Just last week I returned from Las Vegas where I was speaking at and attending Wedding mba. Wedding MBA is the place to go if you're a wedding professional or wedding educator and I had a phenomenal time. In today's episode, I'm going to be sharing with you some of the things I took away from this year's conference and also some of the other guests are going to be sharing things they took away too.
This year for the first time, I took along some English friends with me to experience the conference as well, so you'll be hearing from some of them later too. I'm Becca Poutney, wedding business marketing expert, speaker and blogger, and you're listening to the Wedding Pros who Are Ready to Grow podcast. I'm here to share with you actionable tips, strategies and real life examples to help you take your wedding business to the next level.
If you are an ambitious wedding business owner that wants to take your passion and use it to build a profitable, sustainable business doing what you love, then you're in the right place. Let's get going with today's episode. As someone from England, it's really hard to explain the vast scale and size of a wedding industry conference out in Las Vegas. Wedding MBA has approximately 6,000 attendees.
That covers everyone from photographers to officians, from DJs to venue owners, florist, cake makers, and everyone in between. And they're all there for one reason, to further their wedding education. And this year I spoke on stage for the first time too when I gave my session, oh snap. Where I was talking all about business first impressions to a packed room that sat a thousand people. So today I want to talk to you about what I learned this year and why.
I think you should also put Wedding MBA on your 2025 bucket list. One of the first things that I took away from this year's conference is how great it is to be in a room with so many different people for finding creative inspiration. I think sometimes we can get a little bit stuck stuck in our businesses. I think we can get a bit stale. We see the same things over and over again on other people's Instagram feeds and on our own Instagram feeds and it can get a little bit boring.
But when you step outside of your comfort zone and go to somewhere like Las Vegas for a conference like this, it really does get that creative inspiration going. I mean, just walking around Las Vegas itself is amazing. You see things that you haven't seen anywhere else. The creative inspiration is definitely flowing. You realize how much bigger and better things can be than what you do at the moment.
But then at the conferences set, there were so many great sessions on things like upcoming trends, things that are going on in the industry, and the creativity that you see at a conference like this is insane. From the bouquet building competition that was going on where people are creating the most fantastic bouquets, through to the expo stands that were displaying new and unusual work, to all of the inspiration inside of the talks, honestly, your creativity can't help but flow.
And sometimes I think as wedding business owners, it's really important that you think outside of the box. So where could you get some creative inspiration from? Look at fashion, look at what's going on in the world around you, look at upcoming movies and see where you can get some creative inspiration for your next project in your wedding business. The second thing I love at wedding MBA when I'm walking around the expo is seeing all of the amazing tech tools that are coming into our market.
Even since last year, there are new tools coming out that are designed to help you with your customer experience, designed to help you have an easier life. Tools that help you with your invoices, your contracts, getting people to sign things, creatively letting you share mood boards with each other.
There are so many great tech tools out there and being at the conference is a great place to go and hear from some of the founders, find out what makes their tools different and find the right one for you.
Sometimes it's really hard to compare the different tools when you're online, but actually being in person and going to speak to the founders or going to speak to the people on the stands and getting the demonstrations, hearing how they work, hearing why they would suit you better or worse than something else is really inspiring. So it's amazing to see how many different tools are coming into the market.
If you haven't had a look recently at some of the tech tools, then let me urge you to do that. For example, I spent some time on the Bright Biz stand. It's a great CRM tool that I use myself. I also spent some time on the visualist stand. Great. If you're a creative business owner that wants to put together creative mood boards as well as do the automations and things like that as well.
So if it's been a while since you've checked out some of the different tech options available to you, I promise you there are still more coming onto the market. So now is a great time to look into them and find one that's going to help make your business life easier. The third thing I love at the conference is always hearing about the latest trends.
There's an amazing talk on the second day that's given by Megan Ely and Terrica each year where they talk about the upcoming trends and they spend hours putting together the trends. Now, some of them are a bit nuts, like the Brussels sprout display that they had on the screen. But actually what I found when I went last year is some of the things that I thought were a bit crazy, I'm already starting to see come into our wedding market out here in the uk.
