The SMH

001 Social Media Challenge: Lemonade

Mon, 21 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Making lemonade out of lemons is a popular story, obviously backed by Big Lemonade, but it encourages us to make our proverbial lemonade out of the lemons we’re presented with in life. For day one

002 Social Media Challenge: Introduce Yourself

Fri, 25 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Every month you should re-introduce yourself to your social media audience. I think you'd be surprised how many don't really know you for the real “you”, and those that do, could probably do with a brand re-alignment.

003 Social Media Challenge: Carrot Cake

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge is to find something boring (like a carrot) yet necessary (like vegetables are for your diet) in your business

004 Social Media Challenge: Reuse and recycle

Fri, 02 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I’m willing to bet that you have received a question about what you do before today, and you’ve hit reply with a really good answer.

005 Social Media Challenge: Let’s get podcasting

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Podcasts are so much more powerful than most people imagine. My little podcast, [The Rebel’s Guide to Getting Married], has maybe...

006 Social Media Challenge: Nutella Day

Sat, 10 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Who would ever think that there would be a need for an [International Day for Nutella] to raise awareness of the delicious nutty goodness? Sara Rosso did.

007 Social Media Challenge: Blog a common reply

Wed, 14 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

In computer programming there's a method of program called Object Oriented Programming, which recognises that some parts of the program are reused a lot. The programmers write the code once, then reuse it every time they

008 Social Media Challenge: Beat your own drum and testify

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If someone speaks well of you, you've got to remember that, embed it deep into your soul, and know that you're good at this. And once you’ve done that you need to share that testimony There’s a whole philos

009 Social Media Challenge: Your genesis story

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge is an easy one, you already know everything about it, the key to the challenge though is 1. Articulating it, 2. Telling it, and 3. Sharing it to as many mediums as possible Today we’re telling yo

010 Social Media Challenge: Let’s take the conversation to 11

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today we’re taking that controversial thought in your mind, and we’re turning it all the way up to [eleven, Spinal Tap style].

011 Social Media Challenge: A day in the life of...

Sun, 01 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

One of my favourite uses of Instagram’s Story feature is to document the behind the scenes of what I’m doing. I see a number of benefits to the occasional behind the scenes personal documentary.

012 Social Media Challenge: Something beautiful

Thu, 05 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Ansel Adams said that we don’t take a photograph, we make it. Your challenge today is to make a photo, a beautiful photo, a photo you’re proud of, that you’d be happy to see hanging in my lounge room. It ca

013 Social Media Challenge: Who do you love?

Mon, 09 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge is 98% in your hands, 1% in the calendar’s hands, and 1% from me.

014 Social Media Challenge: Be relevant

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There are five different kinds of good content. Before you click post on anything, ever, forever, it should be at least one. If it’s two, you might get a like, three and you’re having a party, four and you just put a has

015 Social Media Challenge: Be educational

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Good morning students! Today you’re all teachers and we’re taking your audience back to school.

016 Social Media Challenge: Inspire us

Sat, 21 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge is to mentally stimulate us, to make us feel something, something creative, beautiful, and hearty. Today’s challenge, as is the theme in this current swing of content, can go on any network/s of

017 Social Media Challenge: Let me, entertain you!

Wed, 25 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge, once more without stipulation of network or medium, is to entertain us.

018 Social Media Challenge: Create demonstrating content

Sun, 29 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I started this little streak of content prompts highlighting the fact that there five different kinds of good content. This is the fifth: demonstratable content.

019 Social Media Challenge: Combine the five

Thu, 03 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

We’re on the home stretch in this social media challenge, and you guys are absolutely nailing the challenge to the wall, good work!

020 Social Media Challenge: Josh's Wheeeeeelllll of Content

Mon, 07 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today you get a rare and direct peek into my brain. This next diagram explains how I think about content.

021 Social Media Challenge: Charting the course

Fri, 11 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Here’s a chart that tells a story about my business. Before you read on or scroll, what story do you think it’s telling?

022 Social Media Challenge: You can ASCII me anything

Tue, 15 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

In the beginning there was the text, and the text was good. It was all we knew. We called it ASCII, ASCII codes represent text in computers. When I first used a personal computer in 1991 "computer graphics " were mostly j

023 Social Media Challenge: The writing game

Sat, 19 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today your challenge is to write non-stop for five minutes.

024 Social Media Challenge: Can I answer you a question?

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Today’s challenge is a little more casual after some intense training days, and it's about Quora.

025 Social Media Challenge: Meme me baby

Sun, 27 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Your challenge today is to create an entertaining meme. Not an educational meme, or an instructional meme, or a demonstratable meme. Today we meme for fun.

026 Social Media Challenge: It's not about you today

Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Social media, and humanity in general, can become a little bit self-indulgent at times. It's our tribal, animalistic nature, to look after one's self first. But something beautiful happens when you turn the camera away f

Ten reasons you should take credit card payments

Fri, 28 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If your couples don't have an easy way to pay you with credit card, I'm of the belief that you're not only missing out on cash flow and cash, but you're also missing out on the goodwill you would generate by making your

15 years

Tue, 14 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

15 years ago a letter arrived in the mail letting me know that as of 15 years ago today, the 14th of May, I had been appointed a Commonwealth Authorised Marriag...

16 Growth ideas for wedding celebrants

Tue, 21 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant friend was complaining to me recently about the market, we've all had the same conversation, either us being whined at, or us doing the whining. The truth is that we are not owed our next enquiry or booking,

16 Ways a celebrant can end up in jail for six months

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Sarah and I have been reviewing the Guidelines to the Marriage Act and one chapter caught my eye and I thought maybe you didn't know how many things you could do that would end you up in jail for at least six months, or

18 minutes is the perfect ceremony length

Sat, 03 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Whenever a couple ask me how long my wedding ceremonies are I can always give the same easy answer: about 18 minutes.

20 Years of Celebrancy Population Stats

Mon, 16 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The story of marriage celebrancy in Australia over the past two decades is not just a tale of registration numbers — it’s a window into what happens when a regulated profession opens the doors too wide, too quickly, and

What return did I see from a $20k advertising investment last year?

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Coming back into full-time celebrancy in 2023 I knew that the industry had changed, the celebrant population had changed, and the couples booking weddings were not just different but they had different means and ways of

What is every other Australian celebrant charging in 2024?

Thu, 01 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In January we asked Australian celebrants to complete a survey. Of the 10,339 authorised marriage celebrants in Australia, 297 responded, giving us a 2.87% response rate, and this is our analysis of the survey results.

Josh's 22 Rules On How To Be A Celebrant

Wed, 28 May 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Being a celebrant is a strange and wonderful job. You stand in front of a group of strangers, legally authorise a marriage between two of their favourite people, and speak words that might stick in someone’s memory for t

24 ways you give the rest of us an advantage (or, Liene brings the fire)

Fri, 12 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Liene at Think Splendid has dropped some absolute fire on the wedding industry today. I love this. You should read the piece and follow her links for context, but here's the drop:

How did I do 27 weddings in one month?

Thu, 12 May 2022 00:00:00 GMT

A few responses to my May 2022 email about having done 27 marriage ceremonies this month before prompted questions from celebrants across our Australian membership base and even internationally. Donna asked "how do you j

30 AI Experiments You Could Try In Your Celebrancy Today

Fri, 18 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

As an Australian marriage celebrant, we’re juggling multiple responsibilities–from crafting personalised ceremonies to managing client relationships and handling administrative tasks. The recent advances in AI technology

40 Questions To Ask Yourself Each New Year

Tue, 31 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

To bring in the new year, [Stephen Ango asks himself 40 questions]. I liked his list but thought I’d alter it for followers so we could reflect on where we’ve been and look at where we’re going. Ident

$6 Dollar Breakfast!

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

After dropping my car off to be serviced this morning I hit the local cafe strip to find a breakfast befitting of someone wanting to sit in a cafe for breakfast and a coffee while answering emails and writing blog posts.

7 Insurances celebrants should have

Fri, 09 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A member has asked about whether the readership includes insurance. It doesn't, and we'll be honest with you, that's because we reached out to a bunch of insurance brokers and insuring you lot in such

A ceremony as a series of 'riffs', that's how I'm unscripted

Tue, 29 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

When you mention my name to another celebrant, apparently the most common thing people talk about is how I'm unscripted. Some people call it ad lib. I would never describe my method of creating and delivering a ceremony

A good website is no joke

Mon, 01 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A comedian I follow on Threads recently posted

A lesson from Kobe Bryant for celebrants

Mon, 04 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Starting from zero is hard. I've found that creating from scratch, staring at a blank Word document, or an empty notepad, is the hardest work, like pushing a boulder uphill it requires you to muster everything inside of

You must call yourself a marriage celebrant

Sun, 14 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I'm sure that all of you have familiarised yourself with the Marriage Act of 1961, so you probably don't have to read this, but on the off chance you missed some key points, I thought I'd share them here.

A massive change to how marriage celebrants can sight ID

Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

For the past six months I have been pursuing a line of inquiry with the Attorney-General's office Marriage Celebrants Section over the line in the Guidelines section 4.4.2: It is not acceptable for a celebrant to accept

A modern day version of the busy cafe getting busier

Thu, 09 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re not already familiar with the reason why, when faced with two cafes next to each other most of us will choose the busier cafe, the reason is social proof.

A podcast, not by us, with Jerry Saltz

Mon, 17 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I’ll be honest, I haven’t been able to kick the thought that as much as this podcast episode seems like the least likely thing to recommend to a pack of celebrants, I just have to. So here it is. Jerry Sa

A simple upgrade to your website and social media

Sat, 28 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A quick and easy weekend exercise for everyone today: read the front page of your website and your about page. Look at your recent social media posts and your bios on the networks. Are you talking about the product or th

A story for celebrants finding their tribe like Yeti coolers did

Fri, 11 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Before Yeti created a $5 million cooler and adventure brand, the icebox/cooler market (aka the "esky " market, despite Esky being a brand) was a a low-cost and cheap product market. Chris Hladczuk documents their story in

Accountability

Sat, 06 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The curse and blessing of my business as a celebrant is my independence. I know my North American brethern often work in larger studios of officiants, one frien...

Acknowledgement of Country in our weddings

Tue, 26 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

First Australians have been marrying for thousands of years on the land we now call Australia. Terra Australis, the southern land, was home to people well before the Dutch or the British "discovered " it, so as much as Au

Acknowledging sonder

Sat, 27 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Have you heard of sonder?

How to lodge marriage documents electronically with the ACT BDM

Thu, 06 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Births, Deaths, and Marriages in Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria, all have their own online systems for logging in online and submitting marriage paperwork electronically. The Australian Capital Territory B

Online advertising just doesn't work the way we hope

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

There is a fascinating article on The Correspondent today about the next "dot com bubble " being online advertising. The link is a long, but easy, and really (seriously) interesting read, but for the benefit of CI blog re

AI can allow you to express yourself meaningfully

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In the evolving world of wedding planning, the role of a celebrant is continually transforming. Today's celebrants are not just facilitators of a ceremony; they are storytellers, advisors, and now, thanks to Artificial I

AI is a forklift

Mon, 25 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Most of the talk about artificial intelligence, large language models, ChatGPT and its competitors, is about it taking over creative work.

AI webinars on productivity and search

Sun, 03 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Artificial intelligence workshops for wedding professionals and celebrants by

Air France let's us choose which fuel

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

This is nice

All prayer in pursuit

Wed, 03 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Timothy Keller wrote that "all prayer, pursued far enough, becomes praise" and I'd encourage you to replace or further the word 'prayer' with the deepest groans...

Almost Nobody, wants you to be their celebrant

Fri, 31 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Almost Nobody, wants you to be their celebrant and that is really good news. Everybody, wants a celebrant that is nothing like you. This article will help you get that prized enquiry from Almost Nobody!

An example of finding your 'Almost Nobody'

Sat, 01 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

In a post yesterday I described the hard work of finding your 'Almost Nobody'. This, I argue, is your life's work, and something that will forever be changing. A good example of me doing that work in my own business is sharing authentically on social media.

The anatomy of a good (back)link

Sat, 12 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Discover how to effectively link out from your website with our comprehensive guide to outbound linking strategies.

Annie Leibovitz

Sun, 10 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A friend refused to use his own name as the name of his wedding business because he was worried people wouldn't spell it properly so I asked him to spell Annie ...

Answering "How much do you cost?"

Wed, 08 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Amber asks Leading from the price on website debate - how do you answer the "How much do your services cost? " enquiry? I try to start a conversation and speak about value and the experience but sometimes it is just frust

Apple's Business Connect, now accepting marriage celebrants

Thu, 14 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In an exciting development for Aussie marriage celebrants, Apple has announced new features that could help make your business more professional and trustworthy in the eyes of potential clients using Apple devices like i

Approach a wedding ceremony as a work of art

Sat, 22 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Neil Gaiman made a speech on May 17, 2012, as the keynote speech for the commencement ceremony to The University of Arts. As I read it I am thinking of the wedding ceremony as a work of art, and I'm sharing it with you t

Are you a workaholic?

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It's a weird world in 2020, one where our workload has significantly decreased, yet in other less familiar ways, our workload has increased dramatically with postponements, court dates, cancellations, emails, sending man

Are you all talk or do you like to do things too?

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There's been some really good advice shared in these emails, and there's still more, I've got more notes than you could imagine on topics or aspects of weddings...

Are you better yet?

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I'm thinking about a quote from someone famous that I can't exactly recall about how 'a man who thinks the same thing at 25 and 35 is a foolish man' as I watch ...

Are you prepared to lose your Facebook, Meta, Google, access?

Fri, 10 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

This week saw the 28th user of Instagram - that's right, he's been using Instagram for longer than everyone except for 27 other people - get locked out of his Instagram because an automatic content checker deemed that he

Are you starving yourself because you won't turn left?

