Are You Asking For Too Much Info?

By Dave Westfall

One of the big issues that we have noticed recently is that Elopement and Small Wedding Vendors are asking for way too much information from potential clients. All you really need to generate a lead is some very basic information and when you ask for more than this it is going to end up putting people off! You could significantly increase your prospect response rate simply by reducing the amount of information you request on your Prospect Form! In a recent case study, we recommended that a vendor reduce the amount of information that they were requesting by 65% so that they only asked for basic details and the end result was a 400% increase in prospect response rate. Let’s take a closer look at this issue.

Info Elasticity

You will have heard the old adage that ‘less is more’ and when it comes to the amount of information you ask for from your prospective clients then this is most definitely true. Not to long ago, our WhereToElope founder Dave Westfall coined the term ‘Info Elasticity’ to describe the inverse relationship between your prospective client leads received and the amount of information you ask for on your contact form. When an eloping couple visits your website, your goal is to have them book their wedding with you. But especially when you are working with eloping couples, this is not going to happen if they feel that you are being too invasive in the amount of information that you request.

Reducing the amount of information that you request to the bare minimum is a proven way to significantly increase your Prospect response rate. In the majority of cases, all you really need is a contact name and an email address to allow you to get in touch with the couple and start discussing their wedding requirements. You may want to ask for a few other pieces of information such as their preferred wedding date, but really anything beyond that is too much. Unless it is absolutely necessary, vendors should avoid asking for sensitive information – many people are reluctant even to provide a phone number!

The key to securing an elopement booking is building up a relationship with your client so that they can get to know, like and trust you. If you put them off at the outset by bombarding them with what is essentially a long Request For Information (RFI) form, then your booking potential is pretty much dead in the water. Ask yourself how much information you actually need in order to initiate a conversation with an eloping couple. If you are asking for any more than that, then you are asking too much and it could be time to revise your contact/prospect form accordingly.