This Week In Weddings

If the wedding industry isn't stressful.... we don't know what is! And even when the world is normal, the goal of creating perfection for a client's wedding day can take a toll on any wedding industry entrepreneur. How do we live in a stressful world and work in a stressful industry without losing our minds? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a stress reduction coach with a background in the event industry about reducing stress while running a wedding business.  About our guest: After contracting shingles twice before the age of thirty, Victoria knew she needed to recalibrate her relationship to stress. Following her own wellness journey and becoming certified as a health and a life coach, Victoria now helps women to reduce their stress, live more fully and better perform in their daily lives. Through Stress Less Ladies Ltd., Victoria supports women in stress reduction through one-to-one coaching, group coaching, online programs, and is an experienced internati

In an industry built by reputation, how you come out of a difficult situation says so much about you and your business. And we all know that the wedding industry definitely has its fair share of difficult! Difficult clients, difficult situations, or even difficult vendor partners, can make producing "perfect" events for a living no small feat. But when faced with these challenging obstacles, how do you come out on top? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a seasoned wedding photographer who has had his fair share of experiences worth sharing.  About our guest: Brian Leahy is a laid-back Southern California guy with an intense passion for people and travel. His philosophy is simple: every great photo starts with connection—a connection with people, their loved ones, their crazy friends, and the natural beauty of destination locations. His outgoing nature, relaxed style and knack for capturing fleeting candid moments has made him one of the most sought-after photog

Pricing your services is always a hot topic in the wedding industry. But what many entrepreneurs don't consider is that your price determines much more than just the numbers in your bank account. How you're priced can often equate to a perceived value for your goods and services and even determines who your target audience is. Before making changes to your pricing or even your pricing structure, take a listen to this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast. We're chatting about how your pricing is your marketing and the two really go hand in hand. About our guest: Although she didn’t realize it at the time, Gretchen Culver’s desire to run her own business started at a young age with her summer lemonade stands. After college, a lemonade stand didn’t seem to be the best way to pay back her student loans, so she entered the world of events working for a catering company. She quickly fell in love with weddings and has been creating them ever since.  Over the past 14 years, Gretchen has worked in alm

Getting your wedding business active on Pinterest is a perfect task during unexpected business downtime, but Pinterest can be confusing! And many wedding businesses just don't know how (or why) to use it for marketing their companies. Have no fear... Julianne Smith is here! In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting all about Pinterest for your wedding business and what you should be doing to take advantage of this search engine that's perfect for showcasing the visuals that the wedding industry is known for.  About our guest: Julianne Smith is a nationally recognized wedding accessory designer, digital media strategist and small business educator. Julianne is the owner of The Garter Girl, a stylish wedding garter design company she started in 2004, after she couldn’t find a wedding heirloom worthy of her best friend. The Garter Girl is known for stylish and meticulously handmade wedding heirlooms that are too pretty to toss. The Garter Girl and Julianne have been featured on

While Instagram and Facebook may be great social media channels, Google still reigns supreme when it comes to finding information on the internet. But getting your company's website to rise in the search rankings is no easy feat. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with tech guru Julie Novack from PartySlate all about optimizing your website for search engine optimization (SEO). Through a few simple tips focused around content strategy, Julie shares how to better optimize your site with SEO in mind.  About our guest: Julie is the CEO and Co-Founder of PartySlate, a Houzz-like website where leading event professionals share their work, build their brand and drive leads. Before founding PartySlate, Julie held executive positions at top-tier digital agencies such as Razorfish, Vibes Mobile, and Agency.com. With over 20 years of digital marketing experience with some of the biggest brands in the world, Julie is excited to bring this expertise to the events industry. Julie 

The Black Lives Matter movement certainly is not new. But the recent deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor have finally brought racial injustice, prejudice and systematic racism to the forefront of America discussions. While the This Week In Weddings podcast is generally about the business of weddings, the awareness to inequality is everybody's business. Join us as we discuss microaggressions toward the black community that you may not have even been aware of. About our guest: What Amber Knowles loves most about weddings is the immense love and happiness present on the day. There really is nothing that compares to having all of your family and friends present from around the world in one place, ready to celebrate with you. As the founder of The Amber Studio, Amber’s artistic vision is to create joyful imagery of the diverse couples she works with. Her goal is to capture the real you, the real way you smile, the real way you laugh, and the real way you love. It's a bigger task than simply d

Reducing business expenses, and especially right now, is certainly on the top of every entrepreneurs to do list. But how can you still market your business when you have a limited budget to do so? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting all about marketing with a limited budget and what things you can do to stay top of mind without spending large amounts of money. Before you cancel all your marketing activities in an effort to save money, check out this week's episode with Kinsey Roberts. About our guest: A marketing strategist for wedding pros, co-owner of Vista View Events, and a Certified Wedding Planner through The Bridal Society, when Kinsey isn’t sitting down with brand-building women for She Creates Business, you can find her co-hosting The Venue Podcast, attending an industry conference, or helping wedding pros build and execute their marketing efforts and content strategy. On the rare occasion she’s not immersed in the world of weddings, she’s likely wandering aro

