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Four Ways YOU Can Be a Wedding Thought-Leader

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Wedding Professionals:

Wikipedia defines a thought-leader as “someone who enlivens old processes with new workable ideas.”

Whether you are talking to brides or writing a wedding blog, it is important that you come across as a thought-leader in your individual area of the wedding industry. By establishing yourself as a thought-leader, you will be developing a trusted, credible identity for yourself. This is critical for motivating brides and/or other wedding vendors to work with you.

Being a thought-leader is something that I think about each time I sit down to write this wedding business blog. Here are my four tips for becoming a thought-leader. Please feel free to take advantage of these tips as you develop your own communications with brides and vendors.

1. Do your homework and assess the trends. Become well versed in the latest trends within your specialized wedding area – whether that be photography, fashion, catering, etc. Do so by regularly visiting a handful of wedding websites, blogs and events.

2. {Most Important!} Layer in your own thoughtful opinion. And try to have an opinion that will help your audience. This essentially is adding your own personal value, and get your audience to expand their thinking. You don’t have to be right every time. But having an opinion shows that you’re thinking, it shows that you’re passionate and it shows that you want to start a dialogue. It is a behavior that is engaging. And it is a behavior that every thought-leader gets right.

3. Be confident. As I mentioned in a previous blog (How to Advertise Next to Your Competition), there is a reason why you chose this profession and don’t lose sight of that. You have the power to have opinions and to make statements about trends, about the industry and about what is best for your brides. As I always say --> Know it. Work it. Own it!

4. Be consistent. When marketing yourself and your business, repetition is king. So, speak up (or write) regularly about your thoughtful opinions. Remember to have a consistent point of view. This will hammer into your audience’s mind that you are a thought-leader in the wedding industry. You are a go-to expert!

Do you have any advice to share with our wedding forum about being a wedding thought-leader? If so, please comment below.

About This Blog: Christine Dyer is the Creator and Founder of BridalTweet. Christine has an MBA in marketing and shares over ten years of marketing expertise with the wedding community. In this weekly wedding business blog , you'll find advice on an array of wedding business topics such as how to market to brides, social networking, wedding PR, wedding sales, vendor networking, branding, pricing and much more. Please pass this news along to your own professional wedding network. To receive this advice in your email inbox each week, Sign Up for a Free BridalTweet Membership.

Comment by Elaine Borges-Ibanez on May 31, 2010 at 12:52pm: Confidence grows out of passion, and consistent feedback from others, so really the last three points are inextricably linked. Good advice though to observe others - be it live or online - as we strive ever more to perfect our art...In wedding photography it is also good to ask our brides and their close family for feedback - before you leave the venue, as then there is still time to add in a few little shots that might make someone extra happy...

Comment by My Wedding Favors on June 1, 2010 at 7:45am: Bride surveys on your Web site or in your blog are also an excellent way to not only get a good sense of what today's brides-to-be are thinking, but also to test some of your own unique ideas within your specialty. Throw out a few of your ideas in a survey to see if they respond positively or negatively,but create your questions carefully. Sample question: Would you consider getting married in a purple gown? If many more respondents say "yes" than "no", then you've got a trend in the making! Snap it up and run with it before someone else does!

Comment by High Society Event Planning on June 1, 2010 at 8:21am: I think the "being consistent" is the biggest factor. Especially when it comes to blogging, posting photos, sharing ideas, etc. Brides visit and re-visit your site all the time and if there is something fresh for them each time...it makes you really look like you're on your game. Being more consistent with marketing tools and pieces if definitely a goal for my company this year!

Comment by Calligraphy by Diane on June 1, 2010 at 3:43pm: Confidence ensues when you meet your brides in person, speak with them on the phone or in your emails. This comes with the experience we bring to the table. Consistency with your message on-line, by emails, and personal consultations is definitely KING! Brides are definitely coming to us with their vision and are relying on our expertise to guide them to make that vision a reality. Afterall, we are here to serve, and as an expert in my field, I do have a lot to offer to my brides/couples who are investing in my services, to help make their special day, that much more special !!

Comment by Cardblanche Exquisite Stationery on June 1, 2010 at 4:56pm: My Wedding Favors - are you able to have polls because you have enough followers? I tried having one once but hardly anybody replied. :( However, I am trying to build up my consistency and thoughtful opinions. I notice most of my competitors don't do this. But they seem to have more web presence because they advertise on google adwords. I have to endeavour to work harder!

Comment by My Wedding Favors on June 2, 2010 at 12:12am: I admit it takes awhile to build enough of a following on a blog for a survey to yield viable results. If you have an email database of customers, you might want to use an email survey to existing customers. In fact, you can ask your customers to fill out a short survey as part of your transaction. I hope this helps!

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