1. Create a committee with fun people who like to party! Here are some areas of responsibility: food, entertainment, location, finance, decorations/clean-up, company communications.
   
   
2. A theme to the party adds fun. Examples of themes are 50's dances, disco parties, country western nights, Hollywood, beach, Olympics or casino just to name a few. Let everyone know about wearing costumes and a possible prize for the best get up.
   
   
3. Consider the demographics of your invited guests when you hire entertainment. Will there be just employees or are spouses invited? Mostly men or women? Young or old? Will the big bosses be there and do they like to party? Will there be children? The answers to these questions will determine what kind of entertainment you will want to hire in addition to your DJ. For example, clowns, magicians, face painters amd jugglers are great when there are children invited. Card readers, caricature artists and dance instructors are good additions to an adult group. Your Jock In A Box DJ will be glad to act as MC and will play music for any theme or age group.
   
   
4. Giving away prizes can be counterproductive to the party if it is not handled properly
   
   If you are going to be calling ticket numbers, do it once an hour to avoid stopping and starting the party. Two people will be needed along with a pad of paper, scotch tape and a table. Call the numbers twice, have one person then write the item and the ticket number on a piece of paper. Tape that paper to the item and place it on the table, and then move on the next item. This avoids waiting for someone to come forward with the ticket. Guests can go to the prize table where the other person can check ticket numbers. Avoid trivia questions; the questions will always be too easy or too hard. Do not dump the responsibility for giving away prizes entirely on the DJ, or to come up with a dozen trivia questions without warning. And do not ask the DJ to judge contests! If possible, try to give out all the prizes during dinner hour so the dance does not become a 'bingo game' and suffer from interruptions.
   
   
5. Guests will soon forget what they ate or drank at a party, but always remember if they danced and had a great time. Entertainment may be the most important decision you make. Know what your goals are when you decide on your entertainment. Do you want dancing? Singing? Audience participation? Or do you want primarily socializing and networking? Be sure and let your DJ know if any speeches or other scheduled activities will take place prior to the event. With this information, Jock In A Box can keep the 'flow' of the party going, and have special music ready.
   
   
6. Consider hiring a photographer to take candid pictures of your party. These pictures can be used in a company newsletter, pinned to the company bulletin board, posted on a company web-site, or used for a promotional kick-off meeting. Showing employees having fun together helps to give the company a morale boost. If the budget will allow, transfer these shots to video with a music background and save it to play at next year's party!
   
   
7. It's a good idea to have the committee meet after your event to discuss the results of your efforts. Write down what went well and what needs to be improved for next year. Did the party bog down, or could funds have been better allocated? What was the response of your guests to the party? Keep these notes for next year's committee so the same mistakes are not repeated.
   
   Finally, please don't let one or two people bad mouth any aspect of the party and take that as a blanket indictment of what went on. People always seem to find something to complain about, especially the DJ. Be fair in assessing their performance. Did the floor seem full most of the time and did they play a variety of music? If so consider it a success. No one will agree 100% that the DJ played the right music, so don't be surprised by any grumbling. Everyone has their favorite radio station and one format is not going to satisfy everyone.

Good luck from Jock In A Box DJ Entertainers!