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Send us Fan Mail What does it take to turn casual listeners into lifelong fans? In this episode of Funktastic Chats, I sit down with Tema (lead vocals), Jared (drums), and Jeff (trumpet) from the seven-piece soul-funk band Couch — a group that's racked up over 40 million streams, won Boston Music Awards for Pop Artist and Live Artist of the Year, and toured internationally with artists like Cory Wong and Lake Street Dive. We talk about how Couch builds deep, personal connections with fans through VIP meet-and-greets, their signature "couch family photos," and a genuine commitment to community — including raising money for Rosie's Place, a women's shelter in Boston. The guys open up about navigating AI and algorithms in the music industry, why word-of-mouth still beats going viral, and how they keep a seven-piece band together with trust, fairness, and mutual respect — with their guitarist Zach pulling double duty as manager and tour manager. Plus, we hear about blown-out tires on the highway, the night the Big Talk album dropped, playing their biggest hometown show to 3,500 fans, and why Mario Kart on the tour bus might be the secret to band chemistry. Visit couchtheband.com for tour dates and more. Part two coming soon!

Send us Fan Mail 💬 Show Notes Welcome to another episode of Funktastic Chats Podcast! Today, we're chatting with Kate Furst from Zola, the fastest-growing women-led wedding planning platform. Kate shares her incredible journey in the events industry, celebrating nearly 11 years at Zola. She provides an inside look at how Zola has transformed from an e-commerce registry to a comprehensive wedding planning tool that serves both couples and vendors. Kate dives into Zola’s innovative features designed to support wedding professionals, including free listings, dedicated account managers, and flexible pricing plans. She explains how Zola’s unique credit system allows vendors to connect with couples without the burden of expensive subscriptions. Kate also highlights the importance of community in the wedding industry, emphasizing Zola’s tools for vendor collaboration and peer reviews. Whether you're a seasoned wedding pro or just starting out, this episode is packed with valuable insights on leveraging Zola to grow your business. Learn how to create compelling listings, utilize Zola’s “Say Hello” feature, and navigate the platform’s robust matching algorithms to connect with the right couples. Don’t miss out on tips for personalizing your outreach, responding swiftly to inquiries, and maintaining authentic connections. Plus, discover how Zola’s new vendor dashboard and resource center can help you continuously improve your profile and attract more qualified leads. 🎙️ Create a FREE Zola Listing Create a Free Zola Vendor ListingConnect with the right couples and own your brand with a free listing tailored to your industry.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to another episode of Funktastic Chats Podcast! Today, we're diving into how PartySlate can transform your event business with its innovative digital tools and strategies. Whether you're an event professional specializing in luxury corporate events, weddings, galas, etc., this episode is packed with insights just for you. We explore how PartySlate helps event professionals build a robust digital presence, save time, and manage their portfolios effectively. Julie emphasizes the importance of passion, grit, and a clear mission in overcoming obstacles and achieving entrepreneurial success. Founded in 2015, PartySlate has quickly become a leading platform for event inspiration and connections, raising up the level of local talent in the community that you're in. It is one of only five female-founded companies in Chicago to raise over $20 million in venture capital funding in the last decade. Don't miss out on Julie's valuable insights and advice for event professionals looking to make their mark in the industry.  She also discusses how PartySlate has tripled its audience over the last two years and continues to innovate with features like PartySlate Pro and AI-driven content management. Visit www.partyslate.com to create a free profile, showcasing your best work and enhancing your marketing strategy to stand out from the competition. Follow PartySlate on Instagram and Julie on Instagram for more inspiration and the latest industry scoop. Creating a free profile on PartySlate is an excellent way to grow your partner network and attract new clients. Use PartySlate to maintain an organized, always up-to-date portfolio, making it easier to share your best work and manage your social media content. Make sure to check out our previous episode from 2020 for more insights on growing your event business. The link is in the show notes. Remember, today we’re not just working in your business—we’re working on your business. Let’s elevate your event game with PartySlate! Links CREATE A FREE PARTYSLATE PROFILE Follow Partyslate on Instagram Follow Julie Novack on Instagram Listen to more Partyslate Episodes Create a PartySlate ProfilePartySlate offers a beautiful, customized way to build your brand and stand out from competitors.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Send us Fan Mail Today's guest is none other than Alan Berg! He’s the author of seven books, and in our last episode in 2021, we talked extensively about his wisdom in the business of weddings. Some of his popular books include "Shut Up and Sell More Weddings and Events," "Why Are They Ghosting Me?" and his latest, "Stop Selling and Help Them Buy Weddings and Events." Alan speaks to thousands of entrepreneurs like myself and business professionals every year through webinars, live presentations, and onsite sales training. We're going to dive deep into actionable steps from his books and podcasts that have resonated with many of us in the wedding industry. Alan is all about small, incremental steps that lead to big results. Now, what’s one thing that every wedding professional needs after a long, successful weekend of weddings? A glass of bourbon, of course! If you’re a bourbon aficionado, you’re going to love this episode too. Alan has a detailed process of experimenting with different types of woods and aging his bourbons, creating various blends that are just so cool. It's something Alan and I share a passion for, so you’ll enjoy the bonus dialogue at the beginning of the episode. With more than 25 years in sales, marketing, and sales management, Alan Berg is uniquely qualified to help wedding and event businesses succeed. He was included in the "Top 100 Speakers to Watch in 2024" by Motivator Music on LinkedIn, alongside Tony Robbins, Gary Vee, and Dave Ramsey. He’s the wedding and event industry’s first Certified Speaking Professional and one of only 40 Global Speaking Fellows worldwide. Since we first chatted with Alan on our podcast in 2021, he has started his own podcast, "The Wedding Business Solutions Podcast," which has over 200,000 downloads. Alan has extensive experience in sales, sales management, and marketing, ranging from publishing wedding magazines to serving as Vice President of Sales at The Knot. He’s an education expert for WeddingPro and consults for major industry websites in Ireland, Dubai, India, Australia, and the UK, as well as countless venues, hotels, bridal shops, planners, entertainers, and more. Alan has presented in over 14 countries, five of them in Spanish and recently in French, both of which he taught himself. Tune in and get ready for an episode filled with actionable insights and a touch of bourbon magic! Alan Berg's Website www.alanberg.com Wedding Business Solutions Podcast https://podcast.alanberg.com

