. She didn’t know. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I told her that in light of not having any answers for me that I felt it was best to cancel my advertising immediately. One thing that she did know was Wedding Wire’s cancelation policy and that I couldn’t cancel due to a contract. I told her that I would simply have my credit card company stop issuing the payment. Then I was told I would be turned over to collections. NOW I WAS REALLY UPSET. 

The purpose of any sales person is to solve a client or potential client’s problem. She wasn’t doing that. Instead of coming back to me with black and white answers, she kept explaining that I just didn’t win. She couldn’t explain how the awards were determined in any detail, just that I didn’t win; she also had no explanation as to why my competitors with lowers scores had won. 

I reached out to a business advisor in the wedding industry that is familiar with Wedding Wire.  He was able to get the criteria that my sales person couldn’t supply me. 

Awards are determined by a combination of four factors: overall rating (quality), total number of reviews (quantity), review performance from 2012 (recency), and consistency of reviews from year to year (consistency). This year's recipients represent the top 5% of WeddingWire's vendor community, across all service categories and all regions throughout the US, Canada and abroad.

This is what we found after reviewing their criteria and researching where we stood with all of the other winners. 

Overall Rating: We have a 4.6 as do other Bride’s Choice winners, I have even reviewed other categories where winners were as low as a 4.5

Total Number of Reviews: We have 57 reviews. We have more reviews than 60 of the 81 BC winners in the DJ category and we have only been in business for just over 2 years officially.

Review Performance from 2012. I took the time to review our scores and our median score for 2012 is 4.77 out of 5.0. That is a 95.4% score. In the education system that is a solid A.

Consistency from Year to Year. Last year we won the BC award and this year for some reason we did not. Our scores are better than they were last year.

Wedding Wire won’t release what the top 5%’s score is for some unknown reason which only calls into question the legitimacy of the contest as a whole. If the top 5% was 4.8 and we didn’t get it due to having a 4.77, I can live with that. But no one can easily define the exact criteria and what holds the most weight, etc. It’s the mysterious computer algorithm.

5 Days after I emailed one of the upper level executives at Wedding Wire I received an email back. That's right 5 days later. How many wedding vendors could go 5 days without addressing a bride's concern about something regarding her wedding? The email was to set up a phone call for the next day. During that phone call, I once again was never given any specific answers as to any transparency into how the awards are actually determined. Instead of getting answers, I was told informed that no other media company would have an executive at his level call me. He told me that the day that the computer pulled the scores, mine simply wasn’t high enough. He even questioned me about a review that went up in score as though I called all of my previous brides and begged them to raise their reviews on our company.  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I still don’t know the criteria for winning this award. It was never given to me. Based on what he implied with the change in a review and him questioning it, it sure sounded like we have the criteria for winning however we still aren’t being given the award. 

Last year when a photography studio I am friends with didn’t win the  award, their sales rep at the time told them that they needed a median score of 4.6 for 2011 and they fell short. She also informed the owner to simply tell brides that they won since their score was so close. This surprised both him and me. 

Some of you reading this blog are rolling your eyes and thinking that I am just upset that I didn’t win. I am upset that I didn’t win, but that is on me and my staff to work even harder next year to please our clients even more than we did this year. I am beyond upset and disappointed that Wedding Wire can’t explain their criteria for winning in such a way that anyone can understand it.  Their own staff doesn’t know the criteria for an award they are giving out. Their staff is telling vendors that didn’t win to just say that they did win. I am also upset that when they provide me with their company criteria, and I take the time to review it, I find that we have exceeded what other winners have achieved and I get no answer other than I’m sorry you didn’t win. I don’t want to win any award because I screamed the loudest demanding it, but if I met the criteria I want the award that my company legitimately earned.  If I haven’t won it, give me a reason why. At the end of a football game one team has more points than another. 

This was the straw that broke the camel’s back for me. I have never been consistently treated so poorly by a company before. I will elaborate in in another blog next week. I have cancelled all of my advertising with Wedding Wire. I have asked to be completely removed from their website. They told me that they could cancel my account but could not remove me from the website as they don’t own the reviews by the brides. They also don’t own my company name, yet it remains on their website. At this point in the conversation with them my head was ready to explode. WEBSITES ARE MADE UP OF HTML CODE. A few key strokes can remove their entire website. They can certainly remove my company and it's good reviews from their website.

