Confetti Talk Show for Wedding Planners Debbie Quain

Should working with same-sex couples be a choice for professional wedding planners? Or, should planners who refuse to get out of the wedding business? Listen to the May LIVE! wedding planner chat session

“Why do You Want to Plan Weddings for a Living?”

The answer to this question fueled a lively discussion during this month’s live wedding planner chat session.  So, do you plan weddings because you:



* Simply love weddings?

* Want to help people? (hear this one a lot)

* Hope that the income from planning weddings will replace your current job?



The Real Deal When it Comes to Planning Weddings

Whatever your reason, just know that a considerable amount of your time as a professional wedding planner is spent behind the scenes. Pulling together a great wedding is so much more than the end result–the decor, the gorgeous wedding party, the fantastic photos…

And then, don’t forget, that many of us are juggling our wedding business with another full-time venture: a day job and/or a family PLUS evenings and weekends are when we do what we do.

The truth is planning weddings for a living isn’t the ideal business model (and does such a thing even exist?).  As an owner-operator, it takes time to develop your local reputation and with very little (read: no) repeat business, marketing what you do is a constant.

So, take some time to research the ins and outs of what being a professional wedding planner is really  all about and know that wedding planner certification courses don’t always paint the true picture.

Personally, I’m a HUGE fan of limited hand-holding when it comes to my professional involvement with weddings.  Day-of wedding coordination and officiating both fall into this category. It’s been my experience that engaged couples are in need of one of these services before they consider a full-service wedding planner.

Learn how you can make money on weekends performing wedding ceremonies as a wedding officiant.

Volunteer your time with local wedding vendors so that you can see firsthand what it’s like to work a wedding. This type of experience is priceless! And as an added bonus, assuming that you stick with planning weddings, the wedding vendor that you’re helping is probably going to send you more business. (Nice, right?)

Coming Up: Same-Sex Weddings

Do you believe that wedding vendors who do not want to work with same-sex couples planning a wedding should get out of the wedding business?

As a business owner, this is an important question for you to consider PLUS it’s the topic for our next live broadcast.

Please, call the Listener Talkback Line to share your thoughts and leave your feedback for playback during our upcoming live event:  +1 202-681-2126.

Mentioned on this Episode:

Let’s Connect: Weddings For a Living is on Twitter (stop laughing!) @wedforaliving  and on Google+

Officiant on Wheels: Here’s a great story about mobile wedding officiants (and when I say mobile, I mean mobile!).  Click here for the story.

Listener TalkBack Line:  Call +1 202-681-2126 or go to the ‘Ask’ page to leave your feedback

HAPPY PLANNING!

 

“Why do You Want to Plan Weddings for a Living?”

The answer to this question fueled a lively discussion during this month’s live wedding planner chat session.  So, do you plan weddings because you:



* Simply love weddings?

* Want to help people? (hear this one a lot)

* Hope that the income from planning weddings will replace your current job?



The Real Deal When it Comes to Planning Weddings...

Social media has completely overtaken the online world and it’s the focus of this episode of Confetti, the Wedding Planning Business Talk Show.

As always, a HUGE thank you to the Confetti co-hosts who actively participated during the live broadcast.  Feel free to post your comments at the end of this post.

The vast majority of activity happens on large social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram (owned by Facebook).

Which social media platform are you using for your wedding planning business?

A survey of the Confetti listening audience puts Facebook at the top followed by Instagram.  Twitter came in last.  (Surprising?  Or nah?)

Here’s a super-quick look at some of the platforms being used by us wedding planners:

Facebook – is considered the giant of social media and is known for the ability to send messages, form groups, create pages and the ubiquitous ‘Like’ button. Sharing unique content and working toward getting your posts shared and “liked” seems to be the ultimate goal here.  Although many businesses flock to Facebook, it’s important to note that its primary use by ‘fans’ is to stay in touch and to share pictures and videos.

Instagram – is a popular mobile, photo and video-sharing app famous for its square-shaped images and use of filters.  Instagram is a great way to demonstrate your fun side and to provide a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes activity of your wedding company.  Think about what YOU want to see when you look at someone else’s photos and follow suit.

Pinterest – is another visual social media platform with a focus on sharing images.  Pinterest users upload and manage media — pictures, videos — known as pins through collections known as boards.  Boards typically center around a topic or theme.

Google+ – is designed to share links, videos and contacts and is most well known for having circles which allow you to target your postings and determine which contacts see specific posts. Posting publicly and sharing trending material are smart moves for wedding planners on Google+.

Twitter – forces you to get straight to the point by limiting each post to 140 characters. Primarily used on mobile phones, Twitter allows you to share links to interesting content, share others’ tweets, and even allows you to have Twitter conversations.  Hosting a bridal event? Twitter is perfect for creating excitement before, during and even afterwards.

Don’t Forget About your Website!

No matter which platform you’re using, make sure that your wedding business website is ready for when your fans, friends and followers arrive.

This means placing a prominent ‘call to action’ that tells each visitor what you’d like them to do before they leave (because, eventually, they will leave) your website.

Do you want them to pick up the phone and call you to schedule a free consultation?  Would you like engaged couples to come visit your wedding planning studio to browse through local wedding vendor portfolios? Are you hoping to get an email address in exchange for your “How to Get Hitched in [insert your city/town/area here]” PDF cheat-sheet?

Whatever the desired outcome, be crystal-clear and don’t assume that visitors to your wedding business website know what their next move should be. Tell them!

Making Time for Social Media

Consistency is a must when it comes to engaging with others on social media.  Thankfully, there are a slew of tools and applications to help you with managing your posts, tweets, and status updates.

