How To Establish Yourself As The Expert In Your Field

This week one of my companies, The Heart Bandits, was featured in Brides Magazine. The article was called, “6 Major Proposal Mistakes to Avoid, According to Experts.” In the article, I am cited as the expert in Proposal Planning. Every time an article like this comes out, at least one of my peers shoots me a text or email to ask me how I got featured in XYZ. And my answer to them is that the magazines, websites, and media COME TO ME!

But it wasn’t always that way. There are a lot of things that I had to do to establish myself as an expert in the Proposal Planning and Pop-Up Wedding Industry. I teach you many of these steps in my courses that are going to be LIVE in February!! Sign up for the waitlist here.

For now, here are 3 free tips on how you can establish yourself as an expert in your field.

Actually Become An Expert

This may seem obvious but when wondering how you can get featured in media, you have to really ask yourself, “Am I actually the most knowledgeable person in my field about this subject matter?” If not, you need to become one. Take courses on the subject matter, read all of the blogs and interviews you can find, follow all the leaders in the industry on social media, and stay on top of all of the trends. If you are in a competitive space, try to niche down so that you are the expert at a specific niche in your market. Or become an expert in your field in your city specifically. That way, when someone starts looking for an expert in your field or area, they are lead to you.

Show Your Expertise

Once you feel like you truly are the expert in your industry, start showing that off in your social media and blogs. When you start sharing valuable tips and content on social media, so many great things happen. You start to seem like an expert in your field, people start sharing your content, people start following you, and most importantly, people start seeking you out when they are in need of your services or when they want to feature your service in the press.

By now, you know I am a HUGE believer in the power of SEO. When clients or journalists look for an expert in your field, they are looking in one of two places; Google or Social Media. I’ve already talked about showing your expertise on social media. To show your expertise on your website, you are going to blog about your expertise in a way that benefits your reader. In turn, you will eventually establish yourself as an expert to Google who will start rewarding you with rankings. SEO tips and tricks is a huge focus in my courses for this specific reason.

Get Media

The most powerful way to show you are an expert in your field is to be published somewhere. If you can get featured in major media, you will instantly have clout not just with your clients but with other media. And it completely snowballs. For example, I got featured in New York Times very early on after I started my business. Did I get clients from that interview? Absolutely. But what’s more is the other big things happened. Good Morning America saw the article and wanted to interview me. Hotels saw it and wanted to partner with me. When you finally get a major piece of media, a lot of things can change.

And that is why one of the Modules in my courses focuses on how to get media. Because getting media can create such big opportunities for your business. And the truth is, it really isn’t that hard to get.

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.

Top 3 Clients From Hell

After planning marriage proposals for 11 years now, I would be lying if I said I didn’t have any clients that were a royal pain in the you know what. But there are a few that stand out and belong in my secret “wall of shame.” So why am I sharing this with you? Well I am sharing these hellish client stories for 3 reasons. 1, If you are a seasoned planner, I know that you have had your own clients from hell and I want you to know you are not alone. 2, if you are new to Proposal Planning, I want you to know that these things WILL happen and you should never let it get you down or make you question yourself. 3, I believe that the worst client experiences help shape you as a professional and help you define your future business practices. So without further ado, here are my top 3 clients from hell.

Why Don’t You Answer My Calls Guy

This client hired us on Friday late in the afternoon. We emailed him to let him know we looked forward to working with him and that we were getting right to work. Immediately upon hiring us, he started calling us non-stop without leaving a message. He would call, hang up, and call right back over and over. On the weekend, he would call all day and night and not leave messages. On Sunday we received a text message that he couldn’t believe that he paid us “this much” and we don’t return his calls. On Monday we called him and addressed his text message. We explained that we do keep normal business hours and that if there was something urgent going on and he left us a message, we would have gladly made an exception. He informed us that he expected call backs right away, day or night, weekday or not. We politely offered him a refund and told him we probably aren’t a good fit.

We felt he didn’t respect or value our time or the fact that we also valued our own family time which that is something very important to us. So we learned that if a client shows signs of that early on, we would rather not take the booking at all.

