Are you Sabotaging your own Event Business?

Wedding Planner Battles DIY Brides with DIY Marketing and is DOA.

The other day I spoke to a wedding planner who had a great deal of contempt for do-it-yourself (DIY) brides.

She said, “They honestly think they can do as good of a job as me! They can’t.  I can’t stand them. They pick my brain for idea and then try to do it themselves. They’re either really cheap or really naive.  Most of the brides around here are idiots.”

This planner was in big trouble – she needed to attract new clients – her attitude and her marketing sucked.

Her website was amateurish.  It looked pretty, but it didn’t attract clients.  Full of puffery and ego , it didn’t present a real benefit or compelling reason to hire the planner.

“Who did this site?” I asked.

“I did. I don’t have the money to hire a designer.”

“Who did your logo?”

“I did. I like it.”

“Who did the photos on your website?”

“I did.”

“Who wrote your sales copy? ” …. you guessed it.

She did it all herself – because she was trying to save money. She didn’t understand that a professional photographer could help her business look more professional and friendly. She thought snap shots would do the trick.

A penny saved and thousands in bookings lost.

She didn’t understand that an attractive logo can communicate her value faster than words.

She didn’t understand that the headlines, sub-headlines and copy were powerful tools for capturing attention, building interests and motivating visitors to pick up the phone now – and not hit the back button.

Before you snicker at how stupid the DIY customer is – how silly they are not to recognize your genius – take a good look at your own purchasing decisions.

It may help you understand what is missing in the story you tell your market.

Download Brian McGovern's Free Report Here

Nine Signs That Your Event Business Blog Sucks!

If I see one more crap event planner blog I’ll scream – blogging without a strategy is a huge waste of time. Stop wasting time!

Random blogging will not get you more clients! Traffic that doesn’t advance your strategy is useless.

I recently tweeted that over at @BrianMcGovern after sifting through the crappy blogs people submitted to the BizBash post over at LinkedIn. Over 90% of the blogs listed there are crap – just a handful of blogs on that list are doing it right.

What Is The Right Way To Blog?

If you want to post your thoughts about reality TV programs and pictures of your cat because it makes you feel good – more power to you.  If you like sharing your thoughts and opinions with a handful of people via a blog – knock yourself out.

But if you’re blogging to promote your local event services business you need to think and act strategically. Blogging can generate free leads – it can help your website rank higher – it can build relationships – it can boost your credibility – all for free … except for the hours and hours it takes.

If you’re blog sucks it is sucking your time. If you’re an independent event professional you can’t afford to waste time on anything that is not producing revenue.

Blog smart or stop doing it – stop kidding yourself that you’re promoting your business. Stop using your crap blog a way to “feel productive” and as an excuse not to pick up the phone and make some sales calls or go out and network.

I see too many self-employed people who are so scared of marketing and sales that they hide … tweaking their websites … tweeting on Twitter … acting busy and getting nowhere.

Here are the top signs that your event blog sucks …

Last updated 3 months ago. You don’t need to post things to your blog everyday but not posting things at least once a month tells readers and search engines to ignore you.

No analytics. Is anyone reading your blog? How many visitors did you get? What posts are most popular? How many visitors came from the city or region you serve? How did they find you? There is no excuse not to install analytics.

No Keyword Strategy. What words do your potential buyers search with? If you’re a Brooklyn Kosher Caterer – don’t you think the words Brooklyn Kosher Catering and relevant variations should appear in some form in almost every post? So why do you insist on posting Key Lime Pie Recipes and Event Planning Trends?

Is the Kentucky bride to be searching for a wedding photographer by typing “flower girl” into Google? No! She’s typing “Louisville wedding photographer.”

And when she clicks on a link – does she want to read the deep thoughts or does she want to discover a fantastic portfolio and an easy way to connect?

Check out this amazing blog by a very gifted Louisville wedding photographer, Todd Pellowe. Take notes!

Your Tags Suck or Are Missing. If you want to get attract local buyers you need to put your keywords in your tags.

Your Headlines Suck. Clever titles don’t attract local buyers – keyword rich and titles that promise a relevant benefit do.

Headline examples: If you’re a disc jockey on Long Island ..

Sucks: “Sweet Ideas for Sweet 16”

Better: “Long Island Sweet 16”

Best: “Long Island Sweet 16 Party DJ”

Self Serving Fluff. Please don’t describe yourself as gifted, inspirational, preeminent or world-class.  People aren’t that stupid.
Crap Ads. Are you trying to attract clients or sell advertising? Ads are a waste of time unless you have a massive amount of traffic. Otherwise they just distract  attention.

Crap Design. Are you still using the default black background on Blogger? Really?

Hidden Contact Forms. How do I contact you? Don’t make me look hard because my finger ready to back click. You have seconds to get and direct attention.

