Splendid Insight: Concern about the cost of wedding flowers has increased 96% since 2008.
© 2010 Splendid Insights
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Look At All This Free Publicity I'm Giving You
This post might fall into the rantette category, but here it is: I am really, really tired of the entitled attitude many bloggers have toward content.
The idea that "I am doing you a favor and giving you free publicity and tons of traffic by featuring your work and you should feel so incredibly lucky to be featured on my blog" only goes so far. The idea that bloggers should be able to make money from their blogs yet receive all their content for free and without a fair exchange is absurd.
Intellectual property is not a free-for-all and it needs to stop being treated as such. If the photographers were not allowing bloggers to publish royalty-free content that they own they copyright to, blogs would have to license and pay for photos like the rest of the online world or continually publish their own original content. The relationship between blogger and photographer goes two ways. "Free publicity" does have a monetary value attached to it for the photographer and, frankly, most blogs never meet it in what they provide in return.
Another thing that's important to note: most service vendors do not care how many impressions your blog serves up; they care about how many click-throughs and interactions with their own sites your blog generates for them. For a service professional, page views do not lead to client conversions at a high enough rate to matter. Click-throughs and subscriptions to their own blogs do (an aside: for product vendors, impressions are very valuable). If you want to prove that your blog is valuable, focus more on sending traffic to your advertisers and editorial partners than on building your own. Currently, Junebug Weddings, Offbeat Bride, Snippet and Ink and The Bride's Cafe consistently send more traffic to vendors featured than many of the other wedding blogs, including ones that receive more traffic, because they understand this so well.
Wedding blogs can be an effective outlet for publicity, but they are not the end-all, be-all for a vendor's marketing strategy. Thankfully, not all bloggers treat content as a god-given right, but enough do that it sours the experience for everyone else involved.
The idea that "I am doing you a favor and giving you free publicity and tons of traffic by featuring your work and you should feel so incredibly lucky to be featured on my blog" only goes so far. The idea that bloggers should be able to make money from their blogs yet receive all their content for free and without a fair exchange is absurd.
Intellectual property is not a free-for-all and it needs to stop being treated as such. If the photographers were not allowing bloggers to publish royalty-free content that they own they copyright to, blogs would have to license and pay for photos like the rest of the online world or continually publish their own original content. The relationship between blogger and photographer goes two ways. "Free publicity" does have a monetary value attached to it for the photographer and, frankly, most blogs never meet it in what they provide in return.
Another thing that's important to note: most service vendors do not care how many impressions your blog serves up; they care about how many click-throughs and interactions with their own sites your blog generates for them. For a service professional, page views do not lead to client conversions at a high enough rate to matter. Click-throughs and subscriptions to their own blogs do (an aside: for product vendors, impressions are very valuable). If you want to prove that your blog is valuable, focus more on sending traffic to your advertisers and editorial partners than on building your own. Currently, Junebug Weddings, Offbeat Bride, Snippet and Ink and The Bride's Cafe consistently send more traffic to vendors featured than many of the other wedding blogs, including ones that receive more traffic, because they understand this so well.
Wedding blogs can be an effective outlet for publicity, but they are not the end-all, be-all for a vendor's marketing strategy. Thankfully, not all bloggers treat content as a god-given right, but enough do that it sours the experience for everyone else involved.
Monday, July 26, 2010
5 Tips for Developing a PR Strategy
I'm excited to let you in on some great news here at Think Splendid. Public relations expert, Julianne Smith, will be joining us weekly with advice on how you can incorporate more publicity into your overall marketing strategy.
Many of you may know Juli as the founder of The Garter Girl, but you may not know that she worked in public relations for over ten years as a political communications strategist prior to joining the wedding industry. She was a presidential appointee for then-President George W. Bush and the spokeswoman for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the U.S. government agency responsible for maintaining our country’s nuclear weapon’s stockpile and stopping the spread of nuclear material around the world. Julianne also served on the White House’s traveling advance team for then-Vice President Cheney. In this capacity, Julianne was responsible for helping to set up events and was primarily focused on the media and press corps. She also worked on Capitol Hill for five years serving as the communications director for U.S. Congressman Ed Royce (R-CA-40) where she was responsible for all outreach to the media and the day-to-day interactions with the media. She has extensive experience crafting and implementing strategic communications plans; drafting press releases, speeches and columns; pitching story ideas to reporters; writing and editing targeted newsletters; developing large and small-scale websites; conducting background briefings; and speaking on- and off-the-record with members of the media.
In addition to her political PR know-how, Juli's stylish wedding garters have been featured on NBC’s Today Show, WeTV, Lifetime, Daily Candy, Martha Stewart, Brides.com, Glamour.com as well as many top wedding magazines and blogs. She has a wealth of knowledge to share and I am thrilled that you'll now have access to her professional advice here on Think Splendid. Without further ado, here is Juli's first post for Think Splendid:
5 Tips for Developing a PR Strategy
by Julianne Smith
You know you need a public relations (PR) strategy (and if you don’t know that you need one that’s a post for another day.) Here are five quick tips for developing a PR strategy:
What Do You Want?
