Janelle Barlow - A complaint is a gift! When is a complaint a gift? Actually, almost every time. I’m so happy to have Dr. Janelle Barlow on to discuss this topic that’s so relevant to our industry and the world we live in. It’s not just about customer complaints, it’s also internal from our staff. We had a great discussion about reviews and other forms of feedback. Janelle shares ideas from her book “A Complaint Is A Gift”, which is in its 3rd printing, and available in over 25 languages! About ...
Mar 20, 2023•35 min
What's the worst that could happen? Too often people get stymied by the possibility of something bad happening, even if the likelihood of that result is slim. Instead, what if you embraced the worst that could happen, visualize it and use it to help you move forward? Listen to this new, 8-minute episode to see how “the worst that could happen” could really be an asset to you, instead of a roadblock. If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a suggestion for...
Mar 15, 2023•8 min
Decision complexity or decision simplicity? I was reading a great book by Jon Picoult - "From Impressed to Obsessed", and one of the concepts he wrote about is Decision complexity vs decision simplicity. In our world that means are we making it easy or hard for our customers to make a decision, whether it’s for the initial sale, or post-sale choices (menus, colors, music and more). Listen to this new, 11-minute episode to dig a little deeper into this and see how you can apply the concept to you...
Mar 08, 2023•11 min
If you’ve heard me speak about sales, or read my books, you’ve probably heard me use the phrase “Would it make sense…?” as a soft lead-in to asking for the sale. I also always credit a speaker friend, Lois Creamer, from whom I learned this, years ago. So, it’s only fitting that I have Lois on and talk about the origin of the phrase, how it’s used and more fun stuff. Listen to this new dialog episode for some fun tips and conversation about sales. Lois Creamer is an industry expert working with s...
Mar 06, 2023•29 min
Pick Your Hard After recording an episode with Trip Wheeler he told me that he has been trying to live by the credo “Pick Your Hard”. When I asked him to explain, he told me that life is hard, business is hard, relationships are hard, and we have to make choices, every day to pick the hard that we want to go forward with. Listen to this new, 6-minute episode to get a better understanding of what this means, and how it can help you in business and life. If you have any questions about anything in...
Mar 01, 2023•7 min
The lure of the friendor When couples or customers choose to have a friend or relative do some part of their wedding or event for free, or cheap, it can be frustrating. Have you ever been a friendor, or used the services of a friendor? Have you ever had good results being or using a friendor? Is the problem really using a friendor, or getting bad results? Listen to this new, 8-minute episode for a little tough-love perspective on this topic. If you have any questions about anything in this, or a...
Feb 22, 2023•9 min
Mark Chapman – Are TikTok Ads Right for Your Business? I hear a lot of talk about whether TikTok ads are something that you should be using. So, I reached out to my go-to expert, Mark Chapman, from The I Do Society, to break this down for us. So, in this new episode we talk about TikTok, TikTok ads and how they’re different than Instagram or Facebook ads, and whether you might want to consider them for your business. About Mark: Mark Chapman is the founder of The I Do Society and wedding industr...
Feb 20, 2023•33 min
Do the same problems come up over and over? Are there some problems that just keep cropping up? Whether it’s with your customers, your couples, and even with your staff or industry partners, if there are some things that seem to come up often, the problem just might lie in an unexpected place. Listen to this new, 5-minute episode to see if the problem really is your customers, or maybe it’s in the mirror. If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a suggesti...
Feb 15, 2023•6 min
How accessible should you be? This is another listener suggestion. Valerie wrote to me on Facebook messenger and posed this question. So, how accessible should you be? Do you have to reply to every email, text and WhatsApp message, regardless of the time of day or night? Or, is it OK to set boundaries and regular business hours? Listen to this new, 8-minute episode for some ideas on how to set your boundaries. If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a sug...
Feb 08, 2023•9 min
Trip Wheeler - Is inflation eating your catering profits? Inflation has taken a bite out of the profits of every wedding and event business. It’s not just food and supplies, it’s gas, shipping, supply chain disruptions and more. I invited Trip Wheeler back on to talk about what the future might bring, and to share his expertise, since his business is all about saving caterers on your food and supplies. He has some tips and thoughts, no matter what your line of work. About Trip Wheeler and SB Val...