Send us Fan Mail Why are couples taking longer to book you? Is your website ready to convert a cold audience? Is it relates to gen Z couples, promotion oriented advertising is a thing of the past. This year couples are more attuned to what makes your brand totally different and unique with personality. We're talking about the power of retargeting leveraging Tik-Tok, Instagram, Meta, and Google to show your ads multiple times and in multiple places. Mark Chapman is the founder of The I Do Society. Compared to a typical advertising agency, The I Do Society wants to be your partner, not only in creating and managing your ad campaigns, but delivering to you the right strategies to convert a cold audience. Mark and The I Do Society makes sure that if you're going to be spending money, that every other bit and piece the couple is going to explore about your business is ready to go! The I Do Society Website

Send us Fan Mail One of my favorite things that makes Terrica different is that she speaks very plainly, so much so you'll think it's a therapy session or your favorite biz bestie. She embraces this role to help over 4000+ wedding pros scale their businesses. Terrica has spent the past eighteen years crafting exquisite weddings and events that captivate and inspire. Her exceptional talent has earned recognition in esteemed publications such as The Knot, Reader's Digest, Martha Stewart Weddings, Style Me Pretty, and more. Beyond her creative endeavors, Terrica's passion for sharing knowledge takes her around the globe, where she imparts wisdom at workshops, retreats, and conferences. Known affectionately as the Mother Hustler, through her educational platform, HustleQuarters, she has empowered over 4000 wedding professionals to confidently elevate their pricing strategies and refine their sales processes. A respected educator for industry giants like The Knot and WeddingWire, Terrica's expertise recently graced the cover of the Spring/Summer 2024 issue of Event Therapy magazine, further solidifying her status as a trailblazer in the wedding world. Today's topics include: Celebrating Success: Event Therapy Magazine FeatureBuilding a Business: Challenges and Triumphs in the Wedding IndustryEmpowering Wedding Pros: Education, Community, and GrowthThe Power of Boundaries and Systems in Business The Art of Follow-Up and Adding ValueLeveraging Social MediaNavigating Competition and Budget Conversation Building a Strong Brand and Client Experience...and more!! Connect with Terrica Follow Terrica on IG Terrace's Website HustleQuarters Event Therapy Magazine

