Main Contents
News
Comments (1)
SEO is an acronym the means “Search Engine Optimization.” It is the process of increasing organic (un-paid) traffic to a website. SEO can also refer to an ever growing industry of ‘consultants’ or self-proclaimed “experts” (search engine optimizers).
I haven’t paid a dollar for an SEO service of any kind since first learning of the process in 2008, and since that time I’ve successfully increased the traffic to my blog and website exponentially.
A few weeks ago I was shown an article in Entrepreneur magazine titled “What You Don’t Know About SEO”, in which they quote Peter Kent, author of “Search Engine Optimization For Dummies” as saying “The SEO business is 80% scam”. This, unfortunately, is a statement I must sadly agree with.
Now I’m certainly not going to sit here and spout out a diatribe on why you shouldn’t hire an SEO to help you with your online searchability, but I will repeat the age-old adage of “Let the buyer beware.” At least three or four times a month I am solicited by self-proclaimed SEO companies that offer to charge me for services that are readily available for free. The internet is filled with the tools and information you need not only to understand how to drive traffic to your website, but to make it happen.
Am I saying that all SEOs are a scam? Absolutely not. If Mr. Kent’s statement is true, that means that at least 20% of them are the real deal, but finding them takes quite a bit of research, and often times they are well published and easy to find online. In most cases I’ve found them to be individuals and not companies. Beware of the SEO companies listed in Google’s “sponsored links” (the ones highlighted in yellow) as they didn’t earn their top Google ranking organically, they paid for it. Now ask yourself, if they couldn’t get themselves organically ranked, how the heck are they going to be able to do it for you?
On the other hand, only ten SEO experts are going to make the top 10, and there are plenty more legitimate ones out there than that. Many don’t even bother trying to compete for that term because it’s so ridiculously competitive. Should they spend their time trying to outdo all the other SEO experts? Or serving their clients?
What does make sense is that if they want to work with somebody local or with experience in a specific industry, look for that, e.g., “Philadelphia SEO” or “music SEO”.
Why blog about SEO on a DJ website? Well, simply because it’s important. For my company, it was the make or break for the 2008-2009 recession. Many of my industry colleagues have asked me how I can afford to invest the time, to which I simply respond “How could I afford not to?”
In the Philadelphia event industry, my website and blog are ranked amongst the most highly trafficked, if not THE most. I quote Scott Allen of ScottSocialMediaAllen.com, who within his quote quotes the late Will Rogers in saying…
That’s a bold claim, and I’m sure there are some who will doubt me on that. I’m perhaps not the most famous social media expert, but as Will Rogers said, “It ain’t braggin’ if you done it.”
-Craig Sumsky
Cutting Edge @ February 8, 2010
Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, Our Staff: Past and Present
Comments (5)
I am the only female MC here at Cutting Edge Entertainment, and let me tell you that, in of itself, is a lot of work. I’m treated like the little sister; teased and picked on but very over-protected at the same time. I was fifteen years old when I came from another entertainment company, after being what one might call a “bench warmer” for about six months. I came to Cutting Edge with the hope for growth and, quite frankly, a chance. Well, I certainly have gotten more than that, and along the way have gained a family.
Cutting Edge Entertainment has opened up a world of possibilities that I never thought imaginable. I have my own jobs now, with my own clients, my own meetings, and all of the lovely paper work to go with it. I LOVE IT. I am filled with excitement every time Craig tells me that we have booked another client with me as the MC. I immediately ask for the client’s information and call them right away to let them know that I am their MC and ask them about the type of vision they have for their party. I make sure to get my client everything they want by listening to all of their desires and requests and attending to every detail.
