5 Great Tips to Ensure Success at a Wedding Expo, Fair or Festival

THREE | Designing your space. 

First, I would like to say that bigger isn’t always better, so don’t be intimidated if you don’t have a professionally designed booth with a 20x20, island space setup. You can exhibit in a smaller space and impress potential clients. The most important thing about designing your booth is that it speaks to what you do, who you are and translates into a product or service a couple is looking for at the event. 

What you do. When couples come to these events they are usually confused about the planning process, they feel like uneducated consumers who are walking into a type of event they have never been to, to meet with products and services they have typically never purchased and that makes them feel they are at a disadvantage. The best thing you can do for them is to spell it out for them at first glance what it is that you do.

Your booth should immediately tell a couple what you do for a living. It could be a sign, examples of your work or displays that clearly represent that you are a photographer, DJ, venue, etc. If you are not a florist, do not fill your booth with flowers. Anyone who has a florist already will pass you by not realizing that you are anything but a florist. 

Who you are. Your space should speak to you personally. What is truly going to sell your business is your brand and for most wedding professionals they ARE their brand. You are the spokesperson, the brand manager and the sales person for your business under most circumstances, so what they see should match what they experience when speaking with you. So, be you! Attract the couples you love to work with by expressing who you are. Connections matter with couples. They want to know that they connect with you as a professional on the most important day of their life. With that said, dress professionally, as you would for their wedding. They way that they see you at a show is how they envision you at their wedding. Be organized and prepared. If you are digging through a messy box looking for a pen because you were unprepared when the event doors opened, that is how they will imagine you at their wedding. 

Do they need you?  Don’t get discouraged if you see couples passing you. Nine times out of ten they have passed you because they already have their cake, photographer, dj, etc.. but don’t be afraid to ask them if they have already made their selection in your field either. The flip side to that is, are you welcoming them? Is your table pushed back behind you? Are you putting up a barrier between you and them with your table? Are you blocking your booth by standing right in the front like a guard, or are you off to the side to allow couples to come into your space and welcoming them to look at your display or collateral? 

FOUR | Plan your post show response BEFORE the event.

What you do before the event is so important. Most producers will provide a leads list after the event. You will also collect your hot leads from your booth to respond to first thing Monday morning. You should plan before the show what you will do with those leads after the event. Here are a few ideas:

·      Add them into your drip marketing program if you have one setup.

·      Send them a one-off email through an eblast service, such as Constant Contact, or MailChimp.

·      Ask the producer if they have an eblast service that they will send on your behalf.

·      Mail a postcard to each couple on the list. 

·      Invite couples to an open house, seminar, or online event.

Have these ready to unleash as soon as your return to your desk after the show. Mailing things out? Have your collateral ready to go and your labels ready for addressing. Sending an email? Craft your email prior to the event and save it as a draft message ready for your hot leads. Hosting a post show event? Have your invites ready to go before you go to the show and hand some out from your booth, then follow up with mailing/emailing reminders after the event. Be as ready as you can possibly be before the show to be as responsive as you can be to your new leads. I think of it as a race. The faster they hear from me, the better chance I have to beat anyone else to the punch.

FIVE | Couples and their Wedding Warriors and have their game face on to plan a wedding.  Is your team ready?

Your success will depend on the information that couples receive on the day of the event, as well as after the event. With that said, you will want to ensure that everyone who will be in your booth, answering phone lines, or receiving new customers in your brick and mortar are all on the same page. You will want to have a team meeting to review any new packages, products, features, or services that your business is offering. If you are planning to have a show discount, or participate in a show program like Bridal Bucks, in your booth, be sure that everyone knows the details of the offering. How polished will you look when couples ask a question and all your team members have the answers that matter, stand confidently with the information readily available and are on point with their delivery? This is a good time, as you head out into the limelight in front of a room full of your potential clients, to ensure that your team is well versed, poised and trained for a power-sales day. Have you created new marketing materials, or updated your website? Great! Go over each, and every page with your team so that everyone knows what page to point to, or what collateral to grab from your table to share with couples that will be most meaningful to them. This is your team’s moment to shine and fill your calendar. 

In-person, event marketing is one of the best forms of marketing there is. It is front and center, in your face marketing that gives you an opportunity to meet that 1% of any given population that is actually planning a wedding in a very short window of time. Practice makes perfect, so spend some time walking around and observing other booths. As you peruse the show floor, notice the flow of booths, setup, décor, raffles & gifts, displays, etc. This may inspire new ideas for your next presence.  Be sure to meet with wedding professionals during the fashion show if the room calms down, or just before the doors open.  This is a great time to meet new colleagues and to say hello to familiar faces.

Kimberly Vaughan, Executive Producer
International Wedding Festival