Getting PR attention for any company is a lot of work (phone calls, emails, follow up, research, writing). Be honest with yourself and decide in advance what it is that you want to be different at the end of a certain period of time (six months to a year). For example, do you want more business? Do you want your competitors to be jealous? Do you want to lay the groundwork for a book?
Be Specific and Strategic
Spend time really thinking about the specific things that will help you achieve your PR goals. It isn’t enough to say that you want more magazine features. Instead, say I want to be in X magazine in X issue with X wedding. List the reasons how this particular feature in this particular publication is going to achieve a particular goal. For example, if your goal is to raise awareness locally and a national magazine publishes your work was it worth the effort? Wouldn’t it have been better to go after a feature in a local magazine?
Lower Expectations
Once you know your goals and targets, you might realize that it won’t take as much as you thought to be successful. To achieve most wedding industry PR goals, it usually takes about two or three major media hits per year. This assumes that you are combining your PR strategy with an active social media strategy (again, another post for another day). If you can pull off several amazing weddings each week, then earning just a few media hits in 12 months might not be so hard. Picking two or three things to go after will be less overwhelming and help you be more focused on your goal.
Develop a Timeline
Develop a realistic timeline in advance for gathering content, making pitches and meeting goals. If earning publicity isn’t your full time job, try to work PR into your daily routine. Make it a part of your to-do list. Most magazines and blogs have editorial calendars and it can take months to have your work published. Starting early and working methodically is important so that you aren’t scrambling or missing opportunities.
Write it Down
Having a written strategy will help to determine success, especially if you have employees or a PR representative. After six months or a year, you’ll be able to look back through your strategy and see clearly if goals were met. Writing things down helps to keep you (and PR reps) on track in the midst of doing your regular job.
The goal with any PR strategy is to do the hard work in advance so that when it comes time to actually pitch your work to an editor that should be easy part. Having a good, solid strategy is the key to realizing public relations success.
Many of you may know Juli as the founder of The Garter Girl, but you may not know that she worked in public relations for over ten years as a political communications strategist prior to joining the wedding industry. She was a presidential appointee for then-President George W. Bush and the spokeswoman for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the U.S. government agency responsible for maintaining our country’s nuclear weapon’s stockpile and stopping the spread of nuclear material around the world. Julianne also served on the White House’s traveling advance team for then-Vice President Cheney. In this capacity, Julianne was responsible for helping to set up events and was primarily focused on the media and press corps. She also worked on Capitol Hill for five years serving as the communications director for U.S. Congressman Ed Royce (R-CA-40) where she was responsible for all outreach to the media and the day-to-day interactions with the media. She has extensive experience crafting and implementing strategic communications plans; drafting press releases, speeches and columns; pitching story ideas to reporters; writing and editing targeted newsletters; developing large and small-scale websites; conducting background briefings; and speaking on- and off-the-record with members of the media.
In addition to her political PR know-how, Juli's stylish wedding garters have been featured on NBC’s Today Show, WeTV, Lifetime, Daily Candy, Martha Stewart, Brides.com, Glamour.com as well as many top wedding magazines and blogs. She has a wealth of knowledge to share and I am thrilled that you'll now have access to her professional advice here on Think Splendid. Without further ado, here is Juli's first post for Think Splendid:
5 Tips for Developing a PR Strategy
by Julianne Smith
You know you need a public relations (PR) strategy (and if you don’t know that you need one that’s a post for another day.) Here are five quick tips for developing a PR strategy:
What Do You Want?
Getting PR attention for any company is a lot of work (phone calls, emails, follow up, research, writing). Be honest with yourself and decide in advance what it is that you want to be different at the end of a certain period of time (six months to a year). For example, do you want more business? Do you want your competitors to be jealous? Do you want to lay the groundwork for a book?
Be Specific and Strategic
Spend time really thinking about the specific things that will help you achieve your PR goals. It isn’t enough to say that you want more magazine features. Instead, say I want to be in X magazine in X issue with X wedding. List the reasons how this particular feature in this particular publication is going to achieve a particular goal. For example, if your goal is to raise awareness locally and a national magazine publishes your work was it worth the effort? Wouldn’t it have been better to go after a feature in a local magazine?
Lower Expectations
Once you know your goals and targets, you might realize that it won’t take as much as you thought to be successful. To achieve most wedding industry PR goals, it usually takes about two or three major media hits per year. This assumes that you are combining your PR strategy with an active social media strategy (again, another post for another day). If you can pull off several amazing weddings each week, then earning just a few media hits in 12 months might not be so hard. Picking two or three things to go after will be less overwhelming and help you be more focused on your goal.
Develop a Timeline
Develop a realistic timeline in advance for gathering content, making pitches and meeting goals. If earning publicity isn’t your full time job, try to work PR into your daily routine. Make it a part of your to-do list. Most magazines and blogs have editorial calendars and it can take months to have your work published. Starting early and working methodically is important so that you aren’t scrambling or missing opportunities.
Write it Down
Having a written strategy will help to determine success, especially if you have employees or a PR representative. After six months or a year, you’ll be able to look back through your strategy and see clearly if goals were met. Writing things down helps to keep you (and PR reps) on track in the midst of doing your regular job.
