How to Become a Go-To Wedding Professional for International Couples with Alida Szilfai

Join us as we embark on a captivating journey into the world of destination weddings with the remarkable Alida Silify C., a distinguished wedding planner from Eastern Europe. Ever wondered what it takes to plan an international wedding and why Hungary is becoming a hotspot for such events? Get ready to uncover Alida's fascinating path into the industry, her expert strategies for navigating cultural nuances, and how she bridges the gap in language and time zones with international clients. This episode promises an exhilarating look into becoming a trusted expert in the destination wedding market, filled with Alida's firsthand insights and anecdotes that will leave you inspired and informed.

As we explore further, Alida graciously shares her treasure trove of resources for planning weddings in Hungary. Whether you're an aspiring wedding planner or a curious couple, discover the wealth of knowledge available through her educational website, alidawedding.com, and the valuable connections offered by the Wedding Academy. My co-host, Ben, and I are thrilled to showcase Alida’s invaluable contributions to the industry, making this episode a must-listen for anyone eager to expand their horizons in wedding planning. From practical advice to potential collaborations, immerse yourself in this rich tapestry of knowledge that Alida so generously provides.

Chapters

• 0:00 Becoming a Destination Wedding Expert
• 8:35 Destination Wedding Planning Resources

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:28

And welcome back to episode one of season four Wedding Empires. How exciting and I can't believe it, it's still here.

Speaker 2: 0:38

I know and I'm coming to. You live from the big brother house Apparently.

Speaker 1: 0:43

That's literally what it looks like what it looks like no, it's great to be back.

Speaker 2: 0:47

I'm looking forward to season four and we've got a very special guest.

Speaker 1: 0:51

We do Now hopefully I can say her surname correctly. I've been practicing. I know it's sort of like csi the show kind of, but don't kill me. Alita, alita, cf alina silify c.

Speaker 1: 1:11

Yes, it's like all right, look, she's Hungarian, she's got a beautiful name. I just am really terrible at pronouncing how are you darling Fine and I'm honored to be here with you today, so thank you. Today we're going to be diving into how to become the go-to wedding professional for international couples. Alida's going to share her top strategies, challenges and success stories from her journey as an Eastern European wedding planner, working with clients worldwide. She's also going to give us some insider tips on building trust with couples from different cultures, managing logistics from afar and positioning yourself as the sought after expert in the destination wedding market. So, alida, I know that you're one of our students at the Wedding Academy, so I'm quite familiar with your work and you've absolutely established yourself in your market in Hungary. Can you share with Ben and I your journey, sort of how you got into wedding planning and, I guess, what inspired you to focus on international weddings Fantastic and what makes Hungary and Eastern Europe a unique destination for weddings? I've never been to Hungary, have you, ben?

Speaker 2: 2:33

No, I haven't. No, I've previously skydived with a few people that were from Hungary and I've been introduced to the cuisine a little bit, but I haven't actually been there. But it's being in Europe like that. Everything is so close and you can obviously go all different places in Europe. It's interesting, the pricing is so different between, obviously, hungary and the UK, so it's really handy, I guess, to be able to just jump over into another country and have a totally different take on the wedding and totally different cuisine and totally different experience, which is really cool.

Speaker 1: 3:05

So I guess so, being a destination planner, a lot of your dealing with your clients is not face-to-face, it's remote. How do you find that? I'm sure that's got its own challenges. Yeah, I got used to it. When I had my business I did destination weddings in New Caledonia, which is about two hours well, depending on where you are in Australia, about two to three hours flight and I was very familiar with the locations. And I was very familiar with the locations and I think it's handy Like I went and not only did my research in all the venues and things like that, but I went to all the hotels. I saw all the different room types. I saw you know places where they can go and eat dinner at a restaurant. There's so much more to think about. I think when everybody's coming in from another place, you've really got to think about all the elements of the holiday, really isn't it? Yeah, wow, and buying a house with a virtual inspection.

Speaker 2: 4:07

So, Alita, working with couples from all over the world, has that changed your approach to how you plan weddings and the different cultures and that sort of thing? Yeah, I have a friend who's a photographer in Budapest and some of the photos that I see that he creates really strange angles and really close to the couple and in the middle of the ceremony and that sort of thing, and it's something as a photographer here I wouldn't be able to get away with because the priest or the minister would tell me to move. So it's obviously very different what the ceremonies and how everything is planned and executed over there.

