April 30, 2025 • 34 mins
Ever wondered what separates truly luxury weddings from those that simply cost a lot? Elizabeth Solaru, multi-award winning luxury business consultant and former cake artist to Queen Elizabeth, pulls back the curtain on the exclusive world of high-net-worth clientele.
Elizabeth's remarkable journey from microbiologist to headhunter to luxury entrepreneur provides the perfect backdrop for her revolutionary insights. She reveals that luxury isn't defined by budget alone, but by understanding the psychology behind different types of wealthy clients. "You could have King Charles and Ozzy Osbourne with identical budgets," Elizabeth explains, "but their weddings would require completely different approaches because their psychological profiles as luxury clients differ dramatically."
For wedding professionals looking to break into this exclusive market, Elizabeth offers tactical strategies that go beyond the obvious. Rather than focusing on luxury publications or social media, she suggests identifying gatekeepers like personal assistants who control access to wealthy individuals. Her approach to Instagram is equally surprising – look for private accounts under pseudonyms and notice who major luxury brands are responding to in comments.
The mindset shift required for luxury positioning proves just as important as marketing tactics. Wedding professionals must recognize what type of luxury business founder they are (artisan, visionary, etc.) and build complementary partnerships accordingly. When showcasing work online, Elizabeth advocates quality over quantity: "Don't show 20 products when three incredible products will do the job." Your website should guide visitors like a Sherpa, creating curiosity through strategic organization and authentic storytelling.
Website: www.elizabethsolaru.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome back to Wedding Empires.
I'm your host, jack Bowie.
It's my absolute pleasure todayto welcome to the podcast
Elizabeth Sularu.
Elizabeth, thank you forjoining us.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Thank you, I've been really excited to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
And I hear it's looking to be a lovely day in
London.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
We've got sun, and that's absolutely it.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Awesome, awesome.
Now, the reason that we'veinvited you into the podcast is
because you really know how tobreak into the luxury market and
that's something that a lot ofus, you know, might be just
dipping our toes into becoming awedding planner, but there's
certainly a lot of weddingplanners out there that would
like to make that transitionfrom from you know, the the
mainstream, I guess we'll callit into that sort of luxury set.
(00:46):
So, talking about yourbackground, you're a multi-award
winning luxury businessconsultant.
You're a bestselling author,globally recognized cake artist
and as a CEO and founder ofDiversity in Luxury Awards,
you're also now a leading voicein luxury and you help brands
and professionals navigate theexclusive world of high net
worth clientele.
(01:07):
You've got a book called theLuxpreneur.
I love that how to Start andBuild a Successful Luxury Brand
and it's been hailed as theultimate blueprint for those who
are looking to succeed in theluxury space so I shouldn't have
just said wedding plannersanyone who's trying to
transition into that luxuryspace.
So today we're going to gothrough, I guess, the first
steps in positioning yourselfhow to attract those kinds of
(01:28):
clients, the secrets to pitching, your pricing, your branding
and all of that.
So let's dive in and learn fromone of the experts on the
matter.
But I think, Elizabeth, let'sstart off with your personal
journey.
Can you share kind of?
You know, I heard you used tobe a microbiologist.
How did you get from that intodoing what you do now?
That's crazy.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Right, okay.
So yes, went to university, didmy degree, did my master's in
medical microbiology andparasitology and I loved
microbiology.
I loved.
My aim was actually to be aprofessor in microbiology.
That was my goal and I startedworking for the National Health
Service in this country.
(02:10):
I was working in a diagnosticlab, so I was literally
diagnosing diseases andillnesses and that sort of thing
and I enjoyed it.
But I remember after about 13years, 15 years working for the
NHS, I kind of thought to myselfthere's got to be more to life
than being a lab rat and I justmade the decision.
(02:30):
There were a number of thingsled up to it, but I made the
decision to quit and I had noother job to go to.
So I remember quitting on aMonday and I was walking on a
Thursday.
I was walking past the labphone and it rang and I picked
up and somebody said would youlike to work for us as a locum?
So that was been a temp.
(02:51):
So I said yes, obviouslybecause I had no other job to go
to.
And then I thought to myselfwhile I was doing that, because
I had this vague idea of doingsomething in business why don't
I go off and do an MBA, becausein my mind I thought, oh, the
more degrees you had.
So I went off, did an MBA andthen I quickly realized, oh, the
(03:11):
MBA is not going to get me whatI wanted to do, which I still
didn't know what I wanted to do.
But eventually I learned how tonetwork.
And then I found myself beingtapped on the shoulder and
somebody said to me would youlike to go and work for me as a
headhunter?
He was setting up a company andI quickly had to dive into that
(03:33):
world, had to learn abouthigh-end candidates.
I was recruiting financedirectors and CEOs and chairmen
and I didn't know I mean, I'dnever run a lemonade stand and
these people were runningmulti-million pound businesses.
But I didn't know, I mean, I'dnever run a lemonade stand and
these people were runningmulti-million pound businesses.
But I quickly learned.
I learned how to stand out.
I learned how to network.
Thankfully, blogs were, were,were being a thing.
(03:57):
In those days, early 2000s orsomething like that.
Blogs were being a thing.
So I learned how to find CEOsvia blogs and then I was
networking like mad.
And then 2008,.
We know what happened.
The markets fell out and Ithought, oh my God, I need to do
something.
And then it occurred to me thatthis could be a time to do what
(04:20):
I'd always wanted to do as achild, which is bake cakes and
have a cake shop.
But because I come from animmigrant background where
education was everything, I darenot say that to my parents
because to them that is likefamily disgrace.
So anyway, I then decided okay,I'll set up my cake company.
But I had a problem how do Ifind clients?
(04:43):
But then I remember thinkingokay, I will do what I'd been
trained to do as a headhunter,and that is cold calling.
Because as a headhunter I had tomake a hundred cold calls a
week to CEO offices and find away to get into the CEO diary.
So that's what I started doing.
I took the yellow pages and Istarted calling, calling,
(05:05):
calling.
And of course all the weddingplanners told me to go away.
We don't know you, we alreadyhave cake makers.
And eventually, after 120 calls,I finally got through to a
particular office.
I didn't know at the time.
She was the first properwedding planner in the UK and
(05:25):
she happened to be the firstcousin to the late Queen
Elizabeth.
And I got through to the officeand the young lady at the other
end said, do you make cupcakes?
And remember this was like 2000and something.
And I was like, of course wemake cupcakes.
I will be in your area the nextthree days.
Can I bring some samples?
So I did that.
(05:47):
So I took the samples and I wason my way back home on the bus
when I got a call saying LadyElizabeth would like to see you.
And I'm like, oh my God, who'sLady Elizabeth?
And I went back and she met me.
