In a wedding market already filled with planners, photographers, videographers, DJs, florists….every wedding vendor you can possibly imagine, how can you possibly stand out?  Raleigh-based wedding photographer Julia Wade is one of a kind, and she shares her tips for individuality in a saturated market!

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BetterHelp.com is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   Julia Wade on Social Media: Instagram: @juliawade Facebook: @juliawadephotography   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Michelle Loretta from Sage Wedding Pros is a wedding business consultant with a mind for numbers and a passion for business plans! Today she comes on the show to talk all about how to make your big business decisions, and it can’t be just because your competitors are doing it.   Sage Wedding Pros on Social Media: Instagram: @SageWeddingPros Facebook: @SageWeddingPros twitter: @SageWeddingPros   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Kinsey Roberts is the owner Vista View Events on Open Heart Ranch in Colorado, but you probably know her best as the fabulous host of the She Creates Business Podcast!  Today, Kinsey comes on the show to talk all about opening up a wedding venue! What are some tips and recommendations to help you through the process? And what are some potential landmines to avoid?   Kinsey Roberts (image by Mekina Saylor Photography)   On the show, Kinsey recommends hiring Lindsay Lucas if you’re interested in guidance on how exactly to open up a venue and how to deal with some of the county ordinances (and other things you don’t even think about).  Lindsay can be found at https://thelindsaylucas.com/.   Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, BetterHelp.com! BetterHelp is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   She Creates Business Links: Instagram: @SheCreatesBusiness Facebook: @SheCreatesBusiness   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

The latest Engage! Summit was June 10-13th in the Bahamas, and Megan was there for the full luxury wedding and event education experience!  And today, she shares her top ten takeaways from the speakers she heard.   Tips are from:   1) Hayley Paige (14:10) 2) Amirah Kassem (18:40) 3) Cindy Novotny (22:30)  4) Duncan Wardle (26:50) 5) Julian Leaver (31:55)  6) Tracie Domino (35:10)  7) Tracie Domino again (36:55)  8) Andy Maurer (37:55) 9) Jove Meyer (40:55) 10) Mike Michalowicz (43:50)   Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, BetterHelp.com! BetterHelp is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   Engage Summits on Social Media: Facebook: @EngageSummits Instagram: @EngageSummits twitter: @EngageSummits       Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Generation Z is the next generation of consumers and (wedding) clients.  Christie Osborne from Mountainside Media is an expert on analytics and marketing, specifically for the wedding industry. And today she comes on to talk about what’s different about Generation Z, what’s the same, and what we as wedding vendors should be doing to get ready for this group!   Christie Osborne, Mountainside Media (image by Dustin Osborne)     Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, Storyworth! For a really cool Father’s Day (or any time) gift, visit StoryWorth.com/WeddingsForReal for $20 off your subscription! With Storyworth, you or a loved one answers questions about your life weekly, and at the end of the year, those stories are bound into a keepsake book!    Mountainview Media on Social Media: Facebook: @mtnsidemediaco Instagram: @mtnsidemediaco   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Some believe the creative path is a winding road from zero to (one-day) reaching your full creative potential.  But for destination wedding photographer Perry Vaile, that didn’t work for her. Because as creatives, some days are more productive than others, and sometimes we have feel like everyone else is doing so much more than us, and sometimes we’re on a roll, and sometimes we want to be proud of our accomplishments, and some days, we fail.  It’s a mindgame. And so Perry came up with an amazing metaphor called The House of Creativity!       Perry Vaile on Social Media: Instagram: @perryvaile   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Brittny Drye started Love Inc Magazine in October 2013 as the first equality-minded wedding publication. And although the wedding industry has come a long way, we still have so much further to go to make sure that LGBTQ couples aren’t discriminated against.  Part of that is looking into our content – are we using bride- and groom-specific verbiage on our websites, contracts, and proposals? And even in our own language?   Sha’Quitta Brown just got married to her wife L’Erin in July 2018. And for them, they didn’t feel welcome by all wedding vendors. Some were downright bigoted, and some just didn’t have the collateral on their website to make Sha’Quitta and L’Erin comfortable in contacting them. For those who are outwardly intolerant, Sha’Quitta doesn’t have any time for them. But for those who WANT to be inclusive and who WANT more LGBT weddings, Sha’Quitta has some great advice.   Brittny Drye (Image by Brandi Gard)   L’Erin and Sha’Quitta (image by Cedrick Forrest of Showtime Studios)   Love Inc on Social Media: Instagram: @loveincmag twitter: @loveincmag Facebook: @loveincmag   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

If you’ve been in business long enough, you’ve probably had a negative online review (or several). Whether the review was fair or not, you NEED to respond. Not so much to the person who wrote the review, but for the potential clients who are reading your reviews.  So how do you do it?  We give some tips on today’s show!

Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal

Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She’s also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com.

Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.