The goal with any PR strategy is to do the hard work in advance so that when it comes time to actually pitch your work to an editor that should be easy part. Having a good, solid strategy is the key to realizing public relations success.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Splendid Sundays Volume 47
A handful of splendid finds and interesting tidbits from around the worldwide web:
*Times' Online Paid Model: Unofficial Numbers Come In
*Designers can now showcase their portfolio on LinkedIn
*Blogs as Loss Leaders
*New president at Conde Nast
*Quotable: "Growth is never about focusing on someone else's lessons, but only on our own." - Marianne Williamson
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
*Times' Online Paid Model: Unofficial Numbers Come In
*Designers can now showcase their portfolio on LinkedIn
*Blogs as Loss Leaders
*New president at Conde Nast
*Quotable: "Growth is never about focusing on someone else's lessons, but only on our own." - Marianne Williamson
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Splendid Insights: DIY Weddings
Splendid Insight: Interest in do-it-yourself (DIY) weddings has increased 126% since 2007.
© 2010 Splendid Insights
© 2010 Splendid Insights
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
New Company Makes It Easier to Monetize Blogs
Pixazza is a new company that will revolutionize how blogs and websites monetize their content. I first heard about this venture from Rosalind Bordo of Two Bright Lights and immediately set out to see for myself just how it works.
Essentially, Pixazza allows a blogger to insert a line of javascript (aka blog code, for you non-tech people) that will enable readers to roll over any photo and see where they can purchase the items in it. Here's a screengrab of how it works from their site, once a person rolls over the site, the dots with featured items pop up as well as a list of where they can be bought:
The revenue from the sales is then shared between the blog publisher and Pixazza, in the same way that text and banner affiliate ads already work.
This solves quite a bit of the issues that many retailers face with blogs using images from their website without linking to them or giving them credit. So now, if someone uses a photo from Nordstrom's site of a budget-friendly wedding dress, the ability to purchase the dress is built right into the photo.
The potential for this in the wedding and event industry is limitless. I don't know where the company is taking it, but imagine what this could mean if you could not only tag the items sold in the image but also your own services. Then, if a bride saw an image somewhere that she loved, she could purchase not only the shoes featured in it, but also book you for her wedding.
Pixazza is off to a good start, being backed by Google Ventures and recently raising $12 million in series B funding, which combined with their series A funding, brings them to about $20 million total. It will certainly be interesting to see what this does for the future of blogging, especially as more bloggers are trying to turn it from a hobby into a profession.
You can learn more about Pixazza here. How would you use this service for your business?
Essentially, Pixazza allows a blogger to insert a line of javascript (aka blog code, for you non-tech people) that will enable readers to roll over any photo and see where they can purchase the items in it. Here's a screengrab of how it works from their site, once a person rolls over the site, the dots with featured items pop up as well as a list of where they can be bought:
The revenue from the sales is then shared between the blog publisher and Pixazza, in the same way that text and banner affiliate ads already work.
This solves quite a bit of the issues that many retailers face with blogs using images from their website without linking to them or giving them credit. So now, if someone uses a photo from Nordstrom's site of a budget-friendly wedding dress, the ability to purchase the dress is built right into the photo.
The potential for this in the wedding and event industry is limitless. I don't know where the company is taking it, but imagine what this could mean if you could not only tag the items sold in the image but also your own services. Then, if a bride saw an image somewhere that she loved, she could purchase not only the shoes featured in it, but also book you for her wedding.
Pixazza is off to a good start, being backed by Google Ventures and recently raising $12 million in series B funding, which combined with their series A funding, brings them to about $20 million total. It will certainly be interesting to see what this does for the future of blogging, especially as more bloggers are trying to turn it from a hobby into a profession.
You can learn more about Pixazza here. How would you use this service for your business?
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The Ebb and Flow
In my early twenties, I suffered from physical paralysis. I would literally wake up some days and not be able to feel or move my legs for hours at a time. This went on for two-and-a-half years. It was a season in my life that tested my faith, my friendships and pushed me to the brink of my emotional capacity many times.
Why do I share this? Simply as a reminder that life is unpredictable, largely uncontrollable and that much of what we choose to get wrapped up in really doesn't matter.
It's also a reminder that life ebbs and flows and is restorative in nature. You may be acutely feeling the crunch of the economy. Your marriage may be on the rocks. You may be trying to escape past failures by losing yourself in the trappings of a workaholic and mirages of success. All of these situations are scary and depressing and real. But they're not the end.
Life is not so much about striving to be fearless; it's about moving forward despite our fears.
Note: This post was originally published in July 2009.
Why do I share this? Simply as a reminder that life is unpredictable, largely uncontrollable and that much of what we choose to get wrapped up in really doesn't matter.
It's also a reminder that life ebbs and flows and is restorative in nature. You may be acutely feeling the crunch of the economy. Your marriage may be on the rocks. You may be trying to escape past failures by losing yourself in the trappings of a workaholic and mirages of success. All of these situations are scary and depressing and real. But they're not the end.
Life is not so much about striving to be fearless; it's about moving forward despite our fears.