Send us Fan Mail Stand out from your competition as the top choice for your ideal clients, no matter how much you charge and join Heidi's FREE LIVE CHALLENGE MAY 20TH! The Stand Out and Get Booked Challenge Today, we're here with Heidi Thompson. She's the bestselling author of "Clone Your Best Clients" and the founder of Evolve Your Wedding Business, where she specializes in business and marketing strategy for wedding professionals. Heidi helps wedding professionals grow their businesses and reach their goals without going crazy in the process. Her business and marketing expertise have been featured on several wedding and business outlets, including the Huffington Post, social media, Examiner, Wedding Business Magazine, HoneyBook, WeddingWire World, and she serves on the advisory board for the UK Academy of Wedding and Event Planning. My favorite topics that we covered in this episode include: How to Stand Out in a Crowded Market: The importance of standing out in the wedding industry, where differentiation is key to attracting clients and avoiding price shopping.How to Understand who your Ideal Clients are and tailoring your marketing efforts to resonate with them. This involves identifying the specific problems your clients face and presenting your business as the solution.How to Create Compelling Service Packages: By crafting service packages that effectively communicate value and address clients' needs, wedding professionals can attract more clients and command higher prices. The challenge lies in articulating the unique value proposition clearly on service pages.How to Build Trust with Transparencyin Pricing: How transparent pricing builds trust with potential clients and reduces friction in the booking process. More About Heidi Thompson: Evolve Your Wedding Business: https://evolveyourweddingbusiness.com Follow Heidi on IG: https://www.instagram.com/evolveyourweddingbusiness/ Get Heidi's book, "Clone Your Best Clients" https://www.amazon.com/Clone-Your-Best-Clients-Guesswork/dp/0692878238

Send us Fan Mail Hey, event pros! We're talking about the next generation of Open-Air Photobooths  by a company called Photobooth Supply Company, otherwise known as PBSC. Should you buy a photobooth to offer as an add-on? How does this photobooth company give owners and entry to the photobooth business that they may not have gotten otherwise? How much should you invest? If you own a Salsa Booth, you most likely know my guest today, Simeon Weinraub,  co-owner of Jovial events and rentals, and The Pasadena Photo Booth Company. An event company located in Pasadena California, serving the greater Los Angeles area with party decor, balloons, photo booth services, and other party rentals. Before working in events, Simeon spent nearly three decades working in film and television production. And then spent some time teaching video, photography, and audio production. He sees the Photo Booth business and its challenges as an opportunity to share his technical knowledge and apply it to help his clients and other operators in the industry to create memorable experiences. Mentions: Photo Booth Supply Company Jovial Events (website) Jovial Events IG

Send us Fan Mail Hey, remember this episode?! How Releventful CRM Filled The Gap in The Event Industry. If you haven't had a chance to listen, or maybe you're currently using something like Dubsado, 17hats, Honeybook, or Active Campaign, you should seriously give that episode a listen! We recorded that episode 3 months ago now, and so I wanted to share my thoughts on Releventful 3 months later. One might say  I'm a SUPER USER, as we run our entire event entertainment business from it all day every day!  It's an all-in-one tool kit that keeps event industry professionals organized & connected. Whether you're a caterer, DJ, venue, or wedding planner, Releventful can help you grow your business with specialized tools and features unique to each industry. Get started today with a 14-day free tiral! Mentions: Use my Releventful referral link to save 10% off your first three months!

Send us Fan Mail Carissa Kruse is a Wedding Business Strategist and serial entrepreneur who has been in the wedding industry for over 10 years and has built multiple businesses. She's the founder of Weddings By Carue, a multi-state and multi-service wedding business. She has coached hundreds of entrepreneurs through launching and scaling their businesses with strategy and funnels. In her first year alone, she went from zero to $130,000 without any contacts experience or support. She is firmly anti-hustle and teaches your clients to build a sustainable wedding business with long-term vision that does not rely on 24, 7 posting or a flash in the pan strategies. This is part 2! Today's topics include: The right Call To Actions - Building trust vs just "trying to make a sale"How to close the sale with one phrase that Carissa uses every single timeYou had a great call with a lead, then they GHOSTED YOU! Now what?Using Tools & Strategy vs. coming across as too pushyLISTEN TO PART ONE HERE Carrissa Kruse Weddings Weddings By Carue

Send us Fan Mail Today we're here with Daniel Wright, Creator of Releventful. It's more than an event platform - It's actually a customer relationship and business management platform. Whether you're a caterer, DJ, venue, photographer, or wedding planner, Releventful can help you grow your business. This CRM provides event industry business owners an all-in-one toolkit that saves both time and money keeping you organized and connected. Today's Topics Include: How Releventful filled the gap in the Event Industry    How Releventful became the first “All In One” platform for TEAMS to collaborate, compared to others like 17hats, Dubasdo, etc. meant for solopreneurs.How Releventful helps leads not get lost in the shuffle with sales campaigns and 2 way SMS texting.Why you might be paying too much in processing fees from other CRMS.How Releventful was born by blending a unique set of project management and communication tools. Learn about Releventful’s app that released last month and how it elevates the client experience.How their DJ add-on & Song Selection features that will allow guests to request songs on the spot at their event through the app, build playlists, and more! Mentions: Use my Releventful referral link to save 10% off your first three months! DJ Vault Webinar

