I'm working on my wording for consultations/tastings. As I have been burned in the past I want to make sure clients understand my policies. Am I being too strict?

Consultations & Tastings

I currently offer consultations and tastings for wedding and large event orders. Consultations are free of charge. Tastings are $25 and if you reserve your date with me, the cost is applied to the balance of your cake. The only difference between the two is that at tastings guests will be served samples of delicious cake. Samplings can be customized with up to four cake flavors and four fillings of your choice. May I suggest you bring in color swatches, photos, invitations/patterns, or any ideas that you would like to be incorporated in the design of the cake.

All fees must be paid before your appointment in order to reserve it. (For credit/debit payments you will be emailed an invoice with a link for online payment. Cash payments must be arranged with me beforehand). No more than four guests, including yourself, may attend the consultation. I say that generally because the bride, groom, planner, and any other persons paying for the order are needed. I suggest you only bring those with you that will be a part of the final decision making process. No children allowed. All consultations are reserved on a first come first served basis and last 30 minutes to 1 hour depending upon the complexity of the design.

I mean, I really hate when extra people want to attend because there is limited space as well as it ties up the decision making process. I'm sorry, this just bothers me.

Sounds perfect to me.

I don't think it sounds too strict at all. Regardless, there will be those that don't think it applies to them and THEIR order. (Those are the ones I'd like to just peel off me 'cause they leave me with an ucky feelin')

I allow children at my tastings as the last three wedding that I booked all had infants at their tastings and one even said they were going with me because they did not have to hire a babysitter to go to their tasting. Just food for thought. We book a lot of of destination weddings where some of the people eloped and now are planning a small wedding at the beach that they can invite close friend and family to and a lot have new babies well at least a lot of them this year. LOL.

grammtically speaking, I'd make the color-swatch sentence a new paragraph because it has nothing to do with the other sentences in that paragraph.

I always told people "The appt is limited to 4 people due to seating limitations .... I only have 4 chairs."

and...

"I do not recommend bringing children as a catering facility is not a very entertaining place for them to be while mom and dad conduct a business meeting."

and

"You should plan about an hour for this appt,depending on how far you are in the planning process and how many questions you might have." (An indecisive couple who wants just an iced cake with ribbon can take more time than a decisive couple who wants an intricate design .... so "depending on the design" is a bit misleading.)

Suggest:

"There is no charge for a consultation. Tastings, which include 4 customized flavors and fillings, have a fee of $25, which is applied to your order when you book with us." (never say "if" .... always talk positive.)

I would lose the sentence that starts with "Isay that generally". If you remove that sentence, then read the paragraph, the message is still the same. It's important to tell them WHO to bring, not why YOU think they should come.

At first I was ok with letting children come to the tasting but after the last couple of consults with children I want to say no to bringing them. I had a bride who didn't finish the consult because of her crying infant. One kid kept touching things and kept asking if they can go upstairs and I had a 12 yr old want to go outside and play.

Its just to much of a distraction for me.

Sounds fine to me but I would check to see if your competion is charging for tastings. If you are the only one charging you might not get many calls. To limit your tasting costs you may want to think about Tasting Days and have people book times on that day. Just an idea. I hope it helps

Question: Do y'all have limits on how many people you allow at a tasting? Usually mine are no more than three, possibly four people (adults.) But one time I had every one of the bride AND grooms relatives there!! Would you limit that?

Perhaps reword last sentence of first paragraph: "To make the most of your consultation, please bring color swatches, photos, invitations/patters, or any other ideas you would like incorporated into the design of your cake."

And, regarding the second paragraph, maybe soften some of the language a bit by stating , ".....Due to limited space, we request that no more than four guests, including yourself, attend the consultation, and no children please. We suggest that you bring only those that will be involved in the final selection of cake for your special day (ie., bride, groom, planner, family member) to make this a more enjoyable experience for you..."

I think the most important thing is to sound like you're making suggestions to make it the best experience possible ~ you're still setting the rules, but in a more subtle way. It boils down to this is what is best for your client and will make it a less stressful experience for them.

I have a problem with people showing up with extra people. I even ask when confirming the consult how many guests will be attending. This lets me know how to set up the chairs as well as how many plates of samples to make. MOB, MOH, BM, GM, best friends, should not be there. Its also tacky when they want to share plates. That and they usually have their own opinions which deter the couple from booking.

great advice...

I'm with indydebi on this one, 100%! Remove the "if's" make it clear, concise and always keep it positive! Assume they ARE going to book with you. Although I have 3 children that were involved in my wedding...I never, EVER took them along. It's not a place for children. I asked their opinion with ideas before I went to venues and businessess. Now, if a customer is unable to find a time to come without kids, I kindly offer the services of one of teenagers to babysit so they may do so....not on the premises. Works wonderfully.

Thank you all for your help!