Welcome to 2010!  A whole year has elapsed since I last blogged about the importance of keeping your website content fresh and relevant.  My previous post – Website Tune-Up – focused on strategies to keep your website current and favorable to the search engines.  Today, I hope to share some equally important tips to optimize your website and online presence this year.

1.  Make the most of social media. Over the last twelve months I’ve enjoyed a significant increase in traffic to my website and blog as a result of social media.  Active participation in Facebook and Twitter has reinforced our web presence and generated many new leads and relationships.  If you have social media profiles, be sure to link those profiles to your website.

2.  Blog! Blogging offers great benefits due to easy to index regular content. Add a few basic SEO skills and you’re ready to go! Take your blog a step further: Host your blog on your own website instead of using a free hosted blog. Why? When you host your own blog your blog posts supplement the content of your website, thus increasing the quality and vibrancy of your site. Adding an RSS feed button to both your website and blog will make it easy for readers to subscribe to your feed and keep up with your posts. Additionally, RSS features can help make your online (internet) marketing strategies more effective.

3.  Don’t be anonymous. One of the primary goals of your website is to build trust and credibility. Does your website give potential customers the information they need? Is your name, photo and contact information prominently displayed? If you are a service provider you should make every effort to make a personal connection with your visitors.

4. Never underestimate the power of a well designed website. If your website is more than two years old, a revamp alone could boost your SEO ranking. HTML and CSS are the most common technologies used in making web pages, but there are also other ways to go. Flash is known for it’s excellent multimedia capabilities but is generally believed to be less search engine friendly than CSS. Some businesses have even abandoned traditional websites in favor of blog-based sites.

5. Use high quality images. Website images should be carefully selected; ideally they should represent your own work and style to help you connect with your audience (target market). Some vendors may use stock photography as part of their start-up promotions, but in the wedding and event industry I’d advise moving away from this option as quickly as possible (or risk possible damage to your reputation). By the same token, amateur photos will not adequately show even your best work – so select images with a discerning eye.

5.5 Upgrade to Video! If a picture is worth a thousand words than video is worth a million. Video is fast-rising as the newest ‘must-have’ feature because it helps build brand, it’s more engaging than static, printed text, and it’s easier to effectively demonstrate your product or service.

There is virtually no cost associated with these tips – especially if you have the ability or capability to edit your own website. Many resources and tutorials are available online if you need additional information. Otherwise, consider hiring someone to assist with migrating your blog or updating the look of your website – it will be money well spent.

© 2010 E. Delgardio All Rights Reserved

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Today I have an exciting announcement!

I’m thrilled to share the news that A Flair for Affairs has been added to Style Me Pretty’s “Little Black Book of The Best Wedding Vendors”!

Style Me Pretty relies on recommendations from industry insiders, trusted LBB vendors and Style Me Pretty readers to identify outstanding service providers. Each invitation to participate is followed up with a personal interview to assure that vendors meet SMP’s high standards! Clearly this is a huge honor and I’m elated to be included among the country’s top wedding vendors!

The exclusive nature of the directory allows for only a few vendors to be showcased in each region. For example, there are only three event planners featured in Central Florida and I’m absolutely delighted to be the only wedding and event planner based in Orlando!

{ screenshot of our listing }

You may also be interested to know that in addition to the legendary Style Me Pretty blog, there is The Little Black Book Blog. In SMP’s own words, it’s described as “our official vendor blog…dedicated to showcasing the work of the vendors we love. It’s eye candy like you wouldn’t believe!”

I urge you to check it out on a regular basis because it’s incredibly inspiring!

PS: Is A Flair for Affairs in your little black book?

Earlier today I came across this quote on the BrideTide Blog:

“You don’t hire a wedding planner for what they do, you hire them for what they know. Most brides only plan one wedding their entire lives while a wedding planner has the experience and understanding of coordinating numerous celebrations for each diverse individual client. Relying on a professional wedding planner to refine the details of the biggest day of your life is not only practical, it’s an intelligent way of minimizing the opportunities for ineffectively handling any unforeseen situations that may arise.”   Rudy, Founder of BrideTide

It’s difficult for wedding planners to make statements like this without sounding like we’re “tooting our own horn”.  But I felt that Rudy’s point was presented well, and I am very pleased to share it.  Additionally, I feel that it’s hugely beneficial for brides and grooms to hear someone else’s perspective.

photo by Kevin Keelan

The experience and expertise that we bring to the table can be priceless throughout the planning process as well as on the wedding day.  I know that we have ’saved the day’ many times and in many different ways. Sometimes it seems that clients see the value of our services most clearly on the day of the event.   Our finely tuned organizational skills, natural ability to multitask and intuitive improvisation allows us to direct the event as if we are conducting an orchestra.  After the event, we always receive glowing compliments about how well everything turned out.  Recently at one of our weddings, we were quite surprised when the Minister led off the dinner prayer by saying “Let us all thank the Wedding Planner for putting together this beautiful event”.

But, I must add that what we ‘do’ is equally valuable. I think a simple clarification to Rudy’s message can be made to say that the bride & groom should have realistic expectations and/or a mutual understanding of what their chosen planner will do for them (as per their service agreement, which can vary widely). Truth be told, there’s a lot we can do and amazing magic we can work – only we don’t have a magic wand, so we need to charge accordingly.

For more insight into the benefits of hiring a wedding planner, be sure to read “Do you REALLY Need a Wedding Planner”

© 2009 E. Delgardio All Rights Reserved

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WELCOME to the new and improved weditorial(tm) blog!  

I’ve taken the plunge and upgraded the blog to a format which will allow me to take full control over my content and ultimately make weditorial(tm) even more appealing and engaging. 

I must give credit where credit is due: The team at Z to A Creative made the transition incredibly simple.  Truly I think they saved me six months of work and aggravation! 

Now it’s time for me to put the finishing touches on a few posts that have been waiting in the wings and get them posted here!