Thu, 16 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This week I've been in Vancouver, British Columbia, for two marriage ceremonies and it has been an amazing experience, with the one caveat: in Canada they drive on the incorrect side of the road. You might think this has

Are you telling people information, or answering questions on your blog?

Wed, 13 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Of the 8.5 billion searches a day on Google, 680 million of them, eight percent, are questions.

Are your emails even being delivered?

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In February 2024 Google and Yahoo's email divisions implemented big changes to how emails could be delivered and if they would be deemed spam or junk mail.

Attention is the goal

Fri, 23 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Only 20 years ago the common person had one source of information, if any — the local newspaper.

I built a directory I don't hate

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

I hate wedding directories so I built yet another wedding directory

Baby Got Backend

Sun, 10 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Morgan Roberts invited me onto his podcast to talk about the back ends of a business. Systems, Tave, Dubsado, all that really boring and important stuff. It's worth a listen if automation is a scary word to you.

What is a backlink?

Thu, 20 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A quick explainer on what a backlink is.

Basic accounting and financial management for celebrants

Sun, 21 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant reached out recently with a query that sparked me thinking about how well we're all managing our finances. They emailed me asking if they were still a paying member. Ironically,

Be a little more like Robbie Williams as a celebrant

Sun, 25 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I'll get the disappointment out of the way for everyone, I'm no AFL fan. Can you blame me? I'm a Queenslander born and bred, we worship NRL gods up here. Regardless, I heard people comment on Robbie Williams' performa

Be exceptional

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If your celebrant offering, your service, the thing you're selling, is the same as everyone else's, or appears the same, or you portray it as the same, then potential clients will look for the lowest price. Raise your

Be or pretend

Mon, 26 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

At a time when his fate was being decided by TV executives, and his agent was trying to convince him to talk to another TV network, David Letterman decided you ...

Be vulnerable about your growth intentions to actually grow

Tue, 24 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A study has found that adding copy to a new app's website around the lines of "we expect 1000 users to join this year " increased signups for the app by 20%. People respond to the developer's expectations and intentions o

Be Wally

Fri, 17 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Any given day on social media there's an outrage. Whether Apple published an advertisement that upset trumpet players, or the politician made a call your aunty ...

Beginners guide to not getting hacked

Fri, 12 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Reading the news today I realised that after Kristy Merlino’s email and Mailchimp accounts were hacked, that Kanye West’s iPhone passcode is 00000 and that Facebook doesn’t care about your privacy - it might be possible

Being found is the new advertising

Thu, 03 Nov 2022 00:00:00 GMT

There are a few different kinds of marketing and advertising, but they can be mostly wrapped up under two headings: passive and active. Passive marketing is my favourite because it actively respects the nature of

Best hashtags wedding creators should use to increase their reach

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

What are the best hashtags wedding creators should use to increase their reach? None

Wake surfing the Betoota Advocate's wedding waves

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The Betoota Advocate satires Australian life, but can Australians just trying to live their life benefit too?

Biggest ever that I have never heard of

Tue, 02 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A guy named George Strait who apparently is a country music star has broken the record for the largest-ever ticketed concert in the U.S. with 110,905 people in ...

Blogging is coming back!

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In 1997 the term "web log " was shortened to blog and ever since common people like you and I have had the power to write and publish on the internet. For the longest time it was the only way you shared your mission, your

Build my own website or pay a pro? Build a business brand or a personal brand?

Mon, 30 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Suzanne asks: "Looking for advice on professional web design v. self design. Objective to attract biz, be good return on investment and not rubber-stamp like. Also some good advice on logo vs personal service brand. " Two

Build your own AI

Sat, 01 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Want to take a dive in the deep end and run your own artificial intelligence AI large language model LLM?

But I don’t know your new address

Sat, 08 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Reading Richard Feynman's letter to his late wife moved me, because it's hard to be in the w...

Buying

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In Oprah Winfrey by George Ilian, what people actually buy is detailed like this: People don't buy products, they buy emotions. Wh...

Calculating your fee

Tue, 02 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Liene over at Think Splendid has published a super insightful blog post about how she prices herself for her speaking gigs. I wonder if we as celebrants have considered not only our costs of doing business expense

Can AI write an original marriage ceremony?

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Yes, yes artificial intelligence can write a marriage ceremony, but can it present one well? You've probably read the news about OpenAI's new GPT-3 chatbot, ChatGPT, so I won't mansplain AI to you, but I simply wa

Card Buddy, your new ceremony writing app

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I've described my ceremony preparation and writing style before as a series of "bits ", much like how a comedian will assemble a show from their jokes and bits, I'll assemble a ceremony together much the same. So when

Juggling celebrancy and kids

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT

One of my biggest regrets of a thought - I only thought this, I didn’t even say it - was when I meeting with a colleague celebrant over coffee about a decade ago and I offered some business advice. She replied with somet

Celebrant > Officiant

Sun, 18 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Why do I call our job celebrant and not officiant like everyone outside of Australia does? As one is apt to do at a wedding, allow me to quote the dictionary...

Celebrants must have separate meetings with each party to marriage before the wedding

Thu, 13 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Webinar on this topic: $10 to watch on demand webinars to learn about the new marriage law changes. From 12 June 2024, all authorised marriage celebrants must meet with each party separately and in person before

"Celebrants near me" doesn't work anymore

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Being the best local wedding celebrant near me today doesn't mean as much as it used to in the days of the Yellowpages.

"Ceremony writing is my least favourite part"

Fri, 06 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Jeff asks: I’m heading into my busiest year yet, I’m so happy I get to work alongside so many great humans who want to be married! The downside (if we can call it that) - my ceremony writing process is my least favourite

Change your passwords

Thu, 02 Feb 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Depending on who you talk to, International Change Your Password Day is January 20 or February 1. Either way, in Australia we've missed both those dates, and because I'm writing this in Mexico I just saw the tweet from F

Changing from selling to serving

Sat, 29 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Many of us have a problem with selling. It’s understandable, most of us have been sold to before, and we’ve hated it. A “salesperson” is often the sleaziest person in the room, and none of us want to be “that guy.” But h

Changing the redundant parts of the Marriage Act - December 2019 Update

Sat, 21 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

If you've been following an earlier blog post where we made submissions to our local MP regarding removing some redundant parts of the Marriage Act of 1961, well, I got an update:

Changing your tools

Mon, 04 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I'm always looking for opportunities to change up my tools. It's the easiest way for me to assess what I have been doing and using, and to find out whether ther...

Charissa and Scott got up real high in their wedding

Sun, 10 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In this episode of the Insights podcast episode - [memberful_buy_subscription_link plan=106531-insights-monthly]Insights level members[/memberful_buy_subscription_link] can [memberful_podcasts_link podcast=20822]listen h

Chat and AI is going to change your entire business

Wed, 29 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Four points that you should take away from this article: 1) The power of the first-mover and the advantages you can take from being one. 2) Social media is both broadening and shrinking. Broadening into wider broadcast-s

Check out an 11 year old celebrant survey

Tue, 21 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

11 years ago (in 2009), celebrant directory website Celebrante, conducted a survey of about 1400 celebrants. I’m cleaning out my Dropbox folder and found the survey, so I thought it’d be an interesting piece of qua

Chikas, blokes & miscellaneous folks

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Our clients'/couples' families and family-dynamics are changing, as this CBC article documents on...

Choose one of these two

Wed, 03 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There are two movements you can take in growing your business today: floor raising and ceiling raising.

Collecting email addresses at a wedding fair with a QR code and ChatGPT

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Luke emailed me yesterday as I was about to solve for myself the problem he identified: What software would you recommend to use for a marketing list? Again are there any zaps or workflows in setting up the marketing lis

Communicating timelines with couples

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Alex asks: My question is regarding communication with couples - specifically timelines. Before I became a Celebrant I remember hearing a few off-hand remarks from a family friend and also a cousin about their Celebrants

Communicating with couples about COVID-19

Mon, 23 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Do you know the Greek myth of King Sisyphus? As retribution for tricking the gods, he was punished to an eternity of pushing a large boulder up a steep hill only to have it roll back down just as he reached the top.

Comparing AI meeting assistants: Granola and Zoom

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I am obsessed with trying to optimise my productivity whilst maintaing a really high delivery of value to my customers. Simply because I have a wife and two children, six chickens and two rabbits, that I also want to dev

Computer and internet security for a modern marriage celebrant

Fri, 11 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Every day I wake up and check the technology news - as is my habit - and scroll through the headlines I'm expecting to find a marriage celebrant in there. Why?

Considering the five senses

Thu, 01 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As the person creating and leading a wedding ceremony consider the five senses in ceremony creation.

Contacting our local MP about the now redundant requirement of two official marriage certificates

Sat, 30 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

On this week’s podcast episode I talked about contacting our local member of parliament to request a change to the Marriage Act of 1961. The act requires two official certificates of marriage be prepared, which in a digi

Coronavirus income support for self-employed marriage celebrants

Mon, 23 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

This blog post does not serve as legal or financial advice. We’re all just reading the Economic Response to the Coronavirus, fact sheet on Income Support for Individuals, on a Monday morning, the 24th of March at 9

Correcting marriage paperwork

Wed, 16 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There's a new fact sheet on the Attorney-General's department website on correcting marriage paperwork, and it's an important read. We're copying and pa

I've gone to court for cancelled covid weddings, and lived to tell the story

Thu, 01 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

At the time of writing I personally have attended four court mediation sessions, and two court hearings. Theses are my stories. Dum dum. Ok, enough of the Law and Order jokes, but I am in the middle of a bunch of law sui

Create a rabbit hole for your couples to "fall" down

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Create a rabbit hole for your couples to fall down so they fall in love with you!

Create for you

Sun, 21 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Author and podcaster Glennon Doyle spoke on the courage to be yourself:

Creating a marriage ceremony versus re-creating a marriage ceremony

Sun, 12 Feb 2023 00:00:00 GMT

When I talk about being unscripted in a ceremony, people often misread that as the oral version of just shooting from the hip, seeing where the bullets lie. The truth is, I'm more likely to be more prepared, more nervous

Creating an intimate ceremony, and including kids

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A reader asks: I am officiating my cousin's wedding next month and this is a particularly special one. It is going to be very intimate and relaxed - it's also really important as my cousin was actually diagnosed with sta

Creating elopement packages

Wed, 23 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A reader asks: "I have a handful of elopement related questions, and I think they will be more relevant than ever given how our world has changed in 2020 and how weddings have changed/will change in the coming year(s).

Cruising speed

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Any fool with a Squarespace website and a Google Ads account can start a business. Our society puts so much value on starting, and perhaps its rightly so.

Cycles of life

Mon, 29 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

My friends at WedShed surveyed 600 different wedding venues and vendors and crafted together some narrative and understanding

Daily practice

Thu, 04 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Josh Knox's dad has been retired for almost 20 years but everyday he consults a notecard with five activities.

Decrypted Australian PDF Marriage Forms

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We understand that accessibility is key in providing seamless services as a marriage celebrant, and we also understand that the Notice of Intended Marriage and Official Certificate of Marriage being provided from the AGD

Desperate for community and leadership

Sun, 28 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

You have a unique opportunity to create community and provide leadership in your local wedding industry. Celebrants and officiants are independent, often solo, ...

Digital drivers licenses as ID, a guide for celebrants

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

As more Australian states start delivering digital drivers licenses it's important for Australian marriage celebrants to know if they can use digital drivers licenses as ID when solemnising marriages.

The purpose of online business directories have changed

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The times, they are a changing.

Ditch the breakfast buffet

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I've stayed in enough hotels around the globe to know that the hotel buffet breakfast is a global institution. You also don't need to be a published food critic...

The SEO Action List: What Google Actually Tells You to Do

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

A comprehensive DIY guide to making sure your webite appears where it should in search results on search engines and AI chatbots.

Do backlinks positively affect AI search?

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Of course the answer is yes, but how the affect AI search is so much more interesting.

Do I need more than one domain name for my website?

Tue, 29 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Elaine asks: When I obtained my Domain Name of domainname.com.au from Melbourne IT when I first started back in 2014, I was ‘advised’ to secure domainname.net and domainname.com too, to prevent ‘others’ from setting

Do you know what you want?

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We often consider ourselves - celebrants, people who create ceremony - to be people that are only giving to a wedding.

Do you really want that exposure?

Mon, 11 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

On a road near my house there's a billboard that promises to expose my business to many thousands of people. A similar promise has been made by the producers of Married at First Sight and other TV shows. Everyone wants t

Doing deals with other vendors

Fri, 17 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Pete asks: I have a question about the legalities of commercial arrangements with third parties given that as a Celebrant we're government officers and our duty to avoid potential conflicts. Just about everyone ha

Doing what the engines want is an easy way to win

Tue, 01 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

There's an easy way to win online today if you optimise your website for the search- and answer-engines.

Domesticate your email inbox

Mon, 05 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

For 11 years I have made a full-time living through email. People email me, I reply, they reply, I reply, money turns up in my bank account.

2024's Ongoing Professional Development topics are now available

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Our friends in Canberra emailed all Aussie celebrants with the good news that our OPD - our ongoing professional development obligation - is now online on the Marcel Portal. The department is delivering the two (

A decade of Aird and Withers

Sat, 17 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Over a decade ago (a decade and two months actually) everyone's favourite celebrant-shaped human and oracle - Sarah Aird - reached out to me with a software/technology question and that was the beginning of a decade long

Advanced OPD topic on how to skin a rabbit

Thu, 08 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT

After a six month break from podcasting because our world's got crazy and busy, we talk about what was keeping us busy. Namely, reschedules and postponements and cancellations of weddings, and how that's affecting the wh

Automating a common email reply

Sun, 25 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Earlier this week I wrote how we had to write basically the same reply every time someone didn't read a page on our website.

