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How to sell more at a wedding show! · Wedding Pros who are ready to grow - with Becca Pountney

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As the summer season draws to a close, we are starting to look forward
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to the autumn and winter months.
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One thing that happens every autumn is lots and lots of wedding
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exhibitions and bridal fairs.
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And that may be something that you are thinking about, or perhaps you're already
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booked in to exhibit your business.
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At one of these shows, I love attending bridal shows and then
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wedding fairs across the country.
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But I know that many of you don't make the most of this marketing opportunity.
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Now I'm often asked to speak on online summits or in conferences or even on other
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people's podcasts or in their memberships.
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And I speak on a variety of subjects, but one of the talks that I like
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to give is all about how to convert more at these wedding fairs.
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So I thought on today's podcast, I would do something a little bit
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different and share with you the audio from a presentation that I
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did recently on this very subject.
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I hope you find it helpful.
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Let me know on Instagram, how you found.
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And if you want any more help in this area, then go to the show notes where
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there's a link, a three part video series that I've also created all about
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how to do better at wedding fairs.
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And it goes into everything in even more detail.
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I'm Becca Pountney, wedding business marketing expert, speaker, and blogger.
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And you are listening to the wedding pros who are ready to grow podcast.
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I'm here to share with you actionable tips, strategies, and real life
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examples to help you take your wedding business to the next level.
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If you are an ambitious wedding business owner that wants to take your passion
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and use it to build a profitable, sustainable business, doing what you
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love, then you're in the right place.
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Let's get going with today's episode.
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In just a few moments.
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You're gonna hear the full presentation.
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Please bear in mind that this was a live recording of that presentation.
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So the audio quality, maybe isn't as good as it would normally be on
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the podcast, but hopefully it's good enough for you to hear what I'm saying.
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Well, hello and welcome to this session.
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If you are here to learn all about how to convert more at bridal
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expo or bridal fair, then you are absolutely in the right place.
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And it's great to have you here.
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My name is Becca, and I'm gonna be leading you through today's session.
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Now, before we get started and dive into the presentation, just a word of warning
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that I'm gonna cover a lot of ground and give you a whole lot of information.
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So you might wanna pause this right now and go and grab a paper and pen.
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Get that notebook.
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Get your pen ready?
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Because I talk fast and I deliver a lot of information.
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So pause the video, go and grab that.
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And when we come back, you're gonna be talking with me all about how to
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convert more at a bridal or wedding expo.
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Okay.
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I'm gonna get straight on with the presentation.
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I'm gonna share my screen so you can see my slides and we're gonna
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dive straight into all of my tips.
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Okay.
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So as I said, today's session is all about how you as a wedding business owner can
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convert more at a wedding expo, whether that's a wedding expo, a bridal expo a,
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a wedding open evening, a hotel anywhere where you are putting your business.
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As part of a stand in front of potential couples and trying to
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promote yourselves to them, that's what we're gonna be talking about today.
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It doesn't matter about the size or the scale of those particular expos.
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This is going to be helpful for you now, before we dive in, I want to know what
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do you think of when I say wedding expo?
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Just think for a second, what does it make you think?
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Now when I first got engaged way back in 2009, I was really excited to go to
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my first wedding expo here in the UK.
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We call them wedding fairs and I called up my best friend who
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was gonna be my bridesmaid.
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And we decided to plan a girl's trip to go to a bridal show.
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I travelled two hours across the country to meet her, and we went along to.
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Bridal fair.
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We were so excited.
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We were buzzing.
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We thought just like this picture, it is gonna be a really fun day out,
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a girly trip to plan the wedding.
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However, the reality was somewhat disappointing.
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In fact, I found the day a little bit boring.
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Yes.
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It was great to see my friend.
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But our wedding expo's as exciting as they seem to be in the way they're marketed.
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In fact, really all it was was a bunch of people standing behind tables,
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trying to sell me stuff that I didn't necessarily need for my wedding day.
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It wasn't the girls day out that I had in my mind.
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It was just one big sales pitch.
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Now, as I walked around that bridal expo way back in 2009,
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this is the sort of people I came.
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There was two types of people.
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The first type was the people who didn't seem like they really wanted to be there.
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Maybe they was just sat behind the table, scrolling their phone, talking to
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someone else, doing work on their laptop.
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And there was me and they just weren't engaging with me barely at all.
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So I just walked past their stand.
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They looked nervous.
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They look like they didn't know what they were doing.
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And they looked kind of bored as well.
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It really wasn't an attractive proposition to go over and speak to.
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And then there was the second type of person, the other end of the scale.
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This is the person that I've described here as the used car sales man,
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because they were a proper salesperson.
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They were the sort of people that jumped out from inside, uh, and
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said, Do you want to buy this?
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And then they'd go straight into a massive long sales pitch, all about
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their products or service, why it was amazing why I needed to do it, what
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discounts I could get all of the things and did I want to buy it right now?
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It was the other end of the scale.
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It was totally overwhelming.
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It felt like the hard sell and they didn't actually take any time to ask
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me about myself, about my wedding day, about any of the things I had planned.
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They just had their preprepared sales pitch.
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Now that doesn't make an enjoyable day out for any bridal group.
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Trust me.
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And that was my experience of going to the bridal expo when
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I was planning my own wedding.
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Now I'm gonna ask you that same question again.
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What do you think of when I say wedding expo?
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Because for you, you might be thinking of it from a different perspective.
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You're thinking about it from the perspective of the potential bride and
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groom, but you are thinking it from your perspective as the wedding business
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owner, perhaps you've already exhibited at some of these kind of events and they
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make you feel a little bit uncomfortable.
