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Businesses tweet their update to their post

How the wedding industry is learning to market on social networks

By Amber L. Gillette
Blogger

Twitter asks “What’s happening?”
Businesses are using twitter to reach more than 13M people in the U.S. according to Mashable #Twitter

Facebook asks “What’s on your mind?”
Owners of small and large businesses alike are getting to know new and current customers in a completely new way by interacting in a microblogging atmosphere.

While there are dozens of social media networks online to join, the major brands in the field, Twitter and Facebook, are growing at more exponential rates than others according to a Mashable report. This increase is helping businesses grow across the nation and in Baltimore, Md.

Sarah Campbell, owner of Intrigue Design and Décor in Annapolis, Md. blogs regularly, tweets and posts on facebook between three and five times a week as a way to increase her company’s advertising strength but not the budget.

While the economy is engrossed in a recession, the wedding industry is certainly feeling the pinch in the pocketbook of brides.

“Brides today are just different from brides even a few years ago,” Campbell said. “Five years ago, everyone was planning weddings to the nines and now they are deciding to save instead of splurge.”

Campbell said over the past two years she has seen a dramatic increase in couples opting for a minimalistic theme complete with as many do-it-yourself projects as they can manage.

“Facebook has really helped my business pick up work in the past year,” Campbell said. She said the fans of her page who share her posts have become her best tool online.

A common feature on many social networks, the share tool allows users to do just that—share information. The intersection of the two audiences increases the business’ opportunity for growth and increase in market share, the circle of influence a business has on its industry.

“American Limousines has a Facebook business page and we are trying to figure out Twitter,” said Josh Allen, a spokesman for the Baltimore, Md. based company.

Jay Perskie, owner of Perskie Photographics and Design in Baltimore, Md. said he “was old and outdated,” so he leaves the social networking of the business to his daughter Jennifer Perskie.

“Its new and we are still learning this stuff,” said Jennifer Perskie. The company began last year using a Facebook business page to reach customers.

“In the photography business, there are a lot of things working right now like the surge of paid amateur photographers,” Perskie said. “You can go on Craigslist[.com] and find somebody to shoot your wedding for cheap but it does not always mean it will be good quality.”

Perskie said she likes using the internet to talk to customers because it is where they feel comfortable.

“We started using Facebook in 2007, but we were not sure what to do with it,” said Shauna Kennedy, owner of Morningstar Photography in Columbia, Md. “We always talk about our business online because if brides cannot find you there, they do not find you usually at all.”

Twitter is the second largest growing social network on the internet behind Facebook according to Mashable. The two web sites offer two different products, yet they compete through the number of active users and web site hits.

“You’ve got to be crazy to be in the [wedding] industry,” Perskie said. “You have to truly love weddings to last. Facebook is helping us do that.”

View Social Networking Wedding Businesses in a larger map

Intrigue Design and Decor in Annapolis, Md. is using Facebook, Twitter and a blog to bring traffic to their web site. Businesses across the nation are joining social networking websites to build brand awareness.
(Photo courtesy of Amber L. Gillette / March 3, 2010)

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