Building Lasting Connections: Vendor Relationship Marketing in the Wedding Industry

Kristina Stubblefield: [00:00:00] Thank you for tuning in to another episode of WedPro Business Solutions. I'm your host, Kristina Stubblefield. You may already know that I love providing valuable tips and strategies to wedding vendors that are looking to grow or streamline their business, and I'm really excited to dive into today's topic, Vendor Relationship Marketing.

And I specify vendor because I also feel like there are opportunities out there in regards to client relationship marketing. So with that being said, if you are a wedding vendor seeking to strengthen your connections with other professionals in the industry and maximize collaboration opportunities.

This episode is going to be for you. In my opinion, vendor relationship marketing is all about fostering strong connections and [00:01:00] mutually beneficial collaborations with other wedding professionals, whether it be venues, or vendors. By building and maintaining relationships, you can really tap into a network of support, referrals, and growth opportunities.

So how can wedding vendors implement vendor relationship marketing effectively? I'm going to share with you some steps that you can take. I've been doing what I do for a number of years, and I've been very fortunate to work with, I wish I knew the exact number. Hundreds of wedding professionals. And one of the things that I believe is so important in this industry is relationship marketing.

And I don't think there's a lot of conversations that happen about relationship marketing. [00:02:00] We always talk about the marketing puzzle. It's not one magic piece, and that's the truth. It's not, yes, social media, online presence, your website, information that you hand out, connections that you have with potential clients and your ideal clients.

Absolutely, but this industry, the wedding industry specifically, there are so many ways to work together to benefit everyone, including your clients. I want to start off by talking about, identify your ideal vendor partners. This is a critical step. Who out there do you want to work with? This step is so important with vendor relationship marketing, really identifying who those partners are that you would like to work with. What types of weddings are you wanting to really hone in on and find [00:03:00] vendors?

I'm going to share with you some steps that you can take, and I want to first start off by saying this, I really believe this topic is not talked enough about. The wedding industry I say it all the time, is different than other industries. And I really believe that relationship marketing is a good piece of that marketing puzzle for wedding vendors.

I don't know how many of them actually tap into it, but this is something that I really want to focus this conversation around in the first step that I'm going to talk about is really identifying your ideal vendor partners, who out there are wedding vendors that you want to work with? What venues out there would you like to be part of weddings at their facility?

This step is so important, really taking the time to consider the [00:04:00] type of weddings that you really want. As part of your portfolio and then finding vendors who align with those styles, values, and target areas. Building relationships with the right partners will enable you to create seamless and memorable experiences for your clients.

That's probably a big reason you're in this industry, is you absolutely love events. A lot of wedding vendors live for wedding day. They absolutely love it, and relationship marketing and really identifying those ideal vendor partners is the first place to start. The next step I would suggest is have you looked at what events in your area, industry, events, or networking opportunities are there, whether it be [00:05:00] showcases, open houses. What is there in your area that you could connect up with potential vendor partners and make it a priority to get those dates on your calendar.

Maybe you go out and attend wedding shows, if that's not something that you utilize for your own marketing, even if it is, maybe there's open houses or other wedding shows that you're not buying a booth at, but that you could use that opportunity to go out and meet local vendors in your area face to face.

Not necessarily just over social media or through email, but you can engage in conversation exchange business cards, and then follow up with an email or a phone call, and maybe even schedule a time to get coffee, lunch, just depending on your schedule. And actively participating in these [00:06:00] events, you're going to expand your network it's a given, and then you're opening doors to possible collaborations. Now, let me say this, uh, you heard me mention about wedding shows. I believe there's a really fine line between this because, if you go to a wedding show, while the doors are open to the public, to people that may have registered, you are potentially taking away time that people that have paid for booths, are able to meet with engaged couples. I would be very careful about just attending wedding shows. Maybe it's something that you go at the end of it when the show is slowing down, or maybe it's something that you're able to go to before the doors open and meet some people. Here's what I would encourage you to do.

Check in with the person, the promoter, putting on the show. What are their rules? Because you want to be [00:07:00] very respectful for the engaged couples as well as the wedding vendors that are there and set up that day. They're taking time out of their schedules to be there and to talk to potential clients. You don't want to just go and hand out cards from booth to booth.

So when I say that about going to wedding shows, just make sure you look into the details. There have been times I've been at wedding shows and a vendor that did not pay for a booth is going around handing out business cards from booth to booth, and that's frowned upon a lot of times at shows that I've been a part of or that I've attended because you can be seen as someone trying to hand out your information for free. So just take the time to be respectful about something like that. So the other thing that I want to mention is social media [00:08:00] platforms. So maybe there's a venue that is just opened in the area. You can follow them on social media if they are in your ideal vendor partner category. And you can also use social media, remember it's social. You can use social media to leverage connections with people in the wedding industry, whether it be like or follow their pages or their profiles, sending them a message. There are so many different opportunities there with social media to introduce yourself and start a conversation because it has to start somewhere.