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Perhaps you're thinking some of these things I've put loads of effort.
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I've created an amazing.
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Why do couples always just bypass my stand?
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Why do they never come over?
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Why do they never stop and chat?
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Perhaps you're thinking I'm a little bit nervous.
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I'm not a salesperson.
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I don't really know how to start a conversation.
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And that's why I'm sat there scrolling my phone because
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I'm uncomfortable and nervous.
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And therefore, I don't know how to start that conversation.
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Perhaps you're thinking, I know that I need to sell.
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But I don't know how to do that without coming across sleazy.
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I don't want to be like the used car sales man.
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And so I just stay quiet or perhaps you're thinking, I know I
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really wanna get people's details.
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I wanna get them booked in, but I just don't know how to get people to do it.
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So maybe this is what you think of when I talk about wedding expos,
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maybe it's all those uncomfortable feelings that you thought, or maybe
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you've never done one before and you just don't know where to start.
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Well, how about this?
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What if we could solve both problems and convert more leads?
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What if I could show you how to give those couples a great experience,
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not a disappointing experience like I experienced so that they then
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flock to your stand and you walk away with hot leads and even some sales.
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Well, if that's what you want, then you are in the right place, because that's
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exactly what I'm gonna be showing you in.
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Today's presentation, how to give couples a much greater experience.
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So they flock to your stand and you walk away with hot leads and sales.
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If we've not met before, my name is Becca Pountney.
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I'm a based here in the UK, as you can probably hear from my accent, I've popped
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my Instagram handle at the top there.
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So if you love Instagram, as much as I do go and connect with me at Becca Pountney.
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If you're watching this snap a picture tag me in your stories,
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wherever you are in the world, I would love to see it and drop me a DM.
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And tell me what you've learned from today's session, because I love
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to chat and I'm more than happy.
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Get into a conversation and chat with you about your business at Becca Pountney.
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Now I've been in the wedding industry a number of years, eight years.
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In fact, following a successful career in TV and radio marketing.
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Um, for the last five years since finishing my wedding
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videography business, I've become an award winning wedding blogger.
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I'm a wedding business consultant.
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I'm a podcaster and I speak around the world, helping people, just like
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you to grow your wedding business for success, to market yourself
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successfully and to bring home.
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Money.
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And it's an absolute pleasure to be here talking to you about this topic today.
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Okay.
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So I'm gonna walk you through my three step process to
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converting at a wedding expo.
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And I call that process elf.
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No, not that little guy on the side there that brings many parents much, uh, stress
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at Christmastime, but elf is a good way for you to remember my strategy E L F.
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So what does E.L.F stand for the E stands for explore and.
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The L stands for look appealing and the F stands for follow up.
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And this is the framework I'm gonna talk you through today to help you plan ahead.
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Organize yourself, have a great expo follow up and most
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importantly, make sales and convert.
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So that's why we're gonna be going today.
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Get ready, because there's lots of information coming your way.
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So let's start with E then.
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Explore and plan.
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Now E is an essential part of this process.
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And this part comes before you even get to the wedding show day itself, because if we
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are not in the right place, if we are not promoting ourselves at the right bridal
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or wedding expo, then the conversion is going to be almost impossible.
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So, what do we do then in this explore and plan stage?
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Well, first of all, do you have a really clear idea about
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who your ideal couple are?
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Do you know the kind of wedding they're gonna have, the kind of budget
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that they're gonna be working to?
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Do you know what sort of venues they're gonna be choosing to get
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married in and what time of year?
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How well do you know the couples that you serve?
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Because if you know them well, then you can move on to the next section, which.
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Well, where are they actually hanging out?
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Which of the shows are they going to be at?
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For example, some of the couples won't be at the massive big wedding expos that
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might not be where your couple like to be.
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They might like to be at the smaller boutique, more alternative expos,
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or perhaps it's the other way round.
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So get a grip on who it is that you're trying to promote to.
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There is no point you being in the wrong.
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If, for example, you want to work with wedding, uh, couples who want to get
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married at huge Manor house type venues.
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There's no point in going and exhibiting your business at the local motel because
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your clients are going to be there.
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If someone wants to get married in a grand Manor house, they're not gonna
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be going to a local motel wedding exhibition to plan their wedding.
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So do your research and find out what shows they're going to be.
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Also consider your dream venues.
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What venues do you wish you could work at more?
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Which venues do your couples go to?
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Which venues are you working at all of the time, find out if those venues are
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having their own expos, are they having their own open days and showcases where
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you can get involved, do your research, because if you put yourself in the right
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place, you've got much more chance of converting yourself into getting business.
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But if you're in the wrong place, you are already on an uphill battle.
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Now before you book or pay any money, I highly recommend if possible that
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you visit the show first often shows happen twice a year in different places.
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So perhaps you can go to the spring show and then exhibit at
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the autumn show or vice versa.
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The reason you wanna visit the show is because yes, their marketing team are
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gonna tell you it's the best thing in the whole world, but when you go and
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experience it for yourself, you're gonna get much more of a feel for whether
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your ideal couples are in the room.
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Also, when I visit a show, I quite often go round and talk to the other
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exhibitors who are there and just ask them how they're getting on at the show.
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Has the show been good for them?
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Are they getting a lot of interest?
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Because if it's successful for them, chances are, if you're in a
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similar niche or in a similar kind of category, It will work for you as well.
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And also never hand any money over to a show organizer without
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asking some good questions, ask them what is the demographic that
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you're expecting at your show?
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What are the expected attendance numbers at the show now?
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They can't always know exactly, but they will know roughly what to expect,
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whether you're gonna get 10 couples there.
