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

Karen, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Taking care of customers isn’t just good business – it is often one of the main reasons folks went into business in the first place. So, we’d love to get a conversation going around how to best help clients feel appreciated – maybe you can share something you’ve done or seen someone do that’s been really effective at helping a customer feel valued?

Client appreciation is at the heart of my company and for me it goes beyond sending corporate gifts or delivering cookies and doughnuts. Although these things are wonderful, my focus as a company is making sure we consistently deliver what we say we will and maximize the experience we provide for everyone that participates in our wedding expos.

We have two distinct customers; the companies that exhibit in our shows and advertise on our media platforms and the couples that attend our events to find these companies and the products and services for their wedding. Our job is to connect them at our events which sounds a lot easier than it is.

The logistics and production of every aspect of the event from vendor acquisition to ticket sales, fire permits to fashion shows, takes months of lead time and planning for each show. Much like the weddings that we support, we have one day to get it right. Each decision we make leading up to the event impacts all the exhibitors and attendees. We owe it to them to provide the highest level of quality in every aspect of the show, every single time. I think this is the best example of respect and appreciation we can give our clients and attendees in return for their time and investment.

Karen, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

From selling real estate to designing children’s clothing, with a little technical writing, educational project management and entertainment industry background thrown in, my work experiences were certainly diverse. Almost twenty years ago, after primarily focusing on raising three exceptional humans, with two in college (Go Noles!) and one to follow soon (Go Knights!), it was time to find my own new path.

That is when I was presented with an opportunity to write articles and produce video segments for Your Wedding TV. This exciting new company produced a local broadcast TV show, website, magazine and ultimately wedding planning expos.

Always one to say YES to new challenges, I went all in, researched, and learned everything I could about the wedding industry and soon added, Director of Sales, Operations and Events to my job description. Ultimately, I purchased the company and am now president of the Florida Wedding Expo and Your Wedding TV.

Florida Wedding Expo shows are the largest and most highly attended wedding planning expos in the state and have been voted the #1 Best Wedding Expo by Orlando Magazine. We were the first public trade show event back to the Orange County Convention Center in September 2020 despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The medical plan and multiple protocols we implemented in order to safely have the show were used as a model for future events at the center.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

In 2019 we were contacted by the marketing team at Kleinfeld Bridal, the most well-known bridal salon in the country and home to TLC’s popular reality TV show, Say Yes to the Dress. They had seen our runway fashion show videos and heard about our shows – be still my heart! We had been selected as one of two wedding expos in the country they wanted to exhibit at and be featured in the runway fashion show. We diligently worked out all the logistics for them to ship in dresses from New York as well as attend in person with a booth at the show.

The team from Kleinfeld came completely prepared, ready to manage every aspect of how their dresses were presented, from color combinations and styles to model fittings. The pivotal moment for me was once they saw how organized we were and that we had all these things well in hand, they said, “You’ve obviously got this” and they turned it over to our staff while they devoted their time at the show to connecting with our engaged couples and their guests at their booth.

The dresses were stunning, their team was thrilled as was the audience that was able to see this iconic brand live on our runway.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Beyond exhibitors requesting information directly from our website, word-of-mouth within the event industry is our best source of new vendors. Averaging over 90% repeat vendor participation, our reputation for excellence and the positive outcomes experienced by our participants is what we are most proud of, and these referrals are what we strive to achieve and appreciate most.

Since wedding planning is a time-sensitive process, wedding vendors continually need a renewable resource to find newly engaged couples. The most immediate and effective way for them to do this is to be at our shows, having face-to-face, in-person contact with the motivated couples attending. Our job is to facilitate just that and bring these couples to our vendors at every show.

As far as attendees, sources for this are always evolving as media focus and involvement changes so quickly, especially with our targeted demographic. The days of singular, sure-fire advertising are long gone, so we’re always evaluating new platforms and methods.

Being featured and sharing a little piece of my story on CanvasRebel and Voyager has been an honor. I’ve also enjoyed reading about many of the creative professionals and companies featured and look forward to hopefully working with some of them at our shows soon.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://floridaweddingexpo.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flweddingexpo/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YourWeddingTV
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/FloridaWeddingExpo

Image Credits
J.R. Sterling | Sterling Photography International