Be prepared: get your business ready for the next engagement boom
As summer comes to a close, so does ‘engagement season’. However, this quiet period won’t last long. Couples will soon be jetting off to European summers, escaping to romantic wintery snowfields, or even just filing their tax returns. With this will come another flurry of proposals.
The mid-year engagement wave happens from around June to August. Countless couples will say “yes,” and the planning process will begin almost immediately. For wedding businesses, this surge in new couples is an opportunity to stand out from the competition. But you’ll need to be prepared.
From optimising marketing strategies to strengthening vendor relationships and streamlining booking processes, wedding professionals must be proactive to make the most of this peak booking season.
Here are the key strategies we cover that will help prepare your business for the mid-year rush:
Optimise marketing and visibility
It can be easy to ‘set and forget’ digital campaigns and your website. Just when you think you’ve perfected your social media and marketing efforts, seasons change, and audiences shift with them. Continue your strong start to the year by keeping content fresh. This can be done by updating your website and staying consistent on social media. Include recent weddings, testimonials and high-quality, new images.
Invest in targeted ads on Meta, Google, and TikTok. Also, ensure that your Easy Weddings listing is kept fresh and updated with images and key information.
Consider the following steps to stay visible in a saturated market:
- Refresh your website and social media regularly. Update your portfolios, testimonials and SEO to attract engaged couples researching online.
- Run targeted ads. Leverage Meta and Google Ads. If you’re unsure how to set up custom audiences, create a retargeting or ‘look alike’ audience to attract potential key customers.
- Create engagement-related content. The newly engaged are excited and very focused on wedding planning. They’ll be trawling the internet for any and all engagement and wedding content; speak directly to them! Share tips and tricks, wedding guides, and blogs.
Need some more tips for getting your business noticed online? We’ve investigated this before.
Streamline enquiry and booking process
Streamlining the enquiry and booking process is imperative if you’re looking to cement more couples after the next wave of engagements. If a couple has to jump through hoops, they could bow out before even getting started.
How can you tighten up your processes?
- Ensure your website has a clear and user-friendly contact form where couples can fill out all the details you’ll need to ask them – this will cut out the initial back-and-forth.
- Make your packages and pricing clear. If you want couples’ details, create a data-walled PDF and email your packages to them. This price transparency will help couples to set their budgets and approach vendors they can afford.
- Automate responses with chatbots, email templates, and scheduling tools. In this line of communication, let them know your average response time so they don’t feel like they’re being ignored.
Celebrant Natasha Hill has discovered some secrets to getting more bookings. Read them here.
Build (or strengthen) relationships
Nothing builds business like working with other like-minded businesses. The reality is that no wedding business can do it all. So partnering up with other reputable vendors means you can be part of the recommendations when couples book with them, and vice versa. If a couple knows which venue to book but has not chosen a photographer, you could be their top recommendation.
Unsure how to build these relationships? It can be hard to start, but here’s some advice to strengthening your network:
- Get to know venues and planners: Many couples book venues first; strong relationships help with referrals.
- Collaborate on engagement promotions: Offer joint discounts with photographers, florists, and planners.
- Attend wedding expos and fairs: Mid-year shows can generate leads and visibility.
Sign up to our database to find out when Easy Weddings’ flagship event Evolve is and deepen your network.
Get your business ready and be prepared for the mid-year engagement boom.
Leverage past clients
Happy past clients can be some of your most powerful marketing tools and can attract new couples. Authentic word-of-mouth and social proof is a key function for wedding businesses, as couples will rely on testimonials when making decisions.
How can you leverage previous couples?
- Focus on reviews: Reviews on Easy Weddings and Google will be the first places that couples check. It’s important to encourage prior bookings to jump online and leave reviews [include EW incentive?].
- Encourage referrals: Happy couples from past weddings can bring in new leads. Offer small discounts to couples who have been referred to by others.
- Share real wedding features: Post success stories, behind-the-scenes content, and professional wedding photos. We’re visual learners and want to see the whole picture. “A picture is worth a thousand words,” and a video might be worth a booking!
Find out more about Easy Weddings’ reviews.
Be prepared
It’s not just the Scouts who say “Be Prepared”. This should be your mantra as well. The quiet booking time is the best time to prepare for the coming waves. Set up the campaigns, prewrite blogs and automated emails, and update your Easy Weddings listing.
Consider these steps before the June – August engagement rush:
- Keep your website updated: if you have a price change coming up, update all your collateral. You don’t want brides-to-be to find a lower price on old pieces of communications you have – update everything.
- Ensure staffing and inventory: Anticipate demand and hire seasonal help if needed.
- Fine-tune contracts and policies: Ensure your terms are clear, including cancellation and rescheduling policies.
The “quiet period” of bookings can be some of the most crucial time to set yourself up for success in the busier times. Take this opportunity to strengthen your brand and network and be prepared.