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A thousand couples there, however many couples, you need to know what your
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return on investments is gonna be.
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Often we talk about cost per head in marketing.
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So how much is it gonna cost you to exhibit there versus how many people are
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coming through the door and then you can work out what that cost per head would
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be and whether or not it's good value.
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And then the other question you wanna ask is there, are there any
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other ways I can get involved?
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Often we are sold an exhibition stand, but quite often there are other little
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things that we can get involved with, which can showcase ourselves even
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more ask if they've got a stage and they need someone to talk about your
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subject, ask if they have a show program that you can contribute to.
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So they have goody bags that you can put some branded merchandise in.
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Is there workshop area where you could run a workshop?
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Is there a place where you could play live music, whatever it is that you
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do, is there another way you can get involved in the show to go above and
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beyond just having the stand that will put you ahead of your competition and
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make it even more worth your while.
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So before agreeing to anything, please, please, please make sure
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you're asking questions first.
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Okay.
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So once we have decided which show we want to go to, then we need to do a few
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other things before the show day itself.
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First up, you need to work out how much that show is costing you to be at.
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That includes how much it is to be there on the day and how much.
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You're giving away.
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So for example, if you're giving away cake, how much is that costing you?
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If you're giving away merchandise, how much is that costing you?
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If you're decorating the stand, how much is that costing you?
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If you're paying someone else to be with you there on the
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day, how much is that costing?
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You add it all together and then work out.
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How many sales you need to make from that show.
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Number one, to pay for it.
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And number two, to make it worth your while, because there's no
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point just doing it to pay for it.
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You need to go above and beyond.
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You need to be in profit.
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So work out how many sales you need to break even, and to make a profit and then
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use that as your sales target, going into the show, have that number clear in your.
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Give yourself some targets from this show, I need to convert
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X number of people into sales.
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And I want to collect X number of email addresses to know whether
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or not it's been successful.
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Now you will not always convert on the day.
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Sometimes those conversions will come later on, but it's important to track it.
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So it's worth knowing whether or not to go back to the same expo next year.
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If you don't know whether or not it's worked for you, how can you decide
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whether to put marketing budget into it?
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The next thing you wanna be doing before the show itself is actually promote the
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fact that you are going to be attending the show and tell people why they
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want to find you before the events.
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This is a great strategy because if your couples or couples attending the
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show, see about you before they even get to the show, they're going to be
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seeking you out, especially if you have something great to offer them.
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So tag the show in Instagram, on Facebook.
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Because they might share it to their stories and therefore
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their show attendees will see it.
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Talk about what you're gonna be doing at the show where you're
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gonna be located and why couples should come and visit your stand.
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I've seen people have great success with this, where they're at the show and people
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keep coming over to them and saying, I came because I knew you were here.
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I knew you had this going on and they're actually seeking them
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out and finding their stand.
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And obviously that often leads to.
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Okay.
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So that is the explore and plan section.
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Do not discount that it is incredibly important.
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If you are not promoting and marketing yourself in the right place at
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the right time, it's going to be really hard for you to convert.
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Okay, that then moves us then onto L look appealing.
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I talked to the beginning about my own bridal show experience
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and how boring the show was.
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It was literally a bunch of tables with people trying to sell me stuff.
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There was leaflets everywhere that were being given out.
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And it wasn't what I'd imagined in my head.
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Now I want to change the way that you think about these exhibitions,
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because just because that's what everyone else is doing.
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Doesn't mean, you need to do that as well.
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And if you can do something totally different to stand out from the crowd,
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everyone's gonna be remembering you.
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And in fact, if the show is incredibly boring, but your stand is amazing.
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Guess what?
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Everyone's gonna remember you and you are the one that's going
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to be getting the bookings.
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So number one, you need to be making sure you stand out from the crowd.
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And secondly, I want you to start thinking differently about how you
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can create a memorable experience.
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A memorable experience for the couples at the show, they don't
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want a boring sales experience.
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They want something memorable.
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They're excited to plan their wedding day.
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They're bringing their friends, they're bringing their partner,
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they're bringing their mom, they're ready to plan their wedding.
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And they're there for a day out.
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Let's give them something memorable.
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So they remember us.
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I want us to be there on their wedding.
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I wanna encourage you at this point to think outside of the box and be creative.
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There are no bad ideas.
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And like I said, just because no one else is doing it doesn't mean that you
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shouldn't be doing it because I promise you if you find something that works and
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everyone's flocking to your stand next time, you'll see other people copying you
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and you wanna be the leader of the pack.
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Get rid of all your preconceptions, get rid of all those nagging doubts in
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your mind that it won't work and think outside of the box and go with me today.
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Okay.
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I want you to ask yourself this question.
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How can you showcase your product or service in an interactive way?
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How can you showcase your product or service in a fun, interactive, memorable
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way now, depending on what you do and what you offer for a wedding is going
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to depend on how you execute this.
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But like I said, there's no bad ideas.
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So I want you to start with the craziest idea and the biggest grandest idea you can
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think of, and then bring it back down to something that you could actually manage.
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I'm gonna share some ideas with you, right?
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Idea one, for example, if you're a hair stylist, why not set up a mini salon
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area at the wedding show instead of a table, set up a mini salon with a
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chair, a mirror, make it look beautiful and run mini hair trials on the day.
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No one wants to be told that you are good at doing hair.
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They want to see it.
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They want to feel it.
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They wanna see themselves looking amazing.
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Now I've had a client who's done this incredibly successfully at the
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national wedding show in London.
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She set up her stall exactly like this, like a mini salon as suggested.
