Lisa Ann Krutzik – Social Economic Taste Sophistication (S.E.T.S.) of Brides
 
Lisa Ann has been capturing wonderful wedding memories for brides over 19 years.  With this being her 20th season in the wedding industry Lisa Ann has amassed a plethora of knowledge about brides, their tendencies and how we as wedding professionals can understand the different socio-economic situations of brides, zero in on the market we wish to attract, work with, and get repeat business from.

Lisa Ann runs a small photography firm, which currently captures and documents approximately 100 weddings a year.  Lisa Ann travels nationally and internationally to document the most amazing moments of a couples wedding day.  You can view her work at www.photosbylisaann.com

Karen S. Casey, CWC  Karen Casey Events

Karen S. Casey, certified wedding consultant, has been providing service to brides in the Atlanta area since 1987.  She has designed and taught seminars on "How to Plan Your Own Wedding" (for the do-it-yourself brides) and "Weddings-Southern Style" (for brides who want a traditional Southern wedding).  She has taught classes providing detailed, practical ideas for "dressing" and decorating guest tables - whether for a gala event at a grand ballroom, or an intimate dinner for a few guests in your home.

She is the chairperson for the Atlanta Chapter of the Association of Certified Professional Wedding Consultants and an instructor for the Association's national training course on "How to Start and Develop a Wedding Consulting Business". Karen is a member  of National Association of Catering Executives and Assn for Wedding Professionals Int'l

Co-Winner International Esprit Award 2005 - Social Event Planning:  Budget Over $100,001
Nominated for International Esprit Award 2005 - Most Creative Solution
Co-Winner Allie Award 2005 - Best Social Event
Co-Winner Allie Award 2005 - Most Creative Venue
Winner Allie Award 2002 - Best Social Event

Destination Wedding Pros ~ Moderated by Lisa Light of Destination Bride

A Round table discussion where you get to talk and question the professionals that are doing Destination Weddings. If you have ever considered this aspect or want to add the glamour of travel this seminar is not to be missed. We are looking to have several destination planners from various countries on hand.

There are two aspects to Destination Weddings. One is where you are looking to bring the brides to your resort area.  Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, Gattlinburg Maui are just a few locations that fit this group. The second is where you will locate brides looking to marry elsewhere The Caribbean, Hawaii or anywhere else in the world. Whichever group you are in or want to be this is the seminar for you. You will meet those that you can network with and learn from.

 Kris Malandruccolo, an award-winning professional videographer for over 18 years, runs her own business, Elegant Videos by Kris, in the Chicago area.  To view video samples, please visit her website at www.ElegantVideosByKris.com   Kris is also the Public Relations for WEVA........

Bridal Shows, 7 Ways The Workshop

7 Ways to Get More Bookings at Bridal Shows

Julia's background in journalism gives great assistance to AFWPI's promotional, publicity and editorial objectives.

During the past 12 years, Julia has overseen the operations and planning of Bridal Expo bridal shows, coordinated fashion shows, organized giveaway weddings at Bridal Expo, and developed the Wedding Games. In that time she noticed the differences on what makes a good display and how to convert the lookers into buyers!

Julia is also the Chief Financial Officer for Mar-Nel Productions, the parent company to both AFWPI and Bridal Expo.

Laurie Morgan has more than 14 years experience in publishing, advertising and marketing.  Prior to founding her current company, The Wedding & Special Event Yellow Pages, in 2002, Laurie held senior executive positions at IDG (the global technology publisher whose titles include PC World, Macworld, and Computerworld) and at Sony Entertainment.  At IDG, Laurie was the founder and president of IDG.net, the company’s global internet marketing and ad sales division. At Sony, Laurie founded an electronic media venture that developed a patent-pending technology for delivering multi-media books over the web.  Laurie is a graduate of Brown University and the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

9 Ways to Optimize Your Marketing for Results

Chris Jaeger, of Book More Weddings -

Marketing your wedding services and products online is serious business. In many cases, it can be the most cost effective advertising and promotion expenses you can make for your business. Nine out of ten brides and grooms will use the Internet as a primary source of information when planning their Big Day. Will they find your web site? Will they choose your services and products? Why do some vendors do so well online while others get few, if any, inquiries or leads from their website?

  At the AFWPI San Antonio conference he'll tell you how you can:

 Get more traffic to your website Turn more of your visitors into inquiries Improve your search engine positioning Get better results from your website Sell more of your wedding products and services using the Internet 

Doug Music on the Move

What message will they remember from your printed brochures?

Doug LaVine is a polished Disc Jockey and Master of Ceremonies with a continuing DJ business running since 1972. His clientele are mostly brides wanting high-end wedding entertainment, more specifically with an upscale, emotional experience.
    In the last 5 years his DJ rates have quadrupled (yes 4-times more) and is currently one of the highest paid in the Sacramento area of more than 200 DJs
    His 22 years in printing and graphic arts reflect his ability to create and effectively use printed materials to increase not only his business, but attract higher paying brides.
    This hands-on discussion will help you recognize small (or large) changes that can be made to most brochures and business cards that will help your business have a brighter, more positive image, and produce more results.

President of Fifty Flowers - 

 Karl Pfeifer – First National Bank – Merchant Solutions


Karl Pfeifer has over 10 years experience in banking and information technology.    He has extensive background in merchant processing ranging from retail store front to e-commerce payment solutions.  First National Bank Merchant Solutions is the largest family bank and the 6th largest bank merchant processor in the US

Are you considering accepting credit cards from your customers and don’t know where to begin?  Currently accepting credit card payments and wondered what those charges and fees are on your monthly statement?  Containing costs is more important than ever and controlling the costs of merchant processing is often overlooked.  Karl will provide an overview merchant processing and the many options available to businesses today.  In addition to discussing the benefits of accepting credit/debit cards from your customers, he will discuss fraud prevention tips; check acceptance possibilities, the value of gift card programs, ecommerce options, and ways to increase your sales.