I Want A Refund Guy

You may know this guy all too well, but this particular client was extra special! He booked a rooftop in NYC for an hour proposal and it turns out his girlfriend said no. However, there is more to that story. He had proposed 3 times before and she had said no each time. So after enjoying the rooftop, even running over his time by a whole hour which we didn’t charge him for because we felt bad for his situation, we were shocked to receive an email where he was requesting a full refund. His reasoning was even crazier. He wanted a refund because there were water spots on the rooftop. NYC is a very old city and midtown is an old area. A true rooftop is exposed to outdoor elements and could obviously have water spots. Also, we include photos of the space and the water spots are not even noticeable unless you are looking hard to find something to complain about. His second reason was that he didn’t like that there were offices in the building on his way up to the rooftop. Tenants in high rise buildings constantly change and he wasn’t renting the building, just the rooftop. We politely declined the refund and he did a chargeback through his bank. We fought the chargeback and provided evidence that it was a frivolous claim. We eventually won!

We learned that it is important to always stand your ground. I would 100% offer a refund in any case that my service was lacking. But not for things I can’t control.

Indecisive & Cheap Guy

We were hired to plan a New Year’s Eve proposal for a guy with 4 days notice. The client did not appreciate the time restraint we were under, that we were planning a proposal on a holiday, and planning an event during a pandemic. He wouldn’t make any decisions and he wanted multiple scenarios presented for every option before he could make decisions. He didn’t even end up finalizing until a day and a half before. He changed his mind so much that the violinist ended up pulling out because they just couldn’t deal with all of the changes. His proposal ended up being a success but that wasn’t the end of it. After the proposal he requested that we return all props that he had used for his proposal to get a refund. After our service had ended, he continued to text us asking to help him return the used items.

Be sure to put a clause in your Proposal Planning contract that if your client causes delays in the planning, you can’t be held liable.

Although these clients were a bit of a nightmare, most of my clients are amazing. My clients generally are very appreciative of the fact that we are there to help them through one of the most stressful moments of their life. They typically send me heartfelt emails, cards, and sometimes gifts as they are so grateful for our service. If you want to be a part of an amazing industry, check out my free resources below. In my Proposal Planning school you will learn all about being a Proposal Planner and how this profession can change your life.

Intimate Events & The Holidays

If you have been following any of my companies (The Heart Bandits or Pop The Knot), then you already know that planning intimate events are my jam. I focus on planning marriage proposals for 2 and pop-up weddings for 25 guests or less. Being a planner specializing in intimate events is good for many reasons, but today, I want to focus on one important reason.

Intimate events are extremely popular during the holidays.

Marriage proposals are very popular between November-February. In fact, most people refer to these months as “engagement season” or “proposal season.” There are a few reasons that people love to propose during the holidays.

  1. Time Off Work – People that are proposing like to take time off to travel for their proposal or even to celebrate. During the holiday season, they already typically have time off.
  2. Be With Family – Holidays are a time for family. So if a client wants to propose in a way that includes family members or even wants to celebrate with family after, the holiday months are the perfect time to propose.
  3. Perfect Time To Create A Memory – The holiday season is all about creating memories. People already tend to look back and reflect on their special holiday memories so proposing during that time makes complete sense.
  4. Engagement Rings On Sale – Many stores offer holiday engagement ring specials giving people even MORE reasons to propose during the holidays.

Likewise, pop-up weddings (which are another way to diversify your business) are also pretty popular during the holidays. The reason being is that the target market for pop-up weddings are brides that are NOT looking for traditional weddings and ARE looking for a deal. So many of them choose to get married during off-season. Additionally, these brides love to have their pop-up wedding during this time too for several reasons:

  1. Get A Deal On The Venue – Wedding venues can be more affordable during the holidays when it is not wedding season. One caveat is if the venue also caters to holiday parties. However, not all wedding venues do that so you can definitely get a great deal during this time.
  2. Get A Deal On The Dress – Many bridal stores have sales on wedding dresses during “off-season” so a bride on a budget can find a great pop-up wedding dress for a bargain.
  3. Time Off Work- Most couples looking to get married want to take some time off of work for their wedding. Since they already typically get some time off during the holidays, this makes it the perfect time to say “I Do” with a pop-up wedding.
  4. Be With Family- Many couples want their families at their pop-up weddings and many families get together for the holidays.

So what are you waiting for? If you are ready to find out how you can diversify your income in your wedding business, check out these FREE downloads!

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.”

