Lift Off!

One of the major perks of living in Central Florida is being able to watch the Space Shuttle lift into space from your front porch!

This is from tonight's successful launch of the space shuttle Atlantis. We counted down and watched it shoot into space right outside our front door - this was the spectacular and awe-inspiring view.

Godspeed.

What NOT to Do...

I encourage you to click on over to WeddingBee to follow this post. Wow. What a stunning example of what NOT to do as a vendor in refutting a negative blog post. Everything about the way this vendor handled the situation was wrong - and now it is out there for the world to see (although it is remaining anonymous for now). But it is a great learning experience and interesting to see play out. Be sure to read the growing list of comments from brides as well as vendors (over 40 within the first 30 minutes of Bee's post! UPDATE: 71+ and growing in the firfst 24 hours from real brides and a few vendors!!). No one is sympathetic to the 'wronged' vendor - all because of his unprofessional reaction.

One of my husband Patrick's 'quotes to live by' (and he has many that you will hear along the way!) is that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. So true, so true. This whole situation could have been handled so much better by this vendor - and with a few deep breaths and more than a few edits and re-writes to the email it could have elicited a totally different response.

Of interest - read one of the lines from Bee in this post, "If you google the name of the vendor above, the Weddingbee comments about him show up as the second result! So negative comments left on blogs and messageboards can definitely impact a company’s business."

Just about everything that each of us does in business is 'out there' for the world to see.

Weddings (and related vendors) are probably among the most talked about, recapped, critiqued events that are shared online.

It's not going away - in fact getting more transparent each and every day. You will never beat it - but you can join it - by representing yourself as a consumate professional each and every day.

Don't be this vendor!

Are you a low maintenance wedding professional?

We all know about the 'high maintenance bride' - no one out there needs an explanation of that phenomenon (*wink!*).

As industry professionals moving at the speed of light, it is easy to get caught up in the demands of your own business to forget about the stress and chaos surrounding the bride.

This 'calendar' from a real brides blog sums it up pretty well (click on it to see its full glory!).

Total. Drama.

Realize that you are but one small piece of a very large equation. Add to that a group of people who have (most likely) never planned anything on this scale before in their lives. Throw in a big dose of human nature, tense relationships, unsolicited opinions, conflicting advice, full time jobs, pressure to make it perfect, unreasonably high expectations, nerves and oh yes - a totally blown budget and that is just to name to name a few!!!

Can you really blame a girl for being stressed?!?

Being aware and empathetic of this fact and in effect a 'low maintenance vendor' will be perhaps the biggest gift you can give your bride (in addition to executing your portion of the wedding flawlessly of course!).

Take an extra moment to ask how she is doing (and really listen to her when she answers).

Above all else - do not add unnecessarily to her stress. Think about the messages you are delivering, the tone of your voice and emails, the deadlines you are placing on her and, in the rare cases you must deliver bad news, offer a well thought out solution or some alternatives at the same time.

Better yet - you don't need to tell her about the 'behind the scenes' situations - leave her out of your challenges completely. Don't be the 'tipping point' that sends her over the edge - be a true partner in making her enjoy this day to the fullest.

The rewards will pay without fail (see next blog post!).

The Ultimate Brand Ambassador

Probably the single greatest benefit of embracing the wedding market is the true 'viral nature' of this business. It is a constantly re-generating, recession and disaster-proof (we saw that after 9-11 and Hurricane Katrina!) market. Just about perfect in every way!

The Bride is a Powerful Brand Ambassador. I see this in play daily on the many message boards, blogs and forums that I frequent. I have seen businesses be made into overnight successes and wedding professionals turned into virtual rock-stars by 'influential' bride's reviews and conversly, I have seen businesses fail almost overnight in some very dramatic cases. Of course, the majority of the impact falls somewhere in the middle but is nonetheless critical to understand.

Knowing all of this, every wedding professional engaged in this market - whether a wedding photojournalist, a venue, a wedding planner, florist, invitation designer, videographer, cake designer, calligrapher, caterer, hotel, etc. etc. etc. MUST understand the power of the impact of how they deal with each and every bride.

Today's bride has an average of (5) bridesmaids, of those (3) are engaged or will be engaged in the coming year...and so on and so on and so on...you get the picture. Add in the intrinsic viral nature of the internet and WOW - it is staggering at the opportunity (both positive & negative)for all levels and styles and sizes of businesses - from government tourist boards to the sole proprieter.

Remember this visual every time you answer the phone, reply to an email or conduct an in person planning meeting. How well do YOU treat your brand's most powerful ambassador?

