Wedding MBA 2016 Recap
With more than 91% of engaged couples in the Millennial generation, it’s no wonder that one of the strongest themes to emerge at Wedding MBA was “Marketing to Millennials.” In keeping with that theme, I have three more tips for you. If you missed the first three tips, check them out here.
1. Mind Your Reviews
Cultivate Stellar Reviews: 90% of Millennials are influenced by reviews and want to hire vendors with stellar reviews. Now, if your reviews are not stellar, it’s time to take a look at your business, your products/services, and how you deliver on your promises to see what is going on. Consistent bad reviews mean there’s something that needs to be addressed in your business, and not that there’s something wrong with the review sites themselves.
Don’t Confuse Stellar with Perfect: If you get the occasional less-than-perfect review, where a former client is niggling over a small detail or something beyond your control, don’t worry about it. Slight variations in reviews actually seem more authentic and credible. A few great, but less-than-perfect reviews make it seem seem like the reviews are authentic and not bought.
Stay Fresh and Put it on Your calendar: Millennials also want fresh reviews, which they see as more relevant. 40% are looking for recent reviews. Try to get at least one new review every month. Also, make sure your listings are current and fresh. Revisit your listings and reviews every quarter and make sure they reflect your best work and appeal to your ideal client.
2. Use Gorgeous Images and Video
Help Millennials visualize what their weddings might look and feel like by using professional photos (if you can). Reach out to the professional photographer who worked a wedding with you and ask if they’d be willing to share photos (with photo credit, of course!)
Go with a Pro: If a high-quality photographer did not work on the wedding, or if the photographer won’t share, consider taking a page from celebrity wedding and event planner Sasha Souza‘s playbook and hire your own “details photographer.” That way you can control and direct every aspect of the photography.
Mind the details: Speaking of details, mind the details in your images. Make sure you look for and remove utility objects like bus bins, propane heaters, cords, and right upside down glasses.
Remember the people: Most importantly, show couples and brides and grooms in shots. If you’re a florist, don’t do the picture with your disembodied hand holding the bouquet. Get a shot with the bride holding the bouquet instead. If you’re a venue, show the space set up for a wedding. Show couples and guests having a magical time.
Forget real time action: You don’t have to do real-time posting on platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Many of these shots, taken on a smart phone and with no editing or overly-edited Instagram filters, don’t look good and they certainly don’t showcase your best work. Instead, get the pro photos and schedule your posts to stay consistent.
Cull Your Feed: Lastly, don’t be afraid to cull your feed. Go back through and delete unprofessional, dark, weird looking photos from your social media feeds. Leave the best images that highlight your amazing work in the best way.
3. Be a Person, Not a Robot.
Speakers expressed a real reluctance to use auto-responders with Millennials. They tend to be impersonal and overly formal.
Take the following example:
Thank you for your inquiry. We will get back to you within 24 hours.
Allan Berg has never found these responses satisfying. Rather, he muses, “Oh Geez, your computer got my email, how wonderful!”
Indeed.
Ideally you’ll be able to respond to every inquiry with a personal, handcrafted response within minutes. However, when the real world steps in and you have paying clients to serve and a business to run, auto-responders can come in quite handy.
The trick is to write as if you were responding to a real (and preferably ideal) client.
Consider this response instead:
Hey There!
Thanks for reaching out. I’d love to connect and hear more about your wedding, but I’m actually out of the office today. I’ll be back tomorrow and we can chat then.
Or better yet, offer a link to your online scheduler.
Too soon to schedule a meeting? Try solving a problem instead. Try something like this example from a photographer:
Hey There!
Thanks for reaching out. I’d love to connect and hear more about your wedding, but I’m actually out of the office today. I’ll be back tomorrow and we can chat then.
In the meantime, many of my clients want to know where best vista spots for sunset wedding portraits in and around Astoria. So I’ve created this quick guide with all the best spots as well as tips and tricks for looking great in portraits near the ocean.
Click here to download and I’ll be in touch tomorrow!
Talk soon!
Christie
The point is, you can create auto-responders that are personable, warm and inviting.
Still lost? Jump on a free Strategy session with me and we’ll get you on the right track with 3-5 actionable items you can do this week to improve your Millennial Marketing mix.
Additional Resources:
- 3 Key Ways Millennial Couples are Different from Past Generations (WeddingWire)
- Tips to Connect with Millennial Couples (Wedding Wire)
