12 Top Tips to Help Entertainers Get those Wedding Bookings

Working as a Wedding Entertainer is the most joyful, exhausting, exhilarating and wonderful profession.Equally, providing Wedding Event Services, such as mobile bars, photography or firework displays for the big day are also central to what makes a wedding special and memorable and can be incredibly rewarding and exciting.

There’s no doubt that it takes a certain sort of person to do this kind of work – one filled with bags of energy and enthusiasm and a desire to do everything they possibly can to provide the perfect service.

If that sounds like you, then get ready to create a wonderful and busy career in the ever -growing and developing wedding industry.

Don’t know where to start? Here are our top 12 tips to make you a well-loved, popular and successful Wedding Entertainer or Wedding Service Provider.

1)        Get Experience

The first thing that a couple or Wedding Planner will look for is Wedding experience. This makes perfect sense, since working at a wedding is totally different to say, having a gig in a local pub or providing a mobile bar for a local fair. They want to know that you will have the right attitude, look the part (more on this later) and know how to make the wedding wheels turn quietly and smoothly. So, if you don’t already have experience of working at weddings then this is the #1, first place to start.

It may seem like a bit of a catch 22 – if you don’t have wedding experience then you can’t get wedding work so you don’t have wedding experience…but all you need is that first break. So be willing to work for free or at the very least for a very reduced rate and ask everyone you meet if they know anyone who would like fantastic wedding entertainment or wedding services at a great price. You also need to be prepared to really reassure your first customers, so start looking at what you have already done and thinking about how this shows you’ve got the right stuff for this kind of work.

2)        Wedding Photos

No, we don’t mean get your wedding photos out – we mean get plenty of photos of you or your service doing your stuff and being amazing at a wedding. Once you do manage to land that first gig, even if you have to do it for free, you can comfort yourself with the fact that you can get some great promotional material out of the day, and that may be worth a thousand more bookings…

A quick point on this – always make sure you ask the couple in writing if you want to use images of their wedding for your promotional material.

If you’re doing a first gig for free, you could ask for this as your only payment!

When you get those wedding photos, make sure they are clear, show you at your best, and are obviously at a wedding – and if this is your main market, make sure you use one of them for your main profile photo.

Lots of our Entertainers do this to make it clear that Weddings are their speciality, and it works wonders since that one photo instantly gives bookers that reassurance that you already have wedding experience.

3)        Your USP (Unique Selling Point)

This is important for all entertainer and event service marketing, but certainly worth considering carefully when targeting wedding work. Ask yourself this:

– What is different about my act/service?

– What makes it so special?

– What one thing would really make a couple want to book me instead of anyone else?

It’s that simple, find the answer to this and make sure you add it to your profile and all your marketing. 

4)        Market to the right people

Again this may seem obvious, but can be easy to get wrong or simply forget. So whether you’re writing your Entertainers Worldwide profile, or a post on your facebook page, whether you’re choosing photos to use, or editing your latest vlog, do this:

Imagine for a moment that you are busy planning your wonderful, one-and-only, special wedding day. You are recently engaged, over-the-moon, stressed and worried about making the most of your budget to create a sparkling and perfect day….

– What do you want to read/see that will make you want to book?

– What will reassure you that this is the right act/service for you?

Do this every time you add anything to your marketing!

5)        Get Blogging & Vlogging

If you’ve just had a wedding gig, amazing, write about it! Even better, if the couple are happy for you to do so, create a vlog of the day – show yourself getting ready, explain what you’re going to do that day, show how well prepared you are, get footage of you interacting with the guests…you get the idea.

This sort of material is gold for your facebook page, for your own web page or even better for your Entertainers Worldwide showreel. You can use this footage to cut in with your performance footage, to really sell yourself as a Wedding specialist.

6)        Double up and Create a Whole New Offering

This is a great tip for getting more Wedding work, since it will help you to diversify and be able to cater to more clients. Team up with an act or service that compliments your own, so that you can double your offering. This kind of team work also means that your partner can recommend you and bring you in on their gigs.

If you’re a guitarist, find yourself a singer. If you’re a dancer, find yourself a string quartet, or a DJ depending on your act type. If you’re a caterer, find yourself a mobile bar. You get the idea!

You can either mention your alternative services in your Entertainers Worldwide profile or create an entirely separate profile for your double act.

7)        Offer a Free Consultation

This is a fantastic way to get the conversation started with your potential clients. Offer them a free 15-minute telephone or skype conversation to talk through their wedding plans, so that you can make suggestions and show them what you can offer. If you’re a wedding DJ for example, this would be a great opportunity for you to show your music knowledge and demonstrate your ability to find ways to keep a crowd entertained.

8)        Get the Latest Wedding Jobs in your Inbox

There is no quicker or easier way to make sure you get more wedding gigs. Sign-up as an Entertainers Worldwide member and you will get new jobs and gigs sent directly to your inbox. That way you will be one of the first to hear about wedding work in your area. Not only that, but with that glittering new profile you’ve created with all this advice, you will get plenty of wedding booking enquiries without having to lift a finger.

We will also keep you up to date with new guides like this one, so you can keep building your marketing and growing your career.

9)        Dressing the Right Way

This sounds obvious, but believe it not, some people forget the importance of creating exactly the right image at wedding events. Whatever image your band may have for other live gigs, when it comes to weddings, you need to look well dressed – unless the couple have agreed to ripped skinny jeans and t-shirts, assume that smart is the order of the day.

This rule applies, with bells on, for event service providers. If you’re going to be seen behind a bar, setting up fireworks, or driving a limousine you need to have that wedding polish.

So think carefully about your outfit and make sure it’s ready, clean and you have a spare outfit in case of mishaps…

10)      Give them Pre-wedding Support

If you go that extra mile then you’ll be the entertainer or service provider that couples want to recommend. There are plenty of ways to do this, but here are just few:

– Create a checklist for the couple or booker so that they know what they need to do on the run up to the wedding to make sure they have everything ready for your act or service. We have created an amazing Guide to Booking Wedding Entertainment, and you can direct them here to get them started, as well as creating your own checklist with space requirements, set-up times, deposit and insurance details etc.

– Suggest a face-to-face (or skype / facetime) meeting to go through plans for the day. This is a great way to make sure there is no miscommunication and everyone is clear on what’s needed.

– Confirm everything in writing. Once you know what they want, email them confirmation of everything, including dates, times, songs, services provided…everything you have agreed. This will give them enormous reassurance and ensure you know exactly what you need to do to make them a very happy couple.

11)      Work it on the Big Day

Obviously you need to be amazing and work your backside off on the day! But you also need to work the crowd. Charm, smile and be seen. Every wedding is full of your ideal audience, many of the people there will either be getting married themselves at some point or know lots of people who will. Word-of-mouth is the best, and cheapest marketing of all.

So make sure you have your happiest chatter and be ready with a business card if anyone asks (but only if they ask!).

12)      Make sure you Follow-up After the Big Day

Stay in contact with the couples you’ve worked for. We can’t stress strongly enough how important it is to get their feedback after the event. You need to know what you did wrong, as well as what you did brilliantly so you can keep developing your offering.

And most of all, make sure you ask them to post a review on your Entertainers Worldwide profile – your reviews are your ultimate marketing tool and the best way to attract your next booking!

We hope you find these tips really helpful and enjoy using them to polish-up your Entertainers Worldwide Profile. If you haven’t signed-up yet, then just Click Here to start getting more wedding gigs today.