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And then she had her mom and a friend there as a helper on the day.
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So she could do the hair and talk to the brides, but the other people
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could talk to other passes by now, when someone sees someone else
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in the chair getting their hair.
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It attracts attention.
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They want to be next.
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They want to flock over and see what's going on.
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And you are also showcasing what you can do for them.
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It's like a mini free hair trial.
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And then obviously you can then go ahead and book those people
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in for a proper trial and work with them on their wedding day.
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Just think for a moment as a bride, would you rather someone gave you a
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leaflet with pictures of hair or would you rather experience what it's like
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to have your hair looking great for.
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If you're a musician, maybe you could have a little set area set
20:23
up a little stage where you can play music live at the event.
20:26
If you're a Florist, perhaps you could create a little workshop
20:29
area in your stand where people can come over and you can talk to them
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about flowers and help them make a flower crown or something like that.
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Perhaps you could run a little mini bouquet demonstration.
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So people come over and hover around your stand.
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You're doing something fun.
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You're doing something interactive and you're doing something memorable.
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Showcase your expertise.
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Okay.
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Second idea.
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One thing I find at a wedding exhibition, or a wedding expo.
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There's a lot of standing around and there's often minimal seating.
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So why not turn your stand, your booth, your area into a really
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comfortable area for people to hang out.
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I've seen a photographer do this incredibly successfully, where
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they bought lounge furniture from their home and set up their stand
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as a mini kind of living room area.
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And they put out their photo albums and people could come and hang
21:20
out at their stand, sit on the so.
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Chill out for a bit and look through the wedding, photograph albums, and
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then they could sit with them and chat, and it was so much better and
21:30
more enjoyable than just a stand with tables and pictures up, and guess what
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they did incredibly well from the show.
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People enjoyed chatting with them.
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People enjoyed chilling out.
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Perhaps you're a cake maker.
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And you wanna give out cake samples at the show?
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Well, yes, you could just give them out, wrapped up to everyone who passes
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or perhaps you could set up a mini tea room inside your booth, have a few
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tables and chairs, invite people to sit for a few minutes and have your
21:55
cake served on a plate and try it.
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Maybe you can do a flavor test with them.
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See if they can guess the flavors.
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I don't know.
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There's so many different ideas where you can create an enjoyable environment.
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Perhaps, if you are someone that sells suits and you're trying to attract the
22:10
men often, the men are hanging about at the wedding expos while they're wives to
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be, or parents or whoever are off making.
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So, if you were a suit salesperson, perhaps you could turn it into some kind
22:23
of men's hangout area where you've got a rack of suit jackets that they can have
22:27
a look at, but maybe you've got a, a set there, or some gaming chairs, a switch
22:32
or a PlayStation that they can play on somewhere where they can hang out while
22:36
their partners are going around the show.
22:38
Very memorable.
22:39
And also they're going to want to come to you for the suits.
22:42
There's so many different ideas, but think about how you could
22:45
create an enjoyable environment or a seating area for people at the show.
22:50
Idea three is to do something totally different, but something
22:54
that's going to attract attention.
22:56
Now, imagine you're at a fun, fair, you know, all those different games,
22:59
whether people are trying to attract you over to play, perhaps you could
23:03
have some kind of interactive game set up going on at your stand.
23:07
I'm imagining some kind of large spin the wheel where people come over.
23:12
They give their email address in that's important.
23:14
You take their email address and they get to play the game.
23:17
They spin the big wheel and then win something.
23:19
Maybe you've got some sweets to give away.
23:21
Maybe they win a special offer for your services.
23:24
Maybe they win a can of drink or voucher.
23:26
I don't know what you wanna give away.
23:27
That's up to you.
23:29
But just having that big wheel will attract attention.
23:32
People will want to come and play, because people love playing games
23:34
and people love winning prizes.
23:36
And it's definitely memorable.
23:38
Or you could have a big play your cards right, that kind of thing
23:40
to attract attention over again.
23:43
People will be flocking to your store to find out what you do.
23:46
And while they're there playing the game, you're chatting to them,
23:49
asking them questions, finding out about their wedding day and telling
23:52
them about the service you provide.
23:55
Like I said, at this point, you have to let go and think outside of the box,
23:59
what could you be doing differently for whatever product or service you sell?
24:02
What can you do?
24:03
That's interactive, fun and memorable for the people coming to the show and makes it
24:07
easier for you because people are flocking over rather than you standing there
24:11
awkwardly waiting for someone to stop.
24:13
Bye.
24:16
The next thing you need to think about when it comes to the show
24:18
day itself is ensuring you and your stand can be spotted from a distance.
24:25
I've put some examples in here of some amazing wedding show stands.
24:28
I've seen at places where I've been speaking.
24:30
Um, you can see how incredibly, uh, how incredible these are and how much they're
24:36
gonna stand out against a normal booth.
24:39
You can see that they've gone all out with neon lights, with
24:42
seating areas, Instagramable spots for people to take a photo.
24:45
I love this cake stand.
24:46
The photo's not very good because it's taken on my phone, but instead of just
24:49
having cakes on a table, how much more exciting do those cakes look in that
24:54
display and people were talking to me later in the day and saying, oh, I love
24:57
the cake maker with the amazing balloons.
24:59
It was really memorable.
25:01
So, what can you do to make sure your stand and your amazing area that you
25:05
set up is spotted from a distance.
25:08
So people look at it and want to come and see what it's all about.
25:13
Okay.
25:13
Here's some top tips in to think about how to do that.
25:19
Actually, I'm gonna go back to.
25:22
I've missed a slide out.