I am also in charge of auditioning and training all of our dancers. I am still trying to grasp that responsibility because it’s hard to imagine that after a short five years I’m in charge. It feels like only yesterday when Pedro and Allison were up in the front of the studio teaching me how to become a better dancer and performer. Now it is me up front teaching people that are not that much younger than me, how to do this job, and how to do it right. Knowing that the staff looks up to me is humbling in a sense; it makes you grow up really fast. I love each and every one of the dancers here at Cutting Edge. We have a great group who works hard to improve with every event. They are all eager to learn and also know how to have a really good time at a party!
While this all might sound like a full plate of responsibility to some, I still wanted more. I always wanted to get in on the planning side of events. When you MC and meet with clients, you pretty much are planning out their party with them, but I wanted to get involved from the very beginning stages. With that in mind, I spent last summer hunting for an internship opportunity. My mom and I Googled, “Wedding Planners in the Philadelphia Area” and the very first link that popped up was for The Queen of Hearts Wedding Consultants. After browsing the site, I looked at my mom and said, “ There is no way that this guy is going to take me, there is just no way.” She suggested I talk to Craig to see if he knew anyone that I could get in touch with. We figured he would know SOMEONE, even if it was a little company, just so I could get some experience and THEN try for The Queen of Hearts.
So, I called Craig, and when I got the answer, I nearly fainted… HE KNEW MARK FROM THE QUEEN OF HEARTS!! I died right then and there because after he told me that, he also let me know that Mark was looking for someone with Mitzvah experience. I died yet again. Screaming into the phone with, Craig on the other end of the line, all I could say was “Okay what do I need to do? Will you talk to him? Oh my god what do I need to do? Craig, please help me, oh god PLEASE Craig!” Well, being the little sister has its benefits, because he did talk to Mark, and after I wrote Mark a letter introducing myself and explaining that I was interested in an internship, I was interviewed and began working with The Queen of Hearts this past May.
Working with Mark has been such an incredible experience. In less than a year, I have learned so much from him and all of the amazing staff at Q.O.H. Weddings (a little shout out to Karen, Christina, Rebecca, and Kristin! xoxo). I have found, once again, another family, and quite frankly, that is how a work environment should be. Q.O.H. is growing and I am so excited to be part of this company during such a wonderful time. We will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary this year and 2010 is going to be a promising one full of new adventures, new clients, and new friendships. I am looking forward to all that is to come.
Shoshana Katz
Photo by Kevin York – www.kevinyorkphotography.com
Cutting Edge @ February 1, 2010
News, Weddings
Comments (1)
We are excited to announce that the WeddingWire Network has chosen Cutting Edge Entertainment to receive the Bride’s Choice Award™ 2010. This award recognizes the top five percent of local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire Network who demonstrate excellence in quality, service and professionalism.
The Bride’s Choice Awards™ are determined exclusively by recent newlyweds (brides and grooms) through extensive surveys and reviews, which means our past clients have spoken on our behalf and selected us to receive this honor.
We would like to express our thanks and gratitude to all of our past clients for your business, for choosing us to provide DJ entertainment at your wedding reception, and for helping to make Cutting Edge Entertainment one of the top Disc Jockey companies in the Philadelphia area.
www.weddingwire.com
Cutting Edge @ January 22, 2010
Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, News
Comments (0)
Last month, I had the privilege of entertaining at the Beth David Sock Hop in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania for the second year in a row. This time our motley crew consisted of me (Tony), Richie and DJ Foltzy, along with photographer Jean Valentin.
Most of the children had been to last year’s party, and instantly recognized me. From that point, the party took off like a rocket ship. The kids’ enthusiasm made our job a piece of cake, and everyone was out on the dance floor all night long. Valentin was bobbing and weaving all through out the room like a photographer at the World Series parade, while Richie and I played games with the kids like Connect and Coke & Pepsi. They were so pumped that we also gave prizes to the winners of an improv wheel barrel race.
The whole gang at Beth David was also privileged to witness the craziest hula-hoop contest of the last millennium. Our winner that night was able to spin the hoop from the top of her head down to her feet without stopping! I think we should hire her right now! The dancing was insane all night, and eventually Richie challenged all the kids to an extreme dance off with one kid even jumping on Richie’s back!