Comparing a Josh wedding ceremony and a Sarah ceremony

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A topic we don't cover enough here in the readership is ceremony presentation and style. It's such a personal topic and each of us has our own style. But today we thought we'd lift the cover and show

The Coyote vs ACME movie is finally happening

Tue, 01 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Deadset forgot this was even on the cards, but I'm absolutely chuffed now because Warner Brothers has finally found a buyer to distribute the legal comedy, Coyote v ACME.

Email is the worst

Sat, 25 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

A terribly poor recording of the podcast with Josh and Sarah this week, Josh's laptop got drunk. Topics on this episode include: Does ageism exist in celebrancy? Being a celebrant with a disabili

Podcast: They just decided to extend that to all weddings

Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In this episode of the podcast, Josh Withers and I discuss recent changes to marriage laws, managing NOIM remote witnessing, consent meetings, celebrant pricing strategies, and some light-hearted banter!

Fix pricing, not prices: A celebrant price guide

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

In this episode of the podcast, Sarah Aird and I are diving deep into a topic that every celebrant has wrestled with at some point: pricing. Thanks to a thoughtful series of questions from listen

Fresh Faces in Celebrancy: Melissa Edwards' Energetic Entry

Thu, 04 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In this vibrant episode of the podcast, host Josh Withers welcomes the enthusiastic Melissa Edwards, a newly minted celebrant who completed her Certificate IV in Celebrancy. A

From Dietitian to 'I Do's, a new celebrant's story

Thu, 14 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In this episode of the podcast, Josh Withers interviews Amy McNeilly, a recent graduate from . Amy, who works as a clinical dietician, pursued celebrancy to engage more with people, in

Happy Podcast New Year!

Wed, 13 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT

We know, we know, we've been away for a whole year, but we're back! In this episode we talk about where we're both at in July 2022, and the major things that have happened in celebrancy and in

Submissions requested on new Happily Ever (before and) After brochure text

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The Attorney-General’s Department is redrafting the ‘Happily Ever (before and) After’ brochure – the one we’re legally required to give to every couple under section 42(5A) of the Marriage Act 1961 – and they want your i

How to be a wedding reception MC

Tue, 17 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The art of MCing a wedding reception is definitely one most celebrants could master, but it's a little different to being a marriage celebrant, so here's master MC, Glenn Mackay, of G&M Event Group at the 2019 conference

How to become a wedding celebrant in Australia

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT

A how-to guide for people wanting to become a wedding celebrant. It’s easy. You just need to want the best job in the universe, you need to believe that getting and being married is important and awesome + some public sp

How to Celebrate and Not Hyperventilate with Megan

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Embark on a celebrant's journey with Megan Studman and Josh Withers in the podcast! From certification to conducting her first wedding, Megan's story is a fascinating dive into the world of celebrancy. Learn

I stuffed up, and I owe you all an apology

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

I need to apologise. Last year I registered expired domain names belonging to a local celebrant's businesses. When confronted by that celebrant this week, I made it worse—I asked for payment to transfer one back, an

Do our social media challenge

Tue, 15 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I'm writing a social media challenge for readers to see out 2020...

Journey to Joy: Rachel Ivy McDermott-Magrath's Celebrant Adventure

Mon, 15 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Welcome to another enriching episode of the podcast, where we delve into the inspiring journeys of those who've embarked on the path of becoming a celebrant. Today's episode features Rachel Ivy McDermott-Mag

Just a bunch of gibberish + legislation + quiet wedding industry times

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In this episode of the podcast, hosts Josh Withers and Sarah Aird discuss the current state of the wedding industry and the impact of COVID-19, inflation, and the "engagement gap " on wedding businesses. They

Meet a Certificate IV in Celebrancy graduate, Lachie Grisold

Fri, 08 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In this exciting episode's podcast, join your host, Josh Withers, as he continues his series of insightful interviews with recent graduates and new celebrants. This episode

Meet Enclosed, the new best and secure way to send marriage paperwork

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Join me once more as we talk about marriage celebrant security, something that’s both mundane and critical: how we share marriage paperwork with our clients. Traditionally, we’ve relied on email—it’s fast, familiar,

Musician-Turned-Celebrant: Ryan's Story

Fri, 26 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Welcome to another engaging episode of the podcast, where we explore the diverse journeys of newly authorised celebrants in Australia. Today, I, Josh Withers, have the pleasure of hosting Ryan Enright from

NOIM Remote Witnessing has been made law

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Webinar on this topic: $10 to watch on demand webinars to learn about the new marriage law changes. As of today remote witnessing of the Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) is made permanent by Commonwealth law.

OPD in 2021 is changing

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

For your ongoing professional development as a Commonwealth authorised marriage celebrant in 2021, only four hours will be provided by your OPD trainer. One hour of your five hour commitment will be delivered by the Marr

Open up the old internet and just toss some stuff in there

Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Josh wrote an article here on website and received lots of feedback on it, and Sarah had some thoughts on it. Here's the link to the edited article, and the archived version from before this podc

Replying to new wedding enquiries with Bonjoro

Wed, 12 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

a reader was listening to back catalogue episodes of the podcast and found one where I mentioned that my sales process involved potential couples requesting an information pack from my web

Say, do you remember? Dancing (with new forms) in September?

Wed, 18 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

September 2021 is bringing us new marriage forms, and to be sure that we don't confuse things, let me quote from the Attorney-General office email sent today. If you haven't received it, check your spam folder and then t

The podcast episode about the email about the regulations recorded on a school night

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

You probably got that email sent to all celebrants about the Marriage Regulations legislation and the "new " requirement in the code of practice regarding "reasonable and timely responses " to requests from marrying couple

Tori Brown's Path to Passion and Purpose

Sun, 28 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In this enlightening episode of the podcast, host Josh Withers delves into the captivating world of new celebrants with guest Tori Brown from Grace and Soul Celebrancy. A recent graduate of the Certificate I

We have changed membership systems

Sat, 25 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Just a quick note for members, your membership management, updating of cards, changing plans, logging in, and just using it, has become a whole lot easier. It's involved four weeks of wo

We've got a seat at the AGD's table

Fri, 18 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Twice a year the Marriage Law and Celebrants Section (MLCS) of the Attorney General's Department meets with representatives of celebrants associations to discuss the potential impact of policies and legislative changes t

Should I become a celebrant? Words to an aspirational celebrant

Fri, 22 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I met one of my neighbours this morning and he mentioned he was becoming a celebrant soon so he could marry two friends who are getting married soon. I gave him the spiel I give anyone and everyone becoming a new celebra

Drummer seeks band

Fri, 12 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

“Drummer seeks musicians to form band.” That sign hung up on the wall of a high school in Dublin in 1978. It changed the course of music history. This is the...

Embracing DMARC: A Must-Do for Celebrants

Sat, 11 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

With the digital sphere becoming more integral to our work, it’s crucial we stay abreast of changes that impact how we connect with our couples and our industry. Today, I want to demystify a term that’s been floating aro

Empathy. Focus. Impute.

Tue, 05 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs he detailed the Apple marketing philosophy that I still witness in the company today:

Encrypting your couples' NOIMs and Marriage Certificates

Wed, 06 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As authorised marriage celebrants, we’re entrusted with some of the most sensitive details in our clients' lives. One of our colleagues - an Australian marriage celebrant - was recently hacked and the hackers gained acce

Engagement ring sales in 2023 explain the 2024 dip in enquiries

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Explaining the 2024 dip in wedding enquiries and bookings, or the shortening of planning time, Shane references a New York Times article which references the investors letter from the world's largest retailer of diamond

Enjoyment and satisfaction

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

You might have noticed I'm back and publishing. There has been no great change apart from the simple fact that I missed writing every day, and I guess the frame...

Enough

Sat, 06 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Kurt Vonnegut told a story about his friend Joe,

Everything is hard

Sat, 12 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Seth Godin wrote recently that everything costs and it reminded me of my personal philosophy that everything is hard...

Example SEO audit

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I just prepared this audit for someone else and through it might be helpful to you.

On expired domain names

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Expired domains get registered for SEO value—it's standard practice. Learn why it happens, the Australian rules, and how to protect your domain from expiry.

Facebook's a bit salty at us

Sat, 20 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

After posting a guide on making sure you and your business is prepared if and when the Facebook ban hammer falls on you, the Facebook ban hammer fell on us.

Failing the basics

Thu, 20 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Is it just me who searches Wikipedia for a company name because their web site completely fails to tell me what they do?

Fascinating

Wed, 22 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Jerry Seinfeld's Duke commencement speech stopped me in my tracks when he said

Firing a couple

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant friend has been going back and forth with a couple who want a celebrant that's not her. Maybe they've been on the blogs and Pinterest and they've decided that this is how you deal with a celebrant, or maybe t

Five easy SEO hacks you can do that are driven by research

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Everyone knows a guy who knows a guy who can get you on the front page of Google. I'd argue that you might not want to be on the front page of Google for everything, but it doesn't hurt for the right people to be able to

The five laws of sales your celebrant website needs to respect

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

When you're building your celebrant website, you’re crafting the digital front door to your business, the handshake before you meet your couple. And like any good intro, it needs to do more than look good—it needs to wor

Five ways to make your ceremonies better

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A recent Seth Godin post about presentations of the corporate/Microsoft Powerpoint kind, spurred me on to thinking about our presentation style as celebrants. My ceremony presentation style has it's roots in a) what I'm

Footwork

Thu, 11 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

From a World Without Time

Ultimate Guide to Creating Automation For Your Customer Journey

Sun, 31 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I recently spoke via video at the Wedding Business CEO Summit and spoke on the process of creating a customer journey. My talk was called There’s A Fraction Too Much Friction: Automation For Your Customer Journey. I beli

Pants Off Fridays/Friends On Fridays/Nico Raineau

Fri, 07 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Hamish & Andy took Casual Fridays to another level, Pants Off Fridays (they even got U2 in on it), and it's a bit of a stretch but I want to take this daily letter to the world's best wedding creators to another level, so I'm going to start asking my friends to write to you too.

Friends on Friday: Glenn Mackay

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Glenn was one of the first people I ever met in the wedding industry who ran the kind of operation I could aspire to run. Not in size...

Friends on Friday: Jake Smith

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The nicest guy in the wedding industry for a decade running is Jake Smith If you ever manage to tie him down for a coffee or a meal, y...

Friends on Friday: Jeff Maeck

Fri, 28 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The people I want to listen to most are the people who want to listen to other people the most. It's an admirable trait. That's why I could listen to my friend ...

Friends on Friday: Jeff Maeck (again)

Fri, 26 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I couldn't help but get Jeff back on the letter again:

Friends on Friday: Jimmie Berguin

Fri, 02 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I've got to be honest about Jimmie before I share his message. His burst onto the wedding scene was the first time I f...

Friends on Friday: Josh Mikhaiel

Fri, 14 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Josh Mikhaiel on being human and also being a wedding business person:

Friends on Friday: Kiera Ryan

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Kiera is the girl that made me respect the art and craft of wedding planning. In my career, before meeting her, wedding planners had been stylists given control...

Friends on Friday: Shaun Tolhoek

Fri, 21 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Shaun Tolhoek from Lemon Tree Film House on building heritage in the we...

Fruit

Sun, 20 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Some would call it picky perfectionism, others see the pursuit of excellence, I guess the difference is the fruit.

Gen Z is the queerest adult generation to date

Fri, 02 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Nearly 30% of Gen Z American adults identify as LGBTQ

Get AI-generated summaries of your video calls

Wed, 17 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT

2020 brought us many gifts, but for so many the lasting gift is video calls. We had them before 2020 but they're very normal to have today. So when I found this new tool that records, transcribes, and then summarises you

Get out of your head

Fri, 05 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It is so hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your head. I'm not going to lie, the way the government response to covid ruined our family business and fin...

Get testimonies that matter

Thu, 05 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Celebrants offer such a personal service, your service is very different to mine, to every other member of this website, and the thousands of other celebrants available. We can communicate our differences in text and pho

Getting ceremony audio to videographers

Fri, 05 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Maria asks: Hi Josh, you’ve mentioned you record the audio during your ceremonies to give to the videographer if they choose for better audio. Firstly, what equipment do you use and how do you hook it up and secondly, do

Getting the deposit paid

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Veronica asks: How to you get clients to pay the booking fee, without sounding desperate or annoying?

Getting your financials in order

Thu, 09 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I just did my tax and I'm very frustrated!!! I need advice on what software or system to use to make it easier. Most I see are not designed for a sole owner operator that has not registered for GST (I earn less than 75k

Giving your clients what they want: bad deal

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I have been simmering on the idea that our clients don’t actually know what they want, despite almost all wedding vendor websites claiming to give them whatever they want, for quite a while now.

Good strategy

Sat, 16 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Your best strategy should be simple and powerful. Easy enough to explain to a friend, honest enough to explain to a client.

Google's computer is the real SEO expert

Fri, 16 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Many of us still get SEO confused, so Neil Patel&39;s advice on using Google&39;s LLM chatb...

Happiness shared

Sat, 29 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

My goal at a wedding is to take the individual happiness of each guest and get them to share it with the rest of the audience and the couples.

Happy EOFYS 🎉

Sun, 30 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

My least favourite time of year in Australia are the final days of June. Advertisers are celebrating with EOFYS end of financial year sales and small businesses...

Why I hate wedding awards: “I am in competition with no-one”

Fri, 22 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

For over five years now I’ve crusaded against wedding industry awards. I don’t like them, I don’t enter them, and I try to convince my friends and colleagues to avoid them as well. I understand how nice it feels t

Have you received one of your invoices?

Sun, 17 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In my dual role as celebrant and also bookkeeper for my wife's business The Elopement Collective I receive and pay invoices for t...

