Learn more and register here: https://www.besageconference.com/

The post Be Sage Conference – Advanced Learning for Event Professionals appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

I’ve invited Nora Sheils to share her knowledge with us today. Nora is the co-founder of Rock Paper Coin, the first software platform to bring together wedding planners, couples, and vendors into one system for managing and paying contracts and invoices. She is also the founder and lead wedding planner of award-winning firmBridal Bliss. In addition to recognition by Portland Business Journal in its 40 Under 40 series, she also earned a spot in The BizBash 500 for 2021.

Creative professionals are innovators at heart, so it’s no surprise that many leverage their brainpower to produce new ideas — and new businesses. But juggling multiple brands requires a significant amount of work, especially in the early startup stage.

Fortunately, with the right systems and support in place, you can harness your multi-passionate power and achieve success on every side. Sure, it might involve some long nights along the way. But creative entrepreneurs have the grit necessary to bring big ideas to life and you are no exception!

It’s time to stop letting those ideas pass you by. If there’s a business idea on your mind, use these strategies to establish a solid foundation and make it a reality.

Establish clear goals

Success is built upon meaningful goals — and that goes for all of your personal and professional ventures! So if a new brand is on the table, start by revisiting the goals you set for your first company. Are you on track? Will an exciting business idea ultimately detract from those goals? A new project should not sacrifice your company’s health!

If all systems are a go, consider your short and long-term goals for a new brand. What do you hope to accomplish? Are you looking to break into a new market? Or do you aim to feed customers into your original brand? Is there a specific revenue goal that indicates success? Get clear on your motivations and why you want to launch a new business.

Build your team wisely

Growing a business alone is challenging as is. But double the brands means double the work, so focus on finding the best people to support your endeavors. If your first business is already staffed, consider how you can assign some of your team’s effort to launch and scale the new brand.

Keep in mind that this “shared” approach should be temporary as drawing resources from your original business is unsustainable for growth on both ends. Instead, expect to hire team members to fill in the new roles as your new business picks up speed. You may also discover a need for specific skill sets—as we did with software development—so hire slowly and carefully to identify the candidates that fit your needs best.

Define brand messaging

In most cases, you’ll need a fresh take on brand messaging for a new business. Yes, even if it’s in a similar market as your first one! Consider how your new brand differs from the existing one, as well as your competitors. Is it a budget-friendly option to pair with your luxury offerings? Does it sell products that complement your services?

Identify three to five adjectives you’d like to describe your brand in the market, and use them to influence messaging on your website, social media, emails, and other marketing materials.

If you have access to the intended audience for your new brand, spend some time performing market research to gain feedback and ideas from ideal clients. For instance, if you run a floral design company and want to open a rental company as a complementary brand, ask past and current customers what they’d love to see in your inventory!

With solid goals, a reliable team, and strong brand messaging in place, you can start checking the other boxes on your to-do list, like creating packages, building a website, or closing your first sale. By focusing on business fundamentals, you can set up your second brand for success while ensuring the maintained viability of your first one.

The post How to Grow Multiple Brands with Ease appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

Interest is accruing. And even though the rate is only 3.75% for many people with large loans, this could mean a LOT of money. (On a $100k loan, it’s ~$312 monthly in interest. Do your own math here.)

Here are my thoughts on why you should be making payments NOW:

DO THIS:

1. Set up an account to see your loan balances here: https://Caweb.sba.gov
2. Make payments on your loan here: https://pay.gov
3. Take my Cashflow Planning Class to plan out your loan payments.

The post SBA EIDL Loan Repayment Strategies appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

Here are the details:

CASH IS KING
how to create a cash flow plan for your event business

DATE & TIME: MAY 31 OR JUNE 14 12pm-2pm EST* {note the timezone!}
WHERE: anywhere (just log into your computer)
WHAT: You’ll be learning…

• How to analyze your financial history to make better business decisions
• How to create a sales forecast for your wedding business
• How to create an expense budget
• How to manage seasonality in our industry
• How to pull it all together in a cash flow strategy

COST: $250

REGISTER HERE

NOTE: this is a LIVE class. I’ll be teaching live, we’ll have a live discussion, and we’ll work through exercises to start the creation of your cash flow plan. I’ll be sending out a link that you’ll access our group call. And, you’ll receive a work packet to print out ahead of time to prepare for the exercises.

This class will be limited to the first 30 registrants. (My live classes fill up QUICKLY.) Registration closes on May 23 – or when it sells out.