I am tired of the lies, the excuses, the incompetence, and the deceitful practices of Wedding Wire. But that’s just my experience and opinion.  Do a Google search on Wedding Wire Better Business Bureau and see what comes up for yourself.  

I know a ton of Bride's Choice winners that are friends, competitors, etc, and they run amazing businesses. It's sad that the company giving out the awards doesn't have the same standards. 

What an amazing week. Today is our last day at The Special Event. We have been exhibiting The Keith Christopher Entertainment Group for 2 days now and seeing so many old friends has been amazing as well as meeting so many new people. You don't really get a full understanding of how large the Special Event Industry is in Chicago alone until you attend a trade show like this. 

This is the second consecutive year that Keith Christopher has won the Best of The Knot. We are once again grateful to all of the brides that reviewed our services online which allowed us to win this award again. We look forward to once again exceeding client expectations on 2013.

While there is no absolutes in life, The Knot has by far the most comprehensive survey of brides that exists today. 19,000 brides were surveyed and below is what they have compiled. If you are a bride to be reading this survey, you can certainly use it as a guide for your budget. If you are a wedding professional, you can use it to see how your fee structure compares with that of the national average. Just make sure to scale the averages up and down based on the city that you live in compared to the national average. The most important thing is to base your purchasing decision on value and quality. 

4TH Annual Survey of Nearly 19,000 Recent U.S. Brides Reveals Most Expensive Cities for Weddings and In-Depth Insight Into Wedding Budget and Wedding Trends

“Brides remain committed to planning a luxurious, memorable event and are willing to spend despite the state of the economy,” said Carley Roney, editor in chief of The Knot Inc. “In fact, approximately 1 in 5 brides are spending more than $30,000 on their wedding, and 12% of brides are spending more than $40,000.”

Key Average Wedding Statistics

Wedding Spend (excluding honeymoon): $26,984
Most Expensive Area to Get Married (excluding honeymoon): NYC (Manhattan), $70,030
Least Expensive Area to Get Married (excluding honeymoon): Utah, $13,214
Wedding Dress Spend: $1,099
Percentage of Destination Weddings: 24%
Bride’s Age: 29
Groom’s Age: 31
Number of Guests: 141
Average Wedding Spend (on a per guest basis): $194
Number of Bridesmaids: 4
Number of Groomsmen: 4
Length of Engagement: 14 months
Most Popular Engagement Month: December (16%)
Most Popular Wedding Month: June (15%)
Most Popular Wedding Color: White/Ivory (43%)

2010 Average Wedding Budget Breakdown

Overall Wedding (excluding honeymoon): $26,984
Ceremony Site: $1,393
Reception Venue: $12,124
Reception Band: $3,081
Reception DJ: $900
Photographer: $2,320
Videographer: $1,463
Wedding Gown: $1,099
Florist/Décor: $1,988
Invitations: $351
Wedding Cake: $540
Ceremony Musicians: $503
Catering (cost per head): $61
Wedding Day Transportation: $667
Favors: $222
Rehearsal Dinner: $1,127
Engagement Ring: $5,392

Figures based on respondents who hired a professional vendor for the service.

Top 20 Most Expensive Wedding Areas

1. NYC (Manhattan): $70,730
2. NY (Long Island, Hudson Valley and NYC Outer Boroughs): $51,811, $45,695, $44,718
3. Northern/Central NJ and Southern NJ: $49,347, $36,694
4. Rhode Island: $41,169
5. Philadelphia, PA: $36,294
6. Santa Barbara/Ventura, CA, and Los Angeles, CA: $36,233, $33,745
7. Boston, MA: $35,458
8. Chicago, IL: $35,389
9. Connecticut: $35,197
10. Southern Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale and surrounding areas): $33,810

11. Washington, DC, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland: $33,727
12. Orange County/Inland Empire, CA, and San Diego, CA: $31,954, $30,687
13. San Francisco Bay Area, CA, and California/Nevada (Sacramento, Tahoe and Reno): $31,173, $26,567
14. Baltimore, MD: $30,073
15. Houston, TX: $29,129
16. Pittsburgh, PA: $28,408
17. Dallas, TX: $27,823
18. Vermont: $27,333
19. Hawaii: $26,722
20. Austin/San Antonio, TX: $26,329

Interesting Regional Differences

TheKnot.com & WeddingChannel.com 2010 Real Weddings Survey can be broken down on a region-by-region basis across more than 80 markets. Regional highlights include:

Budget

New York City (Manhattan) has the highest average wedding budget ($70,730), and Utah has the lowest average wedding budget ($13,214), excluding honeymoon only.

