Workflow(s) to streamline

A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Effective Workflows

If you’re here, you value your time and your customers’ time. Seamless operations do just that: they save time. Workflows are the backbone of your operations. In this article, I’ll show you a step-by-step way to streamline your wedding workflows. You’ll discover how to handle processes. This includes the initial inquiry form and post-wedding follow-ups. Structured workflows help you stay organized and ready. They ensure that you miss no detail.

After I got more than 15 inquiries a month, I looked for the best CRM for wedding pros. Unfortunately, they haven’t created it yet.

Why workflows matter in weddings?

You serve couples, wedding planners, and vendors at one event. Listen closely. All three are your clients. Couples pay you, planners bring leads, and vendors refer you to the industry. Without proper workflows, you’ll miss chances for low-cost, long-term client acquisition. The wedding industry is complex, with many moving parts and stakeholders.

This approach cuts down on errors and keeps the event running smoothly. Time management is crucial in the wedding industry. The many tasks, from initial meetings to post-wedding follow-ups, can feel overwhelming. Without a clear workflow, you might lose track of priorities and deadlines. This may lead to stress and burnout. Good workflows help you prioritize tasks, streamline processes, and manage time well. This lowers stress and boosts productivity, letting you provide great service consistently. By using structured workflows, you can make your work environment more enjoyable and manageable.

What is a workflow?

As the word suggests, you direct how work (aka process) needs to flow in your business. For example, here is a simple client onboarding workflow.

Client pays → Send questionnaire → Client answers questions → Send NEXT STEPS email.

It is linear and works in an ideal world. Before writing this, I listened to podcasts, attended courses to learn my audience and the market. Take time to understand the challenges faced by your customers, team, vendors, and planners when it comes to working with you on a wedding. Ask them if you do not know yet. Your workflow should address these issues. When you understand their issues, your workflows improve to help them. Focus on understanding to refine each process.

Every couple is different, but everyone follows directions. You need to guide your customers, wedding planners, and vendors on the next steps often. Not everyone anticipates issues and communicates proactively as you expected. It is OK to over-communicate, but the other way round is a nightmare. 

Current State Audit

Write down your current workflow for the simplest process you have in the business. Yes, write it down. This step works better if you ask all your team members to write it with you. Because, it is a current state analysis before you do any changes or improve a workflow. 

Encourage open communication and feedback. This helps identify pain points and areas for improvement. A collaborative approach makes everyone invested in the changes. As a result, they are more likely to adopt new workflows. It also builds ownership and accountability, key for successful implementation.

Gap Analysis

The key here is to identify only the must-haves and not nice-to-haves in your workflows. Because, you do not want to over-operationalize processes for the sake of it.  Remember, not everyone thinks alike. So, agree on gaps to fix that align with your desired future state. 

If the gap is large, you will dive in and address the issues. After understanding your current workflow, pinpoint the key areas that need focus.

Making a visual map of your workflow is very useful. Use flowcharts or diagrams to outline each step. Show the order of tasks and how they connect. This visual tool gives a clear view of the workflow. It helps you spot bottlenecks or areas that need improvement.

For example, 

• Frequent delays in communication.
• Unnecessary wait times from internal teams.
• Inefficient use of resources, like tools you no longer need for the business.

The pain areas from the above bridal styling example are.

1. Wait (days, weeks) until the customer fills the questionnaire. 
2. Delays in delivering milestones (shopping appointments, designer briefs, etc.,)

Desired Future State

At this stage, you and your team will know where you stand and how far you are from the desired workflow. This phase is everyone’s dream! Start by asking what the perfect output would look like if a magic wand could create it. Gather your team and jot down the ideal workflow. This desired workflow step aligns with couples’ expectations for your service. They have a specific outcome in mind.

Create a detailed workflow chart that lists each step and the assigned responsibilities. This will be a helpful reference for your team, ensuring that nothing gets missed.

 Below is the workflow we agreed as a team.