Now - go and hug a bride (or 3) today! xoxoxo

(graphic and statistics courtesy of Conde Nast Bridal Media)

Henri Bendel/BFF Bridal Event

A week from tonight, on June 13th, I will be in NYC at my most favorite store ever - Henri Bendel, for "The Bendel Bride" event sponsored by the uber plugged in wedding resource, BFFBridal.com.

Also sponsoring this event are the amazingly talented Michelle Rago, author of the stunning new book "Signature Weddings", Cipriani and Rosemount Wines.

I will be there on behalf of my client, The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, the exclusive travel partner along with representatives of the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman.

These intimate bridal events combine shopping, beauty, great food & wine and *hot* trends - all in a chic and relaxed setting. I love out of the box approaches to connecting with today's sophisticated brides & grooms - and plan to blog on others that I have discovered along the way!

I promise a recap following the event.

Party On!

Wow - somehow I missed this before now! Check out partyspot.com from theknot! As so many in the industry who specialize in weddings also work on other *milestone events* this is a fabulous way to target these markets and of course it is done to perfection!

Billed as "Ideas, resources and advice for your sweet sixteen, bar mitzvah, baby shower, quinceañera, anniversary party and more!"

A much needed resource not only for those planning these life events but also for those in the industry who want to diversify a bit and take their current business to the next level - on a national scale.

Same Sex Wedding Economic Impact

Same-Sex Weddings Good for NYC Economy

WNYC News

NEW YORK, NY June 05, 2007 —Weddings are a multi billion dollar industry - millions of which are spent here in New York. City Comptroller William Thompson used that argument today to say same-sex marriage would be good for the state economy and to urge state legislators to act on a languishing bill.

REPORTER: Thompson estimates that in the first three years of allowing gay marriage the city would attract an additional $142 million in wedding spending.

THOMPSON: The economic benefits would be derived primarily from wedding related spending by residents and visitors along with spending by their out of town visitors and guests.

REPORTER: He says there is one economic downside. New York City businesses would have to spend $33 million more in health insurance costs to employees' spouses. Governor Spitzer has proposed same-sex marriage legislation but state lawmakers are deeply divided on the issue.

iAdore, iLove, iDo. iVillage.

17 million women. Say it with me. 17 million women. That is the universe of iVillage.

Hard to believe that before this week they did not have a Weddings Channel. Enter the brilliant Debbie Fine - hands down one of the most dynamic and brilliant business women (& wife and mom too by the way!) I have ever known. She is truly an inspiration and as of last fall the new President of iVillage which is owned by NBC/Universal.

We caught up two weeks ago for lunch when she was here in Orlando for a conference. Seemed like just yesterday (and not 8 years ago!) she was the Publisher of Brides Magazine and and I was at Disney Weddings and we collaborated on all sorts of innovative partnerships & promotions and became friends along the way!

Realizing that iVillage was long overdue to add Weddings to the mix - Debbie called up David Liu, co-founder of theknot and struck up a deal for them to provide content (see Valentines Day press release here). Brilliant - what a killer combination!

I am thrilled to be working directly with Debbie and her team again on various client initiatives and look forward to many more successes along the way. It is great to work with people who 'get it' on every level and are just plain fun too! And did I mention 17 million women?

'Competitive Weddings'!?!

This off the wire from the UK:

"The happiest day of peoples’ lives has often been a source of worry, but stress levels are soaring due to ‘competitive weddings’. Competitive weddings syndrome is a term coined by TK Weddings, a UK wedding planning company, following their research of 1,000 brides.

The survey showed that more than half of all brides want their event to be the best that their guests have ever attended. To achieve this wedding spending in the UK is now almost $120 a minute with average wedding costs running at $40,000!!

Read the entire article from The Daily Mail here.

(Photo by David Wolfe Photography)

Wed With The World In Mind!

Yesterday was "World Environment Day" and portovert.com has launched a campaign to encourage couples to 'wed with the world in mind.':

Portovert.com Launches Haute Weddings, Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet

WASHINGTON DC.- June 5, 2007 —In honor of World Environment Day (aka WED), Portovert.com -- the exclusive magazine for eco-savvy brides and grooms -- is launching Haute Weddings, a year long campaign supporting Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet. HAUTE WEDDINGSIn January 2007, Portovert.com ushered in the year of the green wedding. To drive this new craze from trend to lifestyle, Portovert kicks off the haute campaign (pronounced “hot”) with the first televised green wedding this June. Other events include a celebrity-hosted fashion show featuring eco-resort fashions this July and in March 2008, the Haute Wedding Event, the first wedding event that’s green and carbon-neutral. The Haute Wedding Event: This boutique-style wedding event will take place March 9 and March 10, 2008 at the Bently Reserve in San Francisco. The Bently Reserve (www.bentlyreserve.com) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Formerly a bank, it is currently being retrofitted to meet LEED certification. Carbon offsets are provided through NativeEnergy (www.nativeenergy.com).

