“The Business Resource For Wedding Entrepreneurs”

While some wedding vendors who enjoys winter may have started their wedding off-season, wedding vendors especially in Southeast Asia like Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines are approaching the period where business slows downs. With that being said, we're pretty sure that some of you have planned a trip or a retreat just to have a little breather from all the wedding business. But what if you have an ample time in your hands during the off-season? You can certainly take advantage of it to take care of your business so you're prep for the next wedding seasons. Scroll on below to know how!

1. Follow up unresponded emails
First thing first! We are pretty sure that some days when you're cooped from one wedding project to another, you probably missed some enquiry emails that was left unresponded. Since it's not nice to have those emails left unanswered, take some time to sit down and reply them. Apologize for the late response, and check whether you can score some bookings whose wedding dates are approaching in the upcoming months. Not only that, ensure that some important emails from contractors and other vendor partners are responded as well.
One tip from us is that you can also start labelling your emails and create folders to make your inbox much organized. Surely it will give you a tidier and mess-free inbox to go through the peak season hassle.

2. Review and revise operations
Next, in your free time, it's also a good idea to re-evaluate your operations. You can start from reviewing your client onboarding process and the standard of procedure (SOP) for your clients as they approach their wedding day. Which worked and which don't? This is to know whether or not your operations are efficient and necessary. Not only that, this is also a good time to assess your employees and whether you need to hire more manpower so you can accept more bookings from clients.

Furthermore, your brand and awareness can get some updating as well. From sharing past client projects on social media to rebranding your business, give it a rework. You can learn how to upgrade your social media content so you'll get more engagement with your followers.

3. Clean up workspace
If you're not the most organized kind of person, what's better than taking some time to clean up your office or personal workspace? Trust us that it's going to be much organized when the peak season comes in again. Perhaps you can arrange all of the hard-copies you have into folders and label them clearly for future reference. Moreover, tidy up your desk drawers and clean up the dust that's been collecting since you've neglected your workspace.

This also include your mobile devices like smartphones, laptops and tablets. You may find very old client contracts and other agreements that may not be used anymore, so it's best to clean up the devices' storage space. An option is to archive past client's agreements by sorting it to their wedding month and move it to an external storage space. Put unwanted images away too, it usually takes a lot of space, so it's best sort them out too.

4. Repair and update properties
Speaking of cleaning the office, it is encouraged for vendors like decorators to make use of the off-season to repair or update your properties. For decorator, this includes repainting or put some touch-ups to furnitures, cleaning faux flowers and other tangibles that are susceptible to wear and tear. What's often been done by hotels and venues to clean their ballrooms and other spaces that's frequented for wedding bookings. They either polish marble floors, vacuum the carpets, reinstall new flooring new flooring, or for outdoor spaces, cut the grasses and add more plants to upgrade the space.

5. Make some paperwork updates
What we meant by paperwork is the administrative ones like agreements and contracts. This is for your business' own good, hire a lawyer and go through the clauses, there should be at least a clause or two that needs an update such as your refund and cancellation policy or the payment terms. Especially if you own a registered business, it's a must to ensure that all your paperwork are up-to-date and follows the regulations and policies of the country.

6. Report taxes and do finances
Calculating taxes can be a troublesome, so during your off days it's a good idea to sit down and get your calculators ready. It's important to file your taxes especially if you own a registered business too. If you don't want to go through the tedious process, you can hire a tax consultant, however ensure that all the numbers and calculations are correct. Furthermore, you can also spare your time to check your business' finance. Are you profiting? Did you have an expense you want to get rid off? Time to evaluate your incomes and sources to know how your business has been doing.

7. Introduce new product or service
Last but not least, have a productive off-season by working on a new product or service you've always wanted but delay because you've been as a bee. Well, you can do that during off-season where you can focus on developing some new ideas and plan how you're going to market them to your existing and potential clients. This includes perhaps some focus group discussion among your existing clients, asking some fellow vendors about their thoughts. All can be done during the off-season with time for improvements.

And that's all the things you can do during your off-season! What are some of you productive ways to spend your wedding off-season? Share yours on the comment box below.