Are You Easy To Do Business With?
One of the most common reasons vendors are failing to book more elopements is couples find them difficult to do business with! You might think that your customer service is on point. However, it’s likely that you are making some common mistakes that stop eloping couples from finding you easy to do business with! Perhaps your elopement packages are too difficult to find on your website? Maybe your pricing structure is too confusing or not competitive? It could even be that your contact channels are not user-friendly! If a bride-to-be feels like dealing with you is too frustrating, then you are going to lose a lot of potential bookings.
Asking yourself the following questions will help you to streamline the customer experience and help you to book more elopements.
7 Questions To Decide If You Are Easy To Do Business With
If you want to increase the number of elopement booking you secure each year, then set aside some time to answer the following questions. It is important to do so honestly as your answers are going to reveal whether or not couples will find you easy to do business with. The questions are based on a quiz by Pay Simple, but we have adjusted them to fit the elopement and small wedding niche.
1 – Do You Have a Website or at Least a Directory Listing?
Did you know that around 97% of consumers use the internet when researching products and services in their local area? That makes having some kind of online presence essential. After all, if couples cannot find you then how can they book an elopement? You should have at least a basic website and the main social media profiles. It is also a great idea to consider directory listings like those we have here at WhereToElope.com.
It is also important that couples do not have to click too many times to book. Every time a couple has to click through to another page you risk losing 90% of your leads! Make booking as simple as possible.
2 – Is Your Website Optimized For Mobile Browsers?
Not only are most consumers researching things like wedding vendors online as mentioned above, but as many as two in three or 66% are doing so on a smartphone or mobile device. Consider this when creating your website and make sure that it is mobile-responsive. On the mobile version of your website, make sure that your contact information is front and center making it easy for prospective bookings to contact you.
3 – Is Your Information Consistent Across The Internet?
One of the things that can be really frustrating for couples when they are looking for an elopement package is if they find a great deal, only to be told when they go to book that they were seeing an out of date offer that is no longer available. It is important to be consistent. If you are running a special, then make sure to update the information everywhere online including on any directories. We are always available to edit our vendor listings on request and we will also get in touch periodically to check if everything is accurate. It’s not just the information about your services that need to remain up to date, you will also want to make sure that your contact details and opening hours are accurate and consistent.
4 – Are You Available For Couples to Talk to?
Speaking of contact information – the next question you need to ask yourself in terms of whether or not you are easy to do business with is whether or not you make yourself available to talk with potential elopement guests. We understand how hard it can be to juggle all of your day to day tasks as a small business owner, but it really is important for couples to be able to reach out to you if they are considering allowing you to host their wedding! Set aside clear contact hours when you can be available to take calls, or if you are communicating by email make sure to respond within a 24-hour window. We’ve found that weddings need the personal touch, so do consider dealing with couples by phone whenever possible.
5 – Do You Have a Flexible & Efficient Attitude?
Eloping couples want to feel like their vendors care about them. If you are flexible and efficient in dealing with them then they will find you easy to do business with. Respond to emails and voicemails promptly and consider having a dedicated wedding planner or consultant on site. If there is one thing a bride hates it is being shuffled from one person to the next. It is far better to have on a dedicated person who will deal with all wedding related issues!
6 – How Easy is it For Customers to Pay?
One surprisingly common complaint we hear from eloping couples is that vendors make it difficult for them to submit payment! Why would any business make it difficult to accept money from willing customers? Take the time to set up easy online payments via credit card or PayPal. Many inns and hotels accept cash on arrival, but couples usually like to pay in advance to make sure the booking is secured and to manage their budget accordingly. This also helps protect you against no-shows! If you decide to offer an installment payment plan then think about automatic recurring payments in order to avoid chasing late payments.
7 – Are You An Elopement Expert?
One sure fire way to make it easy to do business with you is to become an expert in eloping! If you educate yourself with the right knowledge, couples will see you as a font of information making you the perfect person to handle their elopement. How can you expand your elopement services? The first step is getting up to speed on legal requirements in your state which will allow you to help couples to secure a marriage license. You might want to go a step further and become an officiant so you can offer in-house services. If you are not able to provide services like flowers, cakes or photography then source a local vendor to partner with so that you can make recommendations to your couples. While you are at it – brush up on your local knowledge.