Building custom wedding websites when free alternative are available. A progress thread targeting summer/fall 2023.

[Choate]

Targeting summer + fall 2023. The idea is to be operational by March /April 2023.

Weddings are big expenses. Some couples spend hundreds on custom napkins and bathroom décor for the venue. But they will skimp on a website to get an average one through The Knot for free. The same website everyone else has, with a domain that is tied to The Knot. And probably hastily put together by one of the groomsmen or maid of honor's friends.

I am going to sell them on creating a lasting memory. A website they can look back on a decade down the road and see all of the pictures of their wedding. Not just a one pager that has wedding planning info and a link to their registry. A website that is custom to them at the moment, and will serve as a souvenir of sorts after the wedding is over.

1.5 million people get married every year in the United States alone. So feel free to join me on this journey, there's plenty of space for everyone.

Here's what I am going to offer:

- Up to 5 premade templates with various designs that can be 100% customized
- Or a fully custom design from the ground up
- 5 years domain + hosting
- Custom domain name (probably like: larryandbrittany2023.com)
- Post wedding gallery, memories, etc.

Target price: $2k to $3k for premade template + customization. ~$4k to 6k for fully custom website. I am really targeting the premade templates that I create and they can customize, as opposed to building from scratch for each.

Who: Couples primarily in the northeast, New England, etc.

Branding: Local, boutique New England business offering consultations with couples to make a lasting website that everyone can go to to download pictures, get memories, possibly the registry, etc - very classy feel

Next steps:

- Start creating first template
- Figure out if I want to tie this into an existing business, a wedding photographer, etc and offer package deals
- Figure out domain
- Start thinking about how I will market this
- Think about things like including a registry and other benefits to make this a one-stop-shop

Ultimately the idea is to be the local brand that works 1 on 1 to take care of a couple's digital needs as opposed to going through a big website. Is the price justified? Is the idea even viable? We'll find out. I'd like to do some validation testing before an official launch but that will be hard, going to work on this slowly into 2023 and refine further.

 

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[Great vitalis]

Y

Targeting summer + fall 2023. The idea is to be operational by March /April 2023.

Weddings are big expenses. Some couples spend hundreds on custom napkins and bathroom décor for the venue. But they will skimp on a website to get an average one through The Knot for free. The same website everyone else has, with a domain that is tied to The Knot. And probably hastily put together by one of the groomsmen or maid of honor's friends.

I am going to sell them on creating a lasting memory. A website they can look back on a decade down the road and see all of the pictures of their wedding. Not just a one pager that has wedding planning info and a link to their registry. A website that is custom to them at the moment, and will serve as a souvenir of sorts after the wedding is over.

1.5 million people get married every year in the United States alone. So feel free to join me on this journey, there's plenty of space for everyone.

Here's what I am going to offer:

- Up to 5 premade templates with various designs that can be 100% customized
- Or a fully custom design from the ground up
- 5 years domain + hosting
- Custom domain name (probably like: larryandbrittany2023.com)
- Post wedding gallery, memories, etc.

Target price: $2k to $3k for premade template + customization. ~$4k to 6k for fully custom website. I am really targeting the premade templates that I create and they can customize, as opposed to building from scratch for each.

Who: Couples primarily in the northeast, New England, etc.

Branding: Local, boutique New England business offering consultations with couples to make a lasting website that everyone can go to to download pictures, get memories, possibly the registry, etc - very classy feel

Next steps:

- Start creating first template
- Figure out if I want to tie this into an existing business, a wedding photographer, etc and offer package deals
- Figure out domain
- Start thinking about how I will market this
- Think about things like including a registry and other benefits to make this a one-stop-shop

Ultimately the idea is to be the local brand that works 1 on 1 to take care of a couple's digital needs as opposed to going through a big website. Is the price justified? Is the idea even viable? We'll find out. I'd like to do some validation testing before an official launch but that will be hard, going to work on this slowly into 2023 and refine further.

The idea is really nice to venture into I think personally I wish my parents had a website like that
Would be willing to help for free if you need any
I have a lot of free time on my hands

 

[Lex DeVille]

Weddings are big expenses. Some couples spend hundreds on custom napkins and bathroom décor for the venue. But they will skimp on a website to get an average one through The Knot for free.

Why do you think that is? What makes a napkin so valuable? What makes someone choose The Knot over a custom solution?

I would guess people who spend a lot on weddings don't care much about memories. Something else drives their choice of expenditures. Probably self-image and how they think others perceive them.

A napkin is a physical display of an expense that people can hold in their hands and talk about with one another. "Can you believe how much they spent on these napkins?"

I think you'll need to figure out what your customers really want.

- Do they really want memories?
- Do they want to be seen as having money?
- Do they want to create envy in others?

