When To Meet With A Bride?

Business By erin2345 Updated 18 Oct 2011 , 12:12am by erin2345

erin2345 Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
erin2345 Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 5:23pm
post #1 of 8

When do you like to first meet with a bride? Right off the bat, before anything (budget/style/# guests) has been discussed, or after a few emails, once you have an idea of the kind of cake she is looking for and you make sure she can afford you icon_smile.gif and that you can do the cake she wants.

I have a had a few brides who want to meet right away - I don't want to waste my time if she doesn't end up booking with me for a reason (budget too small/delivery charge too high etc.) that could have been identified thru a few emails. The brides that I have had several emails with prior to the tasting have all booked with me. The one I did that we had not talked, did not book with me.

How do you say - 'I won't meet with you till we are on the same page', nicely and without sounding snobby?

Thanks!

7 replies
KoryAK Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
KoryAK Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 6:00pm
post #2 of 8

Yes you should get some basics out of the way, but you can do that very easily. Even for the most generic inquiry email "can I set up a consult for my wedding on xxx date?" you simply reply with:

"Yes i still have availability for that date. How many people are you needing to feed and where will the reception be held? Our consult times are blah blah blah, when would work for you?"

she replies with the answers and you reply back to confirm the time and also say "our base price is XX per serving, making your minimum price XXX. See you Tuesday!"

Vista Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
Vista Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 6:04pm
post #3 of 8

I like to meet with them right away. They should have the opportunity to shop around. If I am not the baker for them, then that is fine. I can not do ALL the cakes in my area. I charge for a wedding consultation with tasting, which is applied to the price of the cake if they book with me. When they want to set up an appointment I give them my pricing guide and let them know that the prices listed are my STARTING prices, and that if she has any questions to call before the appointment.

I very much prefer a face to face than email communication. I personally would want to meet with several bakers before deciding on which one I wanted to go with, and would not want to waste my time with emails.

This is just my opinion and how I like to do my business. I am not insinuating that you are doing it wrong, just trying to share from another perspective.

jason_kraft Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
jason_kraft Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 6:25pm
post #4 of 8

We prefer not meeting the brides face to face unless it's for a tasting (which they pay for), since face to face consultations tend to take up a lot more time. We've done several wedding cakes where everything has been done over email and the phone, and sometimes we never end up actually meeting the bride in person.

indydebi Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
indydebi Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 9:55pm
post #5 of 8

I had a full packet, emailable, with everything they'd ever want to know, including a programmed spreadsheet where they could plug in their numbers and know how much their catering was going to cost right down to the dime .... all before we ever met. If they walked in my door, then it was a given that they had seen my website, rec'd my info packet and knew the price range fit their budget.

Extra time spent on the pre-legwork will decrease the valuable time spent in pointless face-to-faces.

Annabakescakes Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
Annabakescakes Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 10:16pm
post #6 of 8
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason_kraft

We prefer not meeting the brides face to face unless it's for a tasting (which they pay for), since face to face consultations tend to take up a lot more time. We've done several wedding cakes where everything has been done over email and the phone, and sometimes we never end up actually meeting the bride in person.




I do that all the time, as well. I prefer it! I have had many where I never spoke, all email and even Facebook. I have never done a sit down tasting where I haven't booked, but I have done 2go tastings that haven't booked.

I hate wasting my time on face to faces if they can't afford me. People have awfully strange ideas on how much a cake shoud cost. icon_rolleyes.gif

aligotmatt Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
aligotmatt Posted 17 Oct 2011 , 11:07pm
post #7 of 8

I'm a lot the same as Kory and Debi. They ask me for my availability, I ask them where, when and how many? They tell me that, I tell them, with this being my minimum, this will be your minimum should you book with me, delivery fee to your location is this... I also charge $25 for a tasting which is applied to the total balance should they book with me. Of course if they don't book me, they lose the money, and I don't feel like I've wasted my time and cake (not that $25 is really worth it for the cake and my time, but it's better than giving it all away!)

erin2345 Cake Central Cake Decorator Profile
erin2345 Posted 18 Oct 2011 , 12:12am
post #8 of 8

Thanks everyone - I too hate wasting my 'face time' you know?! Good idea on the wording Kory. Some brides do have a skewed idea of how much a cake costs that is for sure! That was the main point I wanted to get across before booking a meeting.

Quote by @%username% on %date%

%body%