You can have the fanciest name tags, and best Instagram feed but if your client experience is lacking it can put a wrench in even the most well-oiled business machine. What is it all for if your clients aren’t feeling the love?

Photo by Trizza Gerhart Photography

As wedding planners I strongly believe that we actually have two sets of clients - the couples themselves and the creatives they are booked with. When either one of those clients aren’t happy it can de-rail the direction of the event or takeaway from the overall success of the event despite months of hard work. So what does it take to have stellar customer service and a client experience that gives everyone the warm and fuzzies? Let’s dive in!

I actually am not a big warm & fuzzy type gal but instead I love efficiency and showing up when it counts. Celebrate the milestones with your clients and cheer them on authentically; when you say you will do something do it. When implementing changes to your client experience approach, here are my top tips:

• Identify potential touch points in the client’s planning process from on-boarding to post event.

• In addition to your standard on-boarding process, are there any mid-way check-in’s that you can add a little extra special attention to? These can be as simple as light hearted emails to handwritten cards or gifts etc.

• Utilize client questionnaires or dig deeper in consults or planning sessions to ask client’s about their favorite hobbies, favorite snacks, what does date night look like for them? Keep these notes handy!

• Add calendar notes on your CRM (Aisle Planner, Honeybook, Dubasado etc.) that are visible to the client (Such as Catering Tasting-Yum!) Sleep extra tonight (before rehearsal - because let’s be real who sleeps well on rehearsal night)

• Take photos or videos with your team and/or your clients on site walks, planning sessions or other milestones to document that your team is invested in their day.

• Sending thank you cards or having a process for post-wedding communication with your clients to end on a high note, determine if this will be right after the event and then a final when the client receives their images from photographer

• Tagging them on Social Media when posting photos of their event

• Anniversary mentions on Social Media or sending cards/emails

What we know client’s don’t like: Feeling like just another date on your calendar or feeling like the communication is automated/generic. While you can create templates to be more efficient, be sure to customize or personalize so that communication feels more authentic.

What steps have been integral for your client experience? Feel free to share here or within our Free Wedding Planner Mastermind Group on Facebook.

It’s been a minute ya’ll. Wedding season came swiftly and with a brand new team all of those time management and organization hacks that I’ve preached .. well those fell to the back burner. Instead I’ve been playing the wack-a-mole game with the more urgent tasks and treaded water with everything else. Can I get an amen? Add two kids & preschool/TK drop-offs & pick-ups to the mix and that polished approach is no more. So what can we do when we feel like we are constantly behind and burning the candle into the midnight hour? Re-set and give yourself some grace.

Why do we walk on egg shells for everyone else’s schedules but sabotage ourselves into exhaustion to please clients. If I remember back to the foundation of why I pushed so hard to create a business it was driven by the need for creativity and freedom in my daily schedule and it was because I didn’t want to be an absent parent in my children’s day-to-day activities.

So by re-set- I mean evaluate objectively on what is taking up the most of your time. Outsourcing or bringing on an assistant may seem impossible but if you were to able to free up some of the time you spend on emails, assembling day-of binders or files on your tablet etc. it could completely change the game.

What about administrative hours? Are you wearing all the hats and spinning your wheels when it comes to focusing on completing tasks.. consider block scheduling your week (one week at a time) and designate one hour for emails, one hour for follow-up tasks, on hour for you-time bonus points if that involves a walk or workout and blocks of time dedicated to social media, marketing tasks, blogging etc.

The next pain point that I know I have talked about is working with your ideal client - one who values your work. Well when the inquiries come rolling in are you sending proposals before reading into whether this client or project is a good fit for your company? I am just as guilty of filling up dates before stopping to evaluate the client’s expectations and budget so when it comes to executing their day we can see elements that are not aligning with our companies values.