Note: This post was originally published in July 2009.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Improving the Wedding Industry
If we want the wedding industry to improve, we have to be better. In order to do that we have to stop lying to each other, and ourselves, about what constitutes excellence.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Splendid Sundays Volume 46
A handful of splendid finds and interesting tidbits from around the worldwide web:
*Comparing two recent social media initiatives: Old Spice vs Fast Company
*Jenna Lyons promoted to President of J. Crew
*Celebrity magazines see a resurgence in advertising
*$295 million DeBeers antitrust lawsuit set aside
*Quotable: "Half-efforts do not produce half-results. They produce no results. Work - hard work, continuous work - is the only path to results that matter." - Harry Beckwith
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
*Comparing two recent social media initiatives: Old Spice vs Fast Company
*Jenna Lyons promoted to President of J. Crew
*Celebrity magazines see a resurgence in advertising
*$295 million DeBeers antitrust lawsuit set aside
*Quotable: "Half-efforts do not produce half-results. They produce no results. Work - hard work, continuous work - is the only path to results that matter." - Harry Beckwith
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Splendid Insights: Wedding Videography
Splendid Insight: Interest in wedding videography has increased by 212% since 2006.
© 2010 Splendid Insights
© 2010 Splendid Insights
Friday, July 16, 2010
Staged Photo Shoots for Wedding Blogs
There's been some chatter on and offline recently about the abundance of staged photoshoots for wedding blogs. Some see it as a positive: providing inspirational photos to couples planning their weddings. Others see it as losing sight of what the wedding is really about. Many see it as a marketing tool to stay front and center while business is slow.
I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the topic here. Join the conversation in the comments below and share your opinion on the wedding blog photo shoot phenomenon.
I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the topic here. Join the conversation in the comments below and share your opinion on the wedding blog photo shoot phenomenon.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Rantette: Press Releases
Last month I received a press release from a public relations company pitching two well-known companies in the wedding industry. At the bottom of their long and impersonal pitch was this statement (please note, I am pasting exactly as written, type style and all, with the exception of the edited phone number):
IF THIS IS IMPORTANT PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE AT 555-555-5555. PLEASE DO NOT RELY ON EMAIL TO RELAY A MESSAGE. WE DO STILL LIKE SPEAKING TO YOU LOVELY PEOPLE. THANKS.
This and the rest of the poorly crafted press release can be translated like this:
Hi, you don't really matter, so we will send you our mass press release via email. We will also send it to you twice, and the second one will say "Dear Robert" at the beginning. Has anyone ever told you that you look like a Robert? Really, if all the bloggers and journalists changed their name to Robert, it would make our job so much easier. We are also going to assume that since you write one of those cute blog things that we detest but sorely depend on these days for client publicity that you don't personally know both of our clients represented in this email. In addition, we are far too lazy to use a proper business communications tool such as email to talk to you, and feel the need to let you know that email is sooo 2009. Typing in BOLDED ALL CAPS however, is very in. Call us, we won't call you.
I do happen to personally know both of the companies represented and will say that both are fabulous. Unfortunately, neither received coverage on ANY of the wedding blogs within the past month because of the way the blog editors were treated by the public relations firm hired to handle their promotion. Talent isn't everything. How are you, or the people you hire to represent you, interacting with others?
IF THIS IS IMPORTANT PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE AT 555-555-5555. PLEASE DO NOT RELY ON EMAIL TO RELAY A MESSAGE. WE DO STILL LIKE SPEAKING TO YOU LOVELY PEOPLE. THANKS.
This and the rest of the poorly crafted press release can be translated like this:
Hi, you don't really matter, so we will send you our mass press release via email. We will also send it to you twice, and the second one will say "Dear Robert" at the beginning. Has anyone ever told you that you look like a Robert? Really, if all the bloggers and journalists changed their name to Robert, it would make our job so much easier. We are also going to assume that since you write one of those cute blog things that we detest but sorely depend on these days for client publicity that you don't personally know both of our clients represented in this email. In addition, we are far too lazy to use a proper business communications tool such as email to talk to you, and feel the need to let you know that email is sooo 2009. Typing in BOLDED ALL CAPS however, is very in. Call us, we won't call you.
I do happen to personally know both of the companies represented and will say that both are fabulous. Unfortunately, neither received coverage on ANY of the wedding blogs within the past month because of the way the blog editors were treated by the public relations firm hired to handle their promotion. Talent isn't everything. How are you, or the people you hire to represent you, interacting with others?
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Publicity and Being An Expert
91% of journalists use Google to find sources for their stories, 89% use blogs and 64% use social networks. The majority use the term "expert" when searching those platforms. Since social media is one of the best ways to land free publicity, knowing how to position yourself online is key.
Many people get bent out of shape over the word "expert." I have a love/hate relationship with it myself. Can anyone truly know everything there is to know about a particular topic?
The answer to that question is, of course, no. Therein lies the secret many experts know: there will always be something more to learn and if you think you've "arrived," you're selling yourself short.
If you are offering a wedding-related service in a professional capacity, hopefully you know enough about it to be an expert in the field. Your clients are paying you for your expertise; they did not (in their minds) hire an amateur, nor would they pay for one.
