How do I get connected to Brides?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Ariane Fisher on October 6, 2010 at 5:34am

Hi Judy,

Certainly a tough nut to crack. Social media is important but not the magical elixir everyone likes to promote.

You site looks pretty nice, a bit busy though. What are your features or unique value propositions? Why should brides go with you? Start with a small list of brides and offer them giveaways, discounts or anything in exchange for feedback on how to improve your site. Ask everyone in your network for a personal introduction to provide any brides they know this opportunity. Tell them it is not a sales pitch.

I wish I had the answer but I'm struggling too!

Good luck.

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 12, 2010 at 4:11am

Hi Ariane,

Thanks for your advice. When you say my website is a bit busy, what changes would you make? I guess my features and or unique value propositions would be that I offer my products at affordable prices, fast shipping and you can get all your bridal accessories in a one stop shop. I also have available other links for opportunities for brides to create personal postage, wedding bouquets and access to an online catelog to another supplier that I use that has over 2500 products. So if a bride needs it I can get it. There is also downloads available for wedding tips, advice and ideas as well as a link to my blog. I did do a giveaway on facebook but that didn't turn out as well as I had hoped. Only because it wasn't targeted to brides but I don't know how to capitalize on that audience. I would like to be able to get a list of brides to let them know my offers. Again, thank you so much for your input.

Sincerely,

Judy Arnold

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Permalink Reply by Stephanie Benedetto Padovani on October 6, 2010 at 7:13am

The quickest, easiest way to start getting really powerful referrals is through networking. Are there any wedding professionals you work with who attract your ideal clients? Take them out to lunch and ask for their advice. I bet you start getting some referrals right off the bat, and you'll probably get some great ideas, too.

Is the problem that you are you getting traffic to your website, but they aren't buying? Or are you have trouble getting traffic in the first place?

These are really two different disconnects and you can address them separately. For #1, figure out where your target brides are hanging out online and be there. Besides advertising on those websites, you can also participate with blog comments; as long as you give valuable info they'll click through to your site. For #2, you've got to work on testing out different ads and "calls to action" on your website that get results.

I do agree that your website is a little busy. Maybe dividing it up into item categories that are visually appealing so that brides can click to learn more about what they are interested in?

Testing your changes out is key. If you're not sure how to set up tracking for your website, I did a quick video that shows you how easy it is to set up Google Analytics for your website that might help.

Keep us posted about how it goes!

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 12, 2010 at 4:28am

Hi Stephanie,

Thank you for your advice. I currently do not have any wedding professionals that I work with. I only have the ones that I have connected to through social network sites.

I get traffic to my site but they are not buying. I am trying to figure out where I can go to connect with brides. This is why I get on sites like this one and Wedding Wire. As for as running ads on adwords I have done that and didn't get the results. It just cost me a bunch of money to advertise with no ROI. So right now I am trying to do what I can with little to no cost.

I am going to try to change up the homepage. Did you not like the links that are located on each side of the page? Or what in particular didn't you like? I offer a link for brides to create personal postage, downloads for tips and ideas, a link to my blog. I don't know what to do to change it. I just went through a total redesign of my website about four months ago. I would appreciate any advice you could give me. Thanks again.

Sincerely,

Judy Arnold

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 12, 2010 at 4:39am

Hi Natalie,

Thank you for your advice. I did go to town to try to connect with different vendors and left them my business cards and brochures of the products I offer. I am hoping doing that will turn into some business.

As far as I blog goes I do have a blog and also offer a link to my blog on my website. I try to post new content on my blog weekly about various offers, promotions, tips and ideas. I haven't done very many bridal shows yet because there doesn't seem to be that many going on in my area. I know that is something that I need to do to let brides know there is a person behind the website. Thanks again for your advice and I would appreciate any other suggestions you may have to improve my website.