Each and every lesson learned will help you in the future but only if you have the mindset of implementing change to ensure that you can grow from the experience. If any of this resonates with your experience we hope you’ll join us in our upcoming mastermind call in our free Wedding Planner Mastermind Group on Facebook. We’re going to dive into lessons learned, opportunities for growth and what steps we can take to align with our ideal clients.

Until then, Happy Planning!
Veronica

A planner is only as good as their communication & organization, and where would we be without the tools that helps us maintain these two important traits? Thank goodness for the tools we have come to rely on, and we are so excited to share them with you!

Systems and processes probably doesn’t sound like a fun time, but when you relate time to money and know that you are saving both - it is a win-win! Here are the top ten resources that have been a game changer for our planning company The 530 Bride. We wouldn’t recommend these tools if we didn’t use them every day in our own business, and we are glad that we found these resources through referrals of other trusted professionals in the industry. **There are affiliate links which pass on a discount to you if you are interested and we do earn upgrades and small perks for sharing with new clients. **

1. Aisle Planner - This was the first tool that I really felt was developed by a wedding planner for a wedding planner, meaning it actually had tools that planners use!! Timelines, Design Galleries, Notes, Budget Tracking, Checklist, Seating & Layout functions & much more. When you are managing the details for one client or 50 clients, this will keep you organized with a dashboard for each client & helps you add value to your packages because each client has access to their portal. Interested in trying it out? Your first 30 days are free plus, use my referral code below to get 25% off any plan for your first 3 months! Referral code OZHF
   

2. Honeybook - You can tell we are fan’s of dashboards, and once you are sending out invoices & proposals on the daily it is really a lifesaver to have a platform that feels so fluid for clients. Of course there are things about Honeybook that I wish Aisle Planner could do in order to streamline into one program but right now, we really use both systems throughout our inquiry & booking process. Enjoy 50% off of your membership when you sign-up with our referral link and all members also enjoy discounts from sites like Matchology, Greetabl, Gusto, Zenfolio, Expensify, The Contract Shop, and Showit.
   

3. Canva - We all know that our clients are visual people, they consume a lot of content on the daily so it is imperative that we can create visuals & graphics that stand out and that represent our brand cohesively. Canva is a wonderful alternative to designing in Adobe Photoshop, InDesign etc that might not be as easily accessible for sharing with a team or producing content that can be resized for any need you may have. Canva does a great job with staying on trend with the latest social media dimensions and settings and now offers printing capabilities as well. Click here to watch the free tutorials on how to get started on Canva
   

4. Google G-Suite - Because we effectively have three businesses under one roof I have really come to rely on G-Suite for being able to easily switch from one inbox to another or see all activity for all inboxes at once. There are a lot of great integrations and Google is constantly adding more features to keep the modern business owner organized. Google G-Suite Pricing
   

5. Wave - Let me just preface this by saying I am not an accountant or even remotely capable of understanding Quickbooks online for some reason, so Wave was a breath of fresh air. I currently use the free version of Wave which syncs with my banking institution and makes it so easy to upload receipts & reconcile transactions. You can create invoices in Wave as well, which are quick and easy to receive payment online. Visit https://www.waveapps.com/
   

6. Chase Bank - Banking is totally a personal decision type of thing so if you are loyal to the bank that you love just skip right on to #7 but I was ready to jump ship last year from my previous bank and I put in some research to find the best fit as a small business owner. What I love about Chase Bank is that the banking app is easy, customer service both online and in the branch have been great & there have been no crazy fees to worry about. Learn more about Chase Bank and the $350 bonus when you open a qualifying checking and/or savings account.
   