She said beautiful cakes, lovethem, love the taste, love the
appearance, love everything.
And she gave me a job on thespot.
So she gave me an order, oh myGod.
(06:14):
And of course I made a rookiemistake I undercharged.
I didn't, I don't even think Icharged for delivery, I was just
so happy to get this order.
And the rest, they say, ishistory.
That order opened a number ofdoors because after the party
she did something which truly,truly, truly, I'll never forget.
She wrote me a note, ahandwritten note, saying because
apparently they use three cakesfor that particular I mean
(06:37):
three cake makers for thatparticular party, and she said
your cakes were the best tasting.
Thank you so much said yourcakes were the best tasting.
Thank you so much.
And she said you have mypermission to use this letter in
all your marketing and thatreally helped my business.
So yeah, that's my my story.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
It's unbelievable.
That is not what I wasexpecting you to say.
You know I just one of my firstclients was the queen of
England.
Yeah, cool, okay, no pressureright, just like diving into
luxury at the highest possibleend.
So I guess, I guess I want tokind of know how would you
define luxury when it comes tothe wedding industry
(07:20):
specifically?
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Now that is a fantastic question and I tell
you why because many peopledefine luxury by budget.
They're defined by budget.
So if you're spending over sixfigures, 70 figures, that's a
luxury wedding.
That is right, but notcompletely right.
In a way, just because you'vespent a lot of money doesn't
mean it's a luxury wedding.
(07:42):
I define a luxury wedding.
Spent a lot of money doesn'tmean it's a luxury wedding.
I define a luxury wedding by theclient and I've broken it down
based on my clients that I'velooked after over the years.
There's been thousands of them.
I sat down during the pandemic.
I looked at all the emails andall my client list and then I
realized there are eightdifferent types of luxury client
(08:04):
.
And, yes, you can define awedding based on budget, but you
need to define a luxury weddingbased on psychology.
So, based on psychology, I willgive you two examples.
So and I use this a bit in mywhen I do keynotes you have
somebody like the King ofEngland and you have somebody
(08:27):
like Ozzy Osbourne, according todemographics.
Are they the same?
They're definitely the same.
You'd be surprised they have somany similarities.
So they were born in the sameyear, they're both white male,
they both live in castles,they've both been married and
divorced twice and they areroughly.
(08:47):
They are the same age and, bythe way, they are good friends.
So if they both give you thesame budget, say a million
pounds, as a wedding planner,would you do their weddings the
same?
Well, no, exactly, probably not.
But the thing is, though, manypeople haven't been able to
define why not, and that's thepsychology, and I know you will
(09:10):
take a brief and etc.
Etc.
Etc.
But would you use the samevendors?
Would you use the same products?
Would you use?
So that, to me, is around thepsychology, and this is the
difference between yes, you havea big budget, but not all
clients are the same.
(09:31):
So when people talk aboutdefining your ideal client type,
they miss out a lot when itcomes to the psychology of a
luxury client.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
Wow, okay, but then also, I guess you could have
something very intimate.
That's luxury, and I don't knowwhy this has come to mind.
Was it a successful marriage?
But I think if Johnny Depp andAmber Heard, they had their own
island, didn't they?
I don't know how many peoplewent, but in my mind it's just
like small with their dogs.
(10:02):
But that would be luxury.
But again, very, very adifferent type of wedding, sure.
So what distinguishes a luxuryclient from a standard client?
I suppose I suppose we'vetalked about that.
I guess my next question iskind of like how do you find
them?
Where are these people hanging?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
out?
I love this question because,again, I address all this in my
book.
So, depending on the type, youneed to find where they hang out
.
And because that's the thingwith a lot of vendors in the
wedding industry, everyoneautomatically comes to planners,
but there are only so manyluxury weddings that a
(10:44):
particular planner can do, soyou can't then say, oh, you know
, yes, I will go to a planner.
So, yes, you will go to aplanner, but depending on the
different type of luxury client,you need to know where they
hang out.
So some of them could hang outonline.
I've often spoken about that.
(11:05):
Some of them could hang outprivate members clubs.
Some of them could hang out incertain business conferences.
Some of them it could be atennis club, it could be a
country club.
You need to go to where yourparticular type of client, where
they go to.
A lot of people talk aboutpublications, for example.
(11:28):
Maybe they read Vogue, maybethey read certain magazines, and
that is true.
But you need to ask yourselfare they going to be reading
Vogue?
Maybe they read certainmagazines, and that is true, but
you need to ask yourself arethey going to be reading Vogue
to find a vendor or a weddingplanner or the type of person
who would read Vogue.
Because when you look at Vogue,unless it's an editorial,
(11:50):
unless it's an editorial, a lotof the supplier vendors are
going to be on the back pagesvery tiny, paid for, obviously.
So would a typical luxuryclient look at that?
So when I coach my clients, wedo two things.
We are building the word ofmouth.
At the same time, we aregetting you out there to network
(12:14):
in the right places.
So even things like going toyour local chamber of commerce,
for example and many peopledon't even know there's a
chamber of every region.
Every country has a chamber ofcommerce.
But what I did was that Ididn't.
In my local area there wasnothing for businesses when I
(12:34):
was starting out.
So I went to, like the poshestarea of London and I talked my
way into joining their business,their business, their chamber
of commerce.
So those are things you need todo.
You know even, for example, Iremember getting a client via a
security guy.
A security guy.
(12:55):
So people are chatty, they liketo chat.
So he was a security guy.
Private members club.
We got chatting and by the timehe saw my face three, four
times, he was telling me abouteverybody.
So that's what you need to do.
You need to look for gatekeepers, because that's as important as
(13:16):
going to the main person,because when I was a headhunter,
the people I needed to get pastwere gatekeepers.
So, for example, a CEO wouldhave three different PAs One
would be handling the diary, onehandles the travel and one
handles the actual businessbusiness.
(13:37):
Of all three PAs, the mostimportant PA is the diary person
, because whoever's in charge ofhis diary is the one who has
the keys to the kingdom andthat's the PA you need to
network with.
So a lot of my colleagues whenI was a headhunter, they would
send presents to the CEO.
(13:58):
I would send presents to theCEO, but I'll send an even
better one to the diary PA andthat way they remember you, it
would remember you.
I'm utilizing the sameprinciples.
Everyone you try to networkwith you need to know the right
gatekeeper for them.
(14:19):
So, for example, I used OzzyOsbourne and King Charles.
So King Charles, he literallyhas several layers of
gatekeepers, because his luxuryclient type is what I call
comfort first and safety first.
We know that when he travels,he comes with his own pillows,
(14:40):
he comes with his own toiletseats.
He travels like that.
We know that Ozzy Osbourne.
He does outlandish things, hedoes outrageous things.
