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Get Into The Business Of Weddings
Author: Dawn Allcot
For many women, no day is more important than their wedding day. After all, a wedding is a sacred event, a joining of two people who wish to show their commitment before God and state. A lot of work goes on behind-the-scenes to get to that point when the happy couple says, “I do” and exchanges rings and much of that work is done by a staff of people—from the wedding planner to the photographer—who do at least part of their work from home.
If you are concerned that working from your home may be an issue with wedding industry clients, don’t worry. In fact, Alan Fields, who penned Bridal Bargains and a host of other titles with his wife Denise, says it’s a benefit. “If you have a professional meeting space in your home, you can create intimacy that you couldn’t create in a shopping center,” says Alan. “You can’t have pets running through the office, or babies screaming in the background, but if you can keep it professional, you have the opportunity to create that personal connection that’s the hallmark of a great wedding vendor.”
Weddings Are Big Business
Unlike other industries, the wedding business is not dominated by big box retailers. According to Fields, the bridal industry is still largely made up of local "mom and pop" businesses, making it easier for entrepreneurs to break in. "When you hire someone to do flowers for your wedding or take photographs," he says, "these services are usually provided by small companies. It’s a natural fit for people who work from home."
For instance, Linda Holstein, owner of Doing Personal Favors, said she started marketing her personalized chocolate bar labels on eBay and found an immediate demand for wedding designs. Today, her business has expanded to include water bottle labels (a big hit for outdoor weddings), favors bags with labels, mint books, teabag labels, and more.
Online marketing also plays a role in the success of wedding industry endeavors, making this industry a perfect fit for work-at-home moms who enjoy networking online. "Brides today are more web savvy," says Fields. "Even though your customers are essentially one-time customers, brides are on message boards all the time. They talk to one another and they can quickly figure out who's taking care of business and who's not."
According to David Wood, President of the Association of Bridal Consultants, more than half of all wedding coordinators work from home and they work with other work-at-home businesses, too. Businesses like:
- wedding crafters (ring bearer pillows, money purses, etc.),
- jewelry makers,
- photographers,
- videographers,
- scrapbook artists,
- wedding journalists, and
- virtual assistants for brides.
Obviously, each of the business ideas listed above involves some sort of start-up cost but this is the type of business that can easily remain part-time and fit into any family’s busy schedule. And if you have a skill, such as making jewelry, handbags or accessories (like ring-bearer pillows), you can market and sell those products through Etsy or eBay. You could also create your own website using services like wordpress.com, e-junkie.com, and paypal.com.
Wedding "customers are not looking at it as buying a product," Fields says. "They’re looking at it from the standpoint of creating an overall feeling for the day." They are seeking “one-of-a-kind” accessories; which makes the wedding industry an emotionally-fulfilling as well as profitable home business opportunity.
In fact, according to an analysis completed by The Wedding Report, Inc, "consumers spent more than $60 billion on weddings in 2008" with the average wedding costing more than $21,000. That's a lot of opportunity for work-at-home moms (and dads).
Just take a look at some of the business ideas listed above:
Graphic Designers
That feeling, brides are looking for, often begins with the wedding invitations. Stock designs can be sold inexpensively, or you can create custom designs for brides willing to extend their budget in order to make a strong first impression. You can then connect with local printers to offer “full-service” wedding invitations, or supply the files at a reduced price.Scrapbookers
Connect with wedding photographers to create a great up-sell and make a bride with no time or inclination to scrapbook extremely happy.Bridal Virtual Assistants
Virtual assistant services aren’t just for high-powered executives. Women who don’t normally need someone to look over the details of their lives may need a helping hand when it comes to wedding planning. You can make a bride's wedding less stressful by charging an hourly fee to confirm vendors, book honeymoon travel arrangements, and take care of other small but crucial details.Wedding Journalism
To carve out a niche in wedding writing, pitch story ideas to local and regional wedding magazines. Once you accrue some clips, you can take the step to query national wedding magazines. A wedding blog can also give you legitimacy as a writer; with a professional-looking blog and high traffic, you may be able to skip regional publications and go directly to the big leagues. Once you’ve established yourself as an expert in the field, you can also profit from books, e-books, and personal speaking appearances.Wedding Planners
Wood believes that wedding planning remains the most profitable work-at-home opportunity in the industry. “You have so much flexibility and you can design any wedding to fit any budget.”
Protecting Yourself
There is, however, one caveat in the wedding industry. "If you don’t have that iron stomach to deal with some very emotional people, you might not want to get into this," Fields warns. "You’re dealing with a one-time event for people. They want it to be perfect, they don’t want to hear excuses, and they have high expectations."
Whether you are responsible for the entire event as a wedding planner–or just providing one component of the day, such as the cake or flowers, the wedding industry is wrought with the danger of encountering the dreaded "Franken-bride"―the over-emotional, spoiled bride who not only wants everything her way, but changes her mind about what she wants and then forgets to tell the person in charge of implementing the changes (i.e., the florist, the DJ, the caterer or the wedding planner).
You can, however, protect yourself from potential problem clients by being organized, straightforward and professional in the face of any adversity. “Have contracts,” Fields advises. “If you live up to your end of the deal and someone gets upset, having a written agreement goes a long way toward handling any disputes. Sometimes people do forget what they’ve ordered. Beyond that, you need that special touch to deal with the customer; to calm them down.”
Still, sometimes no amount of cajoling, customer service, or contract-waving will appease a client. In that case, Fields says, “You have to be willing to cut your losses. You may have to terminate a relationship with a customer if they’re out of control and they’re not treating you with respect.” And possibly even provide a recommendation for them to see another vendor; if you know someone who may be better suited to deal with their personality. The wedding industry really is no different than any other work-at-home business; freelancers in every field encounter “problem clients,” and it’s never easy to cut that cord.
The bottom line: If you dreamed of your wedding before you even met your partner, relished planning every detail of the Big Day and your honeymoon, and still read bridal magazines for fun, you can turn that passion into profits with a home-based business in the wedding industry.
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