Wendy tells it as it is

Wendy from designs by Dakin ( a top draw wedding stationery designer) sent me this email in response to my recent posting - Fake nose, glasses and how to save £24,000

Here, in her own words Wendy tells it as it is... 

Richard and the I do Magazine Team

This email served two purposes

Firstly was to give me a much needed laugh after working far too many hours (the thought of Richard in disguise filled my head with far too many images) and secondly to prompt me to look back at my order book to see what difference, if any, I have seen since exhibiting at the last two 'Ultimate Bride'

wedding fayres and placing my advertisements in both your I Do Magazines last September.

So with the kids tucked up in bed and a glass of pepsi by my side (I needed to concentrate so wine wasn't an option) I set about with an excel spreadsheet and my order book. I always ask brides where they found out about me and always keep a record to see which are the best fayres / advertising etc.

When I first signed up for the magazine advert last year I did question my own intelligence as it seemed alot of money to pay out but following the success of the first Magna fayre I had confidence in your ability to help promote my business. I thought this is a 12 month deal and the potential numbers of brides seeing my advert was immense so I took the plunge along with booking in for a second year at the annual wedding fayre.

Well what an investment that turned out to be. Firstly the wedding fayres are organised like a military operation which run like clockwork but I can appreciate the amount of hours put in by all the team to host such successful events beforehand, on the day and afterwards. I am already booked in for my 3rd year and am so confident it will once again be an excellent fayre that I have doubled the size of my stand.

The second part of my 'large investment' was advertising in not one, but two I Do magazines as being based in Chesterfield we are on the border so are in the catchment for both Yorkshire & Derbyshire.

The feedback I have received from brides regarding the I Do Magazine is excellent as they are full of useful tips, guidelines and of course excellent suppliers. I know from personal experience that we all start off booking our wedding with a budget which in most cases has been blown on the venue, church, photographer etc before they have even thought about the dress and then they find the 'must haves' which were never on the original list (but a friend had them / saw them on a wedding tv show) and I Do magazine is ideal to source the much needed 'extras' especially when the wedding fayre season is over.

These are suppliers whose leaflets would not have been picked up at fayres as the brides didn't even know she needed the 'got to have' item when she passed by their stand but is now losing sleep as the 'must have' has taken over their life.

Well my spreadsheet turned out much bigger than I anticipated.

I had two weddings last Saturday which I picked up at the wedding fayre last September and am busy working on stationery for a bride who got my details from the magazine and is getting married this weekend. It seems that every month there are at least five weddings which have been a direct result of the fayres or the magazine advertisements with the 10th September 2011 having 7 bookings from 12 as a direct result of the fayre/magazine. If only the banks could offer such a good return on my money.

Please can you put me down for the same size advert as last year in both I Do Magazines. I will be in touch shortly to sort out art work as I am now able to offer chair covers, venue decorating and a pick n mix sweet stall so would like to include these in the artwork and write up.

Richard, please pass on my thanks once again to all the team - you are all welcome to 'mates rates' at Designs by Daykin anytime !

Wendy

www.designsbydaykin.co.uk