So actually it's really helpful to be a step ahead and hear what the trends are. I think particularly here in the uk, we tend to see the trends coming from the US first and we're a little bit later to catch on to them. So by being an English person, going out to the conference and hearing these trends first sets you apart from your competitors because actually you can bring them here first and learn from them too. It's also exciting to see what those trends are.
They're great for thinking about ideas for styled shoots and being different as well. As I mentioned in last week's podcast, one of the other big trends that's coming through is experiential offering. So how can you create things to be more of an experience with your catering, with your cake, all that kind of things? I also went to an amazing cake trends session with my friend Janae who was giving that and I loved all of the inspiration she was sharing about the cake trends that are coming.
And I think again, depending on your speciality, when you go to a conference like this, there are trend sessions for each of the different specialities, there are different talks and ideas for different specialties. And so whatever it is that you do, whether or not you go to your own talk or another one, there's really is a lot that you can learn in terms of what's coming out, in terms of flavors in cakes and textures in cakes and all of that good stuff as well.
So I always love hearing about the trends, think it's really exciting to see what's coming and I think it's really inspirational. And I know that my guests who went along to that talk are feeling super inspired and have lots of ideas that they're wanting to bring back here to England now. So watch this space to see what they do with that. Okay. The fourth thing I always love about any conference, and particularly going to mba, is the in person connection. Nothing beats being in person.
I always love to meet people that I've interviewed on my podcast. Maybe I've had speak in my membership, maybe that I've met online or have heard my podcast. Maybe they're Instagram followers, maybe they've now read my book. And I just love meeting in person. There is nothing better than meeting people in real life rather than through a screen.
And I think we forget how much in person connection makes a difference, how much faster a relationship builds when you spend some time together in person rather than just chatting online. And I want to encourage you, if you're listening to this, to get some in person connection, whether that's going to a formal networking meeting, a social meetup, a conference, what are you doing over the next three months to ensure that you are getting that in person connection?
Because I guarantee you it will do good things for your business. I loved going back and meeting people that I'd seen at last year's conference and rekindling those friendships is like seeing old friends again, catching up, seeing how they're doing, talking about what's going on in their business and just geeking out really about all things wedding industry that my normal friends don't want to necessarily be talking about, but yet these people really do. So put yourself in the right rooms.
Connection really is key and being in person beats anything online in my opinion. Okay, the fifth thing I want to share is some of the key themes that I saw coming out in the talks this year. So at Wedding MBA there are so many speakers, I think it's over 100 speakers and there are some small talks, some big talks, some specific talks.
So like I said, for cake makers and then some of the big stage talks which are more marketing based, that's what I did while I was talking about business first impressions. But even when I looked across the program and attended some of the talks, there were some real key themes coming out which I think are continuing to be big for you in 2025 and beyond. So the first one was a lot of sessions and a lot of people talking about AI. AI is here to stay and it's improving all of the time.
So thinking about how you're using AI in your business, how you can use it to improve your processes, how you can use it to help with your marketing, all of that good stuff and the software and the way they're bringing AI in as well. So if you haven't done much training or you don't really understand AI and how you can use it in your business yet, that's definitely one to pay attention to. I think it's only going to increase the second key Theme was pricing.
Obviously I talked about it in my talk, but I know it was talked about in other places as well. And that's the importance of transparent pricing. One of the things I said in my talk was when was the last time you ordered a taxi by phoning up the taxi company or booked a hotel by phoning up the hotel? Probably forever ago because we don't need to. We can do it all on an app, we can do it all on Google. Why would we pick up the phone to book a taxi?
So my question to the audience was, so why are you making your couples pick up a phone or get on a call with you before you tell them how much something costs? Price transparency. You know, I'm big on it, but it definitely is coming through that we need to be talking about pricing in 2024 and beyond. So if you are still resisting the urge to talk about pricing on your website, let me encourage you to rethink.
And as I always say, the minimum you should have is a from price but the more transparent you can be, the better. The other thing that I always talk about a lot, so you hear me talking about it, but also kept coming up a lot, was automation. And it was interesting because there were definitely two sides to the story.
There were some people that were talking about the importance of automation and making sure you have those automated follow ups automatic responses to your emails and I totally agree. However, there were still some people talking about how they don't like automation and how they want to make everything personalized. Now, I believe there is a bit of a middle ground here. I don't think you need to be one way or the other.