About Portovert.com: Portovert -- the exclusive editorial resource about elegant and sustainable weddings and events -- launched in January 2007. In February 2007, Portovert.com launched the first wedding carbon calculator in partnership with NativeEnergy, the offset partner for Hillary Clinton, Al Gore and The Dave Matthews Band. Portovert was founded by Meghan Yudes Meyers, a former Family Circle editor and sustainable travel writer. Portovert has been featured widely in the national press. Media highlights include the Today Show’s Weekend Edition, Time Magazine, The New York Times, Marie Claire/UK, InStyle Weddings, Grist, Treehugger, MSNBC, The Washington Post and Fast Company.com

Best of...

I love the new publication from the knot - best of weddings 2007. Just. Plain. Brilliant! Of course - that is no surprise as everything that the knot touches turns to wedding gold!

The great thing about this particular magazine is that it features hundreds of regional wedding vendor reviews by real brides in a 'zagat-style' format. It is also jam-packed with gorgeous images and great top-10 lists. Inspiration and ideas for every bride combined with news they can really use. Two enthusiastic thumbs up!

And a big congrats to our client - the totally cool boutique hotel in St. Augustine - the fabulous Casa Monica for being named as "Best Reception Site in Florida" with a perfect score of 100. Knowing them like we do they deserve every bit of it - they are the best! Congrats Joni, Michelle, Megan and team - your brides are so lucky to have you bringing their weddings to life!

Style Network: 21 Day Wedding Party

Well - you know it is June when the TV stations roll out the non-stop wedding programming! This year Style Network is leading the pack with their 21-day Wedding Party. Set your TIVO's now for shows old and new: including "Whose Wedding is it Anyway," "Superstar Weddings Gone Bad," "My Celebrity Wedding with TheKnot," "Hitched in Vegas," "Wedding Altared," "Perfect Proposals," & "Married Away" just to name a few! Happy viewing!

USA Today: Romantic Proposals Really Rock!

Fun 'snapshot' from today's USA TODAY! Amazing isn't it? 87% of respondants said that a 'romantic proposal' was more important than a 'huge diamond ring!' (does make you wonder if the 2,288 adults were men or women!).

Regardless, wildly romantic proposals are getting more and more elaborate (there is a new show all about proposals about to air on Style network!) - what are you doing in your wedding-related business to 'engage' (*wink* - could not resist that one - besides it is 1:00am!) these couples at the earliest possible stage of the wedding process?

More thoughts on that later!

Beyonce Engaged!

MSNBC and other media outlets are reporting that Beyonce & Jay Z are officially ENGAGED! Better yet - word is that they are planning the destination 'wedding of all weddings' in Anguilla in a few months!

Every time high profile celebrities get married it is huge news and the booming trend in destination weddings can easily be linked back to the 'pioneers' of the modern destination wedding - Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber in the Bahamas.

We will keep you posted on the lastest breaking celeb news - and be sure to check out the bridalstars feed live on the right side for up to the minute news!

It's a Mod World After all!

I recently came across this interesting wed-site: Mod Girl - the un-wedding site and they have an entire section full of polls answered by mod-brides everywhere. There are so many sites out there for each and every type of bride - and growing daily! What is a savvy wedding marketer to do? Take some time to do your own brand assessment exercise and really discover who YOUR brides are.

Truly knowing just who your bride (& groom too of course!) is will help you narrow down the focus of your business.

Often I find during new client assessments that the 'spaghetti at the wall' approach is in effect. Their business has grown quickly, they are not necessarily making the most strategic choices relative to their marketing dollars and placements and they are not sure who their core customer really is.

Taking the time to step back and evaluate who your current bride is as well as who you WANT her to be is essential.

Make a list of key brand attributes of both categories (current & future) and really look at it to determine some valuable insights into your wedding business. Use the information so readily available on the web to help you target and offer the best fit marketing and sales messages to attract the kind of bride that is your 'best fit.' If you determine that your ideal bride is a 'sophisticated mama' like the poll above suggests and your messages are all 'girly girl' in nature then you are off base!