7. Mailchimp - Email campaigns aren’t going anywhere because they work! Building your list may seem intimidating or daunting but once you set your goals it is easy to follow the guides to put together successful campaigns. As a wedding planner we have so much education that we can share with potential clients as well as use newsletters & automated emails packed full of tips to build value for our existing clients. https://mailchimp.com/
   

8. Squarespace/Blog Host - We use Squarespace for all of our websites because of the many built-in template & tools. Blogging has been an absolute catalyst in our planning company because it not only boosts your SEO organically which helps your Google ranking/page placement but it also helps to demonstrate your knowledge, personality and company values. Even if you aren’t ready to blog, being familiar with your website’s settings & tools will allow you to keep tabs on your analytics & site traffic so that you can determine your best traffic sources & data trends. Squarespace has a 10% off discount on their website for all plans.
   https://www.squarespace.com/coupons
   

9. Trello - Creating boards to organize your thoughts and tasks can help alleviate some of the brain fog and also cut down on all those crazy post-it note lists on your desk. I have personally found this free tool to be just what I needed for communicating with our team, organizing tasks and delegating work to our virtual assistant.
   We recommend checking out Trello to see if it is a good fit for you, while we don’t receive monetary rewards for sharing but we do earn extra “power-up” features that make it even more awesome! Check out Trello
   

10. Zapier - Choose the integrations and workflows that will save you time and bam you are on your way to zapping away! Use Zapier for tasks like adding a new subscriber to an automated email campaign to triggering an inquiry workflow or adding a task to your Asana board. With over 1,500 integrations available you are probably going to be doing a little happy dance very soon!
    Check out Zapier (https://zapier.com/apps/integrations/)

If you have questions about these tools, or would like more specific tips on implementing them into your processes be sure to drop a comment below or shoot us a message on our contact form at any time!

“It takes more than passion to be successful in any industry, but especially in the creative world of wedding planning.”

A writer can get writers block, an artist can lose their muse or become un-inspired to create. Our will to show up and to meet & exceed the expectations of our clients no matter how full or empty our cup is in our personal lives. The dedication that it takes to succeed in an industry where you can’t simply call in sick or lose focus, that is what set’s the successful business owners apart from others.

Photo by Arnel Hasanovic on Unsplash

With so many planners starting their business on the side of another full time job or perhaps after a major career change, the idea of being a planner can feel like this unicorn dream that you are chasing and someday you will get to be a full time, real-deal planner living the dream! I do believe this isn’t a dream, it is a reality for those who want to put the work in! We could talk all day about planners who are making over six figures and have grown a large team of associate planners, branched into florals & luxury design.. in other words killing it!

However that isn’t the focus of the post, because instead I wanted to talk about the un-sexy times of feeling the burn out and the self-doubt. Then how to get past those emotions and set yourself up for a path where you can have a long & successful career in the industry as a business owner.

• Set clear goals in attainable steps

• Focus on education & systems to improve efficiency

• Limit distractions - You have plenty of time for social media after you get those emails out!

• Don’t try to be everything to everyone - find your special strength or target in your industry & get to know your ideal clients that you work well with

• Be clear on boundaries with clients to avoid burnout, keep relationships with clients professional

• Under promise & over deliver - this advice will never get old. You can’t succeed if your clients aren’t satisfied with the end result

• Learn to not take things personally! You might have one wedding that feels stressful or that you learned a lesson the hard way but take the lesson and apply it to your next wedding without it messing with your emotions.

Of course self-care & mindset are going to play a huge role in leveling up, if you are constantly having self-limiting thoughts and not taking good care of your mind & body it will take a toll on your work. No one wants to have a wedding planner who comes across as frazzled or stressed. Clients look for confidence, so it is important to start building your inner confidence in order for that to shine in your work.

Find your tribe, good people both in and out of the industry who can help you stay accountable, connected and focused. It can be hard to relate to friends and family who work an 8-5 type job where they aren’t always feeling like they are on-call or needing to challenge themselves to keep reaching for the next level all on their own. We can create a network of people who inspire us and challenge us to keep charging forward.