Also, who has to convince the bride/groom that your service is:

A) Necessary
B) A good choice
C) Better than the Knot

Who actually makes the purchase? Bride/Groom? Daddy? Who has to part with cash?

I think this could work once the logistics are ironed out. Gotta figure out who the real customer is and what they really care about.

 

[Choate]

Why do you think that is? What makes a napkin so valuable? What makes someone choose The Knot over a custom solution?

I would guess people who spend a lot on weddings don't care much about memories. Something else drives their choice of expenditures. Probably self-image and how they think others perceive them.

A napkin is a physical display of an expense that people can hold in their hands and talk about with one another. "Can you believe how much they spent on these napkins?"

I think you'll need to figure out what your customers really want.

- Do they really want memories?
- Do they want to be seen as having money?
- Do they want to create envy in others?

Also, who has to convince the bride/groom that your service is:

A) Necessary
B) A good choice
C) Better than the Knot

Who actually makes the purchase? Bride/Groom? Daddy? Who has to part with cash?

I think this could work once the logistics are ironed out. Gotta figure out who the real customer is and what they really care about.

Thanks for the detailed insight. I read your post shortly after you made it and have mulled things over for a few weeks.

I'm definitely at a crossroads of seeing what competitors are offering and figuring out if I can find someone who wants something else, and who that person is. It's already a very crowded space in terms of free templates and builders that integrate into everything else - from registries to planning apps, messaging apps, and more.

• The Knot has a vast selection of free, professionally designed templates complete with modern layouts and full-width imagery. You can also match your invitations and paper goods to your website design for a seamless look.
• It's super easy to set up—within minutes, you can have yours up and running on your phone browser, computer or with our easy-to-use All-In-One Wedding Planning app.
• Cash and experience gifts, as well as retail products, all live on The Knot Registry, which will automatically sync to your website. Your registry page will show all of your gifts to guests at once so they don't have to visit separate sites—they can buy directly from The Knot Registry Store.
• Since The Knot has every tool and product that you'd ever need to help you plan your wedding, it's easy to have everything under one roof since our wedding websites are integrated into our tools. Plus, we're always working on making improvements and adding new designs.
• You can even manage and track RSVPs using the app (it's number one in the app store!) and get RSVP push notifications for easy updates.
• Guests can ask questions through their RSVP response on our online form.
• Using your website dashboard, you can find hotels that offer discounted room blocks near your venue.
• You have the unique option to let guests see who else is attending your wedding.
• A messaging hub on your site allows you to communicate with guests via email or SMS texts.
• You can set custom privacy controls, including a password and hiding from search engines
• More perks include personalized URLs, sharing features to easily distribute your wedding website and the ability to make your site feel like you. Add a photo timeline, GIFs, Q&A's and livestream information to customize your site.

So my first step is, who looks at the above and says, "I don't want to deal with all of that bullshit? I just want someone to do it for me."

Convenience is still the name of the game, but no matter how nicely all of the above is packaged, it's not convenient for someone who doesn't enjoy tech, or know it.

I also agree that it's not about the memories. It's all upfront value. What are guests going to see? What they see before/during the wedding is the actual memory itself.

I'm leaning towards in-person consultations in the city, have a few brochures, walk them through the process. A little hand holding.

2-3 custom design templates as offering. Luxury, elegance, high end. Going to review some 5 star hotel and restaurant websites for inspiration. Price range is probably more $1k to $2k range depending on how integrated things get. I can see some level of integration like a registry and email, but it's really about having a stellar design. Could even upsell the templates to be "one of a kind" for one customer only or allow them to bid, but not sure if that's creating too much constraint. Would really have to find elite clientele.

I can also see just creating three templates, basic/solid/lux, keep things simple and takeaway the options. The world doesn't need to pick from 37 unique templates (or really, thousands) for their wedding website.

 

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[BizyDad]

take care of a couple's digital needs

Gotta figure out who the real customer is and what they really care about.

Exactly. Who is the real customer, and is this really a need?

A website they can look back on a decade down the road

They're going to prepay for 10 years of hosting of this website? 20 years? Domain renewals?

Or is this really just going to be a knock off of theknot, where everybody is on the same domain?

And what happens if, hypothetically, a sea change in the internet happens and now the programming language that you built the site on needs to be updated, or functionality is being deprecated out of browsers, or people are using different size screens and you didn't account for that 7 years ago?

I'm not saying you can't make some money doing this. Maybe you can even make a living.

I am wondering how you going to deliver on the promise that you're giving people. More importantly, I'm wondering how this is going to turn into something fastlane? Especially if you aren't using theknot as a model.

Price range is probably more $1k to $2k range depending on how integrated things get. I can see some level of integration like a registry and email

Oh boy...

 

[Choate]

Exactly. Who is the real customer, and is this really a need?


They're going to prepay for 10 years of hosting of this website? 20 years? Domain renewals?

