How do you learn the different traditions of all these different cultures? Well, as Evis says, you sure can't learn that stuff on the wedding day. You do NOT get a do-over! If you miss that one second where the groom is stomping on the glass.....it is gone! You can never capture that again. As a vendor, that is a total failure on your part for not understanding the traditions so important to your clients. How are you going to learn? Ask the client - likely not, it would show them you don't know what they need. Ask a local rabbi - not likely you are that brave.
The Jewish Party Maven was founded with the goal of coaching vendors in the customs and traditions so important to Jewish celebrations. They offer several options from online courses to weekly coaching.
Check out the website for more information: JewishPartyMaven.com
To learn more about Evis Mecolli and his amazing creative team, visit VISI Productions
Join Pat Blackwell here every week, where you, the BEST vendors, expand your wedding business into this lucrative Jewish market. By understanding the traditions & vocabulary, you will build TRUST and GROW your business. Cha Ching
Links mentioned in this episode:
Don’t miss future episodes!
SUBSCRIBE & LEAVE A REVIEW: Apple Podcasts - Google Play - Spotify and MORE!
For more platforms visit: BUZZSPROUT
Just like in the party world, reviews are like GOLD. If you liked what you heard, please leave me a review and share what you liked the most about the episode.
CONNECT: Email
LIKE & FOLLOW: Facebook Instagram
LEARN MORE: Website
How do you learn the different traditions of all these different cultures? Well, as Evis says, you sure can't learn that stuff on the wedding day. You do NOT get a do-over! If you miss that one second where the groom is stomping on the glass.....it is gone! You can never capture that again. As a vendor, that is a total failure on your part for not understanding the traditions so important to your clients. How are you going to learn? Ask the client - likely not, it would show them you don't know what they need. Ask a local rabbi - not likely you are that brave.
The Jewish Party Maven was founded with the goal of coaching vendors in the customs and traditions so important to Jewish celebrations. They offer several options from online courses to weekly coaching.
Check out the website for more information: JewishPartyMaven.com
To learn more about Evis Mecolli and his amazing creative team, visit VISI Productions
Join Pat Blackwell here every week, where you, the BEST vendors, expand your wedding business into this lucrative Jewish market. By understanding the traditions & vocabulary, you will build TRUST and GROW your business. Cha Ching
Links mentioned in this episode:
Don’t miss future episodes!
SUBSCRIBE & LEAVE A REVIEW: Apple Podcasts - Google Play - Spotify and MORE!
For more platforms visit: BUZZSPROUT
Just like in the party world, reviews are like GOLD. If you liked what you heard, please leave me a review and share what you liked the most about the episode.
CONNECT: Email
LIKE & FOLLOW: Facebook Instagram
LEARN MORE: Website
This is the book more Jewish weddings with Pat Blackwell podcast. Hello there. I'm your host Pat Blackwell. As a Catholic farm girl in Minnesota. I certainly never expected to ever be the Jewish party man. But 4400 parties and 26 years later, I am indeed an expert at Jewish party. I am fiercely committed to helping the best vendors book more parties in this amazing, lucrative and incredibly loyal Jewish party market. Let's go. Today I have the great pleasure of talking with us Macaulay, the founder of vz productions, Evers has grown his company vz productions into a thriving photography and cinema business that usually captures around 150 weddings of all cultures each year. When I asked Evers how he learned about Jewish weddings, he said, This is not something you can learn on wedding day. You don't get a do over. He does lots of research. But he spent a whole year shadowing other photographers so that he could learn the traditions so important to Jewish celebrations. So let's get right into this week's episode, talking with Elvis McCauley. Hello, there. How are you? Hey, good, Pat, how are you? I am doing terrific. And I'm so excited to have you on my podcast today. You have done a whole bunch of crazy things, but our audience doesn't know you. So can you tell us a little bit about you and your background? Yes. So my name is Elvis McCauley. I'm the owner of VCA productions. We launched our business, VC, VC, vi Si, VC, okay. peasy. But it's actually a VC. So that's kind of like my childhood name or nickname, I should say. I was born and raised in Albania. I moved in the United States in 2000. And have been here since so pretty, pretty much half of my life, but so my name is Avi CVI. Yes. And then my nickname is VC. So that's how VC productions came about. So I did not know this. Yeah. Yeah, I moved here in 2000. And I launched a few productions in 2008. And we've been doing wedding photography and cinema since then. So photography and videography. Yep. You call it cinema. Cinema. We call it cinema, because well, I was how was in the, in the video. Phase of it, I should say, when when we started doing