5 Ways to Book Wedding Clients Without Meeting Them

By Megan Miranda

With YouTube, Pinterest and other social media platforms, potential clients can learn a lot about you before you’ve even said hello.

For this reason, brides may send you an email getting straight to the point — what are your prices?

Read on to learn how to book this tech-savvy bride without ever meeting in person!

#1 – Master your elevator pitch

As a seasoned wedding pro, you probably already have a succinct and persuasive sales pitch. Make sure this translates well over the phone and as text in an email or SMS, which is how many people communicate these days.

Say what you do, keep it interesting, and make a connection.

#2 – Command the conversation

When speaking on the phone with a bride, maintain control of the conversation. If you are friendly and confident, 95% of people will let you direct the conversation’s flow. Ask about the event — what is the date, the venue, the theme?

If you’ve got a “price shopper” on your hands, keep the bride talking and steer the conversation away from “how much?” to “send me the contract!” The longer you talk with her before getting into the details of price, the better your chances of booking this bride.

#3 – Prepare your digital portfolio

If you’ve been in the business awhile, you likely have a physical portfolio you show at in-person meetings. However, if you’re trying to book a client over the phone or via email, you need a portfolio you can send virtually. Include a link in your email so digitally-inclined brides can easily access examples of your work.

Just because you don’t have to print and arrange photos, doesn’t mean you should include all of your work in your digital portfolio. Gather examples of your best work and keep it neat.

Cinematographers and DJs should include video clips; but really, anyone in the industry can add video for a unique demonstration of products and services!

#4 – Provide a limited-time offer

Whether you’re communicating with a bride over the phone or through email, chances are this conversation will go on longer than an in-person meeting. To prevent a weeks-long email thread or phone-tag exchange, offer a deal if your potential client books quickly.

At some point during your first phone conversation or in one of your first emails, give the bride an incentive to book now.

The more time that passes, the less likely the bride will be to book with you. Keep a few offer ideas in mind so when you speak with a potential client, you have an offer that will suit her needs.

Be friendly, but let her know you’re serious by giving her a limited amount of time to call or email to take advantage of your special offer.

#5 – Use Skype or Hangouts

If you feel you’re better in person or just can’t bring yourself to book a client without meeting her first, try using video chat.

Skype and Google Hangouts both offer great free options for speaking face-to-face from a distance. You can even create chat rooms on Skype to save the history of your conversations with each bride.

Skype and Google also allow you to send and receive files. This means you can share photos of your work and ask for photos of the happy couple’s venue. You can even send over your contract and receive a signed version right in the same place!

Even better, take advantage of the screen sharing feature to give couples a virtual tour of your venue or display a photo gallery of your portfolio.

With so many of today’s busy couples reluctant to meet in person, these strategies will increase your bookings and save them time.

How do you book without a meeting?

 

Megan Miranda is a Portland, Oregon-based blogger, writer and business owner. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her baking bread and planning her own wedding.