The evening flew by and before we knew it, it was time to say adios amigos. Some of the kids were so tired that their parents had to carry them out to the car. One parent said, “I didn’t think it could be better than last year, but it was!” We had an amazing time at Beth David. In the words of one of our youngest guests, “You guys rock! I am DEFINITELY coming every year!” We’re also looking forward to some Bar & Bat Mitzvah parties coming up at Beth David as well, so we’ll see you all real soon!
- Tony A.
Photos by Jean Valentin Photography – http://www.jean-valentin.com
Cutting Edge @ January 21, 2010
Our Staff: Past and Present
Comments (0)
Kelly Hogan came to Cutting Edge Entertainment in 2004 and has been dominating dance floors ever since. Although this was not her first job with a DJ entertainment company, we consider ourselves very fortunate that she chose to be a part of our party staff. Kelly has unbelievable energy and a dynamic personality making her an invaluable asset to our cast.
At the age of three, Kelly started dancing and doing recitals, then began getting involved with other activities which included gymnastics and cheerleading. She continued to cheerlead through middle and high school, has coached at numerous cheerleading camps around the country, and is a former employee of the Universal Cheerleaders Association.
In her spare time, Kelly enjoys country line dancing and has traveled to Nashville to see country music concerts. (What better place to experience country music than Nashville?) Some of her favorite artists include Rascal Flatts, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, and Sugarland. Kelly is a hardcore country fan at heart.
A graduate of Temple University in Philadelphia, Kelly has a degree in Kinesiology (the study of human movement). She currently works full time as a Physical and Health Education teacher in the Hatboro-Horsham School District, where she teaches Middle School. Kelly plans on returning to school to pursue her Master’s degree.
I’ve had the opportunity to work with Kelly a lot over the past five years and she has deservedly earned her place amongst the Cutting Edge elite. Our clients rave about how much she contributes to the success of the event.
Marc Mednick
Entertainment Coordinator
Cutting Edge Entertainment
Edited by Tony & Steve
Photo by Eli from Majestic Images - http://majesticimages.net/
Cutting Edge @ January 20, 2010
Music
Comments (0)
One the main reasons for my becoming a DJ is my passion for music, specifically American popular music, and I’ve spent the past twenty years exploring the soundtrack of the twentieth century. From Tin Pan Alley and the authors of the American Songbook and its earliest ambassadors in Ragtime, Jazz and Swing, to the the emergence of Rhythm & Blues, Country & Western and Rock ‘n’ Roll. I have always believed that music – and the medium through which it was conveyed – were interwoven, with the latter having an immense impact on the former.
Elijah Wald’s book had me re-think everything I know about music’s history, and as Yoda the great Jedi master once said, “Unlearn what I have learned.”
First let’s make clear that this book is not a Beatles bash fest. On the contrary, the author takes nothing away from the importance and significance of The Beatles, but he does make a very strong argument as to how they could very well have had a greater impact on the course of American popular music then anything that came before or after.
Whether I was nodding my head in agreement or thinking that Mr. Wald was off of his rocker, it was at all times thought provoking. Probably better defined by its non-propagandist subtitle “An Alternative History of American Popular Music” this book takes a very comprehensive and contemplative look at all popular music trends and styles of the twentieth century, and not just The Beatles.
If you love music, read this book… It’s really that good.
-Craig Sumsky
Cutting Edge @ January 19, 2010
Fun, News
Comments (2)
Once upon a time there were things called ‘binders’ (see photo) which were used to hold something called paper. The type of paper that was held in binders was primarily for office and administrative uses, and was used to document information. Long ago, in the early ages of computers, businesses and schools would have hundreds of these paper organizing tools, each holding hundreds of these paper units (they were called sheets or pieces). It might be hard to imagine, but this ‘paper’ was made from trees, and we (the people of earth) consumed so much paper and paper related products that it required entire forests to be cut down. As the forests were cut down, new forests were planted in their place, but it wasn’t long before the rate of paper product consumption overtook the efforts to compensate for the loss of forest. It was inevitable that the Earth’s forests would soon disappear forever.
