Latest / Wedding Pros who are ready to grow - with Becca Pountney / Pricing, Retreats and PJ parties - Interview with Kelly Mortimer

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Pricing, Retreats and PJ parties - Interview with Kelly Mortimer · Wedding Pros who are ready to grow - with Becca Pountney

• 0:00
  Kelly: The client that pays 50 pounds, like literally wants to
• 0:03
  know every single detail of what they're getting for 50 pounds.
• 0:06
  And if it's, you know, your time, they literally want up to the last second
• 0:11
  of your time for that 50 pounds, then you have a client paying you 5,000
• 0:14
  pounds and they're like, oh, sure.
• 0:16
  Yeah, just.
• 0:16
  Just throw it at me.
• 0:18
  Let me know how I buy
• 0:21
  Becca: I'm Becca Pountney wedding, business, marketing,
• 0:23
  expert, speaker, and blogger.
• 0:24
  And you are listening to the wedding pros who are ready to grow podcast.
• 0:28
  I'm here to share with you actionable tips, strategies, and real life
• 0:32
  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
• 0:39
  and use it to build a profitable, sustainable business, doing what
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  you love, then you're in the right.
• 0:44
  Let's get going with today's episode today, I'm joined by my friend and wedding
• 0:50
  industry powerhouse, Kelly Mortimer, you'll often find Kelly, speaking at
• 0:54
  events, running sales training for venues and suppliers or jetting off somewhere.
• 0:58
  Exotic.
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  Kelly is also the co-founder of our wedding business retreat here in the UK.
• 1:03
  Kelly has a no nonsense approach to her training, which I love because
• 1:06
  just like me, she's all about getting you to take action and get results.
• 1:10
  Kelly, welcome to the podcast.
• 1:13
  Kelly: Yay.
• 1:13
  Hello?
• 1:14
  Hello.
• 1:14
  Thank you for inviting me on.
• 1:15
  I'm
• 1:16
  Becca: so excited to be here.
• 1:17
  It's such a pleasure to have you.
• 1:18
  I don't know why I haven't had you on here sooner, so I'm glad we
• 1:21
  finally got round to sorting it out.
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  And I've got you here today.
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  Now I know that your time is short, so I wanna make the most of our time together.
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  So I wanna start by just asking you some questions about how you are seeing
• 1:33
  the industry in general right now.
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  Like, just like me, you're on the ground.
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  You're talking to suppliers across the country.
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  You're talking to venues.
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  What do you think right now in September, 2022, the industry is feeling like
• 1:46
  looking like what are you seeing.
• 1:47
  Kelly: Okay.
• 1:48
  So I'm definitely seeing a lot of people who have had an epic wedding season.
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  You know, there was that, uh, fall over from COVID.
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  We've had all the postponements now and actually this wedding
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  season was a bumper year.
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  But of course, what that means is that a lot of our venues and
• 2:03
  suppliers are really frazzled.
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  They are tired.
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  They have given everything, you know, what our people are like, they go the extra
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  mile, they give everything they've got.
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  And now as we just start to come to the end, of course, we still have
• 2:15
  weddings in September and a few in October, but as we start to slightly
• 2:18
  wind down and just take it down a notch, people are tired and they're
• 2:22
  wondering, have they got the right plan?
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  Like, are they doing the right thing?
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  Or, you know, I, I am seeing a few people who are actually falling
• 2:30
  out of love with their business.
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  They they're saying, I don't want it to look like this.
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  I want it to look like something different.
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  But the actual industry.
• 2:37
  I see it's booming.
• 2:39
  Becca: Yeah, that's so true.
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  And I don't know about what you are seeing, but I'm definitely
• 2:42
  finding people are panicking.
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  I think because the wedding's just rolled in this year right,
• 2:46
  everyone's had this huge year, they've had overflow from COVID.
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  They've had just this boom and they've been so busy.
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  They've kind of taken the foot off the gas on some of the
• 2:54
  marketing they're starting to.
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  Panic about next year.
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  And also on top of that with the news, as it is talking about energy bills and
• 3:03
  cost of living crisis, I just feel like there's this kind of like suddenly this
• 3:07
  lack mentality when they're talking about 20, 23, I dunno if you had any thoughts
• 3:12
  on that, are you seeing the same thing?
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  If you have got any tips, if people are feeling like that?
• 3:16
  Kelly: Yes you are.
• 3:17
  So right.
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  I have seen this and I think realistically, because people have.
• 3:23
  Basically stopped marketing.
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  So they might be listed somewhere, but they're not really
• 3:28
  putting themselves out there.
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  They're not really showing up on social.
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  They're not really selling properly because as you said,
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  weddings have rolled in.
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  So now it's like we took all of this year almost for granted, and now we're
• 3:39
  looking at next year and going, oh, wow.