Here's to the crazy ones

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Steve Jobs voice from late nineties Apple advertising campaign read

High pitched squeak out of the speaker system

Thu, 26 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Thanks very much for your helpful article about PA system recommendations. I hope Bose & Sennheiser are kind to you! I upgraded to both recommended items & during testing at home & at a venue it worked perfectly, but onc

How a real celebrant should read the Guidelines, and other thoughts on marriage celebrancy

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The recent post on sighting ID included some powerful language from the Attorney-General's office:The Guidelines on the Marriage Act 1961 for authorised celebrants is issued to assist celebrants to comply with the Marria

How and why you should position your speaker at a wedding

Thu, 01 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Many celebrants don't know the science and method behind choosing where to position their speaker in a ceremony. This video will take you through the basic elements of choosing where and why and how to position your spea

How can I help you?

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

One of the most viral, most effective, and most legacy building Facebook statuses I've ever posted was five words long: "How can I help you?"

How Celebrants Should Be Marketing Themselves in 2025

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

As a full-time celebrant who’s worked across Australia and internationally, I know the tension so many of us live in: we want to keep bookings (with couples that get us) steady, but we’re also flat out with ceremonies, a

How do I do marriage certificates?

Sun, 30 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Julia asks "I was just wondering how you all prepare your pretty Form 15s. Does anyone use traditional calligraphy? Hand write? Use a template on a printer? " I'll answer Julia's question along with a wider explanation of

How I make personal ceremonies

Sat, 29 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

When creating a marriage ceremony, my goal isn't to personalise my ceremony, but to make it personal. That's a subtle but pointed difference. Personalising my ceremonies is the

How I perform ceremonies without notes or a script

Thu, 07 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

My couples tell me they love it, wedding vendors are always surprised, and other celebrants are always blown away. They are bewildered by my ability to perform a marriage ceremony without a script or notes.

How is Josh using AI to help as he has a newborn?

Wed, 03 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMT

One of your colleagues wrote to me recently about the quandary that presents itself when you happen to be a parent and a marriage celebrant. I spoke to her issue— and shared my embarrassing story— on the Celebrant In

How Sharon and Adam chose Tim Maddren to be their celebrant and MC

Tue, 14 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Come dive into Sharon and Adam's wedding in the picturesque Douglas Vale Historic Vineyard and Homestead in Port Macquarie, New South Wales. Sharon's wedding was not just a lovely occasion but also a masterclass in th

How to accept crypto currencies for your work

Sun, 31 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant has written in to asking the question: “How can I, and should I, accept crypto currency for celebrancy?”

How to accept international payments

Sat, 30 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Tim asks how I accept payments across borders?

How to be a rockstar celebrant: commanding attention without a spotlight

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Speaking to a group of people who don’t have to listen to you is a privilege I don’t take lightly. As a celebrant, it’s a daily honour, and it comes with an immense responsibility every time I pick up that microphone. Wh

How to be "out there" and trust the process

Tue, 13 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Krystal asks: "I seek perhaps some advice on how I continue to be "out there " without sailing into the boring seas or moving into sharing content on social media that isn't relevant. Maybe I need to be patient with the p

How to be your own publicist

Sun, 02 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A solid foundation of my business success as a celebrant has lay in the realm of good publicity. Good publicity can’t make a filling business profitable, or an unskilled celebrant, talented, but if you’re already rocking

How to become a celebrant

Sat, 01 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT

How many times do we all hear it from a friend, a wedding industry colleague, or someone at a wedding, that they think they'd make a great celebrant and they want more information on it. After being asked the question a

How to become a travelling celebrant

Fri, 05 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Alinta asks: I am going to take up the gypsy/not-yet-too-grey nomad life for a year or so and I wonder if it would be possible to be a sort of travelling celebrant? We will be travelling in a substantial caravan and aren

How to become the celebrant in the know

Thu, 17 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Anka asks: I’m wanting to start blogging this year and making myself known as the “celebrant in the know” within my area with some personality thrown in as well but I’m not sure exactly how to start? Any suggestions or t

How to collect wedding guest information for your own COVIDSafe requirements

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Many governments are requiring people running events to collect data about who attends the event using QR codes and web forms. Your legal responsibilities regarding COVID and COVIDSafe plans are your responsibility and t

How to get couples to book you as their celebrant

Mon, 25 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

"I’ve a question about that first meeting - I’ve met a few couples, tried coming from different angles ie. Asking what they have in mind for their ceremony, how they met, build rapport, let them talk or I do most of the

How to get enquiries to reply to your emails

Fri, 21 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Great question today: Let's talk follow up emails. You've received an enquiry, or worse, have met with a couple. You've sent them an email back, but it's crickets from their end. How do you word your emails to try and el

How to get featured in the media

Fri, 06 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

If you've ever heard my story of going full-time as a wedding celebrant you can skip the next three paragraphs. I'd already been plugging away at celebrancy, not getting quite as much traction as one would like, for four

How to get more wedding enquiries

Thu, 19 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Liene at Think Splendid shares five powerfully simple ways to get more enquiries to your wedding celebrant business today. They're so simple that you are hopefully already doing them, or if you're not, this is a quick an

How to get professional photos to share on your socials

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A common conversation amongst everyone in the wedding industry who is not a wedding photographer is asking photographers for photos. It's great when you get them, it means your social media feeds have a professional feel

How to improve

Sun, 13 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

James Clear writes,

How to leave a celebrant association

Wed, 22 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A few recent conversations with celebrants on social media have prompted me to the question: what is membership in a celebrant association for? Traditionally the associations lobbied the Attorney-General's office, and th

How to make a great ceremony without a rehearsal

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Tori asks: I would really love to hear from you both (knowing that you prefer rehearsals Sarah, and you don't tend to do them Josh), what is your approach to ensuring a ceremony runs as smoothly as possible and flows wel

How to make a wedding expo work for you

Sun, 19 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

10 ways to make wedding fairs, wedding directories, wedding blogs, wedding magazines, expos, and virtual wedding fairs, work for you.

How to make marriage paperwork PDFs, and where to send them

Sat, 25 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

While I’ve talked a lot about how I sign my paperwork on an iPad, you’re welcome to choose your tablet and software of choice, I haven’t detailed exactly where the paperwork comes from. Of course you can [download

How to marry people overseas

Fri, 08 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Maria asks: I am hoping to be able to travel and marry people in other countries so how do I go about doing that? I understand the law is different in each state in the US and of course Canada so is there an easy process

How to MC a wedding reception, a guide for celebrants

Wed, 22 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

We've had a number of questions about MC'ing wedding receptions recently, so I've wrapped it all up in this quick and easy how-to guide. The host, or MC, of an event is as unique role as the whole event is held in yo

How to name your celebrant business

Sat, 05 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

David Placek is the branding genius behind some of the biggest names in the technology world. The words Sonos, Intel Pentium, Apple PowerBook, Blackberry, Gimlet podcasts (home of Reply All), and the Impossible burger, a

How to network in the wedding industry today

Sun, 05 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Networking amongst your industry colleagues, other wedding people, like photographers, venue co-ordinators, planners, and others, is a vital part of being an active member of the wedding industry. For the longest time th

How to perform a commitment ceremony without breaking the law in Australia

Wed, 02 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A commitment ceremony can be an important and simple way to celebrate a marriage-like-love when the legal formalities of marriage according to the law in Australia aren’t possible, as in one of our member's cases today w

How to position your PA speaker for a wedding ceremony

Mon, 23 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Veronica asks: After reading this article and listening to the podcast "A tribute to the greatest episode in the world ", you mentioned speaker placement. Being a newbie to the industry, where would you suggest is the bes

How to protect the copyright of your ceremony scripts

Fri, 06 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Tenielle asks: Just a quick question about intellectual property of ceremony drafts. Hasn't happened to me, but have heard of stories of celebrants issuing a draft ceremony for the clients to look over, and then that cer

How to publish Facebook ads that work

Tue, 07 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I don't know. If there's anything you can expect from me today and into the future is that I'm not going to talk BS. The good news is that I know as much about Facebook advertising as most marketers and advertisers do, a

How to record the location of a marriage ceremony on the water or in the air

Sun, 19 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Lizzie asks: "My couple is getting married on a boat in The Pittwater located on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. Please advise how I best record the "at " on the docs for a wedding adrift. " The Guidelines to the Marriage

How to remotely witness a Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) form

Thu, 12 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Jake asks: "When I get couples to sign via video chat it's pretty clunky and I'd rather it be less clunky. I'd love to know the best ways to arrange the e-signing of the NoIM " How to Remotely Witness a NOIM over

How to say the monitum with warmth

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Tracey asks: I'd really love some input about how/where in the ceremony you would say the Monitum. In amongst all the beautiful 'love' words it can feel a bit cold and clinical. I'm yet to find a way to bring it into the

How to sign marriage paperwork on an iPad

Wed, 17 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I've had a few people ask how I sign marriage paperwork on an iPad, and I had the grandest of intentions of preparing a fully professional video detailing that. However we're expecting a baby any day now and I figured a

How to spy on other people's Facebook Ads

Fri, 18 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

If you've been wanting a way to spy on what other people in the wedding industry are doing with their Facebook Ads, here's a very easy, open, and regulated way to do so.

How to start taking better photos at your weddings

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

An element of my social media content strategy I'm quite proud of is that I've really worked hard at making better photos, photos that I have made - and therefore own - so that I have photos and video for my own social m

How to surprise a couple with a ceremony

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Jeff asks: When/how did you now it was ok to not share ceremony content with the couple but just have them trust you on the day of? Couples and guests really love what I put together (I guess I've figured out that much h

How to to-do

Tue, 28 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Gail asks: Hi Josh. You mentioned in one of the podcasts that you use ToDoist to organise your projects. Could you please run me through how you utilise this as I am also a ToDoist fan.

How to update your Bose S1 speaker’s software

Mon, 14 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

You can update the software on your Bose S1 speaker, and it comes with new features like using your speakers with the Bose Connect app, whilst also making the speakers operate with greater stability.

How to use ChatGPT to sent instant replies to wedding enquiries

Fri, 14 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

If you've seen people using AI in their business and you're wondering how you could use it in yours, here's a demonstration on how I'm using ChatGPT to reply to wedding enquiries with emails like this. Before you do step

How to use two Bose S1 speakers in a wedding ceremony

Wed, 25 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sophie asks: “After a beach ceremony last weekend I vowed to never lug my massive speaker around again - its ridiculously heavy, I’m pregnant, plus sand = a terrible time. I loved your set-up at the conference and def di

How to video chat really well

Tue, 12 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Video chat, video conferencing, Skyping, Facetiming, or now, Zooming, is going to be a fairly major way we communicate through this season and into the future. The problem is, I see lots of people on Zoom calls not bring

How to Win in the New Age of Search and Answer Engines

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The digital landscape is shifting beneath our feet, and as wedding celebrants, we need to adapt or risk becoming invisible. Coming back to Australia from living in Mexico I put a lot of money into old school marketing

How value is really created

Wed, 22 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Stop talking, ask questions and listen, and you’ll learn about them. In order to think like your customer, you must focus on your customer. Your customer could be a prospect, an existing client, a boss, a co-worker, a fr

I can't help you

Sat, 27 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Unless you actually employed me to come into your business and handed me the keyboard, trackpad, the keys to your office, I can't actually help you.

I didn't have a backup! Happy World Backup Day

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

As a wedding celebrant, you know better than anyone else how important it is to be prepared for the unexpected. From weather conditions to late vendors, to a family member showing up late, there's always something that c

I got scammed, and it'll happen to you!

Fri, 03 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

It was about 4pm in the afternoon here in Mexico and I had just emptied my inbox, a noble task in 2023, and the email came in. The email that scares me the most: my main domain name's renewal had failed due a credit card

I isn't everyone

Sun, 12 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Viewing a Friend A's business website with Friend B, Friend B thought there was a lot of text.

I made a mistake

Wed, 19 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I felt sick when I saw my brother's wedding photo, the two of them are the middle of their first kiss and there's my big fat head right in the middle.

When Facebook shuts you down, are you ready?

Thu, 18 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Your Facebook page, Instagram page, Google My Business account, your LinkedIn, and god forbid any of you have a Parler account, but they're all not your property. Running your business on the back of those properties is

If I visit your website

Sun, 04 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If I visit your wedding officiant website, in the first moments can I determine:

If you have a non refundable deposit

Fri, 04 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

An Australian wedding celebrant directory recently emailed it's members guilt-tripping them into keeping non-refundable deposits. What a guy.

I'm better than you

Thu, 30 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I'm better than you seriously, so much better than you at being me, than you could ever try to be,

I'm challenging you to learn Markdown

Sun, 11 Dec 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Everyone has their little "thing " where they think if everyone else on the planet just did things this way then the world would be a better place, and honestly, I'm all for your and my weird little opinions. One that I r

I'm not here to swipe right on bees

Sat, 02 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A barbershop in Canberra I visited once—when I was flying in and needed a cut before a wedding—emailed me this week.

Imagine your followers are the stupidest people alive

Thu, 09 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The man who taught me radio and communication passed away this week, Stan Hillard is his name, so to h...

Imbue value

Wed, 08 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you want to be valued, which is to say, if you want couples to pay that big fancy price you charge, you need to value yourself, value your clients, and value...

Increasing your enquiry conversion rate

Sat, 21 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A question today about enquiries and how to increase our conversion: I have a question about converting enquiries as I am finding that I get a good amount of enquiries but feel my conversion rate could be way better. Won

Insights from the SBS Insights episode on weddings and the Wedding Grinch

Sat, 11 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The wedding industry in Australia is vibrant and evolving, despite the shifting societal views on marriage. As a celebrant deeply embedded in this industry through both personal and industry-wide lenses, I've distille

Inspiration is for amateurs

Wed, 17 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Painter and visual artist Chuck Close on inspiration:

Inspired by a restaurant menu

Mon, 08 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The New York Times reviewed 121 rest...

