Hello Andy, You may remember me from the Wedding MBA in AZ, I just wanted to send you a note letting you know that the first thing we did when we got home was change our website name thanks to your advice !! Then a few weeks later I started our blog, visit it when you have a minute. www.theguestlistinvitations.blogspot.com

Also I am always reading your blog now and so many others. I wanted to let you know that we have done some many new things because of the Wedding MBA Show and are already better and more profitable for it !!!

Nichole Winter

Thanks Nicole! Very exciting… and, as I’ve promised other Wedding MBA attendees, when you tell me you’ve launched your plug, I’ll make an announcement about it… like this one. Hopefully, some of our readers will stop by and check it ou.

The Guest List blog

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: wedding blog, wedding marketing, wedding mba, wedding website

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If I know you, click the logo to get Linked-In?

How much wedding marketing and other quick tasks can you do in 10 minutes? Quite a bit, it turns out.

• Take a break from driving fatigue.
• Enter the names of 11 people you met at WIPA, last evening, inviting them to get LinkedIn.
• Write two ‘thank you emails.’
• Have a cup of decaf at Starbucks in Primm.
• Write one blog post.

You can either kill 10 minutes or use them. It’s your choice.

Gotta go… it’s Las Vegas NACE, tonight.

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: Andy Ebon, Las Vegas NACE, LinkedIn, Starbucks, tip, wedding marketing, wedding marketing blog, WIPA

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Does the United States (and beyond) need yet another wedding association?: In reality, this would be its first non-profit association. A true ‘business league,’ as defined by the IRS.

Why does non-profit status matter?: While privately held organizations do provide specific services and benefits for their members, they are always colored by the fact that they are not owned by the membership. An owner or partnership often does good things, but their ultimate goal is profit. Naming an organization an association that is for-profit is a tad misleading. In true associations such as WIPA, NACE or ISES, the membership, represented by its elected leaders, drives the agenda.

What is the vision?: WIPA is still fine tuning its mission statement; however, it’s safe to say that it will focus on education, industry standards, integrity, and consumer-awareness through major media. The association strives to become the leading voice for wedding industry businesses.

What about local chapters?: WIPA has just blasted out of the starting blocks, but local chapters are already on the radar. Thought launched in California, the founding board members plan to evangelize their mission across the United States and beyond, in rapid fashion. There will be a WIPA presence at The Special Event Show in San Diego, (January 2009), in terms of speakers at sessions (wedding track), a booth in the trade show, and at the wedding luncheon. It is expected that the involvement at The Special Event Show will trigger a flurry of new memberships and fuel interest by wedding industry ‘movers and shakers’ to bring about ‘chapters in development.’

What was the vibe? (OK, that’s a California word) The tone of the gathering and the presentation was energetic, exciting, and passionate. The attendees represented a wide range of business types, within the industry. That kind of variety and enthusiasm can only be a good sign.

WIPA’s founding president, Joyce Scardina Becker, made a great case for the new association and its far reaching benefits to members and the wedding industry, generally. If her fellow board members can match her dedication and commitment, the possibilities for the wedding industry are limitless.

===

SPECIAL COMMENT: Networking takes place when any group of business people get together. That’s the natural order of things. WIPA promises to be more than just networking.

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: Andy Ebon, education, integrity, local chapters, wedding industry professionals association, wedding marketing blog, WIPA

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Wedding Industry Professionals Association (WIPA)

Thirty hours of time, for two hours of networking probably seems out of proportion to the untrained eye. Not to my eyes.

Tuesday, I’m driving to the Fairmont Hotel in Santa Monica, CA to attend the second of two launch parties in Southern California, hosted by WIPA (Wedding Industry Professionals Association). Monday’s event was at the Sheraton, San Diego.

If you haven’t heard about WIPA, you should read my post from last week.

Here’s the thing. The main focus of my business is weddings. Wedding marketing, precisely. The notion of a true nationwide association is important to the industry, and important to my business.

For me, joining is a no-brainer. Sending in a check is easy. I want to kick the tires. Meet the leaders. Feel the tone of the organization. Hear where it’s headed.

In the world of Amazon.com and YouTube, there is nothing quite like shaking hands, looking people in the eye, and listening to what they say. I feel strongly about that, so I’ll be driving to Santa Monica, attending the gathering, and hanging out, afterward.

Driving back to Las Vegas, Wednesday, is important, too. Because Wednesday night will be the Awards and Board Installation for the Las Vegas Chapter of NACE. If one were to attend only one NACE meeting, the entire year, this would be the one.

Online social networking has its place. Being face-to-face is even more important. And I’m in this industry for the long haul. What about you?