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  Okay.
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  The boom has happened and now I'm not marketing.
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  And now next year isn't looking quite as exciting, but actually those, uh,
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  clients that I work with that have continued to market and sell properly are
• 3:53
  still super, super busy for next year.
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  So I don't believe there is, um, a shortage of business.
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  I think it's the lack of marketing through the busy season.
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  That's created that in some of our venues and suppliers,
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  and the reality is, look, I.
• 4:08
  I'll be honest.
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  I've had to start turning off the news.
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  I love news.
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  I love to know what's going on in the world, but me personally, I have
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  had to start turning it off because there's, you know, uh, I am a royalist
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  just FYI, but there's so much about the funeral, about the Queen's death.
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  There's so much about the cost of living crisis, that it drags you down.
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  And then how are you gonna go out there and sell to your couples?
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  And how are you gonna go out there on social media?
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  If you feel this kind of negative dragging down and it's not
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  to say we ignore the reality.
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  But there are, you know, there are other things that we could
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  Becca: be looking.
• 4:39
  Yeah, I totally agree with that.
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  I think the other thing I'm hearing people say is, you know, no one's got any
• 4:45
  money, so no one's gonna wanna buy me.
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  So I should put my prices down.
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  And I know for a fact, because I saw a great social post that you did
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  the other day about this subject.
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  That, that definitely isn't what you're saying is definitely
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  not what I'm saying either.
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  So what advice are you giving to people around pricing and
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  confidence in their pricing?
• 5:01
  Yes.
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  Kelly: Well, you know, pricing's like one of my hot buttons, right?
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  It's, it's one of my top subjects to talk about.
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  Obviously my whole background is the luxury market, big million pound weddings.
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  Like this is my whole background and the reality is we don't wanna say it.
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  And it almost feels cras, it almost feels insensitive to say it,
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  but let's get real for a minute.
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  Okay.
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  The people with the lowest budgets are the ones who are going to be most
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  affected by a cost of living crisis.
• 5:26
  Okay.
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  And when we just look at this without, um, our emotions getting involved, what
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  we see is the middle and upper markets will still continue to host weddings
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  to still have big lavish events.
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  They will still go ahead.
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  They will not be as affected by a cost of living crisis.
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  And so by dropping our rates, we put ourselves in the lowest.
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  Budget bracket with the people most affected who have the least money.
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  Instead of looking at how we can actually attract higher spend couples.
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  And by the way, everybody's version of higher spend is completely different.
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  You know, I might be talking about million pound weddings.
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  Somebody else might say, well, a high budget wedding for me is 10 grand.
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  Like everybody's is different.
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  Whatever yours is.
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  We should be looking at attracting that higher spend couple who are less
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  affected and who can still afford to host a great wedding and have the, the right
• 6:19
  venue, the catering, the flowers, the styling, whatever it is that they want.
• 6:23
  Becca: now Kelly, me and you first met in person at a women's business retreat.
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  Now we'd met online before that we'd talked to each other online.
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  We'd spoken in each other's groups, but we both happened to book on to this same
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  business retreat and go away together.
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  Uh, I think it was in 2020.
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  What was it about that, that retreat that made you think I need to go on.
• 6:44
  So
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  Kelly: I had never been on a retreat before.
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  It wasn't the kind of thing that I, uh, really was attracted to.
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  Normally it was quite a random like reason why, um, I am a
• 6:55
  huge fan of investing in myself.
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  I'm a huge fan of learning.
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  I've always got, um, Audiobooks and courses, you know, I'm always learning.
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  I think everybody, you know, if we don't stop learning until the day we die,
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  it should just be an ongoing process.
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  Um, and this retreat came up and I thought, wow.
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  Being able to just go for a few days and hang out with other people who are also
• 7:17
  working on their themselves and their business and do it in a really enjoyable,
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  beautiful environment and not feel guilty about saying to my husband, look, I'm
• 7:27
  gonna go away for a few days and you know, you need to take care of our son
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  and really go and be able to focus for a few days without kind of clients on top of
• 7:35
  you and without your family on top of you.
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  And, um, I was just massively attracted to this whole.
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  Three days away from it all, but working on my business and, and you were there and
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  Becca: we met in person, I was there.
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  And your reason for going is a lot more wholesome than mine, because I feel like
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  I booked to go because I just wanted some time away from my kids to think about
• 7:56
  myself and my own business for a few days.
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  But luckily they're too young to listen to the podcast.
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  Now, when you look back on that few days away, What did you enjoy about it?
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  Like, as you look back now, what about those few days is memorable for you?
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  What was your experience of actually being there?
• 8:12
  Kelly: Well, I mean, obviously meeting you was my highlight.
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  Thanks.
