How Do I Get Couples to Hire Me Sooner?

“My biggest frustration is unrealistic expectations.

I teach Brides and Grooms how to dance for their wedding. Many of them believe I carry a magic wand and I can make them instant dancers days before their wedding. However down here in reality, it takes 3 to 6 months to feel adequate dancing with a partner (on dancing with the stars the stars spend 244 hrs. working on their dancing by the end of the 8 week show.)

I use my marketing to enlighten wedding couples that there is not a magic fix ( or frontal lobotomy for learning)  and that time is the best teacher, yet they still want to wait until the last moment under nonproductive stresses to begin their learning.

How can I reach them more efficiently?

Thank you in advance,”

Holly

Answer: Use strategic networking, laser targeting and education to fill your calendar.

First, I absolutely LOVE that you’re using email marketing!  It’s a fabulous way to build a relationship with couples, position yourself as an expert and educate them into a booking.

Have you watched our free video series about how to get brides and grooms to RESPOND to email?

It’s pretty challenging to educate couples into thinking about their first dance in the realistic time frame it takes to actually practice and learn it in time for the wedding.  People are born procrastinators.  🙂

I’d tackle this on a couple fronts:

1. Network with businesses couples are contacting around the same time they need to start lessons.  

How many months before the wedding does a couple realistically need for lessons?  What other wedding planning steps are they typically working on at that time?

For the sake of example, let’s say they need to start lessons 4 months prior to the wedding and you discover that brides are beginning the dress fittings around this time.  Contact bridal salons and present them with a special First Dance package.  You might even give them a certificate for a free intro dance lesson to give to brides when they come in.

If a bridal salon runs a bridal fashion event, volunteer your services and do a demo first dance or fun and easy lesson.  You’ll get in front of engaged couples and show off what you can do.

You might also advertise on the websites of businesses they’re working with, or write guest blog posts for them around wedding dance topics.

2. Laser target the market of couples who hire you for dance lessons.

Who are your ideal couples?  Does one of them have a dance or performance background? Are they the type who wants a choreographed first dance?  Does one of them have two left feet?

Really get specific about who your ideal couple is: age, cultural background, education level, style of wedding, venues they choose, other vendors they work with.  Then target your marketing specifically for them.  Find fun and entertaining ways to educate them about when they really need to start practicing for an awesome First Dance.

3. Educate couples by introducing them to the realities of the First Dance on your website/blog and by writing for other people’s websites.

(Sounds like you already know how to prove your value and presell couples automatically with your email list.)

A great way to do this without being “preachy” is through testimonial videos of your couples.  Have them talk about their original concerns about the first dance, that it took them four months (or however long) to get the routine down, how comfortable they felt with the process and how much their guests loved it.  You can even tell the story of a couple who DIDN’T start their lessons in time and what happened as a result.  Ouch!

4. Offer a tantalizing (but realistic) package for those last minute dance lesson requests.

Is there something you can realistically teach a couple in the month before the wedding?  I’m wondering if you could come up with a super simple, streamlined dance.

Or if you want to avoid the stressful situation of trying to teach them last minute, perhaps creating a wedding package for a minimum of 3 months of lessons could prevent the situation entirely.

I suspect you’ll have the best luck partnering with other businesses with a special offer that tells them something like, “Did you know that one of the biggest regrets couples have about their wedding day is NOT taking dance lessons?  It takes an average of four months of practice to feel completely comfortable…”

What do you do to get couples to book NOW instead of waiting?

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