Are you wondering how to get ordained so that you can perform a marriage? Maybe you want to start officiating weddings and even make it into a business. Well, I want to set the record straight and show you exactly how to know if your ordination is actually legal.

Can you actually marry someone and sign the marriage license according to the laws in your state? I have some resources that will lead you to the state law so that you can understand the exact requirements for you to be legally ordained.

Check your state requirements and laws here:
theamm.org/weddings-by-state

DISCLAIMER:
***I am not a lawyer. I am an officiant and business coach and this video is not legal advice.***

To learn more, email me at: [email protected]

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In this episode, Chad has a guest named Nicole Ross that asks a few REALLY GREAT questions. He goes into detail about how to price your services to make sure that you are serving clients well and making a profit. He tells you the secrets that he used to grow his officiant business quickly into a 5-star, sought-after service in a large area. 

He also covers whether or not you should offer "friends and family" discounts on your services and when you should or should not.

Then he tells you exactly when you should get paid and how to make sure you get your money. Listen to this episode to learn about officiant and wedding vendor package pricing and how to make a profit in the officiant business and most other wedding vendor businesses.

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In this episode, Chad goes over 5 things that can significantly increase the traffic and help clients find your wedding vendor website faster and more consistently. These 5 things increase Search Engine Optimization and are easy to do on your own. Chad will go over each suggestion and tell you how to implement each one yourself. Websites built on Wix and Squarespace are the easiest to edit and work on without a lot of knowledge or tech "savviness". :)

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In this episode, Chad talks about this incredible RELAUNCH! He started this back in 2020 to serve wedding officiants and celebrants all over the world. Unfortunately, he had to take a break for about a year to tend to some other projects. Now Chad is putting his entire self into this project. Producing great content to help YOU get your officiant business to the next level, no matter how much experience you have or don't have.

Listen to this episode and get ready to be an active member of OFFICIANT NATION!

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In today's episode, Chad speaks with Rev. Stacy Shaw from Sylver Weddings and Events in California. started as an event planner back in 2000, got my ordination in 2004 and started this company in 2009.
Stacy started with NOTHING. Like, literally, the old $300 desktop she had since high school, and a passion. Her own wedding was such a disaster. Not because she couldn’t plan it, but because she had no support system. she knew what she wanted, but no clue how to get it. She'd never been married before, I mean, she was only 18! That experience became her driving force. She spent several years learning and gaining knowledge before She ever charged a single cent.

Now, Stacy has teams of extremely talented event planner’s across the country ready to help couples create their perfect event.

Today Chad talks to Stacy about:
Contracts

• Why it's so important to have one
• What goes into a contract
• Must have clauses

Add on Services

• When is it ok to add on other service types to your wedding business
• What types of services go together
• How to add additional revenue streams

Chad also asks Stacy:

• What are your favorite tools to use? 
  • HONEYBOOK
• If you had a book or event to suggest to fellow wedding professionals...on any topic...something that has impacted you...what would it be? 
  • Wedding MBA in Las Vegas. Incredible seminar on wedding business. Must see!!! https://weddingmba.com/
• Favorite Quote or Best piece of advice you’ve ever received. 
  • ALWAYS BE PREPARED

HOW CAN PEOPLE FIND OUT MORE ABOUT YOU?

[email protected]
951-282-7863
[email protected]
www.facebook.com/sylverweddings
www.twitter.com/sylverweddings
www.instagram.com/sylver.weddings.and.events/
www.facebook.com/groups/weddingmentorship/
www.facebook.com/groups/mbaplanners/
www.facebook.com/groups/weddingindustrymba/

For Southern California people:

www.facebook.com/groups/SCALIWEDPROS

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In today's episode, Chad speaks with Lorrie Werden from NOLA Elopements LLC. Lorrie tells us how she built a huge business officiating primarily elopements. Chad and Lorrie discuss how to not only make more money by officiating elopements but how to build a team of officiants who are trained to make your business run smoothly and become extremely profitable.

"Many years ago, I was helping my friend find someone to officiate her daughter's wedding.  It became very difficult to find someone who would perform her ceremony just the way she had invisioned.   This is where an amazing chapter of my personal journey began.   After becoming ordained, I joyfully performed that special ceremony for her.  It was such a blessing to be part of her day just the way she invisioned.   Shortly thereafter,  as word spread of my performing wedding ceremonies, I started receiving requests to perform ceremonies for family and friends.  As I began performing these ceremonies,  I quickly realized just how much joy it brought to my life to give these couples the ceremony they dreamed of by providing that "personalized and personal touch" they deserved to make their day as special and unique as they are.   