• 8:14
  Thanks.
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  um, so what did I really enjoy?
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  I really enjoyed.
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  Being surrounded by other people who were on my wavelength.
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  So none, none of them were in the wedding industry.
• 8:27
  Right.
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  Like me and you.
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  We were, we, we were the wedding people, but everyone else does other thing.
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  They were, I don't know like Facebook ads, managers and all sorts of other things.
• 8:34
  Right.
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  But being surrounded by people who, who run their own business and who understand
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  the pressure, um, the, the, the things we have to deal with because often our family
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  and our friends, they don't really get it.
• 8:47
  Right.
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  We can't really talk that much about business.
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  And I love talking about, I could just talk, I do talk about business day in,
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  day out, and so really to be surrounded in that really small tight-knit community
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  for a few days, with everybody on the same wavelength that I really.
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  I really enjoyed.
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  Becca: Absolutely.
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  And I enjoyed that too.
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  Actually.
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  I really enjoyed some of the sessions, but it was that in between parts
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  where you had time, time, which is such a precious resource to us.
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  Mm.
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  To actually just sit over a dinner over a glass of wine, over a
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  coffee and just talk to people.
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  And like you said, kind of geek out, like, what do you think about the latest
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  Instagram algorithm or whatever it was conversations that I can imagine
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  if I talk to my husband over dinner.
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  His eyes would just glaze over, but everyone there was interested
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  to talk about the same things.
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  Um, now you said that you always like to train, you wanna keep learning
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  until the day you die, you invest in yourself and your business.
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  And a retreat is a fairly significant investment.
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  It's not, I mean, it's not 10 thousands of thousands of pounds investment, but
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  for many people it's a big chunk of money.
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  Why is it that you think is important to invest in.
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  , you know
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  Kelly: what, it's really interesting, isn't it?
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  I think as we grow in our businesses and it, and in our personal lives,
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  our mentality on this really changes.
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  And I mean, I can only speak from my personal experience.
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  My mentality on this has, has changed beyond recognition.
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  So I remember the first course I ever bought.
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  Um, was 200 pounds and I remember really sweating over that 200
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  pounds, like, wow, should I pay it?
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  Am I gonna learn anything?
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  Um, and it was to do with online ads, right.
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  And I, and I bought this course and you know, it really, it really felt
• 10:27
  heavy for me to pay that 200 pounds.
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  And you know, where I am now in my business, I'm gonna share something
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  which not a lot of people know, you know, I pay a mentor, 1500 pounds, a.
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  To work for a entire year.
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  And that to me now is a great investment because I know that
• 10:44
  that pushes me up and up and up in my business and what I'm doing.
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  And I'm learning from someone who is way streets ahead of me in their particular
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  field, nothing to do with weddings whatsoever, but in their particular field.
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  And so that, that investment for me is important.
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  And.
• 11:00
  And it holds me up to that higher level.
• 11:02
  Does that make sense?
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  Becca: Yeah, that makes absolute sense.
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  And you are right because I remember investing in something when I first
• 11:08
  started out and it was about 50 pounds and thinking, oh, I don't
• 11:11
  wanna spend 50 pounds on that.
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  And now if someone said to me, do you wanna buy this course for 50 pounds?
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  I'd be like, uh, is it any good.
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  Like , is it worth it?
• 11:19
  Exactly.
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  Because in my head, I, it, maybe it isn't because it's so cheap.
• 11:23
  So yeah, I definitely think that's true.
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  And, and as we grow and evolve and also as we see the impact that that
• 11:29
  has on our business, I think that's the other thing is when you see that
• 11:32
  you turn that 50 pounds and then what you action and learn from that can turn
• 11:36
  into hundreds or thousands of pounds.
• 11:38
  You start to realize, oh, if I stay at this level then, and keep investing at
• 11:42
  this level, I'm not gonna learn anymore.
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  So if I wanna understand how the next people do it, I need to keep investing up.
• 11:47
  Kelly: A Hundred percent.
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  And that's exactly the process I've gone through, you know, so I didn't
• 11:50
  jump from 200 pound, one off to 1500 a month with one step, you know, that
• 11:55
  happened gradually over a few years of investing more and more, and you get
• 11:59
  to a level, like you said, you plateau.
• 12:00
  And you're like, okay, well I need to now understand the
• 12:03
  mentality of that next step up.
• 12:06
  And so it's an interesting one, isn't it?
• 12:08
  Because I think everybody has a different level of what they are used to investing
• 12:12
  and what they expect, uh, back from that.
• 12:16
  So I, I saw something really funny on social media the other day, and it was.
• 12:19
  The 50 and our wedding pros will totally resonate with this.
• 12:22
  The client that pays 50 pounds, like literally wants to know
• 12:25
  every single detail of what they're getting for 50 pounds.
