A PR View of Saying “I Do”
Posted At: May 3, 2012 2:30 PM
by Kera Cottingham
I recently found myself not only graduating with a public relations degree, but also engaged. Yes, I have a diamond and all, but I also have a soon-to-be marketing grad as a fiancé. With that said, as we have begun to plan our upcoming nuptials, we both have realized two previously unthought-of planning aspects: how to market and publicize our wedding.
Now it may sound silly, but after posting the first picture of my new ring on Facebook to notify all my friends, family and frenemies, I realized I was using the basic skills taught in my PR social media class. I was publicizing our engagement and, with a satisfactory amount of “likes” on Facebook, I did so well.
We then continued our wedding planning by booking the venue, picking the colors and all the other typical wedding things. But when I began to consider how others would view our union, due to how we planned it, I had the notion that we indeed are branding ourselves. The decorations, the music, the food — it would all reflect us. We would become the Foster brand.
And then there is the further idea of how we will continue to promote our wedding day to our consumer, i.e., wedding guests. Not only do I plan to promote early and promote often (without overdoing it, of course), as any good PR and marketing professionals would do, but I intend to do so in a way consistent with our “brand.” With the use of the proper engagement photography on Facebook and the careful selection of save-the-dates and invitations, I feel that this marketing and PR duo will in fact do just that.
Finally when the “I dos” are said and done, we will have one last step in our PR process to complete: stewardship. Through the handwritten thank you notes and tiny favors for everyone to grab as they leave the reception, we will effectively maintain our relationships with all our guests.
So to all you PR and marketing guys and gals out there, when the day comes for you to walk down the aisle don’t forget your marketing strategies or your ROPES process in the midst of the flowers and chiffon.
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I love this blog topic. It is a great idea to think of your wedding day, the biggest day of a girl’s life, as a public relations/marketing set-up. Planning a wedding takes hard work, just as practicing public relations does. The bright side is that you have a marketing professional at your service to help you distinguish exactly how you want your wedding to be branded. Between the two of you, it will be a fantastic, well-planned event. Public relations practitioners can look at any event as a public relations opportunity. Event planning can be a vague aspect of public relations. From a marketing point of view, the “branding” idea is genius. It is your big day and it does represent your “union.” Booking the venue, picking out colors and deciding what you want your “branded” marriage to say can be difficult, but that is the way to give your marriage a good image. After all, the wedding does reflect on you and your husband. I think it is a great idea to market your wedding as a “brand.” This way you are making sure that every step and detail are perfect, just as you want your “big day” to be.
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