I moved to New Orleans in early 2015 and shortly thereafter, NOLA Elopements, LLC  was created.  

Our couples are very important to us so I want you to be aware that should an emergency ever arise with your NOLA Elopments officiant, you can rest assured, we will do our best to find another trusted officiant to make sure that your ceremony still goes as planned. 

We look forward to creating a personalized ceremony to make your special day just the way you invision it."
Lorrie Werden
Nola Elopements LLC.

Find out more or reach out to Lorrie: 
visit www.nolaelopements.com/
[email protected]
(504) 641-3567

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In this episode, Chad interviews Chanelle Carlin about how to create the feel of your officiant business. You'll also hear Chanelle's story of succes.
About Chanelle

 I am a lover of life and love. I have traveled the world, lived in Ireland, and now live in rural Okanogan County, Washington, USA with my family. Some of my favorite things are Christmas, orange kitties, dachshunds, traveling, hiking, time with my family, and enjoying a cup of coffee in the morning while the sun rises or a glass of wine in the evening watching the sunset.  I also LOVE helping couples celebrate their love in their own, unique style and believe that life and love should be celebrated every minute! I'm often asked how I came to officiate weddings. It's a simple story, really, but not necessarily one most folks expect: When my mom passed away a few years ago, we struggled to find an officiant for her funeral service, even though, we know a number of ordained ministers. The funeral home gave us a name and that gentleman worked with us to celebrate my mom's life a few days later. Afterward, I was committed to making sure that no one else would have such a hard time finding someone to celebrate a loved one and I became an ordained minister...just in case.

 Once ordained, weddings literally started coming to me. Initially, they were couples struggling to find an officiant. One couple told me their first officiant passed away and the second one sort of disappeared on them! They found me six weeks before their wedding. Another couple desperate for an officiant found me from across the state two days before their ceremony!  I can honestly say I have never been happier in my work or felt more fulfilled. I have the honor of celebrating couples who are celebrating their love and commitment to one another.

• I type your name in Google and literally, everything is about you. What step can officiants take to start landing in front of more clients on Google and everywhere else?
  • It didn’t happen overnight. I used to type in my name and not see myself. I have Google My Business, and have built my own website, ChanelleCarlin.com. I am active on social media (Facebook, Facebook business, Instagram). I have videos and have tried to be consistent with online marketing. However, I think the biggest thing is, figuring out who I am. Who is my target audience, who do I like to work with, what do I love to do? These are the things that have made the biggest impact. I had to lose ego and be willing to learn from other people.
• ---LISTEN TO HEAR THE REST OF THE INTERVIEW

Chanelle's favorite tools:
1. Practice of Gratitude (Look at everything and be grateful for it)
2. CRM called TAVE.COM (allows me to concentrate on the small important things that can't be systematized by systematizing everything else
3. Personalized postcards to my clients
4. I'm on a list throughout the state with several county auditors for people who quickly need an officiant. FREE ADVERTISING :)
Chanelle's favorite quote:
To smile and love what I do.
Chanelle's favorite books:
1. The Science of Being Rich
2. Financial Intelligence of Entrepreneurs
3. The Audacity to be Queen
4.  Gratitude 540

Reach Chanelle at :
chanellecarlin.com
https://www.facebook.com/chanelle.carlin
https://www.instagram.com/chanelle.carlin/

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In today's episode, Chad teaches how to conquer your nerves and be a pro in front of any size crowd.

WHY do you get nervous or uneasy? Many reasons you get nervous or uneasy.

1. Mental picture of failure 
2. Unprepared
3. You have to be somebody or look a certain way in front of people and that’s scary.
4. You have a fear of being in front of people

WHAT can you do about it? Pinpoint and write down why you are uneasy or nervous.

This part is usually a once in a lifetime thing if you continue getting in front of people throughout your career as an officiant. However, this is a HUGE, important step if you are just starting out and it is completely necessary in the beginning to get rid of the nerves or fear. The reason you need to know why you feel like you do...is it gives you something in your mind that you can confront and understand that it isn’t just you or part of you. It is a feeling that can be dealt with and deleted.

My music teacher ALWAYS ALWAYS made me go home and stand in front of a mirror to sing to myself. As silly as this may sound to some, it does something very important. It literally reaffirms the saying that seeing is believing. It gives you and your mind confidence that the person that you are seeing...can do what I am seeing them do. It raises your belief in yourself, tremendously because you are physically seeing yourself do it. 