• 12:28
  And if it's, you know, your time, they literally want up to the last second
• 12:32
  of your time for that 50 pounds, then you have a client paying you 5,000
• 12:35
  pounds and they're like, oh, sure.
• 12:37
  Yeah, just.
• 12:37
  Just throw it at me, let me know how I buy.
• 12:40
  And it just shows that mentality of people who, and again, those higher
• 12:43
  spend couples have a similar mentality.
• 12:46
  Like just give me the final result rather than every single nitty gritty, you know,
• 12:50
  how many tea lights are you gonna provide?
• 12:52
  You know what I mean?
• 12:53
  Yeah.
• 12:53
  It's, , it's a different, it's a different mindset.
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  Isn't it, of those people who are moving their businesses
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  Becca: forward.
• 12:59
  So we both invested in that initial retreat.
• 13:01
  I, for one don't regret it.
• 13:03
  I think I had a great time.
• 13:04
  I enjoyed the fact that we met each other and even while we were there on
• 13:07
  the retreat, we could see our wheels and our cogs turning and thinking like,
• 13:12
  imagine if everyone in this room was also from the wedding industry, like,
• 13:16
  imagine if we could recreate this kind of environment for our people, for the
• 13:21
  people we love for the people whose businesses, we both in our businesses
• 13:25
  are invested in and wanna see grow.
• 13:27
  And what if we could create this magical kind of learning space and environment
• 13:31
  for them and off the back of that, that's where our initial vision came from.
• 13:35
  And we decided to work together to collaborate and to launch the wedding
• 13:39
  business retreat here in the UK.
• 13:41
  When you first set out.
• 13:43
  Journey.
• 13:44
  What was your kind of initial vision of how that would look and.
• 13:48
  Kelly: Honestly, I was just so excited to bring together a small group.
• 13:54
  It was always gonna be a small group.
• 13:55
  I didn't want this to be, you know, I sometimes train hundreds
• 13:58
  of people when we work with the big companies like Marion Hilton, but I
• 14:02
  saw this as being a small intimate group who hang out for three days.
• 14:07
  Get space, get time, get strategy.
• 14:11
  And what's really interesting is, you know, yeah, I can, I can plan to deliver a
• 14:14
  particular training point on a particular subject, but it's often in the, it's
• 14:19
  often in the smaller conversations, the, the deeper dives, when you speak to
• 14:24
  people, that's where the kind of magic transformation happens because you are,
• 14:29
  you are really helping that one person to take that exact step they need.
• 14:33
  And, you know, I mean, I'm booked out now until December, right?
• 14:38
  You can't, you can't have a one on one day with me now until December.
• 14:42
  So being able to hang out with someone for three days, I just
• 14:47
  thought, wow, we can help so much.
• 14:50
  We can move people forward so much.
• 14:52
  What I didn't realize when we started to have this vision.
• 14:55
  Was all of the bonus stuff that was gonna come for our attendees,
• 14:59
  like that has come as a complete surprise to me, the confidence.
• 15:03
  They said that they felt like all of this other stuff that they fed back
• 15:06
  to us after I was just in shock, I was like, wow, I didn't realize that
• 15:10
  was gonna be a bonus element of this.
• 15:12
  Yes.
• 15:12
  Becca: Yeah.
• 15:13
  That's so, yeah, that is so true.
• 15:14
  And I think for me, it was that element of being able to give our time.
• 15:19
  So preciously as well.
• 15:20
  I don't know about you, but I can give a training day, a workshop.
• 15:23
  I can run a networking event and I feel like everyone has 30 seconds of my time.
• 15:28
  Everyone wants to come and talk to me and I'm giving quick snippets of
• 15:31
  information here, and then I'm having to go and talk to someone else.
• 15:33
  And then, and I feel like I don't give my time properly to anyone
• 15:36
  other than when I'm talking.
• 15:38
  Giving my presentation and what I could see from that retreat.
• 15:43
  Yeah, there'll be times when I'm giving a presentation, but then there'll be
• 15:46
  evenings, whole evenings, where I can sit next to people at dinner and be present
• 15:51
  and give them my time and not be waiting to go and talk to the next person and not
• 15:55
  have a line of people around waiting to ask a question and actually give time.
• 15:59
  And that was for me, my vision that people can come away, have time
• 16:03
  away from life, have time with each other, learn and then implement and
• 16:07
  ask those questions in the gaps.
• 16:10
  Kelly: Oh, so true.
• 16:11
  And you, you said the magic word implementation, right?
• 16:13
  And we had people didn't we on the retreat who were, who were
• 16:16
  implementing during sessions.
• 16:18
  So rather than just loading people up with knowledge and then sending them back
• 16:22
  into busy, busy world, they were doing the stuff during the time that they had.
