Tag: vendor relationships

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 104: Stick Your Foot in the Door Before it Shuts – with Megan Gillikin

By Erin Giberson on

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Imagine that you not only quit your job but also took out a small business loan. In addition to that, you’ve only been married for 3 weeks. And then you learn the business you bought is basically sinking. What do you do? Today’s guest made a choice:

“I decided that I was committed to figuring it out, even though the fear of failure and the fear of unknown and the fear of never getting out from underneath the reputation – those fears were super, super strong.”

Megan Gillikin is the founder and owner of The Planner’s Vault, an educational resource and community-based network for wedding planners. She is also the host of the Weddings for Real podcast as well as an industry educator and speaker. Additionally, she is the owner of A Southern Soiree, a wedding and event planning company that she rebranded and revitalized after purchasing it in 2010.

In this episode, Megan shares about the lessons she gained from purchasing and rebranding an existing wedding planning business. Specifically, she talks about how she uses the experience to now help other wedding planners achieve their business goals.

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Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 099: Kelly Ann Peck Talks You Through Connection-Building Sales Tactics

By Erin Giberson on

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It’s a lesson learned during the pandemic that still rings true.

Today’s world may be digital, but you can’t underestimate in-person interactions in building relationships.

Kelly Ann Peck is the founder of Emerson Reese Creative, which provides business sales coaching for creative entrepreneurs and event professionals. With over 23 years of event industry and sales experience, Kelly’s track record includes generating over 15 million in sales and working with over 400 couples. She also produces the annual Strategic Business Planning Retreat and is a speaker at this year’s The Signature CEO Conference. 

In this episode, Kelly pinpoints the intersection of sales and special events to share her key connection-building methods. In particular, she emphasizes the value of figuring out what works best for you as well as drawing inspiration from what you enjoy doing.

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Timeline Genius

How to Use the Assign Feature to Create Tailored Timelines for Vendors, Venues, or Clients

By Erin Giberson on

Wish you could create tailored timelines for specific vendors, venues, clients, or even bridal party members? The great news is that with Timeline Genius you can!

So you can go from spending hours creating individual timelines for collaborators or clients (nobody has time for that!) to using the Assign Feature to easily produce tailored timelines.

Additionally, whenever you make edits, your timelines update in real-time. So, if you make an adjustment to your main timeline, it will similarly reflect any changes in all of your tailored timelines. 

As a result, you can make individualized timelines for anyone you wish! 

Just check out the way the Assign Feature supports timeline creation and how you can use it in your planning.

Read More “How to Use the Assign Feature to Create Tailored Timelines for Vendors, Venues, or Clients” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 088: Lynne Reznick Brings the Heart of an Educator to Crafting the Client Experience

By Erin Giberson on

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When we think of weddings, we often think first of the wedding planner. Yet we know that many other vendors likewise contribute to the smooth production of a wedding. In this respect, collaboration is not only key to overall success but also reveals insight from other industry professionals. For example, another person who plays a critical role in how a couple will experience their wedding is the photographer.

And the vantage point of an experienced photographer – regarding what helps planners succeed and best supports couples – is exactly what we’re exploring today.

So, be sure to tune in for this podcast episode!

Lynne Reznick is the owner of Lynne Reznick Photography, a wedding photography company serving couples across New England and Upstate New York. As a former high school history teacher, Lynne draws on her educator’s heart and love of photography as she captures each couple’s unique story.  In addition to launching an online course for wedding professionals, she is a featured speaker at Wedding MBA. Her work has also been showcased in numerous publications, including Rangefinder, The Knot, and Amber & Muse. 

In this episode, Lynne talks about the way that she uses education to serve couples and to cultivate better client experiences.

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Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 084: Alison Laesser-Keck and Bryan Keck On the Driving Force of Hospitality

By Erin Giberson on

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For this planning-duo couple, a background in hospitality reinforced deeply held beliefs in the value of service and of kindness. In fact, it led to developing the confidence that allowed them to make critical decisions for their company that ultimately paid off.

Want to hear how you can apply these principles to your own wedding planning business?

Be sure to tune in to this podcast episode!

