Jun 29 My Save-the-Day Secret: Vendors Share Their (Unexpected) Emergency Kit Must-Haves

We've spent the month of June talking about event day management: cultivating great vendor relationships and working as a team, dealing with annoying guests, getting into the right mindset to execute your events, effectively managing destination weddings, vendors' event day pet peeves, how to continue to market and sell new weddings even while you're working your existing weddings, and training your staff on how to get along with other wedding pros, how to prevent event-day emergencies and how to resolve them when they do arise. Whew!

Since unforeseen emergencies are an unfortunate fact of working in this industry, we figured that a reasonable conclusion to this month's content theme would be to turn to our fellow wedding professionals. We asked some leading vendors what (possibly unexpected) item turned out to be invaluable in resolving a wedding day crisis. Almost all wedding pros carry some form of an emergency kit to their events - you may want to consider adding the following things to yours!

May 30

May 30 It's Memorial Day! If You're Working, Stop It Right Now!

Guest Contributor

Well-Wishes

Okay, I won't actually judge you for spending a holiday working on your wedding business, especially given that I, during one of my rare child-free weekends as a single mom, am using this time to do some digging on my own goals and plans.

However you're spending your Memorial Day, we hope it's a great one, and we can't wait to be back Wednesday to roll out our new content theme for June: event-day management! Throughout the month, we'll be sharing posts and resources that are all about making your weddings easier and better. We've also got some great guest posts scheduled, so be sure to check back later this week!

May 9

May 9 How Creating Systems & Workflows for Your Wedding Business Can Set You Free

Guest Contributor

Planning, Productivity

One of the most common sources of frustration I hear from wedding professionals is that they feel “stuck” running the day-to-day operations of their businesses. They know they need to focus on being strategic leaders of their business in order to become more profitable and efficient, but that’s easier said than done. Rather than functioning as the CEO of their company, they’re the salesperson, the craftsman, the delivery driver and so much more.

Of course, I can relate. While my primary business is now run by an incredible team, it wasn’t always that way – I spent years toiling over customer service, sales and marketing, payroll, operations and more, and ran myself ragged. When you’re scraping by as a startup, or when resources are scarce, you have no choice but to put your head down and just do the work.

Still, that can’t be a long-term strategy for success.

Mar 23

Mar 23 Maintaining and Upgrading Your Equipment

Guest Contributor

Planning

For those of us in a technical industry, purchasing and maintaining equipment is a must. Whether you’re a photographer, DJ, caterer, hairstylist or chauffeur you rely on specialized equipment and tools to service your clients' events. These items need to be in great working order so you can relax and do what you do best. The slow season or a long stretch between events is the perfect time to check out your gear, make sure everything is in tip top shape and purchase any replacements or additions.

Jan 27

Jan 27 10 Free Ways to Market Yourself and Your Wedding Business

Guest Contributor

Marketing, Wedding Industry

Here at WeddingIQ we've talked at length about determining which wedding shows to attend, weighing the options when it comes to advertising, and building your brand. We’ve also stressed the importance of high quality collaterals and hiring creatives and coaches for support, as well as joining professional groups within your industry. All these suggestions require an investment of not only your time but also a decent percentage of your business income. Purchasing expensive letterpress business cards or joining exclusive (and pricey) networking groups may help establish your brand, but don’t ignore all the free ways you can market yourself and your business. You can implement the items on this list today with nothing more than a little time and effort.