This is another thing I mentioned at Eventology when I shared exclusive discount codes with attendees for some of the hottest products out there. You probably don’t know the access you have to better deals, even though they are right under your nose.  Here are some of the things I use:

1. Retail Me Not—Simply type in the name of the online store that you are looking for and the website will produce search results of all eligible coupon codes, as well as their reliability factor (some codes are expired, but you will know that before you even attempt to try).  This is perfect when you’re looking for specials on domain names, clothing, electronics and more.
2. Naughty Codes—Works very similarly to Retail Me Not, only on a simpler scale.  It has more retailers, too.
3. Deal Hunting—Has up to the minute deals, sales and discounts for retailers and even specific items. 
4. eBay—Is another great resource to find things you are looking for at a lower rate or in wholesale lots. If you use it often enough you can earn “eBay Bucks”, which basically gives you credits on future purchases. 
5. Newsletters—In addition to my company email, I also own free email addresses like yahoo.com, and gmail.com addresses with my company name that I use as “housekeepers”.  We all sign up for newsletters, programs, etc., but don’t want our company email address inboxes or servers to explode.  My “dummy emails” are what I use to sign up for newsletters to frequently used retailers like Staples, Michaels, and more which have exclusive savings for people that sign up for their newsletters.
6. Friends—If you friends are using a great product, ask if they have a referral code. If they do, it typically works both ways—the referral link may give a discount to both of you. If it only works for your friend, it’s still a nice gesture.  For example, ShootQ offers you and your friend $2 off each month you are active users, and you’re not limited to the number of friends!

PS—If you are also using your Business card with PayPal, you can earn cash back on your purchases!

Happy shopping

Everyone knows that I simply adore Evernote.  In addition to using it personally, it has been beyond beneficial for me professionally.  I will share with you a few ways I use Evernote and would love to hear how you use it, too.  I will discuss my uses of it in phases—with this particular post focusing on the Client/Service aspect. 

For those that are new to Evernote, allow me to give you a brief refresher:  It is very similar to MS OneNote or Google Notebook, in that it allows you to store information– pictures, documents, pieces of the web, diagrams, pictures, audio, etc. in “notebooks”.  Think of your trusty Trapper Keeper from school.

Each notebook has its own subject and in this instance, we are talking about our fictional Client notebook. (Don’t worry—we’ll talk about others later).  Since Evernote has  web, desktop, iPhone, and blackberry versions, it is very easy to keep your notebooks in sync all of the time.

Storing important information—Sometimes, you just need pertinent information about your wedding and event clients at a glance (names, contact info, event dates, times, locations, etc.).  Create a notebook named for each client and make the first page their important information page.  Each Evernote account is given its own email address, which makes it very easy to email more detailed information like client questionnaires or forward emails with changes, or more descriptive explanations.  With Evernote’s annotations, it is very easy to make things stand out for quick reference.

Research and meetings—With the “Clip to Evernote” feature on Firefox, surfing the web has never been easier when you are researching theme inspiration, invitation wording, signature cocktail recipes, and more.  At meetings with clients, you can take pictures of information from their wedding planner books or contracts.  Evernote magically makes printed and handwritten text inside your images searchable, too.

Stay on track with assignments—Evernote can create to do lists so that you know what you need to do for each client and when.   Keep all your lists organized and tags according to category (i.e., vendor research, catering, etc.).

Design and other fabulousness—Again, storing your color concepts, inspirations, ideas, sketches, images, and more in Evernote keeps everything in an easily accessible location that is always with you, no matter where you go.  This is great when you are out scouting locations, design props, fabrics, etc.  You can take a quick picture with your mobile phone and store it in Evernote immediately with a quick note about what inspired you at the time.  If you come up with an idea off the cuff, you can also record a voice note to your notebook, as well.

Preliminary event info—timelines, maps, layouts, shoot lists, vendor information, etc. that is specific to each client can be stored in their notebooks.  Evernote’s accessibility makes it easy to edit the information from anywhere:  your desk in your office or while waiting in line on your mobile phone.

These are just a few ways you can use Evernote for your wedding clients.  If you are an Evernote user, how do you use it for your clients?

When working with busy professionals, but  also being a busy professional, having a system that will lighten your load not only helps you, but also your clients.  According to a survey in 2008, 79% of participants stated that they would rather book online rather by phone.  BookFresh allows you to stay high tech, but also high touch.

BookFresh makes it easy for new and existing customers to connect with your business and schedule an appointment online. It helps manage your schedule, markets your services and notifies you when someone schedules an appointment. There’s nothing to install and it works on any computer.

BookFresh does not require your clients to leave your website in order to book an appointment with you. By placing a single line of HTML code on your website, BookFresh will embed an online appointment system seamlessly into your website. You can control the colors, fonts and other visual elements so that it looks professional and tightly integrated.  For those with flash sites, you can create a single HTML page that is linked from your flash page, too!

Easy to use, powerful features:

• Accepts appointments on your website 24 hours a day
• Works like a Virtual Receptionist
• Notifies you by phone, text message and email when clients book
• Integrates with Outlook 2007, iCal, and Google Calendar
• Sends automated reminders to your clients to prevent no-shows
• Integrates seamlessly with your existing website
• Encourages your clients to promote you on Facebook
• Adds “Concierge Quality” to your services business

Here are great ways to use it with your wedding business:

• Schedule a 15 min. pre-screening phone call
• Schedule your complimentary one hour consultations
• Schedule upcoming client appointments
• Schedule vendor appointments, consultations and confirmations

The possibilities are truly endless and provide an opportunity to work efficiently and professionally.

I stumbled upon Schedulicity recently and absolutely love the concept. 

If you run an appointment based business, as most wedding professionals do, Schedulicity allows you to offer online appointments to your prospects and clients.  It also works well if you have associates or other employees that clients can set up appointments with.  Best of all, it is compatible with mobile smart phones like Blackberry and iPhone. 

While pre-qualifying is always key, you can give your Schedulicity link to qualified prospects after an initial phone call if they are unsure of a time to meet.  Clients can set up times for conference calls, consultations and meetings as well as reschedule, if necessary.  Schedulicity also takes into account current appointments on your books, so you can choose to set your Schedulicity calendar to a date in a future.

Learn more  at the Schedulicity website and even take it for a test trial!

Great news!  Get Married, who has caused such excitement wit their television show and upcoming magazine, has just upped the ante in the wedding publication stakes.  The new magazine, set to debut later this fall, will use Microsoft Tag which allows you to snap of picture of something with your camera phone and instantly be access mobile content, videos, music, contact information, maps, social networks, promotions, and more. Nothing to type, no browsers to launch!

Here is more from Get Married:

Get Married magazine is the first bridal publication to ever use the new Microsoft Tag technology, giving readers instant entertainment and connection to videos, website, photos and information on a mobile phone.  Throughout Get Married magazine, select editorial and advertisements will have a Microsoft Tag printed directly onto the pages.  After a quick download of the free application to an internet-enabled camera phone, busy and on-the-go brides just aim and snap any Tag within Get Married magazine, immediately turning the still Tag into rich, interactive content on their phone.

Learn more about the Microsoft Tag integration with Get Married.