Bringing an End to Wedding Planning “Phone Tag”

When your wedding planning gets into full swing, you will learn quickly how frustrating it is to become trapped and entwined in several never-ending games of vendor phone tag. It will often seem like no one is ever around when you need them, and they will only ever call you back when it is least convenient. Games of phone tag usually begin with a few apologetic voicemails with a hasty return number, but can quickly turn irritating when you find that you’ve gone weeks without directly catching the person you need to reach, and you’ve learned nothing that is vital to your planning process. A woman can only handle so many “Sorry I missed you, you can reach me at…” messages before she throws a rock through a print shop window. Don’t do that. Instead, try one or both of the following techniques:   Call and Email While phones are your best bet for reaching a real live human when you’re trying to rush through wedding tasks, there is something to be said for a good, solid email. Either of these mediums alone often isn’t enough, however. On their own, forgetting to respond to an email or a voicemail is pretty easy, but one of each is harder to miss. One will help to remind your audience about the other. If they receive a voicemail from you, they may or may not remember to call you back. An additional email bumps you back up the priorities list – at least some of the time. Leave a specific voicemail, and follow up with an email that sounds something like “Just following up concerning my call to your business earlier this week; I look forward to hearing from you about…” Short, simple, and friendly. Just don’t overload their inbox!     Employ Specificity
When you don’t reach your hopeful audience after a few phone calls, start leaving more than just your name and number on their machine. If you’re a potential customer, give them a reason to be more eager to reach you – specifics about the service you need and the information you need from them. If anything, you’ll receive a counter message that is more than just their name and number; it may even be pertinent information for you! That way, you may not need to waste any more time chasing them down. If you are already using the services of the audience you’re trying to reach, a specific message helps to guarantee that a return message will contain any of the information you need, such as cake topper pricing or shipping details. Even if you’re both too busy to catch each other, the game of phone tag gets a little more productive with the application of a little specificity. May your game of phone tag reach a swift and satisfying conclusion!