It’s time for me to answer a frequently asked question I get from a lot of wedding photographers. Does it make sense to promote your business on marketplaces online for wedding professionals? I keep track of every aspect of my business of weddings. If you can capture it, keep track of it, look at it, and then summarize it, I’m aware of it. There’s nothing as rewarding than opening the spreadsheet that contains raw data that isn’t refined and revealing the secrets that lie still in the data.
In this article, I’ll concentrate on WeddingWire, but it is possible to extrapolate the information for other websites which function in a similar manner to The Knot.
What is WeddingWire?
In base, WeddingWire is an online marketplace that connects brides and grooms to wedding vendors. For instance brides seeking vendors can look up vendors (for no cost) using a zip code and then narrow her search by categories such as the starting cost, average ratings as well as “photographic style.”
As an individual vendor, you may opt for a month-long cost to set up the option of having an internet-based “storefront” on WeddingWire. This means your company will be listed in results of searches when the bride in the picture above starts searching for a wedding photographer.
Why should photographers take note of WeddingWire?
No matter if we like this or don’t (or whether we are able to manage it), websites like WeddingWire are a great way to drive business to their partners. After you’ve chosen the degree of advertising you’re comfortable with (fees can range from $400 to $ 400 each month) you are able to post pictures, make your pricing page and then let the sweet inquiries pour in.
However, it’s not that easy. Based on my experience, it’s extremely difficult to determine the number of leads you can get from WeddingWire. It appears to me that it is not uncommon for inquiries received through WeddingWire to be light on the details as well as budget-friendly with a light touch on following up.
It was this idea that had me thinking. Based on the information I collect when I run my business for weddings, can I demonstrate that it’s an “good idea” to invest your money and make an advertisement on these sites. Let’s have a look.
Then, the data.
Before I traded in my cubicle for a camera, I worked for about 40 hours a week working in the insurance industry, creating elaborate and exciting projects for huge commercial insurance risks. It was in this area of employment that I developed my passion for numbers began. Numbers don’t lie. 2+2=4 just because it is. I’m planning to come up with the same truth and then see what it means for advertising on WeddingWire.
In 2016, I had 130 inquiries, which led to 52 bookings, which is 40 percent of my total requests. This was a total revenue of $180,856, averaging at $3478 for each wedding. (Note this is an estimate and doesn’t include expenses such as second shooters, albums or taxes, travel expenses, prints, and the cost of my Amazon habit).
It’s very clear when I segregate the WeddingWire reservations and then examine the bookings on their own. These are the numbers:
31 inquires resulted into 7 bookings, that is 22.5 percent of all enquiries on the website and a total income of $19,396, which averages to $2771 per wedding.
There are two aspects that make me think that they are crucial. First, my rate of booking of these enquiries is significantly lower (at 22.5 percent) than my average of 40 percent. This means I need to be more diligent in capturing the business when it shows up at my doorstep. This increases costs because it will mean more meetings, more phone calls and more calls.
The second issue is that once I have captured the business, it will result in an average booking of lower than non-WeddingWire leads by $1248. This is a decrease in revenue of approximately 31 percent per wedding.
Below is a graphic representation of the above numbers that I believe show the stark differences between the high quality and low-quality of leads that come from WeddingWire.
