SERVICES ARE GENERALLY NOT AN IMPULSE PURCHASE, WHICH MAY BE WHY YOU HATE ADVERTISING SO MUCH!
The Style Me Pretty drama aside, publications are dropping like flies ... and it's f*cking scary. With the announcement of similar wedding publications actually ending their reign, things are getting real ... and it appears that a lot of people just think it's fine ...
IT'S NOT.
None of us know the true impact of what a publication adds to our business until it's gone ... and I think a lot of people believe they should constantly be feeling the SUPPORT that ads and features add to grow success ... but that's just not true.
SERVICES ARE NOT AN IMPULSE PURCHASE
Honestly, brides aren't walking around, seeing an ad, pushing 'click into the website', and hitting HIRE NOW ... they are being hit with things left and right ... seeing it all, taking it in, clicking into the websites of vendors they see online or in magazines or on Instagram ... loving it or not ... clicking out *even if they love it* ...
IT'S NOT A 'SEE IT, HIRE IT' PROCESS!
It's amazing to me how often I see people say they refuse to advertise ... or hear 'industry leaders' tell their workshop attendees NOT to advertise and to just get their work featured ... it boggles my mind that some people don't understand just what keeps a publication in business ... trust me, it's not the images you are all sending them ... it's not the traffic ... it's not styled shoots paying to keep the blog online or the magazine printing in the press ... wait, what??? Hold on, could it be ... is it ...
MONEY???
Yeah, it is ... money from ads ... and if the publications don't get money, then they close ... and then all the features you want to have to get the word out about your service ... welp, they end.
OK, BACK TO MY ORIGINAL POINT:
Services, especially services for weddings are NOT AN IMPULSE BUY ... when I was planning my wedding I bought every magazine that Barnes and Noble (yep, I got married a long time ago ...) sold ... I paged through them each multiple times ... I made notes ... some of the magazines got recycled, so I reverted back to my notes ... I spoke to friends, I Google'd some sh*t ... I looked at more magazines ... and while I'm sure I took in LOADS OF ADS and they probably led me down the 'road to hire' I can guarantee you that I wouldn't have remembered where I first heard about the companies I ended up hiring.
AND THE SAME IS TRUE TODAY ...
I know that a lot of people these days get found on Instagram ... but how did they find your Instagram account in the first place? Was it linked from your website that was linked from a blog? Was it tagged in a post from a blog who is promoting you as an advertiser?
NO, HEATHER ... IT WAS TAGGED IN A POST PROMOTING THE FEATURE THAT I GOT FOR FREE FROM A PUBLICATION. SO, THERE!!!
Thank you for saying that!! You made my point for me ... so, features help you ... blogs are realizing they can't stay afloat because advertising dollars are disappearing ... so that "free feature" that was promoted on Instagram that brought you a client??? Well, that could eventually disappear too ... just sayin' ...
I realize I sound like a broken record on this blog, but as a former wedding blog editor and creator it makes me sad and worried to see the world of publications coming to an end in so many ways ... I know they are a vital part of the wedding industry wheel that keeps everything turning ... and you can form relationships with editors, which you can't do with Instagram or Facebook ... heck, none of us even own the social media platforms where we spend all our time! I would much rather grow and build a relationship with a publication or two or three where I have a voice, can get features, hold my ad, and have some control over what the future holds.
XO~ Heather