Interested? Sign up here. I will send out class materials on May 23rd.

The post May 31 & June 14 Cashflow Planning Classes appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

The pandemic had a massive impact on the wedding industry, causing professionals worldwide to reconsider their business model and how they could find success in these changing times. With a decrease in events, entrepreneurs had to get creative to bring in additional business.

As industry leaders adapted to this new normal, many products, services, branding initiatives, and business directions were born. But now, as events return, you might be wondering how to implement these changes in a post-pandemic world. Is now a good time to reach an entirely new audience? How can you enter a new market without losing your brand identity? What will these changes mean for your profit margins?

Though these updates are undoubtedly exciting, it’s essential to approach them strategically. You’ll want to make sure your business is equipped to handle a new market before you jump ship.

If entering a new market is on your mind, here’s how you can ensure a seamless transition for your business.

Review your business model

Before jumping the gun, you need to ask yourself if you’re truly ready to take on a new market. Having a solid foundation in place before making any moves will allow you to grow steadily and not overwhelm your team. Think about these things:

• Could you handle a month with no profits as you transition? Entering a new market can be costly and time-consuming. Those operating on a month-to-month basis might not want to diversify their business just yet.
• Are you consistently booked out? If you struggle to find new clients, this should be your focus instead. Once you learn how to generate high-quality leads, you can then take these strategies to a new market.
• Are lower-cost competitors stealing the show? If your market is oversaturated, it may be time to move on. Entering a more lucrative market may be what you need to grow.
• Can your team support your growth? If you’re flying solo, you might want to find a handful of new employees who you can trust to keep your business moving forward.

Take a look at your current business model first, so you can see if you’re ready to take on this new market.

Conduct market research

After you’ve determined you have the right business model to dive into a new market, it’s best to prioritize market research. This step is essential if you want to ensure a smooth transition. Plus, you’re more likely to succeed when you have a deep understanding of what it will take to do so.

Spend time thinking about the needs of your new clients. If you’re hoping to enter the LGBTQ+ market, you’ll need to consider what LGBTQ+ clients seek when planning a wedding. Or if you want to break into intimate weddings, you’ll need to get an understanding of the unique needs of the micro-wedding client.

Immerse yourself inside the market and reach out to potential clients to get a feel for their expectations. You can also talk to fellow industry professionals about their experiences in this market.

Conduct interviews and monitor social media groups to gather as much insight as possible. The more you know about the problems your ideal clients face, the better you’ll be able to solve them. In addition, your research will validate your ideas and adjust your messaging strategy to stand out from the crowd.

Implement necessary changes

As you continue to grow, you may find that you need to make a few adjustments to your brand or team. Set aside time to brainstorm what new messaging you need to create, including minor tagline changes or a complete rebrand.

This will all depend on your current business model and what your expansion will look like, but go into the process knowing that it will involve incorporating more tech to streamline operations. For instance, your customer relationship management (CRM) platform might be able to do double-duty or you may need to find a different one that better suits your new market.

Use your market research findings to understand what will appeal most to your new ideal clients. What kind of deal are they looking for? What types of brands are they attracted to? Once you know these things, you can ensure your business fits the bill.

On top of branding, think about the changes you may need to make on your team. Using the previous example, if you’re expanding into the LGBTQ+ industry, adding an LGBTQ+ team member would allow you to connect with clients on a deeper level. If you’re not taking on new employees, think about implementing sensitivity training and additional educational resources to ensure your team is equipped to handle these changes.

Entering a new market can be both intimidating and nerve-wracking, but so long as you remain proactive in your preparations, you’re sure to make a splash!

The post Looking at a New Market? 3 Tips for a Successful Entrance appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

So you want to try something new — exciting! Moving to a new location can be a rewarding experience, but one that involves careful planning and forethought to mitigate risk. Picking up your home and family to relocate is already a big endeavor; moving a business can add to the pressure and stress if not prepared in advance.

Due to family needs, military service, and other life factors, it’s not always possible to choose your next location. However, you can still take proper measures to set your business up for success once you enter the new market.

No matter the reason for a move, here’s what you need to do to start on the right foot in your new locale.

Start with preliminary research.

Basic market research will answer a lot of questions regarding how to market your business and connect with potential clients in the new area. But, first, get a feel for the region and look up important details, like the cost of living, the average cost of a wedding, and any strong competitors already in the market.