C R V

These three things all work together. They build on each other and make a strong confident professional and the more you do them the more confident and less nervous you will be. Make sure you are organized and prepared in your business...as you will see soon.

Control
Comprehending this first will get your mind right for the next steps. You need to gain control of your mind by gaining control of your immediate situation and understand that you will be in control at your event or ceremony.  Control your situation by having a system or process in place, in your business, to get all of the information you need to ensure that you don’t miss a thing. Control your part of the event. Be so prepared that you are in 100% control at the ceremony...YOU ARE IN CONTROL.

Rehearse
Make sure your part of the ceremony is rehearsed. You don’t have to memorize it, but you should have rehearsed enough to briefly look at the couple every few moment as you’re reading. Build confidence in yourself by watching yourself do this. 

Visualize
Write down, in order, what is going to take place the day of the ceremony. Get familiar with it. Get in a quiet place and think through everything that is going to happen. Visualize yourself giving the same incredible performance as you did in front of the mirror. Visualize different scenarios of things happening (wind turning a page in your book causing you to lose your place, someone making noise and interrupting, a baby crying and distracting you, the groom or bride asking you to reread something causing you to calmly pause...find your place...and reread). This is essentially you practicing all aspects of what you do and getting better every time you do it.

WHERE do you focus your energy before an event?

You focus it on being you. Before an event you aren’t worried or nervous...you walk up and have casual conversations with people because you know where to be, what to do, and how you’re going to do it.

Focus on being kind, happy, funny...whatever makes you...YOU. When you start having ceremonies like this. It becomes an amazing career that you absolutely look forward to doing. It becomes easy and fun and exciting.

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Chad talks about getting customers for your wedding business in this episode. Enjoy!
Pricing has a direct effect on whether or not you get business. If your prices are too high and people don’t see the value then you won’t get customers, if your prices are too low, you’ll get tons of people who haggle and complain because you can’t afford to put the right amount of time into each ceremony.
What is a good price? Search the officiants closest to you and make sure you are not the cheapest. I like to make sure I’m more expensive than 50% of my competition but still not the most expensive. Here’s a secret. Create a package during the week that is cheaper than all of your competitors but it has stipulations to make sure it’s well worth your time. For instance, you might offer a $99, a Simply legal package where they meet you at a park right down the street from your office or home, during the week, and you offer a pre-formatted ceremony (so you read the same script every time) it is very short and to the point, and then you sign the license and mail it. The key is making the people that want something cheap understand it must be done within a mile or 2 of you, during the week, on your schedule. Then make a middle package that is mid-range of all of your competitors and make a top package that is at the top or more expensive than some of your competitors. Just make sure they are getting what they are paying for and their experience exceeds their expectations.
The key here is doing each one of these well. Making sure every one of these things has the same look and feel. In order to do that get a logo created on Fiverr.com and make sure it is displayed everywhere that you are. It’s not expensive to make sure all of this is done right...especially in the beginning, it just takes time.  If you want to make your own, go to Canva.com and you can design your own for free.

1. Google Listing (over 3.5 billion searches per day on Google) if your not on Google somewhere, you’re missing out on business.

• Get a google my business account and listing. You will sign up and they will send you a postcard to verify. Then your business will show up on Google Maps when someone is searching for an officiant in your area.

2. Networking (Rental Companies, Wedding Venues, Bridal Stores, Photographers, DJ’s, Catering Companies, Wedding Bakers) -

•  Networking doesn’t mean selling yourself, it means getting to know them. Asking if you might be able to suggest them to your clients and if they would consider doing the same. Even Competition...Get to know them and let them know that if they are fully booked you’d be happy to assist and you will do the same if you’re booked and you get a call.

3. Facebook Page

• 1.62 billion users are on Facebook everyday. Create a business page with your logo and the packages you offer.
• Make sure you respond to messages and comments on the stuff you post.
• Post stuff from your page on the groups in your town that will allow it. I’ve gotten many customers from this.

4. Facebook Groups in your town and around your town

• Facebook Groups are an incredible way to network with businesses, customers, and people who know people who are looking for your services. Groups in the towns that you are willing to drive to will let you join most of the time and these are incredible places to meet people. Comment often on  posts that position you as an expert. Answer questions that officiant’s would answer.

5. Website

• Squarespace, Wix, Fiverr.com. 
• Get a one page webpage up with an intro to you, services & pricing, and contact info...the rest can come later. and make sure it is on your Facebook, Google listing and anywhere else that will allow you to put it.

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