Ok y’all – who is excited for the OBXWA 2018 Wedding Expo this weekend?! I’ve been prepping all week and getting last minute things together but can’t wait to see everyone this weekend. Wedding Expos can be SUPER overwhelming – especially if you’re in the very beginning stages of planning and don’t have anything booked yet. So to help combat the overwhelm and set you up for a successful wedding expo weekend, here are a few tips!
Prioritize!
Plan to tackle the “one wedding a day” vendors first since those are date specific & will book up – so your wedding planner, photographer, hair & makeup, officiant, DJ or band. Then worry about the others like florist, photographer, rentals, cake, etc.
Do Your Homework!
My biggest advice is to do your homework first! So for each vendor category look online and make your top 3 or top 5 wishlist. It’s overwhelming to show up and go talk to 20 photographers – narrow it down to 5 and visit them specifically, then others as you see them if you have time! There will be about 140 vendors at the show, so by doing a little research first and narrowing down your “must-see” people it will help with the overwhelm!
Map it Out!
Once you get your expo map (at checkin/registration) – take a few minutes to review the expo layout & highlight the booths of the vendors you’re interested in so you make sure not to miss them as you’re walking through. Once 1000 people are in the show with you, it’s easy to get caught in a crowd and miss a booth or an entire section!
Visit the Tour Stops!
If there’s anyone you want to really talk one on one with, plan to go to visit them during the tour (3-7 PM) where they’re more likely to have a few minutes to chat with you versus in their expo booth where it’s often busy, loud & a bit chaotic. The tour is also the best way to see venues & musicians in action so plan to hit those vendors at their tour stops. Check here for more Tour info!
Take Advantage of Booking Bonuses!
Most vendors do offer expo booking bonuses, so I suggest taking Saturday to visit everyone you can at the expo & tour (again prioritize, don’t visit all 140 booths or 20+ tour stops!), discuss Saturday night or Sunday morning & then use the Sunday expo hours to go book vendors you’re sure of!
Enjoy!
Above all, enjoy this season of being engaged, try ALL the food & cake samples you can, get inspired by the creative displays and make memories with your Expo squad!
I hope to see you this weekend – you can find me in Booth 27 (in the cafeteria!) both Saturday & Sunday 9 am – 2 pm and then Saturday night between 3 pm – 7 pm you can chat with me at Twiddy’s Atlantis Event Home (1111 N. Virginia Dare Trail, KDH, NC 27948) or my assistant Kristen at Basnight’s Lone Cedar Cafe (7623 S Virginia Dare Trail, Nags Head, NC 27959)!
For more information about the Expo and the Wedding Tour – go here!
Have Fun!
Ashley
Ashley
filed under
January 12, 2018
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