Alison Laesser-Keck and Bryan Keck are the owners of Alison Bryan Destinations, a high-end wedding planning company. Alison serves as Event Producer & Creative Director while Bryan manages operations as Director of Events & Travel. In addition to their extensive hospitality experience, they have produced weddings globally since 2008. For their work, Alison Bryan Destinations is named one of the best wedding planners in the world by Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, BRIDES, and Over The Moon.

In this episode, Alison and Bryan share the way that they approach wedding planning from a place of being all-in. Specifically, they address the way that serving others and treating everyone with kindness leads to choosing couples who trust them to take the risks that create an elevated experience. Above all, they share why hospitality is their driving force. 

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Wedding Industry Biz

The Value of Using Digital Storage Options to Capture Event Memories

By Jeff and Shea Cohen on

Easily Commemorate Every Wedding

As a planner, one of the most important elements of helping couples is making sure that everything from their Wedding Day gets commemorated. After all, they are going to want to look back on the memories of their special day and even share it with their family and friends.

This generally means two things. First, you help them with hiring an amazing photographer to capture all of the day’s beautiful photos. Secondly, you help them with hiring a phenomenal videographer so all of the day’s moments are always remembered.

But there’s another emotional component of the wedding that oftentimes gets forgotten when it comes to commemorating them forever… and that’s the cards that are received from all of the guests. Many of these cards include personal and sentimental messages from family and friends, but what does the couple do with these cards? Do they get stored in a shoebox? A drawer? A folder? In an era of never-ending new technology, isn’t there a way to save these digitally?

Well, now there is, and it’s E-Bration! Based on our own wedding experience, we created this perfect digital solution!

E-Bration is an online platform that saves the memories of every card and message collected from important life event celebrations.

And when it comes to important celebrations, weddings are right at the top of the list!

Why it Helps to Offer Your Clients Digital Solutions

So, how can E-Bration help you and your clients? There are two ways that you can offer couples this digital card storage solution.

Read More “The Value of Using Digital Storage Options to Capture Event Memories” →

Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 074: Laurie Arons Discusses the Importance of Loving What You Do and Taking Risks

By Erin Giberson on

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What do you think is the most important factor in a wedding planner’s success? This week’s guest, whose clientele includes Sofia Coppola, Vanessa Getty, and Christy Turlington, says it all comes down to her love for bringing people together and creating once-in-a-lifetime moments.

So, be sure to tune in, because this episode is one you don’t want to miss!

Laurie Arons is the Founder of Laurie Arons Special Events, a full-service event planning company based in California. With over 25 years of industry experience, Laurie is also an educator who designs and hosts an annual destination Wedding Planner Masterclass.  Additionally, she is recognized in three premier lists of top wedding planners: Vogue, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Harper’s Bazaar. In similar fashion, her work is featured in countless publications, including W, Vogue, Martha Stewart Weddings, C Weddings, People, Glamour, Town & Country Weddings, Geraldine Magazine and InStyle Weddings.

In this episode, Laurie talks about how her love of wedding planning motivates everything else, including launching her company and tackling the design challenges that have made her a leader in the wedding industry.

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Wedding Industry Insider Podcast

WII 073: Leah Weinberg Gets Candid About the Emotional Cost of Wedding Planning

By Erin Giberson on

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Know the feeling of taking the blame, as a wedding planner, for something that wasn’t really your fault? Wondering how to combat the emotional overwhelm that’s sometimes par for the course? 

If so, then be sure to tune in for this podcast episode!

Leah Weinberg is the Owner and Creative Director of Color Pop Events. A former commercial real estate attorney, Leah has quickly become a wedding planning industry leader. She has been recognized in BizBash’s Top 500 Event Pros in the US as well as “25 Young Event Pros to Watch” by Special Events Magazine. She is also the author of The Wedding Roller Coaster, and her planning tips have been featured in publications such as Vogue, The New York Times, CNBC, and People.

In this episode, Leah talks about the emotional territory of wedding planning – for both couples and planners – and explains ways to navigate it. Additionally, she breaks down how to maximize the value of producing your own styled shoots.

Read More “WII 073: Leah Weinberg Gets Candid About the Emotional Cost of Wedding Planning” →