For him, that would be hisbusiness manager, it could even
be his stylist.
For him, that would be hisbusiness manager, it could even
be his stylist.
So you need to know the rightgatekeeper for the right client
that you are targeting.
(15:02):
And the reason it's nice to knowthe psychology of these clients
is that in a family, in ahigh-end family, you can have
three or four differentpsychological types.
So, for example, I read about acouple of wedding planners.
They're being sued by a clientwho wasn't happy with the way
(15:24):
they planned, or whatever, thewedding.
And when I read the courtdocuments it was so clear to me
that the bride was a particularluxury client type.
She was an esthete, so she'sall about order and organization
.
Her mother was simply the best,so she just wanted to spend the
most money to get the bestthing.
(15:45):
And their dad, the one whoactually makes the money, he was
a comfort first.
So the planners were gettingconflicted things from all three
of them.
But if you know the exact typeof people that they are, you're
able to adjust accordingly.
And also, from the courtdocuments, the planner made the
(16:08):
mistake of thinking that theywere friends, thinking that they
were friends.
Even if your clients arefriendly and they're the
friendliest in the world, untilyou deliver that job you are not
friends.
But you deliver the job, thenyou become friends.
Yes, during the process you canbe friendly, you can be the
(16:28):
confidant, you can be theshoulder to cry on.
You will see many things thatyou're not supposed to see.
You keep quiet, you're discreet, but you are not friends
because you're not equals.
So those are some of the thingsthat you know.
I hope that answers yourquestion.
I'm trying to remember what thequestion was.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
That's really amazing .
I've learned so much from that,including the fact that King
Charles Nick changes his toilets.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
fact that King Charles Nick changes his toilet,
he brings his own toilet seatand his own pillow.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
Yeah, no, I did absorb a lot more than that, but
that did jump out at me.
I thought that was quiteinteresting.
Yeah, I think that that's.
It's so true that I know mybackground is a wedding planner
and I wasn't in the luxurymarket, I was in the sort of
mainstream market I suppose.
But I was very much catering tothe bride.
(17:20):
I was the and we even said weare your wedding bestie, you
know so.
So, mind you, but that was ourbrand and that was our, that was
our thing.
You know, in the, in therelationships that I had with
these brides, was always we werehaving wine and cheese and they
were saying yes and no tothings and we felt like friends.
But I love how that I thinkabout this one that really
(17:42):
stands out.
That was a really great clientand I think you know what things
were important to her motherthat weren't important to Alex
and things were important to herhusband that weren't important.
And now that you say that, yes,I can see that and probably in
hindsight there's more to thequestionnaire along those lines
as well that should be there,not just about the couple but
(18:04):
all of those other dynamics.
So that's really interesting.
So just on that if someone isin that sort of mainstream
wedding space, what would be thefirst kind of steps, apart from
we've talked about sort offinding those clients, but like
what else in terms ofpositioning their business?
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Oh, that's a great one.
And I tell you this mightsurprise you in terms of the
answer.
Positioning your businessstarts from you, so you need to
have that luxury mindset.
I remember I spent the firstfive years of my business trying
to fit my business in themiddle range because I didn't
accept that, you know, myproducts were actually for the
(18:42):
maybe 1% or whatever.
So I was trying to fit in themiddle because the middle gives
you the most clients.
Quite frankly, when you look atvolume and you're going up the
pyramid, obviously the higheryou go, the less the number of
clients that you're going to get.
So it starts with your mindset.
And in my book I actually talkabout the nine different types
(19:04):
of luxury business founders.
So, to give an example, I cameout as an artisan and a
visionary, and on paper thatlooks good.
So as a visionary, I'm thinkingof the future.
I'm future casting.
Everything's amazing.
I can predict and I could, andthat really plays to my strength
(19:26):
.
And as a craftsman, artisan, itmeans I care so much about my
products, I'm detailed, I beatmyself up if I don't hit those
standards, et cetera.
But here's the downside as avisionary, I need to be grounded
in the present.
I need to know that.
Yes, it's great to have allthese visions.
(19:47):
However, elizabeth, for now,for this present moment in time,
there are certain things aboutyour business that you need to
be careful about.
Also, as an artisan, that isthe worst combination with a
visionary, because I'm spendingso much money creating this
incredible product.
Is it even for the high-endclients?
(20:07):
Is the pricing in terms ofvalue?
Is it reasonable?
I need to be more conscious ofcosts.
I need to be more conscious ofresources and time as an artisan
and many artisans are notbecause all we want to do is
create.
So then I then said to myselfokay, the type of people I need
to work with in my business Ineed to work with a great
(20:30):
business manager.
I need to work with someone whois very business manager.
I need to work with someone whois very operationally minded,
someone who could literallystandardize certain processes,
and also I need to work with agreat marketing person that can
literally sell my vision andsell the artisanal products that
I produce, because I'm not theonly talented cake maker out
(20:52):
there.
There are many of us.
So those are things I had tolearn about myself.
I also needed to learn aboutthe different levels and the
different types of luxury,because luxury has different
levels.
Again, I split it all down inthe book.
So am I going to look for ahundred clients a year that pay
(21:14):
X, or am I going to focus onmaybe one or two a year that pay
Y, and both have their pros andcons?
Because the ones maybe the oneor two a year yes, they pay a
lot, but when you then break itdown in terms of expenses and
expenditure and demands etcetera, is it really worth it?
(21:34):
Or is it safer to stick to my100 and know that, okay, with
this 100, I can deliver, butthen with 100, you need a team
that can replicate you and youalso need to be present as well,
because some clients are notjust buying your products,
they're buying you, yourpresence on the day.
The fact that they've flown youout and they get to take a
(21:58):
photo with you is a big deal tosome clients.
So those are some of the thingsyou need to think about when
you're starting out.
Speaker 1 (22:05):
And what are some of the key platforms that people
should be targeting andprioritizing if they're moving
into that market?
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Okay, so online?
So again, I break it down inthe book.
Online, for example, and I'llgive a practical example.
Instagram is a great one.
However, many people useInstagram wrong, because they're
looking for the type of luxuryclient that is happy being out
there and they tend to beaspirationals, or simply the
(22:36):
best who want to show off theirmoney and they will get
inundated very soon.
What you need to be looking forare those accounts that are
private, and those accounts willbe under a pseudonym or a
nickname.
It will not be under their realnames, because some of them do
not want that attention.
So how do you find them?
(22:57):
People ask me I say a lot ofthem like travel and fashion and
blah, blah, blah, blah blah.
Go under those big brandaccounts and look in the comment
sections.
Look for the people that thebrand is replying to.
So if a brand is taking thetime out to reply to a
particular person, that's theperson you follow and you may
(23:19):
send a request.