25:23
Okay, let's stick with this.
25:24
How can you achieve that then?
25:25
Because you might be thinking I can't achieve this.
25:27
I don't have the money for it.
25:29
Well, first of all, I wanna say, why don't you collaborate?
25:32
See if you can collaborate with other people that do what you
25:35
want on your stand and see if you can collaborate on the stand.
25:38
Perhaps you can give out some of their business cards, uh, to say, thank you.
25:41
If they've set up the balloons for you, perhaps you can share a stand.
25:44
You need to ask the expo for the rules around those things,
25:47
but if you can collaborate, that's gonna make it better for.
25:50
Or make sure you've set aside some budget to pay for your stand, because
25:55
if your stand looks amazing, it'll be a lot easier to attract people over.
25:59
And the more people that come over to your stand and love it, the more
26:01
likely you are to get them to convert.
26:05
Okay.
26:06
Let's have some top tips then for being on the show, date itself, once
26:10
you've got your stand and everything looking attractive and amazing.
26:14
When you are chatting to people, use questions, be friendly
26:18
with people and qualify the.
26:21
So don't go over to someone and launch into a sales pitch.
26:25
Ask questions, be normal.
26:28
How are you enjoying the show today?
26:29
Do you wanna take part in our game?
26:31
Do you wanna have your hair done?
26:32
We'd like to sit down and have a cup of tea.
26:34
How's your wedding planning going?
26:35
Is it you getting married?
26:36
When are you getting married?
26:38
When did you get engaged?
26:39
How long have you been together?
26:40
How are you finding the show today?
26:42
How's this wedding planning business going?
26:44
Have you thought about your wedding flowers yet?
26:46
Where are you in the process?
26:48
Ask questions, listen to their responses.
26:51
And it's important to qualify the lead because, and we'll talk about this more
26:54
in a minute when I talk about follow up, because if they're not actually
26:57
the person getting married or they're not actually there to get married,
27:00
they're just there for a bit of fun.
27:02
You don't wanna spend too much time talking to them.
27:04
Okay.
27:04
But be friendly and qualify the lead.
27:07
Secondly, often people have offers at shows because they want to use
27:11
the offer to collect email addresses.
27:13
But I want to recommend you that you have upsell offers, but that
27:17
you don't discount discounting.
27:20
Isn't always a great strategy.
27:21
It looks a little bit desperate and actually you are worth
27:24
the price that you're paying.
27:25
So instead of discounting, don't say if you book today, you get 20% off.
27:30
Say if you book today, I will also include.
27:32
Two hours, extra footage, or I will include a photo album, or I
27:36
will include a gift bouquet for the bride or whatever it is that you do.
27:40
Add something on.
27:42
If they give their email address, don't discount off your price.
27:45
You don't need to do that and make sure that offer is time sensitive.
27:48
So if you sign up for today and you book within the next three weeks,
27:52
you will get this added bonus.
27:55
You wanna make sure you're getting contact information from as
27:58
many people as you possibly can.
28:00
You don't wanna leave the power in their hands to walk away and forget about you.
28:03
You want the power to be able to contact them again and remind them why you are
28:07
amazing and why they should book you.
28:09
Next make sure.
28:11
And I'm surprised how many people forget about this, make sure you
28:14
have your diary with you on the day.
28:16
So if people ask about availability, you can tell them whether you've got
28:19
availability for their wedding date, and also find a way to take payment.
28:24
On the day.
28:25
These days, you can get those little card machines, very low cost, where
28:28
you can take deposits on the day.
28:30
If someone wants to give you money on the.
28:33
You don't wanna be turning it down.
28:35
So make sure you invest in one of those little machines where you can take
28:38
money on the day, because it will.
28:41
Yeah, it's just a good idea.
28:42
Why would you wanna turn money away?
28:44
And if you don't take the money, I guarantee someone else around the corner
28:47
at the expo will take their money instead.
28:50
And finally, if you have products that you can sell individually,
28:55
have them there for sale on the day.
28:56
So for example, if you're a cake maker and you can have some cupcakes
29:00
or something that people can buy for a pound or a dollar, uh, on the day,
29:04
do that and take the money, make some money back towards the stand.
29:07
If you are a makeup artist, uh, perhaps you can offer.
29:10
A mini makeover on the day that they pay for, if you sell a product like
29:14
candles, perhaps you can sell individual candles or gift sets on the day.
29:18
If there's something you can sell on the day, do it.
29:20
I, again, at the national wedding show in London, there was amazing,
29:24
uh, lady there who sold cocktails.
29:27
So her offering was that she'd come to your wedding with her
29:29
cocktails and create favors for all the guests and that kind of thing.
29:33
But she was selling on the day mini jars of her cocktail.
29:38
She sold out on day one.
29:40
She had to go and make more cocktails for day two.
29:42
Everyone was buying the mini jars of cocktails, as well as finding out
29:46
information about her wedding service.
29:48
So she made almost as much money as to pay for the whole show, just on
29:52
selling those mini jars of cocktails.
29:54
So if you have something to sell, make sure you have it with you on the
29:57
day and make sure you have enough of.
30:00
Okay, then that brings me onto the final section, which is F in ELF.
30:06
And that stands for follow.
30:08
Up.
30:09
Now, I want you to keep paying attention here because this is
30:12
where I find most suppliers.
30:13
Most wedding business owners drop the ball.
30:16
It's the follow up.
30:17
They prepare for the show.
30:19
They go all out of the show.
30:20
They're exhausted from the show and life gets in the way, and then
30:24
not very good at following up.
30:25
I spoke to a wedding business owner recently who told me
30:28
wedding shows didn't work for her.