video. You know, before I jumped to on my own company, I worked for other companies as well. So we had this like tiny cameras and everything look just like any uncle at a wedding will take video. So it looks very video ish. But I think one of the breakthrough came in the way that we call the cinema is when the DSLR cameras came through with our video capabilities in there. So that changed the whole ballgame. We're now we have super 35 sensors that look just like a movie, you know, you're able to isolate your background or your foreground. So you are telling the story with your camera. Back in the day, you had a video camera with everything was super sharp. And you really couldn't focus on telling the story the way you want it to because your eyes would go everywhere. But now the reason we call it cinema will a is a storytelling with audio and good visuals, and B is this high quality cameras. Are you able to tell the story? So that's why we call it cinema. Cool. That works. So how many are on your crew? So we have 12 people on the crew? Right? As of right now, that includes editors, photographers, cinematographers and freelance editors as well. So can you tell us how you went from being just out of this to being? Not a solopreneur? But this whole big, very successful company? Yeah, good question. So I think I think there is a, there's benefits, and there is drawbacks to doing both. Because I was I was that person, I was a solopreneur at one point, and I made that decision of I want to be able to hire more people, I want to be able to, to have a bigger team, because I think the hardest thing for all of us, including yourself, I think, is that when the brides or the couples call us and they were like we're so sorry, we're booked for your wedding day. That kind of hurts. We don't we don't want that business to let go because they come to us and they say we love your work, we really want you to be a part of my wedding day. And next thing you know, we're telling them No. So so the the great benefit of that is you are taking on more work than as a one man show or one one person and your business. But yes, there is a lot more work and there is a there's a lot more responsibilities involved. And also you have to make sure that your crew is trained to the level of your company. So that takes an immense amount of work. So that's that's not a drawback but it's more work than you have to do versus you being just the solo person that Couple knows and they know you're going to show up. But when you send another team and you promise them to that they will do the same work as you do. That takes a whole another responsibility on having to make sure that your team represents you as your company. So it's, I guess everyone can pick what they where they want to be in their stage of their business. For myself, it was I made that decision of I want to be able to book more weddings, I want to be able to hire more talent, I want to be able to hire local talent that I'm able to give them a job but at the same time, they're they're helping us with the image of the company. And they're, we're not coming in our couples know anymore. Just like you I don't like to say no, I like to start with a yes answer and figure out a way to make it work. But having trained people is huge. And I spend an immense amount of time training people and once I get them, I want to keep them and so I want to take very good care of him and you know it, but absolutely, so tell me about this background in Albania, how did you get into the Jewish So, um, I was born and raised in Albania, I like I said I moved here in 2000. I, I think being being that I came from such a strong culture of community and and having so many traditions in our weddings, because we used to have, you know, three day weddings back back home. So there was a ton of tradition involved a lot of crazy traditions that we had to go through those three, three days. So coming to market like the Jewish weddings, or like the Albanian weddings, or the you know, the Cal Diem, Lebanese, you name it, these are all you know, the cultures that have a lot of tradition in a lot of cultural traditions that you have to be aware. And coming from that, you know, from the culture, it made it easier on me to be able to transition into the Jewish weddings, but also at the same time. It's not, it's not just the background that I have. It's it's about asking the right questions, you know, not stepping on anybody's toes and making sure that, you know, you are respecting their traditions, because I can't tell you how many times you know, even when we started, you know, with, you know, with galdana weddings with Jewish weddings with even our venue weddings, but I had no idea some new traditions that I've never heard of. So I think the key the success to any, you know, culture weddings, or you're going to be in is to ask the right questions. And also to find a course like Jewish Maven quarter still learn from you. So instead of having to make those mistakes, or having to ask so many questions that you can bother people, you get to learn another way, you know, which would be through a course, or through just just Hank, just, you know, going to a wedding and and shadowing