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The Wedding Industry Has Turned the Corner

February 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I keep hearing the rumblings of recovery in the wind.

It’s little things. Bridal show attendance is up nationwide. Brides are booking appointments at the show and after. Vendors are telling me that brides budgets are creeping up. The median price of bridal gowns is up. Vendors are hiring and expanding their business. The business’ that are making it are starting to buy up the one’s that are failing.

I spoke with one bridal salon owner that increased her business 600% over last January. I spoke with a caterer that is up 130% over last year and almost on track with 2007′s numbers.

Everywhere I hear “It’s gonna be a helluva year.”

 

So here is my question, why are the same people who were tossing fairy dust last year now spreading volcanic ash telling people how bad the industry is and that you have to buy their seminar/coaching/white paper?

Oh right, it’s a sales tactic.

Don’t listen to them, listen to your gut. Listen to your phone and the brides you talk to. Hope and the power of positive are powerful things. Don’t let the volcano ash merchants steal that from you.

You know that if nothing else, I tell it like it is. I was one of the first ones out there to tell you it was bad and going to get worse. I was right then and I’ll bet my lunch I’m right about this.

Listen, our country has been through some tough economic times. We have learned some lessons and made some adjustments. Now those are starting to pay off. Couples that put off their weddings were busy making adjustments, now they are ready to go. They are booking in larger numbers and spending in greater amounts. Last night a caterer was telling me how nice it was to have couples once again have decent budgets for 250 guests.

I am not the only one seeing this trend.

According to Paul Pannone of eWedNewz,

No one I have spoken to that has an established business has told me things are still bad. Over the last two years, they have looked at the parts of their business that were lacking and have made adjustments. Whether it was a website that needed upgrading or styles that needed to be brought up to date or investing in social media, the downturn highlighted them. Two years down the road, the adjustments have been made and the businesses are starting to take off.

This from Jim Duhe, long time publisher of Bridal Guide,

Today’s bridal couples are older, better educated, and more affluent than ever before in history.  It’s logical to assume that there will be tremendous changes in the bridal market place — changes that affect the way that we all do business.  In spite of these changes — or maybe even because of them — there are amazing opportunities for all wedding professionals.   That doesn’t mean that business will fall in our laps but it does mean that it will be there for innovative professionals who embrace the change rather than fight it.

This from Steve Lang, CEO Mon Cheri,LLC

All I can add is that I had a record year in 2011 and so far my shipments are up 11% this year
January was the single largest shipping month in the history of my firm.

 Have you used this time wisely?

You see, back before the bubble burst, the money was rolling in so fast you couldn’t see the parts that needed improvement. The positive thing to come out of the economic upheaval is that the smart entrepreneurs used this new lens to take a good look at their business and make the adjustments needed. Now that the brides  have made their own adjustments, it’s time to rock and roll.

Are you ready for this?

 

Filed Under: Back to Basics, Blog, Building Your Business, Inspiration Tagged With: , , , ,

Tales From a Bridal Show

February 7, 2012 By 1 Comment

Superbowl Sunday found me sliding into the stilettos for a day at the behemoth that is Gaylord Opryland Hotel for the Perfect Wedding Guides Winter Bridal Show 2012.

In theory, this show had everything going against it. It was Superbowl Sunday. The hotel itself is a PIA to navigate. It was the third show of the season. The exhibit hall is massive and a bit cold and the fire marshal insisted on aisles big enough to drive a semi down. Load in couldn’t start until 5 hours before the show because they had to get the Cattleman’s Association out first.

Wipe all that out of your mind because the show promoters ended up with a Superbowl sized win on their hands!

From the time they opened the doors until I left (30 minutes before the show closed) those giant aisle were packed; the booths were busy and the brides were engaged.

If I had any doubt in my mind that the bridal industry has turned the corner this wiped it out. Brides were booking appointments left and right. They weren’t just there to look, they were there to book.

The great thing about attending a show the way I do is that I get to talk to everyone: producers, vendors and brides. The ones that don’t already know who I am, I just say I am a blogger and they spill their guts. hehe.

The strangest thing I heard was from a vendor, “The minute I hear you are coming, my stomach just knots.” Umm wow. They know I will tell it like it is when I review the show.

First, the hits.

When I ran into Gregory Byerline at the pre-show mixer on Thursday and he showed me my book on his iPhone I knew his booth would be a hit and he did not disappoint.

 

The booth is elegant and sophisticated, just like his target market. The overhead lighting drew your eye to the booth long before you got there. The colors are muted which helps the photographs pop. The booth was well staffed.