Or is this really just going to be a knock off of theknot, where everybody is on the same domain?

And what happens if, hypothetically, a sea change in the internet happens and now the programming language that you built the site on needs to be updated, or functionality is being deprecated out of browsers, or people are using different size screens and you didn't account for that 7 years ago?

I'm not saying you can't make some money doing this. Maybe you can even make a living.

I am wondering how you going to deliver on the promise that you're giving people. More importantly, I'm wondering how this is going to turn into something fastlane? Especially if you aren't using theknot as a model.



Oh boy...

Yeah, I've scrapped the long term plan and focusing on upfront value.

There is no reason for everyone to be on the same domain as domains are only $12/year. So thinking like, larryandbrittany2022.com.

This isn't fastlane, it's just a side hustle experiment. Some elements of it can be more passive, like if I create a few premium templates upfront and people purchase those templates instead of a custom design.

So let me clarify where things are right now:

- Focus on premium, luxury designs that are fully customizable, really "next level" compared to The Knot or other DIY sites
- Registry integration, other integrations as needed
- Website focused on the "journey", but also has a recap of the wedding itself with pictures
- In-person meeting/consultation to go over designs + needs
- Target market 25-45, $100k+ salary/year who plan to spend $40k+ on their wedding and don't want to deal with setting up the website and registry themselves (or can be sold as such), but also don't want to half a$$ it with a family friend who's "into tech"

Ultimately the question is, are people in this target market interested in having a one hour sit down meeting to take care of their wedding website needs for under $2k or are they ok going with the first free DIY solution that Google sells them? My hypothesis is yes, so going to test it.

Next steps deciding on a domain, start work on creating two high quality templates. Even if people don't use them, they can be sales material in the form of a brochure when the decision maker and I sit down.

 

[Bekit]

Ultimately the question is, are people in this target market interested in having a one hour sit down meeting to take care of their wedding website needs for under $2k or are they ok going with the first free DIY solution that Google sells them? My hypothesis is yes, so going to test it.

Be aware of the "decision fatigue" that couples face with planning a wedding. I've heard frequent complaints on this topic from friends when they were brides. For most couples who get married, planning a wedding is the biggest event they will ever coordinate in their lives. And they're probably trying to pull it off while working or going to school. Also, they're in a headspace that's way more focused on the "dating" aspect of their relationship and only secondarily focused on the "practical decision making and planning" that goes into a wedding.

Variations on the theme of "I'm overwhelmed with decision fatigue. This is hard!"...

• Cake. I just wanted a wedding cake, but apparently you can't just "order a wedding cake." Who knew there were this many decisions that go into a cake? How tall do you want it? What flavor do you want? What colors do you want? What kind of decoration do you want? I HAVE NO IDEA. JUST MAKE ME A CAKE, AND MAKE IT PRETTY.
• Venue. Indoor vs outdoor. This size vs. that size. Local vs. destination wedding. Do we want it in a church? a country club? a hotel? an outdoor tent? What kind of chairs? etc etc.
• The dress. Princess seams or darts? Pencil skirt or full? Veil or no? Lace? Satin? Pearls? Embroidery? Sleeves? Neckline? Waist style? Shoes that go with it? etc etc etc.
• Wedding colors. What I want vs. what my mom wants vs. what the groom wants vs. what his mom wants vs. what the bridemaids like etc etc.
• Reception. Location, choice of caterer, choice of menu, choice of drinks, choice of decorations, choice of favors, etc. etc.

I think most couples are probably thinking, "We just want to get married. How hard does this have to be!?"

If you add the website to that picture, I really think that in your 1 hour meeting, you're going to run into a lot of, "I don't know, I have no idea, I just want a website" and very little "I have a specific vision in my head for how our website needs to look so that it's not a cookie-cutter site like everyone else's." And then the people who do have a specific vision for a unique website are probably the ones who have the skills to make it themselves.

From a "market research" standpoint, what might be really helpful to do is to interview several couples who already got married and ask them about the website aspect. Were there any pain points? What did they like? What didn't they like? Did they wish there were features like the ones you're thinking of offering? Did they feel like their "cookie-cutter" site was a detraction from the look and feel they were going for? What are the actual points where you can "drum up discontent" with your target market?

It might also be interesting to do some research with photographers and find out if there would be good synergies for how the wedding photos can be hosted afterward.

And then from a marketing standpoint, my hypothesis is that you're going to need to identify a really specific niche.
- Money is not an object
- Prestige and uniqueness is something they care about
- They "get" the fact that their wedding website reflects on them and they want to optimize that.

Then you'd construct messaging that really amps up the pain points of going with the competitor, while amping up the prestige of going with your option.

Looking at it in that light... could you get a few celebrities as clients? Target the most posh people you can?

 

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