with someone that's more experienced on those, you know, types of weddings. I know, that's hard to. And I learned this whole Jewish world do you know, I'm a Catholic girl from Minnesota. And that's a whole different story. My family doesn't have any idea what I do, and they don't understand a bit of it. And it's kind of fun. But anyway, I know how important it is to understand these traditions. And that's why we started the Jewish party, Maven. And so we have a couple of different things going on. We're offering an online Basics class where you can learn a bunch of vocabulary, but then we're also offering weekly coaching. And so I hope to get people like you. I know you understand this, but your team on everything, stuff to learn. There's so many. Like, the Orthodox Jewish weddings are so many new things that I was like, Whoa, you know, these are the things that you can't learn on the wedding day, because that time you're done. Like you already missed that moment, you know, you'll get a redo. You know, I don't know this the first time. Exactly, exactly. So I'm still learning things. I worked at wedding this past weekend, and I learned something new, and I'm lucky to work alongside you. So you know, this traditions and you helped us, you know, so that was that was huge, you know, especially having to work with you with the red coats and yourself, you know, just just to learn all the new things. And you know, how many questions I've asked, you know, in the past, were like, what's happening? What's going on? We need to know if you had a couple of words to describe the secret to your success, you know, I don't have like a business background like most of the people that get in the business do but I look at it this way. I started in this business without without thinking much by just putting my heart and my passion to what I want to do. And just just let it all happen. You know, like you You have to be in love with the you know, with the game, you have to love what you do. And that takes you to the next level of success year every year. It wasn't something that that I set as a goal that I'm going to be you know, making this much money or having this much success in my life from 2008 till now, you just do the work. And then it all comes to you. I think that's that's part of our success. You don't think about how can I get the medal? You know, for what I'm doing? You just do it. I remember conversation with you a couple years back where somebody was breaking off on their own. And you said to me, no, the dream is free. Yeah. You are the master of the hustle. You just gotta just gotta hustle. Absolutely. How have you got through? COVID? Um, that's a good question. So luckily, for us, we've had, we've had a numerous couples that actually got married during 2020. So in an average, you know, we would do anywhere from 100 to 150, weddings tops a year, but 2020 we ended up doing like 25, which wasn't bad, we still got couples that were married. So I think that was number one having to work you know, with with them, as far as like finding solutions and downsizing their wedding. And having to find solutions. How do we do this safely. So if you look at if you look at some of the you know, the photos or the you know, the wedding rules that we put up there, these are 10 people weddings, and they don't look any different than any of the other weddings we've done in the past with 340 people weddings, so to have that understanding and to be able to, to work with with our couples, that was that was huge. So another another way that we were able to, to go through this pandemic or how everybody was financially hit by we explored other options in not, in a way explore, but we actually dedicated more time to the things that we didn't have time to do when we were so busy with weddings. So this this year, or 2020, and a little bit of this year, as well. And you probably you've seen our like backdrops and everything in our studio, we focus more on like mini sessions and lifestyle sessions and any of the couples that we've shot weddings in the past, they will contact us and they're like, Oh, we didn't know you guys have family photos, we've always done them. It's just that we didn't have that much time to focus on them as much as we do now, because of the weddings, you know, our you know, time consuming. weight, you know that? Yeah. Limited now. So so we're focusing more on like the ministration lifestyles and like the smaller stuff, so that HEC has kept us busy, and also the weddings as well. So, you know, 2021 we're just hoping that things go back to somewhat normal. I know you have a really awesome office, you also have a co working space, right? We do. