How To Stand Out In The Wedding Market

Every year, the wedding industry grows and changes. It’s harder than ever to compete with the influx of wedding brands that are saturating the market. So how do you stay ahead of the competition to get a piece of the pie, or cake in this case? Succeeding in the wedding and hospitality marketplace requires a powerful content marketing strategy and digital solutions.

 Here are my top 5 tips for how to not only compete in this industry but how to dominate.

1.     Set The Stage – Set yourself apart with clean, concise and cohesive branding and make sure your brand message is clear at every touchpoint. From your website to social channels you need to create a professional and credible digital footprint as well as provide your audience with a positive user experience. Your dot com, Facebook and Instagram pages are the first points of interaction for most consumers and they establish a powerful first impression. On these pages, a potential consumer should be able to easily understand who you are, what you do and why they need you. They should also be able to readily access the information they are looking for in no more than 3 clicks. Product and service offerings, as well as contact info and content that will inspire actions, should be given prime real estate. A well-branded, user-friendly, search engine optimized, mobile-first website is the cornerstone to having success with content marketing, Google rankings, and digital advertising strategies. Your social pages should mimic your website branding and creative and provide a real-time connection to your audience. Creating a well thought out and professional brand identity that is implemented across all of your digital channels is crucial in building trust and credibility in your product and services.

2.     Social Media – One of the first things couples do when they get engaged is research! That means you have to be everywhere from Google to Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest as well as relevant industry listing sites and directories! When it comes to social, if you are not consistently posting, pinning and submitting your work for earned media placements, you will fall behind and lose points with your potential consumers. If a bride or groom checks out your Instagram feed and sees your last post is from 3 weeks ago that’s a strike against you. Got nothing on Pinterest? Fail. No features on SMP, The Knot or other local sites? Yikes! I bet your competitors are there. Couples want to know that you are an expert in your field and that you have a lifestyle and brand that aligns with their lifestyle. They crave a personal connection with not only you but also with your other clients and community. Your social media accounts and media placements give you the opportunity to make that connection by showcasing your brand story, the people behind the brand, real weddings, tips and advice from your blog and examples of your work.

3.     Analytics - Don’t try to appeal to everyone. Dig into your analytics. Figure out who you are attracting, where they are coming from and why they are coming to you then speak directly to them. Many companies make the mistake of creating a customer profile based on the kind of consumer they want to attract. That vision often differs from the kind of consumer they are actually attracting. Listen to reviews and feedback and make the necessary changes to provide the best possible experience for your customer. Knowing who they are inside and out as well as what they want and expect will help you create powerful marketing tools and advertising campaigns geared towards them. This knowledge will also help you build beneficial industry relationships and partnerships that align with your brand and audience. Brands that pay attention to the who, what, where and why are more successful in both their marketing and advertising strategies as well as their conversions. Money spent targeting the wrong audience is money wasted.

4.     Content Marketing - Content Marketing is a valuable tool for businesses and a key component of successful digital marketing strategies. It guides a positive user experience, inspires conversations and is a necessary asset for SEO, building brand awareness and increasing sales. Having great content is in my opinion, the most important factor for wedding based businesses. Content gives your brand a voice and helps you stand out in a saturated market. Modern couples want to know they are working with creative industry thought leaders and they want to see that shine through on your website, newsletters, blog, social channels, and media features. Great content enhances your brand message and keeps your company top of mind. It also builds brand recognition, reputation, engagement, authority and loyalty as well as adds value to your product and services. Great content attracts an audience that will result in qualified leads and profitable customer actions. The wedding industry is unique in that most vendors can request access to the wedding images for use on their blog, website and social channels. If that is a struggle, then a collaborative styled shoot is a great way to showcase your talent and gain a bank of images.

5.     Placement – With the majority of today’s content consumption and research being done online, it’s more important they ever to be where your potential clients are. Today’s consumer makes the majority of their decisions by consuming information via websites, blogs, and apps. Consumers want to be engaged and inspired by products and services. They are conditioned to expect highly-targeted, personalized messages that cater to their specific interests, needs and behaviors. This is powerful for weddings especially, more so than other industries so a combination of content marketing and paid strategies is crucial. The digital revolution has allowed us to approach marketing and advertising strategies from a new perspective that does not include traditional impression-based mediums. That type of advertising is no longer driving engagement and leading to conversions. Targeted digital solutions are at the forefront of every successful brand. You can get you noticed with search engine marketing and reach a niche audience with targeted display and social media ads, but once we drive traffic to your site, you have to have engaging, sought after content to inspire an action.