Tag: WeddingExhibition

2016 Blogs

Why Attending Wedding Exhibitions is Still a Great Way to Enhance your Wedding

Post author By Rap Industries
Post date May 15, 2016

Wedding fairs can begin to feel a bit outdated in the age of the internet where you can find a whole host of vendors online. They’ve gotten quite a bad reputation in recent years for essentially being a bunch of salespeople ramming samples down your throat. For couples who are just starting to plan out their big day, heading to an exhibition hall and being caught up in a whirlwind of leaflets and sales gusto is hardly going to calm those nerves. This is not to say that they are not worth attending however, but it can be important to approach them with a level head and a goal for what you would like to get out of the wedding fair.

Before blindly stepping in to the first exhibition nearby, do your research and find a wedding fair which fits with your aspirations for your wedding. There is a ridiculous amount of fairs out there from boutique wedding fairs, quirky wedding fairs, luxury wedding fairs, budget wedding fairs and many more. They are located all across the country, so before signing up for 10 to attend in the next few months, try and pick out a few which you feel that you will be able to find value in. It’s also worth noting the size of the exhibition you are looking at. The quantity of vendors is never indicative of quality, in fact, large exhibitions often feature national companies who are more focused on signing up as many clients as possible.

This is why local wedding fairs can be treasure troves for delightful vendors who share in your passion for the wedding. Attending an exhibition is more about looking for inspiration, what flavour cake to have, the type of flower to display on the tables or whether your DJ has the ‘cha cha slide’ in his playlist, seriously, stop it. If a vendor literally jumps on you, cramming leaflets in your hand while reeling off the same spew you overheard just a minute ago, it’s quite probable that their goal is the money in your pocket, not making your wedding day as special as possible. Remember, there is no pressure for you sign on the dotted line on the day, take it as an opportunity to absorb the kind of services that vendors can provide and if there are a few who really catch your eye then feel free to take away their contact details.

There are perhaps two things that you should be looking for when you are walking around the show floor. The first rather obviously is that the service they provide matches your vision for how your wedding day should look. The second is a bit harder to spot, but try to gauge whether the vendor is on the same wavelength with the overall theme of your wedding. When you are speaking to them, try and explain what you have planned as well as how you want to achieve this. In many cases, an honest vendor will be able to give you their opinion whether the service they provide will be able to live up to the standards which you expect.

The one tangible benefit of attending a wedding exhibition is that you are able to see, hear, smell and taste the services which are on offer. While planning your wedding online can be more convenient, it only takes one dodgy vendor to tarnish your day. Considering how much you can be expected to pay as well, there is added benefits in getting to meet the people that will be servicing your wedding and experiencing the kind of job that they perform. Just remember to enter the wedding fair like a sponge, absorb all of the information possible and take it away with you. So when it comes to finalising the details, your mind can rest easy in the knowledge that you know the cake will be fantastic, the flowers complement your theme and that you wedding day will be truly special.

Tags Exhibitions, WeddingExhibition, WeddingFair

2016 Blogs

How Wedding Vendors Can Make the Most of Roller Banners

Post author By Rap Industries
Post date May 10, 2016

When you are trying to advertise your services in a diluted market such as the wedding industry, it can be a challenge to know how you can stand out from the competition. For many, attending exhibitions and shopping centre displays provide the most viable way to establish themselves. However, more and more freelance photographers, wedding crafters and more spring up every year, which creates a highly competitive market for the select number of weddings being booked. While the individual can be delightfully talented, this skill needs to be presented correctly in a way that cries out to couples that this person is the ideal choice to work on their wedding.

Not everyone has the perfect sales pitch or the infectious personality which thrives in the industry, but this does not have to hold your business back. Being able to show experience in your craft and a professional outlook suggests to potential clients that you are a trustworthy vendor. Larger companies such as florists or cake designers often have shop fronts where they work from which provides an insight into their world, but this kind of setup simply isn’t viable for independent vendors. But at exhibitions or shopping centre displays, the playing field is levelled and it is in this setting where speciality vendors can thrive.