Check back from time to time as I will post other interesting wed-sites to help with your own research into the mindsets of the many types of today's bride!

Weddings Unveiled

One of our favorite *newer* bridal publications: the gorgeous "Weddings Unveiled" Magazine based out of North Carolina.

Check out this cover shot - taken at one of our long time client's hotels, The Mansion on Forsyth Park in Savannah, GA - an amazing luxury boutique hotel and part of the Kessler Collection.

"Weddings Unveiled is the most stylish, sought-after bridal magazine in the Southern United States by brides and wedding professionals alike. Its beautiful design, stunning covers and sophisticated content appeals to today’s educated, contemporary brides and grooms who are looking for vendors and event venues as unique, stylish and individual as they are.

Weddings Unveiled is everything weddings and is the most widely distributed bridal publication in the area. It provides an invaluable resource, reaching brides and grooms in the Southeastern US, with saturated distribution in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia from the mountains to the coast, with crossover distribution in Tennessee, Virginia, Florida and neighboring states."

I recently had the pleasure of hosting one of the senior editors in Grand Cayman for a long weekend at the Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman and learned all about the magazine and very talented team behind it. I look forward to every new issue and am sure you will too! They really do 'get it' in the south - even the advertising is to die for!

Rings of Fire

Check out this fun piece from the oh-so-talented David Wolfe, yet another amazing photographer based in Grand Cayman. No one shoots engagement & wedding rings like David and what girl (single or married!) can ever tire of looking at these gems?!

And because the diamond ring is the logo for Engaging Concepts - we love this even more!

Click here to view!

(Ring Photo courtesy of David Wolfe Photography)

"Release Your Brilliance!"

The brilliant, engaging and very talented Simon T. Bailey is an author, speaker and motivational coach and a former colleague of mine at Disney. We left around the same time (just about 6 years ago!) to follow our dreams and start our own companies.

I am so proud of what he has accomplished - Simon’s high-impact, transformational programs have inspired over 250,000 people worldwide and growing. He sends a weekly inspirational, thought-provoking email entitled "Brilliant Carats" which I highly recommend to anyone in need of some great business tips and injection of energy during the week(and can't we all use a quick 'check-in' every now and then?).

I was also very honored to be included as a case-study essay in his best selling book, "Release Your Brilliance." UPDATE: Since I posted this Simon emailed me to let me know the *big* news that HarperCollins has purchased the rights to "Release Your Brilliance" and will make it available in hardcover in January 2008!!!

It is so fun to keep up with former colleagues who have gone on to do great things with their lives and careers - we all had amazing training during our days at Disney - many are still there rising through the ranks to high level executive positions and others have created impressive opportunities for themselves either owning their own successdul businesses or as executives with companies such as Ritz-Carlton, McDonald's Global, Sandals, Royal Caribbean, Starwood, Marriott, TheKnot, YPB&R, Kellogg and many other leading brands.

Cheers to them all!

Cayman On The Cover!

We are pleased to show off the current issue of Destination Weddings & Honeymoons Magazine (one of our favorites on newsstands today!) with our client The Cayman Islands on the cover and 10-amazing pages of gorgeous fashion shot in Grand Cayman!!

Working with editor-in-chief Susan Moynihan from concept to completion on this shoot was fun, fun, fun! The results are fantastic - she has done wonders for the magazine since taking over last year.

The shoot was headquartered at the fabulous Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman and the images shot in key locations all over the island. What a wonderful round-up it is and of course everyone is thrilled with the outcome.

We are big supporters of DWH (and we also love that it is based right here in the Orlando area!) which has grown to publishing 4x per year and with a targeted circulation of approximately 130,000. View the entire media kit here.

Susan also blogged about her experience in Cayman and some of her insider tips - check it out here.

There is quite a bit more media coverage on weddings in The Cayman Islands about to break as we have been working hard with the entire Cayman team to sprad the word - I will post it as it happens so check back often or better yet - subscribe at the bottom of the page to get up-to-the-minute posts!

Happy June!

Trash the Dress!

A *hot* new trend that we think is fun, playful and just plain sexy is "Trash The Dress." Great photojournalists (like one of our very fav's in Grand Cayman - the uber talented and totally cool Rebecca Davidson) are offering 'trash the dress' sessions the day after the wedding.

Destination brides in particular are embracing this in a big way - it allows them to let their hair down in spectacular settings and get a whole new set of amazing photos! This sure beats staged wedding portraits any day!