Age

New York City (Manhattan and Outer Boroughs) has the oldest brides (32 years), whereas West Texas has the youngest brides (24 years), on average.

Engagements

Northeast brides have the longest engagements (15.5 months), while brides from Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi have the shortest (12 months), on average.

Wedding Size

On average, Nebraska and Iowa brides still have the largest number of wedding guests (213 and 200, respectively), and Hawaii and Nevada still have the smallest number of wedding guests (82 and 59, respectively).

Wedding Style

Hawaii has the most casual weddings, while Northern/Central New Jersey has the most formal (black-tie) weddings.

Economy’s Effect

Brides in New Mexico, and California and Nevada (Sacramento, Tahoe and Reno) were the most affected by the economy, while brides in Alaska and Nebraska were the least affected.

Registry

Brides in Toledo, Ohio, Kansas and Minnesota are the most likely to register for wedding gifts (96%).

Top 10 2010 National Highlights

TOP SPENDERS: New York City Tri-State Area, New Jersey and Rhode Island Brides Are Top Wedding Spenders, Spending More Than $40,000 on Their Wedding. Nationwide, 12% of brides spend more than $40,000 on their wedding event, and approximately 1 in 5 brides spend more than $30,000 on their wedding event, not including the engagement ring or honeymoon.

ECONOMY: Economy’s Decreasing Impact. Less than a third (31%) of brides said the economy affected their wedding budget – a decrease from 34% in 2009. However, when it does come to lowering the wedding budget, one successful cost-cutting tactic used by brides is to trim the number of wedding guests – 141 was the average in 2010, compared with 149 in 2009. Despite the decrease in wedding guests, wedding standards weren’t affected, as the average wedding spend per guest remained the same as it was in 2009 – $194.

BRIDE & GROOM SNAPSHOT: Couples Are Older and Cohabitating. Not only are couples older at the time of their wedding compared with previous years (29 for brides and 31 for grooms in 2010 versus 28 for brides and 30 for grooms in 2009 and 2008), but more of them are living together prior to marriage – nearly three-quarters (74%) compared with 70% in 2009 and 2008.

LOCATION: More Destination Weddings. Destination weddings rose the past two years, with an increase of 20% since 2008. In fact, approximately 1 in 4 couples considered their wedding a destination wedding in 2010. This, in turn, affected the percentage of guests needing overnight accommodations – 42% compared with 36% in 2008.

CEREMONY: More Ceremonies Outdoors; Less in Houses of Worship. Religious institutions, such as churches, synagogues and mosques, dropped off by 10% as more couples opted to hold their wedding ceremonies outdoors. In 2010, 43% of ceremonies were held outdoors, compared with 39% in 2009 – an increase of 10%.

COLOR: Purple’s Popularity. Purple is the new “it” color, with 1 out of 5 brides (21%) choosing it for their wedding – a 50% increase since 2008. What’s losing popularity with brides, though? Brown, which decreased by 16% since last year.

ENTERTAINMENT: Guest Entertainment on the Rise. Having guests merely attend a wedding isn’t enough anymore. Custom guest entertainment, such as photo booths and comedians, is on the rise, with 15% of brides incorporating additional guest entertainment into their wedding (up from 11% in 2009). In addition, 13% of brides have interactive food stations, such as a sommelier with wine tastings, a sushi chef or a cheesemonger.

ONLINE RESOURCES: Online Wedding Planning and Execution Continues to Increase. From using social media to communicate wedding details (a 78% increase since 2008) and creating/sending save-the-dates or invitations online (a 40% increase since 2008) to using an online RSVP service (a 31% increase since 2008) or setting up personal wedding websites (a 23% increase since 2008), brides are increasingly using online wedding planning tools to prepare for the big day.

PLANNING: How much and how stressful. As the wedding approaches, brides spend more time wedding planning. In the last three months leading up to their wedding, brides spend an average of 11 hours a week planning. Nearly 50% also found that planning their wedding was more stressful than they expected. Nearly 1 in 3 hire or use an event/wedding planner, with more than half of those brides hiring them for day-of coordination (52%).

