Ask Amber Answers

Below are some of the Questions I've been getting and the answers I've been writing. It's fun! Want to know (almost) anything about me? Ask HERE

How do you get your clients?

Because I have a Lead Log in Excel where I track my leads, I know exactly where my clients come from. In 2009, 62% of my clients were referred to me from former clients or vendors, and 38% of my clients found me through advertisements or blogs.

My numbers also show me that I tend to book one wedding for every 7.5 leads, which is a better average than my 2008 average which fell to one wedding to every 9 leads. Some leads are just emails or phone calls, but many of them meet with me and obtain proposals. There is a LOT of time that goes into booking just one client!
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I've read your VERY imformative blogs regarding timeline busters, thank you for the insight! I'm having a buffet for my reception, when do I do the toasts?

Thanks so much for the compliment! It makes me so happy to know that I'm helping someone out!

My recommendations are:

Either before dinner while everyone is "captive" in their seats but not released to the buffets yet.

OR

At the tail end of dinner when everyone is still pushing food around on their plate but they're not totally full yet.

In order to not break up the flow of the evening, toasts need to happen while the guests are seated and focused. You'll want to tell your toasters to KEEP IT SHORT. I tell the bridal party at the rehearsal that they need to keep it under 3 minutes per toasts. Guests just can't maintain focus for more than 4-5 minutes and they'll start talking amongst themselves at their table. Very embarrassing.

Good luck!
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Do you always use/recommend the same vendors, or do you try someone new from time to time?

I only refer vendors that I have already worked with, or vendors who have been referred to me by another wedding planner. My reputation is on the line with every name that I recommend, so I don't recommend based on the work alone.

I wrote a blog last year that elaborated on this topic a bit: http://amberevents.blogspot.com/2009/11/not-all-referrals-are-equal.html