Are you over the Zoom call? It's safe to say that this new way of meeting with clients and selling your services isn't going away any time soon, so wedding industry entrepreneurs have to get on board with a new way to communicate. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with Eddie Zaratsian about this new world of digital and virtual communication and the changes he's making in his process to adapt. About our guest: Eddie Zaratsian is the visionary behind Eddie Zaratsian Lifestyle and Design, a full-service event design and production studio based in Los Angeles, California. With over 25 years of experience, Eddie’s creativity and passion is evident in every aspect of his work, and his ability to imagine and actualize events is unparalleled. Named as one of the top five international florists by the London Financial Times, Zaratsian has built a reputation as a visionary artist, and his work has been celebrated and featured by Martha Stewart, Harper's Bazaar, Grace Ormonde,

How many events do you want to do in a year? Even more importantly, how many events can you do in a year while still providing excellent service to your clients? While some wedding businesses operate with volume in mind, others take on fewer events and give a higher touch experience. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with wedding planner and designer Wendy Kay about the different business models and the advantages of turning volume into higher value. About our guest: With a background in producing and directing live and recorded television for the better part of 10 years, Wendy is the definition of “quick on your feet.” She prides herself on being a solution-oriented problem solver—which has served her well in her 10 years of planning and executing flawless events. Wendy’s passion to create and execute original ideas for each of her couples’ weddings means that in addition to running smoothly, they are a fun, enjoyable, memorable, and tangible pieces of fine art. Wit

Oh TikTok. You so crazy! But is this new social media platform something wedding pros should be jumping on? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a wedding planner who has jumped on the TikTok bandwagon to the tune of 28,000 followers and thinks it's a great way to connect with the next generation of couples. Whether you're already on the platform doing the Savage dance or don't even know what the Savage dance is, this episode is definitely worth a listen. About our guest: Sarah Wintersteen is owner and creative director of Sistered States Event Styling, a boutique wedding planning company based out of Dallas, TX. She specializes in creating curated and classic events with a personalized playful twist for her couples. As a fourth generation business owner, Sarah started her event planning business at the age of 22 and has continued to build her business over the past 3 years, bringing personalized and elegant weddings to her couples around the DFW metroplex!  Over t

This is the time to dig into projects that have been on the back burner for far too long, and for many wedding pros, that may include updating their website. But the pretty pictures on your company website aren't the only things that are important. The words on your website are just as important, but are left as an afterthought. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with Katy Taylor, lead copywriter and brand communication strategist for Ideaction Consulting. She's setting us straight on the importance of the language on your website and how a few strategic tweaks can make a big difference in attracting potential clients and converting them into customers. About our guest: Katy Taylor Jacobson is the lead copywriter and brand communication strategist for Ideaction Consulting. Katy, and the team at Ideaction Consulting, help wedding and event professionals find their voice and stand out from their competition. Not stand out by describing how much they love cats or pumpkin

With events not taking place throughout the country in the near future, wedding pros are being forced to take time off. But what are you doing during the down time to make it productive? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with wedding planner Sara Bauleke, who is no stranger to taking sabbaticals. She shared with us in Episode 124 how and why taking a sabbatical can be transformative, and in this episode we're chatting about how this Covid-19 imposed break is so different. From giving yourself grace to brain dumping that neglected to-do list, we're chatting all about the ways we're getting through this challenging time in our lives and businesses. About our guest: Sara Bauleke, a wedding planner & designer, has been creating modern, fun filled weddings that are distinct reflections of her clients' personalities for over 15 years. A logistics expert who's also a creative, Sara brings a rare combination of skills and savvy to wedding production. Sara is a West Coast

With so much unknown about when events will take place again, it's no wonder that wedding pros around the world have fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of change. Fear about money. Fear about what will happen with their businesses and livelihood. But what if we could use that fear as motivation instead of something that holds us back? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a photographer about embracing the fear that many of us have right now and moving forward successfully. About our guest: Chris J. Evans is a luxury wedding and destination photographer who creates photographs you not only see but truly feel. His images transport you back to the very instant they were created. That cool breeze fluttering the back of your neck, the warmth of your soulmates embrace, this is his art. Chris has photographed weddings in Italy, Santa Barbara, Laguna Beach, Maui, Oahu, Kauai and Lana’i, with features in Brides, Martha Stewart, The Knot, Destination Ido and Wedluxe. Your weddi