His collateral nailed it. He did a rack card on wonderful heavy stock with a slightly  irredescent finish on the back. The images on the front are the same images as in the booth and in his print ad. The back has his perspective on life, love and photography and draws you into his world. The card ends with the subtle but urgent: “RESERVE EARLY”   No discounts, no giveaways. Brilliant.Bridal show handout

Now that he has drawn you in, his other hand out invites you over for drinks in a hand written note. I love it!

 Tomorrow I’ll do some more booth reviews including one that breaks all the rules, but seemed to work. Stay tuned.

 

 

 

Filed Under: Blog, bridal shows, eBooks, Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

New Ideas for Bridal Show Email Follow-up

February 3, 2012 By 2 Comments

OK, you’ve invested your time and treasure in a bridal show, or several and you have a fat, juicy lead list. Now what?

I have already given you tons of ideas to use both short-term and long-term like cherry picking your lead list and outrageous marketing. The question people still are asking is what  to put in that first email?

An interesting answer popped into my inbox just this morning that I think you should give a try.

How about instead of telling them something you ask them something?

Check this quote from today’s Research Brief from The Center for Media Research.

A new survey from Cint shows that 62% of those surveyed said they were more likely to purchase a brand’s product if their opinion has been sought by brand in a study. The survey highlights the importance of customer insight, says the report, as over half of the 1,200 consumers polled felt more loyal to a brand if it takes the time to find out their opinion.

Personally I can’t think of a better way to get them engaged from the very beginning. You know me, here is an example. If it were me sending the email for Indulgence Custom Bakeshop I would have said something along the lines of:

“Hey there {add first name}, it was great to meet you at the XYZ Bridal Show.  I was wondering if I could get your input on something. It’s a new year and I really want to add some new and exciting flavors to the menu.  If you could have any flavor or combination of flavors for your wedding cake or dessert what would it be?”

Better yet, put in a very brief survey or poll.

Don’t be crass and ask what their budget is. Ask them something that they may just have an interesting opinion on and ask it like you mean it. Give them some reason to believe that their input matters. Tweet the answers like a horse race. Build some excitement. Keep a tally going on Facebook. Foster engagement.

Here is one more tip that you probably already know but needs to be reinforced.

That email needs to be finished and uploaded to your bulk mailer BEFORE  you set up your booth. As soon as the show is over you need to load the emails you collected in your booth and hit the send button. That night. I know you are tired; shows can be brutal. Not taking care of the follow through is the biggest mistake that bridal vendors make when using bridal shows to market.

 

Bonus.

Here is another great article I just found on Asking as Marketing.

Filed Under: Back to Basics, bridal shows, email marketing, Marketing Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Wedding Industry Renaissance

January 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Is that a break in the clouds I see?

A stray ray of sunshine on the horizon?  

Why, by George, I think it is!

On last week’s post about bridal shows the poll results are more than 50% positive. I would have liked to see a landslide but any improvement is a good thing.

It is more than just the numbers though, it is some of the comments that I have gotten not just on the post but in private emails and on Facebook. There is an upbeat feel in their messages. Positive energy is crackling in the air. One client tells me she is so busy with appointments she doesn’t have time for laundry or groceries. Another is so backed up writing proposals that she is looking for a temp secretary!

This from Cathy in Wisconsin:

Better than the last 2 years. Booked 4 at the first 2 day show, and more after at our studio.

This from Angie in Preston, UK

Hi ,We are late in starting this year 1st one 19th Feb but everybody seems to be buzzin about an upturn in the market this year.

This from Tony in Long Island

yes! I’ve had great success thus far at bridal shows

What I am trying to say here is that I firmly believe we have turned a corner.  Maybe it hasn’t trickled down to everyone yet, but it will.

No, it isn’t rockin’ at the rate it was before the bubble burst, but it is on the upswing for the first time in years. There is hope, there is a glass half full attitude.

The wedding market is different. You can’t market to brides the way you did, the same buzzwords and triggers don’t work today. Engaged couples today have less of a “This is the BIGGEST day of my life” attitude and more of “This is important but I am not going to break the bank for it.”

Pitch your product accordingly. Show value. Work within the brides budgets. Offer alternatives. Make it personal.

There are ways to sell and there are couples to buy.

Filed Under: Back to Basics Tagged With: ,

Facebook or Blog?

January 18, 2012 By 1 Comment

I ran across an interesting question today about where you should put more effort, in your blog or your Facebook page.

