Sales: tour to booking
Run a site tour that ends with a paid reservation fee and a signed contract, and know exactly what to do when it does not.
Nine lessons · about three hours with practice · grounded in The Business of Love by Kerri Lynn Glover
Nine lessons, in the order of a real tour
- 1Before they arrive 20 min
Confirm the tour so they show up, research the couple, and set the venue to sparkle. - 2The welcome 15 min
Open the door, seat them, serve them, and learn every name in the first five minutes. - 3Rapport and the preliminary worksheet 25 min
Run a 10 to 20 question conversation that reveals their vision and what matters most, without talking dates. - 4The walk-through 25 min
Show the venue in wedding-day order, through the lens of their answers, so they see their wedding, not a building. - 5Objections and concerns 20 min
Hear the real worry behind an objection and answer it with a solution, not a defence. - 6Concluding the tour 15 min
Give the couple time alone, reconvene, and read their interest before you ask. - 7The close 30 min
Review the brochure, open the calendar, ask for the proposal, and take the reservation fee and signature on the spot when they are ready. - 8Follow-up when they leave unsigned 20 min
Send the proposal within the hour, hold the date, and run a seven-day sequence that brings them back to sign. - 9Celebrate, hand off, measure 15 min
Celebrate the booking, send the gift, hand the couple into planning, and track your tour-to-contract rate.
Before they arrive
Outcome
You can run a pre-tour routine that gets the couple to show up, tells you who they are, and puts the venue at its best before the car pulls in.
Why it matters
The tour starts at the confirmation, not the parking lot. A couple who feels expected arrives relaxed and ready to fall in love. A couple who feels like an appointment arrives guarded. You decide which one walks through your door, and you decide it the day before.
The method
- Confirm twice, in two channels. Send an email confirmation when they book and a text the day before that asks for a reply. A required reply is your best defence against the no-show.
- Make the confirmation feel like the venue. Same colours, same tone of voice, same warmth as your website. Add a short list of local spots to stop at on the way, and a playlist for the drive if that fits your brand. You are inviting them somewhere, not scheduling them.
- Research the couple. Ten minutes on Google and social media. Where did they meet, what do they do, what do they post about. You are looking for two or three things you can genuinely connect on.
- Prepare the packet. New-client packet printed, brochure printed, the contract ready to sign, and a way to take a payment on the spot. If any of these is missing, you cannot close today, so check them every time.
- Walk the route with fresh eyes. Every light on, fireplace lit, music playing, tables set, signature scent diffused. Move the ladder, the stack of chairs, the delivery box. Anything that breaks the picture breaks the sale.
- Make parking obvious. A sign that says they are expected, by name if you can. The first five minutes on site are the most important five minutes of the tour, and they begin in the car.
- If you are under construction, know which areas are safe to visit and have inspiration boards ready for the rest.
Say this
"Hi Sarah and Ben, it's Cole at Maison Albion. We're so looking forward to showing you around tomorrow at 2. Could you reply YES so I know to have the fire going? Park at the main house, the sign will find you."
Common mistakes
- Sending one email and hoping. Half of no-shows never saw it.
- Researching nothing and opening with "So, tell me about yourselves." You will get the short version.
- Walking the route once a week instead of before every tour.
- Starting a tour without the contract and a card reader to hand.
In winter Maison Albion puts a sign at the lot that reads "parking for those ready to fall in love with Maison Albion". In deep snow it tells the couple, before they meet anyone, that they were expected.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1522 (immediate response, self-booked tours), p1528 (confirmation, local businesses, playlist, required reply), p1530 (research, packets, walk the route, sparkle, construction), p1532 (first five minutes, parking sign).
The welcome
Outcome
You can turn the first five minutes on site into hospitality, so the couple and their family sit down relaxed, with a drink in hand and their guard down, before anyone mentions the venue.
Why it matters
Most venues meet couples in the parking lot, hand them a brochure and start walking. That is a hard sell, and it works sometimes. A welcome at the door, a seat, a refreshment and ten minutes of real conversation converts far more tours to contracts, because the couple stops being sold to and starts being hosted. You are not selling a building. You are inviting them into an experience you already care about.
The method
- Be at the door. Open it before they knock. Greet them by name.
- Shake every hand and learn every name. Parents, siblings, the friend who came along. Write the names on your sheet as you go. The person you forget is often the person who pays.
- Take coats, point out the restroom, invite them to sit. A comfortable seat is the first signal that this place looks after people.
- Offer a drink and a refreshment that is on brand. Something that stays fresh for a week so it is always ready. Sweet tea and mini pies in the South, macarons and sparkling water for a modern room, champagne or coffee for parents who arrived worried about cost. Serve it the way the venue would serve a wedding: wood and mason jars if you are rustic, silver trays and crystal if you are elegant.