Here's another way to think about it: if journalists are using the term expert to aid their searches, and the only people calling themselves experts are those who are anything but, whose fault is it when they get quoted and not you? A reporter on a deadline and who knows nothing about your industry does not have the time to do hours of research to find out if the person they are interviewing can truly back up their claims. Why aren't reporters calling you instead? Because you haven't shown them they should.
While I am not a fan of people claiming to be something they are not, if you are good at what you do, own it and start showing people that through social media. Keeping your expertise to yourself doesn't do anyone any favors, especially you.
Many people get bent out of shape over the word "expert." I have a love/hate relationship with it myself. Can anyone truly know everything there is to know about a particular topic?
The answer to that question is, of course, no. Therein lies the secret many experts know: there will always be something more to learn and if you think you've "arrived," you're selling yourself short.
If you are offering a wedding-related service in a professional capacity, hopefully you know enough about it to be an expert in the field. Your clients are paying you for your expertise; they did not (in their minds) hire an amateur, nor would they pay for one.
Here's another way to think about it: if journalists are using the term expert to aid their searches, and the only people calling themselves experts are those who are anything but, whose fault is it when they get quoted and not you? A reporter on a deadline and who knows nothing about your industry does not have the time to do hours of research to find out if the person they are interviewing can truly back up their claims. Why aren't reporters calling you instead? Because you haven't shown them they should.
While I am not a fan of people claiming to be something they are not, if you are good at what you do, own it and start showing people that through social media. Keeping your expertise to yourself doesn't do anyone any favors, especially you.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
How to Create Websites and Blogs That Work
If you are selling anything (including your stellar personality) through your website or blog, Eye Tracking Web Usability by Jakob Nielsen and Kara Pernice is a must read.
This book is one of the best I've come across on explaining how people interact with websites from a psychological to a physical level and covers the largest eye tracking study in history. It explains what people look at first when visiting a site, where they click, what captures their attention and so on and so forth.
I'd be remiss if I didn't warn you that this book reads like a textbook and can be incredibly dry. However, the data and case studies inside are so hugely valuable that it's worth it. If you don't want to read it, make sure your web designer does.
It's available in Kindle format, but I recommend getting this one in print because of the color heat maps and infographics throughout. The varying shades of grey on a Kindle just won't have the same impact.
You can purchase Eye Tracking Web Usability here.
This book is one of the best I've come across on explaining how people interact with websites from a psychological to a physical level and covers the largest eye tracking study in history. It explains what people look at first when visiting a site, where they click, what captures their attention and so on and so forth.
I'd be remiss if I didn't warn you that this book reads like a textbook and can be incredibly dry. However, the data and case studies inside are so hugely valuable that it's worth it. If you don't want to read it, make sure your web designer does.
It's available in Kindle format, but I recommend getting this one in print because of the color heat maps and infographics throughout. The varying shades of grey on a Kindle just won't have the same impact.
You can purchase Eye Tracking Web Usability here.
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Secret to Good Branding
Attention is a fundamental human need. The secret to good branding is the attention and value it places on the person who interacts with your company. It's not just about logos, pretty fonts or letterpressed business cards. It's not about your call being important to us, it's about YOU being important to us. It's about treating the person who comes in contact with you with respect, at every level or touch point, be it through email, phone calls, websites, blogs, social media platforms, printed collateral, etc.
Even with the best intentions, all of us miss the mark with this now and then, but our goal should be to consistently be better at valuing others as important.
Even with the best intentions, all of us miss the mark with this now and then, but our goal should be to consistently be better at valuing others as important.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Splendid Sundays Volume 45
A handful of splendid finds and interesting tidbits from around the worldwide web:
*The Associated Press has launched their somewhat controversial monetization model, which charges bloggers who post excerpts from their articles.
*NBC will now allow same-sex couples to apply for The Today Show's Modern Day Wedding Contest.
*New website allows event planners to source and compare rental items from different companies.
*ShootQ, a studio management software for photographers, has been acquired by Pictage.
*Quotable: "Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told: I’m with you kid. Let’s go." – Maya Angelou
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
*The Associated Press has launched their somewhat controversial monetization model, which charges bloggers who post excerpts from their articles.
*NBC will now allow same-sex couples to apply for The Today Show's Modern Day Wedding Contest.
*New website allows event planners to source and compare rental items from different companies.
*ShootQ, a studio management software for photographers, has been acquired by Pictage.
*Quotable: "Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told: I’m with you kid. Let’s go." – Maya Angelou
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Splendid Insights: Digital Wedding Invitations
Splendid Insight: The number of electronic wedding invitations sent (from websites such as evite or Pingg) has increased by 32% since 2005.
© 2010 Splendid Insights
© 2010 Splendid Insights
Friday, July 9, 2010
New Social Media Platform for Weddings
Wedobo first came on my radar last October and is a company I've had my eye on since. Wedobo is a social media platform that is similar in concept to Groupon (though conceived before Groupon came on the scene in late 2008 - proof that similar ideas come honestly), but with a focus on weddings.
They officially launched in May and I recently had the opportunity to chat with Amanda Sudimack, Wedobo's founder, about this new venture:
What inspired you to launch Wedobo?