• 16:28
  And then we were able to then.
• 16:29
  Review with them and tweak again and keep pushing them forward.
• 16:33
  And, you know, they were, they were able to actually implement rather than
• 16:37
  just knowledge, knowledge, knowledge.
• 16:39
  And for me, that was, that was
• 16:41
  Becca: magical.
• 16:42
  Yeah.
• 16:42
  It's gold dust.
• 16:43
  And for me as well now I reflect back.
• 16:45
  So obviously we are looking forward to our next retreat as I look back it's the
• 16:49
  a year, basically since our last retreat.
• 16:51
  And I've been reflecting back on what I enjoyed about it,
• 16:54
  what my reflections are from it.
• 16:55
  And some of my favorite moments when I look back and think about those few
• 16:58
  days was seeing people sitting on a floor with their flip chart paper,
• 17:02
  with other people around writing down their customer journey, writing down
• 17:06
  their sales packages, actually, people saying I'm gonna change my prices and
• 17:09
  I'm gonna do it now while I'm here.
• 17:11
  So I'm accountable to everyone and everyone kind of being behind them
• 17:15
  and cheering in that comradery of people, you know, telling
• 17:18
  people yeah, get on and do it.
• 17:20
  This isn't a, let's just talk about this theoretically, and then all go home.
• 17:23
  This is a, we wanna do this.
• 17:25
  Let's make this happen.
• 17:26
  Well, we've got the time.
• 17:27
  Well, we've got the support in the room.
• 17:29
  What are your reflections on last year?
• 17:32
  That
• 17:33
  Kelly: definitely.
• 17:33
  I definitely in my mind, see people sitting around with their flip charts and
• 17:37
  taking action and, and that, I just love, I love that, like getting into it right.
• 17:41
  Rather than it just being a knowledge based, uh, item.
• 17:44
  Um, I'm gonna go off, off piste here a little bit.
• 17:47
  Uh, my, uh, amusing memory is, uh, I think it.
• 17:52
  Day two, waking up and finding out that basically all the attendees
• 17:56
  had a secret party until 2:00 AM, which I was not aware of.
• 18:01
  and I'd gone to bed at like 10 30, cuz I'm quite an early, early to
• 18:05
  bed, early riser kind of person.
• 18:07
  And I got up in the morning and I'm all like fresh and I've been
• 18:09
  asleep and everyone was like, yeah, we ordered delivery, takeaway food.
• 18:14
  And we were all drinking wine until 2:00 AM.
• 18:16
  And I was like, how did this happen?
• 18:18
  And I was just asleep having no clue.
• 18:21
  And then I came to you and I was like, did you know that everybody was up?
• 18:24
  And you went, well, I may have snuck back downstairs in my PJs.
• 18:31
  . And, and, and I completely missed the whole, like 2:00 AM over pizza.
• 18:37
  Um, and I think, yeah, you were there in your PJs, right?
• 18:39
  Yeah.
• 18:39
  Just
• 18:40
  Becca: for a few minutes.
• 18:40
  I just remember being in bed and getting all these messages from people
• 18:43
  like Becca come downstairs, Becca, we're doing this come downstairs.
• 18:46
  And I was like, what is going on?
• 18:47
  All right, I'll go downstairs.
• 18:49
  And then finding everyone there in a party.
• 18:51
  And there's me in my PJ's like, Hey, and I only stayed for about
• 18:55
  five minutes, but it was fun.
• 18:56
  And I think actually that alludes to something else that came out of
• 18:59
  that retreat for people, was that they'd been so busy, they'd been
• 19:02
  so kind of alone and isolated in their worlds, in their businesses.
• 19:07
  And we saw over those three days, people let go, let loose, have fun,
• 19:14
  relax, find the joy in their business.
• 19:16
  Find the joy in themselves, let out some of that kind of pent up emotion that
• 19:21
  they'd been holding and kind of fall in love with their business in the industry.
• 19:24
  Again, didn't we.
• 19:26
  Kelly: Definitely.
• 19:26
  I mean, we had tears and we had laughter and we had learning, like it was the
• 19:30
  full 360 spectrum that's for sure.
• 19:34
  Um, but yeah, a lot of people maintained those friendships,
• 19:37
  those connections that they built.
• 19:39
  Um, and it was, yeah, it was in the, it was in the other moments as well
• 19:42
  as the training, you know, it was, it was in the, in the coffees and the
• 19:46
  wines and the dinners, uh, that they built those really strong connections
• 19:50
  and yeah, just got the, the love back and the, and the, and the mojo.
• 19:54
  Right.
• 19:55
  Becca: Yeah, definitely.
• 19:56
  And that, as I look forward is the kind of thing that I'm excited to see again.
