If you’ve watched our latest video series revealing the 10 Fatal Follow Up Mistakes of Wedding Vendors, you know that a bride or groom typically needs 5-12 contacts with your business before booking.

Well, if you didn’t know before, you know it now!

At any rate, the big question is, “How do I follow up that much without ticking the bride off?”

The secret to relentless follow up that doesn’t drive couples away is PERMISSION. Yes, they will give you permission to follow up if you offer them something really good in exchange. And if you do a good job of delivering on that promise, they’ll actually enjoy your follow up and eagerly look for more!

We’re talking about the joys of automatic email follow up!

Here are some answers to questions on this topic that have come in lately.

Question: Is it better to follow up by phone or email?

“Bride email you wants info about your service- leaves you full contact info.
Should you:

1. Call her first
2. Email her first

From your experience which leads to a better outcome ‘all things being equal?’

Thank You for Your Time and Consideration!”

- Brandon

Answer:

I’d do both. It really depends on the interaction that yields the best response for you.

Most people find that they have a better chance of communicating their value via the phone rather than email. So that’s the preferred choice.

However, it’s not likely that she’s going to answer the phone when you call, since those youngsters rarely pick up for unfamiliar numbers. Give it a shot, leave a message, and send an email, too.

More types of follow up = more contacts with your business, which means you’re another step closer to the booking.

Whatever you do, follow up FAST! Studies by the Kellogg School of Management show that the best time to respond to a lead is within five minutes. Each minute that passes makes it less likely that you will book her.

Question: How do I follow up with my bridal show leads?

“I just finished doing 3 bridal shows. I gathered 70 leads that the bride/groom signed up for. I mentioned during the show I would not inidate them with calls, emails or mails. In your video you claim otherwise. Any advise?”

Thanks
Brian

Answer:

Hey, I didn’t claim anything about how you would follow up in our video. We just met!

If you promised you wouldn’t follow up, then you have to keep your promise. Or you could break it and look like a jerk.

What did they sign up to get?

Once you deliver that, as long as you do a good job, you could ask them to take an action in order to get more cool, free stuff from you. Such an action might be responding to a question in your email, or entering their email in another form.

The key is that you need to get permission.

If what you send them is good and they enjoy it, they’ll be happy to receive more. Feed them useful information and you’ll be building a relationship along the way, so you’re their #1 choice when they’re ready to book.

Question: How do I set up automated email responses to brides and grooms?

“I love your videos! I am trying to put a freebie widget on my site.. I use prophoto 4. I am confused about the autoresponder thing. Could you direct me to some sort of tutorial as to how I can put something similar to your suggestion for giving away articles to brides.

Thank you so much. I can’t wait until you come out with your expert system!”

- Lorri

Answer:

We just released Video 3 with some more details about the Automatic Expert System. Make sure you watch it to get more information about how this works.

We’re about to release the Automatic Expert System 2.0 which IS a step by step tutorial that shows you exactly how to set up your follow up system and automated email.

The free videos about creating an automatic follow up system for your wedding business are only available for a limited time. Make sure you watch them while you still can!

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