We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anna Davis. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anna below.
Anna, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright, so we’d love to hear about how you got your first client or customer. What’s the story?
After a long 9 months into my business, I was beginning to think I wasn’t cut out for it. I had no clients at this point and was working so hard every day to promote, build, and gain. A few other vendors in the industry assured me, claiming it took them between 6 months to a year to get any business! I felt so discouraged at my (what felt like) wasted efforts up to this point but was determined to make it happen. A friend of mine suggested I plan a styled shoot, a coordinated and themed photoshoot, as a way to meet new vendors and potentially reach clients with my name out more. I went to work immediately, coming up with a concept and colors and inviting local vendors to participate to show their skills. It was new for me, and I quickly learned that most people will not join for free. After a couple of months though, the day of the shoot came and there were problems I overcame and the vendors who came to support me were amazing. It was during this shoot, I made my first client. I was thrilled! As fate would have it, one of the vendors was newly engaged and wanted a wedding planner. She saw my talent at this styled shoot and how I handled the issues and said I would be perfect for her wedding. It was a dream come true moment.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I got interested in the wedding industry, ironically, during covid when nobody was having large weddings. I was attending school for an unrelated degree and they were offering an event planning course as an extracurricular. At the time I thought it would be fun and maybe I could learn skills to plan family events. After taking the course, I fell in love with the idea of being a wedding planner full time. My darling man was supportive and ambitious for me, and gave me the tools to start my own event planning business instead. Busy Bee Wedding Planning was born! I did lots of research at other planners in my area to make myself competitive. What complaints did their clients have? How much did they charge? Were they flexible? My goal was to be accessible, less expensive, and more organized than other planners as I began to grow. Today, I still aim to be the best I can be for my clients. For my less creative clients, I enjoy doing custom themes and colors for their events. I want to give them peace of mind on their event day, as I take care of details and organization for them.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
My reputation was built greatly through other vendors in my industry. The ones that have worked with me at events, have seen my business grow, have seen how I face problems. They were the ones pushing for me with clients when I was still starting out. Resharing my posts on social media, giving me reviews, recommending me to clients all contributed to customers trusting me and knowing I had a good reputation in my area.
Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?
During the planning process, I make myself as accessible as I can be to my clients. Have a million questions you need answered? Email me! Having a freakout a 2am the week before your wedding? Text me! Even after the event, I have your event date in my memory forever. Don’t be surprised if you get a card in the mail for your birthday, or an anniversary gift after the wedding. I love making my clients feel special even after my services have ended!
Contact Info:
- Website: busybeeweddings.com
- Instagram: busy_bee_weddings
- Facebook: Busy Bee Wedding and Event Planning
Image Credits
Heather Glenn (Elysian Bloom Photography) Heather Martinez Photography