Just wait.
But when you send your request,look at other people that
Instagram is suggesting to you.
There you will find similarprofiles and similar people.
So that is a massive tip forthat.
Another tip is Google, forexample, I don't use Google the
usual way I use.
I do my normal Google search,but then I use Google images.
(23:42):
I want to see who's beenphotographed next to who.
So, for example, getty ImagesGetty Images will not photograph
anyone who is not ofconsequence.
So look at the person, look atwho they're photographed next to
.
That would give you a massiveclue.
Of course, you've got the usualthe Sunday Times top whatever
(24:03):
100 list, the Forbes list, blah,blah, blah.
However, for a certain client,they pay not to be on Forbes
list, because when you look atForbes list, there are certain
regions in the world where a lotof those names are not on that
list, and that's deliberatebecause they don't want the
attention.
(24:24):
So, and then I also there's.
You know other things as well.
You can look at family offices,but that's a whole.
I can spend all day talkingabout family offices.
So those at least.
I've given three solid tipsthat you can literally do from
your living room.
If you're like me, I don't likeleaving my house very often, so
I tend to do a lot of mynetworking online, believe it or
(24:47):
not, but I had to.
These are things I say.
I have things in my book thatyou will not find on Google,
because these are tips I've hadto learn myself, either as a
headhunter or as someone whoruns a business.
So you can find these peopleonline, where you just have to
have the strategic and tacticalawareness.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
I love that I happen to be on Getty.
I think there's about siximages of me.
They might be about 20 yearsold, back when I was who's who.
That's another story, but nowyou've made my day mentioning
that.
So, elizabeth, I guess, just tosort of finish off, what would
be your advice?
So sorry, I keep going back towedding planners because that's
obviously my, that's where I forany wedding professional that
(25:31):
they've got their heart set onthis.
You've given some great advicesabout where the clients are,
what they should be doing, whatnetworking and all of that.
But literally, what's the firststep?
Starting tomorrow?
Starting tomorrow, what themindset needs to change?
What else?
Speaker 2 (25:47):
Your imagery.
So don't show, because a lot ofpeople want to show range, so
they show 20 products when threeincredible products will do the
job.
So I can see this as a cakemaker.
So you know, I have my gallery,et cetera.
But when I did my website Imean my first website I'm going
(26:09):
back maybe 20 something years Iremember I just had one image,
beautiful image, at a time.
So I don't do the gallery oflike a gazillion images or
whatever.
And also you need to curate andorganize and arrange.
You can do it by color, you cando it by size, I don't you know
(26:31):
.
Whatever it is you're doing,you need to organize so that
that way, when people go on yourwebsite, they're going, you're
directing them, because a lot ofpeople that go on the website,
it's like entering into a mazeor a foreign country for the
most part.
I think about maybe 60 to 70% ofpeople getting married who
(26:53):
might need a planner.
They might be getting marriedfor the first time, so they need
, from the very time they landon your website or your
Instagram page or however theyfind you.
You need to be like a Sherpa, aguide.
So if they land on the firstimage and they don't like the
image.
That's actually not a bad thing.
(27:14):
So you need to curate in such away that makes sense.
I was looking at aphotographer's website and then
in my head I was thinkingthey've only done I could tell
they've only done two weddingsor they've only done whatever.
I wasn't getting that feelingof confidence and that's because
(27:35):
they literally just dumped allthe images.
There was no rhyme or reason.
So if they'd shown me like thebride or a couple in their
finery, if they'd created astory of the wedding day from
maybe prep to the vows, I wouldhave been interested in that.
Instead, I'm getting the imagesare great, but I'm just getting
(27:58):
randoms and I'm getting thatwedding next to that wedding
next to that wedding.
It didn't make sense.
But if they'd said Peter andPaul their love story, pamela
and blah their love story, thatwould have worked for me because
I'm like, okay, who are Peterand Paul and where did they get
married and how did they getmarried?
That is a kind of curiosity youneed to satisfy in people,
(28:22):
because the longer they spend onyour website, the better.
It is anyway that Google goes.
Okay, there's no bounce rates,number one, so Google goes.
Ah, that's a great website.
And also Google is doingsomething now where if you click
on a certain image on Googleimages, it brings up other
similar images.
So you need to leverage that.
(28:43):
So you need to say to yourselfokay, the images that I want to
create.
So if there are any high-end Idon't know wedding planners or
whatever and they've got theseincredible great images, you may
need to create somethingsimilar.
Even if you've never offeredthat before, you may need to
create something similar.
So, at the very least, whenpeople are doing Pinterest or
(29:05):
whatever they're doing orthey're searching, your images
are coming up as well.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
And that's great advice.
Yeah, even if it's a styledshoot, just to try.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Yeah, if you're going to do a style shoot, I am
begging you, it's better to do acouple a year than you're doing
10.
You're all over the place, butnone of your images make sense.
So the first thing you need toask is who's a photographer and
where's this, where's this shootgoing to appear?
And, more importantly, is the?
(29:35):
You know the blog?
Are they going to link back toyour website?
Because they could list yourwebsite, but they could turn off
?
The god there's a technicalterm for it can't remember what
it's called.
So if they turn that yourwebsite because they could list
your website, but they couldturn off, the God there's a
technical term for it Can'tremember what it's called.
So if they turn that offbecause, again, that's money,
you're not getting anything.
You know directly and Google'slike Hmm, okay, yeah, so there's
there's.
You know it's a, it's a bitmore, it's a bit deeper.
(29:56):
And the last thing I would sayreally quickly is around
storytelling you need, becauseyour most visited page on your
website is the about People wantto know who is this person,
where have they come from?
Do we believe them?
Are they authentic?
Are they credible?
Can we trust them?
Is this person a high trustperson.
So your storytelling, and thenI cover all this imagery
(30:19):
storytelling website.
I cover all this imagerystorytelling website.
I cover everything in my book.
With the storytelling it startswith a plot, the characters,
the ambience.
I break everything down in mybook because a lot of people say
something like we are theleading, blah, blah, blah, blah,
blah, blah, blah, and so what,who cares?
But it's a different story whenyou say something like.
(30:41):
But it's a different story whenyou say something like you know
I, I've always been, you know Ilike planning.
This is what I've done so far,this is where I'm headed and
this is you know that kind of.
Again, it's organization,because people need to read a
story that they resonate withand it makes sense.
Speaker 1 (30:59):
So, yeah, thank you so much, elizabeth.
I've learned so much.
Now I feel like going back todoing wedding planning and just
doing it differently.
Now we keep hearing about thisbook.
It sounds like something thatabsolute must read if you're
thinking about going into theluxury market.
So elizabeth's website iselizabeth salarucom.