DESSERTS REIGN: Not just wedding cakes. A majority of brides (68%) have a traditional tiered wedding cake; however, other desserts like a groom’s cake (20%), candy (14%) and cupcakes (13%) are also served.

About TheKnot.com & WeddingChannel.com 2010 Real Weddings Study

The 2010 Real Weddings Study captured responses from nearly 19,000 U.S. brides married between January 1 and December 31, 2010; respondents were recruited throughout the year from TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com membership, which represents nearly 80% of brides nationwide. Brides received survey invitations shortly after their wedding date and were asked a comprehensive series of questions about the event and their planning process. All qualified respondents:

Were 18 or older
Had a wedding in 2010

Survey respondents represent a variety of ethnic, education and income levels, and are geographically dispersed across the country. The survey and data management partner for the study was Decipher, Inc.

Additional data highlights are also available at TheKnotInc.com/tkmi, while complete custom analyses and reports are available for purchase by contacting This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Source/More Information (The Knot): http://www.theknotinc.com/press-releases-home/2011-press-releases/2011-03-02-2011-real-weddings-survey-results.aspx

As a kid I always felt there were two New Years. The first one was always on January 1^st. The second one was always the first day of school. I like most kids always thought this was the year that I got straight A’s and joined a specific team or club and dominated. The truth is that I didn’t.  It wasn’t due to not wanting to, it was due to not knowing how.  Successful people aren’t necessary smarter of more talented, they are just more driven.

Statistics show that 80% of New Year’s Eve resolutions will quickly be forgotten.

Even more unnerving about the struggle to keep New Year’s promises might be Time magazine’s recent list of top 10 resolutions that are broken:

• Lose weight and get fit

• Quit smoking

• Learn something new

• Eat healthier and diet

• Get out of debt and save money

• Spend more time with family

• Travel to new places

• Be less stressed

• Volunteer

• Drink less

I read a blog about a year about written by an industry colleague that said, don’t make NYE resolutions. His theory was that you aren’t going to fulfill them anyway so why even bother. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. He is entitled to his opinion but it got me to thinking. Why do NYE resolutions fail?

After doing some research online and reading a series of books I have complied the following and I hope when you read this that it assists you in fulfilling your NYE resolutions successfully.

1.       Write your NYE resolution on something that you need to see every day that will stare you in the face.  If your goal is to lose weight, put that goal on your refrigerator staring you in the face every time you reach for that handle.

2.       Share your goals with as many people as possible. If you want to quit smoking, tell everyone that you know that smokes specifically so that when you are weak they refuse to bum you one of their cigarettes. The closer you come to your goal, the more support you will receive from people.

3.       Realize that this requires WORK. No one ever said this would be easy and no one ever said it would happen overnight. Come to terms that your goal may take a full year to accomplish.

4.       Set realistic stepping stones to accomplish your goal. If you want to lose 100 pounds in one year, break it down to just less than 10 pounds per month and celebrate each month’s accomplishment.

5.       Create an action plan. Just like taking a trip, you can’t get where you are going without planning out the trip. Do the research necessary to accomplish your NYE resolutions and make them happen.

Lastly and most importantly is to own your actions. Today we tend to blame everyone else for our problems. Mc Donalds has been sued for serving food high in fats. The mayor of New York is passing laws prohibiting the sales of large soda drinks. American homeowners are defaulting on mortgages that they agreed to pay at one time.  OWN YOUR ACTIONS, this includes both your successes and your failures.

When you succeed, celebrate. When you fail, dust yourself off and get up and get moving toward your goals and dreams.  

On behalf of the entire family at Keith Christopher Entertainment, we wish you and your family a happy and healthy new year. May all of your dreams come true in 2013.

It is the end of the year which means that the media will be doing their year in review segments complete with those who have passed away in 2012. 

There were so many amazingly talented people in the music industry that passed away in 2012. Here are some amazing people for you to reflect back on. They are listed in no particular order for any reason. 

