Can I be brutally honest with you? If you haven't worked with your ideal client avatar yet in your wedding business, it might be because you're showing up in all the wrong places. Or, you're talking to someone who doesn't really exist. Wedding business marketing can be tough-especially if you're trying to attract magazine-worthy clients.
Often times when I ask wedding planners to describe their ideal client to me, they describe the exact same person.
My ideal client is 25-35 years old and a professional. She shops at Nordstrom, her household income is well over six figures, oh yeah – and she also is willing to shell out a bunch of cash for a wedding planner.
Although these facts might be true about your ideal client, this is not enough to market to them effectively and find them in real life. Partly because it's extremely vague. And partly because, you are treating your ideal client like they are perfect (spoiler alert: they aren't!).
Before you can even attempt to dive into better wedding business marketing, attempting to book more ideal clients and make sales, you need to do some hard work uncovering who your ideal clients are.
Seriously, don't skip this step. It seems simple enough, but without it, the rest of this post won't be nearly as effective!
Okay, ready? I'm going to trust you paused to do the work here, or you've invested a chunk of change ($37!) and grabbed my Ideal Client Cocktail so you can truly uncover who your ideal client is. I'm biased but I feel pretty confident in saying that it just might be the best $37 you've ever spent.
Finding your Ideal Client Avatar in Real Life And Getting The Most Out Of Your Wedding Business Marketing Strategy
Can I tell you a secret? It's much easier to have your ideal client avatar find you than it is to find them. Below, I have listed five places where your ideal client is likely looking for your services. You know your ideal client best so I will leave which area you should focus on up to you.
When it comes to marketing to your ideal client in the wedding industry, you want to show up where they are but you also want to show up in a way that makes you feel comfortable and lets you (at least somewhat) enjoy the process.
For instance, if you hate Instagram focus on building your blog content. If networking drains you, focus more on the online marketing channels. As a business coach for wedding pros, I have learned time and time again there is no one right way to do things. You get to decide what a business you love looks like!
Now, let's jump into the five main places your ideal clients can find you!
1) Google Searches
If I know anything about your ideal client, it's that they are using Google to find exactly what they need. After all, how did you find me today? I'm guessing it started with a search! Can I be honest with you? I geek out over SEO. I have found time and time again that focusing on your search engine presence is beneficial in so many ways.
First, you automatically look like a professional when you show up on page 1 of Google. Second, SEO strategies don't change as frequently as the Instagram algorithm. It's much easier to stay on page 1 than you think.
If you are a podcast listener, make sure you listen to this episode with Vanessa Hicks. She talks about how the average lifespan of an Instagram post is 48 hours, but the average lifespan of a blog post is 700 days! Doesn't that sound like a place where you should put your marketing efforts? Blogging is great for SEO, and one of the ways you can make sure you show up in your ideal client's Google searches.
Quick tip: When they search for your service, they are checking reviews! Make sure to include your Google Business profile when you ask your couples for reviews.
2) Locations
When they are searching for their wedding venue or destination, their searches revolve around the locations they are interested in. When you are crystal clear about who your ideal client is, you can use that information to target your ideal clients.
Want to rev up your wedding business marketing?
Start blogging about your favorite locations in your city – your favorite wedding venues, places to take wedding day portraits, your favorite hotel for out-of-town guests to stay! A little SEO tip? Use nicknames of your locations too (and airport codes – if it's popular!).
Don't forget to collaborate and feature other wedding vendors that complement your service as well! Guest blogging can be a great way to increase your exposure and backlinks to your site are great for SEO (that's when they link back to your website as a way of cross promotion!). Before you collaborate, make sure your ideal clients are similar and you are crystal clear on who you hope to bring in!
3) Recommendations from Family and Friends
Wouldn't it be nice if you knew the friends and family members of your most ideal clients? Don't worry, I know that's not realistic (for now!). With that in mind recommendations from family and friends is an incredibly effective way to get more ideal client business once you start. You shouldn't feel bad about asking current and past clients to send more people your way.
