This is the Transcript of the #WeddingMarket Chat on July 31st, 2013 with Donnie Brown. The answers were made on Twitter so responses will appear different. 

Donnie Brown

The wedding day, for most people, is one of the most stressful of their lives. So how has wedding planner W. Donnie Brown, JWIC survived more than 1,600 of them? He has a secret weapon. “I try to use humor on a day-to-day basis,” he says. “I think humor makes the day far more fun.”

But Brown’s warm and wacky sense of humor has done more than just smooth over nuptial nerves: it’s also made him a reality TV star. Fans of the Style Network’s top-rated reality show Whose Wedding Is It Anyway? tune in regularly to watch Brown and other big-city wedding planners pull out all the stops to give couples the weddings of their dreams. And with his clever one-liners, gregarious personality and goofy on-camera antics, Texas native Brown has quickly become a fan favorite.

“I let things come out of my mouth that generally stun everyone around me,” the energetic planner admits, laughing.

Brown’s mix of TV-ready charisma and calm professionalism was exactly what producers were looking for when they came to Dallas in 2002 looking for wedding planners for a new reality series. They envisioned a wedding program that focused more on the role of the planners than the bride and groom, following the professionals as they coped with last-minute crises and emotional overload. But for the show to work, the planners had to be not only pros who could handle the pressures of their job surrounded by cameras, but also lively, entertaining personalities who could draw viewers in and keep things interesting. They knew immediately that the talented Brown would fit the bill.

See More Information at  http://www.donniebrown.com 

Q1:   How did you get involved with the wedding industry?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: I started working with a family friend-owned floral company in Lubbock when I was 16 at a time when they were short handed. I worked there on weekends all the way through college. After I graduated I just continued in the industry. It was what I knew. I originally wanted to be a bank officer. After four years of college and working weddings, I knew that wasn’t the path for me. It was all about weddings from that point on!

Q2:   Why should brides or couples consider hiring a wedding planner?
Answer: 

Donnie Brown: Would you do dental surgery on yourself? Brides come in all the time and say they are in the weeds planning their own wedding. They end up hiring someone for at least month of or a limited package anyway. If they had started out with a planner it would have made the process so much better. A planner can save them so much money, time and hassle from the beginning. I think it’s a no-brainer!
 

Q3:   How did you get involved with Style Network’s “Whose Wedding Is It Anyway”?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: The network was looking for 12 planners in New York, LA and Dallas. They interviewed 300 people in Dallas alone.  Everyone kept saying my name. They eventually called me and did a screen test and the rest is history.  I was the only cast member that s tarted in season 1 and was still there when it went on permanent hiatus. I miss it. I would love if they brought it back. I get so tired of the extreme drama reality. I loved our sweet show. It had drama, but not the kind of crazy you see today all the time!  I get offered spots all the time, but they want me to do things I think would hurt my brand. So I say no!

Q4:   What are some of top wedding trends in flowers & decor this year?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: Clean lines, monochromatic color schemes. Reflective elements such as crystals, stones, etc. A clean palate to design on. We do etheral designs that create a memory.

Q5:   What are some other top wedding trends this year?
Answer:

Donnie Brown: The elements must be paid attention to. What you see, what you hear, what you smell, what you taste!  It’s all about creating a memory for the senses. We remember more than what we see. It’s also about reveals. You must continue to reveal new moments for the guests to enjoy. The more new reveals you showcase, the better the memories. I also tell brides and grooms that it is like a great broadway play. They are the cast on stage and the guests are the audience. Everything must be timed to the second. If anything goes wrong, they keep going. Guests probably won’t notice.

Q6:   What tips do you offer brides who have just got engaged?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: The first thing you should do is hire a planner. Before you set a date or make any decisions. Hire a planner. They will help you make the right decisions from the beginning. You will have a much more tight and cohesive wedding.  I often tell grooms to hire us to plan the engagement and the wedding in one package. If you market yourself as an engagement specialist, you get them for the wedding too. We make sure the engagement is perfect in every way. That is the first best day in a brides life. The second is the wedding. Why not be a part of the whole thing. You can also arrange their engagement party that way.

Q7 :   What advice do you have for wedding planners getting into the industry?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: The best thing you can do to get into the wedding industry is get your education and certification such as from ABC. Then, intern with a professional for at least a year. Make sure they are great. You don’t want to learn from an amateur. When you intern, do what you’re told and be a sponge. Learn everything they do and absorb it.
I have at least one to two interns on my staff at all times. They get to do a little of everything. They work with me and my team as though they were full employees with the education being first and foremost.

Q8:   How do you use social media to promote your business?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: I have a personal Facebook page, a fan site and a business site. You use them all independently. You should make twitter a destination for all your social media posts. But, your Facebook should be differentiated. I have only recently started using Pinterest. It just seemed like one more thing to do. But all the brides are using it. We use social media at a wedding in the respect of photo booths and green screens that are wired. We generally don’t use it for the ceremony or any personal moments. It’s more for guests to show themselves at the wedding. Brides want to make sure they have control over what images go out. They certainly don’t want everyone and their dogs taking and posting pictures. If you have ever worked with a celebrity, you would know this concept. They have total control over what is published.