- Have spare chairs ready. Surprise guests happen. A scramble for seating undoes the welcome.
- Small talk while they settle. The drive, the weather, the thing you found when you researched them. This is where parents soften.
- Dress for the brand. Professional, and unmistakably in the venue's style.
Say this
"Welcome, come in out of the cold. I'm Cole. You must be Sarah, and Ben, and this is... Linda, lovely to meet you. Let me take your coats. The restroom is just through there. Come and sit by the fire, I've got coffee, tea or a glass of something sparkling, what would you like?"
Common mistakes
- Meeting them in the lot and starting the tour standing up.
- Handing over the brochure in the first minute. The brochure comes out at the close.
- Forgetting a parent's name and avoiding them for the rest of the tour.
- Refreshments that look like an afterthought: a bag of cookies, a plastic cup.
Maison Albion's welcome refreshment is set out on a tray before the couple arrives, so the first thing they see when they sit is something made for them.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1536 (invite, not sell; welcome beats parking-lot tours), p1538 (seat, restroom, coats, refreshment), p1540 (on-brand refreshments and presentation), p1555 (handshakes, names, spare chairs, parents' guard, champagne or coffee), p1557 (attire).
Rapport and the preliminary worksheet
Outcome
You can lead a 10 to 20 question conversation, while they are still seated, that gives you the couple's vision, their guest count, their decision makers and the one or two things that matter most to them. You will use every answer on the walk-through and again at the close.
Why it matters
The venue decision is emotional. Couples are looking for reasons to book, and they will tell you exactly what those reasons are if you ask well and listen. The worksheet is the most powerful sales tool you have because it turns a generic tour into their tour. Nothing you say later lands unless it comes from what they told you here.
The method
- Ask, listen, write. Be a single-tasker. Take notes on the worksheet in front of them. Writing shows you are listening.
- Start with the comfortable questions. Names and spellings, contact details, how they met and got engaged, any colours or themes, how they heard about you, how they prefer to be contacted. These lower the temperature and get them talking.
- Move to "applying the venue to their dream". What do they picture for the ceremony. Do they have a guest list and a rough count. Will there be a wedding party, and how big. Every answer is a lens for the tour: a small count means you will show the ballroom with lounges and a photo booth; a big wedding party means the getting-ready suites get extra time.
- Then uncover what matters most. What are they most looking forward to. What would make the day a success in their eyes. Is there anything they are worried about that you can help with. These three questions reveal the pain points and the close. Write the answers down word for word.
- Find the decision makers. Who else needs to be happy with the choice. If a parent is in the room, include them in the questions.
- Do not talk about dates yet. Dates and availability come after the tour. If they ask, hold it warmly: the calendar comes out once they have seen the place.
- Share a little of the venue's story, but keep the focus on them. Ten percent you, ninety percent them.
Say this
"Before we walk around, I'd love to hear about you two. How did you meet?"
"Picture the end of the night. What has to have happened for you to say, that was perfect?"
"Is there anything that's been worrying you about planning this? Sometimes we can take that off your plate right away."
"I'll bring the calendar out after we've walked through, I promise. I'd rather you fall in love with the place first and then we find the day."
Common mistakes
- Reading questions off a clipboard like a survey. Make it a conversation; the worksheet is for you, not for them.
- Skipping the "what matters most" questions because the couple seems happy. Those answers are your close.
- Letting the tour start before you have a guest count and a wedding-party size.
- Opening the calendar early, which turns a dream into logistics.
A couple expecting 80 guests worried the ballroom would feel empty. Because that came up on the worksheet, the tour showed the room set with lounge seating and a photo booth, and the worry became the reason they booked.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1504 (emotional purchase, personal connection), p1509 (single-tasker, notes, preferred channel), p1548 (rapport questions, notes, keep focus on the couple), p1561 to p1581 (the preliminary worksheet and its three question groups), p1584 (no dates before the tour), p1587 to p1589 (use the answers on the tour).
The walk-through
Outcome
You can guide the couple through the venue in wedding-day order, step aside in each space so they can picture their own day, and tie every room back to what they told you on the worksheet.
Why it matters
The couple did not come to see square footage. They came to find out whether they can see their wedding here. Your job on the walk-through is to make that picture easy: show the rooms in the order the day will happen, give them room to daydream, and point out the exact features that answer what they said they wanted.
The method
- Walk the day in order. Getting-ready suites first, then the ceremony site, then cocktail hour, then the reception. The couple feels the day unfold and places themselves in it.
