Hi I havent been able to post on here much lately because ive been taking the leap to open my new shop. Its alot harder than i thought It would be lol but recently we went to a bridal show and after wards the wedding planner gave us a list of brides with their emails, phone numbers and addresses. My question is: what is the best way to approach this list? We really need the business since we just opened the doors not but 3 weeks ago. Thank you for any input you may have.
I email the brides something like this:
My name is Christina; I am the owner of Cakes by Christina. I was a vendor at the (bridal show name).
Here at Cakes By Christina, my goal is to work closely with clients to create a cake that is custom designed for their event. I believe open communication is a key to achieving your desired results. I pride myself on working with your budget and custom requirements you may have. I offer over 40 different cake flavors and fillings, so the options are endless.
Information such as cake flavors and fillings, pricing and pictures of cakes I have done can be found at my website www.cakesbychristina.net.
Reviews past clients have left can be found at
(link to reviews on wedding website)
and
(another link)
As a special for everyone that registered with (bridal show name) I am offering $30 off your order if you schedule a consultation by (enter date). It is never to early to start planning!
Whatever you say, do NOT say that you were happy to talk to hem at the show! The brides I spoke to this year after the huge January bridal show rush said that they were getting thirty to forty emails a day afterward, and if they didn't talk to someone at the show they weren't interested in being told that they had.
I'd add something in the subject line of your email about the discount if you're going to do that. People are much more likely to open an email that has a freebie in the subject line than one that doesn't.
Also don't email them more than once or they'll complain that you're spamming them!
Whatever you say, do NOT say that you were happy to talk to hem at the show! The brides I spoke to this year after the huge January bridal show rush said that they were getting thirty to forty emails a day afterward, and if they didn't talk to someone at the show they weren't interested in being told that they had.
I'd add something in the subject line of your email about the discount if you're going to do that. People are much more likely to open an email that has a freebie in the subject line than one that doesn't.
Also don't email them more than once or they'll complain that you're spamming them!
I could not agree more! I did a show Jan '11 and did not get a single contract from the emails I sent from the list provided by the organizer. And, I got reported as spam, even though I only sent one email.
My suggestion would be to send a large postcard full of beautiful photos of your work to the physical addresses provided (and including a discount for orders placed by a certain date is a great idea!). It will be hard to ignore a beautiful array of photographs in their mailbox. Yes, it's more investment in time and money, but less likely to get ignored - or, marked as spam by an email service provider - a nightmare I don't wish on anyone else! Also, keep in mind that that list includes all registrants including mother-of-the-bride, friends of the bride, grooms and anyone else who attended the show.
For future reference, I think your best bet is to have a sign-up sheet in your booth where people specifically interested in your business can opt-in to your email list. These are the people who have actually turned into clients for me.
If you do send an email, I'd suggest waiting it out a few weeks so that your email doesn't get lost in the flood of emails from every other vendor at the show.
Best of luck!!
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