Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jess Hopkins. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jess, appreciate you joining us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

Being a wedding planner in this era means that your target market is constantly on social media. So what better way to land clients than reaching out over social media? Back when I was first getting started, I had experience in the wedding industry; however I had yet to work directly with my own first couple. So what did I do? I shamelessly reached out to woman over Instagram who I noticed were engaged, and asked if they needed a coordinator.
It was definitely scary to put myself out there while also avoiding sounding ‘scammy’ over social media, but I was honest, showed my excitement, and told them how determined I’d be to make their day great. After being ghosted by many, one bride put her faith in me and responded to setup a consultation! I was beyond thrilled and she became my first paying customer!

Jess, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I have been in the wedding industry for 8 years, have owned my business for the past 6 years, and have been full time for the past 4 years. Getting to this point has come with many long hours planning weddings, meeting with couples, working wedding days, and drinking lots of coffee! I offer engaged couples planning services on every scale whether they want Full Planning, Partial Planning, or Month of Coordination. I absolutely love making these weddings as personal as possible by learning the couple’s hobbies, style, and love story!
I’m known for my passionate, fun, and detailed planning technique which includes one on one planning meetings with my couples, a thorough planning questionnaire, communication with all booked vendors, and a perfectly crafted timeline for the day of. I leave no stone unturned!
I’m very proud of what I’ve built from the ground up and that I have a very positive reputation amongst the Knoxville wedding industry. Working in this field is extremely rewarding, and I will do this until I retire. Can’t get enough!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When anyone hears “March 2020” they immediately think “COVID-19 outbreak.” I had one couple in particular who postponed twice due to the pandemic! Their original date was in March of 2020 and just 2 weeks before the big day Covid-19 was spreading like wildfire forcing them to postpone to March 2021. Covid-19 was still spreading at an unpredictable rate as March 2021 was approaching so they decided to bite the bullet and postpone one more time to March 27, 2022.

There was a complication, because I had become pregnant with my second child and was due on March 30, 2022! Did I let that stop me? NOPE! I had been working with this couple for 2 years at this point and there was no way I was going to bail on them. So I assigned one of my assistants to be their lead coordinator on the day of and still handled all the planning details leading up to the month of the wedding.

Fun fact, I was actually pregnant with my first child when they originally signed! Not only did I have 2 babies in the time it took them to finally tie the knot, but I also seamlessly handled communicating with all their vendors to postpone their date twice, all while continuing to run a full time business during a time that many businesses were shutting down! If that doesn’t scream “resilience” then I don’t know what does.

The pandemic had a HUGE impact on the wedding industry and I’m so blessed to be a survivor of this global disaster.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Networking and consistency 100%! As a wedding planner, the most important tool you have in your business is your network. Those are the people you will be working with the most in this industry, not your clients believe it or not. We don’t have repeat customers like other industries, but we do have repeat vendors.

Once you find a system that works for you and your fellow vendors praise you for it, they are going to tell others that they work with about you, and those vendors will expect the same 5 star communication they heard about once they work with you. For that reason, consistency is key!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sayyeswithjessweddings.com
• Instagram: @sayyeswithjessweddings
• Facebook: Say Yes With Jess Weddings

Image Credits
Bridesmaid Photo – Michelle Leah Photography Triangle Arbor bride – Devon Adrianne Photography Tattooed sunset couple – Chrissy Marie Photography Place setting – Amanda May Photo Sunset veil blowing couple – Tiff and Caleb K Bridesmaids first look – Glenai Gilbert Photo Jess setting up – Sarah Jayne Photography Couple under veil – Within the Pines Photography