Dick Clark          Broadcasting Legend and creator of American Bandstand

Don Cornelius          Broadcasting Legend and creator of Soul Train

Robin Gibb          Member of the Bee Gees

Marvin Hamlisch          Legendary Composer

Whitney Houston          Legendary singer

Etta James          Legendary singer

Davy Jones          Lead singer of The Monkeys

Jon Lord          Co-founder of Deep Purple

Donna Summer          Legendary singer

Andy Williams          Legendary singer

Adam Yauch          aka MCA fo The Beastie Boys

Lee Dorman          Bassist for Iron Butterfly

Martin Richards          Award Winning Producer of “Chicago”

Hal David          Lyricist of hits such as “Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head”

Stuart Swanlund          Guitarist for The Marshall Tucker Band

Kitty Wells          Queen of Country Music

Richard Adler          Tony Award winning composer for Damn Yankees and The Pajama Game

Bob Welch          Member of Fleetwood Mac

Herb Reed          Founding member of The Platters

Donald “Duck” Dunn          Studio Musician and member of The Blues Brothers

Fontella Bass          Singer of the famous song “Rescue Me”

Scott McKenzie          Singer / Songwriter best known for his Beach Boys hit KoKomo

As I have said in previous blogs, I discovered music with the introduction of Michael Jackson’s album Thriller. Years later in college I discovered that girls loved guys that could dance and I quickly caught up. I was and still am nothing special on the dance floor but I can hold my own and not embarrass myself or anyone that I am dancing with. I also started djing in college while at N.I.U. as a Theta Chi and quickly fell in love with Rapper’s Delight, It Takes Two, Joy and Pain, Push It, to name but a few classics. Chicago house music pumped throughout not only our house but our entire campus. House legends like Mr Lee, Fast Eddie, M Doc, were played until the 12” copy of it was eventually worn out. There was something special about spinning those 12” records on a Technics 1200 turntable with a Numark mixer while the police beacons spun around, the strobe lights blinded people, the black lights lit up your tshirts and the occasional white bra through a silk top, and the house smelled like the fog machine and our main room was hotter than Miami in June. $3.00 bought you a Red solo cup and as much Coors Light as we could afford. We packed in as many people as possible until the police or campus security eventually got a noise complaint and we had to tame it down or sometimes kill the party all together. Our dance floor was always packed and people most definitely got their $3.00 worth.  

The December 2012 issue of Rolling Stone magazine highlights the Top 50 Greatest Hip-Hop of all time. .

Rolling Stone’s Top 10 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time:

1. “The Message” – Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five

2. “Rapper’s Delight” – Sugarhill Gang

3. “Planet Rock” – Afrika Bambaataa & the Soul Sonic Force

4. “Sucker M.C.’s” – Run-DMC

5. “Mind Playing Tricks on Me” – Geto Boys

6. “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang” – Dr. Dre feat. Snoop Doggy Dogg

7. “Fight the Power” – Public Enemy

8. “Juicy” – Notorious B.I.G.

9. “Straight Outta Compton” – N.W.A.

10. “Paid in Full” – Erik B. and Rakim

The rest of them can be found on the following link.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-50-greatest-hip-hop-songs-of-all-time-20121205

"Auld Lang Syne" is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song. It is well known in many countries, especially in the English-speaking world; its traditional use being to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight.

Canadian band leader Guy Lombardo is often credited with popularizing the use of the song at New Year’s celebrations in America, through his annual broadcasts on radio and television, beginning in 1929. The song became his trademark. In addition to his live broadcasts, Lombardo recorded the song more than once. His first recording was in 1939. A later recording on 29 September 1947 was issued as a single by Decca Records.

The words 'Auld Lang Syne' literally translates from old Scottish dialect meaning 'Old Long Ago' and is about love and friendship in times past. The lyrics in the song Auld Lang Syne referring to 'We'll take a Cup of Kindness yet' relate to a drink shared by men and women to symbolize friendship. Happy New Year!!!!

Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And auld lang syne!

Chorus.-For auld lang syne, my dear,  For auld lang syne. We'll take a cup o' kindness yet,  For auld lang syne. 

Just a quick note to say Happy Holidays to everyone in our lives and we hope that your 2013 is an amazing year for you and your families. We will see you on the dance floor celebrating life's special moments. 

Let me start this blog by saying that as I type this at my desk, I am in my old softball team t-shirt, a pair of Reebok warm up pants, and a pair of gym shoes. Comfort is key today. I also have no appointments coming into the office, and I don’t have to perform anywhere tonight so it should be a nice easy day here at K.C.E.