I’m not really sure why that is a question. Let me break it down for you.

Your website is your own personal piece of  internet real estate. Think of it as your home because in terms of your marketing, it is. Your blog should be the heart and soul of your website. In web design today, integrating your blog as a page on your website is the only way to go. If your blog is off on another url from your main one you are missing the boat.

Today’s brides go to one place to find their vendors above all others:

SEARCH.

If you aren’t ranking high in search engines for what you do and where you do it, you are behind the game.

Reread that last sentence. Notice I did not say for your name. I hope to hell you rank number one for your name. Unfortunately, that isn’t how brides search. They search for things in places.

Huh?

They search for florists in Bucks County.They search for wedding planners in Washington, DC. They search for caterers in Fairbanks, AK. They don’t search for Polly Sue Purebreds Catering. If they do it is because they have already been made aware of Polly Sue from a referral and that is a post for another day.

Now that you understand this, you understand why your personal piece of real estate is so important.

Back to the original question: your blog or Facebook.

Every time you post to Facebook, you are sending all that Google juice to Facebook.com, not to Polly Sue’s url. Great, I’m sure Mr. Zuckerberg appreciates the Google juice, but frankly, you need it worse than he does.

Think of it this way, you have an office or a store but you still meet people in the local coffee-house. Instead of investing to improve your office or store, you take time and treasure to improve the coffee-house. That’s just dumb.

How about this instead, you work on improving the store, and then post updates on the coffee-house bulletin board. When your potential customers start looking for you the coffee-house bulletin board is one of the many signs pointing to your store. When they get to your store, they see how amazing you are.

Enough with the analogies, if you don’t get it yet you never will.

Your blog should be an integrated part of your website.

Facebook should send traffic to your website, not the other way around.

Post to your blog and have it automatically cross-post a headline and an excerpt to your Facebook page leading them to your website.

 Done.

 

 

Filed Under: Announcement, Marketing, Social Media, Website marketing Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Bridal Shows: How to Bag an Elephant

January 11, 2012 By 1 Comment

 

Bridal show ROI and goals are interesting things. If you think the only goal of a bridal show is to book brides at the show you are missing most of the opportunities.

I had a most interesting conversation last week with a florist concerning his recent booth at a bridal show. Now this was a small show, but popular among the luxury wedding vendors. Our florist knew that booking more than one or two brides from the show was probably a pipe dream, but he had another goal.

You see, there was a planner in town that he had been stalking (only in the business sense of the word) for several years. This planner was known to use the same vendors over and over, throwing them a ton of work. If our florist could finally get the planners attention, it would mean a lot of additional business.

The planner had booked a booth at this show.

Time for a little research. Our intrepid florist made it his business to learn every thing he could about the planner’s style. He scanned images on her Facebook page, in local magazines and on her website and looked for patterns. Of course there were patterns, we all have them. Then he designed his booth to reflect her style, down to the use of her personal favorite color.

Like I said, it was a small, lightly trafficked show and the vendors had plenty of time to schmooze. Our florist chatted with friends in adjacent booths but stayed pretty much in his booth. In other words, he didn’t approach his target at all.

The target found him.

On the planners FIFTH visit to the florists booth, as she oooo’d and ahhh’d over a particular bouquet for the fifth time and the booth in general she invited the florist to lunch for the following week.

That my friends, is how you bag an elephant!

Filed Under: Blog, bridal shows, Marketing Tagged With: , ,

Top Post for 2011-Groupons for Weddings

December 30, 2011 By 2 Comments

With all the controversy and news of closings and consolidations in 2011, who would suspect that a story advising against wedding vendors getting sucked into the Groupon culture would be number 1?

Groupon for Wedding Vendors? Not!

I am willing to wager that it wasn’t wedding vendors looking for a boost that sent that traffic through the roof. Now as far as I know, there are still more brides than wedding vendors. (Although some days I question that!) I will bet you money that it was brides looking for a deal. You should see the list of search terms used to find Think this year! Of the top 50, 10 were Groupon related.

  • wedding groupon
  • groupon wedding
  • groupon for weddings
  • groupon weddings
  • groupon wedding deal
  • wedding groupons
  • groupon wedding deals
  • wedding deals on groupon
  • groupon for wedding
  • wedding planner groupon

Right about now you may be thinking , “Hey, I could get a lot of traffic if I did a Groupon”.  Well, yes, yes you could most likely use that to get a ton of traffic, but is it the traffic you want? You may want to read this first…

A photographer works for free for a year through Groupon

Sounds like fun to me.

