Being a celebrant in Australia usually means facing the same challenges as many small business owners – you have to do it all! In addition to your core role of marrying loved-up legends, you’re probably also your celebrant business’s admin assistant, marketing executive, bookkeeper, social media content creator, and operations manager, plus filling the countless other roles it takes to be a successful celebrant business owner.
When so much of your time is taken up with just the day-to-day running of your business, the idea of sitting down to do a business strategy overhaul can be overwhelming. But sometimes, it’s the small strategic tweaks that can have a surprisingly big impact.
Related blog post: 5-minute Tasks to Improve Your Business
Here are three simple changes you can make to level up your celebrant business plan today.
1. Make it easier for people to contact you
You might be surprised how few celebrant websites have a ‘contact me’ call to action on their homepage. If couples have to spend more than five seconds figuring out how to get in touch, there is a good chance you will have already lost them.
- Spend a few minutes taking a critical look at your website (or better yet, ask a friend) and look at how many touchpoints people have to contact you. At the bare minimum, you should have:
A dedicated page on your website with an enquiry form and your contact details - A link to your contact page ‘above the fold’ on your homepage (i.e. the part of your website people immediately see without having to scroll down)
- Your contact details in the footer section of your website
Make sure your contact details are also easy to find on your social media platforms. You can use a service like Linktree to maximise the potential of your single URL on Instagram by adding multiple contact avenues.
I’d also strongly suggest you have at least two different ways people can contact you. While an enquiry form helps streamline your workflow by gathering key details upfront, some couples will prefer to call, text, or email you directly – so give them that option.
2. Offer clients multiple payment options as a celebrant business policy
From a sole trader’s point of view, the simplest way to collect payments is via bank transfer. This is a great method because it’s easy to set up and doesn’t incur any fees.
However, many couples may prefer to pay via credit card – perhaps they want the reward points or it just helps them better manage their cash flow alongside the huge expense of a wedding. Another advantage of taking credit card payments is that it provides an easy way for overseas clients to pay you.
Services such as Stripe or Square allow you to receive credit card payments, with fees typically ranging from 1.7% to 3.5% per transaction. You can either pass these fees on to the couple, or (my preference) absorb them, ensuring you price your services to take into account this overhead business cost.
You might also wish to look into additional options such as Apple Pay or PayPal to give couples even more choice. Plus, don’t forget that bank and payment fees are tax deductible!
3. Automate One Repetitive Task
Which part of your business feels like the biggest time suck? That one thing that feels like it shouldn’t take as long, but somehow ends up getting in the way of completing the tasks you’d prefer to focus on?
Maybe it’s sending emails or trying to schedule meetings with couples or organising your inbox. It’s time to harness the power of technology to make the mindless tasks a little easier.
If you are already using a CRM (customer relationship management tool) such as Studio Ninja or 17 Hats, you’ve probably already experienced the joys of automation. But even if you haven’t made the jump into the world of CRMs, there are plenty of free or inexpensive tools you can use to make businessing easier.
Related: Wedding Society Members receive discounts on CRMs for wedding professionals
For example, most email service providers have the option to create templates, so you don’t have to keep writing the same emails from scratch over and over again.
If it’s taking multiple back-and-forths with couples to organise a meeting time, look into scheduling software such as Calendly or Doodle – both have free and paid options depending on your needs.
If your inbox is unruly, use filters and folders to make it easier to manage. Most email services offer filtering options, but if you use Gmail, check out this handy video I made on keeping your inbox organised.
If you have some other tasks in mind that you would like to automate, you can look into workflow software such as Zapier which has myriad possibilities to outsource the more mundane business processes.
Conclusion: minimal effort for a better marriage celebrant business plan
While these tweaks might seem minor, investing just a little time in setting them up properly can significantly improve your business’s efficiency, productivity, and lead conversion.
Are there any small changes you’ve made to your celebrant business that have resulted in a game-changing improvement? Let us know about it at [email protected], and you might be featured in our next blog!
Or if you want to take your business to the next level, see what we have to offer at The Celebrant Society.
Special Thanks to:
Our celebrant model and The Celebrant Society member Panayiota Ward from Married By Pan.