I’ll report to you about WIPA, in the next couple of days.

Stay tuned!

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: being there, in person, Las Vegas NACE, networking, online, social networking, WIPA

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In some cases the person with the most experience (and highest paycheck) is let go in a ‘cost-cutting move.’ In other situations, a job is eliminated, due lack of event activity, and one or more people absorb the work until ‘business picks up.’ In yet other cases, business close down altogether.

Here’s the thing: If you slave away as an event or catering manager for a wedding venue, it’s easy to never leave the premises. Bad idea.

It’s always important to attend industry networking events at other properties. There are two good reasons. First, see what cool things other venues are doing. Second, meet other industry people and develop personal relationships.

Today’s competitor may be your next employer, should you get laid off. Also, vendors do business in many places. They could be the source of your next job opening.

Vendors like to brag about their relationships with ‘big name businesses.’ They name drop an event at the Four Seasons or the Ritz Carlton.

The fact is, too often, vendors don’t have a relationship with ‘the venue,’ they have a relationship with ‘one person at the venue.’

So the question becomes: If that venue contact is transferred or laid off, how solid is the relationship, in real terms?

Relationship building means more than attending industry organization meetings. It means becoming familiar with everyone in a department. It means having friendly relationships with competitors.

There is nothing more sad than seeing a member of organization who has been MIA for a year, suddenly show up after he or she has been laid off. It’s a little late, at that point.

Networking should not be situational or calendar-based. It should be part of everyone’s personal and business marketing plan.

The value of real interpersonal business relationships is priceless.

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Network

Technorati Tags: AFWPI, laid off, layoffs, NACE, networking, Relationship Marketing, unemployed, wedding economy, wedding industry, WIPA

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Wedding Industry Professionals Association (WIPA)

There are many wedding organizations offering networking meetings, conferences, education, networking, and/or certification throughout the United States: ACPWC, AFWPI, June Wedding, Inc., Weddings Beautiful, and ABC to name just a handful.

While all these organizations serve their members, to varying degrees, none of them are actually a non-profit trade association (also known as a Business League).

What’s the difference you ask? A non-profit trade association, such as ISES or NACE, and now, WIPA, is owned by its members. It is not operated by an individual or partnership who own the organization, in perpetuity.

The average member of any of organization, national or local, may not care whether the belong to a non-profit trade association; however, it is more than a technicality. It’s a way of doing business.

Further, there is dominant wedding association, nationally. There a variety of certifications, which have their own value, but there is not uniformity among them.

WIPA is the first national non-profit (501c6) trade association created specifically for providers of wedding products and services.

The purpose of WIPA is to educate the public about the value of employing qualified wedding specialists, to set and monitor performance standards for its members, and to provide members with opportunities to enhance their professional growth.

Pioneered by 36 leading authorities in the wedding business, WIPA was introduced to a select group of bridal specialists recently at The Vintage Estate in Napa Valley, California, on October 1st, and at the headquarters of Wildflower Linen in Southern California on October 7th.

WIPA’s Founding Sponsors and Members read like a Who’s Who list in the wedding industry – Auberge du Soleil, Denon & Doyle Entertainment, Good Gracious! Events, Paula LeDuc Fine Catering, Penton Media (publishers of Special Events magazine) The Carneros Inn, and many other premiere providers.

Joyce Scardina Becker CMP

“We recognized the need for higher level education and professional development opportunities for those employed in the wedding industry,” explains WIPA’s first President, Joyce Scardina Becker, an international award-winning wedding planner and author.  “Our industry has just risen to professional status over the past 20 years, and many unskilled planners and suppliers have been starting new wedding careers at a rapid pace.  There’s an overdue need for a strong code of ethics, and WIPA will set the standards of performance for the wedding industry.  The expert members in WIPA are demanding it.”

As a non-profit association, WIPA is run by its members, who understand what it takes to produce a wedding. WIPA brings together professionals from all wedding disciplines, including cake designers, caterers, entertainment companies, florists, hoteliers, journalists, photographers, rental companies, videographers, wedding planners and many more.

This solid peer network helps WIPA’s professionals produce outstanding results for brides and grooms.  Other national membership service organizations exist in the wedding industry, but they are for-profit entities, in business to generate a monetary return on investment for their owners.  WIPA has been established to satisfy needs that are unmet by the for-profit wedding groups, primarily through superior education, mentoring, certification, career advancement and business support.

WIPA is moving to the forefront of wedding industry education at The Special Event 2009 Conference, which will take place at the San Diego Convention Center on January 27-30, 2009.  At this annual conference that attracts 6,000 event industry professionals from around the world, WIPA members will present six educational seminars on important wedding-related topics.  For more information about The Special Event 2009, visit its website.