Instagram is about to impact your SEO

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Instagram has always felt like a bit of a closed shop when it comes to being found, aka search, aka search engine optimisation. Great for visibility inside the actual Instagram app, sure, but outside? Crickets. That’s

Instagram Mythbusters for Insights Members

Wed, 03 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

This week members can rewatch the webinar recording of Josh Withers and Edwin from The Social Sandwich with their 90 minute Instagram Mythbusters webinar on organic growth and attracting couples through Instagram. htt

Instagram mythbusting for wedding creators

Sat, 15 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Are you ready to take your Instagram game to the next level? Join us for an exclusive online event, the Instagram Mythbusters event, featuring the incredible Edwin Smith from The Social Sandwich and hosted by me (Josh Wi

Interstate online BDM systems

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Sutha asks: I am registered in NSW, but will be getting a close friend married in Melbourne. Can I get access to BDM RIO? or is it limited to Victorian celebrants? A blog post about all the different electronic lodge

Invent a new ceremony

Wed, 27 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

To invent you have to experiment, and if you know in advance that it’s going to work, it’s not an experiment. Invent and experiment in your ceremony

iPad Celebrants, you need this tip

Wed, 22 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If you're a celebrant who reads off your iPad, you might not be aware of a simple way you can help photographers and videographers. If the ceremony is inside with lower lighting, your iPad's screen brightne

Is there room at the top of the market?

Thu, 28 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Jeff asks: A general price question: when you both set your prices (to their current rates), were you/are you in line with what others charge or are you much higher? Pretty sure I’m the highest priced officiant in my reg

It's a good website, Brent

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

How do you know if it's a good website? Explore comprehensive website quality metrics from Ahrefs, Moz, PageSpeed Insights, Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.

How to tell an enquiry "It's not you, it's me"

Mon, 11 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Tenielle asks: Hey guys, I'm hoping you can lend me some advice or wording to send to a couple. Met with them on Saturday and whilst they are lovely, the vibe was NOT there. Conversation was really stunted and it didn't

It's ok to make a dollar

Mon, 13 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Reading this morning about FTX - the crypto exchange that went bankrupt and who's founder was convicted of fraud - is actually now solvent, which means the comp...

It's time to change the one month notice period to one week

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT

To my fellow celebrants, I have a proposal regarding the one month notice period, and I'd like to run it up your flagpole, so to speak, and then take it to the Australian parliament: that the one month notice period requ

Join the POSSE

Sat, 19 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In 20 years you'll be thankful that from today onwards you Post on Own Site and Syndicate Elsewhere.

Joining an association, Josh’s view

Wed, 22 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Jo asks: What professional association do I join? One? Two? All? I know this is tricky question and high levels of diplomacy may be required - but how does a newbie choose between the associations? My RTO has given no ad

Josh on the Wed.co podcast

Wed, 18 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

This week, I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Steve and Joel on the Wed.Co Podcast, recorded at the picturesque Gabbinbar Homestead in Toowoomba. It was such a great chat about all things celebrancy, storytellin

Josh’s ceremony inclusions

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Jeff, a Canadian celebrant, asks: I'm wondering what sections you two include in your ceremonies? I have a very similar trajectory for each ceremony, and add or subtract (readings etc) based on what the couple are lookin

Josh's plan for posting on social media

Fri, 20 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

When I post on social media, I've got one plan in mind. Not to sell, not to do a deal, not to whinge or complain. I want to be known. So when people that like me make a decision about a celebrant, I'm who they think of.

Keep the magic

Wed, 12 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Our everyday jobs wedding-creating and magic-delivering can become rather "every day" pretty quickly.

Kim & Zac's Cronulla wedding

Sat, 27 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Kim and Zac married in Cronulla and they always knew that Tania Marsh was going to be their celebrant. The couple got married in Cronulla and flew Tania down to Sydney for their wedding. [audio mp3= "https://celebra

The Wedding Directory is Dead, Long Live the Wedding Directory!

Tue, 08 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A sharp look at why traditional wedding directories are facing their "Yahoo moment " as couples' search habits evolve, plus what makes a truly valuable directory in 2025 – including free listing opportunities for Australi

Labour of love

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

An industry body just emailed me a PDF magazine showcasing wedding vendors and weddings from the region. The email sold it as a "labour of love", and as much as...

The Website Layout That Actually Gets You Bookings

Sat, 07 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Discover the exact website structure that converts browsers into bookings. Step-by-step guide to arranging your celebrant pages.

Learn from WeddingWire's annual report WeddingPro report

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The 2023 WeddingPro Benchmarking Report offers a comprehensive look into the current state of the American wedding industry, focusing on the challenges and strategies wedding professionals use to grow their businesses.

Learn to sell

Sun, 23 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The curse of self-employment is having to wear all the hats: bookkeeper, janitor, salesperson, tech support, CEO, delivery person, and be the product.

Learnings from MrBeast's strategy, for wedding celebrants

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you don’t know who MrBeast is, then jump onto Youtube and search for the guy with 312 million subscribers, and almost 60 billion views over his 800 videos released over the last 12 years. Jimmy has a large staff to

How I Built My Own Link-In-Bio Site

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Build your own fast, customisable, and tracking-free link in bio website using Astro — no coding experience needed. Step-by-step setup, GitHub sync, and free deployment via Netlify, Vercel, or Cloudflare Pages.

How Linking Out From Your Website Actually Helps

Thu, 03 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Discover why linking out from your celebrant website to other quality resources actually improves your SEO, builds industry relationships, and helps potential clients see you as a trusted wedding expert. Learn practical linking strategies that can boost your online presence and attract more bookings.

Listen and join my bubble

Sat, 20 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We do not exist in a vacuum. It's impossible to not be affected and influenced by all around us.

Live streaming a wedding, and what about the music copyright?

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A member asks: Am I correct in assuming that couple's cannot live stream their marriage ceremony given music copyright issues? So there's a few issues to address in this one short question. The first is re

Local knowledge for a wedding ceremony

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I like to work in local knowledge and context to my ceremonies, and NearbyWiki helps me do that. It shows me Wikipedia articles near a...

Look for trend lines

Wed, 21 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We're in the business of connecting with, selling to, and marrying real humans who live in the real world - not the wedding industry world.

Look out for a zero dollar invoice for the annual celebrant charge

Mon, 13 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Attorney-General's department has let us know that they are starting to send out those $0 annual celebrant charge invoices today. Make sure you pay that $0 quickly otherwise you'll be in $0 debt, and the interest on

How to actually compete with other celebrants

Fri, 17 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

We spend a lot of time looking at other celebrants, but here's a helpful and practical way to look at your competitors and actually form a competitive advantage.

Love is patient, as should you business be

Mon, 27 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I was thinking about 1 Corinthians 13:4 to me recently. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. " If you're a wedding celebrant you've probably heard it a thousand times befor

Love the process

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Jimmy Carr, one of the greatest comedic minds in the world today, said in an interview:

Love thy neighbour

Sat, 11 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

My favourite biblical commandment is "Love your neighbour as yourself" because it predicates knowing your neighbour well enough to love and care for them on kno...

The luxury wedding creator

Sun, 26 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The luxury wedding creator can take inspiration from the luxury makers of the world, like Hermes or Dior.

The luxury wedding creator and craftsmanship

Mon, 27 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Craftsmanship is easy for wedding creators. All we do is craft and create, albeit we create ephemeral moments but those are the best things to craft because all...

The luxury wedding creator and heritage

Tue, 28 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Heritage can't be created, but it can be celebrated. For a while there it was very cool to be the new kid on the block, but their heritage is close to zero.

The luxury wedding creator and long-term thinking

Wed, 29 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Long-term thinking, playing the long game. This is the most expensive but the most advantageous game to play, but almost no-one is doing it.

Madelin and Jeremy's Frogmore Creek wedding

Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Madelin and Jeremy had no idea how much Sue would cost but they were prepared to pay whatever Sue would cost because they were set on her without even knowing her fee.

Make a life for yourself

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The beautiful thing about being a wedding officiant or celebrant is that we get to craft a life for ourselves. What kind of celebrant we are, what product we pr...

Making customer journeys easier, and inclusive, like Sephora

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sephora has identified that not every customer desires the same journey, so they created a fork in the road to cater for two different personality types.

Markdown And The Slow Fade Of The Formatting Fetish

Sat, 05 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Year after year, document formats like .docx, .ppt, and pdf lose a little bit of steam. You might not have noticed… But Markdown is growing over and into the old formats, slowly, and nicely, like moss on a stranded star destroyer. Notes on a revolution in slow motion.

Market your celebrant services like Apple markets the iPhone

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Jano le Roux, a copywriter, has done a deep dive on the marketing surrounding the new iPhone 14. Words matter, and they've pulled the Apple copywriting apart to show how it matters to the average Joe like you an

Marketing: if I was starting today

Thu, 27 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If I was starting as a celebrant today I would do so many things differently. This article is hopefully timely for our readers, after all it is enquiries season! My rough research tells me that mo

Marketing yourself as a new celebrant

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Silvia asks: I really want to find out how to start a website when you haven't done any weddings yet. I've looked at many celebrant's websites and find myself overwhelmed. Starting out can be hard, but rest assur

Marriage law reform and change in 2024

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As of June 12 2024 remote witnessing of Notice of Intended Marriage forms is now law and you can visit this page for an update. Rounding out my 2024 prediction series of blog posts we know for sure that change i

When can a celebrant marry a couple overseas and without a NOIM?

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Did you know that in a very specific circumstance a certain kind of celebrant can marry a certain kind of couple in a country that isn't Australia - and it's all allowed by Australian law, plus it's a valid Australian ma

Can you marry a step-sibling, in-law, or an uncle in Australia?

Fri, 10 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

When planning a wedding, legal questions can sometimes create emotional challenges, especially when family dynamics are involved. Recently, a mother of the bride asked a complex question: could her daughter marry her hus

Mastery

Wed, 05 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I'm a sucker for interviews with masters so when David Remnick asked Seinfeld why he kept on showing up despite his wealth, age and “the extreme left and PC cr...

Maybe I'm incompetent?

Sun, 24 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This website exists for celebrants who struggle with their competence. It's ok, you're not alone in thinking "maybe I could do better." Marriage celebrancy is my full time job, it's all I do, and more often than not

Maybe it will inspire some of us to rest

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 00:00:00 GMT

There's a new podcast episode out and Josh is moving to Mexico. Sarah's still not at rest but she has found a spectacular little trick for funerals using iMovie. Still no movement on the NOIM video witnessing push, and w

Money for nothing and the points are free

Sat, 24 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I've just taken a quick trip to Noosa for an elopement and I flew the same airline I always fly.

Moving a wedding from Queensland to New South Wales

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Luke asks: One of my couples that had a Qld wedding booked, now want to change the ceremony location to NSW since the new border easing. What do I need to know and how do I go about doing a wedding in NSW? Is there a set

Moving town as a celebrant

Wed, 26 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Kath asks: Hey Josh, Just wondering if you have any advice on what I should be doing in preparation to "move/expand " a celebrant biz interstate. I am moving to Hobart mid year and would like to make a start on some marke

Music for making ceremonies

Fri, 07 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Maybe you're a better worker than I am so you don't need this, but over here in Josh-world I'm as easily distracted as a mouse in a cheese tasting room. So seeing this resource made for programmers made me curious

My disappointment every car service

Tue, 16 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Every time my car gets serviced, at 10,000km a service that's about four to five times a year, I have this sinking feeling as I drive away from the mechanic's workshop. After spending six odd hours away from me, and an a

My iPad lost everything, how can I prevent this?

Mon, 08 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

S writes in with a question about data loss and iPads: What are your back up plans when it comes to “Digital Paperwork”? I recently had the scenario of my iPad wiping all my files on the way to a wedding! Not

My new favourite microphone: the Rode Interview Pro

Wed, 02 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

For the last decade, I’ve famously recommended the Sennheiser EW range of wireless microphones to celebrants. They’ve been my go-to for reliable, high-quality sound in all kinds of wedding environments. And while I stil

My number one strategy for becoming a six-figure wedding celebrant

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Are you ready to earn more money and make it big as a wedding celebrant or officiant?

My secret to business success: email

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Any successful endeavour requires a number of ingredients. An award winning cake recipe will have more than one ingredient, and an Olympic gold medal swimmer didn't just swim their first lap that race. There's a p

Shut down the myths around getting married and hiring a celebrant

Fri, 14 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I'm flying to Europe soon and I've put in for a first class upgrade. On Qantas you can apply for an upgrade and it costs you thousands of frequent flyer points. That's how you fly first class, either that or you pony up

A first look at Napkin AI: corporate graphics by AI

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Napkin describes itself as a product that gets visuals from your text

Wealth

Sat, 15 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Nassim Taleb believes that the following list is true wealth:

New South Wales' Uppercase Requirement

Thu, 25 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you've been lucky enough to create a marriage ceremony recently, and it was in New South Wales, you might have noticed a change to their eRegistry software that requires all last names to be in UPPERCASE. If yo

New "stuff” to include in your wedding ceremonies

Sat, 17 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I would like “new stuff” to include in my ceremonies.

Next steps with ChatGPT

Fri, 10 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Ben has been using ChatGPT to help provide ideation and structure for emails, blogs, and social media content and he's asking about next steps, what's the next ...

Non-refundable refund demanded

Wed, 07 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Veronica asks: I know where you stand on refunds. Yesterday, I had a bride who cancelled her November wedding due to the relationship splitting, texting me nasty abuse and demanding the clearly stated non-refundable

Not a bad theory

Mon, 10 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A unified theory of fucks

Not-as-ongoing professional development

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

As 2021 ends, celebrant-industry OPD ends too.

Celebrant, help wedding vendors not hate you

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Be awesome at your job, do your job, only your job, not other people's job, and don't make it hard for them to do their job.

Celebrants (and creatives) are not paid per hour

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I believe with all my mind, body, and soul, that service people aren't paid per hour, they're paid for how much value they bring to that hour. So here's my July challenge for all celebrants...

My couple are breaking up, can I just not register their marriage?