This information will help you determine whether you need to adjust your business model to remain competitive. Depending on your destination, it may also be wise to expand your research to a two or three-hour radius from your home base.

Announce your move well in advance.

As you prepare to move, your main clients will likely still be in your old region, and they may be concerned to know you won’t be local anymore. Be respectful and let them know personally before announcing publicly, and guarantee that the level of service will not change. Listen to their concerns and answer their questions directly; speaking to them one-on-one will assuage their worries far more than if they find out on social media.

Most will want to know three things: Will you still provide service for them? Will it cost more? What happens if bad weather or traffic prevents you from being there? Assure them that your service will continue as agreed upon at no additional cost. Then, discuss contingency plans to ensure you can overcome any travel obstacles. For example, you may leave several days early to cushion your timeline. It’s best to have a last-resort plan as well, considering who will step in if you cannot be there personally. It also helps to offer more phone or video meetings to check in and settle their nerves about your move.

You’ll also need to share your big plans with friendors via email or phone, depending on how close you are and how much business you share. If you plan to continue operating in your existing market, make it clear that you are still open to new leads. If not, let them know you will be focusing solely on your new area and thank them for their support.

Confirm your business is legally sound.

A great network and smooth entry to the market do little good if your business doesn’t meet your new area’s legal requirements. If you are heading to a new state (or country), do your due diligence by looking into local laws and how to transition your business over as a legal entity. For any concerns, consult a business lawyer to confirm adherence to federal, state, and local laws.

It also helps to set up your taxes in advance to ensure a seamless transition. While you’re at it, go ahead and update your mailing and business address with banks, credit cards, and subscriptions to avoid any gaps in payments or bills.

Build a presence before you move.

Just because you’re still packing boxes and tying up loose ends doesn’t mean you can’t start building business in your soon-to-be home. As soon as you know you’re moving, update your website, social media profiles, and Google My Business account to support SEO and begin showing up in your new location.

Depending on the parameters, you may also start attending networking events and joining association groups in the market. If traveling back and forth isn’t in the cards, you can still attend virtual events and join local industry Facebook groups to introduce yourself and start establishing your network. Chambers of commerce and other general business associations are also excellent resources to connect with local entrepreneurs.

It can help to research vendors in the market beforehand and take notes on who you’d like to meet in your new area. Then, follow them on Instagram and start genuinely engaging with them. If you set aside time to do this every week leading up to your move, you’ll be surprised by the growing network you already have when you get there!

Moving to a new market can feel like being a kid starting at a new school. Nerves and excitement are expected, but don’t let either get in the way of a clear and strategic plan to transition your business as smoothly as possible. Rest assured that, with time, you will find community, grow your client base, and eventually feel at home.

The post Packing Up Shop and Breaking into a New Locale appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

Did you know that the first 5 results that appear on a search engine receive as much as 67.6% of clicks? The first page of search results has been reported to receive as much as 92% of clicks in recent years. That makes the competition for the first page of search results incredibly fierce for any business with an online presence… which is just about every business in 2021.

If you want to boost your business’s online presence, the secret is SEO, or search engine optimization. SEO is the process of making your web pages visible and desirable in the eyes of search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo.

How do you make search engines prioritize your web pages? While search engines are extremely complicated technologies that use as many as 200 factors to determine SEO, two of the most important factors are high quality content and link building. Let’s discuss how you can develop these two critical factors to improve your online presence.

High Quality Content

The first step in ensuring that your page is perceived as high quality content is to do an audit of your website. Certain red flags can damage your SEO ranking, which will make it instantly more difficult for your business to be discovered online. Remove any links that lead to error pages (also known as “broken links”), as well as any outdated information and duplicate content. Formatting issues will also weigh down your website in terms of perceived quality.

Now that you know what needs to be removed, how can you fill your website with quality content? You’ll need to choose keywords and implement your content based on those keywords. A keyword is essentially a word or phrase that summarizes the topic of your content. If the keywords used on your website match someone’s search query, then your web page will be much more likely to show up on the first page of results.

To find the right keywords, you need to get inside the head of your potential clients. If you’re a high-end wedding decor company, what are your customers typing into the search bar when they want to find a business like yours?

It’s important that you choose keywords that your client base actually uses, not keywords that you want them to use. In this example, you may want your clients to search for “5ft gold arches”, but they actually look up ”wedding arches” or “gold wedding arches” much more often. There are some great free tools out there to help you determine the best keywords to use for your business website.