I will put the links in theshow notes.
You can also find her onlinkedin, instagram and Facebook
(31:23):
.
Elizabeth, thank you so muchfor your time.
We'd love to have you back.
I'm sure there's plenty morepearls of wisdom in there.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Thank you so much for having me and yeah, I didn't
mention the name of my book isthe Luxe Printer.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yes, and where else can people get that?
Is it just your website orAmazon or that sort of Amazon?
Speaker 2 (31:43):
Everywhere, everywhere, yeah, amazon
everywhere.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
Excellent.
Yeah, Amazon, Go buy it guys.
Amazon Thank you.
Speaker 2 (31:50):
Thank you for your time.
Thank you.
Jack.
Hello and welcome back to Wedding Empires.
I'm your host, jack Bowie.
It's my absolute pleasure todayto welcome to the podcast
Elizabeth Sularu.
Elizabeth, thank you forjoining us.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Thank you, I've been really excited to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
And I hear it's looking to be a lovely day in
London.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
We've got sun, and that's absolutely it.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Awesome, awesome.
Now, the reason that we'veinvited you into the podcast is
because you really know how tobreak into the luxury market and
that's something that a lot ofus, you know, might be just
dipping our toes into becoming awedding planner, but there's
certainly a lot of weddingplanners out there that would
like to make that transitionfrom from you know, the the
mainstream, I guess we'll callit into that sort of luxury set.
(00:46):
So, talking about yourbackground, you're a multi-award
winning luxury businessconsultant.
You're a bestselling author,globally recognized cake artist
and as a CEO and founder ofDiversity in Luxury Awards,
you're also now a leading voicein luxury and you help brands
and professionals navigate theexclusive world of high net
worth clientele.
(01:07):
You've got a book called theLuxpreneur.
I love that how to Start andBuild a Successful Luxury Brand
and it's been hailed as theultimate blueprint for those who
are looking to succeed in theluxury space so I shouldn't have
just said wedding plannersanyone who's trying to
transition into that luxuryspace.
So today we're going to gothrough, I guess, the first
steps in positioning yourselfhow to attract those kinds of
(01:28):
clients, the secrets to pitching, your pricing, your branding
and all of that.
So let's dive in and learn fromone of the experts on the
matter.
But I think, Elizabeth, let'sstart off with your personal
journey.
Can you share kind of?
You know, I heard you used tobe a microbiologist.
How did you get from that intodoing what you do now?
That's crazy.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Right, okay.
So yes, went to university, didmy degree, did my master's in
medical microbiology andparasitology and I loved
microbiology.
I loved.
My aim was actually to be aprofessor in microbiology.
That was my goal and I startedworking for the National Health
Service in this country.
(02:10):
I was working in a diagnosticlab, so I was literally
diagnosing diseases andillnesses and that sort of thing
and I enjoyed it.
But I remember after about 13years, 15 years working for the
NHS, I kind of thought to myselfthere's got to be more to life
than being a lab rat and I justmade the decision.
(02:30):
There were a number of thingsled up to it, but I made the
decision to quit and I had noother job to go to.
So I remember quitting on aMonday and I was walking on a
Thursday.
I was walking past the labphone and it rang and I picked
up and somebody said would youlike to work for us as a locum?
So that was been a temp.
(02:51):
So I said yes, obviouslybecause I had no other job to go
to.
And then I thought to myselfwhile I was doing that, because
I had this vague idea of doingsomething in business why don't
I go off and do an MBA, becausein my mind I thought, oh, the
more degrees you had.
So I went off, did an MBA andthen I quickly realized, oh, the
(03:11):
MBA is not going to get me whatI wanted to do, which I still
didn't know what I wanted to do.
But eventually I learned how tonetwork.
And then I found myself beingtapped on the shoulder and
somebody said to me would youlike to go and work for me as a
headhunter?
He was setting up a company andI quickly had to dive into that
(03:33):
world, had to learn abouthigh-end candidates.
I was recruiting financedirectors and CEOs and chairmen
and I didn't know I mean, I'dnever run a lemonade stand and
these people were runningmulti-million pound businesses.
But I didn't know, I mean, I'dnever run a lemonade stand and
these people were runningmulti-million pound businesses.
But I quickly learned.
I learned how to stand out.
I learned how to network.
Thankfully, blogs were, were,were being a thing.
(03:57):
In those days, early 2000s orsomething like that.
Blogs were being a thing.
So I learned how to find CEOsvia blogs and then I was
networking like mad.
And then 2008,.
We know what happened.
The markets fell out and Ithought, oh my God, I need to do
something.
And then it occurred to me thatthis could be a time to do what
(04:20):
I'd always wanted to do as achild, which is bake cakes and
have a cake shop.
But because I come from animmigrant background where
education was everything, I darenot say that to my parents
because to them that is likefamily disgrace.
So anyway, I then decided okay,I'll set up my cake company.
But I had a problem how do Ifind clients?
(04:43):
But then I remember thinkingokay, I will do what I'd been
trained to do as a headhunter,and that is cold calling.
Because as a headhunter I had tomake a hundred cold calls a
week to CEO offices and find away to get into the CEO diary.
So that's what I started doing.
I took the yellow pages and Istarted calling, calling,
(05:05):
calling.
And of course all the weddingplanners told me to go away.
We don't know you, we alreadyhave cake makers.
And eventually, after 120 calls,I finally got through to a
particular office.
I didn't know at the time.
She was the first properwedding planner in the UK and
(05:25):
she happened to be the firstcousin to the late Queen
Elizabeth.
And I got through to the officeand the young lady at the other
end said, do you make cupcakes?
And remember this was like 2000and something.
And I was like, of course wemake cupcakes.
I will be in your area the nextthree days.
Can I bring some samples?
So I did that.
(05:47):
So I took the samples and I wason my way back home on the bus
when I got a call saying LadyElizabeth would like to see you.
And I'm like, oh my God, who'sLady Elizabeth?
And I went back and she met me.
She said beautiful cakes, lovethem, love the taste, love the
appearance, love everything.
And she gave me a job on thespot.
So she gave me an order, oh myGod.
(06:14):
And of course I made a rookiemistake I undercharged.
I didn't, I don't even think Icharged for delivery, I was just
so happy to get this order.
And the rest, they say, ishistory.
That order opened a number ofdoors because after the party
she did something which truly,truly, truly, I'll never forget.
She wrote me a note, ahandwritten note, saying because
apparently they use three cakesfor that particular I mean
(06:37):
three cake makers for thatparticular party, and she said
your cakes were the best tasting.
Thank you so much said yourcakes were the best tasting.
Thank you so much.
And she said you have mypermission to use this letter in
all your marketing and thatreally helped my business.
So yeah, that's my my story.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
It's unbelievable.