Here is what brides have to say on Wedding Bee. You might want to notice the comment by the bride than got a deal on here engagement photos…not a word about her booking them for the wedding. Hmmmmm Also the one that bought cake pops, didn’t see her commit to a cake from that baker.

What does this mean to you? Front and center it means brides are looking for deals, but you already knew that. I think that you would be smart to find a way to offer some deals, just not through Groupon-type sites. Come up with your own deals and publicize it yourself with your social media. Put it out on Facebook and Twitter. Publicize it on the local wedding platforms you advertise on.

You might even consider doing it in a Groupon-type manner. Limit the number and require a tipping point. Have a deal on a regular basis, say weekly or monthly posted on your website to keep brides coming back to check.

I can’t even begin to tell you what kind of deal to offer. You will have to think long and hard about that one. Make sure that it gets them into your store or your website. Make sure you will at least make something off of it. Make sure that you don’t do something that will overwhelm you.

Just don’t do what the photographer above did. I want you around next year!

 

Filed Under: Blog, Marketing, Outrageous Marketing, Social Media Tagged With: , , , ,

What Brides Want

December 8, 2011 By 2 Comments

 

Some days the universe just seems to present itself in ways that make thoughts and ideas crystal clear.

I ran across an article from last month on Forbes Magazine’s website talking about why so many Millennial women are burning out at work by 30. It made perfect sense. They have been pushed since birth to reach higher, strive harder. To get the best grades and the best resume in order to get the right job and shatter the glass ceiling. Go! Reach! Strive! Succeed! The one thing they never learned is how to take a little time for themselves. I mean for heaven sakes, they are answering email while they squeeze in a pedicure!

I’m short of breath just thinking about it.

Now let’s throw in a little touch of wedding planning for good measure.

Do you have to wonder why today’s brides can be a little frazzled and touchy?

Then low and behold, the universe laid two different answers on my table.

Brides want wedding vendors to take the pressure off. Oh, they may not know it, exactly, but they do.

First I received an email blast from a wonderful wedding professional I have know for years and highly respect, Kellie Bryson of Main Event Productions. Kellie had the opportunity to interview one of her MoBs and shared it in her newsletter. With her permission I want to share parts of it with you.

Getting right into the details — how long did you have to plan the wedding?

A total of 13 months.

Tell us what you thought were the most important aspects in selecting a wedding venue.

The number one priority was a beautiful outdoor setting with a backup plan in case of rain. It was also important that the venue have a wedding package available because we did not have the time or opportunity to shop for vendors. 

Ok, this family had 13 months to plan but felt they did not have the time to shop for vendors. Hmmm, so having a package took off some pressure. You can read the entire interview on The Main Events Newsletter  The point is, they specifically chose a vendor that could take off some of the pressure. Look for this trend to continue.

 

Next an email came to a website I’m webmaster for from a website I had not heard of  that was beginning to explore my local market. I figured I would check it out. My immediate suspicion was that it was just another wedding portal looking to be the next Knot. Well if you have read Think for more than a month you know where I stand on those. This one caught my eye, specifically these few lines

 She wanted something fast and easy that could help her find her vendors. She realized much of her precious time was being spent asking vendors about availability and price range, as well as exchanging basic wedding details. She wanted a location where she as a bride could “shop for vendors,” as well as give vendors a way to see her wedding details and budget without having to pick up the phone.

Wait, you mean to tell me this site was designed from the brides point of view? This bride was sick of wasting her time on the phone telling the same details to multiple vendors just to find out they were booked or out of her price range.  Why couldn’t she just put all those gory details out there and then contact vendors she might be interested in to have a look?

Damn, makes perfect sense to me.

Enter Haley Suggs, the genius behind the nearly brand new website The Bride Link. With most sites vendors buy listing and the lead list that comes with them; a bride registers and then get spammed by every vendor in a 200 mile radius on no information. With The Bride Link, our bride starts the process by listing her information, date, location, guest count, budget, her hopes and dreams even her Facebook page if she wants. Then she looks through the vendors (which are required to list some type of ball park pricing) and for the ones that look promising, she sends them a link request. (Think: Facebook friend request. )  Once the vendor accepts the link request, they can see the full details of our bride’s information and start the contact back and forth.

Brilliant!

This puts the power in the brides hands, gives them the information they want, blocks out all the spam from vendors they don’t want and keeps them from wasting time telling the same details over and over again, Brilliant!