With events not taking place in the coming weeks, all of us in the wedding industry have a little bit of down time. There's never been a better time to take a look at your online presence and do an audit of your brand. But what does that even mean? And how do you do it? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a brand strategist who works with creative professionals in the wedding industry. Kaleigh Wiese is sharing some amazing tips for doing a brand audit, and now that we have some time to do it... there are no excuses! About our guest: Kaleigh Wiese is an endless creator, visual branding educator, entrepreneur, and public speaker. She has worked her entire career helping creatives find their visual voice. She found Méldeen in 2008, a luxury branding and paper goods company focused on designing unique touch-points throughout the wedding experience. LABEL by Méldeen launched in 2018 with resources and services to help event pros and creative find their brand voice and

If you're anything like us, you've been thrown into a whole new world where it's difficult to tell what day it is, your workspace isn't what it used to be, and your "co-workers" (a.k.a. children) don't understand what business hours are. Welcome to the new world of shelter-in-place and working from home! In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a wedding industry professional who has worked at home from the inception of her business and has never looked back. She's sharing some of her top tips and tricks to make the WFH life efficient and productive. About our guest: Alexandra is the owner of Ladybird Paper Co., a full-service stationery and calligraphy studio with a focus in weddings. She loves integrating her life-long love of fine art with custom watercolor or hand-drawn sketches of florals and venues into her invitation suites, and of course finishing everything off with a scripted address. She first dabbled in the invitation world in 2010 designing children’s birt

If there's one thing that the coronavirus has taught us, it's that as business owners we can never be too prepared. Just like a tornado or an earthquake, COVID-19 is a disaster, and now that the event world has a little bit of down time because of it, what should we be doing to be better prepared for the next unexpected situation? In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a seasoned event planner who has seen her fair share of event complications over the years. She's sharing some of the risk management tools she uses in her business that we can all incorporate. About our guest: Kawania Wooten, CMP, is an innovative event management executive, who excels at competitive strategic planning, convention and trade show management, and volunteer management. Her expertise lies in developing operational and programmatic initiatives that provide added value, reduce operational costs, streamline internal processes, and standardize association policies and procedures. As the owner

Tom Hanks. Andy Cohen. Idris Elba. We all know what they have in common. And without a doubt, that list of stars who have first-hand experience with COVID-19 is going to continue to grow just as the list of ordinary people who contract it continues grows. Truly, no one is immune. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with a wedding and event photographer who has joined the list of Covid-19 survivors. Now that she has recovered, she's doing her part to educate others by sharing her story. Listen in as she shares how she contracted it, what her symptoms were, and her experience with the illness and recovery. And not only that, but she has some solid ideas on what we all must do to now in order to save lives. About our guest: With a MFA in visual art and a passion for empathic storytelling, Lara has built a successful career within the photography field. Her ability to bear witness and translate that emotionally through striking compositions has created a strong reputation

You guys... what in the holy hell is going on??!? COVID-19 is hitting us all in the event industry HARD, and now is the time to look at your business and adjust as best you can. In this week's episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting with Michelle Loretta about ways to prep your business for the economic impact of the coronavirus. About our guest: Michelle Loretta is a strategist for the wedding industry and creator of Sage Wedding Pros, founded in 2009. She blends her past as an accountant for Deloitte, a sales and marketing manager for DDLA, a merchandiser for Coach, and a wedding stationery entrepreneur to help entrepreneurs better their businesses. Sage Wedding Pros produces Be Sage Conference, a master-level event for wedding professionals nationwide. Michelle has been asked to speak at a number of industry conferences, including Wedding Wire World, NACE Experience, and The Special Event. She was named to the TOP 1000 Event Professionals by BizBash in 2019. In this episode, listeners

We've said it a million times, but without a sale, you don't have a business. And most of us in the wedding industry haven't had formal sales training experience. In this episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting all about sales techniques as well as the different personality types that you might be selling to in the wedding industry. Identifying the type of person you're selling to can give you an advantage in the sales process as you can tailor your approach. About our guests: Beth Lindsay Chapman is a veteran of the fashion industry and is known for her work as a bridal boutique owner, stylist, mentor, author, and wedding fashion consultant. After her tenure as a Vice President of Merchandising for Ann Taylor, her love of bridal fashion, and sincere desire to create a memorable shopping experience for brides, compelled her to launch The White Dress by the shore, a Connecticut based luxury bridal boutique, in 2004.  Beth is also the founder of Beth Chapman Styling + Consulting. After runn

If you're wanting to make the move into the luxury wedding market, you have to have a high end portfolio. And while not every wedding client may have a six- or seven-figure budget, there are certainly ways to make a piece of every wedding stand out. In this episode of the This Week In Weddings podcast, we're chatting about the ways to highlight the best features of a wedding in order to up-level your portfolio and your brand. About our guests: Starting off on Craigslist, Abby photographed her first wedding for $200 (including a wedding and an engagement session!). She knew from the very beginning that she wanted to be in the luxury market. So it was incremental strategic steps that she took along the way to create the luxury business she wanted. Abby has consistently grown the business every year and has been published in numerous publications such as Martha Stewart Weddings, BRIDES and People Magazine. After five years into the business, Abby’s realized there was high demand for another photographer to fulfi