• 20:00
  Now, obviously we've talked about a lot of the fun and the time, but
• 20:03
  there was some training as well.
• 20:04
  We did do some serious business training.
• 20:06
  Didn't we Kelly we didn't just have fun.
• 20:08
  What do you remember when we look again?
• 20:11
  When we look back on last year about the actual transformations
• 20:14
  business transformations, we saw people learn through the sessions.
• 20:17
  They were attending the moments where they had those light bulb moments,
• 20:20
  where they realized, oh, I get that now.
• 20:22
  And I wanna implement.
• 20:24
  Kelly: Yeah, it was really interesting.
• 20:25
  And, you know, there were some of my, uh, my next levelers, my members who had
• 20:31
  heard some of the concepts before, like it wasn't a completely new concept, but
• 20:36
  they, they heard it in a different way and they were able to apply it when we
• 20:40
  were there supporting them in the room.
• 20:42
  They were able to take that action.
• 20:44
  And again, being able to sit with people and, and show how.
• 20:48
  What that meant for their business, for them, rather than just an
• 20:51
  abstract concept of how to do it.
• 20:53
  Ah, this is how it works for me and my business.
• 20:57
  And that was really great to see people like, you know, it's sinking in that
• 21:01
  this is actually how they move forward.
• 21:03
  And we definitely saw a lot of people completely.
• 21:05
  Uh, like rearrange their customer journey, rearrange their pricing points
• 21:10
  and put their prices up, um, looking at how, you know, to really attract more
• 21:16
  quality couples, how to increase those rates and how to do it strategically,
• 21:20
  because it's all very well saying, oh, well just put your rates up.
• 21:23
  But that doesn't work.
• 21:24
  It has to be strategic and it has to be done the right way.
• 21:27
  And so there was a lot of really amazing things that
• 21:29
  Becca: came out of.
• 21:30
  Yeah, and we are continuing to see the results from that.
• 21:34
  People are still contacting us.
• 21:35
  We're still seeing people in and around our memberships in and around the
• 21:38
  internet, implementing the things that we taught and we showed on that retreat.
• 21:43
  And that I don't know about you, Kelly, that brings me so much joy.
• 21:46
  I don't know about you.
• 21:47
  I'm always like a proud mom.
• 21:48
  When I see someone doing something and I'm like, yay.
• 21:51
  Kelly: Hundred percent, a hundred percent.
• 21:53
  And I think one of the other things was, you know, obviously we gave
• 21:56
  everybody the mini, uh, branding shoe and, you know, there was a good
• 22:00
  handful of people who didn't want it.
• 22:01
  Right.
• 22:02
  there was a handful of people who said, no, no, it's all fine.
• 22:04
  Thanks.
• 22:04
  Like I I'm coming on their retreat, but I don't wanna, I
• 22:06
  don't wanna have a branding shoot.
• 22:08
  But we convinced everybody to get involved and, you know, the amazing
• 22:11
  Victoria, she had such a way with people that, that she was giving counseling
• 22:16
  sessions practically over these branding shoots, and you know, really getting
• 22:19
  people comfortable in their own skin.
• 22:21
  And again, walking away with something tangible, incredible images for
• 22:25
  their website, for their social, that really elevate them in terms of the
• 22:29
  kind of clientele they would attract with those much higher quality,
• 22:33
  uh, images of, of them and their.
• 22:35
  Becca: Yeah.
• 22:35
  And again, I'm seeing those popping up all over the place.
• 22:38
  All of the time being used in PR being used on their
• 22:41
  social media and you're right.
• 22:42
  It's totally elevated their brand and elevated their positioning just from
• 22:47
  something so simple as a photo shoot.
• 22:49
  Now we have our next retreat coming up as this goes out in just a few weeks time,
• 22:53
  which I am so excited about the more we've talked about it today, packed already, as
• 22:57
  we've talked about it, I'm like, oh yes.
• 22:58
  I'm so excited.
• 22:59
  It's coming up really soon.
• 23:01
  Um, we have got a couple of spaces left for that.
• 23:03
  When you look forward to the retreat coming up in October, up in Hackness
• 23:06
  Grange, what are you excited about?
• 23:08
  Like, what are you looking forward to.
• 23:10
  You know
• 23:10
  Kelly: what?
• 23:11
  One of the things I love is, is the fact that we only use exclusive use venues.
• 23:15
  So a bit like when you went downstairs in your pajamas, like it was okay to do that
• 23:19
  because the hotel was completely ours.
• 23:21
  And this is something I love because it means that from the minute people
• 23:24
  walk in the door, they feel at home they're with other colleagues
• 23:27
  who are doing the same thing.
• 23:29
  You're not bumping into randoms at the bar or at a coffee.
