Have you ever put real time and effort into a cake enquiry, only for the customer to go elsewhere? Or spent time designing a cake for someone who never actually booked?

In this episode, Cheryl shares what used to happen in her own business before she changed her process, and why taking a booking fee before doing any work is one of the most important things you can do to protect your time and your business.

In this episode we cover:

• Why doing the work before the fee is paid puts you in a vulnerable position
• What a booking fee actually represents beyond the money
• When detailed design conversations should really be happening
• How to structure your process so you are protected from the start

A short but important one for any cake maker who wants to run a more structured and professional business.

Resources Mentioned

Tier & Co Cake Management Software. Manage your bookings and orders in one place. Try it free for 14 days at https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

If you are struggling pricing your cakes download the Free Cake Pricing calculator - https://bit.ly/Cakepricingcalculator

Follow on social media;

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

Or watch the full video episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1d_LjiD9PsY

In this episode, Cheryl explores one of the most underrated visibility strategies available to wedding cake makers; building genuine relationships with other wedding suppliers and venues, and explains why referrals and recommendations from trusted sources convert into bookings more effectively than almost any other form of marketing.

This episode follows on from Episode 6, which introduced the full range of visibility channels available to cake makers, and goes deeper on the practical side of supplier relationship building.

Cheryl covers:

- Why venue recommendations and supplier referrals carry a level of trust that social media cannot replicate
- Which wedding suppliers are most valuable to build relationships with, including venues, florists, photographers, wedding planners, and bridal boutiques
- Why the approach to building these relationships matters, it is about genuine connection, not asking for referrals
- How the relationship works both ways, recommending other trusted suppliers to your own couples builds reciprocal trust and strengthens your position as a well connected professional
- Practical ways to start and nurture supplier relationships, including sharing their work, attending industry events, and being consistently professional
- Why supplier relationships are a long term investment that builds over time and creates a more resilient business
- How to track which supplier connections are generating the most enquiries and bookings, and how Tier & Co's Connect and Grow feature helps you manage, engage with, and follow up on those relationships in one place

Resources mentioned in this episode include Tier & Co Cake Management Software, which includes a dedicated Connect and Grow section for tracking supplier relationships, engagement tips, and follow-up prompts, all alongside your enquiries and bookings in one place.

A 14-day free trial is available via the link below.

https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

If you are struggling pricing your cakes download the Free Cake Pricing calculator - https://bit.ly/Cakepricingcalculator

Follow on social media;

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

Or watch the full video episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1d_LjiD9PsY

You have spent years growing someone else's platform. It is time to build your own.

In this episode, Cheryl takes a deeper look at email marketing for cake businesses, explaining what it is, how to set it up, what to send, and why it is one of the most valuable visibility tools a cake maker can build.

Cheryl shares how she personally uses email marketing in her own business, including a Flodesk automation that sends around 22 weeks of pre-written emails to every new subscriber automatically, running in the background without any manual effort once set up. She also explains how she personally follows up with new subscribers as warm leads, treating a list sign-up in a similar way to receiving an enquiry and tracking those conversations inside Tier & Co Cake Management Software alongside all other enquiries.

This episode covers:

- Why email marketing is fundamentally different to social media and why owning your list matters
- What Flodesk is and why it is well suited to cake and creative businesses
- How to use email automation to create a system that nurtures your audience without manual weekly effort
- Why new email subscribers should be treated as warm leads and followed up with personally
- How to track new subscriber follow-ups inside Tier & Co as part of your wider enquiry process
- How to build your list using your website, past customers, wedding fairs, and social media
- What to include in your emails to keep subscribers engaged and your business front of mind
- How email marketing fits into a broader visibility and enquiry strategy

This episode follows on from Episode 6, which introduced the full range of visibility channels available to cake makers, and Episode 7, which covered staying consistent on social media.

Resources mentioned in this episode include Flodesk (Affiliate link), an email marketing platform well suited to creative businesses with beautifully designed templates.

You can find the current pricing and plans via the link below

https://flodesk.com/c/FOBN8D

Tier & Co Cake Management Software is also mentioned, which helps cake makers manage and track enquiries from all sources in one place. A 14-day free trial is available via the link below. https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

If you are struggling pricing your cakes download the Free Cake Pricing calculator - https://bit.ly/Cakepricingcalculator

Follow on social media;

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

Or watch the full video episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/L01ag2rPYNo

In this episode, Cheryl talks honestly about one of the most common struggles cake makers face; going quiet on social media and why it happens even to experienced business owners.

Cheryl opens up about the fact that she goes quiet on social media herself at times, but that her established business continues to generate enquiries in her absence because of the other visibility channels she has built over time, including her website, supplier relationships, directories, and word of mouth. She explains why this context matters for cake makers at different stages of their business journey, and why consistency on social media is more critical in the earlier stages when other channels are not yet fully established.

This episode covers:

- Why cake makers go quiet on social media and the real reasons behind it, not knowing what to say, lack of time, the pressure to perform, and no consistent routine
- Why consistent posting at a manageable frequency is more effective than bursts of activity followed by long silences
- Simple, repeatable content ideas that remove the pressure of needing something new to say every time
- The value of batching content to take daily decision-making out of the process
- Understanding what social media is actually supposed to do for your business, which is build trust and generate enquiries, not just likes
- How building visibility across multiple channels over time reduces reliance on social media and creates a more resilient business

This episode follows on directly from Episode 6, which explored the full range of visibility channels available to cake makers beyond social media.

