One way to charge more for your services…and get it…is to work for the high-end “luxury” bride market.
But if you’re currently only working with low budget or mid-range wedding budget clients, how do you break into the high-end market?
Natalie Bradley, who specializes in attracting the high-end bride, shared some tips with us.
1. Go where the high-end brides are.
If you want to book more high-end weddings, you have to be where they are.
Do some research and uncover the venues where the wealthy class hangs out and meet them there. In your market this might be a:
- Country club or golf club.
- A high-end bridal boutique.
- Church or synagogue.
- Charity organization.
Once you join the organization, volunteer for a board and get involved. Having a position of visibility that shows off your expertise will make you the logical choice for couples getting married in that circle.
2. Create a luxury package.
The packages you’re selling to budget brides will simply NOT work with the high-end audience.
You need to create a luxury package that is top of the line, includes everything, incorporates “custom” options, and has a price tag to match. Your presentation and pitch should not mention or focus on price or “stretching the budget;” these tactics actually repel high-end brides.
3. You need to be high-end from start to finish.
It goes without saying, but if you want to work in a high-end market then your image, products and services have to be high-end to match.
Your appearance should be professional and well-groomed. Your website must be beautiful and polished. Your packaging and marketing materials need to convey the message that you a high-end service delivering exceptional quality.
Bring in professionals to help you pull this off. Average, mediocre or do-it-yourself just isn’t going to cut it.
4. Target your marketing to the venues and vendors who work with high-end brides.
Rather than promoting your wedding business to everything and everyone, laser target your focus by marketing to the locations and wedding vendors who are already working with your ideal high-end clients.
If you’re doing a bridal show, ONLY attend those who attract couples from the affluent zip codes. Take those high-end boutique vendors out to lunch, make friends with them and find out how they do it.
Break into these circles and you’ll start attracting leads from high-end weddings.
5. Focus on the luxury experience at every level of your business.
Luxury is all about customization, personalization and above and beyond customer service. Luxury is about everything unique, exceptional, one-of-a-kind. Luxury is about feeling special, being pampered and indulged.
Luxury is NOT cheap, reasonable or budget-friendly.
Each step of your marketing and business process should be designed with that luxury experience in mind to deliver that full-on luxury feeling.
Working with the high-end bride is not for every business. It’s a much smaller portion of the market and your marketing has to be top notch to reach them.
But if the high-end bridal market is a good match for your business and you want to work with these brides, here’s where you should start. BE the luxury wedding vendor and those high-end brides will be irresistibly drawn to you.
What do you think about working with the high-end bride?