- Enter, then step to the side. Say one line, then let them take the room in. Silence here is not awkward, it is the moment they fall in love. Do not fill it.
- Tell the story. History, the family who built it, the detail nobody notices. Younger couples value authenticity and remember a story long after they forget a feature.
- Use the worksheet as your script. They said outdoor ceremony: spend longer in the garden. They said a grand entrance: show the staircase and the doors. They said a big wedding party: open the suites and talk about how the morning works with twelve people in them.
- Keep a few lines of humour you use on every tour, and watch how they land. A couple who cannot laugh with you may not be your couple. Note it.
- Say yes. When they ask for something, find the yes. When you cannot, never say no flat. Offer the alternative that still gives them what they were after.
- Keep the family in it. Ask the parent what they think of the room. Decision makers who feel heard do not block at the close.
Say this
"This is where it happens. I'll let you have a minute."
"You said the thing you're most looking forward to is walking in and seeing everyone. Stand here. This is what Ben sees when those doors open."
"A live band in the barn? Absolutely. The stage goes here and we've had ten-piece bands in this room. What we'd do for the ceremony sound is..."
Common mistakes
- Touring the building in the order that is convenient for you.
- Talking the entire time. You cannot imagine your wedding while someone is describing fire exits.
- Reciting capacities and dimensions instead of what the room feels like at 8 pm.
- Saying "we don't do that" and moving on.
Maison Albion tours begin in the suites and end in the reception room with the lights dimmed and music on, so the last thing the couple sees before they sit back down is the room as it looks at the first dance.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1506 (let the couple own the space), p1512 to p1514 (customisation, tangible ideas), p1593 (wedding-day order), p1595 (humour and fit), p1597 (stand aside), p1599 (history and story), p1601 (apply the worksheet), p1603 (say yes, offer alternatives).
Objections and concerns
Outcome
You can hear an objection, work out the worry underneath it, and answer with a solution that turns the concern into a reason to book.
Why it matters
An objection is not a no. It is the couple telling you what they need to be true before they can say yes. The salesperson who gets defensive loses the booking. The salesperson who gets curious finds the close.
The method
- Welcome it. Thank them for raising it. A couple who voices a concern is engaged; a couple who stays silent and polite is already gone.
- Ask one question before you answer. "Tell me more about that" or "What would make that feel right?" You will often find the stated objection is not the real one.
- Answer with a picture, not a defence. Worried about flow: walk them through a real timeline from first look to last dance and show how the layout and your staff carry it. Worried about budget: talk value first, then show how the package can be shaped to fit.
- Bring in your strengths as the solution. Every venue has a weak spot. Every weak spot has a strength next to it. Learn the pairs for your venue; the objection map worksheet is where you write them down.
- Deliver hard news with warmth. When something is not possible, say it softly, and have the alternative ready before you say it.
- Check it landed. "Does that take care of it?" If not, you have more to learn, so go back to step 2.
- Note it. Every objection goes in the client file. It comes up again at the close and in follow-up.
Say this
"That's a really fair question, and I'm glad you asked it here rather than wondering about it on the drive home. Tell me a bit more about what's behind it."
"Let's make sure you're comparing like for like. Here's everything that's inside this number, and here's what you'd be sourcing separately somewhere else. Then let's look at where we can shape it."
"I'd love to say yes to that, and here's what I can do instead that gets you the same feeling..."
Common mistakes
- Answering the objection you expected rather than the one they raised.
- Discounting the moment budget comes up. Value first, always.
- Over-explaining. One clear answer, then check, then stop.
- Treating a parent's objection as interference. It is usually the real decision maker speaking.
A mother asked whether 150 guests would feel crowded. The answer was a walk through the reception timeline showing where guests are at each hour, and she booked the date for her daughter that afternoon.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1517 (empathy, alternatives ready, soften hard news), p1607 to p1611 (objections as opportunities; flow and budget examples).
Concluding the tour
Outcome
You can end the walk-through so the couple has time alone with the venue, then reconvene and read their interest accurately before you move to the close.
Why it matters
The close fails when it starts too early. A couple who has not had a quiet minute together has not decided anything yet, and asking them to decide feels like pressure. Give them the minute. What they say to each other when you are out of earshot is the real first impression, and you want it to happen here, not in the car.
The method
- Hand them the venue. At the end of the route, invite them to wander on their own for a few minutes. Suggest a spot or two to revisit. Then leave.
- Use the time. Refresh the drinks, lay out the brochure and the calendar at the table where you welcomed them, and check the contract and payment are ready.
- Reconvene where you started. Back to the seat by the fire, not standing in a hallway. Same hospitality as the welcome.
