Starting up your own website can be difficult for any business especially if you are starting as a small business with not a ton of resources. Bridal is a very unique industry and it can be hard to know how to market your business in an industry that quickly gets oversaturated depending on your location. We live in the age of the internet so a well designed website can set you apart and increase your shop traffic. In this post I’ll be going over some good starting points to designing not only a well designed website but also the perfect website for your brand.
Remember that your website is a reflection of your brand.
Businesses that operate out of a physical location, like a bridal shop, depend heavily on the atmosphere they create for their customers. You want to make sure you maintain this atmosphere in your website. If your bridal shop is located in an affluent area with luxury or couture gowns then you want your website to reflect that sense of exclusivity and luxury. Less is more sometimes for brands like this, super bright contrasting colors on a website wouldn’t match that.
Consider what kind of bride you’re trying to cater to.
When you’re deciding the kind of information your want to include and highlight you need to consider who your target bride is. If you’re trying to attract brides who may be more money conscious you want to give them information like pricing, payment options, and assure quality even at a lower price. If you’re a wedding gown consignment store you want to show how brides can trust that the gowns are being checked for quality, properly cleaned, and that the designs you have are still modern/trendy enough. In general, any bridal store that carries specific designers should make that information accessible since a lot of brides are interested in specific designers cause they match their vision and aesthetic.
If you operate by appointment then you should make the appointment scheduler easy to access and navigate otherwise many brides can be deterred. It’s also important to have your shop’s various forms of contact readily available. Remember that this is likely a new experience and brides will have tons of questions. It also wouldn’t be a bad idea to include information on how your shop operates considering all shops can operate differently.
Make your website the kind of thing a bride wants to explore.
While you don’t want to overwhelm your website with every color of the rainbow, you want to have aspects that make your website unique from others. This can be achieved through displaying pleasing aesthetics or showcasing your website as an informative platform for brides to learn from.
Creating a blog can absolutely help with this aspect of your website since that can attract a bride to staying on your website and coming to value your company for all it’s information. Blog posts can also help to showcase what kind of social experience brides can expect in your shop. Feeling comfortable voicing opinions and being physically vulnerable is a very important part of bridal shop appointments. Through presenting what kind atmosphere you and your employees offer, a bride can enter the shop already feeling connected and comfortable.