That is not what I wasexpecting you to say.
You know I just one of my firstclients was the queen of
England.
Yeah, cool, okay, no pressureright, just like diving into
luxury at the highest possibleend.
So I guess, I guess I want tokind of know how would you
define luxury when it comes tothe wedding industry
(07:20):
specifically?
Speaker 2 (07:21):
Now that is a fantastic question and I tell
you why because many peopledefine luxury by budget.
They're defined by budget.
So if you're spending over sixfigures, 70 figures, that's a
luxury wedding.
That is right, but notcompletely right.
In a way, just because you'vespent a lot of money doesn't
mean it's a luxury wedding.
(07:42):
I define a luxury wedding.
Spent a lot of money doesn'tmean it's a luxury wedding.
I define a luxury wedding by theclient and I've broken it down
based on my clients that I'velooked after over the years.
There's been thousands of them.
I sat down during the pandemic.
I looked at all the emails andall my client list and then I
realized there are eightdifferent types of luxury client
(08:04):
.
And, yes, you can define awedding based on budget, but you
need to define a luxury weddingbased on psychology.
So, based on psychology, I willgive you two examples.
So and I use this a bit in mywhen I do keynotes you have
somebody like the King ofEngland and you have somebody
(08:27):
like Ozzy Osbourne, according todemographics.
Are they the same?
They're definitely the same.
You'd be surprised they have somany similarities.
So they were born in the sameyear, they're both white male,
they both live in castles,they've both been married and
divorced twice and they areroughly.
(08:47):
They are the same age and, bythe way, they are good friends.
So if they both give you thesame budget, say a million
pounds, as a wedding planner,would you do their weddings the
same?
Well, no, exactly, probably not.
But the thing is, though, manypeople haven't been able to
define why not, and that's thepsychology, and I know you will
(09:10):
take a brief and etc.
Etc.
Etc.
But would you use the samevendors?
Would you use the same products?
Would you use?
So that, to me, is around thepsychology, and this is the
difference between yes, you havea big budget, but not all
clients are the same.
(09:31):
So when people talk aboutdefining your ideal client type,
they miss out a lot when itcomes to the psychology of a
luxury client.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
Wow, okay, but then also, I guess you could have
something very intimate.
That's luxury, and I don't knowwhy this has come to mind.
Was it a successful marriage?
But I think if Johnny Depp andAmber Heard, they had their own
island, didn't they?
I don't know how many peoplewent, but in my mind it's just
like small with their dogs.
(10:02):
But that would be luxury.
But again, very, very adifferent type of wedding, sure.
So what distinguishes a luxuryclient from a standard client?
I suppose I suppose we'vetalked about that.
I guess my next question iskind of like how do you find
them?
Where are these people hanging?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
out?
I love this question because,again, I address all this in my
book.
So, depending on the type, youneed to find where they hang out
.
And because that's the thingwith a lot of vendors in the
wedding industry, everyoneautomatically comes to planners,
but there are only so manyluxury weddings that a
(10:44):
particular planner can do, soyou can't then say, oh, you know
, yes, I will go to a planner.
So, yes, you will go to aplanner, but depending on the
different type of luxury client,you need to know where they
hang out.
So some of them could hang outonline.
I've often spoken about that.
(11:05):
Some of them could hang outprivate members clubs.
Some of them could hang out incertain business conferences.
Some of them it could be atennis club, it could be a
country club.
You need to go to where yourparticular type of client, where
they go to.
A lot of people talk aboutpublications, for example.
(11:28):
Maybe they read Vogue, maybethey read certain magazines, and
that is true.
But you need to ask yourselfare they going to be reading
Vogue?
Maybe they read certainmagazines, and that is true, but
you need to ask yourself arethey going to be reading Vogue
to find a vendor or a weddingplanner or the type of person
who would read Vogue.
Because when you look at Vogue,unless it's an editorial,
(11:50):
unless it's an editorial, a lotof the supplier vendors are
going to be on the back pagesvery tiny, paid for, obviously.
So would a typical luxuryclient look at that?
So when I coach my clients, wedo two things.
We are building the word ofmouth.
At the same time, we aregetting you out there to network
(12:14):
in the right places.
So even things like going toyour local chamber of commerce,
for example and many peopledon't even know there's a
chamber of every region.
Every country has a chamber ofcommerce.
But what I did was that Ididn't.
In my local area there wasnothing for businesses when I
(12:34):
was starting out.
So I went to, like the poshestarea of London and I talked my
way into joining their business,their business, their chamber
of commerce.
So those are things you need todo.
You know even, for example, Iremember getting a client via a
security guy.
A security guy.
(12:55):
So people are chatty, they liketo chat.
So he was a security guy.
Private members club.
We got chatting and by the timehe saw my face three, four
times, he was telling me abouteverybody.
So that's what you need to do.
You need to look for gatekeepers, because that's as important as
(13:16):
going to the main person,because when I was a headhunter,
the people I needed to get pastwere gatekeepers.
So, for example, a CEO wouldhave three different PAs One
would be handling the diary, onehandles the travel and one
handles the actual businessbusiness.
(13:37):
Of all three PAs, the mostimportant PA is the diary person
, because whoever's in charge ofhis diary is the one who has
the keys to the kingdom andthat's the PA you need to
network with.
So a lot of my colleagues whenI was a headhunter, they would
send presents to the CEO.
(13:58):
I would send presents to theCEO, but I'll send an even
better one to the diary PA andthat way they remember you, it
would remember you.
I'm utilizing the sameprinciples.
Everyone you try to networkwith you need to know the right
gatekeeper for them.
(14:19):
So, for example, I used OzzyOsbourne and King Charles.
So King Charles, he literallyhas several layers of
gatekeepers, because his luxuryclient type is what I call
comfort first and safety first.
We know that when he travels,he comes with his own pillows,
(14:40):
he comes with his own toiletseats.
He travels like that.
We know that Ozzy Osbourne.
He does outlandish things, hedoes outrageous things.
For him, that would be hisbusiness manager, it could even
be his stylist.
For him, that would be hisbusiness manager, it could even
be his stylist.
So you need to know the rightgatekeeper for the right client
that you are targeting.
(15:02):
And the reason it's nice to knowthe psychology of these clients
is that in a family, in ahigh-end family, you can have
three or four differentpsychological types.
So, for example, I read about acouple of wedding planners.
They're being sued by a clientwho wasn't happy with the way
(15:24):
they planned, or whatever, thewedding.
And when I read the courtdocuments it was so clear to me
that the bride was a particularluxury client type.
She was an esthete, so she'sall about order and organization
.
Her mother was simply the best,so she just wanted to spend the
most money to get the bestthing.
