What do brides really think about your websites and Facebook pages?

Posted on by Alan Berg

I had the privilege of presenting at the Wedding Biz conference in Atlanta in January. Donna Jakulski and Linda Surles did a great job arranging and producing not only the day of vendor education, but also a fantastic bridal show the day before.

The highlight of Wedding Biz, for me, was the first session where 5 real brides were invited to be on a panel. Donna asked them some great questions and here’s what stuck out for me.

Here’s my Top 10 list highlighting what these real brides had to say:

1. The brides said that very, very few of the wedding professional’s websites they went to were good. Some even implied that none of the ones they saw were any good. (ouch!)
2. If they didn’t like your website, they checked you out on Facebook. (is your business page ready for Prime time?)
3. They specifically searched for you by name, they weren’t just randomly searching for someone in your market/category. (surprise)
4. They weren’t interacting with your Facebook page, rather they were looking for photos of recent events you did. While they were mostly talking about reception venues and photographers, I asked them specifically if this applied to other categories and they said, Yes!
5. If they didn’t see anything more compelling on your Facebook page… they went on to someone else.
6. They will look for and read your blog, keep it up to date.
7. They were looking during work hours and said that if you have music or videos that play automatically, you’re getting them in trouble at work. Lose the music or let them ask to hear it.
8. They all set up a new email address just for their wedding info. Yes, they’re screening their emails.
9. They want you to be more conversational in your emails with them. This also holds true for your websites. Don’t write it the way you think everyone else does. Write it to speak to the audience that’s coming.
10. They don’t use Twitter. Enough said.

Your take-away is this: Have the recent photos, blog posts, etc. on your own website and they won’t have to go to Facebook to find out more. First invest in your own site before you spread yourself too thin with lots of other pages.

So, there it is, whether it validates what you already know, or whether it hurts a little… or a lot. The great thing about market research is not that you hear what they say, it’s when you make a positive change based upon that information. So, what are you going to do differently today?

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ALAN BERG, CSP

If you’d like to find out how Alan can work with you and your team, whether you’re a team of one, or dozens, reach out to him. He’s worked with businesses both virtually (phone/internet) as well as on-site at venues, bridal salons, entertainment companies, and more. To find out how he can help you, with sales training or a website review, email Alan@AlanBerg.com call 732.422.6362, international inquiries 001 732 422 6362 or visit his site www.AlanBerg.com