This step can then lead into a phone conversation again, meeting for coffee or lunch, and just to see if you can establish some type of relationship that is in your area, and that goes back to [00:09:00] aligning with your style, values and all of those things. The other thing that I find in this next step I'll share with you is referrals and recommendations.

And I find a lot of times wedding professionals tend to want to share the names of other wedding vendors that they work with on a regular basis because they know these people are professional, show up. All of those things that they feel comfortable enough referring them and building stronger vendor relationships includes reciprocity.

And being proactive in offering referrals and recommendations to your trusted vendor partners. Key word there, Trusted Vendors Partners, and when you come across someone, a couple that is seeking services that aligns with another vendor's expertise, you feel completely comfortable [00:10:00] referring them confidently.

And this can really help strengthen your relationship with other vendors that you're referring. Collaboration and support are the foundations of a thriving wedding community. And I feel like it's so important to have people that you surround yourself with in your industry that you can lean on, ask questions, learn from.

You're not on your own. You are surrounded by others that are in your industry. The next step that I'll share with you is engage in continuing education. I believe that how things evolve with digital marketing, the online space, social media, As well as the in wedding industry itself, I think it's so important to continue your [00:11:00] education, your expertise, really sharpen your skills for how things are evolving in your industry.

And staying up to date with the latest trends and techniques is really important for your professional growth. And when you engage in continuing education opportunities, workshops, whatever you would like to call them, you are also networking with others that either come in person or that are online for a webinar, and you can really establish yourself as a valuable resource within the wedding industry, but also you can foster stronger relationships because people see you at these continuing education classes, workshops, etcetera.

The next one kind of ties into what I mentioned is keeping [00:12:00] those lines of communication and support open, maintaining regular communication, and just being there. And staying top of mind with your vendor partners is crucial for a lasting relationship, whether it be staying in touch through email, social media messages, meeting up in person for coffee or lunch or dinner or drinks, whatever it is.

But also don't forget about celebrating your success and encouraging each other. And being there when you may face different challenges, knowing that you can lean back and forth on your partners. Remember, strong relationships are built on trust, understanding, and genuine support, really caring for that partner.

[00:13:00] Knowing that maybe they have your back or that you can talk to them freely and get their expert opinion or their thoughts on the matter, and I really think that is super important. Communication, we talk about this all the time in regards to couples and in business, communication is key. And I think the reason that I really wanted to do an episode about this topic is relationship marketing has been so critical to our business.

I've been involved with partners clients for over 20 years, and to me that is something that is so important about fostering those relationships and it all not being about business. What I mean by that is finding time in [00:14:00] the schedule to grab lunch or grab coffee or stop by a venue and say hello, or take them a small gesture of something, maybe some cupcakes or whatever it is that you think about, a handwritten note can make such an impression and whatever it is for you to foster those relationships. I've been very fortunate in our business to get a lot of referrals and my husband, Josh and I, we don't take that lightly. We appreciate each and every referral because, for someone to say, this is who you need to call, this is who I used, this is the person that you need to reach out to, to know that people see us through their eyes with such confidence and [00:15:00] feel that they can easily refer us and know that those people are taken care of without question.

To me, those relationships are hard to describe because it's the foundation of our business, and I'm so thankful for that. And I really see an opportunity in the wedding industry for vendors of all shapes, sizes, whatever service or products you have to work together because the core mission is to help people, couples with their special day.

A lot of people say bringing the vision into reality. And here's what I will share with you, one of the things that I feel is so unique about the wedding industry is you don't have a wedding usually one vendor, there's normally a team of them that execute that day together. And that's the key [00:16:00] takeaway with this is everyone working together as a team can not only help the engaged couples, not only help your local community, but also help the wedding industry as a whole.

I've always said we are stronger together than we are individually on our own. And that's why I feel like relationship marketing needed the light shined on it, to really help showcase how you can utilize this in your own business. Whether it be a couple times a month, once a week, whatever works for you, figure out how you give a percentage, no matter how small or how large that percentage is of your time to cultivating relationships, because those will turn into referrals. And what that means for you is more booked events, growing your business, or helping you [00:17:00] reach your goals. I hope that you've enjoyed this episode. I would love to hear your feedback. If you haven't already joined my free Facebook group. Please join it is WebPro Business Community and post in there, do you utilize relationship marketing now in your business to increase your network with wedding vendors. I look forward to hearing what you have to say, and until next time, take care.