Hey All,

I was wondering how you guys handled your follow ups? Like if you have a bride who comes in for a cake tasting and you don't hear from her...do you send her an email, if so, how long do you wait? How do you word the email?

Thanks for the help in advance!

I normally send the bride a mail with the quote the next day. If I dont hear from them after a week I drop a quick mail, just asking if they are still interesed and if there is anything else I can help them with. If I dont hear back from them then I assume they are not interested and remove them from my list.

BTW is will be better to post this in the general or business section, loads of posts are overlooked in the lounge area

First with a deposit, first served. I don't follow up. I don't have time to hold their hands!

i understand about the deposit, i don't hold their date until the deposit is made. when i meet with the bride they get their tastings and quote then...but then i give them 2 weeks to come up with their deposit, if they don't then i can't gurantee #1 that the date will still be available and #2, price quote could change. i am just asking professionally, how would you follow up with a very nice email to see if they are still interested. i guess you can say i am aggressive and i don't want to lose business. is there something wrong with sending ONE follow up email after the appointment?

I don't follow up either. I suppose it could seem like good business, but I don't like to look desperate. Like please order from me. Please order from me. I just have the tasting, sketches, quotes, etc. Nothing back=no big deal.

No, I don't see anything wrong with sending them an e-mail. If you give them 2 weeks maybe send it after the 2 week period has expired or a day before.

After I do a tasting, I send out a "thank you for considering me" e-mail a few days later. It's really just a reminder that their date isn't booked until a deposit is received, but also it allows me to touch base with them without seeming desperate or pushy. I also quote price at the tasting.

If they don't respond to that I drop it and don't contact them again. I hate to be hounded by salespeople, so I don't want to be the houndee, if there is such a word

2 weeks is way too long to give them to come up with a deposit. I meet with the bride & give her a written proposal. Most of them give me their deposit before leaving, but if they don't, it's first come, first serve. I won't hold a date for a "maybe" when another bride calls for that date. If she sends her deposit in and her date is already taken by another bride, believe me it will feel good the first time you have to send the deposit back with a note saying, I'm sorry, but that date has been filled. Word WILL get around that if you want xyz bakery to create your cake, you better get your order in early.

thank you dkelly, that is exactly what i was looking for! i know what you mean by being hounded by a sales person...that's not what i was trying to get at. i just needed a little something to add after the consulation and i didn't know how to word it... just something simple kind of closing and the "ball is in their court" type thing.

summernoelle, it's not being desperate...like an "order from me type thing"...that's not what i was trying to do...

thanks for all of your inputs!