What your business can learn from the Royal Wedding..
Nothing can really beat the excitement of a big wedding and they don’t come bigger than a Royal one. The big day is upon us. Today, billions of televisions around the world will be tuned into the wedding of the future King of England, Price William of Wales, to his fiancée Kate Middleton.
Regardless of what you think of the Royals (or marriage for that matter) there is no mistaking that this is likely to be one of the biggest events of the year (unless you are a fan of Zimfest ;)). And big events with big audiences mean big opportunities for smart marketers.
I have been following the build-up since the wedding was announced and have watched with great interest how businesses have taken advantage of the mood and excitement. With this in mind, here are some marketing lessons from the Royal Wedding – it's not too late to use some in your business.
Become an expert
With the media desperate for any sort of content in the lead-up to the wedding, an army of business people – from fashion designers right down to humble bridal shop managers – have emerged to give their expertise on everything from bridal dresses, wedding cars, wedding cakes and even cutlery. In most cases, these people aren't privy to the actual details of the wedding, but that doesn't matter – they are "experts" in their field and therefore have a platform.
Back it up with social media
Any event with a big television audience is almost guaranteed to create huge social media traffic and the royal wedding is no different. With this in mind, any promotion or marketing must be supported by an appropriate social media campaign – something the Royal Family itself is doing well with a steady stream of Tweets from its account @ClarenceHouse.
One of the best examples of a specific social media campaign comes from Schweppes, which is itself an official supplier to the Royal Family. The company, which is selling a special range of Royal Wedding-branded bottles, has created a virtual giant wedding card on Facebook for users to sign.
Control the flow of information
The Royal Family have given marketers a master class in how to control the information around a big event. While Clarence House can't control the experts weighing in on potential wedding dress designs, they have been able to set the official agenda around the wedding by releasing a steady stream of information, including selected members of the guest list (which killed off speculation around this) details of flower arrangements and seating plans and photos of rehearsals and other events.
Tailor your content
Getting some wedding-related content out to your customers or potential customers in a timely matter is crucial if you want to get even a small slice of the interest around the big event. It might be a blog on how your industry is involved in the wedding or it might be a special wedding-related event or promotion.
Build anticipation
The wedding itself may only take a few hours, but clever marketers have been working at building anticipation for months. It's a great lesson that business owners can use in the lead up to a big event – count down clocks and marketing messages saying there are "two weeks to go" allow you to stretch out the marketing impact.
Sentiment sells
While modern marketing tends to concentrate on the smart, slick, innovative and satirical, there is a decidedly old-fashioned lesson in the Royal Wedding – sentiment still sells. While many consumers in the UK think the monarchy is a rather out-dated institution, there is no getting around the fact that everyone loves a wedding and a bit of romance.
Beware the backlash
The Royal Wedding has received its fair share of bad press. Concerns about the cost of security and the amount British taxpayers stump up each year to keep the Royals in the manner they have become accustomed are inevitable around an event like this. Saw it recently with the Zim Achievers Awards where there was a lot of negativity but the organisers dealt with that brilliantly. If your event is controversial or has its critics, be prepared to address any negativity.
Have fun
Everyone knows that getting excited about the Royal Wedding is a bit silly, but marketers shouldn't be afraid to get caught up in the spirit of whole thing and have a bit of fun – particularly if this is part of your brand values.