Feb 06, 2023•30 min
Do they need more choices or just the perception of choice? When we’re trying to help our couples and customers make decisions, do they really need more choices, or just the perception that they have choices? That’s the paradox of choice. When we’re the customer, we want to know we have choices. However, when we see the myriad choices out there, we can’t decide. So, what do your customers need – more choices, or just to know that they have choices. Listen to this new, 7-minute episode for some i...
Feb 01, 2023•8 min
I used to be competitive When I was younger, I was very competitive. Whether it’s maturity, or just getting older (and wiser?), but now I look at being competitive very differently. While life has some zero-sum games (sports has winners and losers), most of our efforts are happening in abundant places, where someone getting more doesn’t really affect the rest of us. Listen to this new, 6-minute episode for some perspective on how you might look at how competitive you are, or want to be. If you h...
Jan 25, 2023•6 min
Brian Lawrence – Making Your Business More Visible Online When it comes to increasing your visibility online, my go-to guy is Brian Lawrence. So, I asked Brian to come back on to discuss the Google Business Profile and much more. We talked about the change from Google My Business and what you can do to help your business and website show up more online. Listen to this new episode for some tips you can use, right now, to improve your online visibility. About Brian Brian Lawrence, my recommended r...
Jan 23, 2023•41 min
What's your next big idea? Are you just going through doing the same things, year after year? Or, are you coming up with new ideas to stay ahead of people who are trying to copy you? New ideas don’t always have to be big changes, and they may even come from outside your category or even outside the industry. Listen to this new, 6-minute episode for some thoughts on how coming up with, and trying new ideas, keeps you fresh and gives you a point of differentiation. If you have any questions about ...
Jan 18, 2023•8 min
Quality is just table stakes When playing competitive poker, you have to pay to get into the game. That’s called the “table stakes”. When it comes to the wedding and events industry, or really any business, quality is table stakes. You can’t claim doing quality work as a differentiating factor. It’s the minimum required to be in business or in the industry. So, what are your differentiators? Listen to this new, 7-minute episode for some ideas on how you can understand why quality isn’t what make...
Jan 11, 2023•7 min
Rod McMahon – Rightsizing your business I’ve had guests on who have scaled their businesses way up. And I’ve had some on who’ve intentionally scaled their businesses down, some down to just them. I’ve asked my friend Rod McMahon on to talk about how he’s scaled his business up, then down, to the right size for him. Listen to this episode and hear how he’s profiting more, doing less events, so you can get some ideas on how you might do the same. About Rod McMahon 53 year old father of 2 amazing y...
Jan 09, 2023•24 min
Stop trying to keep up with the Joneses I was reading an article about the richest people in the world and realized that no one will ever have it all, not even those people with all of their money. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t strive to better yourself or your status… as long as that’s what’s really important to you. Who are you trying to impress, because they may not care. Listen to this new, 6-minute episode for some thoughts on finding what’s really important, and why it’s not keeping up w...
Jan 04, 2023•7 min
I found myself complaining recently about being given an upgrade, on an international flight, only to have it taken away because they double booked the seat. In reality, I would have preferred to never haven gotten the upgrade, as I lost my original exit row seat in the process. While expressing my dissatisfaction with how it was being handled, I realized how ridiculous it was to be complaining about this, truly a first-world problem. I started thinking about how many of our other daily “problem...
Dec 28, 2022•6 min
If ever there was a problem needing a solution, this is it. Brian helps couples write better, more personal vows, their parents and friends write better speeches and their officiant (very often a friend or family member these days) write a better ceremony. It’s easy to get ordained to perform the ceremony, it’s much harder to understand the timeline - the parts you need to include – including “please be seated”, and through his writing, run-throughs and coaching, Brian helps couples have the cer...
Dec 26, 2022•33 min
So many businesses claim to be giving 5-Star service, yet their customers don’t always feel that’s what they’ve received. In this episode I relate the story of a 5-Star hotel who recognized that their people have never been on the receiving end of real 5-Star service, so how could they be expected to know what it feels like. Listen to this new, 9-minute episode to hear how that played out and some other ideas for how you and your team can ramp up your service, regardless of the price point. If y...