Roller banners are excellent companions for the independent wedding vendors as it offers a professional medium where you can advertise your services and justify why you are the right person for the client in a matter of seconds. Housed in a light and compact frame, roller banners can be utilised by vendors wherever they are such as in store, on the exhibition floor or pitching in shopping centres. Each roller banner can feature custom graphic design, allowing you to inject your personality into it and demonstrate why the service you provide is perfect for the couple’s wedding.

Many wedding destinations are open to the public throughout the remainder of the year and roller banners provide great additions to advertise the possibility of hosting a wedding there. Historic buildings and unusual locations in particular can benefit through this by showing that they are capable of being transformed into a truly memorable wedding destination. Making the most of the high quality banner allows these destinations to provide a glimpse of the environment in a wedding setting and allowing interested couples an insight into how their wedding reception could look.

By incorporating custom graphic design with the roller banners, the content you choose to include is completely up to you. Having a mobile promotional tool is excellent for illustrating what your speciality is and the type of locations and themes which you have worked on in the past. You can also utilise it to provide more information about yourself if you are an independent vendor, as it is important to create an element of trust with a client before they will commit to requesting your services. But most of all, remember to keep the design clean and professional, the design is a reflection of yourself so use it to catch a potential client’s eye and then you can step in and demonstrate why your services will be perfect for their wedding.

If you would like to learn more about the potential that roller banners have then please feel free to get in touch with our advisors, who can inform you of how they can help to advertise your business. You can contact them by calling 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.

Tags Exhibition, RollerBanner, WeddingExhibition

2016 Blogs

Preparing for Wedding Exhibitions and How to Make the Optimal Impact

Post author By Rap Industries
Post date May 5, 2016

Wedding exhibitions are a lively hotspot for vendors with an array of different talents, but many struggle to make the most of their potential. In these halls, soon to be married couples can taste, experience, or touch a little portion of what could later feature on their wedding day. That day will only come once in a lifetime for many, which is chiefly the reason why couples will pay a premium to get what they want. Despite this, you can attend many exhibitions and find some vendors sat behind a desk showing little interest or others who aggressively ram pamphlets into the pockets of anyone that walks past. There is a good reason why some do incredibly well at wedding exhibitions whilst others don’t, so we’ve got a rundown on how to set yourself up for success.

This planning all begins when you first settle on the idea to attend a wedding exhibition. The first step is to research around what is available, and with hundreds or even thousands of wedding exhibitions every year, there is a huge amount of choice. There are very few generic exhibitions and each has their own niche, so it is essential to find out where you can identify that you both share a similar target market. Some exhibitions appeal to the rich and extravagant, others feature unique quirks and even more focus on themed weddings. For example, you will probably want to avoid taking your pearl white dressmaking exhibition stand to a Harry Potter themed event.

Now you have identified a few locations where you know your company can be a hit, it’s time to start thinking about the design of your exhibition stand. You have complete creative freedom here, but there are a few tips you may want to follow. Firstly, choose a design which will appeal to your target audience, if this is for traditional weddings then a professional stand enhanced by roller banners and more is a great fit. Next, try to inject some personality into the display, make it stand out so when the brides walk into the hall, their eyes are immediately drawn to your stand. Finally, freebies are always a winner, but make the customer work for them, you don’t want to be giving away your product without seeing any results!

While exhibitions will naturally draw in a crowd, there is plenty that you can do to keep your stand busy on the day. For people that have enquired beforehand, this is a great opportunity to let them know that you will be displaying your services and it’s an excellent chance for them to really get a feel for what you provide. If you already have your social media channels established, then this is the perfect way to let people know that you will be attending. Also, be mindful of researching where the event will be advertising, as it is helpful to guarantee that there will be a healthy amount of traffic throughout the day.