• 23:31
  You're like, oh, If you are here in front of me, you are also on the retreat.
• 23:35
  And so I really enjoy that.
• 23:37
  Kind of getting everybody inside that exclusive use venue.
• 23:40
  It's a beautiful surrounding.
• 23:41
  So instantly you feel better because you're like, wow, this is beautiful.
• 23:46
  And we're gonna, you know, pamper and take care of people and give
• 23:49
  them the love that they give.
• 23:50
  Their clients all year long and we kind of shut the door.
• 23:54
  Don't we
• 23:55
  . It feels like it's a it's lock, shut the door and say, right.
• 23:58
  That's it it's a lock in right.
• 23:59
  For three days we don't leave the premises, but we've got acres and acres.
• 24:03
  So people walk and they have time.
• 24:05
  And like, we are just.
• 24:06
  We're just all together with that door shut in our little wedding
• 24:09
  industry bubble for three days.
• 24:11
  And honestly, that just gives me goosebumps.
• 24:14
  Yeah.
• 24:14
  And
• 24:14
  Becca: for me as well, because we've now experienced it once.
• 24:18
  I'm excited because I know the journey that the people are gonna go on.
• 24:21
  So I'm excited to see them walk into the room on the first day and kind of.
• 24:26
  Be a bit nervous because they might not know other people and
• 24:28
  awkwardly have their first cup of tea and try and make small talk.
• 24:31
  And the transition from that to like day three, when they're all crying and hugging
• 24:36
  each other and not wanting to leave is just something so magical about that.
• 24:41
  And that those connections and those relationships, and just, they
• 24:44
  almost come out of the retreat as a different person, like a, a refreshed
• 24:48
  person, ready to do business and ready to level their business up.
• 24:51
  And that is what I can't wait for.
• 24:53
  So true.
• 24:53
  So
• 24:54
  Kelly: true.
• 24:54
  You've you've captured that perfectly and it's, it is so true.
• 24:57
  They do, they end up.
• 24:58
  You know, coming out with that fresh breath, that fresh mojo.
• 25:02
  Okay.
• 25:02
  We're ready to go again.
• 25:03
  We've got fresh ideas, fresh steps, but also feeling rejuvenated.
• 25:07
  Um, and it does make me remember, I won't mention the name, but there was
• 25:10
  one member who was literally, we were like packing up and we were like,
• 25:13
  you've got to leave the building now.
• 25:14
  It's finished she knows who she is if she's listening and we were like,
• 25:18
  we really need to close the door.
• 25:20
  Like we are packing up, we are leaving, but they didn't wanna go.
• 25:22
  Did they?
• 25:23
  They were like, no, don't make us go back to
• 25:24
  Becca: the real world.
• 25:25
  Yeah.
• 25:25
  It's because it felt so safe in that environment.
• 25:27
  It was like a lovely, everyone had signed that non-disclosure agreement.
• 25:30
  We knew it was a really safe space to be and to learn.
• 25:34
  And I you're right.
• 25:35
  No one wanted to leave.
• 25:36
  The other thing that I'm excited about is although we are quite
• 25:39
  intentional about the program that we put together and the training.
• 25:43
  We're also quite intentional about keeping it quite fluid because
• 25:46
  we don't know until we are there, what's gonna walk through the door.
• 25:49
  And so we know that yes, we'll have set training sessions that
• 25:52
  we'll think we're gonna deliver.
• 25:54
  But I know from last time as the time went on, as we discovered
• 25:57
  actually, People need this.
• 25:59
  They don't need that.
• 25:59
  We, because we purposely, hadn't kind of said, this is what we're gonna
• 26:02
  do this day, this day, this day, we could keep that fluid and give
• 26:06
  people what they needed at the time.
• 26:08
  And I think there's something really special about that.
• 26:10
  It's scary for the people that are coming, because I know some people like
• 26:12
  to know what they're doing when, but actually if you can let go of that feeling
• 26:17
  for us, it means we can serve better.
• 26:20
  Kelly: Oh, so true.
• 26:21
  Absolutely and I remember you and I tweaking things as we went along
• 26:25
  last time, you know, it's like.
• 26:27
  This is really what these guys are gonna need tomorrow.
• 26:29
  Let's add this extra little thing in, and, and if we'd have had a
• 26:32
  really rigid structure, I think we wouldn't have been able to do that.
• 26:35
  And that, and that was great for us to be able to, um, to bend and, and
• 26:40
  create that structure as, you know, as we could see people needed it.
• 26:43
  So, I mean, as you know, we've got a great big planning day coming up, the two of
• 26:47
  us where we're going to put, you know, put all of these, uh, details into place.
• 26:50
  So we know what we are training on, but there is that, that space for
• 26:55
  us as well, to serve people better
• 26:57
  Becca: in the moment.