30:30
And she'd had nothing from her recent show two weeks ago.
30:34
I said to her, well, when did you follow.
30:36
I haven't followed up yet.
30:37
Haven't had time.
30:38
Well, that's why you, haven't got very good results.
30:41
If you don't follow up, you are not gonna get the results you want from the show.
30:44
And if you don't drop the ball and you do well in this area, it absolutely will make
30:49
a difference to your conversion rates.
30:53
I wanna tell you this.
30:54
It's a fact, the quicker you follow up, the more conversions you will
30:58
get, the quicker you follow up, the more conversions you will get.
31:03
And if you are slow to follow up, they may just book your competitor.
31:07
Now we like to think that couples are savvy and they're shopping around for the
31:10
best choice, but they don't always know as much about the wedding industry as we.
31:15
And often they'll go for the fastest, easiest choice.
31:18
And if someone else follows up before you and is in their price range, they
31:22
will just go ahead and book them.
31:24
So we want to make sure we are following up with our leads incredibly fast.
31:29
So how can we do that when we're gonna be tired after the show?
31:33
Well, for a start, you can set it up before you even get
31:37
to the show, use a system.
31:39
These are free systems at a certain level like mailer light is my favorite.
31:42
I've got a great training on mailer light.
31:44
If anyone wants to see it.
31:45
Drop me a DM, and I will send you some information about that.
31:49
And also MailChimp.
31:50
I don't like MailChimp as much, but lots of you may use it in these systems.
31:54
You can set up a form which can be filled in and an automated funnel.
32:00
So as soon as they hit submit on that form at the wedding show,
32:04
they will get an email from you.
32:07
Instantly instantly before they've even left your stand.
32:10
So you will be the first person that follows up with them.
32:13
Cause I guarantee most other people at the show won't follow
32:16
up for at least 24 hours.
32:18
If not longer, you can say something like, Hey, it was so great to meet
32:22
you just now at the exhibition stand.
32:24
Um, here's the information on my packages.
32:27
Here's the link to book a call, tell them what you want them to do.
32:29
Next set up that form before the.
32:33
Have it on an iPad or a laptop, make sure you've got access to internet
32:36
and they can fill it in as they go.
32:38
It means you're not dealing with loads of paperwork and it means the follow
32:42
up the instant follow up is done for you before you get to the show.
32:46
So you don't have to sit down that evening and start sending loads of emails out.
32:50
So get that set up and if you need additional help and support with the tech
32:53
behind that, reach out to me, and I'll give you information about my training.
32:59
Here's an important piece of information for you when it comes to that follow up
33:04
email, make sure you include a photograph of yourself or include something that's a
33:12
memorable about your stand in the email.
33:16
I'm gonna say that again, include a photograph of yourself or
33:19
include something memorable about your stand in the email.
33:23
They will have met a lot of people that day.
33:26
They will have met a lot of wedding, business owners, and all of them will
33:29
start to merge into one and they'll be thinking, oh, I really like that girl
33:33
with the flowers, but I can't remember which one of these business cards she was.
33:36
And I can't remember the name of her business.
33:38
However, they will remember you if they talk to you.
33:41
So if in your email right near the top, there's a lovely picture of you saying.
33:45
Hey, it's Becca.
33:46
Thank you so much for chatting today.
33:49
I loved meeting you instantly.
33:50
They're gonna know.
33:51
Oh, that's the person I really enjoy talking to.
33:54
That's the person I want to chat with.
33:57
If you really don't wanna include a photo of yourself, include
34:00
something memorable about your stand.
34:01
Hey, it was great to chat to you about my, at my cake stand.
34:04
We were the one with the big pink balloon arch, where we were giving
34:07
away free cake tasters, and you were guessing and spinning the wheel.
34:10
Okay.
34:11
Whatever it is that reminds them.
34:13
What stand you?
34:14
Don't assume they will remember the name of your business.
34:16
I guarantee they won't do it yourself.
34:18
Walk around a wedding exhibition, walk out and see if you can remember
34:22
the names of the businesses, or if you can remember instead what
34:25
their stand looked like and what the person was like that you talked to.
34:31
Okay, it's really important.
34:32
We've covered this already, but it's really important that you get information
34:36
from as many people as possible on the day, don't leave the power in their hands.
34:42
So often I ask people what their strategy is at a wedding expo, and they say,
34:46
I talk to them all about my business.
34:48
And then I say, get in touch with me if you are interested.
34:51
And then they wave them off from the stand and never hear from them.
34:54
Why because they've left the show and they can't remember who you are.
34:58
You need to get contact information from as many people as possible
35:02
on the day, do not leave the power in their hands to contact you.
35:06
You want to have the power to be able to contact them immediately.
35:09
And in the days of weeks, following that expo.
35:13
Also you wanna try and get them to follow you on social media.
35:15
Quite often, I'll say to people, uh, while I'm chatting to them at
35:18
a stand, Hey, are you on Instagram?
35:20
Like pull out your phone.
35:21
I'll show you my Instagram account, give it a follow and get them following
35:24
you so that you are popping up in their news feed all of the time.
35:30
Okay.
35:31
The last part of this follow up is gonna depend on whereabouts in the process.
35:36
These people you're talking to are I talked you earlier about how
35:40
it's important to qualify leads.
35:42
And I like to put these leads into three separate categories and the way you
35:46
follow up and try and convert these leads is gonna be very different depending
35:50
on which of these categories they fall.
35:53
So the first category is the one that we all want.
35:56
And yet they're often in quite short supply.
35:58
They are the super hot leads.
36:01
These are the people that come over to your stand.
