E156: Back to School, Back to Bookings

In this episode, we’re tackling the big question: how should wedding pros use September–December to set up a powerful January booking season? The simple answer is to treat Q4 like prep season: plan in 90-day sprints, refresh your visibility, and put systems in place now so couples find and book you later. Roxy and Katie share how to leverage engagement season (December through Valentine’s), tidy your website and inquiry flow, and use content, networking, and email marketing to turn attention into signed contracts. Follow this plan and you’ll enter January strong—already visible, already shortlisted, and ready to convert.

Episode Highlights

In this episode, you’ll learn how to:

• Think of Q4 as prep season, not wind-down season—so January isn’t a scramble.

• Work in 90-day sprints to stay motivated, read your data, and repeat what works.

• Align with engagement season: ~13% of engagements happen in December, and January is the biggest month for contracts (with a second wind around March).

• Build visibility now (consistent posts, useful content, website tidy-ups) so algorithms and search start favoring you before the rush.

• Tidy your website & bios: update images, dates, and messaging to match the season and your current offers.

• Fuel content via styled shoots & wedding fairs; repurpose BTS, spotlights, and testimonials into short-form content and emails.

• Network with peers & partners for referrals and collabs that compound your reach.

• Use email marketing (especially post-fair follow-ups) to nurture for months—those leads do convert later.

• Focus on systems over “winging it”: plan, track, iterate. Nothing changes if nothing changes.

Resources Mentioned

• WedCon industry event mentioned; November 26, Shrewsbury – strategy, content, pricing, and marketing sessions to plan your next sprint.

• The Wedding Business Hub – frameworks, systems, and programs referenced in the episode.

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Full Episode Transcript

Katie: Welcome to the Wed Pro Podcast, the podcast for wed pros, no matter their stage. We are your host, Katie and Roxy, and this is the Wed Pro Podcast.

Roxy: September is finally here and the kids are back at school. Well, mine aren't back at school yet, but I can see the day when they are. It's very soon. Keep getting closer. It's getting closer. You know, festivals, garden parties are a distant memory. And with those earlier darker nights comes that energy, the back to school reset. I am here for it, and the leaves are falling off the trees in the UK—I’ve noticed that too. But guess what? That's exactly the energy that wedding businesses need, right?

Katie: Because quarter four is not the time to slow down. It's time to set yourself up for booking season domination. And you said it in our Slack group this week—you were like, it's like the business New Year, is that what you said?

Roxy: Yeah. And a few emails that I sent this week, September feels like business new year: new planners, new diaries, new energy. And I know that we've been busy over the summer. However, January is the biggest month for contract signing, but how do you even show up in January at your strongest? That's what we're covering today. This window now matters. This last quarter of the year matters. So we're gonna look at what actually does change and how what we are doing in November can help you get to where you wanna be come January.

Katie: Okay, so let's just break it up a little bit. If we're thinking ahead, and I know when we come back to September we're thinking, “Oh my word, back in the business, lots of things.” Maybe looking at those goals that you set back at the start of the year but feeling a little bit overwhelmed as to where you're going—this episode is for you. This episode is gonna tell you exactly where you need to focus.

Roxy: But first, you know, really what we're looking at right now—and we tend to do this in our business, don't we?—quite often we look at 90-day sprints.

Katie: Yeah. So we look at 90-day sprints for a number of reasons. It helps you stay motivated with your goal. It's not too far away, so your brain doesn't shut off. Sometimes when we set goals that are really far in the future, our brains disassociate from them slightly.

Roxy: It's really good for motivation purposes, but also good as well because then we can look at data, and the more you run in these 90-day sprints—and this is what we encourage our clients to do—the more the data stacks up and the more we can see what's working and what isn't working.

Katie: So now, when we're thinking towards the end of the year, we're breaking it down. We've got Christmas proposals coming up—the C word! It's in the shops already. I know, it's happening. And then we've got New Year's Eve. Engagement season is coming.

Roxy: It is, and those couples that are in this engagement season are gonna be hitting the ground running in January, and that's where the contracts get signed. Data shows that January is the single biggest month for wedding contracts across the industry. And the second biggest? That's March. This is because of the second wind for couples who might have had that wait-and-see vibe over Christmas—“We’ll get Christmas out of the way and then start planning.”

Katie: And also for March as well: the biggest date of the year is Valentine's Day engagements. So that second wind with March contracts comes from those engagements as well. The typical engagement to wedding runs about 12 to 18 months. Couples who got through this summer, been to other weddings, looked at what friends have done, and wanted to get that season out of the way before focusing on their own wedding—now they’re looking.