The other point I want to make here is that although marketing is important, I want you to make sure you're taking care of the clients you have really really well.
So often, we face mindset blocks where we just want more and more. We constantly worry that we don't have enough so all of our efforts go toward finding new clients (and we're willing to take everyone and anyone). That's not the kind of business that I want for you.
Oftentimes, there is more opportunity in our current clients than we realize. Treat them well, and you will reap the benefits for years to come.
4) Referrals from Other Wedding Vendors (so get networking!)
Wedding business marketing is all about networking.
Has your ideal client already booked a few of their wedding vendors before they start to look for your service? If so, they are getting recommendations from the wedding vendors they've already booked. I have to admit, this works better for wedding vendors who are typically booked further down the line in the wedding planning process than it would for someone like a wedding planner. Oftentimes, we are the ones recommending other vendors and not the ones that get recommended ourselves. Not always though!
Don't ever underestimate the wedding venues that might send couples your way or the cake designer with a lot of friends (that look a lot like your ideal client!) getting married soon.
When I started my business, I put a lot of effort into making as many connections as I could and I have seen this investment pay off tenfold. As in-person events start to safely open up again, get involved in your community.
If you are new to the industry, consider interning or volunteering with fellow wedding pros who are doing the work you would love to do.
5) Instagram
I tell the women in my mastermind all of the time: the eye buys. In the wedding industry, we are incredibly fortunate to have an abundance of beautiful visuals. Put the stunning photos you have (of real weddings or styled shoots) to work on Instagram.
Quick tip: Make sure you are using location-based hashtags and geo-tagging the places where you want to work. If your ideal clients are looking for inspiration and information for their wedding, that's where they will look.
If you don't have a robust portfolio (yet), you can get away with stock photos in the meantime. I highly recommend you take the networking skills I talked about above and put together a styled shoot (or two) as soon as you can though! Not only is it a great way to showcase your real and authentic work, it's also a great way to really get to know other vendors in the community. We are all in this together!
Wedding Business Marketing Tips: How To Find More Of Your Ideal Clients
As a quick recap, if you want to book more ideal clients for your wedding business, and you're ready to kick up your wedding business marketing… you need to show up where they are hanging out (in real life and online!). Just because you build it, doesn't mean they will come. If you focus your marketing efforts where your ideal clients are already hanging out, it will be much easier (and more sustainable) for you.
Although I recommend you dive straight into my Client Cocktail for even more actionable advice, here are a few places your ideal client avatar is hanging out right now:
- They are using Google to find exactly what they need (and they are checking reviews!)
- When they are searching for their wedding, their searches revolve around the locations they are interested in.
- Your ideal client is asking their friends and family for recommendations.
- Has your ideal client already booked a few of their wedding vendors before they start to look for your service? If so, they are getting recommendations from the wedding vendors they've already booked.
- The eye buys (and we all love a visual platform). Your ideals clients are looking at Instagram hashtags and geotags to find inspiration and information for their wedding.
Once we know where your ideal clients are looking for you (and exactly what they are looking for!), booking them gets a whole lot easier! Cheers to booking a lot more dreamy clients in your future!
Remember, before you can find your ideal client, you need to know exactly who you are talking to. Grab My Client Cocktail for a breakdown of EXACTLY how to find (+ book) your ideal clients.
Explore More Resources
- How to Start a Wedding Planning Business
- How To Create An Ideal Client Avatar in Four Easy Steps
- Why You're Not Attracting The Right Clients and How to Fix It
- How To Become A Wedding Planner With No Experience
- Wedding Planner Marketing: How To Attract & Speak Directly to Your Ideal Clients
- How To Focus Your Marketing Platforms And Go All-In On Just ONE
- 9 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting your Wedding Planning Business
- 4 Strategies That Will Help You Book MORE Of Your Ideal Clients
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