How Getting Featured In Media Can Boost Your Biz

My absolute favorite module of my Proposal Planning course is “Getting Featured In Media.” Why? Well because getting featured in media can really boost your business in ways you may not even know about. I want to talk about some of the ways that being featured in media can really boost your biz.

First, let me define “media.” Media is the main means of mass communication (broadcasting, publishing, and the Internet) regarded collectively. So this means TV, radio, print, and Internet.

When you are featured in media, there are 3 things that can happen that can really boost your biz:

1. Potential Clients Will See The Media

This is probably the number one reason people hope to get PR. When you are featured in a major media outlet, you are going to get your name in front of potential clients. Some of them may contact you right after the feature and some of them will save your information for later. They may even tell their friends about your services weeks or months later in conversation. So the more media exposure you get, the more potential clients will hear about you. Now this is an amazing benefit to be featured in the media, but not the only one.

2. Potential Partners Will See The Media

One of the things that typically happens when you are featured in the media that you may NOT think about is that potential partners will see the media. Now what do I mean by this? Well let’s look at my business The Heart Bandits. After I was featured in New York Times, I had restaurants, jewelry stores, and many other vendors reaching out to me. They emailed me to say they saw my feature and they wanted to collaborate with me. Creating a partnership can not only boost your sales, but can get you in front of a whole new audience.

3. Other Media Outlets Will See The Media

Unless you have been featured in a lot of media, this may never even cross your mind. But when you are featured in major media, there is a high probability that other media outlets will see it. Again, let’s take my company as an example. After I was featured in Good Morning America, I was contacted by the Oprah Network, Time Magazine, and LA Times. They wanted to feature me as well!

All of these reasons are EXACTLY why I urge all of my students to try to get media when they launch their Proposal Planning businesses or services. Not only that, but I walk them through my PROVEN techniques on how to get featured. And believe me, they work.

Just ask my student Jasmine from Jasmine Rose Events who just emailed me that she is going to be featured in The Boston Globe and she JUST LAUNCHED!!!!

If you want to find out how starting a Proposal Planning business can transform your life, download my FREE guide here:

How The Pandemic Inspired The Heart Bandits Academy

When I was 7 years old I turned my first profit. I created a neighborhood circus and I recruited the talent, marketed the show, sold tickets, and made money.

I got my first taste of being an entrepreneur then and have been chasing that thrilling rush ever since.

I know EXACTLY what it is like to be an entrepreneur with no business idea. Or an an entrepreneur with an idea but feeling much too overwhelmed about getting started.

I know what it is like to want something so bad but not have a clear path to get there.

Because of this, I always wanted to create a training program for entrepreneurs that wanted to follow my path and start their own Proposal Planning biz.

After spending a decade running the world’s most successful Proposal Planning business, and after receiving hundred is not thousands of emails from people all around the world asking me for advice on how to start Proposal Planning, I believed this was my next calling.

But I just never had the time to do it.

And then the pandemic hit. And my industry was ravaged by a blow of event bans and gathering size limitations.

I knew I had to step up.

I created The Heart Bandits Academy and quickly launched my first course designed to help Wedding Planners pivot their business and offer Proposal Planning. And in about a month, I am going to launch The Complete Proposal Planning Blueprint™which will teach entrepreneurs how to start their own Proposal Planning biz from the ground up.

In The Complete Proposal Planning Blueprint™, I teach:

  • Everything you need to know about the Proposal Planning industry
  • How to choose your Proposal Planning target market, niche, and style
  • Create a solid Proposal Planning Business Plan
  • Develop a business naming strategy and tools to create your website
  • How to plan a proposal from A-Z
  • How to price your Proposal Planning services
  • Develop a robust Proposal Planning marketing strategy
  • How to maintain the momentum and continue to grow

If you want to be the first to know about the launch, make sure to join the Waitlist here.

Do you have what it takes to be a Proposal Planner?

Being a Proposal Planner seems like it is all glitz and glamour. You see these really amazing proposals on Instagram and you think, “Wow, that looks like such a fun job!”

And it IS a fun job.

But the truth is, being a Proposal Planner is not for the faint at heart. It takes a special skill set and it is NOT for everybody. Find out if you have what it takes to be a Proposal Planner. Here are the top traits of a successful Proposal Planner:

Detail Oriented

Paying attention to even the smallest detail is probably the most important skill of a Proposal Planner. A marriage proposal is a once-in-a-lifetime event and there are no do overs. When you plan a proposal, you need to plan it perfectly – right down to the very last detail.