Sun, 26 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Marie asks: I married a couple last night and when I got home registered the marriage and ordered their marriage certificate. This morning I woke up to a string of texts from the bride to not register the marriage and th

In praise of the not-young celebrant

Sun, 08 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I'll never forget my very first wedding expo, where I arrived to the convention centre so green that I didn't realise there was an expectation that I would design a booth. So we painted a board with blackboard paint and

Notes, Markdown, and a 'folder of files'

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Do you ever think about your notes, articles, documents, thoughts, and files? No? Feel free to archive this email and we'll talk again soon.

On paying for a NSW Official Certificate of Marriage

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Lifelink was a controversial project, first proposed in 2002, it cost almost $50 million to bring it to life, but one of the small blessings it brought was surety to celebrants that the marriage was registered properly,

Obsessed

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

> The lazy lose to the average.
> The average lose to the focused.
> The focused lose to the obsessed.

Old marketing versus new marketing, example 503,000,091

Fri, 12 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Old marketing would put the right message in the right place so the right people would find it. The celebrant would advertise in the wedding magazine because people having weddings bought wedding magazines. The tools wer

On brand

Thu, 16 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Who knows you is more important than who you know. That's why we build:

On the internet, nobody knows you're a dog

Sun, 03 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It can be a bit lonely here in self-employment and solo-employment land, that's why I created the Campfire link in email footer, but I also love your email repl...

Wealth

Tue, 18 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Enjoying the work is a form of wealth.

One of the greatest voids in the world today is original content

Thu, 28 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A repetitive theme in my writing is the encouragement for you to create your own content. I really do believe that creating original, helpful, relevant, personal, content is a majorly easy way for you to have a win today

Only build a house on land you own

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 00:00:00 GMT

You wouldn't spend hundreds of thousands of dollars building a house on land that wasn't even yours, and you definitely wouldn't move your family in and expect to have a long safe residency there. The land isn't yours

Guide To Being Found by AI Engines

Sun, 20 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Discover how to optimise your business website for AI search and answer engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity

Other avenues for networking and referrals

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I wonder how many avenues for networking, referrals, and help, us celebrants are leaving on the table?

Other people aren't having a win

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Someone I respect and admire - and have done for twenty years - launched a new project recently. I clicked through to it about 4 hours after they'd emailed thin...

How to figure out why emails we send end up in spam

Fri, 04 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A guide on howto use Mail-Tester to improve your email deliverability.

Best portable PA speaker system for wedding celebrants in 2026

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Jo asks: Hey Josh, it’s one of your favourite subjects – P.A. systems. I am saving up for my first one, not even sure where to start but think my budget might stretch to $2k. Is that too little? Can you provide some opti

Should I use a speaker stand, and should I use a PA for 10 guests?

Sun, 20 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Tam asks: I have my first wedding coming up next month. My question is in regards to using my PA system. I have Bose S1 with Sennheiser microphone. The wedding is only small (approximately 10 guests). Would you use a PA

Partnering with charities? Watch out for the ACCC

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Eyewear brand Oscar Wylee is in trouble with the ACCC for its charitable donations. In an era of such transformative social change, more and more businesses are choosing to align themselves with charitable organisations

People hate ads

Fri, 22 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I’m eventually going to start sounding like a broken record, but we all need to get it into our head: ads as we used to know them no longer work. People hate ads.

Perfection

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

!Don't strive for perfection, strive for authenticity

Perfection in ceremony

Sun, 07 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The French writer, poet, and aviator Antoine de Saint Exupéry said,

Five phrases you should use in your sales pitch

Sun, 05 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Five phrases you can incorporate into sales meetings with your couples to help win the wedding booking.

Plants

Mon, 21 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Robert Pirsig the author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance in this interview in 1974:

Please put the (sales) gun down!

Sat, 07 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A quick Saturday morning flick through the social media feeds showed me six celebrants doing a bad thing on social media. They’re not breaking the law, and in their minds they’re not doing a bad or evil thing. Man

Witnessing a NOIM over Zoom in the COVID-19 lockdown

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

With Police Officers and JPs being the most popular witnesses to notices of intended marriage forms when a celebrant cannot attend the witnessing...

Posting pro photos on social media etiquette

Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Mark asks, I was hoping you could explain the etiquette for posting photos on your Website, Facebook and Instagram account when supplied by a professional photographer please.

Precision is a job for computers

Fri, 11 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The collective freakout that computers, robots, AI, will take all our jobs and ruin everything is somewhat founded in a misunderstanding of what computers are g...

Preparing Your Celebrancy Practice for 2025

Thu, 12 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As we analyse the latest consumer behaviour data from the USA, clear trends are emerging that will likely influence the Australian wedding market. Here’s how you can position your celebrancy practice to meet evolving

Preventing disease

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters, Meg Meeker writes about preventing the psychological disease anorexia nervosa.

Celebrancy: The price

Sat, 18 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Self-employed creatives can talk about price and fee until the end of time. I've had celebrants privately, publicly, to my face, and behind my back, make all of the comments about why I charge too much, or not enough, an

Prices are going up: 2024 is the year for your price to go up

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As wedding celebrants, we've weathered the storm of the pandemic, continuing to offer our cherished services amidst unprecedented challenges. However, it's time to acknowledge a critical aspect of our business that many

Pricing on websites; to list or not to list??? Josh’s view

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Ella asks: "Price points seem to be a hot topic everywhere… Would you recommend putting your fees on your website? Some celebrants display their price on their website, others don’t. Some also seem to provide services ch

Privacy is a major concern of mine for celebrants

Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As wedding celebrants we collect a mountain of data about our clients, some is strict stuff like names and dates of birth, but the most interesting data to a ha...

222 reasons you need to secure your domain name for the love of God, please just do it

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

222 reasons why professionally operating marriage celebrants should secure their domain name registrar account and make sure their domain name is on auto renew.

Prompting you to prompt

Sat, 01 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

If you find the entire process of prompting AI chatbots for your business bewildering, here's 132 ways to get started

Public speaking skills you can learn from Steve Jobs and John Mulaney

Wed, 20 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As a wedding celebrant, our role is pivotal in creating a memorable experience for couples on their special day. Public speaking is an integral part of this role, and there's much to learn from seasoned speakers across d

Put a ring on it

Wed, 10 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Here's a free thing to say in your next wedding ceremony.

Queensland BDM needs more info on parents

Fri, 24 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A member asked for help with the Queensland BDM pushing back on a marriage registration and wanting more info on parents.

Questions to ask your couples for your review or testimony

Thu, 26 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Jason Fried has posted a list of questions he asks referees he calls for new employees. I read through the list and thought that it would be equally impressive to see our clients answer some or all of these questions in

This is your permission to raise your fees in 2022

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Sarah and my accounting software of choice - Xero - just emailed us that our Xero plan (the standard) is increasing in price by $5 a month to $59. Fuel costs a lot more. Lettuce costs a lot more. Housing, rent, and mortg

Are you ready if someone tries to hack you and steal your client's personal data

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Reading the news today about the meat manufacturer that paid up $11 million in ransom to cybercriminals after having its business shutdown over a hack recently, my mind turned to celebrants. I hold grave fears tha

Receiving ID documentation securely

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sophie asks a very important and pertinent question (which I’ve slightly edited for brevity): A question regarding the safety of couples sending digital copies of their ID via email or within a system like Dubsado.

Reciprocity Bias: The Psychology Behind a Coffee and a Booking

Tue, 29 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMT

When I sit down with a couple for the first time, I always buy their coffee. Not just because I’m a nice guy (which, let’s be honest, everyone already knows I am), but because it works. It’s a tactic straight out of t

Red-team your celebrant business

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

With new celebrants entering the market every month, your marketing, sales, enquiry, and booking process need as much attention as your ceremony production and delivery do. I want to introduce the concept of red-teaming

Rejection isn't a verdict; it's data

Sun, 13 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

We’ve all been there. A couple enquires about your celebrant services. You exchange emails, maybe have a phone call or even meet for coffee. The connection seems genuine, the conversation flows, and you’re mentally slott

Relay

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Some of my favourite podcasts come from a podcast network named Relay

Religious ceremony or civil?

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Right now, 28% of U.S. adults are religiously unaffiliated, and they’re one of the fastest-growing religious — or nonreligious — groups in America. An even larg...

Remarkable

Mon, 22 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Thoughts on creating remarkable work, as a marriage celebrant.

Remote witnessing of NOIMs in 2023

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In early December the Commonwealth Attorney-General's department's Marriage Law and Celebrants Section let us know that the remote witnessing of NOIMs has been extended to 31 December 2023.

How to get your couples to reply to your emails

Thu, 02 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you've ever played the iconic Australian schoolyard game of handball, you'll remember that the aim of the game is to intercept the ball on your quadrant/half, then to get it back out as soon as possible. Think about y

Rounded prices are better than unrounded for weddings

Mon, 14 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

When it comes to pricing, and pricing yourself, there are so many contributing factors. The first is that you need to cover costs, the second that you need to make a profit - a wage, and the third that you make a surplus

Running out of new ideas?

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Adam Grant wrote in Originals:

Sacred Awe

Tue, 06 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We're all trying to do different things when we create a marriage ceremony. Me, I don't merely want to create a wedding that is just fine and ok.

Sacred Awe #1: Listen but not to synecdoches

Thu, 08 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A redeeming feature of people who actually are authorities, experts, gurus, specialists, is that you would never hear them say so - because they listen more tha...

Sacred Awe #3: Relish the moment

Sat, 10 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I witnessed a celebrant performing a marriage ceremony from a display book, one of those books with plastic envelopes in it that you insert your printed paper i...

Sacred Awe #2: Create, don't recreate

Fri, 09 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you believed the hype you'd believe the world wants mass-produced goods, manufactured for the millions.

Sacred Awe #4: What is actually happening?

Sun, 11 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

This isn't rocket surgery, and it's not a walk in the park. This is a marriage ceremony. With or without all the trimmings, flowers, photographer, champagne, ni...

Sacred Awe #5: Know the direction

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The marriage ceremony isn't the closing ceremony. It's not a funeral for their single, dating, courting life. The wedding isn't a participation certificate for ...

Sacred Awe #6: Be fun, not funny

Tue, 13 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Hamish and Andy make one of the best and longest running radio shows and podcasts in Australia, and everyone would describe them as funny.

Sacred Awe #7: The script is dead, long live the script

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I believe that a wedding should feel and sound better than it looks and there's something about reading word for word from a page that taints that. The truth...

Sally’s dilemma is our dilemma

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

What most clients pay Sally for—the deliverable, is that five minutes of video footage. But what Sally dreams of doing and being paid for is finding stories worth telling. It’s easier for Sally to sell the outcome—the vi

On Sanebox, and how I learned to love my inbox again

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I love my email inbox. That's not something many people can say today. But I really do. I do my business there which provides for my family, plus I subscribe to so many interesting and important email letters there, so i

Sarah-Louise's trip to the wedding trail and her Maleny wedding

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

This Insights podcast episode is with Josh and Sarah-Louise Anderson, who is planning her wedding on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland for the 1st of October. They discuss the process of choosing a wedding date around he

Schedule 19 minutes for this email

Fri, 18 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Don't click this YouTube link until you have 19 minutes spare to have your life changed.

Schedule a day off and a holiday

Sun, 24 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

When someone books you to be their wedding celebrant they're expecting you at full energy, full-on, 100% of you, on that day. It's impossible for you to deli...

Scheduling multiple ceremonies in a day

Sun, 28 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Sean asks "Do you have any advice on taking multiple bookings in a day? Accounting for travel time of course what's the minimum amount of time you leave yourself in between ceremonies, and is this

Science proves: quick reply means a positive impression

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A new study finds that the later we meet someone in a sequence, the more negatively we describe them. The research finds that unconscious bias could disadvantage people who happen to be evaluated later in a sequence, whe

Sealed with a K.I.S.S.

Thu, 04 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

"One of the greatest ways to avoid trouble is to keep it simple" was Charlie Munger's catch cry.

Seeing things as they are

Wed, 01 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Our dreams and our hopes are not grounded in reality, instead they originate from only what we have seen and known.

SEO, but for AI

Sat, 13 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

My current obsession is figuring out how the different AI systems know what they know, then working that to my advantage.

Sermon on the count

Thu, 13 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Kevin Simler's essay 'Here Be Sermons' reminded me of where I received my training to be a celebrant, in a Christian ...

Serve the selfish

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Seneca wrote

Seth Godin on selling your time

Mon, 10 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Seth Godin today writing about charging per hour, something I still see celebrants do. I wrote about the same topic a year ago so it's nice to have beat Seth Godin to something for once.

7 days of content prompts for your social media

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you're feeling a bit stuck on what to post on your blog, or social media, or both, here's seven content ideas you can easily write right now. Then schedule them up to drop every day, and watch your online personal bra

WWDC 2024: So shareable

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There's a large chance that most people don't know about the 2024 Apple Worldwide Developers Conference - WWDC for short - that occurred today, and rightly so, ...

Should we charge more or differently for public holidays?

Fri, 06 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Continuing a long running series on this website starting with how your price is part of your marketing story, whether or not you should list your prices on your website with answers from Sarah and myself, how to respo

Should You Pay to Be in a Wedding Directory?

Thu, 29 May 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Let’s be honest for a second: the wedding industry has been under this illusion for years that brides and grooms — couples — are scrolling through wedding directories like they’re flicking through the David Jones catalog

Becoming a celebrant for a side hustle

Mon, 18 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Every week one or two potential new celebrants email or DM me about starting a celebrancy business as a side hustle, hoping to make a few dollars on the side to provide for their family's extra needs or to put some cash

Signals never sleep

Fri, 14 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Twelve years ago this week I shared this infographic about the data being transferred

Simplify your celebrancy practice

Fri, 07 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

In the chaotic and wild adventure that planning and hosting a wedding is I always try to remain a calm, cool, friendly face to my couples. This sounds like a great idea, but you need systems and processes to allow yourse

Six AI chat prompts celebrants can use to make fresh content today

Mon, 05 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Want to start playing with AI chat in a way that will make sense to your celebrancy practice and business? Here's five prompts you can ask to get a unique insight into your business today.