Bad Alt Image Tags. Describe your images with smart keywords. Don’t call that photograph of a bouquet, “roses.” Call it “Miami Wedding Bouquet” if you’re a floral designer there.

If you’re a wedding planner, caterer, corporate event planner, wedding photographer, DJ, entertainer, floral designer or any other event professional who wants to get more clients without spending a lot of money – smart blogging works.

Smart blogs attract local buyers – not random readers from across the globe who can’t hire you.  Crap blogs don’t generate leads and what is worse – they waste your valuable time.

In my soon to be announced workshop I’m going to show you how to use blogging to generate a massive amount of leads, goodwill, referrals and repeat business.

To be notified when the workshop is open, be sure to jump on my list and get a free copy of  “More Clients Now.”

How to Boost Your Bridal Business with Smart Marketing

To build a successful wedding planning business, you need a blueprint. Your marketing plan will help you go from wishing and dreaming to doing and achieving.

You should have a clearly defined plan for every major business goal. It doesn’t have to be a long and complicated document. Don’t worry about making it impressive. It’s a plan of action, not academic exercise.

You don’t need detailed cash flow projections and other bells and whistles unless you are using the plan document to borrow a lot of money. You need a Wedding Planner Marketing Plan.

Bridal Business Profits Start With Planning

Keep your marketing plan short and to the point. Make it as simple as possible. Here are the items you’ll want to include:

• Mission: Go beyond the meaningless buzzwords and connect with why you’re trying to build your business. This isn’t the place for puffery. Aim for clarity.
• Objectives: What goals do you need to accomplish? When do you need to accomplish them? What steps do you need to complete in order to complete your mission?
• Strategies: What’s the big plan for attracting new clients? What are your back-up plans? Never depend on any one way of accomplishing your goals.
• Action Steps: What do you need to accomplish on a daily, weekly and monthly basis to achieve your goals? These tiny steps will lead you to successfully completing your bigger strategies.
• Keeping Score: Break out your action steps into actionable items with deadlines.
• Daily Tasks: This is an offshoot of your marketing plan and should be part of your daily calendar. Instead of creating a daunting list of projects, break each and every project into simple steps. What’s first? What’s next? Beware of vague agenda items.

For example, a poorly defined action item would be, “Do bridal shows.” It’s not instructive because it doesn’t give specific action steps.

A better agenda would look like this:

1. Look for local bridal shows on Google.
2. Get producer contact information on at least 10 shows.
3. Email for information.
4. Schedule time to attend five bridal shows to preview as a guest.
5. Attend shows, take photos and notes for ideas.
6. Get contact information from non-competing exhibitors.
7. Call each exhibitor to get their opinion of the show.
8. And so on/

With a detailed and actionable lists of tasks before you and your staff, the next step is doing it. Keep records of the tasks you accomplish. Hold yourself accountable to completing each task.

On a monthly basis (weekly is even better), sit down with your plan, your task list and your journal. What’s working well? What can be improved upon?

By scheduling regular thinking time and diligently monitoring your progress you’re already taking steps that unsuccessful planners never will.

Keep your eyes open for new and more effective ways to promote your business. Right now, the internet offers an incredibly fast and cheap way to reach out and communicate with thousands of wedding shoppers.

Download Free Report

You can promote your wedding business online for free using amazingly powerful but easy to master social media tools. If you’d like to learn how leverage the power of the web to grow your business faster than ever before, be sure to download a free copy of “More Clients Now.” Discover how quickly you can start booking more weddings without spending a fortune.

Download your free report now.

Tracking

People ask me, “Brian, should I advertise on The Knot?” To be honest, some wedding planners have a lot of success and others hate advertising there. What’s the difference?

I find that those who advertise on The Knot have an offer that appeals to the readership, an effective ad placement and a landing page that converts. The wedding and event pros who think The Knot is a scam? They have terrible ads (defined as ads that are never split-tested in my humble opinion) and they send the few clicks they get to a terrible place … the homepage of their website.

What’s your opinion? I’d love to hear it … please leave a comment.

Want to grow your wedding / event business?  Here’s excellent marketing advice that anyone in bridal business can use. Everyone from DJ’s, wedding photographers, florists, wedding planners and caterers will discover some real gems here.

The wedding planning business is recession proof – but that doesn’t mean that the bridal industry wont experience lower revenues. People are still getting married – but overall they’re spending less.

You don’t have to take it sitting down! Folks – now is the time to get creative, take action and market stronger and smarter than before.

If you want to learn more ways you can promote your event business, I invite you to download a free copy of More Clients Now. You’ll learn over 10 powerful and free ways to promote your business – starting now. I’ve been getting some really great feedback from readers – so grab your copy now and book more – book bigger – book better events now.