(15:45):
And their dad, the one whoactually makes the money, he was
a comfort first.
So the planners were gettingconflicted things from all three
of them.
But if you know the exact typeof people that they are, you're
able to adjust accordingly.
And also, from the courtdocuments, the planner made the
(16:08):
mistake of thinking that theywere friends, thinking that they
were friends.
Even if your clients arefriendly and they're the
friendliest in the world, untilyou deliver that job you are not
friends.
But you deliver the job, thenyou become friends.
Yes, during the process you canbe friendly, you can be the
(16:28):
confidant, you can be theshoulder to cry on.
You will see many things thatyou're not supposed to see.
You keep quiet, you're discreet, but you are not friends
because you're not equals.
So those are some of the thingsthat you know.
I hope that answers yourquestion.
I'm trying to remember what thequestion was.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
That's really amazing .
I've learned so much from that,including the fact that King
Charles Nick changes his toilets.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
fact that King Charles Nick changes his toilet,
he brings his own toilet seatand his own pillow.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
Yeah, no, I did absorb a lot more than that, but
that did jump out at me.
I thought that was quiteinteresting.
Yeah, I think that that's.
It's so true that I know mybackground is a wedding planner
and I wasn't in the luxurymarket, I was in the sort of
mainstream market I suppose.
But I was very much catering tothe bride.
(17:20):
I was the and we even said weare your wedding bestie, you
know so.
So, mind you, but that was ourbrand and that was our, that was
our thing.
You know, in the, in therelationships that I had with
these brides, was always we werehaving wine and cheese and they
were saying yes and no tothings and we felt like friends.
But I love how that I thinkabout this one that really
(17:42):
stands out.
That was a really great clientand I think you know what things
were important to her motherthat weren't important to Alex
and things were important to herhusband that weren't important.
And now that you say that, yes,I can see that and probably in
hindsight there's more to thequestionnaire along those lines
as well that should be there,not just about the couple but
(18:04):
all of those other dynamics.
So that's really interesting.
So just on that if someone isin that sort of mainstream
wedding space, what would be thefirst kind of steps, apart from
we've talked about sort offinding those clients, but like
what else in terms ofpositioning their business?
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Oh, that's a great one.
And I tell you this mightsurprise you in terms of the
answer.
Positioning your businessstarts from you, so you need to
have that luxury mindset.
I remember I spent the firstfive years of my business trying
to fit my business in themiddle range because I didn't
accept that, you know, myproducts were actually for the
(18:42):
maybe 1% or whatever.
So I was trying to fit in themiddle because the middle gives
you the most clients.
Quite frankly, when you look atvolume and you're going up the
pyramid, obviously the higheryou go, the less the number of
clients that you're going to get.
So it starts with your mindset.
And in my book I actually talkabout the nine different types
(19:04):
of luxury business founders.
So, to give an example, I cameout as an artisan and a
visionary, and on paper thatlooks good.
So as a visionary, I'm thinkingof the future.
I'm future casting.
Everything's amazing.
I can predict and I could, andthat really plays to my strength
(19:26):
.
And as a craftsman, artisan, itmeans I care so much about my
products, I'm detailed, I beatmyself up if I don't hit those
standards, et cetera.
But here's the downside as avisionary, I need to be grounded
in the present.
I need to know that.
Yes, it's great to have allthese visions.
(19:47):
However, elizabeth, for now,for this present moment in time,
there are certain things aboutyour business that you need to
be careful about.
Also, as an artisan, that isthe worst combination with a
visionary, because I'm spendingso much money creating this
incredible product.
Is it even for the high-endclients?
(20:07):
Is the pricing in terms ofvalue?
Is it reasonable?
I need to be more conscious ofcosts.
I need to be more conscious ofresources and time as an artisan
and many artisans are notbecause all we want to do is
create.
So then I then said to myselfokay, the type of people I need
to work with in my business Ineed to work with a great
(20:30):
business manager.
I need to work with someone whois very business manager.
I need to work with someone whois very operationally minded,
someone who could literallystandardize certain processes,
and also I need to work with agreat marketing person that can
literally sell my vision andsell the artisanal products that
I produce, because I'm not theonly talented cake maker out
(20:52):
there.
There are many of us.
So those are things I had tolearn about myself.
I also needed to learn aboutthe different levels and the
different types of luxury,because luxury has different
levels.
Again, I split it all down inthe book.
So am I going to look for ahundred clients a year that pay
(21:14):
X, or am I going to focus onmaybe one or two a year that pay
Y, and both have their pros andcons?
Because the ones maybe the oneor two a year yes, they pay a
lot, but when you then break itdown in terms of expenses and
expenditure and demands etcetera, is it really worth it?
(21:34):
Or is it safer to stick to my100 and know that, okay, with
this 100, I can deliver, butthen with 100, you need a team
that can replicate you and youalso need to be present as well,
because some clients are notjust buying your products,
they're buying you, yourpresence on the day.
The fact that they've flown youout and they get to take a
(21:58):
photo with you is a big deal tosome clients.
So those are some of the thingsyou need to think about when
you're starting out.
Speaker 1 (22:05):
And what are some of the key platforms that people
should be targeting andprioritizing if they're moving
into that market?
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Okay, so online?
So again, I break it down inthe book.
Online, for example, and I'llgive a practical example.
Instagram is a great one.
However, many people useInstagram wrong, because they're
looking for the type of luxuryclient that is happy being out
there and they tend to beaspirationals, or simply the
(22:36):
best who want to show off theirmoney and they will get
inundated very soon.
What you need to be looking forare those accounts that are
private, and those accounts willbe under a pseudonym or a
nickname.
It will not be under their realnames, because some of them do
not want that attention.
So how do you find them?
(22:57):
People ask me I say a lot ofthem like travel and fashion and
blah, blah, blah, blah blah.
Go under those big brandaccounts and look in the comment
sections.
Look for the people that thebrand is replying to.
So if a brand is taking thetime out to reply to a
particular person, that's theperson you follow and you may
(23:19):
send a request.
Just wait.
But when you send your request,look at other people that
Instagram is suggesting to you.
There you will find similarprofiles and similar people.
So that is a massive tip forthat.
Another tip is Google, forexample, I don't use Google the
usual way I use.
I do my normal Google search,but then I use Google images.
(23:42):
I want to see who's beenphotographed next to who.
So, for example, getty ImagesGetty Images will not photograph
anyone who is not ofconsequence.
So look at the person, look atwho they're photographed next to
.
That would give you a massiveclue.
Of course, you've got the usualthe Sunday Times top whatever
(24:03):
100 list, the Forbes list, blah,blah, blah.
However, for a certain client,they pay not to be on Forbes
list, because when you look atForbes list, there are certain
regions in the world where a lotof those names are not on that
list, and that's deliberatebecause they don't want the
attention.