The above workflow works for our small mighty team. CRM sends a weekly reminder until we receive the questionnaire. Clear communication and realistic timelines are key to effective workflows.

For example, in the above client onboarding workflow, I can add the following conditions.

• My VA needs my approval when sending every reminder email to the client. 
• Stop sending reminder emails after three attempts.
• Send email reminders only from Tuesday to Friday (Mondays are hard ;)).
• Stop automation when customers reply.

Do you see where I am going with this? .

It will be tempting to automate the entire process. But trust me, the wedding business is about emotions first and then logic from the customer’s perspective. Personal conversations over automated emails. So, anything that doesn’t need your presence, feel free to automate it or delegate it. But actions that need you, have to be you.

I’ve had brides asking for me when I introduced my assistant stylist. That was a mistake. I was trying to hand off client onboarding to my assistant. We already have the questionnaire automated in the CRM. So, I should not have looped in the assistant right away before the onboarding process. 

Tools for Workflows

Whiteboards, pens, and paper work well. Start simple. Once you and your team are comfortable, pick a virtual platform. Keep it simple. Think lean. I use Canva to create workflows and edit them as the process changes.

After creating the workflows, you need a CRM to apply them. Simple workflows work well with Honeybook or Dubsado. If you need conditional logic from the inquiry form, use Fillout.

I found Kathleen recently from Simple Ops Consulting. She assists photographers and designers by automating their workflows with Fillout. Watch her video below. After 11 minutes of the video, there is one of my dream workflows.

In my mind, every wedding is a project. So far, Basecamp is the best PM tool for the wedding industry. Guess who else uses it? Lynn Easton uses Basecamp too. I started using it because she recommended it. Their efficiency and customer service are faster than Honeybook and Dubsado.

Implementation Phase

Using the online tools mentioned earlier makes it easier to hire a specialist. They can help set up systems for your business. You and your team need to know the steps, conditions, next steps and delays in each workflow. Only then does it make sense to invest in a pro.

When I set up workflows, I tracked our team’s KPIs. This ensured that they matched the new workflows.

For example, if a client doesn’t fill out the onboarding questionnaire in three weeks, it affects my VA’s KPI for client onboarding completion rate. My VA manually checks in with the customer to ensure they complete their onboarding.

Monitor the Workflow

This phase tracks progress and finds new issues. It also keeps what works in the current workflows intact. If you can update your SOPs with the winning workflows , life gets even better for you.

It’s essential to track its effectiveness and make adjustments as needed. Review and update this document every three months. This helps capture any changes in your processes or team. This method keeps things consistent and ensures everyone understands. As a result, operations run smoothly, and service improves.

Training your team with this structured approach helps them stay on track. They will see how much time they save for themselves and the clients. As a business owner, you need to foster this discipline for consistent results.

Regularly review the workflow to identify any areas where improvements can be made. This might mean simplifying tasks, shifting roles, or adding new tools and technology.

Check the KPIs or OKRs often. This helps you see how the workflow is doing. Then, you can make any needed changes. To succeed in your wedding business, follow these best practices. They will help you implement changes effectively and boost your efficiency and productivity.

Gather all progress and metrics tracked each quarter. Analyze and review them before meeting with your team to discuss. Luckily, some wedding businesses have slow seasons. Use that season to streamline your operations with workflows. Offer guides and checklists for team members. They can use these materials to adjust to the new processes.

Conclusion

Implementing effective workflows in your wedding business offers many long-term benefits. Many times you are the bottleneck. So, please feel free to remove yourself and invest in systems, tools, and processes to run the backend. When you streamline systems, you will be able to onboard more clients during busy seasons. The wedding industry still has a reputation for being slow in response. So, even the smaller changes you make will help you stand out. 

Your team will thank you for having their TO-DOs organized for them. My social media strategist loves my Notion social media calendar to create content. 

Do you know someone who is having trouble streamlining their operations? They might need to see this. Share it with them, so they know where to get insights for their business.