Throughout the last few months of planning our own weddings, there has been a lot of lunch time chatter around centrepieces, reception music, favours, honeymoons and whatever wedmin we needed to tackle that week. But more recently we have joked about the commonalities we see between wedding planning and market research. As we both prepare the final touches for our special days, we decided to share our thoughts on how preparing for a wedding and a market research project are eerily similar:
1. Research is the backbone – As self-confessed perfectionists, we needed to be armed with all the information and knowledge before making any decisions regarding our special day. Meaning between us we visited 12 wedding venues, follow 50+ wedding suppliers on Instagram, read the reviews of our short-listed suppliers and had countless amounts of conversations with colleagues, friends and family during the initial research phase. All of which gave us confidence in our final decisions and hopefully has helped mitigate any risk from our big days. The purpose of market research, after all, is to aid decision making.
2. Budget drives everything – The budget ultimately dictates the possible methodologies and sample that can be used in market research. Having a clear budget from the beginning means that as an agency we can work out the best, most intuitive and effective way to get to the insight. This is the same for weddings – there is no point planning a day you cannot afford!
3. Timelines keep you on the straight and narrow – A good timeline for both weddings and market research can allow you to plan, prepare and try to avoid any clashes or to be overloaded with too many things. However, sometimes timings can change at the very last minute. The main thing is not to panic, take a breath, think of alternative solutions (there nearly always is at least one) and don’t be afraid to ask for a helping hand.
4. Practice pitching ideas – Pitching ideas can be the most daunting part of the journey. Will your partner like it? Is it what they had in mind? Is it too much? Is it too little? Will it deliver the results you’d like? All these questions run through your mind whether it’s your very own wedding or your client’s next qual commission.
To ensure the success of your pitch you need to start by thinking about your audience
5. Think about your audience – Making sure the stakeholders needs are met is always at the forefront of a researcher’s minds. Do they want lots of detail or to keep things simple? Do they want to know exactly how the analytics techniques work or do they just want the results? Making sure you know the audience can help you keep them happy. This can also relate to weddings. Whether it is making sure the meal options will cater to guest’s tastes, the DJ plays songs that everyone will enjoy, the bar prices don’t require people to re-mortgage their house, the list could go on! However, it goes without saying, that although you want to make sure everyone is happy you can’t forget that it is your big day and you need to make sure that you and your other half are happy.
6. Trusted suppliers are like gold dust – Wedding perfection means trusted and professional suppliers. Suppliers who know the ins and outs of their specialism and can help you have your most perfect day. They truly understand how special the day is to you and appreciate they are playing a small part in creating ever-lasting memories. Market research is no different. Our preferred suppliers are an extension of our team – they add capability beyond our core skill sets and bring a different perspective to our client’s challenge.
7. Communication is key – As a market research agency, we wholeheartedly believe in effective communications. Whether it’s through our two-way communication with clients, how we deliver a debrief to senior stakeholders or how we talk about ourselves through our own communication channels…
clear and concise communication is key
In terms of wedding planning – clear communication is no less significant. In our experience it’s better to over communicate with vendors and that way there’s less chance of the finer details been missed.
8. Teamwork and supporting each other through the journey – Carrying out a project on your own can be hard! Having someone to offer support whether that is helping do some of the work or be a sounding board for ideas can really help. This is the same for weddings. Working together and dividing out the planning can mean you don’t end up with one person very stressed or burned out. Let’s also not forget that doing the planning together can make it fun, which leads us nicely onto our next point…
9. Enjoy the journey! – It’s supposed to be the happiest day of your life so don’t let the all the planning get on top of you and stress you out! Remember people are there to celebrate your marriage not to critique your table decorations. In research it can get stressful and hectic, and you sometimes need to take a step away, breathe and come back to it. Remember it will all work out in the end, nothing is unsolvable!
10. The finish isn’t the most important part – While finishing a project is a great accomplishment, it’s the entire journey that matters and what you do with the insight after the eagerly anticipated debrief. The same goes for a wedding. While the wedding itself is a great day of celebrations, it’s building a happy and healthy marriage that truly matters.
So, that’s a wrap on our wedding and market research similarities. If you’ve recently exchanged vows, we’d love to hear from you – let us know which one of these similarities really resonates, or are there any other similarities which are more relevant to you?
Now watch out for our new email addresses – we’re changing our last names!