- Ask the question that opens the close. "What were your first impressions?" Then listen. Everything they say is either a reason to book or an objection to handle, and you need both before you ask.
- Invite remaining questions. "What haven't I covered?" Answer each one fully, then check it landed.
- Read the room. Enthusiastic, asking about dates and logistics: go straight to the close (Lesson 7). Quiet, exchanging looks, "we have a couple more venues to see": still go to the close, but plan for the soft version and the follow-up (Lesson 8).
- Whatever happens next, end warm. Thank them, tell them you are excited about their day, and mean it.
Say this
"I'm going to give you two a few minutes to yourselves. Go back to anywhere you want to see again. I'll be by the fire when you're ready."
"So. What were your first impressions?"
"What haven't I told you that you need to know?"
Common mistakes
- Hovering during their alone time.
- Reconvening standing up in the last room. Sit them down.
- Asking "so what do you think?" and then filling the silence yourself.
- Reading "we're seeing two more" as a no. It is a request for a reason to stop looking.
Maison Albion leaves the couple in the reception room with the music on and returns to the welcome table, so the couple walks back into the same warmth they arrived to.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1615 (solo time), p1617 (gauge interest, questions, customised proposal), p1621 (end positive), p1627 to p1629 (first impressions, further questions).
The close
Outcome
You can review the brochure against what matters most to the couple, open the calendar, ask for the proposal, and when they are ready, take the reservation fee and the signature at the table.
Why it matters
Everything before this lesson was to earn the right to ask. Couples who leave without a date held and a next step agreed are couples your competitor can book tomorrow. The close is not pressure. It is making it easy to say yes to something they already want.
The method
- Review the brochure together, now, not earlier. Printed, in front of them. As you go through inclusions and price, tie each one back to the worksheet: "You said the thing that worried you was the timeline. Our coordinator is included, and here is what she does."
- State the price plainly and stop talking. Let them react. Then handle whatever comes up with Lesson 5.
- Open the calendar. "Shall we look at dates?" Find their first choice and a backup. Availability is now a reason to act, not a logistic.
- Ask for the proposal. Use the word proposal, not contract. "Would you like me to put a proposal together for the 7th of November?" It is a soft ask: it invites them to read the terms for their date without demanding a decision.
- Offer the hold. A complimentary hold on the date for 24 to 48 hours is your goodwill, and it gives them security while they decide.
- If they are ready, close now. Say so plainly: "We can make it official today if you'd like." Walk them through the contract, take the reservation fee, get the signatures. Call the first payment a reservation fee, never a deposit: it is the cost of taking the date off the market, and performance starts the moment they sign. Twenty to twenty-five percent of the total is the usual size.
- If you prefer a harder close, attach an incentive that expires in 24 hours: a complimentary upgrade or an overnight stay. It speeds the decision and stops a competitor holding the same date.
- If they are not ready, do not push. Confirm the hold, confirm when they will hear from you (within the hour), confirm when you will follow up. Then move to Lesson 8.
Say this
"Linda, you asked earlier whether 150 would feel crowded. This is the floor plan for 150, and this is the part of the evening where the room is fullest."
"Would you like me to put a proposal together for Saturday the 7th? It's not a commitment, it just lets you see everything in writing for your date, and I'll hold the date for you while you look at it."
"If you're ready, we can make it official right now. The reservation fee is what takes the 7th off the market for everyone else, and the rest of the payments are spread out from there. Shall I walk you through it?"
"If you sign today I can include the suite upgrade for the morning, that's my thank-you for not making me wait."
Common mistakes
- Showing the price before the tour, or sending it in an email beforehand. Price without the experience is just a number.
- Saying "contract". Say "proposal".
- Not having a way to take payment at the table.
- Discounting instead of adding value. Give an upgrade, not money off.
- Letting them leave without a date on hold and a time you will follow up.
Maison Albion proposals are built in WedHub during the close, so the couple sees their date, package and payment schedule on screen while they are still at the table, and can sign and pay from the same page.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1519 (empower the closer with promotions and add-ons), p1631 (brochure review tied to the worksheet), p1633 (ask for a proposal, not a contract), p1635 (soft close, 24 to 48 hours, complimentary hold), p1637 (hard close with incentive). Ch 9 Licensing Agreement: BOL-v8-p0880 (offer, acceptance, consideration), p0898 (say reservation fee, not deposit), p0904 (20 to 25 percent).
Follow-up when they leave unsigned
Outcome
You can run a seven-day follow-up sequence that gets the proposal into their inbox within the hour, keeps the date held, answers the contract, and brings the couple back to sign.