The biggest take-away is that work is work! It isn’t always going to feel like a dream job, but your clients are relying on you. Set the expectation that as a business owner you will have late nights, a little extra worry here and there but a whole lot of gratitude when you look around at the business you have built from the ground up. The best things take time - you got this!
xoxo- Veronica

Does our mindset shape the way we interact in the world and our ability to be successful? Many industry leaders point to mindset and daily rituals that they absolutely live by to build their business and to build wealth. Are we limiting ourselves because of what was imprinted into our minds from a young age?

This week in the Wedding Planner Mastermind Group we’re focusing 100% on finances, money mindset, best practices and resources for experienced wedding planners. If you have 3+ years in business and are at the point where you are wondering what is next, it is crucial that focus on removing any limiting beliefs & hone in on the core of your business.

Limiting beliefs and negative associations with money can come from early childhood. A great article posted by Briana Wiest on Forbes references some tips by abundance coach Jenna Black, and Black explains that, “sometimes, the reason why we self-sabotage our earning potential is because we have some kind of attachment to playing small, or staying within someone else's concept of us.” The article shares some of Jenna’s thoughts on the top limiting beliefs that many of us can relate as well as tips for getting past fears or doubts that we place on ourselves.

“it’s important to know your why. Wanting more money for the sake of it is a pretty empty feeling, but wanting it to support your family, kill more debt, give back in a bigger way, leave a more remarkable impact, or lead in a way you’ve never been able to before... well, that’s motivating. “There’s a disconnect when people don’t know what they money is for. That’s when greed and guilt comes in.”

— Jenna Black

In our Wedding Planner Mastermind Group on Facebook, we asked the group to think back on influences from our childhood or early adult years and if these experiences had helped or hindered our relationship with money. Feel free to join in on the conversation!

Sunday’s are meant for rest, family, re-filling your cup in the best way possible and often we wait until Monday to tackle the work for the week, but I wanted to share a topic that I think is very important for the self-care movement that we see in the creative industry.

We simply have to start setting boundaries for ourselves and stop putting ourselves in the oppressed state of owning a business. Go back to square one on why you started your business, certainly it wasn’t to live in a constant state of self-doubt.. heck no! You are following a passion and sharing your craft/talent/gift or service with the world. So today I shared in our free Wedding Planner Mastermind Group on Facebook that we will dedicate the week to talking all about financial health. From talking about saving for taxes, profitability, budgeting for expenses, saying no to clients or work that doesn’t serve you; it all factors in to the financial health of any company.

If you haven’t joined the Wedding Planner Mastermind Group, make sure to request to join us on Facebook and we’d love to welcome you into a place where you can share questions, network with other experienced planners and find resources needed to help take the next step in your business.

No matter how long you have been in business you will experience up’s and down’s; from financial challenges to balancing your work load with your personal life - we have all been there. To be honest it seems to come in waves, one minute you are feeling like you need to book more events and the next you feel like you are going to need help to keep up with your workload. Through these struggles, we make decisions on what we feel is the next step for our business.

Whether it is adding more staff or training current staff to take more of active role with clients and become lead planners, outsourcing social media or other administrative tasks, raising your prices or expanding into new markets - these are all decisions that will bring pro’s and con’s but you have to evaluate the risk and benefit to determine if it is the best path for you.

When I hit 7 years into my planning business, something changed. Maybe it paralled with also having two small children at home but I began to value my time enough to start being much more selective to inquiries (learning to say no!) and to felt confident in the pricing that I was sending out in proposals. What I was looking for in education was something that went beyond how to start a wedding planning business, beyond how to grow my portfolio or how to price my services. I wanted to see into the backend of running a business - advice on the best practices for taxes, training staff and keeping everyone engaged, improving my client experience and really how to scale.

On this search for education, I came across a lot of great industry professionals who are killing it with courses and speaking engagements - each have a specific niche such as pricing for profit, social media, contracts, etc. Maybe I was looking for a unicorn of educational courses! The point is, the mission I set out on was to find these key business practices and apply them to the wedding industry. I am so excited to bring you the newest set of strategy sessions!

