Burnout is real. Imposter syndrome is real. Just needing a break is real. This is exactly what happened for me in 2017. I was feeling all these things. The wedding industry was shifting and I wasn’t prepared for the changes that were happening. It seemed like people still wanted to get married, but didn’t have any money to pay for everything that goes into a wedding, especially a wedding planner. At that time, I had had my business for 10 years and I was getting discouraged. I needed to step back and reevaluate what I wanted to do with my life.
I thought that giving up on the industry and my business was the right path to take at the time, so I found a full time job that was great pay with great benefits (which allowed my husband to bring home more money when I took over the benefits). Let me tell you, this lasted less than a year (8 months, I believe). I HATED it. I hated the job. Hated being stuck in a cubicle all day. Hated the limited flexibility to live my life (my kids were only 4 and 6 at the time, so this was a HUGE adjustment then). I hated having to answer to a boss. And guess what – I missed weddings.
One day, after I had enough, I put my 2 weeks notice in while working at home. I sent an email to my boss and the higher ups saying that the job was not what I thought it was (which was true) and I didn’t feel I was a good fit for the position. They basically told me not to bother coming in over the next 2 weeks and I can either return the company property in person or ship it and they would mail me my things from my desk. Honestly, I was a little surprised by this response, but it was fine. I never felt so relieved in my life.
So, now what?
I had no idea. Did I want to find another job that I felt was a better fit for me? I liked the consistent paycheck. Did I want to go back to planning weddings? I did like my freedom.
My answer was: I’m going to go back to planning weddings, BUT I’m going to do a complete rebrand and step up my marketing and target clientele.
When I tell you this was the best thing I could have done, I mean this was the BEST thing I could have done. I started booking my dream clients, networking with some of the best professionals in the business and my business began to flourish again. I even opened up a brand new office space in the center of Cheshire, where we were planting our roots. It was amazing.
So how did I do it?
The first thing I did was consider who I wanted to work with. This included creating an ideal client profile. I considered who I had worked with in the past and wrote down qualities of those that I liked and those I didn’t like. I created this client avatar in my head and tried to put myself in that person’s shoes. Where did they shop? What did they value? What did they do for work? It was necessary to align myself with these people.
Next, I had some fun with the new name and logo. My brother and I own Pink Olive Creative, which is our design division, so we played around a bit with wording, colors and imagery to create Pink Olive Events. We wanted to keep the colors similar to the previous brand, but create something new and fresh. A brand new logo and beautiful website were the icing on the cake.
Now that I had my new name and brand, I had to get the word out to people that I was back in the wedding industry, and even though Pink Olive Events was a new brand, I had many years in the wedding and event planning industry. Networking became essential again. I had to reach out to past vendors and let them know I was back and wanted to work with them again. I had to update all of my social media pages and some wedding listings I had on other websites. It was definitely work, but it was worth it in the long run. Since rebranding, I’ve worked with some of my favorite clients and vendors!
Thinking of giving your brand a little refresh or a complete makeover? We can help! Reach out to me to schedule your discovery meeting today!
