We recently connected with Maricela Lazarit-bonilla and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Maricela thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?
My first client was a wonderful young couple who discovered me through a referral service website. We instantly connected and hit it off. They were so warm and kind. However, just two days before their wedding, my mother passes away. I am completely heartbroken. Overwhelmed with grief, I considered canceling, worried that I wouldn’t be able to provide them with the service they truly deserved and had been eagerly anticipating.
In the end, I decided to go through with officiating, praying for the emotional strength I needed to honor their special day. They and their guests were ever so present and connected with me throughout; it felt magical. After the ceremony, as I was leaving, I unexpectedly bumped into the bride’s father. He approached me, expressed his appreciation for the beautiful ceremony, and enveloped me in the biggest and warmest hug. That moment meant the world to me; he’ll never know how much that simple gesture helped to heal my heart on such a difficult day.
Maricela , 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?
Well, I was born and raised in South Central Los Angeles. Proudly a first generation Mexican American. I love to travel. I hold a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing, along with various certifications related to my work. I am one of 8 siblings (second to last). Both our parents have unfortunately passed. However, I am blessed to have strong ties with my siblings that helped all of us get through those tough events together. We see each other as much as we can. Our get togethers are always so much fun.
I am happily married to a wonderful man named Henry, and I take great pride in being the mother of two kind and talented young men, Chris (26) and Diego (14). Together, the four of us hold purple belts in kickboxing. Our instructors, Mr. Dunn and Mr. Madison are top notch. We have called Santa Clarita home since 2017, and I recently relocated my office from Burbank to Santa Clarita this past August; coincidentally, my new office is located right next to our dojo. My youngest sister, Araceli, and my lifelong friend, Carmen, affectionately refer to me as a “modern hippie” because of my love for nature and my passion for creating natural homemade products for our household, such as laundry soap, linen spray, serums, hair masks, body scrubs, etc. I also have a deep love for cooking—just a heads up, though: I cook from scratch, so don’t come starving unless you’re prepared to wait a bit!
Since 2009, I have devoted myself to the art of officiating weddings across California and the Midwest.
I never intended to become a wedding officiant. I became one with one sole purpose; to officiate the wedding of my sister and her fiancé. Even though I was an emotional wreck, nervous and all, trying to enunciate every word and desperately fighting back those sister tears, it still managed to leave me enthralled. What began as a one-time role unexpectedly blossomed into a passionate journey.
Since then, every ceremony I conduct continues to captivate me, leaving me both moved and fulfilled by the magic of uniting two souls in love as I endeavor to articulate every word with sincerity and grace, ensuring that each union is truly special and memorable.
Transitioning into the role of a Wedding Officiant posed its greatest challenge in the initial stages – a lack of industry connections. Despite this hurdle, drawing upon my business education, I diligently researched and meticulously set up my business framework. Through innovative outreach strategies, I managed to forge connections with potential clients.
The journey has been a continuous learning curve, yet looking back, I am genuinely content with the progress and growth I have achieved in this fulfilling role.
As a wedding officiant, notary public and relationship coach who offers pre-marital counseling I solve a wide range of problems such as:
1.) Legal compliance and support. I simplify the often-complex process of marriage license paperwork, ensuring that couples understand and meet the requirements necessary for their marriage to be legally recognized.
2.) Stress reduction and time efficiency . By combining officiating, notary services, I offer a seamless solution that minimizes the time and effort couples spend in coordinating with multiple vendors, reducing the stress and anxiety couple’s face in the lead-up to their big day.
3.) Relationship strengthening. As a relationship coach, I provide pre-marital counseling that helps couples build a strong foundation for their marriage. This includes addressing communication, conflict resolution, shared goals as well as managing expectations and offering support during this stressful time. I focus on creating happier and healthier relationships; committed to bringing peace to the world, one relationship at a time.
4.) Professional guidance. I provide expert advice and support throughout the planning process, helping couples with ceremony structure, personalization, vows, and rituals.
5.) I have extensive experience collaborating with a diverse range of vendors, which gives me valuable insight into their needs and expectations on wedding day. This understanding allows me to facilitate smooth communication and coordination with them.
What sets me apart from others is my personal approach to each ceremony. I take the time to get to know my clients, understanding their unique love stories, situations and experiences, and incorporating those personal details into their ceremonies. I believe that weddings should reflect the couple’s individuality, and I work hard to create a meaningful experience that resonates with them.
