Top 10 Bridal Show Strategies
By Michelle Bromley, CPWEP
Wedding tradeshows, venue open houses, vendor showcases…whatever they are called…these events are excellent places to get inspiration and find local professionals to contract for your big day. It is a statistical fact that most couples get engaged between Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day, so it makes sense that January and February are the biggest booking months of the year for wedding vendors.
You should also know that a lot of the local wedding venues and professionals are booked up to a year out and beyond. That means that all the bridal shows occurring between January and March 2013 are filling up late 2013 and early 2014 calendars for the show vendors.
Now that you know the facts, here are my Top 10 Tips to get the best out of all the showcasing events that you attend:
10. Register or RSVP online – More and more show producers are providing discounted or even free tickets for brides who pre-register electronically. Of course, most venue open houses following the shows are free to attend, but normally there will be at least one food vendor who will really appreciate pre-registration so they can be sure to make enough samples for everyone who attends.
9. Create an email address specifically for your wedding planning – Your name and any contact information you provide will be given to show vendors and in some cases magazine advertisers who don’t even attend the bridal shows the magazine publishers produce. You will most likely get phone calls and/or emails from many wedding vendors that you may not have spoken with at the show. If you have a separate wedding related email, you can sift through what interests you and then cancel the account when the wedding is over.
8. Print out address labels with your name, email address, phone number and wedding date (if known) – It is time consuming to fill out all the forms that the vendors have at their booths for promotions, giveaways, or even consultation appointments. This tip will give you more time to talk to more people and get more inspiration.
7. Wear comfortable shoes! – Most of these shows take place at huge convention centers, hotel ballrooms or at sprawling venues. You could talk to 100+ vendors in four hours while standing on your feet or tour a multi-acre ranch or country club venue. The last thing you want when trying to plan your wedding are sore feet!
6. In most cases, there are a LOT of vendors at these shows so get the program and locate the booth numbers of those you wish to speak with. – Strategically planning your vendor visits at these shows will save you time and tired feet. Yes, it is fun to browse and get inspiration but if you go with a direction, you will get the information you want and it will be easier to sift through everything and make a decision.
5. If possible, be flexible with your wedding date – There are only so many Saturdays in a year and those in the months of May, June and October will go the quickest in Austin and the surrounding areas. You will be surprised by how much money you can save by having your wedding in January, February, early March or December. You can save even more by having a day wedding on Saturday or an evening wedding on Sunday. Have a first, second and third date choice. BONUS TIP – check the UT football game schedule before selecting your date. Downtown hotels fill up quickly during home games.
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