The genesis of the idea started three years ago when I used Priceline to book a trip to London and find hotels there. I thought that this or something similar would be great to do for the wedding industry. I've been in the industry for over a decade as a wedding photographer, so I know the struggles as a vendor to book certain dates or get in front of potential brides. Plus, everyone loves a deal, no matter their budget.
I have about ten new business ideas a month and some don't stick. This one stuck with me and I started working on it and developing it.
In an industry that tends to be devalued by clients, what is the benefit for vendors to offer a product or service at less than full price?
We offer risk-free marketing to vendors. Our model is commission based, so we actually take all the risk off of the vendor. From an advertising perspective, it is beneficial because paid marketing provides no guarantees and is difficult to measure.
It's basically a win-win for the vendor. We are constantly putting them out there in front of our readers. Our deals are currently running for a week at a time, so every single day we're out there pitching them to our brides and planner networks.
What kind of vendors would you say Wedobo works best for?
Anyone who has some sort of upsell opportunity. We craft the deals around aspects of their goods and services that can be added on to, so the upsell component is a large part of it.
For example, we have hotels coming up that have reception venues. The deals will be for hotel rooms, but will also include added incentives for engaged couples: perhaps 10% off a wedding brunch package or rehearsal dinner space. This helps delete the risk and undervaluing.
We recently did a jewelry deal that was very successful. We also had a cake deal that was successful. The discount was for a groom's cake and the owner has already met with several of the new clients who have now ordered and paid in full for their primary weddings cakes as well. It's a way to get new people in the door balanced with the bride and groom still saving money on the deal, which is a win-win for both.
Tell me more about the planner networks you mentioned earlier.
We have an invitation-only program that wedding planners can join. By joining they have access to the deals 12 hours before they go live, so they can let their clients know about them ahead of time and look great in the process by saving them money. It's also great marketing exposure for planners because when we're crafting our releases, we'll include them in our marketing pieces. When you boil it down, it's all about exposure for them.
What is the average savings to a bride?
About 50%. We've had 40% or some as much as 80%, but generally it is around 50.
How do vendors get involved with Wedobo?
Right now, they can contact us or we contact them. We have an informal 15-20 minute phone conversation about the process and then we start production. We really try to understand the vendor's goals with running the deal and then make sure that the deal is also a good value for our bride.
We do target high quality deals and have a set of prerequisites on who we'll do deals with so that we're always presenting the best to our brides.
A wedding client is generally a one-time sale. How do you handle marketing to new brides all the time?
Being in the industry, I know firsthand that brides become a wedding business's best marketing tool because they all talk. We have a refer-a-friend program that encourages our brides to refer our site to others. We also have social media tools tied to each deal that allow brides to share that specific deal via their social networks. A big component of the planner and vendor network is having those programs eventually also yield more brides for us in the future. We plan on doing a lot of bridal events in the next year which include bridal shows, marketing events at venues, etc.
We are also set up in regional segments and have started in Chicago since that's where I'm from and have the strongest relationships with other vendors. As more brides start subscribing in more cities, we'll roll out the other markets. We currently have brides signing up all over the country and the major metropolitan cities. Some of the deals have been regional, but several have been applicable to anyone buying them, either by calling or purchasing online. Our goal is to make the Chicago market profitable, and then determine from there how quickly we move into the other markets.
What we're trying to do is different and new. Our ultimate goal is to build an online community where brides, planners and vendors all interact and benefit mutually. The benefits are different for everyone, but in the end, it's a positive online community for everybody.
Thanks, Amanda! You can learn more about Wedobo here and you can follow them on Twitter here.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
5 Blogs I Like To Read
My line of work requires quite a bit of reading across a broad spectrum of topics and as such my Google Reader is filled to the brim with subscriptions to all sorts of non-wedding or event related blogs and article feeds. Here are five of my favorites that are helpful for any entrepreneur in the wedding industry:
PR In Your Pajamas: This blog is authored by Elena Verlee, an 18-year public relations professional. She gives tons of meat-and-potato style advice to businesses looking to get publicity. If your business isn't yet in a place where you want to bring on a publicist, this blog will help you as you grow (and will probably help you grow). If you do use a publicist, this blog will help you participate in the conversation in a more productive way.
Fashionista: This blog has quickly become one of my favorites for its ability to discuss a complex and often pretentious industry in a simple and unpretentious way. The writing is smart, witty, approachable and covers everything from brides choosing larger bridesmaids to feel better about themselves to Cynthia Rowley designing for Pampers diapers. What I really love though is their frequent, candid posts about the business of fashion. With weddings being a heavy style business, there's a lot of cross over in how things are done. On my wishlist for a future redesign for them: the option to just subscribe to their business-related blog posts.
ReadWriteWeb: A fantastic blog for all things social media related. They break stories earlier and often with more in-depth and thoughtful analysis than their more widely known competitor, Mashable.
The BrandBuilder by Olivier Blanchard. What I appreciate most about Olivier's blog is his no nonsense approach to tying social media to business. In an industry where everyone thinks they can be a freelance consultant because they've used Twitter for twenty minutes (a more widespread epidemic than brides becoming wedding planners), it's nice to have someone who is not afraid to talk about the need to actually have a steak to back up all the sizzle being sold. Also, he's not afraid to call out all the fakery in the industry. Read a few posts and you'll quickly be able to see why his blog is one of my favorites.
