9 things the Kimye wedding can teach you about consumers

Unless you truly live under a rock (and not just any rock — it’d have to be an extremely large boulder), you’ve probably heard something regarding the Kim Kardashian and Kanye West (Kimye) wedding in Italy last month. The well-known reality star and rapper tied the knot in a modest $2.8 million ceremony, reminding me a lot of my own wedding … well, mostly in the sense that we said “I do” at the end, too. After a week in Paris that included renting out both the Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Versailles, the couple flew 200 of their closest friends and family to Italy for the actual nuptials. 

Was the wedding week extravagant? Yes. Was it a bit too over the top? Maybe. Should we all stop talking about it? Probably. But should we first take a look at Kimye’s wedding to see what we can learn about everyday (and not-so-everyday) consumers? Definitely. 

Here are nine things the Kimye wedding can teach us about “Keeping up with the Konsumers.” See what I did there?

1. Consumers want options. 

If you think Kim only looked at one wedding dress, you’re just silly. Or you live under that boulder I mentioned before. Either way, it’s likely she looked at hundreds of designs before contracting Vera Wang to design a dress specifically tailored to her body. Assume your clients want options. Help them choose among several carriers, and then help them tailor a quote that suits their needs perfectly. 

2. Consumers can be high maintenance. 

The Kimye wedding had golden toilets and life-size nude statues, among other details. As long as you’re not being asked to provide a golden toilet, if your client says jump, it’s OK to jump (in moderation). 

3. Consumers can change their minds. 

It’s been reported that two hours before the wedding, Kanye demanded that 80 moving lights (which had taken four days to install) be removed immediately from the dance floor. Maybe he thought the lighting would distract from the happy couple, or maybe he decided the extra lighting was unnecessary. Regardless, Kanye changed his mind, and the lights were removed. Clients will always have last minute requests. Learn to expect them and find a way to deal.

4. Consumers might be annoyed, but most can find a way to deal with unexpected problems, too. 

It was also reported that Kimye opted to skip place cards and instead had guests’ names engraved onto a marble tabletop in front of each of their place settings. But sadly, mistakes were made in the spelling of some names, and several guests brought those pesky plus-ones that aren’t always accounted for. It’s believed that only Kimye sat in their designated places. But did that upset the newlyweds? Oddly, no, it didn’t. They moved on. If your clients’ applications get held up in underwriting, it’s likely they’ll understand — assuming you can provide an explanation.