Speaker 1: 4:43

I was just going to say. So what would be some tips on how you were able to establish yourself as a trusted planner for people looking at getting married in Hungary? How did you build that reputation for yourself?

Speaker 2: 4:58

Ben, you had that look, you could see I had that look in my eyes For wedding professionals now. So, shifting from the clients brides and grooms to wedding professionals, what advice would you give a wedding professional who was looking to expand into that destination market? And how does that wedding professional like? What advice would you give someone who wants to build that market and step into that genre?

Speaker 1: 5:25

I love that.

Speaker 2: 5:26

Jack, I could see a collaboration with you and Alita with a two-day event in Hungary.

Speaker 1: 5:32

No, I was thinking that, alita, have you seen on my spam about my two-day wedding planning certification? Are we going to bring it to Hungary? Oh, okay, so we might see you there. I'm just looking for an excuse to visit Budapest and have you show me around. Really, it looks amazing, because I'm always interested in this, the geeky stuff. What systems do you use? Give me your top five software or systems that you use in your business all the time. I agree, yes, everything's on my screen. I'm different.

Speaker 2: 6:11

I love that. Alita, I love that. I do that too.

Speaker 1: 6:15

I do. I'm all about automation. I love R Planner but I look I had to do a lot of customizing in terms of you know, their checklists and their run sheets and things like that. I absolutely made our own and we just reused that template so you can customize that. What do you reckon Alida is the most common concerns that international couples have when they're planning a destination wedding? Why did they choose Hungary? What was the connection?

Speaker 2: 6:41

That leads to a really good question as well. Obviously, you've got different languages to deal with as a destination wedding planner, but how do you navigate language barriers and also time differences and different time zones and stuff like that? I always get confused when it comes to time zones because I'm doing Zoom calls with Japan or the US or something like that. What's your favorite website, software or whatever to help you navigate time zones?

Speaker 1: 7:12

I just wanted to add something that also, I think is really specific to destination wedding planners is you're almost like the local tour guide as well, in that your knowledge is you need to know. Your knowledge is you need to know. You need to have a Rolodex of everything, of not just your supplies and all of that. But who's a good hairdresser? Where can I get my pants altered? Where can I? You know? How can I get a minibus for 10 people? You know those kind of questions that get flung at you. You really have to be that. I guess, if there's people that want to move from being a wedding planner into a destination wedding planner, you really have to be that. I guess, if there's people that want to move from being a wedding planner into a destination wedding planner, you really have to spend the time to get to know that destination and build your Rolodex of a million different services and contacts. Would you agree? I think it's great advice. Ben, have you got your famous question.

Speaker 2: 8:06

I do. I do, alita. If you walked outside today and ran into an 18-year-old version of yourself, what advice would you give yourself to ensure your success, knowing what you know now?

Speaker 1: 8:22

Yeah, I love that, thank you.

Speaker 2: 8:23

I love that. I agree with that too.

Speaker 1: 8:25

So Ben back yourself.

Speaker 2: 8:27

Yes, I will. I will, I'll take Alida's advice and I will back myself.

Speaker 1: 8:32

Alida, it's been a pleasure spending this time with you. If anyone's got clients that want to get married in Hungary or, you know, would like some advice on being a destination wedding planner, go and look up Alida. She does teach wedding planning. Go and look up Alida. She does teach wedding planning. Her website is alidaweddingcom. Forward. Slash en for English. I will put the links in the show notes so you can also find her on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Now the students at the Wedding Academy get to see this video nice and early and live. So if you are keen to see Ben in his floral shirt and me in my pink Gorman metallic shirt more often, then you need to come and join us at the Wedding Academy, and the website for that is weddingacademyglobalcom. Ben. Anything to add?

Speaker 2: 9:25

Yes, no, I'm just going to sit here and nod and smile.

Speaker 1: 9:32

Yeah, I usually cut him off. Thanks, alita. It was wonderful, alita.

Speaker 2: 9:37

Thank you, alita, it was a pleasure to meet you.