How to turn inquiries into new clients. As a vendor that works in the Wedding & Events industry our days are typically filled with corresponding back and forth with potential clients who are inquiring about our services! In reality we should all be extremely excited to be receiving inquiries in our mail box daily. The bad side of this is that most of these are just inquiries and not actual bookings. You have not actually made and closed the sell. Playing the waiting game to see if your bride will eventually say YES is a game of torture!
How to turn Inquiries into new clients
The question you have right now, is how you can turn these inquiries into your future clients? The best way convince a client to book you is by showing them the value of your services. Why should they trust and book you? How can you help them with their dream wedding? What exactly will stop a potential bride from purchasing your services? Time and Money!!! You need to show them how you can save them both time and money! – And you can learn how to make $50K Worth of Wedding business right here! Get a constant flow of clients!
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SHOW YOUR VALUE
When responding to your client inquiries, your main focus should be showing them how you can help them and what your company can do to ensure their main concerns will be your priority. You should also outline all the things you can do for them once they sign up with you. On your email response to the client don’t forget to outline exactly how long the consultation will take and what you will be covering during the meeting. Remember to look great during your consultation. Read more about this right here —> (How to dress for your wedding consultation) Showing value to your clients should also be about going above and beyond just follow ups, it should be all over your sales page, newsletters & blog posts.
ASK THE QUESTIONS AND GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT
A couple may be hesitant to invest in you if they are not sure if you will be a good fit for them. To by pass this thought process, you need to ask them specifically what they are worried about or if they have any concerns. For example if they tell you “We really love your work and think your decor is our style, but we are extremely concerned about going over budget.” Then ask them what their budget is, see if you can work with that budget or what you can do with that budget. Give them the options. My favorite thing to do is adding value to it instead of discounting. Then simply outline what they are getting. ” You will be getting A, B, and C for $1000.00. If you would like to proceed today, I will throw in D complimentary. Bam, you got them! Not only that, you may potentially get future referrals from them.
GO ABOVE & BEYOND
If your couple is still not ready to book you even after showing them your added value and you have outlined every step you would take to ensure they have an awesome event, you will need to show them how you could go above and beyond for their big day! How about throwing in some extras “Throw away bouquet” as a florist? Or as a DJ maybe throw in an extra hour of DJ service. Sometimes people just want free things. If it’s not going to cost you anything go ahead and do it! Remember if it’s going to cost you, don’t do it. We are not here to make you spend more than what the client is willing to pay.
ALWAYS FOLLOW UP
This might seem obvious but how many of you ever follow up? I know some many vendors that don’t follow or take such a long time to follow up. I like to follow up within 48 hours of sending out a contract. A simple “Good morning Sarah, It was really lovely meeting you and Mike the other day. I hope you enjoyed the consultation. We were just following up with you to see if there was anything else we could do for you. We are looking forward to working with you. Feel free to contact us if you have any further questions or concerns, Regards. That’s all you have to do. It’s okay to reach out again. It might even make them feel special, and definitely demonstrates that you are attentive to their needs. I have had so many couples thank me for following up and sending me a deposit and a signed contract.They might have been busy. Following up shouldn’t feel ‘salesy.’ When you love what you do, reaching out again should just be a result of your excitement to potentially work with them! Let them know!
The reasons for these steps is to always show value rather than being salesy! No one likes to feel like they are being sold to and it can often turn them off from you completely! Also remember that you might not book every client you come in contact with. You wont always appeal to everyone and honestly not everyone who contacts you may be your ideal client. And that is absolutely fine! Continue showing value and your ideal client will knocking!
Must Read:
How to be a successful Wedding Planner
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