Proper use of keywords with relevant content and supporting keywords will make your website more legitimate and authoritative on the topic, which will draw search engines towards your website. Without keywords, search engines can’t tell what your content is about, or won’t perceive it as a trustworthy source of information.

Building Links

Picture an enormous spider web, where there are endless intersections between different points. As the spider continues to weave its thread and passes over the same intersections again and again, these intersections get thicker and stronger, making them more visible. The intersections that have been passed over multiple times are much easier to see than the ones that the spider’s only passed once.

This is a metaphor for how backlinks make your web pages more visible to search engines. The whole spider web represents the internet (or the world wide web, ha!), the intersections represent web pages, and the individual threads represent links to and from the web pages. Building more links, especially to other relevant sources, will improve your SEO dramatically.

How can you build more links? Start by including links in the content you write. These links can connect to other pages on your website or pages that you don’t own that have relevant information. For instance, if you’re writing a blog post and are using information from another site, provide a link to that site. This tells Google that the information on these pages is related, and further improves SEO.

Next you’ll want to build backlinks, which are links to your page from other websites. How do you build these? You can ask people to directly link to your site, but this won’t work out very well if you don’t provide some sort of value to them. A better approach is to offer to write a guest blog post for their site with a link to your webpage in your author bio because this provides a value to their reader while also providing you the backlink. You can also partner with others for webinars and podcasts, get featured in publications, or allow others to use your photos and credit you.

If you exercise your creativity, there are endless possibilities for acquiring backlinks for your website, but it can become very time consuming very quickly. When it comes to building backlinks, remaining consistent with your effort will pay off more than a quick, intense burst of backlink building. Maintain your effort to build links to and from your site, and it will pay dividends for your online presence.

Don’t Overdo It

A mistake that many people make when they read articles like this is to go crazy with keywords and backlinks. What those people don’t realize is that there is a point at which stuffing more keywords or backlinks begins to hurt your rankings rather than it helps. Search engine technology has become so advanced that it can tell that a page is speaking in a way that is unnatural for the sake of fitting in more keywords, and it will avoid that page.

Similarly, a ridiculous number of links to and from irrelevant websites can also be a red flag that will not help your business’s website. SEO isn’t so much about stats as it is about authority. Prove your page to be trustworthy by interacting with other relevant sites and talking about the right topics, and search engines will reward you. If you just pretend to be relevant, they will just ignore you.

Much like in your sales, your SEO shouldn’t be fake. People appreciate authentic expertise, and so do search engines! Whether you’re writing content for your blog or for others, you should remember that providing helpful, relevant content is key to building your SEO and your brand. Your readers, and the SEO bots, will appreciate it!

The post The Top Two Factors to Boost your Business’s Online Presence with SEO appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

Do you have various social media channels but don’t know how to make them work for your small business? If you’re struggling with your social media platforms, maybe the problem isn’t that you don’t know how to use them. Rather, perhaps you don’t understand the purpose of social media. 

Many business owners believe social media is only about sharing images and captions of their small business to potential and current clients. Yes, social media is an excellent platform for sharing about your business, but it’s more than pretty pictures and clever words. Social media’s main purpose for your business is to be used as a strategic marketing tool that builds relationships between you and your clients.

If you want to establish your business’ presence on social media and create lucrative relationships with your clients, here are three ways to create strong social media channels.

Images and Hashtags Attract Your Ideal Client.

The best images for your business are the ones that are not only stunning but focus on your business offerings. There’s nothing worse than a pretty picture with no purpose! If a picture can say a thousand words, then it’s up to you to make sure the right words come through your images to your clients. If you’re looking to DIY your own social media photos, Canva is a great resource for creating one-of-a-kind photos for social media.

Finding the right hashtags for your posts may sound boring and not as vital as images, but they are just as important. Hashtags allow you to step into different spaces so your ideal clients can discover you where they’re already hanging out. Each hashtag you use increases your brand visibility across social media.

Images and hashtags each play a huge part in growing your social media channels. Photos capture your clients’ eyes and invite them to your posts. Hashtags are your hidden weapons that attract ideal clients who know what they want to your posts.

Captions Build Relationships with Clients.

Many people underestimate the power of captions. If you’re a small business owner selling a product, event, or service, you can’t afford to neglect the value of a good caption. Why? After the hashtags and images have brought prospective leads to your posts, you’ll need something to keep them there. Your captions are the best way to keep your potential clients interested in what you have to offer.