I use Buffer which allows me to schedule whatever it is I want to share with my audience at a specific time.  For $10/month it’s well worth it.  Hootsuite is another management tool that I’ve toyed with,

January’s live wedding planner chat was a blast! Thank you if you were one of the live co-hosts in the chat room (I always learn something new from you. Always!).

We discussed a variety of wedding planner topics.  You’ll find most of the highlights below, but, to get all of the nuggets of information that come from a live chat session, listening to the audio is your best bet. 🙂

**NOTE: This show was supposed to be about social media.  It isn’t. I promise we will cover this topic soon (no, seriously, we will).

Selecting a Wedding Planner Niche…or Not

Karisma is looking for help with selecting the right wedding planner niche.

If you decide to focus on a niche as a wedding planner (a very smart move, by the way), make the niche about you and what you’re drawn to.  Pay attention to what appeals to you; whether it’s a certain portion of the wedding planning process or a particular style of wedding or perhaps you’re drawn to or are familiar with a specific demographic group.

Pam, on the other hand, would like to do both high-end and low-end weddings in her area.  How can she do both?

Whatever you decide to do, take the time to conduct research about the local wedding scene, beforehand.  Make sure what you’re offering is desired or needed wherever you decide to establish your company.  Then, if you decide to, pick a niche and stick with it.

Wedding Day Coordination

Pam wants to know where, exactly, the wedding planner should position him/herself on the actual wedding day.

By following the wedding day production timeline that you’ve created, not only will you and your team know which wedding activity is scheduled to happen when, but, you’ll also know where you, the lead planner, needs to focus your attention and, in turn, where you need to be positioned.

The Truth about Running a Wedding Planning Business

Running your own wedding business is so much more than actually planning weddings.  As a wedding business owner-operator, you need:



* To know what happens at a wedding — wedding etiquette, rites and rituals

* A system and a library of checklists and cheat-sheets to plan a wedding from beginning to end

* A written plan to initially start your business and, later on, a plan that explains how you will run the day-to-day operations for your business

* To know how to market and promote your business

* The ability to close the sale with potential clients who show an interest in the services that you provide



Please, please, think through each of the points mentioned above before you jump in and start your own wedding planning business.

Got Vendors?

Don’t underestimate the value of local wedding vendor and venue relationships.  You need wedding vendors!

Approaching and hand-picking a few select wedding reception venues is a good thing.  Make your initial contact with a venue or vendor about what you can do for them?  Let them know that you’d like to send more business their way.

Books Worth Reading (and Listening to)

I love to read, but have so little time to do so.  Listening to audio books is the next best thing!  To download a free book on Audible — an Amazon company — go to ILoveAudible.com for a free trial.

Here are a few books worth reading:



* Prereeta recommends Online Marketing for Small Business Simplified by the creators of Planning Pod.

* Aretha suggests, Value-Based Fees – How to Charge – and Get – What You...

Another great live show with lots of questions, comments, feedback and success stories for professional wedding planners.  We covered a lot of ground.

Here’s a recap of a few topics, but you’ll want to listen to the audio replay to catch all the details.

Are wedding planners responsible for setting-up and breaking down a wedding?

Kathy is a new wedding planner whose wedding-day schedule was recently thrown off because of unforeseen tasks on her client’s wedding day.

It’s really important that you define what you are being hired to do for your clients.  If set-up and break down aren’t a part of the wedding planning service or package you’re providing, say so in your wedding planner’s contract.  Make everything crystal-clear for your clients right from the start.

How many weddings is too many for one weekend?

The number of weddings you’re comfortable planning per weekend or per month, has a lot to do with the level of wedding planner service that you provide —  for example, full-service vs. wedding-day coordinator and the number of people on your planning team.  Make sure you don’t over-extend yourself.

Is social media worth it for wedding planners?

Ken asked this question in our live chatroom.  The general consensus from our chatroom co-hosts was a resounding ‘yes!’ with Instagram and Facebook leading the way.  What about you?

What type of results are you getting for your wedding planning business with social media?  Let us know in the comments section! [Seriously, considering making this the focus of our next live show.]

Wedding Planner Success Story

Marisa is having tons of success by specializing as a LGBT wedding planner.  In fact, she has a wedding booked every month for the upcoming Spring and Summer wedding season!  Not to mention the local media has taken notice PLUS she’s up for a wedding planner award. Yay!!!

I love hearing this type of feedback.  Congratulations and Keep Going, Marisa!!

Unannounced Special Touches on the Wedding Day

Megan loves the idea of surprising her clients with little extras on their wedding day (me too!).  Decorating the honeymoon suite, serving light snacks for the bridal party as they’re getting ready and arranging a catering to-go box for the couple are a few ideas that topped the list.

What kinds of special touches are you putting in place?    Let us know what you do in the comments, below.

Wedding Business Promo Videos

Nicole needs ideas, opinions for a promo video for her wedding business. Personally, I prefer videos that are less polished and high on the authenticity scale. Would love to hear your thoughts.  Why not post them in the comments, below.

HAPPY PLANNING!

Links Mentioned

Wedding Business Guide – ‘How to Start and Run your very own Wedding Day Management Company’.  Click here to learn more.

 

Another great live show with lots of questions, comments, feedback and success stories for professional wedding planners.  We covered a lot of ground.

Here’s a recap of a few topics, but you’ll want to listen to the audio replay to catch all the details.

Are wedding planners responsible for setting-up and breaking down a wedding?

Kathy is a new wedding planner whose wedding-day schedule was recently thrown off because of unforeseen tasks on her client’s wedding day.

It’s really important that you define what you are being hired to do for your clients.  If set-up and break down aren’t a part of the wedding planning service or package you’re providing, say so in your wedding planner’s contract.  Make everything crystal-clear for your clients right f...