(24:24):
So, and then I also there's.
You know other things as well.
You can look at family offices,but that's a whole.
I can spend all day talkingabout family offices.
So those at least.
I've given three solid tipsthat you can literally do from
your living room.
If you're like me, I don't likeleaving my house very often, so
I tend to do a lot of mynetworking online, believe it or
(24:47):
not, but I had to.
These are things I say.
I have things in my book thatyou will not find on Google,
because these are tips I've hadto learn myself, either as a
headhunter or as someone whoruns a business.
So you can find these peopleonline, where you just have to
have the strategic and tacticalawareness.
Speaker 1 (25:08):
I love that I happen to be on Getty.
I think there's about siximages of me.
They might be about 20 yearsold, back when I was who's who.
That's another story, but nowyou've made my day mentioning
that.
So, elizabeth, I guess, just tosort of finish off, what would
be your advice?
So sorry, I keep going back towedding planners because that's
obviously my, that's where I forany wedding professional that
(25:31):
they've got their heart set onthis.
You've given some great advicesabout where the clients are,
what they should be doing, whatnetworking and all of that.
But literally, what's the firststep?
Starting tomorrow?
Starting tomorrow, what themindset needs to change?
What else?
Speaker 2 (25:47):
Your imagery.
So don't show, because a lot ofpeople want to show range, so
they show 20 products when threeincredible products will do the
job.
So I can see this as a cakemaker.
So you know, I have my gallery,et cetera.
But when I did my website Imean my first website I'm going
(26:09):
back maybe 20 something years Iremember I just had one image,
beautiful image, at a time.
So I don't do the gallery oflike a gazillion images or
whatever.
And also you need to curate andorganize and arrange.
You can do it by color, you cando it by size, I don't you know
(26:31):
.
Whatever it is you're doing,you need to organize so that
that way, when people go on yourwebsite, they're going, you're
directing them, because a lot ofpeople that go on the website,
it's like entering into a mazeor a foreign country for the
most part.
I think about maybe 60 to 70% ofpeople getting married who
(26:53):
might need a planner.
They might be getting marriedfor the first time, so they need
, from the very time they landon your website or your
Instagram page or however theyfind you.
You need to be like a Sherpa, aguide.
So if they land on the firstimage and they don't like the
image.
That's actually not a bad thing.
(27:14):
So you need to curate in such away that makes sense.
I was looking at aphotographer's website and then
in my head I was thinkingthey've only done I could tell
they've only done two weddingsor they've only done whatever.
I wasn't getting that feelingof confidence and that's because
(27:35):
they literally just dumped allthe images.
There was no rhyme or reason.
So if they'd shown me like thebride or a couple in their
finery, if they'd created astory of the wedding day from
maybe prep to the vows, I wouldhave been interested in that.
Instead, I'm getting the imagesare great, but I'm just getting
(27:58):
randoms and I'm getting thatwedding next to that wedding
next to that wedding.
It didn't make sense.
But if they'd said Peter andPaul their love story, pamela
and blah their love story, thatwould have worked for me because
I'm like, okay, who are Peterand Paul and where did they get
married and how did they getmarried?
That is a kind of curiosity youneed to satisfy in people,
(28:22):
because the longer they spend onyour website, the better.
It is anyway that Google goes.
Okay, there's no bounce rates,number one, so Google goes.
Ah, that's a great website.
And also Google is doingsomething now where if you click
on a certain image on Googleimages, it brings up other
similar images.
So you need to leverage that.
(28:43):
So you need to say to yourselfokay, the images that I want to
create.
So if there are any high-end Idon't know wedding planners or
whatever and they've got theseincredible great images, you may
need to create somethingsimilar.
Even if you've never offeredthat before, you may need to
create something similar.
So, at the very least, whenpeople are doing Pinterest or
(29:05):
whatever they're doing orthey're searching, your images
are coming up as well.
Speaker 1 (29:10):
And that's great advice.
Yeah, even if it's a styledshoot, just to try.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Yeah, if you're going to do a style shoot, I am
begging you, it's better to do acouple a year than you're doing
10.
You're all over the place, butnone of your images make sense.
So the first thing you need toask is who's a photographer and
where's this, where's this shootgoing to appear?
And, more importantly, is the?
(29:35):
You know the blog?
Are they going to link back toyour website?
Because they could list yourwebsite, but they could turn off
?
The god there's a technicalterm for it can't remember what
it's called.
So if they turn that yourwebsite because they could list
your website, but they couldturn off, the God there's a
technical term for it Can'tremember what it's called.
So if they turn that offbecause, again, that's money,
you're not getting anything.
You know directly and Google'slike Hmm, okay, yeah, so there's
there's.
You know it's a, it's a bitmore, it's a bit deeper.
(29:56):
And the last thing I would sayreally quickly is around
storytelling you need, becauseyour most visited page on your
website is the about People wantto know who is this person,
where have they come from?
Do we believe them?
Are they authentic?
Are they credible?
Can we trust them?
Is this person a high trustperson.
So your storytelling, and thenI cover all this imagery
(30:19):
storytelling website.
I cover all this imagerystorytelling website.
I cover everything in my book.
With the storytelling it startswith a plot, the characters,
the ambience.
I break everything down in mybook because a lot of people say
something like we are theleading, blah, blah, blah, blah,
blah, blah, blah, and so what,who cares?
But it's a different story whenyou say something like.
(30:41):
But it's a different story whenyou say something like you know
I, I've always been, you know Ilike planning.
This is what I've done so far,this is where I'm headed and
this is you know that kind of.
Again, it's organization,because people need to read a
story that they resonate withand it makes sense.
Speaker 1 (30:59):
So, yeah, thank you so much, elizabeth.
I've learned so much.
Now I feel like going back todoing wedding planning and just
doing it differently.
Now we keep hearing about thisbook.
It sounds like something thatabsolute must read if you're
thinking about going into theluxury market.
So elizabeth's website iselizabeth salarucom.
I will put the links in theshow notes.
You can also find her onlinkedin, instagram and Facebook
(31:23):
.
Elizabeth, thank you so muchfor your time.
We'd love to have you back.
I'm sure there's plenty morepearls of wisdom in there.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Thank you so much for having me and yeah, I didn't
mention the name of my book isthe Luxe Printer.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yes, and where else can people get that?
Is it just your website orAmazon or that sort of Amazon?
Speaker 2 (31:43):
Everywhere, everywhere, yeah, amazon
everywhere.
Speaker 1 (31:46):
Excellent.
Yeah, Amazon, Go buy it guys.
Amazon Thank you.
Speaker 2 (31:50):
Thank you for your time.
Thank you.
Jack.
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