Did you know you can strategically use your website to track your Bridal Show success?

If you are interested in knowing how successful a bridal show is, then you must read on!

If you are like any other vendor out there, chances are that your current system for tracking how successful a bridal show is, is by asking the bride, when she calls you, how she heard about your services… right?

To which she responds either, I don’t know, from an online inquiry, a Google search, I’m on your website right now, a friend referred her, or from ‘one of the bridal shows you did.’

I got the last answer even when I did not attend any bridal shows, so how effective is asking the bride? Not so effective, and that’s probably the reason you don’t ask them anymore.

So what do I need to track bridal show success?

1. Set up a Landing page for your Bridal Show and send bridal show attendees there.
2. Next, you will need to set up an account on Google Analytics so that you can track how many people visit the landing page.
3. Finally, you will need a Constant Contact – Free Trial or you could use our Email Marketing Software but it’s only open to select customers that are interested in it.

The Process?

The Landing Page

So the first thing you need to do is create a Landing page on your website and DIRECT visitors of that Bridal Show directly to that page. Usually a postcard, price list, or coupon with a direct link to that page (Not your main page) does the trick. Have a special offer for visitors of the bridal show as an incentive for them. Brides love to feel like they saved money and they love to get stuff for free! Well, then again who doesn’t.

I have only attended the Bridal Extravaganza Show in Houston and the first time I attended, back in January 2006, I realized I need a way to track exactly how many brides I was able to book as a result of having a booth there. I created a simple page with the benefits my brides were going to receive from using my services. Experienced Master of Ceremonies, Elegant Entertainment, Bilingual Announcements, Great Dj with Great Music, etc… I place that page to where only those brides can access it and I place that web address on my price sheet or on my postcard. Then I told them to visit that website to sign up for the Discount, raffle, special offer, etc..

The website I used for my January 2008 Bridal Extravaganza show was http://www.fhpentertainment.com/be-offer. It does not have to be extravagant, but it does have to be well thought.

Next, I experimented with different offers. Free Bubble Machine, Free Basic Lighting, $100 Discount if they booked within a few weeks of visiting my website, a raffle, etc… They all worked almost the same. The discount worked almost to well.

Finally I asked them to Take Action. I put a form at the end of the page where I ask for their Name, Phone Number, Email Address, and Wedding/Event Date. This form submits their information into my Email Marketing Program; Ex. Your Constant Contact Account.

Tracking with Google’s Free Analytics Program

This is a Fantastic tool to use. It’s free, it does a great job of tracking where your visitors land and where your visitors exit your website, and you can set up campaigns to measure your website’s success. But campaigns will not be covered in this post. That would just make it too long to read. 

This is very powerful information because you will not only see how successful your bridal show presence was, but you will also see how well your website ranks, how many visitors you are getting a day, where are they coming from, where are they leaving, are they visiting your website and NOT CALLING your or EMAILING you, etc…

All successful online marketers use some form of analytics program. You should too!

Email Marketing Program

The great thing about using an email marketing program is that you can set it to automatically respond to your bride with a personalized email. So the instant she clicks on that submit button, she has a well thought out email sent to her directly letting her know how excited you are that she contacted you, how you look foreword to working with her and that you will be contacting her soon. And you will. Also by having your email in her inbox, she will easily remember you and know who you are: “The one who immediately replied to her inquiry.”

Another great thing about using an email marketing program such as Constant Contact is that you have a manageable list of brides in one location where you can keep track of and you will know that all those brides came from one source: A recent bridal show you attended.

Summary

That’s the 1-2-3 Punch I’ve used to great success tracking those brides that want your information first before they book you as well as those brides that in the process of choosing between two vendors. The only difference, as stated before, is that I do not use constant contact, I actually use my own email marketing program which I feel is a lot better and EASIER to use than Constant Contact.

Initially all this may seem like a lot of work to do, but it’s not. Once you go through the registration processes, all you have to do is update your Landing Page and if you’d like you can create a new list in the email marketing program you decide to use.

Using this system you will not only know how successful your bridal show was, but if you set it up correctly and use some great compelling words in your Landing page, you will even convert more Non-Bride Customers into clients.

Happy Bloggin!

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DJ Francisco
Blogger at a Houston DJ Company: FHP Entertainment