Why it matters
Most couples who leave unsigned are not undecided. They are waiting for a reason to stop looking. If the proposal arrives at nine that night, it looks like every other venue's. If it arrives before they have reached the car, with their names and date on it, you are the venue that is already looking after them.
The method
- Within the hour: send the proposal. By the end of the day at the very latest. Their names, their date, their package, the payment schedule, the hold expiry.
- Tell them it is there. A text and an email: "Your proposal is in your inbox." Then add every note from the tour to the client file while it is fresh, including each objection and who raised it.
- Day 2 or 3: the recap video. A short video from the person who gave the tour, recapping the highlights in the order they saw them and naming the things they said mattered most. Send it by text and email.
- Day 3 or 4: the legal review. A video walking through the contract, clause by clause, in plain English. It removes the fear of the fine print and confirms that you and they understand the same thing.
- Day 4 or 5: the owner's thank-you. A short video or note from the owners. Make it personal.
- Day 6: the honest check-in. Ask whether they have questions, and ask what would help them decide. Remind them, warmly, when the hold ends.
- Day 7: close or release. Ask for the booking directly. If they are not ready, agree a new date for the decision or release the hold kindly and leave the door open.
- Every message in their channel. If they said text, text. If they said email, email.
Say this
"Sarah, Ben, your proposal for Saturday 7 November is in your inbox, and the date is on hold for you until Thursday at 5. Read it with a glass of wine and send me anything at all that's unclear."
"Hi both. No pressure from me, I just want to make sure you have everything you need. Is there anything that would make this an easy yes? The hold on the 7th runs through Thursday."
"I'd love to make the 7th yours. Shall I send the signing link, or would it help to talk it through on a call tonight?"
Common mistakes
- Sending the proposal the next morning.
- Following up with "just checking in". Every message carries something: a video, an answer, a reminder, an offer.
- Letting the hold drift with no end date.
- Going quiet after day 7. A kind release today is a referral next year.
Maison Albion sends the WedHub proposal from the table before the couple leaves, so the "it's in your inbox" text is often the first thing they read in the car.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1619 (digital proposal, follow-up call, extra resources), p1641 (proposal within the hour, text and email, notes to file), p1643 (owner thank-you video, legal review video), p1645 (recap video at 2 to 3 days).
Celebrate, hand off, measure
Outcome
You can close the loop on a booking: celebrate it with the team, send the gift, hand the couple cleanly into planning, and track the one number that tells you whether your tours are working.
Why it matters
The signature is the start of the relationship, not the end of the sale. Couples who are celebrated and looked after in the first thirty days become referrals and five-star reviews. And a tour process you do not measure is a tour process you cannot improve.
The method
- Celebrate with the team. Say it out loud the day it signs. Name what worked. Bookings are earned by everyone who set the room and poured the coffee.
- Send the gift within 30 days. Handwritten note, from the person who gave the tour. It sets the tone for everything that follows.
- Hand off, in writing. The couple's worksheet answers, their worries, their decision makers and every tour note go to whoever runs planning. The couple should never have to say the same thing twice. (Module 3 picks up from here.)
- Tell the couple what happens next. Who their contact is, when they will hear from them, and the first planning milestone.
- Measure your conversion. Contracts signed divided by site tours given, tracked monthly. Know your number. If it moves, ask why.
- Ask couples what they noticed. A short post-tour survey or a follow-up call, booked or not, tells you what to keep and what to fix.
- Keep practising. Change one thing per month: a line, the pacing, where you pause. Watch the number.
Say this
"From here, Kendall takes care of you. She'll be in touch on Monday with your planning timeline, and I've told her everything you told me, so you won't have to repeat yourselves. I'm still here whenever you want me."
Common mistakes
- Going straight to the next lead with no celebration and no note.
- Handing off verbally. Write it down.
- Tracking inquiries instead of tours. The tour-to-contract rate is the number this module moves.
- Changing five things at once and learning nothing.
At Maison Albion, the accepted proposal becomes the booking in WedHub, so planning starts from the same record the couple signed, with the tour notes attached.
Sources: The Business of Love, Ch 11 Sales: BOL-v8-p1649 to p1654 (practice, conversion rate = contracts ÷ tours), p1658 to p1660 (celebrate, gift within 30 days, handwritten note), p1664 to p1666 (feedback, post-tour surveys), p1672 to p1676 (relationship continues, referrals and reviews).
Know your number
Tour-to-contract rate = contracts signed ÷ site tours given
Words to use: proposal · reservation fee · hold · make it official. Words to avoid: contract · deposit · sign here · discount · “no”.
Worksheets, quiz and role-play scenarios are in the printed handout pack.