One of the first things engaged couples will book when it comes to their wedding is their venue. Once they’ve got a date and a gorgeous location locked in, they can start hiring their other wedding suppliers. This makes wedding venues the first wedding professionals that couples really come into contact with. Venues can guide their couples when it comes to picking their other wedding suppliers by suggesting vendors they trust. From photographers to florists and live entertainment, wedding venues come into contact with so many wedding businesses, which makes them a fountain of knowledge. This is why getting onto a wedding venue’s supplier list can be a game charger for your wedding business.
How exactly do you find yourself on a wedding venue’s supplier list? Well, you need to be a vendor that the venue trusts and knows is right for their clients. Venues want to work with other wedding businesses that will make their own business and client experience shine. There are several ways to help increase your chances of being selected for a venue’s supplier list and here’s where to begin:
Research & Experience
If you want to be on a wedding venue’s supplier list, you first need to know which venues you want to work regularly with. Start by researching wedding venues that are in your area and match your dream client’s needs and aesthetic. Also think about venues you’ve already worked with and want to return to.
Make a Spreadsheet
You’re going to be compiling a lot of information so making a spreadsheet with all the venues you want to work with, or might have already worked with is a great way to keep track of everything. Collect details like a point of contact, an email, phone number and social media accounts for the venue and add them to the spreadsheet. Once you begin making contact you can make notes to keep track of the venues you’ve already contacted and their response. You don’t want to annoy the venue by pestering them because you’ve forgotten you already reached out.
Be Social & Visible
One of the best ways to get the attention of a wedding venue is by being social with them. Don’t hide behind your business, be the face of it when it comes to reaching out to venues you want to work with. Experts say that you need to touch base with the venue around six times for them to remember you. To get you started, here are some ways to start being social and visible to your dream wedding venues:
- Send an introductory email explaining who you are, what your services are and how the venue would benefit from working with you. You don’t need to send over every piece of information about yourself, services and a full brochure all in one email. You can take some time to build a relationship with your venue contact before sending over a glossy brochure for them to view.
- Old School, but a classic, pick up the phone and introduce yourself. This is much more personal than an email and if you’re confident over the phone it’s a great way to stand out from the inbox full of other wedding suppliers. You could try to set up an in person meeting by asking for a tour, or offering some new photos or a sample of your product.
- Follow the venue on their social media accounts and interact with them. Drop them a like, leave a nice comment and even reply to their stories. This can help build a relationship with their marketing team and potential clients might see you interacting with the venue. The more regularly you interact, the more likely it is that the venue will remember you.
- Already booked to work at a venue? Make sure to introduce yourself to the venue owners or venue manager before the wedding day. You can talk about how excited you are to be working at their venue and introduce yourself so you have already built a connection with them before you even get to the venue. If you can, try to take two minutes on the wedding day to introduce yourself to your venue contact in person.
- Be untraditional in your approach. You don’t have to email, or call; you could get creative and try a different method – bake a cake, invite the venue contact to a showcase, send them a floral arrangement or introduction gift. You want to be a supplier that sticks out to your venue and proves that you will deliver high quality work to the venue and their clients.
Collaborative & Creative Marketing
By being on a wedding venue’s supplier list, the benefits are clear for your business – a trusted recommendation to your ideal clients, but it’s a two way street. The venue should benefit from prioritising working with you as well. You both benefit when clients book you, so finding ways to collaborate on your marketing is a great way to attract new clients for you both. You can collaborate on a styled shoot to boost both of your wedding portfolios, make a blog post or reel highlighting the venue, or even host an Instagram live together. These are all win-win marketing situations, especially when you tag and share each other’s work to your audiences.
You could also offer the venue a discounted price tailored to them and their couples wedding needs. To give yourself an advantage against other suppliers you can make a custom price list bespoke for that venue and its clients.
Nurture the Relationships
It’s always fun when you work with suppliers you’re already industry friends with. Building relationships takes time and effort. Even when you think you’ve made it in with a venue, don’t forget to keep nurturing that relationship. You can send holiday cards, keep interacting with their social media accounts and generally be an industry friend to them. Business relationships are about reciprocity, so don’t expect the relationship to be one sided and just benefit you.
If you want to approach your dream wedding venues to build a relationship that hopefully develops and lands you on their supplier list, but don’t have the time, think about working with a virtual assistant who can help you with the research and enquiries. You can learn more about my virtual assistant services and how they can help your wedding business flourish here.