Weddings For Real

When Cavin Elizabeth moved to the San Diego market, she was wondering if making educational videos and sharing them on YouTube would be a way to attract clients and grow her business.  After 140 videos and over 1,700 subscribers, YouTube has been a resounding success. But why aren't most of us taking advantage of video marketing? We talk all about it in this week's episode! Support this show by supporting our sponsor, HelloFresh!  Get $80 off your first month of HelloFresh (!) by going to HelloFresh.com/WeddingsForReal80 and start enjoying some of their 5-star recipes!   Announcement as heard on the show: We are beyond excited for our first LIVE recording on August 21st in Raleigh at The Laurelbrook from 10am-12pm! Our topic will be “How to Stay Committed to Boundaries”, and we invite you to submit a story about when a client might have gone a liiiiitttttle bit past the boundaries on respect, budget, contract, comfort zone, or anything else really. Feel free to email your story to podcast@weddingsforreal.com,

At the Engage Luxury Wedding Summit in June, therapist and entrepreneurial coach Andy Maurer gave the most impactful and self-reflective speech at a breakout session - "Toxic Stress and How It's Killing Your Business". Many people left that session crying. I told as many people I could about it but could never do the speech justice. So I had to have Andy back on the show today to share his breakout session, what toxic stress is and where it comes from, and some tips on how to alleviate it.  If you have stress in your life - hello wedding industry! - you won't want to miss this one! Announcements as heard on the show: 1) Come join me and some of the top wedding vendors in the Triangle THIS SUNDAY, Aug 4th from 4-6pm at the Barn of Chapel Hill Open House! It is planned by our good friends and podcast supporters over at Harmony Weddings and Events. Tour one of our very favorite venues, sample food, drinks and cake and meet wedding vendors of all kinds. Tickets are FREE. See you there! 2) We are beyond excited fo

Styled Shoots.  You get your friendors together and create a completely unique pretend wedding that you don't have to plan out for months.  They seem easy right? Well, not exactly. Styled shoots can cost money, time, and sanity, so today, Leah Weinberg from Color Pop Events in New York City comes on to share her 3 Do's and 3 Don't's for Styled Shoots!   Support this show by supporting our sponsor: BetterHelp.com is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   Color Pop Events on Social Media: Instagram: @colorpopevents Facebook: @colorpopevents twitter: @colorpopevents   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting

Weekend Wine Down Time! Megan and Jason talk about the live show coming up in August, where to spend a long weekend, and 9 years of A Southern Soiree! The host of Weddings for Real is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

In a wedding market already filled with planners, photographers, videographers, DJs, florists....every wedding vendor you can possibly imagine, how can you possibly stand out?  Raleigh-based wedding photographer Julia Wade is one of a kind, and she shares her tips for individuality in a saturated market!   Support this show by supporting our sponsors: Visit MyPinkPartyBox.com for Vendor Gifts and Hotel Welcome Boxes! BetterHelp.com is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   Julia Wade on Social Media: Instagram: @juliawade Facebook: @juliawadephotography   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can

  Michelle Loretta from Sage Wedding Pros is a wedding business consultant with a mind for numbers and a passion for business plans! Today she comes on the show to talk all about how to make your big business decisions, and it can't be just because your competitors are doing it.   Sage Wedding Pros on Social Media: Instagram: @SageWeddingPros Facebook: @SageWeddingPros twitter: @SageWeddingPros   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

  Kinsey Roberts is the owner Vista View Events on Open Heart Ranch in Colorado, but you probably know her best as the fabulous host of the She Creates Business Podcast!  Today, Kinsey comes on the show to talk all about opening up a wedding venue! What are some tips and recommendations to help you through the process? And what are some potential landmines to avoid?   Kinsey Roberts (image by Mekina Saylor Photography)   On the show, Kinsey recommends hiring Lindsay Lucas if you're interested in guidance on how exactly to open up a venue and how to deal with some of the county ordinances (and other things you don't even think about).  Lindsay can be found at https://thelindsaylucas.com/.   Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, BetterHelp.com! BetterHelp is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   She Creates Business Links: Instagram: @SheCreatesBusiness Facebook: @SheCreatesBusiness   Weddings for Rea

  The latest Engage! Summit was June 10-13th in the Bahamas, and Megan was there for the full luxury wedding and event education experience!  And today, she shares her top ten takeaways from the speakers she heard.   Tips are from:   1) Hayley Paige (14:10) 2) Amirah Kassem (18:40) 3) Cindy Novotny (22:30)  4) Duncan Wardle (26:50) 5) Julian Leaver (31:55)  6) Tracie Domino (35:10)  7) Tracie Domino again (36:55)  8) Andy Maurer (37:55) 9) Jove Meyer (40:55) 10) Mike Michalowicz (43:50)   Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, BetterHelp.com! BetterHelp is affordable, private, online counseling. Anytime, Anywhere! By going to BetterHelp.com/WeddingsForReal, you get 10% off your first month.   Engage Summits on Social Media: Facebook: @EngageSummits Instagram: @EngageSummits twitter: @EngageSummits       Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gi