Over the last year in development and the last 4 months post launch, Haley and her team of developers have honed this site down until it is sleek and flawless, just what today’s bride expects. It’s clean, easy to use and easy to navigate. Now it’s time to start scaling.  You see up until now it is specific to Knoxville,Tn. Smart move roll it out locally, perfect the processes and systems then start to scale.

If you are smart and want to be on the forefront of what I think may be the next big thing, contact Haley for a demo.

So what is your take away from this? Find ways to make it easy for your bride. Do what you can to take some of the pressure off. Think packages like Kellie or a streamlined system like Haley.Make yourself their lifesaver.

Filed Under: Blog, Marketing, wedding marketing, What Brides Say Tagged With: , , ,

Increase Your Bridal Show ROI

December 7, 2011 By Leave a Comment

It’s that time of year again. Bridal show season is right around the corner. Are you ready?

Do you know how to pick the right show to reach your target bride?

Do you know how to take advantage of pre-show publicity?

Have you designed your show collateral?

Do you know how to design your booth for maximum effect?

Have you written your post show follow-ups? You are doing more than one, right?

I have said it before and I will say it again, bridal shows are expensive in both time and treasure. You need to get the best return on your investment that you possible can and there is only one way to do that.

Be Prepared!

Proper planning from the moment you decide to do a show gives you the jump. One of the keys to high ROI is a total cohesion of all aspects of your show marketing. Decide early on your message and then don’t vary, just keep pushing that one message home.

If you want more information, in a clear, point by point style, you have to read the book. Don’t wait until the last minute, do it now. You need time to develop your message, get stuff printed, get the word out early to build interest and get the booth designed.

Seriously, if you are going invest money in a show, (not to mention a day on your feet) don’t you deserve to get all you can out of it?

Bridal Show Success is the only comprehensive guide to trade shows written specifically for the bridal industry.

It takes you through the planning, to the show to the follow -up. Step by step it will teach you how to produce the most ROI off any bridal show.

Think of how much you have riding on your bridal show marketing, $14.95 is a drop in the bucket to make it all work flawlessly. Heck that’s less than you are going to spend on coffee for your team the day of the show! Isn’t that a small price to book more brides?

Buy the book today, reap the benefits for years to come!

Here is what one reader had to say…

TaylorMade Weddings>Think Like A Bride

My Bridal Show was a success yesterday. I took your advice – “Go big or go home”– and made quite the impression. Let’s just say…the fish was a BIG hit! Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge in your book. It pays!

 

Filed Under: Announcement, Back to Basics, Blog, bridal shows, Marketing Tagged With: , ,

Wedding Blogs. Good Guys or Bad Guys?

November 10, 2011 By 1 Comment

So what’s with all the hate lately?

It seems that photographers are stepping up on their blogs to trash wedding bloggers. Really?

First this from Hindsight Bride.

Then this from Jonas Peterson, The Mason Jar Manifesto.

Then Off-beat Bride stepped up to defend Mason Jars.

Heck I have even had my own say in the matter a few months back.

Here is the deal, gang

Photographers want to get published on the top blogs. Bloggers want to do what pleases their readers.  Those aren’t always the same goal.

Heck it has even gotten to the point where brides will tell their planners, ” I want my wedding published on Style Me Pretty.”

Ya’ll are acting like Kim Kardashian. It’s supposed to be about the wedding, not the publicity.

but that isn’t my point…

You, photographers, your job is to give the client what they want. In most cases, that is pictures of people. Their friends and family.

Bloggers, your job is to give your readers what they want. In most cases that is detail. Who gives a rats ass about people they don’t know? All they want are ideas they can be inspired by and snag for their own wedding.

You are both right. You are both servicing your client.

So here is the deal. Photographers, if your goal is to get published, give the blog editors what they want:details. If that means hiring a second or third shooter to get those shots then that is what you have to do. You can’t expect the blog editor to throw their readers under the bus.

Read the editorial guidelines on the blogs you want on and follow them. When you interview your bride ask them questions about the details of their wedding. Is it going to be worth you paying another shooter to get them?  Notice I said ‘you paying’ not the bride. It’s your goal to get published, not hers.

It is time for everyone to stop the madness and start working together.

Know what you want and what it is going to take to get it. don’t just whine about it.

For the record, I’m not a big fan of mason jars, but if that was what my readers wanted to see they would be all over my blog! Check out Wedding Dish? Do you really think I love candles all THAT much?

I big hat tip to loyal reader and friend June Hoffman for pointing this nonsense out to me.

Filed Under: Ask Christine, Back to Basics, Rants & Raves Tagged With: ,
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