Homepage Features for Wedding Venues

There may be no better way to sell your venue than to tell the story behind it. Whether it is a historic venue steeped in lore or a newly constructed building created from your passion for giving newlyweds the best night of their life, tell people about the building’s history. It is also an opportunity for you to share your own love story or your passion for the industry, making you and your venue the perfect place for newlyweds to host their wedding, reception, or both. 

Scheduling Tools

Scheduling tools are pretty standard among venue homepages, so it is not something you want to lack. A calendar with available dates and a way to reserve a date online or at least contact information to reserve a date through email or over the phone is all you need. In the 21st-century, people are looking for convenience. It can be a make or break for some wedding planners who don’t have the energy to search for availability and contact information. 

Maps and Directions

This is another popular feature on most business websites and is simple to add in most cases. A simple map showing the location of your venue allows potential clients to visualize where your venue is compared to other events of the day. Simple directions from each compass point are also helpful to give them an idea of how easy it is to get to your venue. 

A Photo Gallery

Visuals have always been a key in sales, which goes double when trying to sell a venue. Put a photo gallery on your home page with high-quality pictures showing every aspect of your venue, from the front doors to behind-the-scenes amenities like dressing rooms. Make sure that there is a healthy mix of the venue when it is empty so they can get an idea of the space and layout and the venue during an event, so potential clients can see other people using and enjoying the venue. They will consciously or subconsciously put themselves in that picture and envision how great having their event at your venue will be. 

FAQs

Again, people who are planning weddings are usually at their maximum stress limit, and they are always looking for convenience. Having a FAQ section at the front and center of your homepage will give them most of the information they need and give you an edge with tired and stressed wedding planners. A few answers that you will want to put in your FAQ section include capacity limits, parking, inclement weather plans for outdoor venues, amenities like dressing quarters or complimentary tables and chairs, and if there is a bar/kitchen area. 

Floor Plans and Virtual Tours

While many guests will be happy with pictures of the venue, some may prefer a more technical look at your facility. These can be added to your photo gallery or placed in a separate area of your homepage. A blueprint of the floor plan and a virtual tour of the empty venue may help answer some questions wedding planners have as far as decorating and activities they are planning for the event. Although this is more technical than a photo gallery, it is still an opportunity to showcase your venue with high-quality photos and videos that display all of the best qualities of your site. 

Links to Preferred Partners

Linking to preferred partners on your home page benefits both the business and consumer sides of your website. First, if you are linking to other companies, they should be linking to you. For instance, if you partner with a preferred caterer and have their link on your home page, they should have your link on their homepage. That way, if a wedding planner finds the caterer first, they will see your venue and potentially follow the link to your site and vice versa. Second, on the consumer side of things, it goes back to the stress of wedding planning. Position yourself as a one-stop website to find a venue, and other necessary wedding businesses will please tired and stressed wedding planners. 

A Genuine CTA

Your homepage is a showcase of what you have to offer, but it is also a potential client’s first impression of your business and what you have to offer. Make sure that you have a genuine call to action on your page to invite potential clients to book now or contact you for more information. It should not sound like a heavy-handed sales pitch, but instead a genuine appeal to help them with their planning needs and make one of the most important days of their life that much more special. Positioning yourself as part of the journey instead of just a place to be, may be the enticement they need to make that final decision. 

Let Us Help

Any one of these ideas will impress potential clients and automatically put you in the running for their final choice. Some are easy fixes, and some take a little more work, but all of them are achievable, especially if you have help. Our professional services will help put the finishing touches on your venue’s already beautiful website. So, contact us today to find out more about how we can partner to build a homepage that will attract clients and improve your booking rate this year and in years to come!