The reason I prefaced this is because I am writing this blog about how disappointed I have become with the way that other wedding professionals dress at events. Timothy Whaley Photography was the first photography studio that I knew of to offer photo journalistic photography in Chicago. I remember when Tim told me that he would send a main photographer in formal attire to capture the wedding as well as second photographer dressed as a guest to be “under cover” and blend in with the guests to capture the emotions of the wedding day, I thought this was brilliant. This was the first time I had known of a company breaking the industry standard of a tuxedo at weddings. In the past 5-10 years however the overall industry has stepped away from wearing a classic tuxedo to just dressing in black.

This past Friday, I worked with a photographer dressed in khaki slacks and a polo golf shirt at a wedding reception held in a beautiful Double Tree hotel. In the past year, both myself and my staff have worked with photographers dressed in shorts and either gym shoes or flip flops at traditional wedding receptions. I have posted these pictures on my personal Facebook page with my feelings that it was horrific. I was shocked at the amount of comments defending these people. “Well he may take amazing pictures.” “How he is dressed really isn’t reflective of his work or professionalism.” In one post, I was even called a bully by posting his picture. I never posted his company name or his personal name. When did we as an industry get to a point that dressing professionally was no longer a part of being a professional? There is a difference in being dressed in black and looking sharp and being dressed in black and looking under-dressed like you just rolled out of bed. 

A lot of wedding vendors have explained to me that dressing formally simply isn't realistic yet every weekend I see very hard working wait staff at these same weddings dressed in a tuxedo shirt, tie, vest, and dress pants carrying hot trays of food and moving tables and chairs while also serving hundreds of people so I am not sure how much I believe that explanation. Even my mail man dresses in a uniform. 

I find it rather interesting that what some wedding professionals wear to a wedding wouldn’t be formal enough to get them into a downtown nightclub. 

It is both my personal and professional opinion that a wedding professional should dress both comfortably enough to do their job as well as formally enough to be at a dress code that is at least equal to that of a guest at the event. If a tie needs to come off for something then it should be put back on later. Our staff loads our equipment into the facility in a Keith Christopher T-shirt and jeans or shorts depending on time of year. After we are all set up, we change into a formal black tuxedo and our assistants, lighting techs, photo booth operators, etc. all dress in shirts and ties with pressed black slacks and black dress shirts. 

If you are a planning a wedding or party and you are reading this blog, please make sure that you discuss dress code in detail with your wedding vendors before your wedding day so that you are not stuck with shorts and flip flops on your wedding day.  

Here are the top 12 Holiday Party Ideas for your 12 days of Christmas

12. Christmas Costume Pub Crawl

Halloween isn't the only holiday tailor-made for dress-up. Hit up a costume store and buy a Santa suit (or sexy Santa suit, if you must) or  an elf ensemble, and hit up a bar with some similarly dressed pals. In fact, dozens of cities across the country actually have organized "Santa-con" events in which hundreds of people spend the day bouncing from bar to bar in their white beards and red hats. To ensure proper participation, award the best dressed Kris Kringle and Mrs. Claus with a free round on you.

11. Marshmallow Roast

Roasting marshmallows around a campfire (or a crackling fireplace) is a wonderful winter pastime. Just stock up on chocolate bars and graham crackers for s'mores … and some peppermint schnapps to wash 'em down. Spend the night getting roasted and toasted. And if you want to kick your mallow roast up a notch, get some chestnuts roasting on that open fire, too!

10. Christmas Cast-Off Gift Exchange 

Re-gifting — the act of handing off one of your previously received unwanted gifts to someone else — may be considered tacky in some circles, but when everyone's doing it, it can't be that bad, right? Have all of your friends come over with one of last Christmas' cast-offs — a leopard-print Snuggie, an automatic-twirling spaghetti fork, or a hot-pink clip-on tie. Make sure everyone's gifts are wrapped and then play a version of "White Elephant," where people can pick from the pile or steal someone else's new acquisition. One person's trash is another's recycling.

9. Christmas Carol Karaoke Night 

You may not be a fan of unsolicited carolers banging on your door at night, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy an opportunity to bust out Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You." Either hit up a karaoke bar with private singing rooms or invest in a home karaoke set, and rock out to the holiday's best jams. Like the movie marathon, a complete Christmas playlist may take all night, so consider sticking to a theme. Classics are fun for the whole family, but sticking with pop reinterpretations by the tragically disbanded 'N Sync and just about every American Idol winner will help you stay on track.