Organized

Being organized is a critical skill for being a Proposal Planner. You are going to be juggling multiple vendors and be in charge of many moving parts. If you are not organized, something could fall through the cracks.

Think Quick

Being able to think quickly will serve you well in the Proposal Planning world. When a huge gust of wind blows over your framed proposal message and the glass shatters, what do you do? You have to be able to problem solve very quickly if you want to succeed planning marriage proposals.

Professional

You are going to be working with many professional organizations and vendors so you need to be sure you have a professional demeanor. You should have excellent oral and writing skills and be able to communicate effectively.

Assertive

Being assertive is another important attribute that a Proposal Planner needs. Imagine that you arrive to the area you have a permit for and someone is already there with their whole family having a picnic. Time to firmly and politely ask them to clear out for your event!

Work Well With Others

This is another priceless skill. You will need to manage a whole team of proposal vendors and communicate with them in a manner that gets exactly what you need done, when you need it. Being personable goes a long way towards getting what you want.

Now if you have read this blog and you have decided that you would be a great Proposal Planner, it’s time to get started. I will be launching my Complete Proposal Planning Blueprint to walk you through how to be a Proposal Planner step by step. Be the first to know about it by joining the waitlist here.

proposal planner tips

Until then, here are some FREE resources to help you along the way!

4 Things You Can Start Doing Right Away To Start Proposal Planning now!

Join my Private Proposal Planning Community

Be Fearless

be fearless
be fearless

I have learned a lot about myself since I launched Proposal Planning Academy. I started the academy knowing that I am an expert at creating a successful Proposal Planning business. I know that I can absolutely attract clients that are looking to propose to their partner’s and teach other people how to do the same. But what I didn’t realize, and what I have learned from my students, is that when it comes to my business – I truly am fearless.

What does being fearless in my business mean to me? Well, it means a few things. I want to share with you what I feel it means to be fearless in business in hopes that it may inspire even the slightest shift in your mindset to help you grow in your business.

1. Not Being Afraid To Take Risks

I say this a lot but it’s true, when I started The Heart Bandits, people used to laugh at me. They told me no one would ever hire a Proposal Planner and that what I was doing was ridiculous. 10 years later and 4000 proposals in, I can safely say I have proven them all wrong. But when I started the Proposal Planning Academy, more self doubt tried to creep in. “Am I crazy for teaching others how to compete with me?” “What if no one wants to learn how to be a Proposal Planner?” But instead of listening to the negative thoughts, I told them to go pound sand and defaulted to my motto, “the only true failure is never getting started.” I took the risk, I always do, and it is already paying off.

2. Not Being Afraid To Ask For What I Want

I never realized this about myself, but I ALWAYS ask for what I want. Though I am not a fan of rejection and it always stings a little, it doesn’t bother me enough to ever stop me from asking for what I want. In fact, my mom taught me when I was little, “What’s the worse anyone can do, say no?” I really believe this is something that sets me apart from the people that want to be successful but just can’t quite get there. And I believe it is something that a lot entrepreneurs possess that many others do not. This fearlessness gave me the courage to just outright ask the New York Times to feature me, it allows me to get deals with venues and vendors at rates that were not even offered to me because I am not afraid to negotiate, and so much more.

3. I Am True To Myself

How is this being fearless? Well, I think I am a little weird! I am very outspoken, I don’t have much of a filter, and I feel that I am 100% myself to everyone at all times. It is my downfall and my strength. It can turn off people and it can inspire people. I will talk about my messy hair on a Facebook Live. I will warn you that my son may chuck a truck at me during our conversation. I can’t help but keep it real. And I think it takes a certain level of fearlessness to be 100% real in business. I also believe it can also truly add value to your business when you just show up as your real, authentic self and build true, genuine connection.

I want to challenge you today to think of one thing in your business that you can try to work on being more “fearless” about. Is it adding a new service to your existing business like Proposal Planning? Is it charging that higher rate? Is it turning down jobs that don’t truly light you up? And think about how changing this one thing would it transform your business. I want to hear your one thing, so head over to my private group and let me know what is the one thing you can work on. I want to cheer you on!

Follow me on my journey from Proposal Planning expert to educator. I am learning a lot and you will too. Follow my journey here!

