It can be strange working with real life couples in a virtual world. Advances in technology and the need to plan from a distance, primarily with destination weddings, are two factors that have contributed to the rise of virtual communication. Yet, despite progress in the means of exchanging information, it is still necessary to develop a relationship to ultimately create a successful event management experience, and that can be more difficult without a traditional face-to-face connection.
Although it is challenging, you can develop the understanding of your clients and working relationships virtually that you would normally foster personally. You simply need to perfect a system that works for you.
Q&A
We start with the same questions for the initial virtual conversation that we use with all of our clients. There are certain things that we need to know, and the questions help us learn those things while getting an idea for their personal style. We ask in-depth questions about each client: how they met, what they value, and what is important to each of them about their wedding and the surrounding events. We use the answers to these questions to create a profile of our clients that helps us design and manage their events in a way that best serves them.
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“Listening” virtually is similar to listening in-person—it involves seeking the hints, details, and signs that they relay through their communications with you, even when those are through emails, text messages, or social media posts.
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Digging deeper than that initial impression takes time, but it pays off in higher levels of satisfaction and better events. “Listening” virtually is similar to listening in-person—it involves seeking the hints, details, and signs that they relay through their communications with you, even when those are through emails, text messages, or social media posts.
Style clues
Pinterest is a useful tool for getting an idea of a couple’s overall style. By viewing your couple’s pins you can find clues about their tastes and the thinks that make them smile. There are also programs that help you assemble design influences and elements to create a cohesive presentation. These can be shared in-person or digitally.
Not every couple can be easily read, of course. If a connection doesn’t develop early on, you may have to change your questions, your mode of communication or your approach. There are many who don’t want to know every little detail about their days, so you have to know exactly how much information to provide and how much to take off of their plates. There are others, of course, who must know every detail and every idea behind every detail. Your job as event manager is to know which clients are which.
The need to hone our skills as virtual communicators is a blessing and a curse. Reaching clients outside of our immediate region opens up markets and opportunities that can take our work to new levels. In exchanges, we are forced to adapt our skill set so we can best connect with our wedding clients no matter how we communicate with them. Doing this is key to successful event management in a virtual world.