How do you make your captions work for you and build a relationship with clients? It’s simple. Show your clients you understand their situation by using the captions to solve their problems. If they need help picking the best wedding venue, give them a three-step guide on wedding venues. Or, if they want to know how your business works, use captions to give them a peek into your daily life.

Solving problems, sharing guides, and remaining transparent in your captions not only builds relationships with potential and current clients but shows them that you’re not in it for their money — you want to help them.

Call to Actions Show Your Clients the Next Step.

Calls to action are intimidating for some, as it’s essentially asking a user to do something for you. Although it’s as simple as noting a specific step to take at the end of the caption, the act of directing people to make a purchase or visit your website can seem pushy.

But, the reality is that showing your clients what to do next keeps them engaged with your business and gives them a reason to check out what else you have to offer.

The goal of a must-click CTA isn’t just to tell people to click a link or comment. The goal is to give them a reason why to take the next step with you. You aren’t just answering the question, “What do I do next?” You must also answer the question, “Why should I do that?” Whether your call to action is asking for a comment or a website visit, it must be specific and motivating.

Social media is a great way to promote your business, attract new clients, and build revenue, but it requires a bit of strategy. Learning how to write a powerful caption (hashtags included), create a beautiful image, and combine the two for an impactful post makes your platforms stronger.

While photos, captions, and calls to action are all valuable elements of a social media strategy, it’s essential to recognize that none of it truly matters if a solid relationship can’t develop from it. Put your people first! If you keep your business focused on these three points, your struggle with social media will end, your relationship with clients will grow, and your business will thrive.

The post Creating Strong Social Media Channels appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

Head to Weddings for Real to catch my podcast interview on the Amazon Effect and your wedding business.

The post The Amazon Effect – Weddings for Real Podcast Interview appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.

It’s hard to imagine life without email. Nowadays, it has become a crucial tool for working professionals of all types. As an event professional, you likely rely on it for the majority of your internal and external communications. Yet, as intuitive as checking and responding to emails may seem, going through a pile of unread messages can be quite daunting.

How often have you struggled to quickly find an email that you needed to reread or forget to follow up with a client or vendor partner? You’re not alone! Many people find it incredibly tricky to stay on top of their inboxes. However, with smart and mindful email management, you can keep your important messages from falling through the cracks and boost your efficiency and productivity.

Ready for some clever strategies to stop email overload? Let’s dive in. 

Organize emails using folders

In reality, your inbox should contain your real-time action items only. The rest of the messages should go into specific folders, just as you would organize papers in filing cabinets. This technique keeps your inbox tidy and helps you retrieve essential information with ease.

When creating a folder structure, consider your organizing needs and preferences. This will help you commit to filing away each and every email. Ask yourself: Would I like to sort emails by year or by categorical folders (i.e., Payroll, Client Work, Finances, etc.)? Of course, these top-level folders can be further broken down into subfolders as necessary for further organization.

Weed through new emails

After you’ve successfully established a filing system, it’s time to take a look at how you handle incoming emails. The first thing you need to do is get rid of junk emails such as ads, subscriptions, and other promotional content that aren’t useful for your business.

Once done, you can focus on the emails that need your attention. Try to reply immediately whenever you can so you can file the message away and have one less thing to worry about. If you need to get back to the sender at a later date, let them know you’re working on it and keep the message in your inbox until you’ve responded.

Designate time for email management

Constantly checking your email is a waste of your precious time and can also distract you from more important work. The solution? Set a daily time for browsing your messages. The best time for this is really up to you. Personally, I manage my inbox in the morning to keep it as clear as possible, then allot two hours midday to catch up and do a final inbox sweep in the evening to give myself a head start (and hopefully a clean inbox) for the next morning.

Use canned responses to be more efficient

Canned responses have a bad rep for sounding generic or robotic. However, when crafted carefully, they can allow you to quickly respond to emails without losing your personal touch! There’s no need to reinvent the wheel. Customizable templates can save you a significant amount of time and effort if you use them correctly.

And there you have it! These four tips are invaluable for developing a solid email management routine that keeps you out of your inbox and in your zone of genius. But remember: no matter how great your email management system is, it won’t help unless you stick to it. So if you want to remove email stress from your life, stay focused and committed!

The post 4 Strategies to Get Your Inbox in Gear Before It’s Too Late appeared first on Be Sage Consulting | formerly Sage Wedding Pros.