Before we get to the new strategy sessions I would love to make sure that you have joined our Free Facebook Group - Wedding Planners Mastermind Group so that you can catch up on our previous strategy sessions available in PDF format and you can watch some of our replays in the group as well. Stay tuned for the first Strategy Session in the Step-up Series next week, released on Monday March 25th.

It was so great to put together the Free 5 Day Visibility Challenge with Valerie Pritt of The Engaged Wedding Planner Academy where we’re talking about the small steps you can take to instantly increase your personal and brand visibility! While we each work with wedding planners in different stages of their business, we feel the elements of this challenge can apply to anyone who would like to ensure they have their bases covered when it comes to your online presence. It’s not too late to participate in each of the lessons, so we’ve created a free course for you to join!

What is this 5 Day Visibility Challenge about?

In the challenge, we have created modules that will cover everything from creating a strong about page, social media profiles, blogging, networking with vendors and more. The focus is to give you simple action items that you can implement right away! In this post I will be covering just one of the many facets of increasing your brand visibility. Digital communication such as email and instant messaging through customer relationship management (CRM) platforms such as Honeybook, Dubsado, Aisle Planner or 17 Hats to name a few; really drive our engagement with clients and colleagues.

In this challenge we created a free course including a PDF workbook and tons of free resources for you to easily increase your online visibility. You will also hear us refer to the Facebook event group that we held the live challenge in. This is available to view here: https://bit.ly/2XALx0n but don’t worry if you missed out on the live group event, because with the free course these modules can be completed any time!

The Challenge Starts January 14th! Along with Valerie Pritt of Engaged Wedding Planner Academy, I have collaborated on this great 5 Day Visibility Challenge to help planners get a handle on social media, blogging, website/about page and more in this new year! We’ll cover tips, resources and action items that you can implement each day of the challenge to keep forward progress on gaining exposure for your business.
Be sure not to miss this free challenge happening on Facebook!

When is the last time you checked your website and blog analytics to see where your traffic is coming from? If it has been awhile, or if you aren’t sure if all of that time you spend on Instagram is really paying off to reach your target clients.. this is for you!

Join the challenge! Sign up to receive the introduction email with information about getting started in the free three week blogging challenge.

Read to get started? Click here to join the free challenge starting November 1st!

Over the year’s I’ve been a skeptic, rolling my eyes at all of the posts and magazine articles that I’ve read that were telling me I needed to do yoga or get a massage..you know “me-time.” It didn’t seem realistic or even feasible with my schedule as a mom and busy wedding planner.

To keep it real with you it was only recently that I gave myself a reality check about trying to do it all. Honestly, I spend so much time organizing other people’s stuff that I had let a lot of things under my own roof slip like our guest room being overtaken with some of my extra wedding decor from over the years. It wasn’t until I started taking walks, and even investing in a membership at the gym which has a childcare area that really helped me carve out two hours when I need it during the week for me time.

I won’t tell you to eat greek yogurt and take up essential oils but I will tell you to seriously give yourself some grace and take time to just breathe or read a book. This time will allow you to de-stress and become more present with those around you, and who doesn’t want that?

What activities help you feel calm and relaxed? Feel free to drop a comment below with your favorite zen time!

Today we are joined by Delphine Winter of The 530 & CO. sharing 4 great tips on outsourcing in order to be more efficient, scroll down to see the full article!

Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

4 Reasons WHY Your Business Should Outsource: Social Media 101
by Delphine Winter

As a business owner myself, sometimes I wonder, why would I outsource when that is exactly what I do for a living? Here’s the easy answer, because TIME is MONEY. But here’s the longer answer:

As business owners, we are dedicated to putting our entire life on hold for our company. Which means, sacrificing sleep, family time, even eating! No one ever told us that we would never.stop.working, did they? But that’s the beauty of having our own business; we love what we do so much, that we don’t ever want to stop… until you burn out. Right?