Six weeks of a new domain name with a well-built website

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Six weeks ago I built a website on a new domain name and got these awesome results early on.

Skill of separation

Sat, 18 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

For the self-employed, the solo-celebrant or officiant a valuable skill you should have is the ability to separate one thing from another. To "prevent the small...

So, so, so rare

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The chances that someone is born on February 29 is one in 1,461.

So You Want to Marry Your Friends or Family: The Real Costs and Alternatives to Becoming a Celebrant

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Are you thinking about becoming a marriage celebrant just to officiate at your friends' weddings? That's a beautiful sentiment, but there's a lot you need to know and consider before taking this route.

So, you’re being affected by a pandemic

Tue, 17 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re a marriage celebrant, or officiant or even just a wedding vendor of some description, and your main clientele are inhabitants of planet earth, you might find yourself in a position in the coming weeks where the

What should we do on social media? Part 1

Mon, 30 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A member asks: When chatting with celebrants recently I heard again and again that most celebrants aren't really that interested in following the general Instagram "best practice " advice that you see on social media blog

What should we do on social media? Part 2

Wed, 01 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

What should we do on social media? Part 3

Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Social networking is getting small while social media is going big time

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The digital era is witnessing a significant transformation in how we connect, communicate, and consume content. In the realm of social networking and media, a paradigm shift is underway. Traditional social networking is

My take on the Sora app - Week One

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The app that you either love or hate, from ChatGPT. My thoughts after using it a week.

Sorry for the family

Sat, 23 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

"Friends are God's way of apologising for your relatives" is the old saying. Friends are also how marketing should work, and how it did work before the indus...

Spam Signals: A Guide to Improving Your Website's Credibility

Sun, 06 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

When website owners first encounter Moz's Spam Score, it can trigger immediate anxiety. After all, nobody wants their legitimate business website associated with spam! However, this metric isn't meant to label your site as spam but rather to highlight characteristics that correlate with penalised domains.

Spend a year deciding

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We waste so much of our precious time with short-term thinking and value-less work that keeps us busy. Warren Buffett spends a year deciding and a day acting...

Start how you’d like to finish

Fri, 28 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Britt’s grandma always said that you should start how you want to finish.

Start playing with generative AI

Fri, 02 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The best way to understand computers forever is that they work on a GIGO system. Garbage in, garbage out. Whatever you put in gets computed and is spat back out at you. If it's garbage in, you get garbage out. So here ar

The basics of SEO and GEO today

Wed, 19 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

It turns out that SEO - search engine optimisation - and GEO - geerative engine optimisation - isn't some big scary black box, they actually publish how to win on their own websites.

The stories you’re forgetting to tell on social media

Fri, 21 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Your stories are more powerful than you think. This article is about sharing the stories about you and your celebrancy that you've forgotten to share.

System of a frown

Sun, 16 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

James Clear wrote:

Take out everything that isn't the story

Sat, 22 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Writing a marriage ceremony is like any other form of writing, with one big difference: in a few weeks, you'll present it publicly just once, never to be repeat...

Take payments directly on your phone - no card reader!

Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

a reader was asking a question of us this week and mentioned taking payment in person. Sarah offered the correct advice that she might want to consider getting a Square card reader that you connect to

Talking about talking about celebrant price

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A wedding blog that you and I both love posed some questions to me about how much celebrants cost, how to budget for one, and what to expect from certain fees. I know from a recent celebrant group chat I'm in that this c

Talking ‘Inside Baseball’

Sat, 11 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

"Inside baseball " is one of my favourite Americanisms, it's a figurative adjective meaning the details are appreciated by only a small group of insiders or aficionados. It usually refers to a detail-oriented approach to

Talking instead of questionnaires

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It's so common for celebrants and officiants to send a questionnaire to help them create a ceremony for couples.

Tasmania (BDM) gets the internet

Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sarah chats to Tasmanian celebrant Kathleen Pavlic-Ryan about the brand new online registration system available through Births, Deaths, and Marriages Tasmania!

Are meetings at cafes a business expense?

Thu, 10 Nov 2022 00:00:00 GMT

A member asks, "Can you claim a tax deduction for the cost of holding a couple meeting at a cafe? Paying for their coffee? I hear different answers to this. "

Tax deduction ideas for celebrants

Wed, 04 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It's every business owner's favourite time of the year: EOFYmas! As the End Of Financial Year celebrations takeover our lives I wanted to highlight the deductions I think we celebrants should be thinking of, and if you d

Ted Gioia's 10 rules for public speaking

Sun, 21 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Every celebrant should read this post from Ted Gioia on his 10 rules for public speaking, and my challenge to you is to integrate at least one, if not all of them, into your next ceremony.

That's expensive

Thu, 23 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Sir Claus Moser:

The 20 year fashion cycle

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The cyclical rule about trends and fashion says

The art of differentiation

Sat, 06 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

"Differentiation starts with the choice to do one thing well " says Bernadette at The Story of Telling blog. I wanted to break that powerful statement down and offer up some food of thought for celebrants today.

The basics

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant just emailed me and all the links in her email signature don't work. They're mistyped.

The best modern SEO strategy for Australian wedding celebrants

Wed, 14 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you're a wedding celebrant looking to improve your online presence and attract more couples, here’s a straightforward SEO content strategy you can use to make your website more visible on Google and Bing. If things ar

The best tablet computer for celebrants, is it the reMarkable?

Sat, 12 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

For almost the past three years an iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil has been my computer that left the home. I'd always loved a Mac but I predominantly left that at my desk and if I left the office for a marriage ceremony,

The billion dollar celebrant

Tue, 23 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In a recent interview, OpenAI cofounder Sam Altman said:

The days can be easy

Thu, 20 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

"The days can be easy if the years are consistent," writes James Clear.

The difference between religious ministers and civil celebrants

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Karen asks: What are the differences/similarities, restrictions and allowances between a celebrant-led wedding and a church wedding, that is, by an ordained minister. I have noticed a lot of confusion and even ignoran

The do's and don'ts of email marketing

Thu, 26 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A pertinent question about building and maintain an email list today: For anyone looking to follow your example of maintaining "an email list of all couples I meet at expos, fairs, open days, along with all who enquire w

The Facebook opportunity

Sun, 05 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Facebook, owner of Facebook but also Instagram and WhatsApp, is pushing hard to get more advertisers on its platform. In last week's earnings call they made two statements which stood out to me: “When we think about Inst

The greatest ceremony ever

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I often find myself by the concept of award ceremonies for creatives - especially for wedding celebrants - because I simply don't think we're in a race and I co...

The hard thing about buying a printer

Sat, 13 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

All the printers are lined up on a shelf so we can choose one based on aesthetics, but truth be told we don't care what the printer looks like, we need it print...

The law of social proof and celebrancy

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT

When unsure how to act, people copy others, outsourcing their own decisions to others. Not only is this true when choosing a shop, or a cafe, but in weddings as well.

The maths, again

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

You can't start on step ten, you've got to start on step one.

The maths will always math

Sun, 09 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In my breakfast radio career a local band asked me for advice in getting into the music industry. My advice to them is the same advice to anyone starting anythi...

Gift them time

Sun, 19 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Simone Davies writes in The Montessori Toddler

The one secret to engaging online content

Tue, 09 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Care. Care and empathy are the currencies of the post-AI world.

The one with Christopher Nolan

Sun, 07 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The most common question I receive from celebrants is about what to say in a ceremony? Where do we get inspiration and words from?

The only thing you can rely on in the wedding business

Sat, 30 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This afternoon a couple got engaged and they have never heard of you, they've not made any decisions about their wedding, and it's highly likely they don't know anything about the wedding industry, how it works, what thi

The only way forward is your way

Tue, 16 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Visiting my friend Annie today I was reminded of her unique and awesome business which has been uniquely shaped by her personality,...

The reason you won't increase your fee today

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The reason you won't increase your fee is because of the accountability that comes with a price.

The right (and new) form to use when you have an interpreter at a wedding

Fri, 05 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Attorney-General's Department's Marriage Law and Celebrants Section announces a significant update: a new Certificate of Faithful Performance by Interpreter. This change and changed form for 2024, results from mo

The rise of the expert and the death of "whatever you want"

Sun, 31 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Go to any wedding celebrant's website and there's a 50% chance that somewhere on the front page they'll say something like "your wedding your way " which is lovely and kind. Of course, the customer is always right as Harr

The secret to having people share your social media posts

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

When you hear of social media posts going viral, it simply means people are sharing it. They're tagging their friends in the comments, sharing the post by direct message, and adding to the algorithm that decides who sees

The social media we knew is dead, long live the social media

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, Myspace, MSN Messenger, social network we connected with each other on years ago is dead. Those places have either gon...

The state of the wedding industry, according to the 2024 Easy Weddings survey

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Easy Weddings 2024 Australian Wedding Industry Report provides an overview of the state of the wedding industry from the point of view of Easy Weddings and its 4,200 engaged and newlywed couples that completed the su

The thing about all of your social media followers

Thu, 01 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Whether you've got 10 or 10,000 followers across all the different social media channels, it's almost certainly true for all of them: less than 3% of your audience is ready to book a celebrant, hopefully you, ri

The thing about being remarkable

Sat, 09 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There's a spectacular mountain range surrounding Queenstown in New Zealand named "The Remarkables".

"The truth is most of your followers won’t see what you share" on Instagram

Wed, 09 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Instagram has shared a post today about how and why people see what they see on Instagram. I'm not going to speculate on how much of this is smoke and mirrors, or politics, or conspiracy theories. Instead, lets take them

The Unofficial Guidelines on the 'Guidelines on the Marriage Act 1961 for Marriage Celebrants' for Marriage Celebrants

Sat, 02 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Deb writes in asking "I appear to get myself into hot water time and time again, by saying that the Guidelines are just that GUIDELINES, and the act and the regs are the actual LAW. Am I right? "

There's Gold In Them Thar Questions

Fri, 18 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

There's gold in the questions you get asked by other celebrants, people in the wedding industry, our clients, friends, and social media followers. Do you know what to do with them?

This is one in over one billion pieces of content created today

Fri, 22 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Over one billion new pieces of content were created today. Videos, blogs, posts, photos, emails. It&39;s overwhelming being a creator in this economy....

This text will appear in the inbox preview, but not the email body.

Sun, 14 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The problem with automations is that if you don't set them up with care, it will become blatantly obvious that you don't care.

Three practical ways to increase your price

Tue, 27 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I'm not backwards in coming forwards about celebrants raising their price. I've given a number of good reasons in the past, but as lockdowns and travel bans continue to fuel the bonfire that is the state of the wedding i

Three reasons your celebrant website should be secure

Fri, 20 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

As you're viewing this blog post you'll note that in the URL bar, the part where you type the blah blah blah dot com bit, next to the domain name 'your website' you'll see a little padlock???? icon that is a sign

A new website for Jeff's collective

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The story of building The Togetherness Collective website for my friend Jeff, showcasing how personal connections can lead to successful client relationships.

Too many celebrants

Fri, 24 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Twice a year I sit in an important government meeting about marriage law and another attendee brings up the idea that there are, apparently, too many celebrants...

Tribal marketing

Mon, 20 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

40 years ago earlier this year the Apple Macintosh was revealed and launched into homes and offices around the world. I'm typing this on a remarkably newer, fas...

Trust

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Eric Hoffer knows where it’s at:

Try, try, and try again

Fri, 19 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I'm inspired and encouraged watching Taylor Tomlinson

Turn your email replies into content

Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

we offer a few different services, one of which is the Certificate IV in Celebrancy. People wanting to bec...

Twice

Mon, 15 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Joseph Joubert:

Two ears, one mouth

Tue, 07 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I completely rewrote todays marriage ceremony just before I delivered it — I’m in Queenstown, New Zealand for a few couples this week — after spending the tw...

Two marketing positions better than “cheap celebrant”

Wed, 26 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

There are only three positions you can take in any marketplace: First, Best, Cheapest. That’s not to say only three businesses can win in any marketplace, after all, there are almost 10,000 celebrants serving over 120,00

Two of my heroes

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I - and you - do not exist in a vacuum. It's impossible to not be affected and influenced by all around us.

There's two ways to provide a service

Mon, 23 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

From the heart and soul of Seth Godin today, I'm copying and pasting this from his amazing blog for you today to chew on over how your provide your celebrancy service: Two ways to solve a problem and provide a service Wi

It's time to update and modernise the Marriage Act of 1961

Tue, 04 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT

As of June 12 2024 remote witnessing of Notice of Intended Marriage forms is now law and you can visit this page for an update. Over sixty years ago the Australian people were gifted one of the most progressive

Uploading documents to NSW BDM from a Mac

Mon, 10 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A little tip for celebrants using the NSW Lifelink system. I tweeted at the NSW Justice Department decrying their developers of not allowing Mac users to upload documents into Lifelink and one of their staf

Utilise the power of the "Zero Price Effect"

Thu, 25 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Communicating value, selling your services, and convincing couples you're worth your fee, is all hard work. Sometimes we discover psychological tricks to lubricate that process, things that can make it easier. Today's

Value your interaction

Sat, 18 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Interaction is a privilege. But it doesn’t often scale.

Was it stolen or did you drop the ball?

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Friends of mine recently lost their website because the domain name expired. They claimed it was stolen. I would claim they didn't take the responsibility requi...

Was the tinsel an acknowlegement?

Sat, 31 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

After meeting with the Marriage Law and Celebrants Section of the Attorney-General's Department, Josh and Sarah bring you all the updates to marriage forms, OPD in the years ahead, signing NOIMs online, plus we've got so

Wealth

Tue, 04 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Reputation is a form of wealth.