Q9:    Do you think it’s a good idea to have a unplugged wedding ?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: I totally agree with an unplugged ceremony in every case. For the reasons I just noted. The reception is something different. That is totally up to the bride and groom.

Q10:   Can you tell me a little bit about your upcoming projects or events?

Answer: 

Donnie Brown: We have a new fragrance line coming out. It allows brides and grooms to create their own custom fragrance from notes. They pair notes together until they come up with their own fragrance and then have a custom fragrance. We pump the fragrance into their wedding. We also create favors for the guests that include the fragrance. Nothing like it! I am on the ground floor of this project and we are looking for wedding planners an boutiques around the US to do it too! I will be the face of the company for the first three years in all marketing. It is a profit center too for the planner. You get a commission for the items you sell. We have done it. It is amazing! Nothing like sending your custom fragrance home with your guests. Tweet me and I will send you the link. Private message me and I will tell you about it. I also am working on two new books. One is a cookbook and the other is a true wedding story book. Hopefully next year!

Julie Albaugh Host: I heard you won an award recently.

Answer: 

Donnie Brown: We did. We won Best Wedding Planner in North Texas in the A-List Awards. Very excited!! That combined with Brides Choice Award from Wedding Wire and Best of Weddings at the Knot. It’s been a fun few months. We just keep doing the best job we can and let the awards fall where they may.

Q11: What would you like everyone to take away from this #WeddingMarket Chat ?

Answer:

Donnie Brown: Please take away these things: Work smart and hard! Make ethical decisions! Treat your clients like family! Create a business model that you are proud of! Don’t allow anyone to tear down a brand that you are working hard to create! Set trends and show everybody. If they copy you, be flattered! Have fun with your business and don’t let failure be a part of your thought process. Make sure your brand is recognizable. Create planning calendars for every client and keep on schedule! That is critical!!!

#WeddingMarket Questions From Twitter:

1. @MazelTovGlass What would you like to see more of in the wedding industry?

Donnie Brown: I would like to see more industry professionals working together rather than considering each other just competition. It is great for the industry to have well-oiled machine professionals that pick up where the others leave off. The couples are our lifeblood. I think we should all work together to make their day perfect. Additionally, I think more pros need to rethink what the couples stand for. They are more than a meal ticket.  We genuinely have a wedding in our hands. It must be perfect. We are more important to a new couple than anyone else.  We must consider their wedding as personally as we would something that had if it had a direct reflection on our family.  They are depending on us. We must come through. Again, it;s not just about a paycheck. I love our clients. More some than others. But, I treat them like my family!

2. @DebbieAuma What suggestions do you have for upcoming wedding planners trying to get on wedding tv shows?

Donnie Brown: Be careful what you ask for. It is a lot more trouble than you might think. Plus, you have network producers with the very value of your company on the line. You spend so much time building a brand and a bad producer can destroy it in short order for ratings. Just be careful and make the best decisions you possibly can.

3. @TaylorWed How would planners be able to get an article in a local paper (about entertaining)?

Donnie Brown: Press releases and perhaps a publicist.

4. @MazelTovGlass What’s your daily routine (usually) like as a wedding planner?

Donnie Brown: Working eight to ten hours a day, meeting clients, strategizing and getting serious down time when I can. I spend my free time cooking, gardening and swimming. Reading and watching movies is part of it too!

5. @SweetSeatsAtl Where do you seek inspiration for wedding design ideas @WDonnieBrown?

Donnie Brown: I look at everything. If you have done it, I look at it. I read the magazines, I read social media. I never copy anyone. But, I do spin things I see other people do from time to time. Some of my best ideas come from dreams though. I keep a notepad next to my bed. I often spend the first few mins. of the AM making notes on dreams.

6: @DebbieAuma When and how do you know that a potential client is not worth your services?

Donnie Brown: You will know. Listen very carefully and have boundaries. Don’t take on clients that can’t afford you or want a wedding that you will not do. Wedding planning is not like meeting a guy. You can’t usually change someone’s dream into your own idea.

7: @MozelTovGlass Do you have any advice for how small businesses can get their name out there in this industry?

Donnie Brown:  Join wedding industry networking associations locally and make yourself known. Also VOLUNTEER!!! Help out the association in any way you possibly can. Get on committees and help plan large events for the association. Get on a board or two. I did it. It worked!!! That was a large part of how I got on Whose Wedding. Everyone knew me from my years of work with networking associations. I worked tirelessly in my free time helping out.

8: @TaylorWed Do you use social media for before and after shots to post on your Fan page throughout set up on wedding day?

Donnie Brown:  We only use social media after and are careful to make the client look perfect! Generally, we do most social media posts on the beauty shots and not so much on the couple or guests.