Generation Z is the next generation of consumers and (wedding) clients.  Christie Osborne from Mountainside Media is an expert on analytics and marketing, specifically for the wedding industry. And today she comes on to talk about what's different about Generation Z, what's the same, and what we as wedding vendors should be doing to get ready for this group!   Christie Osborne, Mountainside Media (image by Dustin Osborne)     Support this podcast by supporting our sponsor, Storyworth! For a really cool Father's Day (or any time) gift, visit StoryWorth.com/WeddingsForReal for $20 off your subscription! With Storyworth, you or a loved one answers questions about your life weekly, and at the end of the year, those stories are bound into a keepsake book!    Mountainview Media on Social Media: Facebook: @mtnsidemediaco Instagram: @mtnsidemediaco   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com.

Some believe the creative path is a winding road from zero to (one-day) reaching your full creative potential.  But for destination wedding photographer Perry Vaile, that didn't work for her. Because as creatives, some days are more productive than others, and sometimes we have feel like everyone else is doing so much more than us, and sometimes we’re on a roll, and sometimes we want to be proud of our accomplishments, and some days, we fail.  It’s a mindgame. And so Perry came up with an amazing metaphor called The House of Creativity!       Perry Vaile on Social Media: Instagram: @perryvaile   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real

  Brittny Drye started Love Inc Magazine in October 2013 as the first equality-minded wedding publication. And although the wedding industry has come a long way, we still have so much further to go to make sure that LGBTQ couples aren't discriminated against.  Part of that is looking into our content - are we using bride- and groom-specific verbiage on our websites, contracts, and proposals? And even in our own language?   Sha'Quitta Brown just got married to her wife L'Erin in July 2018. And for them, they didn’t feel welcome by all wedding vendors. Some were downright bigoted, and some just didn’t have the collateral on their website to make Sha’Quitta and L’Erin comfortable in contacting them. For those who are outwardly intolerant, Sha’Quitta doesn’t have any time for them. But for those who WANT to be inclusive and who WANT more LGBT weddings, Sha’Quitta has some great advice.   Brittny Drye (Image by Brandi Gard)   L'Erin and Sha'Quitta (image by Cedrick Forrest of Showtime Studios)   Love Inc on Soci

  If you've been in business long enough, you've probably had a negative online review (or several). Whether the review was fair or not, you NEED to respond. Not so much to the person who wrote the review, but for the potential clients who are reading your reviews.  So how do you do it?  We give some tips on today's show! Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by https://www.bensound.com. The host of the show is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

Lindsay Longacre from LVL Events (Southern California) and LVL Academy comes on the show today to talk all about pricing for profitability, a vision for creating pricing standardization, whether or not she takes on partial planning (or is it day-of coordination? or month-of? or wedding management), and the best way new vendors can connect with vendors in their market (hint: it's not a mass bcc email). On the show, we also talk a lot about LVL Academy, and Lindsay is bringing their wedding planner workshop here to North Carolina in June and yours truly (Megan Gillikin) is on the planner panel! Join us June 7-8th at Muse at the Mill in Winston-Salem for 2 full days of learning best practices, ways to refine your planning process, resources and tools to grow your business, and more! Use the code WEDDINGSFORREAL by May 10th for $200 of your registration at lvlacademy.com. See you there! Lindsay Longacre and Heather Hoesch LVL Academy (photo by Lorely Meza)     LVL Events on Social Media: Instagram: @LVLWeddings

On this Mother's Day Weekend Wine Down, we have interviews with Megan, Megan's mom, and oldest daughter Emma. Happy Mother's Day!   The host of Weddings for Real is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.