I’m here today on behalf of my Creative Solution company, to tell you that it’s OK to outsource for certain tasks that are so tedious day to day.

1. Do what you know how to do.
As a social media “expert” you don’t see me going to houses fixing electrical circuits, do you? Do you see me building housing developments or fixing a leaky roof every day? I highly doubt it… If you did, it must be my long lost twin! My point is, is that sticking to what you know best is KEY to having and maintaining a successful company. For several reasons really.

For example, if you’re an artist, creating masterpieces, you didn’t go to school to then post it on social media right? No one taught you in Leonardo Devinci 101 how to post a proper social media post to your Instagram or Facebook I’m sure… and that’s OK. Why? Because you have a talent that most people don’t have! Meanwhile, companies like ours are looking to not only HELP you as an individual shine as an artist, but also as a company looking to sell those paintings and grow your online presence. As mentioned previously, time is money!

2. Allowing creativity to flow.
Having someone else involved in the creation of your content, or even just your copy allows your audience to witness different sides of your company. For example, if you are posting everyday on your business's page about how funny and cute animals are… then I come in and post recipes on delicious fall treats for animals, it’s a good mix between the two!

Our biggest motto within our company, is that we will always allow our clients to have full reign, as long as they trust our company to deliver good copy, and good content.

3. Outsourcing allows you to have a LIFE.
When outsourcing, you have time to not only focus on doing what you love, but it also allows you to have a life outside of your business! Not having to worry about when to post, what hashtags to post, what exactly to post, and how many likes you’ll get, sounds amazing huh?

4. Blogging is tedious!
Take it from me, I know how long and tedious writing a blog post is, but that’s why we love doing it for our clients! Did you know we outsource for our blog? That’s because we want to take the time to focus on our client’s blogs to help them grow their SEO (Search engine optimization). Blogging allows others searching the web to find you, so the more you post a blog, the more traffic your website will get!

Choose who you outsource to. Do they charge too much for posting simply on your Instagram for you? Do they have packages that include blogging? Blogging is such an important step when creating your online presence, which can be a whole other blog in itself!

Cheers!

Meet Delphine, as the owner of The 530 & Co. she is helping businesses within the community become noticeably more popular in the area! When she's not working on client's SEO and marketing, she enjoys running and watching movies with her husband and, adorable Chihuahua, Daisy. Photo by Diane Nicole Photography

Listen in the car, in between meetings or while you’re knocking out the dishes in the morning - whatever you need to do to get the inspiration flowing! Podcasts can help you tap into another level of business ownership because you are listening to another business owner’s experiences, their challenges and their wins. If you soak up this knowledge and apply it to your own business practices you will be amazed at how you can start to see the bigger picture.

Top 5 Podcasts for Wedding Planners & Creatives

Podcast link: Listen to personal stories, business-building strategies, marketing tips, how to use social media in your wedding business & more. From wedding planners to florists, from venue owners to calligraphers and beyond, no topic is off limits. Join us for community and conversation!

Podcast link: Process to Profitability: Tools and Strategies to Serve Your Clients and Grow Your Small Business is a weekly interview show featuring creative women who are growing their small businesses with a focus on serving their clients and customers well. We'll discuss tools, strategies, and processes that you can apply to your own business in a way that fits you

Podcast link: “With careful planning, the right mindset, and systems in place, we can work smarter not harder, to design a balanced life and profitable business that that both bring us joy.”

Podcast link: Rock Your Wedding Biz is hosted by Renee Dalo, Event Planner and Educator for the wedding industry, and Mindy Marzec, Blogger and Social Media Strategist. We believe in one simple principle – when one of us succeeds, we all succeed! So grab a latte and join in the conversation!

Podcast link: Join host Mary Swaffield each week as she interviews wedding industry experts, business experts, and wedding pros who are in the thick of it! Listen for in-depth insights and step-by-step training episodes designed to help wedding professionals build profitable and sustainable businesses.