Dec 21, 2022•9 min
I was a picky eater as a child, really picky. It’s amazing how many foods I eat now that I wouldn’t even try back then. That’s actually true of a lot of things in our lives, things we’ve never even tried, but think we don’t or wouldn’t like. What is that making us miss out on? What could we be accomplishing or enjoying, if we’d just remove that roadblock, one that we’re putting there by ourselves. Listen to this new, 5-minute episode for my thoughts on how you can recognize and remove these road...
Dec 14, 2022•6 min
I saw an article on LinkedIn by my friend Bill Cates titled: “5 things that don’t make you different”, and the title intrigued me. In reading through them, I was struck by how many of these companies in the wedding and events industry are using, thinking it shows how they’re different, when they don’t. So, I asked Bill to come on and talk through these with me so we can give you some ideas on how to tweak what you say, to really show what makes you different. About Bill Bill Cates is an internat...
Dec 12, 2022•25 min
I often hear wedding and event businesses complaining about all of the new competitors in their market. I’m sure this is not limited to the wedding/event industry. Most businesses don’t want to see another competitor enter their market. Whether they’ve been in business longer than you, or are brand new, are they really competitors? What is your perspective on competition? Listen to this new, 6-minute episode for my perspective on this, and hopefully it helps focus yours. If you have any question...
Dec 06, 2022•6 min
Everyone hates no-shows on appointments and tours, but is charging the solution? I saw a conversation on Facebook started by a venue owner, @corbinmock. Obviously frustrated by couples making appointments and then not showing up, this started a serious of comments. While I agree with the premise, I have some ideas on this subject. Listen to this new, 8-minute episode for my thoughts on how you might approach this. If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a...
Nov 30, 2022•8 min
Every once in a while, I come across someone who’s carved out a really unique niche in the wedding and events industry. I met Andrew at a WeddingPro COR event and when he told me he provides weather tools for wedding professionals, I was intrigued. Of course weather is a big factor for weddings and events, but why are the apps on our phones not giving us the full picture and how does Andrew, and his team of 20 meteorologists, help couples better prepare for the weather on their wedding day (or w...
Nov 28, 2022•25 min
The event went great, the customer/couple is thrilled… but they didn’t post a review!! It’s frustrating, but it’s not their fault. Just like asking for the sale, asking for reviews is your responsibility. And if you’re not getting your happy customers to post reviews, it’s probably the way and timing of your asking. Listen to this new, 10-minute episode for ideas that are working for real wedding and event pros, like you, so you can get more reviews. If you have any questions about anything in t...
Nov 23, 2022•10 min
Every so often I see someone posting on Facebook, complaining about another vendor asking for a commission when they refer business. It’s always such a controversial subject and one that I’ve been addressing for years. As a matter of fact, I did two webinars on this, one with just venues and caterers and one with all suppliers. The links are below. Listen to this new, 10-minute episode for some perspective on this from someone who’s seen this from many different perspectives. Here’s the link to ...
Nov 16, 2022•10 min
As the holidays approach it’s always a good time to take a look at our websites to see what we can do to help them convert better. For this, I’ve invited my good friend and go-to for websites and SEO, Brian Lawrence of Local Traffic Builder. Whether your site is current, starting to get dated or needs to be scrapped, this episode will give you some ideas on how to improve with the traffic you’re already getting. About Brian Brian Lawrence, my recommended resource for web design and SEO for the l...
Nov 14, 2022•36 min
When you go to a networking event or conference, are you deciding who to talk to, or whom to meet based upon what they can do for you, or what you can get from them? Or, are you leaving yourself open to other kinds of value by not having any expectations when you meet new people. Listen to this new 8-minute episode for my thoughts on networking and value. If you have any questions about anything in this, or any of my podcasts, or have a suggestion for a topic or guest, please reach out directly ...
Nov 09, 2022•8 min
Are you giving your customers what they’re asking for, or are you challenging their assumptions with results and experiences that they couldn’t have imagined? One way to differentiate yourself is to show customers things they haven’t asked for, which to them are new and unique, even if you’ve done them before. I mention a book – The Challenger Sale – and there’s a link to it below. Listen to this new 6-minute episode for ideas on how to use this concept to close more sales. Here’s a link to the ...
Nov 02, 2022•7 min