  Happy Mother's Day! Today we give a real, honest, vulnerable, and hilarious look at the balancing act of being a mom and a business owner. Our guests today are Ginny Corbett from Ginny Corbett Photography, Kim Holderness from the Holderness Family Podcast and all those crazy YouTube videos, Grace Beason from Grace Leisure Events, Perry Vaile from Perry Vaile Photography, and Jessica King from Happily Ever After. These ladies share funny stories, best and worst advice, what they would tell their moms, and more! Ginny Corbett with Twins (image by Sara Davis) Kim Holderness and Family Grace Beason and Her Boys Perry Vaile and Family (image by Ally and Bobby) Jessica King, Happily Ever After (image by Annie Timmons) Ad sponsor: My friends at LVL Academy are bringing their wedding planner workshop here to North Carolina in June and Weddings for Real Host Megan Gillikin is a speaker! Join us June 7-8th at Muse at the Mill in Winston-Salem for 2 full days of learning best practices, ways to refine your planni

Meghan Ely, Wedding PR and Marketing Expert at OFD Consulting comes on to share the best ways to promote your business. Most of us creatives have very little time, so we need to figure out the most efficient strategies for maximizing exposure. And with the craziness of the past year or so – with WeddingWire and The Knot merging, with Southern Weddings shutting down, with Style Me Pretty shutting down and opening back up – it’s hard to know if we should be focusing on the bigger publications. So I asked Meghan what we should all be doing, and she shares some great tips! Meghan also talks about her two other websites, WeddingIndustrySpeakers.com and OFDCollective.com (see promo code below). We mentioned 3 promos on this show! 1) My friends at LVL Academy are bringing their wedding planner workshop here to North Carolina in June and Weddings for Real Host Megan Gillikin is a speaker! Join us June 7-8th at Muse at the Mill in Winston-Salem for 2 full days of learning best practices, ways to refine your planning p

Life is stressful. Owning a business is stressful. Clients are stressful. Parenting is stressful. Relationships are stressful. As a creative entrepreneur, it's not possible to be all things to everybody at all times. Sometimes it feels like life is in complete disarray. Catrina Ballard from Root and Restore has been both a creative entrepreneur AND a counselor, and she comes on the show today to give some tips for managing stress! Support this show by supporting our sponsors: For clothing made specifically for wedding planners, designed by a wedding planner, visit Working Wear at WorkingWearCo.com! Visit GreenChef.US/WeddingsForReal for $50 off your first box of Green Chef! Listeners, we are nominated (!!!) in the IndyWeek's Best of the Triangle Awards!  You can go to IndyWeek and vote for us in the "Out and About" Section! Catrina Ballard, Root and Restore (all images by Becki Smith of Smith House Photo)   Root and Restore on Social Media: Instagram: @RootAndRestore   Weddings for Real on Social Media: In

Jacob Boehm, owner and head chef of Snap Pea Creative Dining, doesn't run a typical catering company. He caters a few weddings, but not many. He doesn't do menu tastings. In fact, if you're working with him for your wedding, the menu that you pick...well, he might change it by the time your wedding comes around. And for his clients, that's one of the reasons he's so unique and in-demand. Find out more about what makes Jacob and Snap Pea special by tuning in! Support this show by supporting our sponsors: Visit MyPinkPartyBox.com for Vendor Gifts and Hotel Welcome Boxes! Listeners, we are nominated (!!!) in the IndyWeek's Best of the Triangle Awards!  You can go to IndyWeek and vote for us in the "Out and About" Section!     Jacob Boehm, Snap Pea Creative Dining (image by Tim Lytvinenko)   (image by Food Seen)   Snap Pea on Social Media: Instagram: @snappeanc Facebook: @snappeanc   Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for thi

International Wedding Planner Eva Clark from Eva Clark Events has planned over 400 events. Some of those clients have been more difficult to work with than others. But still, she wants to make sure that everyone getting married has a memorable experience in a positive way. How does she do that? By making sure she infuses compassion into her professional and personal life. Support this show by supporting our sponsors: If you're a wedding vendor, you should be using Honeybook! And you can use promo code "WeddingsForReal" for 50% off your first year! Listeners, we are nominated (!!!) in the IndyWeek's Best of the Triangle Awards!  You can go to IndyWeek and vote for us in the "Out and About" Section!   International Wedding Planner Eva Clark (image by Shauna Veasey) Eva Clark on Social Media twitter: @evaclarkevents Instagram: @evaclarkevents Facebook: @evaclarkevents     Weddings for Real on Social Media: Instagram: @weddingsforreal Facebook: @weddingsforreal twitter: @weddingsforreal Music for this episode by

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported us over the past year plus! And we're so excited to announce that we've been nominated for Best Local Podcast on IndyWeek! Even though we have very little chance to win, we would love for you to vote for us (starting Monday April 8th)! And on today's Weekend Wine Down, we talk about our one year anniversary, weddings on other planets, wedding season, podcast recommendations, and more!   The host of Weddings for Real is Megan Gillikin, owner and lead consultant at A Southern Soiree Wedding and Event Planning.  She's also available for wedding and hospitality business consulting and can be reached at megan@weddingsforreal.com. Weddings for Real is edited and produced by Jason Gillikin for Earfluence.