Come on back and tell others your favorite podcast, or your biggest take away from listening to these inspiring business owners!

Pricing can feel like a personal decision, something that not everyone is comfortable talking about.. yet it is the difference of a business that is sustainable and a business that is failing. Your customers/clients want the best price based on the value they perceive your business offers, and that is the task at hand - showing your value.

Before we jump into that, I will say that I personally started out by just throwing numbers out on a quote without any basis or financial consideration. I coordinated a ceremony for $500 and actually lost money by the time I factored in how much time I was putting into the event. I wasn’t profitable but I was so excited to get my foot in the door that I ignored basic business fundamentals by doing so. This post is for all of those planners out there who either have been there or are currently pricing their services at random numbers - and I hope this will inspire you to invest the time to dive deeper.

After years into owning my wedding business and working around raising kids, I was ready to “go full-time” and needed to really hone in on the numbers in order to be profitable for the long term future. Comparing your prices to another planners prices won’t serve you well until you understand your expenses and your capacity for how many events you would like to plan. Figuring this out seemed easy enough, but it wasn’t until I purchased Kristin Kaplan’s pricing workbook that I was able to really work through each question and put everything together in one place.

Kristin’s pricing workbook is specifically for creatives who offer either a service or a product and it is broken down in an easy to digest pdf workbook that walks you through the steps of looking at expenses, package prices, the capacity/volume and helps you identify pricing that actually fits your specific business model. I can’t recommend this workbook enough!

While there are a ton of profit and loss statements and accounting tools out there to help you arrive at these numbers, the most important thing is that you keep chipping away to continually make your business profitable. As much as I love planning weddings it is a business at the end of the day and we as planners cannot truly serve our clients well if our businesses are not successful. Responsible pricing helps the entire industry, this starts with educating ourselves and our clients on our value & expertise that we bring to the table.

Wondering if you are on the right track in your business? Reach out for a free discovery call or check out our resources page for helpful courses, templates & links!

If I could have gone to a mentor 7 years ago when starting my own planning business, I have no doubts that I would have changed my approach, pricing structure and ultimately my ideal client.  You know what they say about hindsight though, and to be fair I do value the challenges that I had to overcome on the way to having a profitable company.  If you're reading this you may be in the same place that I stood wondering what the best direction is and how to get started.   The Wedding Planner Education site was created to bring curated educational courses, resources and tips from industry pro's to one place.  

Photo by Matthew Lim Photography 

For those who have always loved the idea of being a wedding planner but would like to get more experience in planning, a good avenue to explore would be to shadow with a local wedding planner as either an assistant or intern. Sometimes this can be tricky if your intent is to start your own business but if you are transparent about your intentions you should be just fine! Research your state's requirements on working as an independent contractor/vs being an employee and then set out to get your feet wet in this crazy world we call wedding planning.  Be sure to have open weekend availability in order to get started.

We've also created a Wedding Planner Mastermind Facebook group, a community of wedding planners who can freely ask questions and share resources.  We also cover mini mastermind topics such as bridal show strategies, pricing, staffing & retention, risk management and more.  To learn more, or to ask a specific question feel free to reach out or fill out the contact form.  

What can you accomplish this week? Set a small task that will motivate you to keep tackling your to-do list.  Whether your goal for the morning is to write & schedule blog posts for the week, or to finally request images from photographers for the spring weddings you completed.. you can crush it!

If you blogged today, take it one step farther and create a graphic for Pinterest. Pin your blog posts and keep an eye on web traffic.. you might be pleasantly surprised how Pinterest can attract a lot of views to your website.

Before you go to bed, write down one thing you want to accomplish for the next day so that when you wake up you already have an action plan for the day.  These routines can keep you focused and also give you some reassurance on days that you feel a little frazzled from trying to do #allthethings.

Have you joined the free Facebook community just for wedding planners? This is a safe place to ask questions, look for resources and just connect with your peers! Hope to see you there!