How To Be Inclusive In Your Proposal Planning Marketing

LGBTQ marriage proposal
LGBTQ marriage proposal

June is Pride Month, and it is the perfect opportunity to talk about inclusion. When you plan marriage proposals, the majority of your clients will be men proposing to women. However, you will also have same sex couples asking you for your services and you want to make sure that your messaging feels inclusive to them as well.

One thing that has always made me sad and cringe is when a person asks me, “You are ok with same sex couples right?” It literally hurts my heart that someone has to ASK if I am OK with THEIR choice on who they love. So I really do my best to use gender neutral pronouns in my marketing on my website, The Heart Bandits.

I am not always perfect, but when I am writing copy on my Proposal Planning website, I try to always say “they” instead of “he” or “she.” And I always try to say “partner” instead of “girlfriend.” It doesn’t make any difference to the heterosexual couple, but it makes ALL the difference when someone from the LGBTQ community is reading my messaging and doesn’t feel alienated.

Here is an example of how I do it! Let’s take The Heart Bandit’s Mission Statement for example:

“Our mission is to create a marriage proposal that is as unique as your love story.  We ensure that when your partner experiences their proposal, they know that it was created just for them and more importantly, it was created by you.  To do that, we use a holistic approach in our proposal planning.  We don’t just focus on your partner and what they would like, we also focus on what makes you unique as a couple.  We also take great care to focus on what is unique about you, the Proposer, so that the proposal is truly reflective of your style and persona.

See how easy that is? Just a small change in your marketing can really make a difference for someone else.

If you want to learn more tips on how to market to the proposer, I am actually doing a Facebook Live on Tuesday, June 16th at 10am PST. Here is a link and you can set up a reminder.

My goal is to teach Wedding Planners and Entrepreneurs how to market to the client looking to propose to their partner. I am a Proposal Planning coach that has been planning proposals for a decade and now I am here to help you get started on your Proposal Planning journey. If you are ready to get serious about starting your Proposal Planning company or adding it on as a service, I have created a completely FREE resource for you called, “4 Things You Can Start Doing TODAY To Start Proposal Planning.”

I can’t wait to see what you do with what you learn!

Why Saying You’re A Proposal Planner Isn’t Enough

epic proposal idea
How Mike proposed to Candace with an intimate New York floral rooftop proposal at Ink48 and planned by The Heat Bandits Photo credit: © Petronella Photography http://bypetronella.com

I’ve been in this industry a long time. 10 years to be exact. I have seen many “Proposal Planners” come, and many of them go. The reason that I think they end up quitting is this. A lot of people think that you can simply add “Proposal Planning” services to your website and you will start getting Proposal clients. But the truth is, if you want to become a Proposal Planner, that’s not enough.

The reality is that there are several very reputable Proposal Planning companies on the market now. So if you want to throw your hat in the ring, you are going to have to do a lot more than just use the term on your website.

Now, I know what you might be thinking.

You might be thinking, UGH, this is too much work. But the reality is that anything worth having does take some time and effort to build. But successfully marketing Proposal Planning doesn’t have to be some huge, impossible, overwhelming undertaking.

In fact, in my upcoming course Proposal Planning Formula™ I will teach you everything you need to know about successfully marketing Proposal Planning.

But for now, here are some questions I want you to think about when you are wondering why you aren’t getting enough or any Proposal Planning clients? Get out a piece of paper and write the answer to these questions.

  1. Does your website and social media really speak to that audience? If not, what are some ways you can start doing that?
  2. Are you addressing their pain points? Do you understand their pain points?
  3. Do your assets make it seem like Proposal Planning is an afterthought?
  4. What would make someone trust you to plan their proposal versus other established companies?

Now I want you to really spend some time thinking how you can improve on your answer for each section.

In my upcoming course, I teach you how to properly address all of these things. But this is something you can also start doing on your own if you really want to create a transformation in your business.

I also created a FREE resource for you to help you get started on your Proposal Planning journey. It’s called 4 things you can start doing TODAY to start Proposal Planning. If you are serious about Proposal Planning, this is a great place to start.

I’d also love to invite you to our Proposal Planning Academy Tribe where you can ask questions and get support along your journey! When you join, leave a message letting us know you downloaded the resource and tell us what you are looking for in a Proposal Planning Coach.

I’ll see you there!