There's no denying that online reviews are SUPER important these days. Most people check online reviews before doing just about anything, so it makes sense that people REALLY check online reviews before booking something as important as a wedding vendor! One of the BEST places to check wedding vendor reviews online is The Knot! In fact, both Ashley and Kate used The Knot when planning their weddings many years ago, and it's still as popular as ever today! In fact, 80% of couples utilize The Knot when planning their wedding! For this reason, we are stoked to have Hillary Boyd from The Knot on PhotoSpark this week to chat with us about the importance of online reviews, how to make the best of a listing on The Knot, and more! Key Takeaways:

1. Research Your Potential Client: Not only is The Knot a great spot for vendor reviews, but many brides & grooms make their wedding website on The Knot! This is great news for you as a photographer, because you can do some slick recon to figure out who they are and what they're passionate about before you even meet them! This will help you decide if they're your ideal client, and will also help you with your consultation with them. Do they like craft beer? Make your consultation meeting at a brewery!
2. Asking Clients for Reviews: This is all about timing! You can't ask for a review in the normal 2 week post-event window because they likely haven't even seen the final product yet. Hillary suggests delivering the images (with a very personal email or thank you card) and include a link in that initial contact to give them a chance to leave you a review! You can also text them the link... a lot of couples use the mobile option for The Knot, so this might be an easier route for them to take! Remember, clients who use review websites like The Knot, are way more likely to leave you a review because they're comfortable with using review sites & want to return the favor to other brides & grooms!
3. Ask Clients for Feedback First: When you deliver your images, ask your clients if they're happy and if they have any feedback for you. That way, if they're unhappy for any reason, you have a chance to remedy the situation before they leave a negative review. Communication is SO important & a lot of times negative reviews are left only because they are frustrated & haven't felt like their issues have been taken care of. By asking clients for feedback, you're ensuring everyone is happy before they leave you an online review!
4. Magic Number 11: Hillary mentions that 11 is the magic number of reviews! When you have 11+ reviews, potential clients tend to view your business as more legit than someone who has less than that. If your review page is brand new, consider contacting old clients & asking them to leave a review on the new site. And there's an easy way to do this! Let's say someone left you a Yelp review but now you're looking for reviews on The Knot. Consider copying their review and pasting it in an email to them. Tell them "Hey! I LOVED your review of me on Yelp. I'm trying to establish solid reviews on The Knot... I've copied your review here to make this as easy as possible... any chance you'd be able to create an account on The Knot and paste your review for me there?" This makes it easy & foolproof & will help you get to your 11 reviews!
5. Submit, submit, submit: Hillary suggests submitting your work as much as possible! Most couples LOVE to be featured & this is a great way to show off your talent & work to new, potential clients, as well as connect with vendors from that wedding (it will tag all of them). We suggest submitting via Two Bright Lights (have you heard that episode?! It's SO informative & shows how easy the process is!). We actually have a giveaway going on for two free months of Two Bright Lights for our newsletter subscribers. Click here & find the newsletter signup form toward the bottom of the page to be eligible to win!

Relavent Links:

• The Knot
• Two Bright Lights
• PhotoSpark Newsletter Signup

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