Today I am sharing 7 Tips for Surviving the Bridal Fair Jungle from my friend Ciara Daykin.  Ciara is a bridal consultant in Canada.  She offers a Do It Yourself Wedding Planning product that you should check out!  Visit her site at www.fireflyoccasions.com

7 Tips For Surviving the Bridal Fair Jungle
By Ciara Daykin

Bridal shows can be completely OVERWHELMING for a bride. There are so many other brides, so many booths, everyone is trying to get from point to point and it can really get crazy. In this special edition of my ezine I’m going to give you some savvy tips and tricks for hitting the bridal fair with style and sass!!

Tip # 1: Wear comfy shoes! – You’re going to be walking a mile on a hard tradeshow floor. Yes, it’s lovely to look fashionable but the brides in stilettos never last long at the bridal fair. If you really want to see everything and be comfortable think about your feet first! (But be a little elegant and leave the stinky gym sneakers at home… opt for some cute supportive flats)

Tip #2: 1000 Brides Gather In 1 Place - You think it might be a bit of a mob scene? Well then you’re absolutely right! If you really want to get some valuable one on one time with the exhibitors I recommend planning the timing of your visit to the Fair. When the fashion show is taking place the booths slow down significantly. This is a great time to chat with an exhibitor or try on dresses at the gown sale. I also recommend first thing in the morning (especially if you want your pick of all those frugally priced gowns).

Tip #3: Your Hand Will Cramp - Many exhibitors will be offering prizes at their booths and you’ll be asked to fill out a ballot form. You waste valuable time writing out your contact info again and AGAIN. So print off a couple sheets of labels that include your name, your groom’s name, your wedding date, your address, phone number and email. Then it will be easy to just peel and stick your info to the ballots. Then you can spend quality time checking out all the cool stuff on display!

Tip #4: Watch Out For Bridezilla! - I often see the dreaded bridezilla at the Bridal Fair. You know her… she’s the girl that pushes your Mom aside so she can get a better look at the booth, she criticizes your wedding colors when she overhears you gushing about them, she muscles her way to the prize box while telling the exhibitor she doesn’t want any information (just the prize!) and she complains loudly about how expensive everything is…. Oh yes… Bridezilla always makes an appearance at the Bridal Fair. But don’t let this kind of bride ruin your good time! She has a bunch of BAD karma surrounding her so just IGNORE HER and have some fun!

Tip #5: Be Patient & Be Nice – Be the opposite of bridezilla. The exhibitors at the show have brought some really great deals with them… some that you won’t even know about unless you talk to them! It’s true! This kind of mentality will get you far with other exhibitors as well. I find myself giving extra nice brides FREE advice! I know other exhibitors do too!! (because we all want to work with nice brides)

Tip #6: Hydrate! – The Round Up Centre with over 1000 people in it at any given time can heat up pretty quick. And you can bet the water ain’t cheap! So bring along some water for your journey. You don’t want to get a headache!!

Tip #7: One Step at a Time – Okay, the truth is that there are going to be A LOT of booths, people, and noise at the Bridal Fair. But it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. YES, there are a lot of choices but you don’t have to choose EVERYTHING or choose ANYTHING right there and then. Here are a couple of TIPS within my TIPS to dealing with all the choices:

• Seek And Ye Shall Find – Know what you are looking for and enjoy the rest. Don’t feel like you have to choose ALL your vendors from the Bridal Fair. This is just a sampling of some of Calgary’s finest. You may connect with some vendors, you may not. This is a great opportunity to meet people face to face and figure out if they should be part of your wedding day.

• One by One - Approach each vendor calmly, ready to hear the sales pitch (yes- the sales pitch). The exhibitors are there to sell to you. You’re there to buy right? So if someone is overwhelming you just ask them politely to SLOW DOWN. You don’t need the info dump! Ask the questions you want answered.

• Thanks But No Thanks - If you’re not interested thank them and walk away. Don’t take the flyer and load up your bridal bag. Guess what? You’ll quickly rifle through that bag ONCE after the fair, pulling out the vendors you connected with… and then it’ll sit in your closet to be found on your 2 year wedding anniversary!

• © 2009 Firefly Occasions Inc.

Wedding and event planner Ciara Daykin, “The Event Choreographer,” publishes ‘Beautiful Brides’ bi-weekly ezine with 4,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to take your wedding from ordinary to extraordinary and have more fun planning your wedding, get your FREE tips now at www.fireflyoccasions.com