Sincerely,

Judy Arnold

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Permalink Reply by SHARRON MABRY on October 12, 2010 at 4:47am

The best way I have learned to connect with brides are to participate in your local bridal shows. I have been live a little under a year. I have attended a few classes and recently attended the WMBA. They are advise the same.. BRIDAL SHOWS

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 12, 2010 at 4:58am

Hi Sharron,

Thanks for the tip. I will be on the look out for bridal shows. There aren't to many going on in my area. I know this is something that I should be participating in.

Sincerely,

Judy Arnold

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Permalink Reply by Marvin de Guzman on October 14, 2010 at 5:46am

Hi Judy, I am in the same situation also, I find networking and word of mouth are the best way to get your name known and free flow of web traffic. If you are willing to travel, there is a Bridal Show here in Del Mar CA. http://bridalbazaar.com/ October 24. Be ready to pass out your brochure or sample pictures if you decide to go here.

Also that's why I joined BridalTweet for a reason. To network ... since my good friend Rowell of PhotosbyRowell.com is registered here also. He is an established wedding photographer in San Diego.

You can also find meetups in your area. In fact you can actually start your own meetup in your area to attract potential customers. www.meetup.com You can offer your class or tips and basically just a great way to network and meet people. One person reminded me that it is not what happens within the networking session, it is what happens after. I hope this helps out.

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 14, 2010 at 6:31am

Hi Marvin,
Thanks for your response and invite to the Bridal Show. Unfortunately, that location is a bit out of my area as I am located in Ohio. Good Luck to you!!

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Permalink Reply by Stephanie Benedetto Padovani on October 13, 2010 at 8:59am

Judy, let's brainstorm a little more...

Since you're selling products online, how about networking with other people who sell different, but related wedding products on the internet? Like someone who sells bridal dresses. You can promote each other's products or even create packages together.

Adwords is tricky and it takes testing and very careful tracking to get it to work. You have to have a perfect match between the keyword the person types in, the ad they see, and the website they land on. If it's not exactly what they're looking for, they bounce. I wouldn't recommend it for a good ROI unless you're already experienced.

As far as your website goes, how about posting photos of an entire bridal look rather than the individual category item? It's much more inspiring for a bride to get ideas about a theme and each product looks much more attractive. She can always click to buy so she can get the look you're showcasing.

Rather than having your individual products listed on the home page, it would be much easier for me (as a bride) to find what I'm looking for if it is broken up into categories. The list on the left just doesn't get my attention. The visitor will be drawn to the pictures; think about where you want them to go and do and make that the attention grabbing item.

Here's an example of a website with a nice clean look you could model - http://www.trystarbucks.com/

There is also a lot of stuff about credit cards, shipping and certification right at the top, when I haven't even decided if I want to buy yet. What is your visitor interested in? Put that front and center and tell her exactly what to do. "Click here for more options..." Save the shipping options for the shopping cart or the bottom of your page.

Unfortunately, website design and redesign is an ongoing process. Keep tweaking and testing until you get it right.

You can even try surveying your visitors (on Facebook or your blog?) to find out what they want to see and know about wedding accessories. Then give it to them on their website.

Coupons can work really well in Facebook groups and pages. Not sure if you've tried that, but it can be a good strategy to have certain discounts available only for your fans.

Your best buying traffic will probably come from "organic search," which means they type in an specific phrase and find your website. For example, I type in "ivory ring bearer pillow" and land on your ring bearer page. Right now your website urls are not very search engine friendly, which means you're missing out on a lot of potential traffic. Ideally, those urls should be all keywords, no "index.php" and funny codes.

Sorry to bombard you with ideas. Try to pick the one that seems most actionable and easiest to do and just do that. Starting is half way there!

Then come back and let us know how it goes...

Hope this helps,

Stephanie

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Permalink Reply by Judy Arnold on October 14, 2010 at 8:03am

Thanks Stephanie,
You have given me alot to think about and work on. I appreciate all the help you have given me. I hope you will let future brides you know about my website. Thanks again!

Sincerely,

Judy Arnold

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