by Tanya Barker, Perfect Wedding Guide Market Manager

Every day at Perfect Wedding Guide we choose to do business.  We reach out to wedding professionals every minute of every day and work tirelessly to help them grow their businesses.  However, sometimes I feel that our efforts to find success for vendors out-trumps their own efforts to find success for themselves.

You see, every day we make suggestions to wedding professionals on how to better market and position themselves in the marketplace.  We call and email vendors with opportunities to put themselves in front of brides and other wedding professionals.  We correspond all day with people, and we ask them to make decisions.  We ask them to get back with us.  We follow up.  We remind.  We follow up again.  And again.  And again.

Now, some wedding professionals are very responsive. They'll call back or email back within minutes or hours.  When we need artwork or information for a listing, we get it immediately.  However, more times than not, we get nothing.  We call.  We email.  We follow up.  We follow up again.  We put out reminders.  We work to get some sort of response for something that, whether they see it or not, is crucial to the success of their business.  But, most often we hear the response, "I'm just too busy right now.  I can't get to it."  Can't get to it?  Can't get to a decision or an effort to get your marketing efforts completed?  Marketing is the most important thing you can do for your business and it should be one of the highest priorities on your list!

When we present new advertising options to vendors, we mostly hear, "I need to look this over and get back with you," or, "I need to go over this with my husband/business partner/neighbor/pet/shrink."  Of course, I kid, but we more often than not see stalling.  When we follow up, still more stalling.  When we call or email, still more.  Again, many wedding professionals know what they want and they go after it, but others have more difficulty making a decision.  We're not asking you to buy a house or a car.  We're simply asking if you're interested in investing in your company and driving more business through the doors.  It should be simple!

Recently, one of our Account Executives said to me, "If wedding professionals would just make a decision about things, they would find that they would be a lot less 'busy'."  And, it's true.

My husband recently shared a work story with me that proved this point.  Years ago, my husband wore the title of The Nation's #1 Procrastinator.  He pushed everything off because he chose not to deal with it in the moment.  I'd like to think I had some sort of impact on him.  Now, he deals with everything as it happens.  When an email comes in, he deals with it and deletes the email.  His inbox has no more than 4-5 emails in the inbox at any given time.  The same is true for me.  When something hits my inbox, I deal with it right away and then file or delete it.  Get it off the plate!  When phone calls come in, if I miss them, I return all of them before the end of the day...guaranteed!

He shared the story of one of his peers at work.  They began talking about his number of emails that he "hasn't gotten to."  When my husband looked at his inbox, there were over 200 emails that hadn't been handled or responded to.  What?  Do people really do business this way?  Is this why everyone is so busy?  They take time to read emails, listen to messages, but don't take the time to handle them?  

The best way to get things off your plate is to handle them right away when they come up on your radar. If you can handle things as they come, you won't get stockpiled with a list of to-do's that seem never ending.  Make a goal to respond to every email and return every phone call by the end of each business day.  When someone, whether it be a client or one of the companies that work for you, needs something from you and you don't get back with them immediately, you may lose an opportunity or you may find yourself scurrying during a deadline, and the results may not be exactly what you wanted.

Don't delay.  Don't put off making decisions.  As things go onto your to-do list, check them off as quickly as possible.  You'll find yourself less stressed.  You'll find yourself feeling less buried.  One of my photographers promises brides that they will have all of their images, retouched and ready to go, within 7 days of their wedding.  And, in the years I've known him, he's never run behind.  Why?  He's dedicated to get those weddings off his plate in a timely manner.  As a result, he's less stressed and he has time to actually run his business because he's not bogged down in weddings

Set goals and find ways to get things done in the moment.  Be responsive and be on top of things.  Don't miss opportunities and don't rush to get things done because you're pressed against a deadline.  Everything is a priority and everything should be handled as just that.  There are times I want to push off an email, but I choose in the moment to handle it because I know I'll feel better knowing it's not waiting on me.  Try it!  You may be amazed at what you can accomplish and how much you can handle when you actually make the choice to handle it.

We're connecting brides to businesses and print to the Internet like no one else in the Triad/Triangle!

Advertising starts at just $50 per month for a print and internet campaign with Perfect Wedding Guide.

 

Deadline! The deadline to be seen in the Summer PWG is 3/21. For more information, contact Raleigh@pwg.com or 336-676-9631 

 SAD NEWS:

On Thursday December 23, 2010 Marnitta "Marty" Marie Blankenship, 49, of 330 Lindsey St., Reidsville passed away Thursday December 23, 2010 at her home, after a brief illness. Many knew Marty as the Balloon Lady. She and her husband of 25 years, Kris Robbins Blankenship, worked in the family business, Balloons by Kris/Outlaw Festivals and Shows.

 

Marty was a good friend to many in the wedding industry. Our deepest sympathies and prayers go out to Kris and their other family members. If you would like to read and/or share your stories about Marty or express your thoughts to her family and friends please go here.

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*Sterling Events Group announced today that WinMock at Kinderton, site of their new special events center, has been listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.  The property, an iconic 17,000+ square foot barn, was built in the late 1920s and survives from the country estate built by S. Clay Williams, a former president of RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co. The barn, officially listed as Win-Mock Farm Dairy, was added to the register on December 27^th, 2010 in recognition of its importance to the history of North Carolina and the United States.  The historic barn is being transformed by Sterling Events Group into a special events center for corporate functions, weddings and special events.  1/20/11   

 

Triad Professional Wedding Guild members will have an opportunity to visit WinMock at Kinderton during our July 13th guild luncheon.

 

*Several Greensboro wedding pros recently had one of their bridal shower's featured on the national wedding blog, Wedding Chicks.  1/19/11 

  

If you have something exciting going on and you want the wedding industry to know about it here and on http://www.pwgnc.com/accolades.html, email jaime@pwg.com.
   

 

January 26, 2011
Triangle Professional Wedding Guild Luncheon
Holiday Inn RDU, Morrisville
11am-1:15pm
PWG Guild Luncheons

February 2, 2011
Triad Professional Wedding Guild Luncheon
Bibs Downtown, Winston Salem
11am-1:15pm
PWG Guild Luncheons

April 3, 2011
Perfect Wedding Guide Bridal Show
Marriott Crabtree Valley, Raleigh
1pm-4pm
Vendor Contract