36:03
And they're already asking about your availability.
36:06
We love what you do.
36:06
Are you available on the 10th of March 20, 27?
36:10
They're really wanting to know that they can have you on their day.
36:13
They're starting to ask you lots of questions.
36:15
They're genuinely interested in the product or service.
36:18
They're excited about it.
36:19
They they're imagining it on their wedding day.
36:21
And they're asking a lot of questions about how it works and they're
36:24
asking what they need to do to book.
36:26
What's the next stages?
36:27
Do I need a, do you need a deposit?
36:29
How do I make sure I secure that date?
36:31
These are the people you want.
36:33
If you are talking to someone and that's the signals you're getting mentally
36:37
in your head, mark them as super hot.
36:40
The second category is hot.
36:42
These are also great leads to.
36:44
So these are people that you will identify because they're asking lots of questions.
36:48
So again, they're interested in what you're doing, but not quite as
36:52
interested as the super hot leads, they're taking a genuine interest in
36:55
what it is that you have to offer.
36:57
And they have a wedding date booked.
36:59
They might not be super hot, but they're definitely interested and
37:02
they're definitely worth some following.
37:05
And then the final set of qualifications is the cold leads.
37:10
These are the people that are giving you their email address, but you get the
37:12
feeling they're giving it to everyone.
37:14
They may be giving you the email address, because they want the offer or the freebie
37:17
or the chance to spin the wheel or the free cake or whatever it is you are asking
37:20
them to do to give over the email address.
37:23
They're not really asking that many questions about what you offer.
37:25
They're just there.
37:26
And then maybe the people that say, oh, we don't have a date for our wedding yet.
37:29
We're just looking.
37:30
We're just getting some ideas.
37:31
We're thinking about it.
37:32
That's great.
37:33
Be friendly to.
37:34
But in your head, mark them down as a cold lead.
37:38
Now, the reason we split them is because each of these different people need
37:41
a different follow up at the show.
37:43
And if you treat them all the same, it won't work.
37:46
If you try and follow up the cold leads with the super hot
37:49
examples, it ain't gonna work.
37:52
And if you give the super hot people, the cold lead funnel,
37:55
it isn't gonna work either.
37:57
So once you've identified them?
37:58
What do you.
38:00
Well, if you've identified someone as super hot, these are the people
38:03
that are likely to potentially book in and give you money on the day.
38:07
So ask them great love that you like it.
38:10
Do you want to secure your date before it goes?
38:14
If they say yes, then explain to them.
38:17
Great.
38:17
All we need to do is take a deposit of X, Y, Z, here and now.
38:21
And your date will be in the diary.
38:23
We'll then be in contact over the next 24 hours for final information, have a
38:27
consultation, whatever it is that you need to do, take the deposit there.
38:31
And then.
38:32
Get the date booked.
38:33
And then when they've left, you can celebrate because that is
38:35
ultimately what you want a sale and a sale on the day is incredible.
38:39
You don't always make sales on the day, but if you can, them.
38:46
Okay.
38:46
That second response is the hot response.
38:49
So this is the people that maybe aren't quite ready to book there
38:52
and then, but are very interested in finding out more about you.
38:55
If that is them, say that you'll be in touch with them soon to book
38:59
a consultation, to book a call, to get on the phone with them
39:02
and give them more information.
39:04
Also, once they leave your stand, make a quick note of their names and who they
39:09
were and something about the convers.
39:12
And then that night, send them a personalized follow
39:15
up email saying something.
39:18
Hey, Becca and Matt.
39:19
So good to talk to you today.
39:21
So excited about your wedding at X, Y, Z next year.
39:25
I think what you are planning with the red and green color scheme is incredible.
39:29
I would love to make your cake.
39:31
Here's a link to my diary.
39:33
Get in touch let's book a consultation so we can get your date secured, ASAP.
39:37
They are a hot lead.
39:38
They need a personalized follow up and that follow up
39:41
needs to come that night ASAP.
39:43
Don't leave it a few days or you will lose the business.
39:47
And then we've got those cold leads.
39:48
These leads are gonna have a more automated response.
39:51
You're gonna add them to your email list.
39:53
Maybe you're gonna tag them or categorize them under show,
39:56
email list, name of the show.
39:58
And then you're going to have prepared a series of follow up emails that
40:01
you send out to them periodically.
40:03
And then they're gonna end up on your master email list
40:06
hearing from you regularly.
40:07
So when they've booked a date, when they've got more
40:09
information, when they want to go.
40:11
They'll get back in touch with you, and you're not spending loads
40:14
of time on those cold leads until they become a little bit hotter.
40:18
Get them added to that list, send them your preprepared follow up emails.
40:21
Maybe once, instantly that they'll get once the day after the show,
40:25
once a few days later, and maybe once a few days after that, encourage
40:28
them to move to the next step.
40:29
Book the call, that kind of thing, and also encourage them to follow you on
40:33
your social media both while you're at the stand and on those emails as.
40:38
If you follow this process, you will see success.
40:43
You will make bookings on the day.
40:44
If you identify some super hot leads, you will convert those initial
40:48
inquiries of the hot leads to bookings.
40:51
If you get in touch with them very quickly and get that consultation booked in,
40:55
and you will be surprised because some of those cold leads will turn to hot,
40:59
super hot and booked leads down the line.
41:02
It's worth the time and the tracking.
41:06
And remember as we start to conclude, that is not a no until it's a.
41:12
Just because someone doesn't book on the day doesn't mean they won't just because
41:16
someone doesn't book a consultation 24 hours after you've met them doesn't
41:20
mean they won't just because someone was a coldly doesn't mean they won't
41:23
book once they're in your ecosystem.