And a frivolous one to add some humor to your day: Catalog Living, an exciting look at the people who live in your catalogs. An idea all of us have had at one point or another and someone was finally brilliant enough to start a blog on it.
Which blogs are some of your favorites?
PR In Your Pajamas: This blog is authored by Elena Verlee, an 18-year public relations professional. She gives tons of meat-and-potato style advice to businesses looking to get publicity. If your business isn't yet in a place where you want to bring on a publicist, this blog will help you as you grow (and will probably help you grow). If you do use a publicist, this blog will help you participate in the conversation in a more productive way.
Fashionista: This blog has quickly become one of my favorites for its ability to discuss a complex and often pretentious industry in a simple and unpretentious way. The writing is smart, witty, approachable and covers everything from brides choosing larger bridesmaids to feel better about themselves to Cynthia Rowley designing for Pampers diapers. What I really love though is their frequent, candid posts about the business of fashion. With weddings being a heavy style business, there's a lot of cross over in how things are done. On my wishlist for a future redesign for them: the option to just subscribe to their business-related blog posts.
ReadWriteWeb: A fantastic blog for all things social media related. They break stories earlier and often with more in-depth and thoughtful analysis than their more widely known competitor, Mashable.
The BrandBuilder by Olivier Blanchard. What I appreciate most about Olivier's blog is his no nonsense approach to tying social media to business. In an industry where everyone thinks they can be a freelance consultant because they've used Twitter for twenty minutes (a more widespread epidemic than brides becoming wedding planners), it's nice to have someone who is not afraid to talk about the need to actually have a steak to back up all the sizzle being sold. Also, he's not afraid to call out all the fakery in the industry. Read a few posts and you'll quickly be able to see why his blog is one of my favorites.
And a frivolous one to add some humor to your day: Catalog Living, an exciting look at the people who live in your catalogs. An idea all of us have had at one point or another and someone was finally brilliant enough to start a blog on it.
Which blogs are some of your favorites?
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Marketing Wedding and Event Services on Facebook
The reports for Facebook's numbers are in for June: while the social media platform had an increase of about 320,000 users, over 254,000 existing users closed their accounts. More than 100,000 of the members who left were women ages 26-34.
As it relates to the wedding industry, here are some other stats to keep in mind: the average age of a bride in the United States is 28. The average age of a bride getting married for the second time is 34. Whether you are targeting first time or encore brides, the majority of both groups fall into the age range of the fastest growing segment of users leaving Facebook.
If your company also offers corporate event services in addition to weddings, it's interesting to note that the second largest group of users who left Facebook (around 89,000) were men between the ages of 18-34. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by the end of this year, more than 50% of the United States workforce is expected to be comprised of people under the age of 30. This generation has been using computers since at least third grade and 90% of this group uses technology first when looking for information on a product or service. A company's executives may be older, but how old are the people doing the research, executing their company's special events and ultimately having a say in whether or not you get hired? Many are under 35 and nearly 200,000 of those men and women decided just this last month alone that they would no longer use Facebook to find what they need.
Why are so many jumping ship? That information is speculative at best, but here are a few of my thoughts, which are the same things I've been sharing for the past 18 months:
Facebook moved away from its original premise of connecting others on an authentic level. When it started in 2005, Facebook was the anti-MySpace. MySpace was big, public and increasingly annoying with its flashy, glittery add-ons. Facebook was exclusive - only people with a college or college alumni email address could sign up - and all the pages were the same. Its original purpose was to be a place where people could connect with each other in a way that, although online, was real. If you wanted information on what your friends were doing, you had to go looking for it; it didn't feed into your homepage. I joined in Spring of 2006 and loved it because it allowed me to better stay in touch with friends living overseas (ironically, the same reason I started writing a blog in 1999).
Later, Facebook opened to the public but limited it to networks. This semi-exclusivity worked because it allowed old friends to reconnect post-college. Then they opened it up to an even larger audience and along came grandma, your crazy aunt and Facebook recommending that you add your ex-spouse as a friend, and oh look, their photo was there to greet you every time you logged on. Somewhere in that mix came Mafiaville farmers spinning dreidels around their Christmas trees and if that weren't enough, you could now spend hours deciding whether you were more of a Manolo or Louboutin.
Here's a tip: if you want to predict the longevity of a social media platform, take an honest look at their core structure. Are they designed to connect or designed to distract? The ones that truly connect will outlast the others. The ones that distract will succeed for a little while but ultimately cause people to lose interest when they remember that there are better uses of their time (such as their jobs, family and friends) and better places to authentically connect. Facebook started as a connector and became a distraction, much like MySpace did. (This distraction model is also why Foursquare may be hot right now, but isn't the best use of your time as a primary online marketing tool for weddings. Sidenote: bridal show and tradeshow producers, Foursquare is gold for you as it allows attendees to check in at each booth they visit. Capitalize on it now while it's big and still has no apparent business model.)
