Innovative Marketing for Special Event Businesses: Introducing "Gypsy Marketing" : Wine WIth a Wedding Planner

Wine With a Wedding Planner: Gainey Winery

As a sole proprietor of wedding and event planning business Santa Barbara Wine Country Weddings & Events, I have always had a huge challenge ahead of me:  marketing with limited resources.  I've never had the goal to become a multi-million dollar company.  My pay-offs are much more abstract, but deeply personal and real, including a conscious decision to enjoy life, invest in life experiences (not "things"  for my family and myself, and most importantly:  to create.   To innovate.  My deepest heart-calling is to create new concepts and constantly evolve an industry or a concept so that it does not go stagnant and then extinct. 

I have watched the wedding and event industry for 16 years, including working for a national brand name in advertising . I have worked in the trenches as a Director of Catering for the  hospitality industry. I have owned
my own event planning business for 16 years now.  I have traveled with and consulted with resorts, inns, wineries, catering companies and more on a national level specifically on their wedding marketing plans.  And I have personally participated in every form of advertising and marketing that exists in our industry, and then some.  

Based on the feedback from the industry, as well as my own experience, I have come to the conclusion that many advertising and marketing options are going extinct.  They simply do not work because the consumer - and our industry - is changing, and marketing and advertising is not adapting to this change in a way that really serves.

Wine With A Wedding Planner:Alisal Guest Ranch

Additionally, in our special event industry, consumers are becoming more savvy that the "featured national blog" that their wedding coordinator/florist/venue was on is usually because one of the vendors in the BLOG is a paid subscriber to that blog; even the "Preferred Vendor List" in many cases has become a list lacking integrity, requiring a purchase to be on the list.  So how do savvy brides/grooms and event clients know who to trust and book?

As I have observed all of this and more, I have continued to keep an open mind about ways that inspire when it comes to marketing.  The industry is in need of a refreshing makeover.  My belief is that it is the art of human interaction and this is a dying skill .  It's time to return to basics.  While traditional bridal shows may have their place, recent bridal show companies have reported a decline in attendance and if you ask any professional wedding supplier, they are constantly saying the same thing, "We get a lower class bridal element where they just want free samples and are not really shopping for services,"  or "We pay over $1,000 on average for a booth, plus all our promotional product and goods and rarely get a return on our investment. It's a lot of money to put down and 'hope' you see it returned in a booking."  The other issue is that particular business doesn't necessarily get a dedicated and exclusive media shout-out in PR when preparing for a traditional bridal fair.

Wine With a Wedding Planner: Four Seasons Biltmore

In January 2016, I created a concept that I can best describe as "Gypsy Marketing". It is a return to basics and in essence, being a nomad.  You go to where the people are.  Make yourself available.  Press and media the hell out of it. Invent your own concept that will actually be so unique, the media will actually be interested and you will get "free" advertising with your marketing concept.  The best part of Gypsy Marketing?  It is also a way to network. You are accomplishing many things at once with this idea and it benefits everyone involved.

Similar to "Coffee with a Cop", I decided to choose 5 of my top preferred wedding locations and go sit there during public hours in public, easily-reachable location and make myself available for a certain time window and offer complimentary wedding planning consultation for anyone who wanted to stop by.  I called it "Wine With a Wedding Planner".  Guests were encouraged to purchase a no-host tasting or beverage of their choice and then join me on location for conversation, and a tour of the wedding venue, if time permitted.  I had my iPad slide show, promotional materials, and as a courtesy to the venue where I was hosting this, would have the venue's event packets available , as well.  Each slide show of my weddings was custom-tailored to show photos of weddings I did at that property.  Inquiries that came to me that wanted to meet, I would invite them to come see me at one of the locations at which I was appearing. I saved time from having to do 20 individual interviews with prospective clients to one meet and greet where several would show up and we could get to know each other informally and then take it to a more private appointment or conference call later. 

Values & Benefits of "Gypsy Marketing" :

•  Fresh and innovative

• Captures attention of media (promotes "free" advertising) because it's different, open to the community and "free" services from a certified "expert"

• Extremely cost-effective

• Time-efficient

• The "People" Factor - human-to-human connection 

• The locations/partners working with the concept end up promoting you and your appearance, too (social media posts and more)

• A new form of networking- see below

• Community-based

• Casts a spotlight on the wedding locations and suppliers who are being featured - at no cost to them, including social media, television and print media referrals to the location that were mentioned in press releases

• Encourages business and revenue to these locations "day of" event with wine tasting, or some food and beverage 

• Low stress  and fun

 

Wine with a Wedding Planner: Fess Parker's Doubletree

Many times I would end up making contacts I had not even planned making while sitting at my locations - not just to prospective clients, but also other businesses and together, we started collaborating on other profit-making projects and ideas. I met other people in the community, as well as tourists and just spent time talking with them about anything.  It was a great way to reach out to the community, be open, and be kept "real".  You never know when an interaction with another may lead to something else. 

By placing myself out in the middle of the heart of the community open to anything and anyone, and promoting my appearance dates and locations  in advance on social media through my own dedicated PR campaign, I was getting authentic and able to meet face-to-face and allow people to see my brand:  me.

On the last day of  the 2016 Season for "Wine with Wedding Planner", we kicked it up a notch and had some real fun that captured the attention of the local television station, too.  We had a bus "Jump on the Wedding Planning Bus" and we live Tweeted our location throughout Santa Barbara's quirky, artsy, and very popular Funk Zone as we stopped at various locations.  The bus had "Wine With a Wedding Planner" written on the side and everywhere we drove, pedestrians stopped and checked us out.   We had other suppliers like Rori's Artisanal Creamery come forward and offer their services/product for our day, as well.  Again, it kept evolving into a complete communal cross-promotional marketing endeavor that was fresh.

KEYT Channel 3 Featured Us for "Weekend Picks"

Results:

• 10 new professional introductions to new wedding businesses who are now referring me

• 1 complimentary television promotional mention on the news the day before the event

• 10 newspaper write-ups on the concept, spotlighting my business - and those locations who participated

• Several prospective event clients

• 3 Teleconferences during the event with folks participating "remotely", including a planning session with potential client from Florida

• Social Media reached 30,000 fans between our own business social media and the suppliers/venues who participated in sharing and promoting the event

• One venue was so delighted to have this concept, they invited me back a second time.  Their Event Manager is not there on weekends and they get a lot of walk-ins.  They were pleased to be able to send the walk-ins to someone knowledgeable who was promoting their property at no charge.  It was a win for everyone. 

Wine With a Wedding Planner in Funk Zone

The concept of Gypsy Marketing is simply getting creative, getting out there and moving around.  Take risks.   Invent your own marketing .  Do away with what's not working and get back to basics.  It's one giant experiment, but no one ever got anywhere by just thinking about ideas.  Experiments take risk and big heart.  And by taking these risks with great heart, I find that you attract others who "get" it and can help you build your vision because they see the value of it as well.  Everyone wins.

For more details about Wine With a Wedding Planner 2016 , see our events division BLOG on Santa Barbara Wine Country Weddings & Events 

For Wine With a Wedding Planner 2017, we are already underway taking it to the next level, blending a concept I did in 2004 (the "Mobile Wedding Planning Experience"), which created me my own distinguished category in Grace Ormonde Wedding Style Magazine.  We will be revealing the particulars later this year.

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Engaging Inspiration provides inspiring marketing and social media solutions for the special event and wedding business designed to sparkle and engage.