I am most proud of the connections I build with the couples I serve. Knowing that I play a role in one of the most significant moments of their lives is incredibly rewarding. My hope is that potential clients see me not just as an officiant but as a partner in their journey, dedicated to making their wedding day as beautiful as their dreams and as memorable as possible.
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
Yes, my side hustle as a wedding officiant eventually turned into my main business. For the first 13 years, I balanced my “grown-up” job-what I often referred to as my stable career-alongside officiating weddings on the weekends and evenings. I have a strong background in insurance sales and management. Most recently, I led the International Sales department, overseeing sales operations in 59 countries and managing a multimillion-dollar sales portfolio. Additionally, I served as a corporate director, where I managed a customer experience department with a fantastic team. While I was definitely grateful for the experience, I found myself increasingly unhappy with the direction my company was heading.
Initially, officiating was something I did out of passion, stemming from my experience at my sister’s wedding. As I gained more experience and began to receive positive feedback from couples, I realized that this side hustle had the potential to grow into something much larger. I started to invest more time into refining my craft and creating a memorable client experience, expanding my network, and building relationships with vendors in the wedding industry.
In 2022, after much reflection and with the unwavering support of my amazing husband, I made the bold decision to leave my corporate role and focus on weddings full-time. This decision was so bold for me that I did not mention it to my extended family, whom I am very close to, for 6 months until I was certain that I could make this happen.
Since making the leap, my business has grown significantly. I’ve had the privilege of officiating a diverse array of weddings and have received heartwarming feedback from couples grateful for the personal touch I bring to their special day. Today, I am proud to say that my passion for officiating weddings has transformed into a thriving business that brings joy not only to me but also to the couples I serve.
How did you build your audience on social media?
As a wedding officiant, building an audience on social media can be a rewarding and effective way to showcase your services and connect with potential clients. I believe we are currently at 65k followers. It took me quite some time to get there and to develop a system that worked for me. Initially observing what resonates with followers and paying attention to what posting times work best. I plateaued at 40k and couldn’t seem to move much past that on my own. Managing social media is indeed a part-time job all on its own. Thankfully, I was clever enough to accept that I do not have the time to do it all on my own and have since passed this torch to my social media manager, Maruf, who worries about that now. Below is what I have implemented:
1. Professional Profile: Created professional profiles on popular social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok. Use high-quality images and engaging content to showcase my services and expertise as a wedding officiant.
2. Valuable Content: Sharing valuable content related to weddings, marriage advice, ceremony ideas, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of my work. This helped establish myself as an authority in the wedding industry and attract followers who are interested in my services.
3. Engage with the Audience: Engaging with my audience by responding to comments, messages, and inquiries in a timely and professional manner. Building relationships with followers helped build trust and credibility.
4. Collaborate with Wedding Vendors: Collaborating with other wedding vendors such as photographers, florists, and wedding planners to expand my reach and connect with a wider audience. Cross-promoting each other’s services helps to reach potential clients who are planning their weddings. Promoting others’ businesses is one of my favorite things to do, whether they are in the wedding business or not. Believing strongly that there’s enough business for all us and I want my favorite business owners to enjoy all the success they can handle.
5. Contests and Giveaways: Running contests and giveaways on social media can help increase engagement, attract new followers, and generate buzz around my wedding officiant services. I have offered prizes such as discounts on my services, free merchandise and even free full-service weddings to incentivize people to participate. I’ll be honest and tell you this did not work as well as I thought it would. It created more problems than I was ready for. I still run sales and specials, but I have been more careful with free promotions.
6. Use Hashtags Strategically: I use hashtags on our social media posts to increase visibility and reach a larger audience. We research popular wedding-related hashtags and incorporate them into our posts to attract users who are searching for wedding officiants.
7. Client Testimonials: From time to time we post our reviews and testimonials, which help build credibility and trust with potential clients who are considering hiring me as their wedding officiant.
For those just starting to build their social media presence as a wedding officiant, my advice would be to focus on creating high-quality content, engage with your audience, and showcase your expertise and personality. Consistency is key, so make sure to post regularly and interact with your followers to build a loyal and engaged audience. Collaborating with other wedding vendors, running promotions, and seeking client testimonials can also help you attract new clients and grow your business as a wedding officiant.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.marriedbymaricela.com
- Instagram: @marriedbymaricela
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marriedbymaricela/
- Twitter: @marriedbym
- Youtube: @marriedbymaricela547
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/married-by-maricela-santa-clarita-4