So what does this all mean for you? If you have limited resources, Facebook is not the highest and best use of your online marketing time. Can it still benefit some event professionals? Yes, but we are now on the other side of the Facebook bell curve and the companies who succeed now will continually be the exception rather than the rule.
As it relates to the wedding industry, here are some other stats to keep in mind: the average age of a bride in the United States is 28. The average age of a bride getting married for the second time is 34. Whether you are targeting first time or encore brides, the majority of both groups fall into the age range of the fastest growing segment of users leaving Facebook.
If your company also offers corporate event services in addition to weddings, it's interesting to note that the second largest group of users who left Facebook (around 89,000) were men between the ages of 18-34. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by the end of this year, more than 50% of the United States workforce is expected to be comprised of people under the age of 30. This generation has been using computers since at least third grade and 90% of this group uses technology first when looking for information on a product or service. A company's executives may be older, but how old are the people doing the research, executing their company's special events and ultimately having a say in whether or not you get hired? Many are under 35 and nearly 200,000 of those men and women decided just this last month alone that they would no longer use Facebook to find what they need.
Why are so many jumping ship? That information is speculative at best, but here are a few of my thoughts, which are the same things I've been sharing for the past 18 months:
Facebook moved away from its original premise of connecting others on an authentic level. When it started in 2005, Facebook was the anti-MySpace. MySpace was big, public and increasingly annoying with its flashy, glittery add-ons. Facebook was exclusive - only people with a college or college alumni email address could sign up - and all the pages were the same. Its original purpose was to be a place where people could connect with each other in a way that, although online, was real. If you wanted information on what your friends were doing, you had to go looking for it; it didn't feed into your homepage. I joined in Spring of 2006 and loved it because it allowed me to better stay in touch with friends living overseas (ironically, the same reason I started writing a blog in 1999).
Later, Facebook opened to the public but limited it to networks. This semi-exclusivity worked because it allowed old friends to reconnect post-college. Then they opened it up to an even larger audience and along came grandma, your crazy aunt and Facebook recommending that you add your ex-spouse as a friend, and oh look, their photo was there to greet you every time you logged on. Somewhere in that mix came Mafiaville farmers spinning dreidels around their Christmas trees and if that weren't enough, you could now spend hours deciding whether you were more of a Manolo or Louboutin.
Here's a tip: if you want to predict the longevity of a social media platform, take an honest look at their core structure. Are they designed to connect or designed to distract? The ones that truly connect will outlast the others. The ones that distract will succeed for a little while but ultimately cause people to lose interest when they remember that there are better uses of their time (such as their jobs, family and friends) and better places to authentically connect. Facebook started as a connector and became a distraction, much like MySpace did. (This distraction model is also why Foursquare may be hot right now, but isn't the best use of your time as a primary online marketing tool for weddings. Sidenote: bridal show and tradeshow producers, Foursquare is gold for you as it allows attendees to check in at each booth they visit. Capitalize on it now while it's big and still has no apparent business model.)
So what does this all mean for you? If you have limited resources, Facebook is not the highest and best use of your online marketing time. Can it still benefit some event professionals? Yes, but we are now on the other side of the Facebook bell curve and the companies who succeed now will continually be the exception rather than the rule.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Splendid Sundays Volume 44
A handful of splendid finds and interesting tidbits from around the worldwide web:
*In big news for the tourism industry, Google acquired ITA Software (used by American Airlines, Continental, Virgin Atlantic, Kayak and Trip Advisor to name just a few) for $700 million.
*The cost of social media phobia.
*The truth behind the Internet "kill switch" bill.
*A brief history of social media.
*Quotable: “Liberty is the right to choose. Freedom is the result of the right choice.” - Anonymous
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
*In big news for the tourism industry, Google acquired ITA Software (used by American Airlines, Continental, Virgin Atlantic, Kayak and Trip Advisor to name just a few) for $700 million.
*The cost of social media phobia.
*The truth behind the Internet "kill switch" bill.
*A brief history of social media.
*Quotable: “Liberty is the right to choose. Freedom is the result of the right choice.” - Anonymous
Do you have any splendid finds to share?
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Splendid Insights: Managing Wedding Finances Online
Splendid Insight: Since 2006 there has been a 212% increase in the number of brides and grooms who use online financial tools to manage their wedding budgets.
© 2010 Splendid Insights
© 2010 Splendid Insights
Friday, July 2, 2010
On Perspective
I was once on a flight into Maui and there was some trouble landing because of the wind. The plane would descend and then go back up after the pilot decided that it still wasn't the right time to land. This up/down scenario repeated several times for over an hour.
As you can imagine, many people on the plane were panicking, white knuckles gripping the armrests. Around the fourth or fifth time the plane did its rollercoaster routine, a five year old voice rang out, "wheeeeee."
The entire mood on the plane changed. While the circumstances didn't change, the way people viewed it did. How do you view your business? With fear or a sense of adventure?
As you can imagine, many people on the plane were panicking, white knuckles gripping the armrests. Around the fourth or fifth time the plane did its rollercoaster routine, a five year old voice rang out, "wheeeeee."
The entire mood on the plane changed. While the circumstances didn't change, the way people viewed it did. How do you view your business? With fear or a sense of adventure?
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