In January of 2010, Craig Sumsky, the owner and Director of a small entertainment company, attended a N.A.C.E. meeting at The World Cafe Live in Philadelphia where he heard a woman speak about “Going Green”. At the time, this was a term used for a movement in which companies both large and small could make changes that would save the earth. The woman’s name was Lori Hill of Lori Hill Event Productions, and she inspired Craig to re-invent the way his company did business, and to be mindful of his responsibility to future generations.
Craig’s efforts sparked a worldwide movement, and within a decade all companies small and large had reduced their consumption of paper to less than five percent of what in had been ten years before. This was the catalyst for a continuing effort that found viable alternatives to fossil fuels, and inevitably reversed global warming by the year 2025. Shortly after, the nations of the world were able to use their resources to solve the problem of world hunger, while finding a cure for cancer and locating the island where John Lennon, Elvis Presley, James Dean and Jim Morrison had been in hiding.
All kidding aside, Cutting Edge Entertainment reduced it’s paper consumption by over 50% in 2009, and we are committed to continuing our efforts to conserve resources and eliminate waste.
Check out Lori Hill’s website, and help make a difference.
www.lorihillevents.com
Cutting Edge @ January 18, 2010
Music
Comments (7)
“Elvis Presley’s death deprives our country of a part of itself.”
~Former U.S. President James Earl Carter
“Elvis is the greatest cultural force in the twentieth century.”
~Leonard Bernstein, Conductor, New York Philharmonic
“If there hadn’t been an Elvis, there wouldn’t have been the Beatles.”
“Before Elvis, there was nothing.”
~John Lennon
January 8, 2010 marks what would be the 75th birthday of Elvis Aaron Presley, The King of Rock & Roll. No matter what is, was, or can be said about Elvis, there is no disputing his contribution to American popular music and culture. He was both the end of an era, and the beginning of another, crooning as dreamily as Crosby and Sinatra while rocking as hard as Berry and The Beatles.
Put simply, Elvis Presley was a ‘class act’, with emphasis on the word “class.”
Although Elvis’s ‘pelvic gyrations’ may have been considered racy and unfit for television audiences (in an era when it was forbidden to say “pregnant” on network television), he was still a gentleman of style and grace. He was polite in interviews, respectful to his fellow artists, and an overall gracious individual. When his country called, he served. And, although he had V.I.P. offers from both the Navy and Air Force, he refused special treatment and took the U.S. Army route, serving in West Germany in 1958. Coincidentally, my father was also serving there, and has often told me of his meeting with Elvis while they were both stationed in Baumholder. My father recollects a down-to-earth Elvis, who was “just one of the guys.”
I was eight years old when Elvis died on August 16, 1977, and I didn’t know him. His legacy – for me – is primarily his music, but with the introduction of streaming internet video I have had the chance to hear him speak both officially and candidly in interviews and performances. The more I watch, the more I come to understand the persona of Elvis… or at least the one he presented publicly.
Am I saying that Elvis Presley is an Angel? No. He had his demons and transgressions like anyone else, maybe more. Let’s face it, it ain’t easy being The King. But, measured by the standards set by today’s ‘artists’, Elvis would at least have a shot at sainthood.
Elvis never attended an MTV Music Awards show, nor—to the best of my knowledge—an Emmy Awards show either. I don’t think the former could even exist without Elvis, and yet I’m not sure he would have taken kindly to the gimmicks and antics of today’s musical elite.