41:25
Once they're getting your emails, keep that going until they say no
41:30
a no is when they say I've already booked another cake maker, but thank.
41:34
Remove them from your list?
41:35
A no is when they've already gone through your process and they're
41:39
not booked a no is when you realize their wedding, date's been gone, make
41:42
sure you've got their wedding date.
41:43
So, you know, when that leads dead, but it's not a no until it's a no.
41:47
Okay.
41:47
You're not bothering these people.
41:48
You're just periodically following up to remind them how great you are and why
41:53
they want to book you for their wedding.
41:55
I always remember someone said to me, when I send emails, I worry
41:59
about people not opening them.
42:01
And I went to a training where they said to us, it doesn't matter
42:03
if people don't open your email.
42:05
Because they still see your name and it brings you for a moment to the top of
42:08
their mind, even if they then hit delete.
42:11
I love that.
42:12
That's really freed me up to send more emails.
42:16
Okay.
42:16
I wanna finish by telling you a story because if they can do it, so can you.
42:21
So about six months ago, I was talking at the national wedding show in London.
42:25
Um, and I met an amazing couple.
42:27
I was talking on the stage and straight after I got off the stage, the lady ran
42:32
over to me and she was like, Becca, you seem like, you know what you're doing?
42:35
We've paid all this money to be at this show.
42:37
And we don't really know what we're doing.
42:39
We're not seeing much success.
42:40
No, one's stopping to talk to us.
42:42
I don't what to do.
42:44
So I said, give me five minutes to sort myself out, get off the
42:47
stage and I'll come and talk you.
42:49
So I went over to their stand and asked them, right.
42:51
What's your show strategy?
42:53
Uh, we don't have one.
42:54
Are you getting people's email addresses?
42:57
Uh, no.
42:57
We're just giving them our business cards and hoping their follow up.
43:00
Have you got anything exciting for them to do have you got an
43:02
offer on, have you got anything?
43:04
No, not really.
43:05
Now in that moment, I thought, well, you know, it's kind of too late for me
43:09
to do a lot of the preparation stuff for you, but there are things we can.
43:12
I said some right.
43:13
Let's change this immediately come up with some kind of added value offer.
43:17
If they give you their email address, don't discount.
43:20
Add something on.
43:22
Secondly, get some pieces of paper and start taking contact details.
43:26
And when you come back to the show tomorrow, make yourselves a booking
43:29
form or an inquiry form, print it out and make sure you've got it on the.
43:33
Get people's details in order for them to be eligible for that
43:36
offer and follow up quickly.
43:39
If you get their email details today, tonight, email them all.
43:43
If they're hot leads, send them a personalized email and
43:47
try and convert those leads.
43:49
I was like, you can do it.
43:50
It's not too late, but you've got to take back control of your strategy.
43:54
Start getting the email addresses, start converting them into.
43:58
Well, you can imagine my joy when the next day or the next evening as I was
44:02
already home from the show I'd finished my speaking, I was home on my sofa.
44:06
I received this message.
44:08
Now it's a bit blurry because I've screenshotted it directly
44:11
from my phone from that couple.
44:14
Hi Becca.
44:15
On our way home.
44:15
Now, I just wanted to say thank you again for all your time and advice.
44:18
Over the two days, it was a three day show.
44:20
So she's saying they're not counting day one because they didn't do it properly.
44:24
We've had 88 inquiries, emails taken and 12 confirmed bookings.
44:30
We emailed Saturdays people last night in today's focus afternoon.
44:34
As it got quiet, four bookings, we took at the actual.
44:38
So again, thank you.
44:39
Going to sleep well tonight, 12 confirmed bookings is over 12,000 pounds or $15,000
44:46
worth of business from a stand that cost them one and a half thousand pounds.
44:50
I'm so thankful I met them that day because if they'd had
44:53
continued the show with their same strategy, they would not have had.
44:56
This same experience, but because they changed what they were
44:59
doing, they took back control.
45:00
They asked for information, they were friendly.
45:02
They found an offer and they followed up quickly.
45:06
It led to a huge amount of success for them.
45:08
And I guarantee you, they will be doing that show again next year
45:11
because it made them so much money.
45:14
So if they can do it with no knowledge, no information and no preparation before
45:19
the show, by implementing my strategies.
45:21
So can you, and you've got a whole lot more time to.
45:25
It's been a pleasure talking to you as part of this event.
45:28
My name's Becca Pountney you can find me on Instagram at Becca Pountney
45:32
for more wedding, business tips and advice, helping to you to grow your
45:35
sales and develop your marketing.
45:37
Reach out to me on an email, Becca@beccapountney.com.
45:40
Or listen to my podcast for more great information and interviews from across
45:44
the wedding industry, wedding pros who are ready to grow in all your podcast players.
45:49
I would love to work with you further to develop these things.
45:52
So reach out to me.
45:53
I answer all my messages on Instagram, myself.
45:55
So drop me a message.
45:57
Tell me what you learn from today's session and how I
45:59
can help you moving forward.
46:01
And remember a simple, hello could lead to a million things.
46:05
So don't be shy.
46:06
Thank you for your.
46:07
And good luck implementing these strategies at your next expo.
46:12
I really hope you've enjoyed today's episode something a little bit
46:15
different with that presentation.
46:17
Don't forget if you want even more help with wedding expos and wedding fairs.
46:21
Go to the show notes now, and there's a link to my three part video
46:25
series, all about how to sell more wedding shows and it's totally free.
46:29
So sign up and get that now.
46:30
I'll see you next week.