With your research done and potential interested parties contacted then you just need to plan how you can make the most from the amount of people you will be speaking to. As mentioned in the intro, having promotional material such as leaflets on hand allows you to provide an example of your services for potential clients to take away. With so much to see, it can be easy for people to forget the name of your company, so providing them with a fresh reminder can help to boost your appointment book. As a side note, people generally hate having pamphlets thrust into their hands, so make sure that you are engaging with everyone interested in your stand and if they want to go away and consider it further, then this is the perfect chance to hand them your promotional material.

By completing this preparation, you are setting yourself up for having a great wedding exhibition. Just remember to smile and be approachable, which can go a long way to showing that you are the right person for that couple’s wedding. Even if traffic is slow, make the effort and show enthusiasm for the needs of every client as you never know who might be giving you a call back to help at their wedding.

Tags RollerBanner, WeddingExhibition, Weddings

2016 Blogs

How to Create an Effective Display When Attending Wedding Fairs

Post author By Rap Industries
Post date May 3, 2016

Wedding fairs are a hotbed for couples looking to be amazed at what vendors can do for their wedding. Weddings are significant investments and they only come around once in a lifetime for some, so couples will be on the lookout for florists, caterers, photographers and more who will make their day truly special. Attending a wedding fair provides direct access to hundreds of couples who are searching for ideas and if you can design an effective exhibition stand, you may just fill your appointment book out significantly for the year ahead.

In very much the same vain as traditional exhibitions, you will be competing against others in your industry, but having the loudest and proudest display is not going to give you the edge. Couples are conjuring up more unique wedding ideas every year, and they are looking for someone who can make their dream a reality who is often equally as unique. It is therefore vital to inject as much of your personality as possible into your exhibition stand. Make a display which demonstrates the types of wedding you were passionate working on and add those personal touches which help couples to gain an understanding of what kind of person you are.

Ultimately, attendees are looking for someone they can trust, that when their day arrives, everything will run smoothly. This means interacting with them and trying to understand yourself what they want. There is nothing worse than going to a wedding fair and seeing vendors sat behind the tables, browsing through their social media and paying no interest to the people in front of them. Equally, you don’t want to kamikaze everyone that walks past, if someone takes an interest, then smile and approach them by asking about what kind of wedding they are interested in.

As important as your ‘performance’ is, it is equally necessary to have a well-designed exhibition stand to back you up. This is a great opportunity to show your personality, demonstrate the work that you do and prove to people that the service you will provide will make their day that little bit more special. Hand-made goods emit the aura that you are unique, while roller banners create a professional appearance which goes a long way to showing that you are excellent at what you do. Take care when using colour, traditional wedding colours such as whites and pastel shades are consistent winners while loud colours risk doing more harm than good.

Freebies and tasters can be a great way to draw people into your exhibition stand and give them a feel for what you provide, but be careful not to overdo it. Couples almost always value quality and information and while it is great that you have brought cake or fizzy for everyone, if you don’t have the information to back it up, then people are more likely to move on. They won’t all be looking to book on the day, so ensure you are stocked up on elegant promotional material which they can take away. A well designed pamphlet may just make the difference in guaranteeing a few extra bookings.

Finally, consider how you act and how you look. Typically, you may be quite shy or business may be slow on the day, but it is important to show your enthusiasm and engage with everyone showing an interest in your stand. Wear something smart, but don’t be too ridiculous, it is essential to come across as professional as possible and show that you are the best person to support their wedding.

Wedding fairs are all about displaying why your services will be perfect for a couple’s wedding. Huge exhibition stands or excessive designs will do more to push people away than to draw people in. When designing your stand, focus on expressing your personality and what makes your service unique. Make the effort to engage with every couple that shows an interest in what you provide and perhaps more importantly, show to them how knowledgeable you are to put their mind at ease. Combine these and you will create the foundations for a successful wedding fair and hopefully, this will fill out your appointment book for the approaching wedding season.

Tags PerfectWedding, WeddingExhibition, Weddings