I do think your automation is important because I think most of you aren't going to be replying as quick as you need to and quite often we get caught up and it's a couple of days before we reply to an inquiry and chances are they've booked someone else. At the same time. I do believe the customer experience is important and the personal touch is also important. So there are ways we can do both.
For example, one of the techniques I've been seeing and talking about recently is where you fill in an inquiry form on your website and and straight away you get that automatic response which is hey, thanks for inquiring. Here's a reminder of our price list or our brochure. Here's the next steps. Jump on a call, here's a link to my calendar. I think that can go automatically, but then when you do get a chance in the next 24 hours.
You can also send a personal follow up and say hey, hopefully you got my automated email with all the information but and then put in something personal, the venue you're working at. I've worked out loads of time. I love it. I love your Harry Potter themed wedding. Whatever it is, you can still do both. So just because you automate doesn't mean you can't be personalized as well. So yes, there was a big hot topic on automation but I think that you can be down the middle somewhere.
The next hot topic was of course Gen Z again, something I've been talking about a lot over the last year or so because Gen Z are coming and more and more of our wedding clients are going to be from Gen Z and they do look at the world differently. And so there was lots of conversations about that, about how they live their life, they're the Internet generation, how they are existing, expecting to work with you and what they're looking for in terms of experience as well.
The final two things that came up a lot I think kind of crossover but I put them as two different ones. The first one is finding your usp so really leaning into what it is that you do that's different to everyone else. How not to be vanilla, how to make sure you're standing out as a business and you're not just another florist, another cake maker, but actually you've got something to hang your hat on for people to send people to you for.
Like you've got to go to this cake maker, they excel in making gluten free wedding cakes or you have to go to the this florist if you want roses because their rose decorations are insanely incredible. I don't know what it is for you, but thinking about what it is that makes you different and your USP and alongside that daring to be different. So some of the trends that I was seeing coming out in the talks and in the trends talk particularly are that people are looking for different.
They're looking for bold, they're loving the bold colors, the do things differently, the anti tradition, the you know, having your cake all the way along a table where people could just eat it from their seats or having donuts on fire cooked live in front of you, all sorts of crazy stuff.
But it's like dare to be different, stop trying to blend in with the crowd and actually lean into who you are and what you do and be creative, get creative with your ideas and think about new things that you could be doing. I think the other thing that I love about Wedding MBA is just the coming together of so many different people. And for those of us coming over from the uk, it really is overwhelming. Vegas is overwhelming in the first place. If you've ever been. It is huge.
You've never seen anything like it. It is overwhelming. The machines are flashing, the hotels are bigger than any other hotel you've ever seen, and the scale of everything is just overwhelming. But also, stepping into a little taste of Wedding MBA and seeing a taste of the American wedding market also feels overwhelming to us.
And chatting to the UK guests that came over, one of the big words that they kept saying to me was, what has amazed me is the size and the scale of the industry here in the US and how much we can learn from that as the UK people, because we are used to things being small. We're used to things being the way they are. But actually, our industry is massive. Our industry is global. People are coming from the States to get married all the time, and people from here are getting married in the States.
Right. The world is a big old place, but we're all part of it. And so I think one of the great things about going to a conference like this is the reminder of the size and scale of our industry, a reminder to think bigger and better, to really value what we do and realize we can set ourselves apart.
Those people that came to Wedding MBA from England have set themselves apart by doing that, because not many people step out their comfort zone, get on an airplane and go and better their business by learning from the experts in the us. And so, for those of you that did come this year, I want to commend you because I know it's going to have a positive impact on your business.
I know from talking to you through the week how excited you were, how many creative ideas were flowing, how many new ideas you've got to take back into your businesses. And I think going to an event like this just gives you a fresh perspective on your business. It reignites your passion for what you do, and it reignites your ideas. And I know that it's definitely done that for me this week. If you were there at the conference, I hope that it's given you a new perspective.
I hope it's given you new ideas to implement into your business. And the big thing you need to remember now is now you're home. You got to turn those ideas into action. There's no point having pages and pages of notes, closing your notebook and putting it on the shelf until next year. Instead, go through those notes and realize now you need to take action on what you've learned and make a difference in your business. Because just 1% of difference is huge when it comes to business opportunities.
