Email Marketing 101

Last week I talked about the mistake I made that cost me thousands of dollars. That mistake was not creating an email list that I could nurture and continue to market to. This week, I thought it would make sense if I explained exactly HOW to set up your email marketing strategy.

Step 1: Choose An Email Marketing Provider

You are going to need a service that can collect all of your emails and allow for you to easily email your list. I personally use Convertkit.

Step 2: Create An Opt-In

Once you have the email marketing provider in place, you need a way for your website to collect the email addresses and automatically put them in your email provider. You DEFINITELY don’t want to have to do this manually. The way that you collect the emails is by having an opt-in form on your website. You are going to offer them something for free (next step) in exchange for them providing their email address.

Step 3: Create An Irresistible Lead Magnet

If someone inquires about your services via email, then you can easily put them in your email list. But what about all the people that come to your website that don’t inquire? They aren’t just going to freely hand over their email address. You have to offer them something FREE, that is soooooo irresistible, they are willing to hand over their email address for it.

Some ideas for a lead magnet are free downloads, quizzes, guides, mistakes to avoid, how to save money tips, etc. Once you have a lead magnet that you think will be irresistible to your target market, create that resource.

Step 4: Nurture That List

The last thing you want to do is get all of those email addresses and then do nothing with them. To make this all worth while, you need to email your list on a frequent and consistent basis. Only you will know how often you should send out emails. I personally try to send one a week. I recommend doing it no less than once a month. This email can be updates about your business, highlights of your service, advice, or special deals you are running. And what this email does is put you in your customers minds on a frequent and consistent basis so that when they think about who to hire for the service they offer, they automatically think you.

Ready to get service about starting your pop-up wedding business? Want to learn how to be a Proposal Planner? Sign up for my FREE resources below:

A Mistake I Made That Cost Me Thousands

When I started one of the world’s first Proposal Planning companies 11 years ago, I made a lot of mistakes. After all, I didn’t have a mentor. There were no resources out there to help me get started. And there were certainly no courses out there to teach me the best way to get clients.

So I spent several years NOT doing something that I now know could have earned me thousands and maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars. And that one thing is, having an email list. What is an email list? An email list is a collection of emails that you have received through your inquiries.

Why Do You Need An Email List?

Potential clients will come to you at all different phases in the buying cycle. Here are the 4 stages of the buying cycle:

  1. Awareness – This happens when a client finds your website and your marketing educates them that they have a problem.
  2. Consideration – At this phase, they know they have a problem and they are considering their options
  3. Intent – During this stage, they are ready to make a decision
  4. Purchase- They are ready to make a purchase

Why Does This Matter?

It matters because that means if a client visits your website at any stage in the buying cycle OTHER than when they are ready to purchase, there is a chance that they will browse your site and move on. They may never return again. However, if you capture their email, you can continue to market to them and nurture that lead. This ensures that when they are ready to purchase, you are in the forefront of their mind.

Interested in learning more about selling pop-up wedding packages or becoming a proposal planner? Download one of my FREE resources below.

What Is A Pop-Up Wedding?

Microweddings….the buzz word of 2021.

I started my pop-up wedding company back in 2016. This was before the pandemic and before microweddings became such a huge trend. But while a microwedding is typically just a scaled down wedding, a pop-up wedding is a bit different.

Here are the characteristics of a pop-up wedding:

  • Experience is quick, typically an hour
  • Small guest count, usually 25 or less
  • Inclusive of wedding essentials (venue, officiant, photographer, and bouquet)
  • Offers upgrades or enhancements
  • Affordable

Now we all know couples that want huge lavish weddings. We also know couples that want to elope. But who actually wants to book a pop-up wedding? The truth is…. a lot of people do. Here are a few reasons that people want a pop-up wedding versus a traditional wedding. Because they:

  • Want to save money
  • Want to avoid spending months or longer on planning their wedding
  • Want to eliminate family drama over who is invited and who is not

Pop-up weddings are great to add to your existing services because they are streamlined and can provide a quick cash injection into your business.

Want to learn if pop-up weddings are for you? Check out my free resource below:

If Proposal Planning is more your jam, I have some freebies for you too!

Mistakes To Avoid When Creating All Inclusive Packages

With both my Proposal Planning and Pop-Up Wedding businesses (The Heart Bandits and Pop The Knot,) I sell all inclusive packages.  These packages are responsible for a considerable part of my multiple six figure income, so I know a thing or two about creating them.  
Yet I see so many wedding professionals doing it wrong.  So I thought today I would talk about the mistakes that you should avoid when you are creating all inclusive packages.
1. Offering Too Many Items
My business mentor told me years ago, “a confused mind doesn’t buy,” and it is so true.  While you might think that the more things you add, the more money you can make; too many choices can actually be a turnoff to the buyer.  So you want to be cautious of offering everything and the kitchen sink.  
2. Not Charging Enough
Another mistake I see is that people don’t charge enough for the packages.  When creating the packages, wedding professionals get nervous when they start tallying up all the costs and so they cut back on their profit to make the package “more affordable” to the client.  However, your job isn’t to make the packages “more affordable.”  Your job is to provide enough value that your fee and the overall cost of your package is worth the price you are charging.
3. Overcomplicating The Offering
Some wedding professionals spend a lot of time creating these really grand ways of showcasing the package.  But we all know, sometimes less is more.  The client really just wants to know what you are selling and how it will benefit them. You don’t need a bunch of bells and whistles to explain that, just keep it simple and straightforward.
Are you thinking about offering pop-up wedding packages or proposal packages?  If so, download my FREE resources here.  
Free Download, “3 Reasons You Must Add Proposal Planning Services To Your Business Now.”
Free Download, “The Ultimate Guide to Selling Pop-Up Wedding Packages.”