WE ARE HERE TO HELP!
In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, we are offering our services to all venues to help couples that are wanting to re-book dates but are struggling to get registrars secured. We know that a lot of registration service offices are shutting down and not taking ceremonies until at least September, which means there will be a lot of oucples unable to hold celebrations until they re-open and take bookings for gatherings again. Some are even stipulating that even early Autumn ceremonies will be just for the couple, thier two witnesses and the photographer.
We have already secured dates for all of our early season couples and unlike other celebrant businesses, we have depth to the team, so even if I am booked already, there are at least three others available to assist. I am also now taking on an additional celebrant for six months to help with additionao enquiries which means we will be able to help a greater number of people at this difficult time.
I have likened this situation to a house of cards, where when one supplier pulls out due to illness the whole thing can end up collapsing. Whilst we are observing guidelines, we are available for business and happy to start getting dates booked in to help those that are having to postpone.
WE ARE A TEAM
I have grown my business over the last few years and now have myself (lead celebrant), Lorna my Senior Associate, and two lovely associate celebrants that all love what they do and work tirelessly for our couples.
What this means for our venues is that there is depth to the business, if ever I was prevented from conducting a ceremony I have a trusted and experienced associate that can step in to help and it offers peace of mind for everyone.
You can find out more about our fab team here.
THERE ARE HUGE BENEFITS TO WORKING WITH US!
As a wedding venue you may already be aware of celebrant-led ceremonies, or have even hosted them, but were you aware that we can help you to increase your wedding bookings?
(If you haven't yet heard of or worked with us, then feel free to hop over to read this handy blog that explains a little bit about what we do.) The legal parts are all explained here too.
DID YOU KNOW: There are only two legal aspects to any civil wedding?
These are hearing the declaration and contracting words, and signing the paperwork.
The vows, rings, first kiss, pronoouncement etc are all ceremonial and so just by separating out the 'transactional' or administrative elements, your couples can still have all of the things that they and their guests associate with a wedding, but without any restrictions!
WE ARE PROACTIVE!
Here at Knight Ceremonies, we are very proactive, some say 'a bit of a powerhouse' when it comes to social media promotion of our venues and fellow suppliers, and we love to build a good relationship with the people that we work with.
You see, we not only want to attract our ideal couples, but we also want to raise the profile of what we do, AND ensure that our venues are fully aware of the potential of working with us too.
Here are just some of the benefits of working with us:
NEW OPTIONS WITHIN YOUR VENUE
You will no doubt have dedicated spaces within your venue to hold a wedding ceremony, but did you know the space does not need to be licensed when working with a celebrant?! As explained in the links above, once the two legal administrative elements have been taken care of, the lovely ceremonial aspects that everyone associates with a wedding, can take place ANYWHERE.
DID YOU KNOW: that 2/3 of couples now get married at their reception venue! (Bridebook report)
Venues must, therefore, ensure that their ceremony offering is enticing!
This means that as a venue, you may perhaps have restrictions on numbers in your ceremony room which prohibits larger weddings, but if you have the space for a larger reception, there's now nothing stopping you taking those bigger all-day bookings!
Modern couples have Pinterest boards full of aspirational pictures and they base a lot of their decision making on these images, so why not offer them a few new options in terms of where they might hold their ceremony? You might have a nice view, a lovely natural backdrop or have a lake or fountain on site. You may even have a beautiful sweeping staircase or a stunning entrance hallway. With a celebrant, you can make the most of these venue attributes and sell these new spaces to entice more couples.
"Using alternative locations on-site for a ceremony means that your reception and wedding breakfast spaces can be pre-set,
which makes the whole day a lot smoother for a venue!"
OUR COUPLES AND VENUES LOVE US!
It quite simply is a very personal and comprehensive service that our couples receive and we support and guide them throughout the whole build-up to their day too! They feel reassured that we have everything in hand and we communicate details to the venue (timings and any requests) so that everyone knows what is happening and when.
We arrive early on-site so that we have time to chat with everyone. There are no egos here and we value the time that we have on-site - It allows us to prepare for the exciting event that is about to take place. We only take on one ceremony each per day so we aren't rushing off or feeling the pressure if there are slight delays. Whilst we don't encourage late brides or grooms, we do provide a bit of flexibility, and we work alongside our fellow suppliers and venues to make it all work.
