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Kindness and Respect in Business

kindness and respectThere are times when people, spending large amounts of money on a product or an event, will adopt an attitude of pushiness. Sometimes, this attitude will become more aggressive and degrade into disdain or cruelty. I have seen unacceptable meanness toward  and manipulation of vendors. Everyone in the industry also has those clients who are a total dream. Clients who treat us with the same kindness and respect that they expect from us. We want a whole roster of them. Right now, I have one who, if she would have a renewal of vows every year, would make me extremely happy. I absolutely adore her and her groom. I have had some clients whom I would prefer to never see again.

People come into the wedding industry to plan their big day. Many are spending more money on this one event than they will spend on anything else in their lives. It’s a lot of money for one day. We don’t take that lightly. We understand. When you lay out that kind of cash for something, you want it to be right. You wouldn’t buy a new car that wasn’t exactly what you wanted and in perfect condition. Why would a wedding be any different?

In this industry we meet all types of people. The good, the bad, and the horrifying.
I recently testified on a court case to help a fellow wedding professional. The vendor was wronged by a couple over $125 — just to hurt her and draw attention to themselves. They attempted a public assassination and it worked, for a while. The law, however, was on the vendor’s side and she was awarded a huge cash settlement. Justice was done. It was more than the money. It was vindication that she was a good person who ran a solid business and didn’t deserve what happened to her. She must now begin the process of rebuilding a business which took over 10 years to build and 48 hours to destroy. Everyone in the industry is one unethical or opportunistic client away from catastrophe.

The point of today’s post is to say “be kind.” You don’t know what the vendors you are dealing with are going through beyond your wedding. We were taught as children to follow the golden rule — do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Let’s all follow that rule as adults. It makes no difference if you are standing face to face or on the phone or internet. All the same. Let’s show each other respect. I assure you that if you treat your wedding pros with kindness and respect, it will make your wedding more personal to them and they will give you extra that will only help to make your wedding better in the end. Here’s to a better and more fun wedding planning process for everyone.