5 Ways to Increase Your Business Even When You're Swamped With Work.

Summer is just around the corner and for some states (like here in California) it's already in full swing!  Most wedding professionals are busy gearing up for their peak season. Although the busy season is always a blessing - it does come with a few obstacles too!

Your sales and marketing effort is crucial to your year round success! Many small business owners (wedding professionals especially) stop marketing during their peak season as they're busy taking care of their customers. They work at marketing and promoting themselves during the slow season (usually the winter) - which brings in business for the peak season (usually the summer). Ever wonder what would happen if the marketing effort continued all year long? Our experience shows that time spent marketing even when you're busy is time well spent!

Here are some quick tips to help you work ON your business not IN your business. You'll soon see the results as bookings will start to come in all year long...

• Commit to Dedicating some time to marketing EVERY DAY.
• Create an action plan for the upcoming week and stick to it. If you know you're going to be slow on Tuesday, use this time to work on marketing and advertising your business.
• Delegate work to others so you can free up time to work on marketing. If you are a "one man show" try enlisting an intern or apprentice to help out. Students at the local junior college are often eager for work experience and may jump at the chance to work with you in return for learning your business. High school students, nieces and nephews and older children also make great interns and may be glad of some summer work.
• Look into finding other sources of business.  Weddings may be your main focus but graduations, first communions, bar/bat mitzvahs, sports events, funerals, school functions, birthday parties, musical and dance performances are all great sources of off-season business.
• Don't give up! This is the key to being successful. You may not see immediate results but after a few weeks of soliciting you will start to see more opportunities for year round business.

I'm confident that you can improve your slow season by following the 5 tips above. Please add your thoughts below and add any tips you can share with us all.

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How Not To Get Bookings From The Local Wedding Show

You probably know by now that I'm a big fan of wedding shows! I believe they can be a huge source of new business. I know, I know - I can see you shaking your head!  Many of you don't agree with me.  We attended our local bridal expo last Sunday and here's a quick recap of what I saw...

• Strange combination of vendors booth sharing.
• Most vendors sharing booths spent much of the day chatting to each other and not their potential customers.
• A local hotel desperate to regain the confidence of the community - but no live person in the booth each time I walked past.
• A Minister standing in front of his booth who never smiled and ignored every person who walked past him. Still not sure if he was actually a real person or just a statue from Madame Tussauds!
• Vendors eating the snacks from the buffet table in full view of the show attendees.
• Displays were being packed away at least an hour before the show ended.
• Vendors walking around chatting to each other and leaving their booths unattended.

Hmm - wonder why wedding shows have such a bad wrap? I'm sure there won't be much follow up going on!

Disclaimer: Of course I know not all wedding professionals behave this way - but this was a great example of why I believe some wedding vendors do not get the most out of wedding shows.

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