You also have direct access to us and we love to build strong relationships with our venues. It makes for a much nicer atmosphere on the day!
UNIQUE CEREMONIES MAKE FOR GREAT STORIES!
There are no templates here! Lots of venues see the same ceremonies week in week out, without any degree of separation. The registrar might arrive 20 mins before to interview one half of the couple, and then 10 mins prior to the ceremony they interview the other. It's not the most romantic pre-cursor to their ceremony and often interrupts the most delicate moments.
I have seen brides and their father's enjoying a wonderful "first look" moment and then being broken apart to be asked to confirm their name and address. We just don't do this.
We encourage magical moments, and we celebrate them. Allowing couples the gift of time with loved ones and making sure the ceremony is written about them, and including modern and relevant wording which makes for a much more enjoyable service.
We love to involve family and guests and as there are no restrictions in terms of what can be said or the indeed the style of the ceremony, they become the most unique and personal weddings and we create wonderful moments for our photographers to capture. You then have images of all sorts of fabulous weddings to share.
Just as each person is an individual, and each pairing naturally makes a unique couple,
our ceremonies are therefore completely one of a kind!
WE SPEAK THEIR LANGUAGE!
We have spoken 11 languages to welcome families from all over the globe, we can incorporate cultural elements and indeed family traditions and we understand how different weddings work around the World, so when a couple comes to the UK, we can weave aspects of the things they are accustomed to, into their own ceremony.
VENUE SPOTLIGHTS
We love to visit you outside of a wedding day, have a show round and we take lots of photos to demonstrate from a couple's perspective, what they might experience on the day.
We then write a beautiful review and wrap it all up in a great blog along with the images, and this sits on our website. We then share it across our social media channels and it gets sent to a group of wedding planners that we work with (via the UKAWP - The UK Alliance of Wedding Planners) and also across several Facebook forums for other wedding suppliers to read.
Click below for examples of our Venue Spotlight Blogs . . .
Minley Manor (Hampshire)
Runnymede Hotel (Thames Riverside)
Gorse Hill (Surrey)
Slades Farm (Surrey)
Hook House Hotel (Hampshire)
PRE-WEDDING PROMOTION
Before each of our weddings, we post on Facebook and Instagram about where we are working that week/weekend, along with images of your venue, and links to your website and any social pages.
All of our followers then get to see your venue, and when we speak to newly engaged couples, we often reference these posts if they are looking for a venue (many of our couples come to us first and request venue and supplier recommendations!).
WEDDING DAY BROADCASTS
On the day, we arrive early, complete our set-up and chats with everyone involved, then we have time to do a series of behind-the-scenes videos and photos that go live instantly online. We encourage interaction on our stories and we showcase the venue and it's ceremony and reception potential for all future couples looking at venues. We, of course, tag everyone too so you'll have consistent exposure to our followers throughout the whole wedding prep and on the day process.
POST-WEDDING BLOG
After each wedding, we complete a summary of the day, complete with images and links to all of the suppliers that we have worked with. We list the venue first and link to your website.
You can see some of our wedding blogs here . . .
Wedding at Farbridge (Sout Downs)
Wedding at Bloomsbury Ballroom (London)
Wedding at Micklefield Hall (Bucks)
The blog then gets posted on our social media channels and sits on our website. We send a copy to the couple (who then share it) and it also goes to the venue, and each of the suppliers to share or reference in the future.
SOCIAL MEDIA TAGS
To say that we value the images that we are sent is a bit of an understatement. We love seeing them and we love to share them! We work exceptionally well with our photographers and I enjoy showcasing all of the unique weddings that we work on. (All of our couples sign an image and video release clause on their contract with us to confirm their consent for us to share.)
I am still sharing images of my very first ceremony all those years ago as they are all still relevant and it provides extended promotion for our venues and fellow suppliers too.
Feel free to hop over to our channels to have a look at what we do . . .
Knight Ceremonies on Instagram
So as you can see, what we do extends well beyond just turning up on the day with a script in hand. It's enjoyable, it's memorable and our venues benefit hugely from our collaboration.
DID YOU KNOW: Couples are looking for venues with lovely grounds and gardens and this forms a key part of their decision making when securing a setting for their big day (Bridebook report)
If you would like to know more, have any questions, or indeed would like to work with us, please do get in touch.
We would love to work with you.
