NEWSLETTER // 2020 CLEAR CALENDAR, EMPTY BANK ACCOUNT... NOW WHAT?!
photography by: Megan Jeanine Photo
This global pandemic has hit some industries harder than others – with wedding and events being one of the losers, not just because of the timing being at the cusp of wedding season, but with the uncertainty around rescheduling for so many couples, having to re-coordinate vendors and manage deposits/refunds.
As a business owner in the wedding industry, you’ve likely spent many stressful hours coordinating with clients, discussing refunds or rescheduling, and worried about what impact this is going to have on your overall bottom line. Not only are you without an income for these few months, but you’re deferring these clients that you’ve worked hard to book with you until later dates leaving little space for new bookings (and new deposits).
It’s important during this time to not only manage your business and operations well, but to recognize the opportunity to set yourself apart amongst your competitors. All you have is time right now, so determine how you’re going to invest that time in your business. There are 3 key areas to consider:
1) Take care of your own house first
Before you can appropriately focus on reinvestment in your business, get your own house in order. This should include closely examining your current income and regular expenses. Are there expense areas you can cut? Is there dated equipment collecting dust in the closet you can sell? What do you need to be doing to collect financial assistance? (put reminders in your calendar so you don’t fall behind on reporting) To learn more about mastering your cashflow, I invite you to read a recent blog post, “Mastering Your Crisis Cashflow” (https://wallace-solutions.com/mastering-your-crisis-cashflow/)
2) Don’t shy away from the money conversations
These are interesting times, and unless you had a strict “natural disaster/pandemic” refund clause in your contract, you may have to work with clients on refunds or rescheduling that extends beyond your normal practice. Being flexible and understanding of the change in a client’s financial or personal circumstances will definitely get you word of mouth referrals from that client and their family. If you’re difficult and not willing to work with someone, you’ll only have negative backlash on the other side. Yes, you’re a small business and have bills to pay too, but sometimes you need to take the hit for the future life of your business. That’s just a “cost of doing business” when times are unprecedented like we’re seeing now. Air Canada is burning $20million daily right now being shut down – be thankful you may only have a few refunds to provide.
The money conversation goes both ways – refunds AND sales. Do not be afraid to have a sales conversation with someone right now. Remember that while many are experiencing financial implications as a result of COVID-19, there are so many more who are not. There are people who may have time right now to sit with their partner and plan their wedding or event for late 2020 or 2021. Think of all the fiancés who can’t escape the planning right now because they can’t leave the house! Many people’s jobs are not at risk, and some companies are even flourishing right now. People will still want to have events. It’s just a matter of timing, so don’t be afraid to book those conversations, and to follow up on inquiries that had been made in the past to see if their plans have changed.
3) Review your existing marketing plan
Things have changed, that’s for sure. (If we all had a dollar for every time we heard that phrase these days, we’d be millionaires!) You’ve likely already reviewed your scheduled marketing to make adjustments for appropriateness, but take a look at what content you can be putting out into the universe of your ideal client right now to assist THEM. No matter what your business, your ideal client is likely feeling some sort of added stress or concern right now. It may not be financial, so ask yourself… how can you serve them? How can you step up and be the best support for them right now where your specialty/business is concerned? Is it providing them with wedding crisis management material? If you’re a pro at juggling people in planning and executing an event, maybe put out a “Planning your busy household” helper. Think about providing them with some comic relief or reality check by sharing “disaster stories” from previous events you’ve worked on (“it could always be worse…”). Think about creating shareable content that they can forward on to their friends and family. Get creative and set yourself apart from your competitors. Remember that there’s still lots of potential for new business out there, and how your brand behaves right now can tell a potential client a lot about what it would be like to work with you.
Of course, there are many additional activities you can do in your business right now, from resetting your goals, reviewing your packages, revamping any digital content, and looking at strategy for the future success of your business, but these are just a few nuggets for you to consider today.
Remember that this too shall pass, and while not everyone will emerge unscathed how you take advantage of the opportunities now can make or break the rest of your year and next year’s wedding season. Once business is back, sit down with your financial professional and make sure that you can plan a contingency or crisis management plan for your business AND your personal finances. This will help you find peace of mind should there ever be a required pause to your business in the future.
I’m here to help YOU so if you have questions about managing your finances through this, bringing back your business with success, future financial crisis management planning, or anything in between feel free to book a free call with me at your earliest convenience.
@JennWallaceSolutions
905.321.4201