The long term plan for WIPA includes local chapters and its own national conference.

Next week, as part of its rollout, WIPA will be hosting launch events on Monday, November 17th, and Tuesday, November 18th, in San Diego and Santa Monica, respectively. These launch events are designed to share information about the benefits of joining this new association.

Monday, November 17th
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina
1380 Harbor Island Drive
San Diego, CA 92101

To RSVP for the San Diego event, please email: jessica@eventsbydesign.com

Tuesday, November 18th
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Fairmont Mirarmar Hotel & Bungalows
101 Wilshire Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90401

To RSVP for the Santa Monica event, please email: paula@weddingsbyct.com

=====

SPECIAL COMMENT: This is ground breaking news. The launch and success of WIPA can be an excellent enhancement to the United States wedding industry. It’s important to find out about, attend launch events, join, and be involved. In this way, wedding professionals can earn both the knowledge and credentials to serve their clients and peers with utmost integrity and ability.

Your reaction, comments, thoughts, and questions are especially welcomed on this news.

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: ABC, ACPWC, AFWPI, Andy Ebon, ISES, June Wedding Inc., NACE, The Wedding Marketing Blog, wedding association, wedding trade association, Weddings Beautiful, WIPA

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An attendee commented: “Brides remain the same average age, about 27-28, but the longer you’re in the wedding industry, the larger the age gap. As you age, it can feel like the bride is getting younger.”

I thought that was an interesting perspective. It has impact both in my blogging seminar, and particularly in the seminar on New Social Media.

If you entered the wedding industry at 30, and are now 45 (for example), a 27-year old bride seems pretty young. As it relates to technology, brides and young professionals have been immersed in computers, mobile phones, PDAs, and all the accompanying business and social applications.

You have to age, chronologically, but you shouldn’t allow yourself to get left in the dust, technologically. I could see the fear in some people’s eyes, but they were there, trying to enhance their knowledge.

One other comment I received a few months ago, from an attendee in his early 30’s (paraphrasing): “You know your internet and marketing stuff, real well, for an old guy.” I thought that was a back-handed, but wonderful compliment.

So the challenge is: Are you falling further behind, or are you taking the time for continuing education to stay mentally-youthful (if that’s a word)?

Technorati Tags: blogging, brides age, continuing education, NACE, New Social Media

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Andy will be presenting a 2-hour blogging seminar, beginning at 3pm on Tuesday, October 28th to members and guests of the Ventura Chatper of NACE. That same evening, he will be giving a shorter 30-40 minute presentation about exploring New Social Media.

There is still space available, both for the seminar and the general meeting. For details, just visit the Ventura NACE website.

Technorati Tags: Andy Ebon, blogging, New Social Media, Pierpont Inn, seminars, Ventura NACE, Wedding Marketing Blogger

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Always adding new wrinkles and updates to his presentation, Andy promises to stir the pot for an audience that has new challenges on its plate, due to the further economic uncertainty of the past few weeks.

If you are interested in attending, just click through to the Las Vegas NACE website, and register online >>

Technorati Tags: Andy Ebon, Las Vegas NACE, Marketing and Selling to the 21st Century Bride, marketing strategy, Wedding Marketing Blogger

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• DJ’s Make An Impression By Cleaning Up Their Appearance: No post has generated more readers and comments. Over 1600 viewed this post, the first day. Over 75 comments. This is worth reviewing, just for the comments.
• Rethink Your Marketing Area Now: This post attacks the issue from a couple of angles. Gasoline prices being one angle; marketing efficiency.
• How Many Wedding Chapels Does It Take To Create A Herd Of Bridezillas?: This story of weddings on 7/7/07 is a true classic.
• Getting Trumped By Unofficial Relationships: This post is a reality check. You can do all the right things, when it comes to networking, and still get aced out. Find out why.
• Las Vegas Wedding Chapel Sued By MGM Mirage and Bellagio: What kind of stupidity gets you sue by two major Las Vegas casino hotels? Read the post.
• Are you really indispensable?: This is as much a post about lifestyle and your business, as anything else. It generated the most emails to me, not so much public comments.
• The art of being a conference attendee: Find out how both planning and mindset will create the best possible scenario for learning and relationship building at conferences.
• Wedding Entertainment can mean Funny Business: Clearly the most whimsical post.
• Your prospect doesn’t care about your product or service: Think you have a magical relationship with your soon-to-be-client? Think again.

Enjoy the posts!!

Andy Ebon
The Wedding Marketing Blog

Technorati Tags: wedding marketing blog

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