I love wedding mba. I hope to be back again very, very soon. In just a moment, you're going to hear some of the attendees talking about their experiences. I chatted with attendees across the week on my little microphone that attaches to my phone. So please bear with me. It is very loud. There are a lot of people there, and so not all of the audio quality is as good as I'd like it to be. But I think what they have to say is worth listening to.
So you'll hear them introduce themselves, you'll hear them talk about why they came to the conference, and also you'll hear them talk about some of the amazing things that they took away and learned. Hi, Maria Romano here, the owner of True Love Knots, located in the wedding capital of the world, Las Vegas, Nevada. How can I stay away from wedding mba? It's my third year. And you know what?
It really is a must if you really want to keep your pulse on what's going on, what's going to attract your clients. Because that's ever changing and you want to be just ahead of the curve. This is the place to be. Hi, I'm Melody Kerrigan and I'm from River House Lodge in Bendoord. I mean, the highlights are always just in the education. I think from the different speakers, there's always something new that you can learn and throw and be better at.
My name is Kira Cross and I'm the founder and CEO of Wedding Dates. And we provide venue software called WedPro to wedding venues. The impact that this is going to have on my business is going to make me think bigger. And I'm all about scale at the moment, really focusing on that. And this has just blown my mind wide open of all the opportunities there are for my business and how I can scale it and expand into the U.S. hi, I'm Sam Morris and I'm from Party Event.
We are a wedding mini golf business based in the uk. One of the highlights was learning to put yourself out there as different to everyone else because there's a lot of sameness in the wedding industry. Hi, my name is Elijah Pasquet of Pasquet Photography. I got some cool tips today on how to, you know, more naturally pose.My brides and the people that I'm working, working with. So it's been really good. Hi, my name is Kenesha Primus and I'm a wedding and event designer from Trinidad and Tobago.
I learned we have to get over perfectionism. We have to get over it and get things done. Hi, I am Cheryl Frank and I am from Menorah, Ohio and I am a wedding and event planner at the Everly. One of the biggest highlights was just adding some razzle dazzle zazzle to the trends that are coming up and already happening and turn them into better options that work for our budgets for the brides and grooms that we have. Hi, I'm Eric Ocampo.
I'm the Director of Business Growth and Success here at writbiz. We came to Wedding MBA to be able to connect directly with our clients, to be able to hear what it is that they need from us, to be able to streamline their business. And that SMS is vitally important to your business. It's been talked about in almost all of the talks. Hi, I'm Kate from the Wedding House in the uk.I'd be really open minded, maybe set yourself some goals.
There's a lot of information to take on board but you can't do it all. So prioritize what you think is key. Hi, I'm Nikita from Guides to Brides. I'm the head of strategy there and we're from the uk. In this industry, it's quite oversaturated in certain aspects and if you can be different, if you can have a USP in some way that's going to help you stand out. I am Alison Hargreaves. I am the founder and director of Guides for Brides and Beyond Weddings.
So I've been a couple of times in the past and always find it really valuable for keeping a step ahead of the latest trends. But it's also the most phenomenal opportunity to network with really ambitious businesses. Hello everyone, my name is Rachel Hadziak. I am the business development and Event manager at Newfield. So it is to learn the latest and the greatest, surround myself with like minded people.
Hi, this is Shannon Underwood, the conference director and Vice president of the Wedding mba. We just had so many great attendees. We had over 6,000 people, which is really incredible. Our exhibits looked incredible. I really think our exhibitors brought their A game. Their booths were super decorated. They brought their best product, their best staffing and our classes were really unique and I love the topics that we had this year.
You should come to next year's Wedding MBA because we are looking at always evolving, changing, doing new things. We're going to be doing more with hands on demos, which we did a little pilot program here this year. It went fantastic. So for next year we would absolutely love to do it in a bigger way, get the audience more involved with each and every presentation that we can and just see what they want to see for next year. Wedding MBA 2024. You were amazing.
I've taken away so much inspiration and I'm sure the other attendees have too. And hopefully if you've listened to this episode, you've taken away a little taste of what the conference is like and learned some things that you could also implement into your business. If you're thinking about going to wedding MBA in 2025, the dates are already available. It will be happening next November.
Reach out to me, let's chat and I can talk to you about how to get the most out of the conference and how to get your tickets. I'll see you next time.