Send us Fan Mail Carissa Kruse is a Wedding Business Strategist and serial entrepreneur who has been in the wedding industry for over 10 years and has built multiple businesses. She's the founder of Weddings By Carue, a multi-state and multi-service wedding business. She has coached hundreds of entrepreneurs through launching and scaling their businesses with strategy and funnels. In her first year alone, she went from zero to $130,000 without any contacts experience or support. She is firmly anti-hustle and teaches your clients to build a sustainable wedding business with long-term vision that does not rely on 24, 7 posting or a flash in the pan strategies. This is a 2 part series! Today's topics include: How to create a perfect Welcome Sequence How Authentic story-based emails make you the expert of your field & build the trust factor with bridesWhy you need a Lead Magnet on your website (and not just a contact form)...and so much more!! Carrissa Kruse Weddings Weddings By Carue Funktastic Chats Website My Wedding Band Mentions: Active Campaign Honeybook Content Fuel For Wedding Pros & The Five Figure Funnel Formula

Send us Fan Mail Flara K is a duo from Montreal, Canada who explore a unique blend of R&B, indie pop, and electronic music influences.  I had the pleasure of meeting this talented group at Indie Week Canada! Their debut EP titled Anxious, Irrational, Fashionable is a collection of collaborative efforts alongside Mike Clay (Clay and Friends), Shakur Ahmad (Glass Animals), Milo Gore, and producer Lucas Liberatore. The release, accompanied with a month-long livestream RV tour across Canada helped garner attention from various outlets such as Radio-Canada, BBC Introducing, CBC, including a feature with Thomas Power on CBC's Q. Flara K's Website Flara K's Instagram Funktastic Chats Website Try Bandzoogle for free for 30 Days!Try it free for 30 days, and then use the promo code “funktastic” to get 15% off the first year.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Send us Fan Mail We're chatting about THE ULTIMATE SALES CRM FOR WEDDING PROS....Zendesk Sell! In this episode, we'll cover how to use Zendsek Sell for your wedding business. Topics include: Keeping Track of Leads through The Knot & Weddingwire AND Following UpDefining Your Sales ProcessBuilding Sales CollateralConverting Leads through Email Sequences...and more!As we step into engagement season, you know to update your Weddingwire and The Knot storefronts, update your website, but what your sales process? The whole essence of Zendesk Sell is to provide an extremely rich view about what the client relationship is about. You will have a full timeline for each person that inquires about your business, including a complete history of emails, text messages, recorded telephone calls! Try Zendesk Sell for Free The Podcast Website The Wedding Band Website

Send us Fan Mail Kate Storey is a digital marketing specialist, copywriter and social media expert. As co-owner of Book More Brides alongside her husband, Nick, she helps wedding business owners around the world better understand how to identify their perfect clients, what to say to get them to book, and how to create strategic online content that builds relationships and sales Topics covered include: How to close buy-later couples: Are couples ghosting you or are you ghosting them?How to bring in consistent leads on a regular basis (slow and fast methods)Blogging & Content Ideas for wedding prosHow to connect with couples on a deeper level and draw an emotional responseEmail Sequences to keep you front of mind and stand out from competitors Kate is passionate about helping wedding professionals find the right words that help them speak directly to their couples’ emotional needs (and buying triggers), and add a little fun and personality along the way. She is a big believer in being clear over clever - but her specialty is combining the two to create writing that helps wedding pros connect at a deeper level with the couples they want to book. Her experience extends beyond the wedding industry as well. With nearly 20 years in marketing, social media, public relations, and communications work, Kate has helped everyone from small start-ups, technology and manufacturing companies, national museums and even large corporations like Microsoft create a deeper connection with the people they serve through written and digital communications. Through it all, Kate believes that each business owner intuitively knows their perfect client - they just need a little help sometimes in putting it into words...and that’s where she comes in. When she’s not teaching marketing skills to wedding pros or recording content for the Book More Brides Podcast and YouTube channel, Kate loves going on adventures with Nick and their four children, savoring another cup of caramel creamer-laden coffee and watching way too many YouTube videos. About Kate Storey: Book More Brides Website Book More Brides Instagram Book More Brides Podcast Book More Brides CRM - Book & manage leads like never before! Funktastic Chats website