The Story of Me

There's an upcoming event in Atlanta for Wedding Professionals that's all about business plans. Although, the thought of writing one kind of brings one back to college paper writing days, my journey to Atlanta Occasions started as a direct result from my business plan so I have a special place in my heart for them... no matter what stage of your business. The irony is however, I didn't write the business plan for the current business I own...... so here's my story.

In 2006 I moved to Atlanta knowing no one and nothing about this city. I left behind a well established career in the Spa and Salon industry, but I knew that this new city had new experiences for me, so I wasn't looking for a job in the same field. Instead, I got a job at David's Bridal that paid a whopping $7/hr.... a far cry from my previous salary, but a clock-in and clock-out type gig with no responsibilities besides making sure the mirrors were fingerprint-less. Heaven.

While working there I found an opening for a Spa Director position at a Medical Spa near my house and ultimately left the hourly job for a career back in the spa world. While it was tremendously rewarding, it wasn't ME. I'm terribly assertive and a go-getter.. My way or the highway type person and I knew I had the desire to be an entrepreneur, I just didn't know in what fashion.

Everyday on the way to work I would pass this super cute old Antebellum home just outside of my neighborhood. Restored and currently outfitted as a restaurant, that place had been for sale since I moved to the big ATL. One day I said, "I think that place would make a great event venue." The next day I viewed the property with the realtor and the day after that I began putting together what would end up to be the thickest, most well thought out business plan for "Bear Creek Manor" (that's what I was going to name it), a new wedding and special event facility in Hampton, GA. I spent months planning, researching, acquiring financing, meeting with contractors and when it came down to closing the sale... those people just wouldn't take my low ball offer. So, I walked away from the project. By this time I had quit my job and was left soul-searching for where I was meant to be.

I went back to my business plan thinking "what the heck am I going to do with all this now?" I got to thinking about how I was going to market the facility in the first place. How would I reach the Henry County bride. Metro Atlanta is so large, how could I have ever really made this new venue stick out in the sea of facilities online. I just had this thought, spark, idea... call it whatever, that made me wonder why Atlanta, or any other major metro area, doesn't have a website where someone can narrow their search by region and county. Something that gives us Henry County businesses, our own spot in the limelight. And because one didn't exist... I decide to make it myself.

From that moment on I immersed myself into what was now known as AtlantaOccasions.com with no business plan, prior planning, major research or financial backing. Fast forward two years and I now have a very successful AtlantaOccasions.com AND an Atlanta Occasions Magazine that's morphed a tad bit from my original inspiration, into something even cooler. I have made mistakes along the way, nothing of too much determent to my biz, but things that had I forseen in my initial pre-planning would have saved me big bucks along the way. Had I paused to create a new plan for this idea I had been inspired to created by my initial business plan, I may have made different decisions that could have quite possibly saved me time, heartache and money-honey.

Everyone needs a little pause and focus time in their business. Time to stop, smell the roses, reflect on what you've created and reanalyze your path. Maybe you're headed in the right direction, or maybe the currents are moving and so should your business. You'll never know, unless you give yourself the time to think it through. Business plans do not make or break a business but they do force you to completely analyze your business from every facete and angle. They point you in the best direction and serve as a guide to keep you on that path or highlight new paths that you may not have considered.

Atlanta Wedding Professionals have the opportunity to do just that in a few weeks. A course completely designed for the bridal industry business plans is coming to Atlanta. I encourage you to seek out more info the Sage Wedding Pros are offering and consider what a class like this could do for your new, established, or in need of some TLC business. For more details click here.

I do this a lot. Some may say too much, but keeping a keen eye on your business and your market keep you tuned into the reality which surrounds you. Many people think that I have a glamorous publishing background, and sadly it's just not so. I'm on my way there though. What I did have was inspired thought and the guts to act on it. Sometimes, that's all you'll ever need. ;-)

How's your business going? Is there advice, questions or new marketing topics you'd like to see discussed that would help you succeed?

Your Marketing Engine Mechanic

Three years ago (October of 2006 to be exact) I attended a BNI meeting in Stockbridge Georgia after I first moved to Atlanta. I didn't know anyone but looked the group up on the internet and found the chapter near my house. At that event I met several people, collected business cards, etc. A few months later I hired an Accountant, Kim Maxwell, who I had met at the group and she has been my accountant ever since. But what's unique about this story is, in the clump of business cards I collected at that one meeting, there was a card of a electric company I had pulled out and stuck on my refrigerator after the meeting. Just a few weeks ago, January of 2010... 3 years later, I needed to add an electrical outlet in my home office, passed the fridge, remembered the business card I had saved and wah-lah.... called Mr. Johnny Classen up and booked him to come out to my house.



While he was here he said.. "I noticed you have one of my cards on your refrigerator, have we ever done business before?" and I told him, nope, not yet.. but I met you at that BNI group and have been holding onto your card until I needed it. He was shocked! His response.."Well I guess that group actually did work."

Go figure. In his case, the response he received from attending the event wasn't necessarily immediate, but it did lend him a new client. You never can tell exactly what marketing you're doing is going to attract clients, but having multiple options and avenues only increases the odds... because they all work better together.

You see, marketing is like the engine of a Mercedes. The parts, all brand spanking new, work just fine, but alone don't produce the end desired result. Put them together and listen to that baby purr. Now think about marketing as an engine. Your collateral pieces (i.e. parts) do function on their own to a certain extent. Yes, your website may have your phone number and services on it, but what good does it do until someone actually logs onto it. Same goes for business cards. So what you ordered 1000 of them. If they don't get put into the hands of a bride at a bridal show, they don't work. BUT, combine those collateral parts to make a marketing engine and each one will drive the other even further towards your desired end result... new clients. Just think, if your car is designed to run with six spark plugs but you unplugged two, chances are that car would still run, but not very well. So you can image the type of results you can expect if you try to run your marketing engine with only half of the parts... it'll run, just not like that Mercedes. Do you see where I'm going with this?

So what are those parts? Things like: business cards, print advertisments, website listings, client referrals, trade shows, editorial and pr coverage, billboard, radio, flyers, rack cards, networking, business meetings, signs on the side of your car, websites, blogs, social media, promotional materials, sponsorships, donations, raffles, yada yada yada. The more parts, the more refined engine.

Listen, what I want you to take from this is that the advertising parts of your marketing engine do work individually, they are just less effective when used alone... like spark plugs.

Image if Johnny would have gone to that networking event without a single card.....or maybe, had a bunch of cards, but never attended a networking event.