Why a pro sound engineer is better value for your business.
Many people have folks with a bit of audio experience in their lives. When they’re planning an event, they might remember Uncle Fred, who helps set up the sound equipment at church, or that co-worker who used to be in a band, or a friend’s son who DJs, and ask themselves something like this:
‘Uncle Fred says he’ll make it loud and all he wants for payment is a box of beers. Why would I bother with a professional?’
The answer is: Professionalism.
Uncle Fred may be the right man for the job if producing some kind of sound is literally your only concern. He’s a great guy and he’ll do his best. But if you need to know that your event will go off without a hitch, you should look into getting a professional sound engineer.
A pro soundie will be able to seamlessly pull off feats of audio strategy and management that Uncle Fred doesn’t even know are possible.
Working with an experienced audio professional will give you:
Better engagement from your audience. When they can clearly hear what you’re telling them and aren’t distracted by shrieking feedback, they’re able to focus on your messaging.
The ability to cleanly incorporate every piece of equipment you desire into the set-up. Want to play video in presentations? Yes. What about livestreaming to remote attendees? Absolutely. Multiple microphones? No problem. Giant wall of speakers to blast your audience into the next universe? Hell yeah.
Your preferred sound from whatever equipment you need to use. If your venue has a particular set-up that you’re required to use, Uncle Fred might not be familiar with it - but a professional sound engineer will be. A pro can walk into any situation and make the available equipment do just what you’d like it to do.
Safety on the stage. Uncle Fred has no incentive to keep his industry knowledge or his gear maintained to a best-practice standard. And when there’s 240V of electricity coursing through his fraying cables, you don’t want to risk him taking guesses. Professionals understand safety regulations, regularly refresh their industry knowledge, and make sure their gear is clean, up-to-date and well-maintained so that they can offer you certainty in safety.
A safety net for your event. A pro soundie can fix audio problems before they happen, so you can get on with running your event. They have the experience to expect the unexpected and the skills to sort issues out seamlessly, without interrupting the audience’s experience or stressing you out.
Audio hobbyists like Uncle Fred make fantastic volunteer contributions to dance recitals, house parties, backyard weddings and so many other small events that make people happy and bring communities together. But there’s limits to what they can and should be expected to do.
So do yourself a favour at your next business event: Invite Uncle Fred as a guest only, and let a professional sound engineer handle the audio.
Find out how I can help meet all of your audio needs here.