Bonus marketing idea for 2010
 

We’ve recently added a bonus item to our wedding video product - wedding invitations on video DVD.

The idea has two objectives. Firstly it improves the value of our product at a time when people are looking for ways to reduce their wedding budget. Secondly, and probably more important, it means that couples will be thinking about us and our service earlier that it is commonly agreed they usually do. Moving ourselves up the decision timeline is a major long-term objective.

The cost is nominal and more than covered by our annual increase in prices. Admittedly this is largely because we have our own on-camera prompting system from our days of corporate production but the outlay shouldn’t prevent anyone else trying the idea if they wish.

It isn’t the holy grail of course, but like most marketing it’s a matter of keeping our business name and our image contemporary and innovative without becoming bizarre. As far as I know we’re the first business in our area to offer them and being first has its merits too.

Please let us know if this idea takes off. A lot of guests take the paper wedding invitation with them to the wedding in order to verify the place and time of the event. Or they need to verify the correct spelling of couples' names, or names of parents. Can't do this on site with a dvd invitation.

Warren, I didn't give full details on the forum to avoid boring people who weren't interested but as we make clear on the site, the DVD face has all the germane details printed on the face.

Clients might also enclose a printed card and an envelope for replies but equally they could give an email address on the face. It has to be as flexible as a print item and of course it won't suit everybody - just as not every client has taken up our loan of a camcorder to record their honeymoon video.

But, if it gets us noticed and further up the decision timeline it will have done its job.

Good Idea Philip. I've though about offering online posting of an announcement video too. Lots of folks around here are getting into facebook. It would be relatively quick and easy work to make a 30 second spot with another printable link.

Ah.. very clever!

Hi Philip

That IS cool and a nice incentive for the bride. Just for interest, is the invitation a personal video message...ie: do you film the B&G saying "You are invited to our wedding...etc etc" or is it purely a text and image presentation???
I did a bunch of invites to a corporate event many years ago but it was purely a multimedia presentation without any live video...graphics, text and music but it still went down a treat. We burnt ours onto 80mm DVD's so they were easier for the client to mail out to guests as the smaller DVD fits into a standard envelope and had plenty of space.

Congrats and hope they prove popular!!! Good marketing ideas are like gold and unique ones like this will make you remembered by the bride when her friends get married!!

Chris

Chris, it's a simple talking head shot in either the parent's home (traditional) or the couples' if they're being modern and doing the inviting themselves (contemporary). The key is to make it efficient and the on-camera prompting system can either be a help or hindrance. We'll play it by ear.

In fact the programme demands some titling and cutaway pics which will mean there's plenty of space for editing cover-ups. Given also that there's likely to be a couple presenting the option to cut and frame between a one-shot close up and a two shot medium is easy.

I take your point about the 120mm disk but in the UK it's the thickness which affects the postal price as well as the weight so we're only supplying paper sleeves with a cellophane cutout and of course our logo and contact on the back.

The economics are very modest. We have our own 7-unit DVD 16X duplicator and, like everyone in the business I suppose, our own face-printer. Disks are about 11p each so the whole job costs us about £5 in direct costs. Our annual price increase is £100.00. In fact because we're pros and liable for sales tax, the increase in that from 15% to 17.5% takes more of the price increase than this bonus offer.

Finally if there is any value in referrals (I have my doubts) this gives us another 40 opportunities to be seen. Thanks for your encouragement.