• 26:58
  And I can't wait to see who comes through that door and how we are going
• 27:02
  to be able to serve them on the day.
• 27:03
  I really genuinely cannot wait.
• 27:05
  Um, obviously we've got a couple of spaces left for this year's retreat.
• 27:08
  If you're listening to this in the future, the wait list will
• 27:11
  be open for our next retreat.
• 27:13
  If someone's on the fence thinking.
• 27:15
  Having listened to this, is this the kind of thing I wanna do in my business or not?
• 27:19
  What would you say to them?
• 27:21
  Kelly: So I recently interviewed a handful of our attendees from the last retreat.
• 27:26
  And almost all of them said they felt really unsure when they
• 27:29
  were hitting the booking button.
• 27:30
  Like there was not really people going, oh yes, definitely.
• 27:34
  It was people going, oh, maybe I'm not sure, but I don't know anyone
• 27:37
  or I might feel uncomfortable.
• 27:38
  Maybe they were all just gonna sit around in their circle and chant, like they
• 27:41
  , they were worried about what they were coming to, but they took that little risk.
• 27:45
  Right.
• 27:45
  They took that little step of faith.
• 27:47
  And they said, okay, like, let's give this a try.
• 27:49
  And one woman who came with us, she's actually coming again this year.
• 27:52
  She said that she thought if she got there and it was horrendous, she would
• 27:55
  just go to the spa for three days.
• 27:57
  so she had a plan B, right?
• 27:59
  She had like a backup plan, but obviously she had the best time.
• 28:02
  And she's booked again to come this time.
• 28:04
  So it just shows that most people will feel, Ugh.
• 28:07
  I'm not sure if this is for me, but taking that leap of faith, every
• 28:11
  single person, every hundred percent of the people who came on our last one.
• 28:16
  Said it was absolutely epic.
• 28:18
  They would recommend it.
• 28:19
  They would do it again.
• 28:20
  So the proof is in the pudding, right?
• 28:23
  The proof is in how the people feel at the end of the retreat.
• 28:26
  So if you're thinking about it and you're not sure, I'd say,
• 28:29
  just take that one little step of faith, give yourself the chance.
• 28:32
  Becca: Yeah.
• 28:32
  And who wouldn't wanna come and hang out with us for three
• 28:34
  days, because we are a lot fun.
• 28:37
  We're just so much fun and you can sit next to us at dinner.
• 28:41
  You might even get to see me in my pajamas.
• 28:43
  If it's your lucky day or maybe this time it's Kelly's.
• 28:47
  Kelly: No, no, no one gets to see my PJs.
• 28:50
  Becca: at this time though, Kelly, I am gonna get the best bedroom, right?
• 28:54
  Oh yeah.
• 28:54
  Kelly: That is true.
• 28:55
  I did guarantee you get the top bedroom because I had it last time.
• 28:58
  Thanks.
• 28:59
  Becca: okay.
• 29:00
  So as we finish the podcast, I always end my interviews with the same
• 29:04
  question, which is what is the one thing you wish you'd known sooner in your.
• 29:11
  Kelly: Oh, what's the one thing I wish I'd have known sooner in my business.
• 29:15
  Um, how valuable and email list is, and wedding pros always
• 29:22
  think this is not for them.
• 29:24
  They think this is not for the wedding industry.
• 29:26
  They're like, oh, I get in other industries how that makes sense.
• 29:28
  But actually, um, understanding how to build your own audience.
• 29:33
  Everybody's obsessed with building an audience online on social media.
• 29:36
  And I'm a big fan of that.
• 29:38
  , you know, you are too.
• 29:39
  But actually building an audience inside your email list is, uh,
• 29:44
  also a vital part of the marketing process, which I wish I had, uh,
• 29:47
  have understood slightly sooner than
• 29:49
  Becca: I.
• 29:50
  Oh, Kelly Mortimer what a pleasure.
• 29:52
  Absolutely love chatting to Kelly.
• 29:54
  We always feel like we're on such a similar wavelength.
• 29:57
  If you've enjoyed what we've talked about today.
• 29:59
  And if you can imagine being away for three days with myself and with Kelly
• 30:03
  in that room with other wedding business owners, just really focusing on your
• 30:07
  business and planning for next year and beyond then do get in touch with me.
• 30:11
  We have very few.
• 30:12
  Last minute places, just a couple of rooms remaining at this year's wedding
• 30:16
  business retreat, which is in October in Hackness Grange hotel, up in Scarborough.
• 30:21
  And if that is not suitable for you, then do join the waiting list.
• 30:25
  For more details of future retreats, you can find all the
• 30:28
  information in the show notes or at www.weddingbusinessretreat.com.
• 30:33
  I'll see you next time.