How to prepare for the 2023 wedding season
The wedding season is always in full swing, but it's also a time when you can be especially busy as a wedding professional. With all of the competition out there, you need to ensure that you're staying on top of trends and preparing ahead of time. Here are some things you can do to get ready for the 2023 wedding season:
Research trends and industry news
The first thing to do is to research trends in your industry. This means not only reading the latest wedding publications, but also keeping an eye on industry trends online and in your local community. It's important that you stay up-to-date with what’s happening so that you can offer your clients the best possible service.
Here are some ways how:
Read industry publications and blogs. There are plenty of great print magazines dedicated solely to weddings (like Brides!), as well as online blogs like Style Me Pretty and Green Wedding Shoes that offer great insights into what couples want these days when it comes to their big day. These resources will help inform how you approach certain design elements such as floral arrangements or table setups for weddings at various price points - all so that when a client asks about her options, they get exactly what they want!
Watch YouTube/Tik Tok videos from popular wedding professionals who share their best tips on planning their own celebrations - these often contain useful information about trends and ideas for new packages!
Spruce up your website and social media profiles
Spruce up your website and social media profiles
Get listed on wedding websites, directories, blogs, magazines
Use a professional photographer for the photos you post online (and at the wedding)
Level-up your skill set
Take your business to the next level but taking a business course. Whether that is how to grow your client list, social media content creation, or how business coaching, this is the time to do it. Many courses will have waiting lists during peak seasons such as October through November and April through May, so if there's a course that looks interesting to you but it's not offered when you'd like to take it—try signing up anyway! You might just get lucky enough to get into class earlier than expected.
Create a marketing plan
Create a marketing plan.
It's important to have a firm grasp on how you will market your business and reach out to potential clients. When you're starting out, it can be helpful to make a list of the types of people who would be interested in booking you as their wedding professional—for example, if they're looking for someone who specializes in photographing weddings at historic mansions or vineyards with stunning backdrops. If there are any specific details about your services that would appeal to this type of clientele (e.g., offering photography packages that include custom prints), write those down too! Once you've got this list written down, think about what kind of advertising might work best: online ads? Facebook ads? Perhaps even print ads or local events like bridal shows where potential customers gather together?
After creating this list, start by reaching out personally: send emails or letters introducing yourself and explaining why each person should hire you for their upcoming nuptials (or another special occasion). Be sure not only to mention how much experience working with couples like theirs but also highlight why having them book through your business is beneficial for both parties involved (i.e., "I'm able" rather than "I am").
Get in touch with previous clients
Asking for referrals is not just a good business practice, but it's also one of the best ways to drum up excitement in your next wedding season. After all, you don't want to be at a loss for couples when you don't have any clients! You need people on board and ready to help out. Your previous clients are your best bet, so make sure you ask them if they would mind referring others who might be looking for a DJ or photographer or whatever else you provide. If they're happy with their experience working with you, there's no reason why they wouldn't want other people to feel the same way too!
There are other things we suggest that can help in this regard as well: asking for testimonials is an excellent way of building up your brand recognition and showing potential clients that other people have been satisfied by working with someone like yourself before - which means more potential business coming through our doors! We also recommend asking whether or not anyone would mind providing us (or another member) feedback regarding their experiences - this could include anything from what went well during those events down into some constructive criticism such as how things could've been done differently so as not only improve upon past performances but also ensure success moving forward."
Now is the time to get ready for the 2023 wedding season
The time to get ready for the 2023 wedding season is now. If you're a wedding professional, there are some things you should focus on this year in order to be as prepared as possible. Here's what I recommend:
Research trends and industry news. You should always be keeping track of what's happening in your field so that you can stay up-to-date on new technologies and techniques, as well as what clients are looking for when it comes to their weddings. This way, when someone asks if they can have their own personal drone camera crew at the ceremony or if they can play music from an iPod during their first dance instead of hiring a DJ (yes! both of these things happened at weddings this past year), you'll know exactly how to respond.
Spruce up your website and social media profiles by updating them with new content that showcases your skills and experience as a wedding professional—and make sure those photos look nice too! Nothing turns people off faster than seeing something that looks like it was created by someone who doesn't care about their work product enough to put some effort into making it good-looking and easy-to-read (and nothing makes people want hire someone more than finding out they're good at what they do).
Level up your skill set by attending relevant conferences or workshops throughout the year; not only will this help you become better at what you do but these events also provide opportunities for networking with other professionals who share similar interests so that when one day one becomes another's client there won't be any awkwardness about whether or not either party knows anyone else besides themselves."
Since its inception in 2022, The Social Attendant has been helping wedding professionals gain clients, save time, and money when it comes to their business as their Virtual Maid of Honor and Social Media Manager. Lori started her PNW-based award-winning wedding planning business in 2005 and has the experience and expertise to help wedding pros take their business to the next level.
