Marketing Strategy for a Georgia Event Designer
PROJECT: STRATEGY INTENSIVE
OVERVIEW:
I’ve been connected with Allison for many years so when she reached out to let me know she was going off on her own as an event designer, I was absolutely thrilled and honored she was seeking my help.
Allison has a ton of experience working in the wedding industry as well as within event design so she already has a great network and some name recognition but she wanted to make sure she was setting herself up for success by laying a solid foundation. This meant working with me to develop a comprehensive marketing strategy.
Here’s what the marketing strategy and process looked like for Allison:
Kick-off call: Along with a questionnaire, I always have a kickoff call with clients. As I mentioned, I already knew Allison and was familiar with her business and goals but I always love to have a conversation to learn more and hear it in their own words. That way I can ask questions and I can make sure to tailor the strategy to each client based on this information.
Market research: Allison had already started developing her business plan when we connected so she had some market research already done but I wanted to go a little deeper with her. This is the foundation to all your marketing and the biggest asset to setting yourself up for success. This is absolutely not something I’d ever skip with a client no matter how much research they’ve done.
Competitor names removed for purposes of this case study
SWOT analysis: This helped us identify Allison’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. With the current industry landscape because of the pandemic, Allison had a unique opportunity to step into a widening gap within the market. A lot of event designers were burnt out or had scheduling conflicts with clients that had to postpone their weddings. This meant we needed to position Allison just right to help her fill that gap in the market.
Competitive analysis & landscape: Because she’s been working in the industry for years, Allison was very familiar with her competitors and actually already had them broken down by established designers and up-and-coming for me. Knowing who her competitors were allowed me to really narrow in on what each and every one of them does well, what could be improved upon, and how Allison can differentiate herself from them.
Unique Value Proposition & market positioning: Through the SWOT analysis and competitive research, we were able to identify what makes Allison truly unique among her competitors and where she falls within the market. That way we can position the brand to speak directly to that market.
Target audience & mapping their client journey: After our first session, it became clear that Allison had 2 target markets - One is the couples themselves and the other is their parents. Allison luckily knew both audiences pretty well since she’s been working in the industry and she had already created pretty clear client avatars. I helped her refine them a bit but the biggest piece of this was mapping out the buyer’s journey for couples.
Allison realized that the majority of her ideal clients actually start their search prior to getting engaged. They’re in that daydreaming phase because they know a proposal is on the horizon. I helped Allison understand where they start this search and the entire process they go through to find a wedding designer. This helped us shape the entire marketing strategy.
Brand identity: Allison was still refining her brand when we started to work together so I included a brand audit to make sure every piece of her brand spoke to her target audience. She had a few color palette options to choose from so I provided guidance on those as well as helping her choose a new complimentary font to pair with the beautiful script font she already had chosen for her logo. I also included some graphic elements that she could use on her website to help elevate it just a tad more. I wanted every touchpoint with her brand to feel high-end, elegant, and innovative to mimic her work with her clients.
Website audit & SEO recommendations: Allison had already begun her website prior to working with me which was perfect. That gave me some idea of what we were working with so I could help steer her in the right direction. From the SWOT and competitive analysis, I noticed there was a gap with her competitors in their marketing efforts including in their websites. I felt there was a big opportunity for Allison to step in and really connect with her audience immediately by infusing emotion-based storytelling onto her website.
I created a rough wireframe and sample copy that she could use for her homepage.
I also identified various ways to help improve the user experience throughout the entire website by directing visitors to all the most important pieces of information on her site with the ultimate goal of having users book a call.
SEO is also going to be really important for Allison’s site so I provided researched keywords she can use on her site as well as recommendations on how to use them to boost her SEO.
And last but not least on the website front, I provided guidance on the website analytics she should keep an eye on to help her identify if her marketing efforts are working and/or if she needs to make any adjustments.
Key messaging & content pillars: Through mapping Allison’s buyer’s journey, we identified her ideal clients begin searching Pinterest and Instagram prior to their engagement to start getting ideas for the wedding since they know a proposal is coming. Because of this, I wanted Allison to have her key messaging down so she can highlight her Unique Value Proposition. This will help give her target audience an idea of her unique vision and process as a designer so they fall in love with her work before they’re even actively looking for a designer for their wedding day.
Marketing strategy: Once we had all the foundational elements developed and clear as well as the brand really taking shape, it was time to layout all the tactics to be used within the strategy and how each of the foundational elements works into these tactics. This included the following:
Content marketing: Allison’s content marketing strategy included both her blog and her social media channels. If a client’s ideal client uses search to find a solution for their need at all, I always recommend having a blog and updating it regularly. I helped Allison with the type of blog posts she should be sharing (using the content pillars we developed for her) that would be most beneficial for her audience. We also discussed how she can use her blog content to fuel her social media content and vice versa to help make her marketing cohesive and effortless.
Social media strategy: Because content is just one part of social media, we discussed the strategies she can use to effectively reach her target audience on social media as well. This included on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook groups, and TikTok.
PR strategy: Having the events she designs featured in magazines is going to give Allison a huge boost in credibility and give her the opportunity to reach couples outside of her immediate area. We discussed various ways she can go about doing this or how she can become a source for reporters looking for an expert to quote for their stories as well.
Networking + partnership opportunities: Getting on venues’ (and other vendors’) preferred vendor lists is going to also help Allison reach new couples easily. Other than searching Instagram and Pinterest, we identified that couples will look to book their venue or photographer first. Because she’s been working in the industry for years, she already has a number of connections. They all know her in her previous capacity so she wanted to introduce her new company to them by providing a memorable gift. We worked together to figure out a great gift she can give to venues and other vendor that represented what she can provide clients as their designer. This has seemed to work perfectly for her as she’s already been added to 3 preferred vendor lists less than a month after launching her business.
Customer experience: Most people don’t include the customer experience in their marketing strategy but I personally see this as a pivotal piece of business. When people have an amazing experience, they want to tell others. Because of this I think it’s important to consider this prior to even working with your first client. This also allows you to collect feedback and testimonials to use in your future marketing efforts. Allison and I worked together to start mapping out what the entire experience of working with her would look like including a booking gift, wedding day gift, and all communication they’ll have with Allison from the day they book their first call all the way through their wedding day and beyond.
Timeline: I prefer to give my clients a comprehensive marketing strategy so I layout every single tactic they should use and then provide a 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month timeline to show when they should implement and integrate each tactic. That way the strategy isn’t overwhelming right off the bat and will grow with them as they grow their brands.
“Working with Mallory was nothing short of amazing. As a new entrepreneur in an over-saturated market, I knew I needed to set myself up for success in launching. Her knowledge and attention to detail gave me confidence in my marketing strategy. The insight and resources she gives during even the smallest sessions are the best gifts. Don’t hesitate for a second, you will not regret working with Mallory!”
EXECUTION:
After finishing up the strategy, Allison got right to work finishing up her website and getting all the other backend pieces of the strategy all set for her specific launch date. I stayed on for a bit to consult and look over her website to make sure it was in great shape for her launch. I also assisted with reviewing the emails she’d be sending to her past clients and connections announcing the launch of her new company as well as some other marketing materials.
RESULTS:
A little less than a month into launching her new business, Allison has had 5 leads with 3 of those being incredibly strong. She also has been able to secure spots on 3 preferred vendor lists.