Here’s the article … if you like it, be sure to Share it on Twitter

Let me know what you think of it! All the best to you.

Brian

Why Smart Hotel Marketers Are Focusing on the Weddings Market in the Recession of 2009

By Bill Todd

Finding new business prospects in a recession can be a daunting task to say the least. Each day we come to work and reach out to accounts that are cutting expenses and reducing room nights. Yet when you study the last four recessions, it is clear that every hotel is surrounded by prospects that are recession-proof. As sales professionals, we frequently focus on the fact that our existing clients are no longer spending at the levels they did in 2007 and 2008.

Following funerals and liquor stores, weddings are one of the most predictable markets and will generate substantial new sales in 2009. According to the latest update from The Wedding Report, the number of nuptials in the United States will actually increase in 2009 from 2008. In fact, over 2,216,000 weddings will take place this year. If you like spending stimulus packages, you’ll be pleased to know that in 2009 over $56 billion dollars will be spent by American couples on their weddings.

The good news for hoteliers is that a large block of this year’s engagements took place around Christmas and Valentine’s Day. So once the dresses are selected and the location for the ceremony is decided, the bride and groom will turn their attention to the details for their wedding reception and rehearsal dinner. In 2009 the average couple will spend just over $29,000 on their wedding. More than $20,000 of that amount will be allocated for the ceremony and reception, while $1,300 will go to the rehearsal dinner. The average bride and groom will generate over $8,200 in food sales from their reception with an additional $2,200 from the bar and champagne. In 2009 these couples will collectively spend over four billion dollars just to rent the function space for their reception plus and an additional $390 million for hotel rooms on their wedding night.

Hotels with limited function space often get intimidated by these big numbers, but weddings are a great source of new sales for them as well. This year 177,000 weddings will be booked that have fewer than 20 guests.

Recently I took a brief sabbatical from the hotel industry to serve as vice president of sales for a large national wedding photography company. What I learned allowed me to return to the hotel industry and book more weddings in an average week than I used to book in an average year. My advice is to immediately start cultivating relationships with professionals who can refer wedding business to you. These key people can serve as your partners in profit for years to come.

Initially, I recommend focusing on businesses who traditionally communicate with the bride and groom before they begin planning their rehearsal dinner, wedding reception, or honeymoon. A great place to start is with the jeweler who provided the engagement ring. Next, focus on building connections where wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses can be purchased.

One of my best investments in time was spending every Saturday during the months of January and February in the busiest bridal stores across the country. I arranged with the owner to pay a commission on any business I booked from their customers and prospects alike. I found that generally the bride, mother, and maid-of-honor remained focused on finding just the right dresses. Frequently, however, the father of the bride was present, but seemed more isolated from the shopping. I booked the most business by focusing on these lonely dads. After spending time with the fathers, they would in turn share positive information about my services with the bride and groom. In short they became walking talking billboards for my brand.

During the work week I focused on establishing relationships with jewelers, pastors, limousine companies, and tuxedo rental stores. I also worked with caterers and restaurant managers who had already booked the engagement party. Every one of these professionals has the potential to send you profitable, quality leads. Brides and their parents are generally not experienced event bookers, which is why word-of-mouth referrals are extremely important. These referrals represent a great source of new revenue for your hotel.

I strongly recommend that you also establish a referral network with florists, bakers, musicians, DJs, printers, photographers, and videographers. You can refer business to them and generate a commission back to your hotel. Don’t be timid about asking for a commission. You are providing them with a valuable marketing service and you should be compensated.

Take the time to get to know your competition, which not only includes other hotels, but also other reception venues. Make sure that you and your team understand very clearly the benefits, services, and prices your competitors are charging. As a result, you can put together an attractive package that will win over the bride and groom.

One positive aspect about a recession is that there is no better time to shift market share away from your well known but passive competitors. While they follow conventional wisdom and cut back on sales, reduce services, and scale back on marketing, you can be aggressive and dominate the market. But you better get busy; this recession is going to be over very soon.

Bill Todd is a high energy, humorous, motivational speaker and sales trainer with over a quarter century of front line sales, marketing, customer service and advertising experience. He is the co-author with Stephen Covey of Speaking of Success. Todd is a proud member of the National Speakers Association and was listed in the 2009 edition of Who’s Who in Professional Speaking. 

Prior to launching his speaking and training career, Todd served as vice president of sales and marketing for Marriott International’s Corporate Lodging Division. Bill Todd also served as vice president, sales and industry marketing for 5000 + franchisees of Choice International. Todd’s advice and insight on marketing, sales and customer service has frequently been featured on United Airlines’ In-flight Business Channel and Selling Power Magazine. To contact the author: email- BTodd@BTodd.com or call -301-633-5856. Or visit his website http://www.BTodd.com

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