Elvis Presley belongs to a simpler time, when artists were musicians and performers, and there was something of an unspoken behavioral barometer. Many (not all) of today’s artists are mere shadows of The King, and the degenerate stunts they seem to pull each year at these award shows become worse and worse. As a public figure, Mr. Presley displayed a moral fiber that the likes of Kanye West can’t even begin to imagine or mimic. As I said earlier, Elvis was a gentleman, and I only wish that someday a new generation of performers might take their cue from him… he was The King for a reason.
-Craig Sumsky
Cutting Edge Entertainment
Elvis image used with permission, Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.
www.elvis.com
Cutting Edge @ January 7, 2010
News, Weddings
Comments (0)
One of my favorite places to work is the Cairnwood Mansion. It is a beautiful venue that has a great deal of history. Unlike a single ballroom, Cairnwood has multiple rooms in which the occasion takes place simultaneously, creating a unique experience for the guests. A wedding at Cairnwood begins with hors d’oeurves and drinks being butlered throughout the rooms of the mansion, while the DJ and I provide the pleasurable, musical accompaniment to the cocktail hour. Upon its completion, the guests enter the main lobby of the building, the Great Hall.
Welcomed into the room are the parents of our guests of honor, the bridal party, and the newlyweds, who descend the beautiful staircase, and head to the center of the room; so begins their first dance as husband and wife. Following the toasts, guests enter the multiple dining rooms for a delicious meal. Our job is to complement the dinner with music that begins with “We’ve Only Just Begun” by The Carpenters, followed by variety of classic R&B and soft rock. After dinner, guests re-enter the Great Hall for our Cake Cutting. After the cake is wiped off the couple’s faces, party room or the library opens its doors for the parent dances, kicking off a night filled with dancing.
On November 25th, the night before Thanksgiving, I had the privilege of MCing the wedding of Kate and Brandon, a young couple whose objective was partying and celebrating with friends and family. The happiness on their faces showed me that I was doing my job successfully. It was also my first time working with Culinary Concepts, whose food was outstanding. Cataloging the beauty of the evening was John from Costello Photography, whose beautiful photos are shared here on our blog. Most importantly, thank you to the Mann and Skupski families for allowing Cutting Edge Entertainment to be a part of their celebration.
Congratulations to Kate and Brandon! I wish you both the best and have a Happy New Year!
Richie
Photos courtesy of Costello Photography – www.costellophotography.com
Cutting Edge @ January 5, 2010
Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, Our Staff: Past and Present
Comments (0)
As I sit here at Cutting Edge Entertainment on my week off (I’m a school teacher by day), I find myself looking back on my years as a DJ and MC. It all started way back in 1991, just a few months after my Bar Mitzvah when I took some of my gift money and spent it on a stereo system and my first CD (Another Bad Creation). As a thirteen year old, I thought that being a DJ was the coolest job ever, listening to music and getting paid for it… Life was good.
I joined the Cutting Edge family in 1995 and I’ve never had a moments regret. I’ve been busy doing parties and helping to coordinate events ever since. I attended Temple University in Philadelphia and continued working weekends at C.E.E. through four years of college.
Today I’m an elementary school teacher and camp director during the summers. Now, I find my mindset has evolved somewhat. I still had my love for music, and I certainly didn’t mind getting paid to listen to music, but as a seasoned entertainer, it was the event planning aspect that I found interesting. I enjoy helping clients plan out the details of their party as well as being engaged and involved, dancing and participating with the guests. I get great satisfaction seeing party goers smiling, dancing and having a great time.
I want everyone at the party to walk away saying they had the most amazing time. From the first time I meet with a client, I want them to understand that the success of their event is my ultimate goal. I want the host and/or hostess to feel as if they were a guest at their own party. On the day of, I’ll coordinate the details with the maître d, photographer, videographer, and any other party staff to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible. We all have the same objective: Success.
Marc Mednick
Entertainment Coordinator
Cutting Edge Entertainment
Photo by Kevin York – www.kevinyorkphotography.com
Cutting Edge @ December 28, 2009