It’s time to wean ourselves off this teat

Fri, 18 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The most popular question I’m asked in person by my wedding industry colleagues, and here on , is which website do I advertise on or which directory do I list in that works? Somewhere along

Weddings are getting smaller and more intentional

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

[et_pb_section admin_label= "section "] [et_pb_row admin_label= "row "] [et_pb_column type= "4_4 "][et_pb_text admin_label= "Text "]I am excited to forecast that 2024 will be hailed as the year of the intentional wedding. Th

My weekly habits

Sun, 08 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

These 15 items are on my to-do list every week. It might take 30--60 minutes but I think they're important.

We’ll do it live!

Tue, 23 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

My friend, and article writing accountability partner, Jeremy asks: You mentioned in a previous podcast you would put up a post about how you live stream a wedding and what tools you use to do so. You still planning to p

Can we marry people on the water or in the air in Australia?

Mon, 22 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Elle asks: I have a wedding where I am marrying the couple on a boat, we are all going to get on and cruise for 10mins until the couple get a feeling like yep lets pull up here and then I will do their ceremony, then the

What a Google wants, what a Google needs

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

There's a lot of here-say about Google and search engine optimisation. This is what's actually published by Google about SEO.

What an advantage

Sat, 04 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Mark Twain wrote “the man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read” which is not only true for reading, but for all exercises of intellec...

What and why do you do that ceremony?

Sun, 05 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Your style of presenting a ceremony is different to mine, and most likely different to everyone else's.

What are the ABIA awards? A guide for celebrants

Thu, 12 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A reader asks: "I've noticed the ABIA awards presentation nights have been occurring but what is the ABIA awards and how do people win the ABIA awards? What is the scoring based on? I see these marks of 99.93 etc. " I’ll

What are your travel fees for?

Mon, 17 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Linda asks: As a regional celebrant I am struggling with travel and how to incorporate this into my fees. I have an "anything over 200km round trip " clause which may seem a lot but its realistic to where I live. My probl

What do celebrants legally have to say?

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Kelly asks: What do we legally have to say? Just read guidelines and act section 45/46 and I’m reading we only need to say monitum and a couple the legal vow. I read/was trained that we have to introduce ourselves as the

What do I do if a celebrant has the same name as me?

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Tracey asks: As of last month, another celebrant has been registered in the regional city where I live (population 40,000) who has the exact same personal name as mine. Our registered business names are slightly diff

What does Instagram Reels’ launch mean for the wedding industry?

Tue, 04 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Instagram’s latest feature ‘Reels’ is in addition to it’s existing product suite of regular Instagram news feed posts, Stories, and IGTV. This is a deep dive into how celebrants and people in the wedding industry can tak

What does Queensland BDM email people after their marriage is registered?

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I've been telling couples that after their marriage ceremony the Queensland Births, Deaths, and Marriages will email them with "an opportunity to order their marriage certificate " but I had not actually seen one of those

What does your profile photo say about you?

Fri, 30 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you've taken our branding advice before, you're using the same headshot profile photo for your social media accounts and your website, and anywhere else you can upload an identifying photo, avatar, logo. But do you kn

What happens if we don’t submit the official marriage certificate to BDM within two weeks

Tue, 04 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

a reader asks: “I know celebrants are required send all the legal documents after the wedding day or submit via lifelink within 14 days of the ceremony but what actually happens if we forget?” Sarah’s

What I want to do vs. what I can do

Wed, 20 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A friend asked me today why I did weddings and not all the other things I'm passionate about and talk about all day, like technology, business systems workflows...

What if Google didn't exist?

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Google, in light of legislation being introduced in Australia, has threatened to pull out of the Australian market. I'm sure they won't, if only because they won't walk away and leave $59 billion of income on the table a

What if the hurricane wasn't that bad?

Wed, 09 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

What if the storms in life weren't that bad, you just needed to step outside of them and take a wider view

What inspires you

Tue, 21 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you're a smart and intelligent person like me, you'll also say that the Star Wars franchise is one of the best series of movies and movie franchise ever made...

What it means when they say that weddings are coming back

Sun, 10 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There’s a lot of talk about weddings coming back as COVID-19 restrictions are eased. This is not an article about when and what restrictions are being eased, but a reminder as to how Australia works and how to know if we

What it’s like to be deregistered

Thu, 04 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

351 Australian marriage celebrants were deregistrated this week because they “did not pay the celebrant registration charge“ and here are the three letters they received after their initial invoice: Date: Wed, 8 Aug

What should I do at a wedding expo?

Sat, 27 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Hi, I am a new country celebrant with three weddings booked late this year, early next year but none performed so far. I am attending a wedding expo soon ( in the country) and am not sure what to do. I have collaborated

What to do about Bark.com

Fri, 10 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I'll hazard a guess that readers and other celebrant colleagues have been battered with marketing and emails from Bark.com over the past month as I have been. I wanted to explain what they do, so you

What to do about crying

Thu, 09 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

"Here's a fun one for you guys. How do you deal with crying? I'm currently studying and in my performance assignment, my "bride " burst into tears and I realised I was totally unprepared for what I imagine is a very commo

What to do when it's a tough financial season

Thu, 24 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Things are tough out there, financially and commercially speaking. Many of us are on the coal face, working hard, and not striking gold. Starbucks is selling fewer coffees and Heineken is selling fewer beers, McDona

The deal with Australian celebrants and international weddings

Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Anka asks: Lately I’ve noticed a lot of celebrants on Facebook have started advertising that they can do weddings overseas?? I didn’t think we could? Im presuming they might be just completing paperwork at the airport be

When a bushfire ravages a land

Sun, 10 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I drove through a recently bushfire affected region last week. The ground was still blackened, but not as much as the tree trunks. The foliage and grass that would normally cover the bush floor was slowly achingly coming

When do you make money?

Mon, 17 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

In an interview, Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos said of a letter received from a client, “When I read that letter, I thought, we don’t make money when we sell thing...

When someone gets engaged, what's on their mind?

Sun, 08 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The best marketing in the world meets the target market where they're at. Whether that's in placement, or in creative. Have you ever considered where people are "at " when they get engaged? And more importantly, have y

When thy well is dry

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A few years back, our family spent six months living in a fishing village in Baja California Sur. So many experiences from that time still define us, but there’...

When wanting to be featured or talked about, know this one thing

Sat, 14 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A favourite read of mine is the regular Susbtack email from Ariel Stalling. You might know her name from a little blog called Offbeat Bride. In this week’s mailout, Ariel tells the story of how someone a little bit like

When will the tide turn?

Thu, 17 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I feel like there's a lot of here-say as to the state of the wedding industry today so I thought I'd engage our friend ChatGPT, in particular the new "Deep Research " model on ChatGPT 4.5, to see if there was any data out

When you are not different even Google is against you

Fri, 17 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A really powerful way for you to spend your time and energy whilst weddings are essentially furloughed, is to evaluate, reevaluate, and evaluate even more, your current business systems and marketing strategies. I like t

When you’ve got an odd name pronunciation

Fri, 10 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I married a couple recently and the bride had one of those names where there was a few different ways it could possibly be pronounced. In that situation, when we first meet, I introduce myself with my name, and expect th

Where Couples Actually Find Celebrants in 2026

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

There are over 10,000 registered marriage celebrants in Australia. In 2024, there were 120,844 marriages. Even accounting for the 20% performed by religious ministers, that’s roughly 96,000 civil ceremonies split between

Where are you needed?

Wed, 26 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Naval Ravikant writes:

Where do all the people come from?

Thu, 28 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Jeff asks: When you look back on leads, what seems to be working? Do you have a rough breakdown of where/how couples are finding you? Do you find Instagram/Facebook ads work? Venue referrals? The Google...?

Where I stand during the ceremony, Josh's point of view

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Let’s talk about why I, as a celebrant, stand in the middle of the ceremony, right between the couple, instead of off to the side. The short answer? Our senses demand it. We don’t experience weddings purely through

Where should I advertise as a celebrant?

Sat, 22 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Amanda asks about social media and marketing: Hi, I’ve been registered since March 2024. Initially, I was lucky to secure four bookings relatively quickly, but lately, it’s been super quiet. I’m attempting to navigat

Where should the celebrant stand in a wedding ceremony? Josh's view

Wed, 31 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Where should the celebrant stand in a marriage ceremony? There's no rule, law, or correct answer, but I'll lay out the fundamentals on how I make my decision on where to stand, because it's not always the same decision b

Where should we get clients to review us?

Fri, 14 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Gail asks: Sooo... your couple love you and want to leave a review! Where is the best place/s for them leave this review to really market your business and what links would you send them?

Where to focus on your celebrancy in 2021

Sat, 06 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It's been a weird year behind us as a wedding industry. I don't want to dwell on it for fear of crying, but I'm of the belief that sometime soon we need to focus our energies forward, and I wanted to encourage you to do

Where to host your website

Thu, 16 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Emma asks To squarespace or not to squarespace? What are your tips for starting a website? This article has the opportunity to be a long and nerdy one, so I'm going to be purposely brief so that you can make an edu

Which customer relationship management software is the right one?

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

From the list of Honeybook 17Hats Dubsado ClickUp Monday

Which directories should we advertise in?

Wed, 22 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Sarita asks: I'm a relatively new celebrant and just after some advice on the world of wedding directories. There seem to be loads. Apart from the obvious ones like easyweddings, ABIA, there's lots of smaller ones like p

Which iPad and which apps do you recommend for celebrants?

Thu, 23 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Jake asks: I’m currently taking bookings faster than I planned would happen and have decided that an iPad might be a better way to keep everything in one place, meaning my emails/ceremonies, and documents. But the main

Who are the wedding awards for?

Thu, 11 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I’m sitting in a cafe in Queenstown sitting next to a table of people I don’t recognise, but judging by their conversation, they’re actresses from the USA who have varying thoughts about the Tony Awards.

Why couples are price-shopping

Sat, 25 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If your service is the same as everyone else's, or appears the same, or you portray it as the same, then potential clients will look for the lowest price.

Why people hire the mediocre celebrant instead of you

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

If you want people to appreciate that what you offer is better, that what you offer is actually good, the market needs to have more actually good businesses in it. It seems like you should be able to stand apart by being

Why people stay

Thu, 18 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The guy behind the software I use to send this letter, Buttondown was asked

Why the World Looks to Australia for Wedding Industry Inspiration: 50 years of Celebrancy

Sat, 15 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

To celebrate fifty years of the Marriage Celebrants program in Australia, Josh Withers looks at how the movement has moved the entire industry forward.

"Why would they take you to Iceland?"

Fri, 08 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Sitting down for a coffee with my grandma a week after I returned from Iceland in 2016 I was excited to show her photos of the marriage ceremonies I'd made ther...

Will a hot outdoor wedding cook my PA system?

Sun, 26 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sophie asks: When performing a ceremony out in the blazing sun with no undercover area nearby are either of you protecting your speaker/receivers etc from the direct sun? I’m nervous about it all overheating and thought

Wise words about reviews, for Billy Joel and wedding celebrants

Fri, 02 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I've got a confession to make: I can recall every single bad review I've had, and I barely remember the good ones. There's one I received while I was in Washington DC in 2015, a few days before I was about to spea

Working out how Meta social networks work now

Tue, 25 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you've been on Facebook, Threads, Instagram for more than a week then you might have no idea how the platforms work today.

Would you follow you?

Mon, 03 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Would you follow yourself on social media? If you saw that a friend of yours commented on one of your posts so it floated up to your news feed, and you clicked through to your profile, would you follow it?

Write website copy like a journalist

Thu, 19 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

How would you write for a computer if you knew how it read?

Write so you may be judged

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

An author I adore, Adam Grant, once tweeted

Writing prompts for social media and blogging

Sun, 29 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The Copywriting Course's subject line generator might be just the gold mine you need to start writring that next blog posts, social media post, or recording that vlog or podcast.

You don’t have to do everything

Wed, 26 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

My favourite computing device is my iPad. I’m actually travelling for up to six months of this year with only my iPad - it’ll be my main computing device. There’s two or three little bug bears that really annoy me about

You don't have to do everything

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A celebrant enquired today about a couple who wanted to do a live stream of their wedding to family in Europe, but the celebrant didn't know where to start or what to do. I thought it was a good prompt for me to remind c

You don't know what 'word of mouth' looks like

Thu, 02 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I wanted to share a story straight from my inbox today, to show you how word of mouth actually works and how your marketing efforts today pay off for years:

You should charge more, and here’s 10 reasons why

Fri, 30 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Mel is struggling with mapping out her pricing as a celebrant, and when she mentioned it to me I went straight to a conversation I had with my brother earlier today. He’s looking at starting a new business based on profe

Your celebrancy business needs an accountant like a wedding needs a celebrant

Tue, 21 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Let's have a chat about something not everyone loves discussing, but we all know is essential: accountants. Your celebrancy business needs an accountant like a wedding needs a celebrant. Seriously. And there's no better

Your price is part of your story

Sun, 22 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I thought I'd share a quick and small story about a wedding I didn't get booked for.

Your priorities are visible

Tue, 09 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Some emails get quick replies from me, others have to wait a week. Sometimes I'll go a few days without posting on social media, but I haven't missed a wedding yet. I have a simple set of priorities in my life. My family

Your website is where you make your first real impression

Wed, 06 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I woke up this morning to a flurry of text messages from friends about how Instagram and Facebook was down. One of the friends is someone I've been telling for ...

You're not a hacker

Sun, 02 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I've just viewed a wedding photographer's Instagram post that was cross-posted to Threads but with all the "Instagram hacks" attached.

You're so busy

Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Friends comment on my volume of professional output, "you're so busy" and "how do you do it?!"

You've trapped yourself

Wed, 15 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Bridget Ann Henisch in Fast and Feast wrote: