All Weddings For a Living Podcasts

Maybe one of these wedding planner niches is for you... This amazing bit of info 4 (more) Wedding Planner Niches – WFAL400 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Here's what you need to know about seating your clients' wedding guests This amazing bit of info Wedding Guest Seating – WFAL399 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Here are your best options for accepting payment from your wedding clients. This amazing bit of info How to Collect your Wedding Planner’s Fee – WFAL398 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Learn from my wedding planner mistakes. This amazing bit of info Avoid These Newbie Wedding Planner Mistakes! – WFAL397 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Learn the ins and outs of creating the soundtrack for your client's wedding. This amazing bit of info An Intro to Wedding Music – WFAL396 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Hear the answers to more of your wedding planner questions. This amazing bit of info More of Your Wedding Planner Questions, Answered – WFAL395 was created by Weddings for a Living.

Hear the answers to listener-submitted wedding planner questions This amazing bit of info Your Wedding Planner Questions, Answered – WFAL394 was created by Weddings for a Living.

This episode is an information-packed audio class primarily for the new (but could certainly help even the more experienced) professional, wedding planner and it's all about wedding cakes. Yum! What could be more symbolic of a wedding than a wedding cake?  So special that it gets its very own, spot-lit table, a wedding cake will be photographed, cut, and oftentimes kept as a special keepsake for what is a very special day. For centuries weddings have been celebrated with a special cake.  And they have evolved drastically! The ancient Romans would finalize their wedding ceremonies by breaking loaves of wheat bread over the heads of the newlyweds to bring luck and prosperity. In medieval Europe [5th century - 15th century AD], the bride and groom would attempt to kiss over a super-tall stack of spiced buns.  If they were successful, a prosperous future was almost certainly guaranteed! Between the 17th and 19th century in England, Bride’s pie was an important wedding dish which eventually evolved into bride cake—the forerunner of the modern-day wedding cake. The multi-tiered wedding cake, as we know it today, has it origins in a creation for the wedding of Queen Victoria’s daughter Vicky, in 1858 (although only the bottom tier was actual cake).  The first tiered wedding cake made entirely of cake was made for Prince Leopold’s wedding in 1882. Because most Victorian bakers lacked the skill to stop the top layer of a wedding cake from becoming the bottom layer it took 20 more years before columns were used to separate the cake layers. Wedding Cakes Today Today, the wedding cake takes center stage at the wedding reception and will be forever immortalized in photos.  It can be one tier or seven!  Cakes can be sleek and modern if that’s your client’s preference.  Or maybe a lavishly ornamented cake more closely resembles the style they have in mind. In some instances, the wedding cake doesn’t even look like a cake at all! Tiered Wedding Cakes Visit any wedding planning website or blog and you’ll see picture after picture of multi-tiered wedding cakes.  A multi-layered cake has to be carefully constructed and reinforced internally to prevent the top layers from collapsing on to the bottom layers. (Which is why it’s so important to entrust this task to an experienced professional!).  For support, dowels are inserted into each layer of cake in addition to foam or cardboard inserted underneath each layer.     For adventurous couples who want to inject a sense of fun into their wedding, a topsy-turvy cake is a whimsical favorite.  Wedding guests always get a kick out of a crooked cake.  And just so you know, the cake isn’t really crooked, it’s just constructed to look that way. Other Types of Wedding Cakes Cupcakes are another trend at weddings.  This stylish alternative is a personal favorite; however, don’t assume that these individual morsels will cost less than a traditional tiered wedding cake.   Creating cupcakes is a labor-intensive process. In the UK, the traditional British wedding cake is a fruitcake covered with marzipan. Inside, the cake is made with fruits, prunes and raisins soaked in brandy or whiskey. The top tier is saved as the 'christening cake' for the couple's first baby. In France the magnificent 'croquembouche' [kroh-kuhm-BOOSH] is a truly unique wedding cake. A cone-shaped tower (sometimes more than 5-feet high) of profiteroles (cream or custard-filled cream puffs) are stuck together with caramel and covered with spun sugar.  The croquembouche evolved during the time of King Charles II and was quite the status symbol since sugar, at the time, was a rare commodity. Wedding Cake Frosting & Fillings Wedding Cake Frosting or Icing Your clients have several options for the type of icing for their wedding cake.  In the US fondant and buttercream are most frequently-seen. Fondant Fondant is the "secret sauce" of picture-perfect cakes. Made of sugar,

It’s time to answer a few of your wedding planner questions. Each question and answer is listed below, however, you’ll gain lots more info if you listen to the entire episode (it’s 38 minutes long). Listen to the Episode – #392 The Family & Friends Wedding Planning Discount It’s inevitable that those closest to you will ask for your help with their social events. Tailor’d Events would like to know: How do you help family and friends with their weddings without losing money or being taken for granted? Here’s what I suggest: Send your  family and friends a Wedding Business announcement letter — think new baby announcement but, instead, of sharing newborn vital statistics, make this announcement all about your new wedding business.  Include your web address, details about your specialty, a picture of your office, a copy of your most popular article…all the stuff that you’re proud of and can’t wait to share. This heartfelt communication lets each recipient know that you have transitioned from wedding hobbyist to entrepreneur.  Doing this should curb some of those ‘free’ requests that you’re resentful about. It’s also a good move to create a policy for what you will and won’t do or discount for family and friends.  If you decide to discount your services, make sure you cover your expenses. And then of course, you have to stick to your guns and walk the walk!  This means making sure that each wedding and special event that you work on is handled professionally:  by being upfront about your fees (discounted or otherwise), using a professional wedding planner contract, preparing (and sticking to) a budget, keeping track of your time and all the other tasks that separate the wedding planning dabblers from the true hustlers. How to Follow-up with Potential Clients The magic is in the follow-up.  Ever heard that?  Thien asked me: How many times should you follow-up with a prospect?  Is there some sort of system that should be in place? Here’s what I do: If after meeting with potential clients for the very first time I learn that they are not ready to sign a contract, I suggest that the prospect contact me a few days later at specific time.  This way the pressure is on them, not me and I don’t feel like I’m hounding anyone for a sale. But my communication with a prospect doesn’t end there. * I immediately send my potential clients a hand-written thank-you note – In an envelope. With a stamp. In the mail. Regardless of how well (or not) the meeting went, each prospect gets one of these. * In a few days, when/if the prospect contacts me as planned, we either move forward with a contract/deposit (yay!) or if they opt not to hire me, I thank them for the opportunity and for taking the time to let me know and I wish them well.If I don’t hear from the prospect as planned, it’s on to step #3 * I send a short, no-pressure, follow-up email letting them know that I’m still ‘here to help’ if they need me and then I direct them to helpful wedding planning content – articles, podcast episodes, newsletter, etc. – ideally with a local slant and created by yours truly.  I also make sure to let prospects know about any current promotions or discounts for services or items that they have expressed an interested in. And, that’s it. Once I’ve had a face-to-face meeting with a couple who have expressed an interest in what I do, hopefully there’s a connection  and I’m the one (the wedding planner, that is) for them.  But, that may not be the case  for any number of reasons. Remember as a business owner, no one owes you a thing.  Nothing.  Zip. Nada. Not even an explanation.

Here's a list of wedding planner associations to consider This amazing bit of info Q: Should I Join a Wedding Planner Association? – WFAL391 was created by Weddings for a Living.