Your Ideal Client

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Make Your Goals SMART

This is a post that will help you create your SMART goals.

Your Follow Up System

There a lot of myths in the wedding industry about following up and I think that’s because most people don’t know that 80% of leads convert to customers AFTER the 5th contact. That means if you’re only following up once or not at all, you’re missing out on a hell of a lot of sales. Let’s look at how you can set up a great follow up strategy.

Example Follow Up System

Here is an example of a follow up system using email but you can make use of other ways of getting in touch with your potential customers. This follow up system is for your warm leads list that you create while at the fair. Be sure to send all emails that are not direct replies to the potential client through an email marketing system like Aweber or Mailchimp.

Email 1

Send within 3 days of the wedding fair

Subject: Title of the freebie you promised (but don’t use to word “free” in your emails because it triggers spam filters)

Content to include:

  • Remind the prospect how you met him or her, who you are, the name of your business and anything specific you discussed at the fair.
  • Give them the link to the freebie you promised them at the fair.
  • Do not mention anything about or ask them to purchase anything from you yet. This needs to be a no-pressure relationship because so many of your competitors will be putting pressure on like crazy. Just tell them that if they have any questions about <insert your area of expertise, like “how to find the right wedding dress for you”> to get in touch with you. Make it obvious that you are here to help them.

Email 2

Send 1 week after sending Email 1

Content to include:

  • Ask if they read/watched the freebie and what they thought about it.
  • Ask about their wedding. Where is it taking place? Do they have a style or theme they are going for? Are they having trouble finding any particular vendors? Your job is to be helpful so suggest suitable vendors and point them to resources that match their style. They will love you for it.

Email 3

Send 1 week after sending Email 2 if you have not heard from the couple. If the couple has responded, reply to their message right away.

Content to include:

  • Assuming the bride/groom replied to your last email, send them some tips/great vendors that suit their style.
  • Provide a link to a helpful post on your blog that you think they might like.
  • Ask if they would like to set up a time to chat or meet to discuss their wedding. Keep it as low-pressure as possible. Here is one way to do this: “Weddings are very personal and it’s important that you choose wedding vendors who fit well with what you want for your wedding. Would you like to set up a time to discuss your wedding and to see if we are a good fit for one another?  If so, just reply with some dates and times that work well for you. Not ready to meet yet? No problem! I’m still more than happy to send you helpful tips for planning your wedding and if you would like to meet at some point, just send me an email. Is there anything in particular that you are struggling with in planning your wedding? I may be able to help or direct you to someone who can.” The idea is to keep things in partnership mode and keep it out of high-pressure sales mode.

Email 4

Send once you get a resonse from Email 4. If you have not gotten a response, skip this email.

Content to include:

  • Respond to anything they have indicated they are struggling with. Send them links to posts you may have that cover that, offer personal advice, or refer them to someone who is better suited to help them. For instance, you may not know a thing about wedding dresses, but know a great dressmaker.

Next Steps

Emails after this should be sent at a regular frequency. It makes sense to line this up with your blog posting schedule and send them either weekly or biweekly. The content should consist of your latest blog posts and the subject line should be the title of the blog post you are sending. These messages should be sent from an email marketing system like Aweber or Mailchimp so that you can send them out to your entire list without having to do this individually.

A potential client may not be ready to book you yet, but by keeping in touch with helpful content, they will remember you when they are ready. Just keep sending your helpful content and keep the lines of communication open. Don’t worry about bothering them. If they want to unsubscribe, your email marketing system gives them that option.

Email Marketing Services

Aweber (This is what I use)

MailChimp (This service offers a free plan for when you’re just getting started)

Book More Weddings Academy

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