If this episode has got you thinking about the enquiry side of your business, the next step is making sure those enquiries do not fall through the cracks when they do come in. Tier & Co is the software I built specifically for cake makers to manage their enquiries, orders, and follow-ups in one place. You can start a free 14-day trial below.

https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

Social media links;

If you would like to watch the full episode you can do this on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/cH_Gl4L6Xss

Instagram: Here

https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: Here

https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

In this episode, Cheryl challenges one of the most common assumptions in cake business marketing, that posting more on social media will automatically lead to more bookings, and explains why visibility is a much broader concept than most cake makers realise.

Getting enquiries consistently requires being discoverable in multiple places, not just on Instagram. Couples planning weddings and celebrations are searching across a wide range of channels, and the cake makers who get fully booked are often the ones who understand how to show up in more than one of them.

Cheryl walks through the key visibility channels available to cake makers and explains why each one matters:

- Your website and how it can generate enquiries around the clock through search
- Social media and how to use it in a way that builds trust rather than just attention
- Email marketing and why a warm, engaged email list is one of the most underused tools in a cake business
- Wedding fairs and the value of face-to-face conversations with couples actively planning
- Online directories and wedding platforms that reach couples early in the planning process
- Supplier relationships and venue recommendations, and why word-of-mouth referrals carry more trust than any advert
- Local visibility and the power of being known in your own community
- Blogging and online content as a long-term, passive source of enquiries

Cheryl also explains why tracking where your enquiries come from, covered in Episode 5, is essential for making smart decisions about where to focus your visibility efforts. Without that data, it is easy to spend time on channels that are not generating results while underinvesting in the ones that are.

This episode sets up the next discussion around aligning marketing activity directly to income goals.

Resources mentioned in this episode include Tier & Co Cake Management Software, which tracks enquiry sources over time so cake makers can see which visibility channels are delivering real results.

A 14-day free trial is available via the link below.

https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

Social media links;

If you would like to watch the full episode you can do this on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/cH_Gl4L6Xss

Instagram: Here

https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: Here

https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

In this episode, Cheryl breaks down the six key numbers every cake maker should be reviewing each month to understand how their business is really performing.

Many cake makers run their business on instinct, with a general sense of whether things feel busy or quiet, but without the actual data to back it up. Without tracking the right numbers, it is impossible to make informed decisions, spot problems early, or plan with any confidence.

Cheryl explains the six monthly figures that give you a clear picture of your business at any given time, and how to use them to move from guesswork to genuine clarity.

The six numbers covered in this episode are:

- How many enquiries you received that month
- Where those enquiries came from
- Your enquiry to booking conversion rate
- Your average order value
- Your revenue against your monthly income goal
- How many bookings you have confirmed in your diary going forward

This episode builds on Episode 2, where Cheryl introduced income goals and understanding what you need to earn, and Episode 3, which covered conversion rates and how many enquiries are needed to reach your booking targets.

Resources mentioned in this episode include Tier & Co Cake Management Software, which tracks enquiries, bookings, and conversion data in one place, removing the need to piece information together from spreadsheets and notes. A 14-day free trial is available via the link below.

https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

A cake business management system designed specifically for cake makers to organise enquiries, orders, recipes and pricing.

Social media links;

Instagram: Here

https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: Here

https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/

In the previous episode (episode 3), we explored enquiry to cake booking conversion rates and how understanding your numbers helps you predict how many enquiries you need to reach your booking goals.

In this episode, Cheryl breaks down what happens between the cake enquiry and the booking.

Many cake makers lose potential bookings not because of their skills or visibility, but because they don't have a structured enquiry management process.

This episode explains the cake enquiry journey and how small improvements in communication and follow up can significantly increase booking rates.

In this episode you'll learn:

• Why enquiries represent genuine interest from customers
• The most common points where cake makers lose bookings
• Why following up is professional rather than pushy
• How improving your enquiry process can increase your conversion rate

Cheryl also explains why tracking enquiries is essential for understanding how your cake business is performing.

If you currently manage enquiries across Instagram DMs, emails, WhatsApp messages, or handwritten notes, you may find enquiries slipping through the cracks.

This is exactly why Cheryl created Tier & Co Cake Management Software, a system designed specifically for cake makers to organise enquiries, track booking status, and manage their cake business with more structure.

You can explore Tier & Co Cake Management Software here:

https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

If you found this episode helpful, leaving a review helps more cake makers discover the podcast.

Make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss the next episode

In this episode, Cheryl explains one of the most important numbers in a cake business: The enquiry to booking conversion rate.

Many cake makers focus heavily on trying to generate more enquiries without understanding how many enquiries they actually need to achieve their booking goals.

By understanding conversion rates, cake makers can work backwards from their income goals and calculate how many enquiries are required to reach their target number of bookings.

Cheryl explains how to:

• Understand what an enquiry to cake booking conversion rate is

• Calculate how many cake enquiries are needed to achieve a specific number of bookings

• Track enquiries and bookings to identify real business performance

• Use simple spreadsheets or systems to record enquiry data

• Understand how marketing activities such as social media, websites, wedding fairs and supplier relationships influence enquiry volume

• Link marketing activity directly to booking goals

• Understanding conversion rates allows cake makers to move away from guessing and start running their business using clear, measurable numbers.

Resources mentioned in this episode include Tier & Co Cake Management Software, which allows cake makers to organise enquiries, orders and bookings in one place while tracking key business metrics.

Resources mentioned in this episode;

Tier & Co Cake Management Software - https://tierandcocakemanagement.co.uk

Which allows cake makers to organise enquiries, orders and bookings in one place while tracking key business metrics.

Follow on social media;

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cherylbottomleycakeacademy/