How NOT to Act at a Consultation

You may not realize this but when you attend an initial consultation you too are being interviewed as much as the vendor you are meeting with. Yep, believe it or not, vendors do turn clients away. Here's the truth. Vendors obviously want a bride's business but more importantly we want to work with clients that mesh well with our style and are pleasant to work with. With that said, unfortunately, not all potential clients will be extended a contract.

So, here are some examples of what not to do during an initial consultation that may influence whether or not a vendor extends a contract to you.

At no point during the meeting should you answer your cell phone. It is very awkward to sit there and listen to someone else's conversation while of course, you are pretending not to listen. 9 times out of 10 it is not an emergency and can probably wait another 20 minutes until the meeting is over. And, if you are wondering, saying "excuse me" doesn't make this situation okay.

Don't spend half of the meeting bickering with your mom about wedding plans, especially those that don't have anything to do with your current meeting. This is also an awkward moment for vendors. Whose side do you take, the bride or the mother's? And yes, we will be forced to take a side and it isn’t pleasant.

Leave your groom bashing comments at home. Vendors obviously want to contribute to healthy and successful marriages and don't want to hear that you feel your groom is inadequate to make decisions or that you already have your second wedding planned.

As you can see, the way that you act during your initial consultation can really influence your future relationships with vendors. Read yesterday's post for how to appropriately act during a consult.

P.S. Some of the above examples were dramatized during the process of writing this post and may not be described exactly as they first occurred.