Post-It Notes – 23rd September 2011: Wedding Food & Thinking Like a Drink

September 23, 2011

Photography Credit: Emma Lucy Photography (Full wedding to come next week)

Something we all look forward to when attending a wedding is the grub right? So how can you keep your guests’ tummies happy on your big day (because let’s face it, you’ll probably be too nervous/excited to each much yourself!)

@loveillustrated Don’t let good food down with bad wine – if your caterers offer reasonable corkage charges, use them & buy in bulk.

@jojomillington Always feed this photographer (Kat:It’s also a good idea to feed the photographer first. Let’s face it, you don’t want photos of you eating in your wedding album do you? If you feed them last, by the time they finally get to sit down it’ll be time for your speeches!)

@CherryPieLane Pick what you like & don’t worry about everyone else – there will always be someone who will moan about your choice anyway!

@Charlotte_Fi Make sure you have a tasting beforehand, especially to much sure all the courses go together and so you do’t end up with any weird combos

@Tattybojangles People will always remember bad food.

Lindsay Johnson Buffets are ok. Just make sure you use pretty dishes!

Angie Lynn Mozingo Get something you (and the majority of your guests) actually like, not something fashionable. Also, if you have children invited keep them in mind. I don’t mean to say plan your main menu around what the children would eat, but as your caterer if they offer a children/picky eater’s menu as well. Also see about having an alternate dish incase of any allergies. This is why I personally would advise a buffet.

You guys have been great with the tips this week but I just wanted to add a couple of my own too…

♥ How about having a pot-luck meal where you ask guests to bring their favourite/signature dish for an eclectic and yummy buffet experience?

♥ If you’re not having extra guests coming to the evening reception you can probably scrap the evening buffet. By the time 9pm rolls around (and after a few cheeky drinks) most people probably won’t be hungry again so don’t feel bad for skipping the extra food. I’ve found that when there is evening food I end up eating it for the sake of it and just because it’s there! You’ll have the pennies and most people won’t notice the absence. How about spending the money on something cute for the guests to nibble on instead like a dessert table, candy buffet or ice cream/popcorn/candy floss machine!?

♥ If you have a lot of vegetarian/vegan guests, why not consider making the whole wedding vegetarian friendly? Maybe you don’t want an entirely vege/vegan menu but vegan cupcakes and desserts can be yummy!

 

At the risk of sounding like a raging alcoholic, but in favour of embracing inspiration outside the confines of the wedding industry/land of the blogs/the internet hole, this week I turn to the philosophy of Mr Hendricks to illustrate my point.

“Loved by a tiny handful of people all over the world”

“It is not for everybody”

“Preferred by 1 out of 1000 gin drinkers”

So why do Hendricks put all their marketing efforts into pointing out that they’re not the most popular gin? Well it’s actually a very intellegent marketting ploy. They know they can’t compete with Gordon’s so they’ve gone the other way…a bit like me. I know I can’t compete with the likes of Style Me Pretty or Martha Stewart, but you know what, I don’t want to.

Here’s what Hendricks‘ marketing does…

1. Creates super-fans. By focusing your efforts on making your business appeal to a small number of people, the people you do attract will LOVE you, rave about you to anyone who’ll listen and be loyal to you and your brand.
2. Having a very specific or niche product will make the people that do love what you do feel very elite and special. Less and less people these days are wanting to be seen to be following the crowd or doing what everyone else is doing. Don’t we all like to know something that no one else does?
3. Causing Intrigue.  I know I’m really lucky with how well Rock n Roll Bride has done, but want to know the number one thing that makes me more successful in my marketing than some other wedding blogs?

I’m weird, I’m different and I say things other people are afraid to. That intrigues people – brides, advertisers and press. When I’m interviewed what’s the number one question I always get asked? “So, what’s the weirdest wedding you’ve ever featured?”

People are intrigued in the ‘strange rock n roll weddings’. They don’t initially understand it and they want to know more. In someways it can be tiresome (in a ‘ooh look at the freaky girl with pink hair’ kinda way) but you know what, I do get a lot of press because I’m weird, I’m different and I stand out from the crowd.