Roxy: And this is the deal: if you are not visible now, if you're not putting strategies into your business now—not only how to be visible, but how to use that visibility to get booked—you are gonna miss that spike. Couples don't just get engaged and book the first person they see on Instagram. They start scrolling, shortlisting, saving inspiration. This next quarter is where you can get into their hearts, feeds, and inboxes so algorithms learn your content is valuable.

Katie: You might be thinking, “Oh, the summer's done—time to chill.” But September to December is when you turn it up, not down.

Roxy: I actually spring back into September: yes, kids go back and then it's bang. I call it the “kick-ass end of the year”—really focused. Partly because we have an event this quarter. I think about November more than December and Christmas!

Katie: I want to hit the ground running in 2026. I don't want to be starting January thinking, “What do I want from the year?” If you're coasting now, come January things won't look how you want. Nothing changes if nothing changes. If you keep doing Q4 how you've always done it, January will look the same as last January—overwhelm, scrambling for last-minute bookings. We want you opening your 2026 diary confident most of your season is booked, and even peeking into 2027–2028.

Roxy: Treat these months like prep season. It's your revision window. The real work starts now or next year starts on the back foot.

Katie: The most successful businesses aren’t keeping a secret sauce; they're planning ahead, working with structure, looking at data. What matters is that you have a plan and a system, not winging it.

Roxy: Also: the book is finished! Eight months of frameworks we teach—out of my head and onto paper. That’s the difference: structure and systems.

Katie: Practically, what does that look like? Search crawlers need time; Instagram/TikTok need consistent, interesting posts to rank and show up. The stuff you do now takes a month or two to kick in. So use Q4 as tactical season: schedule content, experiment with what lands (BTS from styled shoots, project spotlights, video testimonials, trending audio). Build traction now so January your profile is magnetic.

Roxy: And tidy your website. Update images, remove old dates, refresh bios for the coming season. Get involved in styled shoots and wedding fairs—tons of content, portfolio building, and networking for referrals and collabs. Show the vibe you can create.

Katie: Don’t sleep on networking. Reach out, collaborate, build your ecosystem. These relationships translate into referrals, guest slots, and name recognition.

Roxy: And that’s where WedCon comes in. We’re less than 90 days away; tickets are selling. It’s not just another event—it’ll change your Q4: strategy sessions, industry experts, tools to move your business forward—content, pricing, marketing. You’ll leave with clarity, a plan, ideas, referrals, partnerships, and an actionable to-do list that turns into bookings.

Katie: That’s why folks who go to WedCon smash their Januarys. If you want to be at WedCon on November 26 in Shrewsbury, head to wecon.co.uk. We can’t wait to hang with you.

Roxy: What are couples doing in Q4? A massive ~13% of all engagements happen in December. More than 50% of proposals happen from December to just past Valentine's Day, fueling the January peak. With 12–18 month timelines, they’re planning now. If you’re not showing up now, you won’t be in their plan.

Katie: Messaging matters. Content matters. Your branding matters. You’re not chasing inquiries; you’re positioning as the go-to supplier before couples even reach out.

Roxy: Recap: treat Q4 as prep season, not downtime. We’re not trying to overwhelm you; it’s about pulling the right levers, not doing more. Audit and refresh branding, content, inquiry process. Create a content schedule, plan styled shoots, show up on stories, plan TikToks, and email marketing.

Katie: Email is huge—especially for wedding fairs. We’ve seen bookings come 8–12 months later from consistent nurture. But you have to put the gears in motion—nothing changes if nothing changes. Make collaborations structured and strategic. Show up, get the right strategy, keep momentum.

Roxy: If you start, plan, and act now, your January and March bookings won’t be luck—they’ll be the result of the work you did when it mattered.

Katie: It’s not about more, it’s about the right things. Remove the busywork that doesn’t move the needle. Don’t be the one saying next year “it’s a slow start.” Be visible in the right places, tidy your assets, and have a plan so you’re not scrambling or missing the boat.

Roxy: We’re so excited for WedCon—it’s going to be amazing. If you’re serious about your wedding business, you’ll take so much away and it’ll give you the fire to keep moving forward.

Katie: Please share this with a wedding pro who needs it—we’d love to reach more people and see new faces at WedCon. And if you listen but don’t follow or subscribe yet, hit that button so you get new episodes first.

Both: Thanks for listening to the WedPro Podcast!

Katie: Full transcripts of this and every episode: theweddingbusinesshub.com/blogs. Questions? Email info@theweddingbusinesshub.com. Hit subscribe or follow to stay updated. See you on the next episode!