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Tell me tell me. So. It's a long story, but I'll try to try to make it short. I think I've told you this. And you know, we've, we've talked about in the past, but for the audience for the people that are watching or listening this to this podcast. So my, my problem, I should say, and for lack of a better word was that I always had a hard time finding a good spot to meet people. You know, you know, starting in 2008, I didn't have an office, I just had my first floor of my house. I mean, people, they're great, but there was people who wanted to meet somewhere else rather than just at my house. And I always looked for a place that I wanted to meet with them and be able to interact and having to be me. So coffee shops were weren't doing great, you know, I mean, we would sit there and it was either too cold or too noisy or too hot. Or you know, you would not find enough chairs. So I was always thinking if I could only find a place that's going to allow me to have this amazing conference from but not like your typical, you know, office boring type of setting where you have a table and four chairs and tables, six chairs. So I looked a lot I like I watched so many nanowires but I research so much online and trying to find a cool space that would cater to what what I want it. I did not find that. So two years ago, we got our studio in downtown Farmington and I realized right away that there was a ton of space for us. We didn't need all this space. So we launched you know, Farmington cowork. And we had about 1000 square foot of that and I turned that into a just an amazing co working space force for a conference from that people can come and meet without having to have anyone around them and for a super affordable price. So that was my pain in a way that I was able to solve for other people and people loved it. No, people love this so much that we we got so many people interested on that side. So we had to open up the other side which we call it the signature. So now we have a social on the signature and we still still also have a ton of room for us to be able to edit and and keep our equipment and everything else as far as like the size of the building. So now we have the social and the signature inside the frame and concrete work, but also what became interested you want COVID a lot of small events like small parties, dinner parties, birthday parties, any any type of small events within 20 or 30 people given on the restrictions that were during COVID, sometimes even 10. And that's a restriction right now it's 10 people. So we, we got a lot of interest from people that wanted to have this small dinner Events, Small parties that they could not host at their house, because it wasn't big enough. So we we saw an opportunity for us to be able to help this. people now who wanted to throw a small event or dinner party. So since then, we've been we've been having a lot of 10 people dinner parties that come here, and we have foreign tables, chivari chairs, all these cool things, Tim to make the party look amazing. Oh, pivot is the word of the year. And that's been an amazing pivot for you. Good for you. Yeah. So again, it's the hustle, the hustle. All right, you have this case? How do you get the word out how to advertise? You know, it's a whole different game. Oh, cool. So tell me if you had to talk to somebody or mentor somebody and they said, I want to be a Jewish wedding photographer or videographer? Is there some one piece of advice you would give to them? Well, like, like I've said in the beginning, and you mentioned as well, you just got to just kind of hustle. You have to, you have to understand the culture and be respectful. My advice would be shadow was someone who was in the business, who does a lot of you know, cultural weddings, we're not separating just the Jewish market, you know, but any type of like I said, we do big you know, because my are my background, myself and then entire team now it's kind of training to this, you know, cultural wedding. So that would be known as Lebanese, Armenian, Greek, Jewish American, you name it, you know, so it's, it's that background that has helped me coach everyone. And I think the best advice for someone would be to just shadow someone and kind of see what happens in this big Jewish weddings or, you know, big ethnic culture, what type of weddings you you would do and this was my starting in the business, this is how I started you know, I, I offer myself to go for free for a whole year. So any anyone and everyone they wanted me to go out with just grab my camera and go film for them just to learn the business and to see how things work in a wedding day, you don't just you know, pick up a camera and then promise someone that I'm gonna shoot your wedding when that only happens once. Right? And that's where you know, you're this would be an advice for someone just starting out. But this but you your question was more towards How do you break into the Jewish market type type of question, right? So for someone who has been doing this, and they've been doing different kinds of weddings, they love the idea of having to go into a Jewish wedding. Great. Again, go with someone who's who's done these in the past, or you get the course and then have to plug that in. Right. Absolutely. Thank you for that. I appreciate your endorsement. Course. All right. Well, tell me about general business things. Do you have books that you like? Is there a favorite book you'd think everybody should be reading? So I am the type of guy who doesn't read books. I like audio books. Okay, mostly mostly podcasts. So there is a favorite podcast. So there's two people that I listened to and Gary Vee Gary Vaynerchuk is one of them, sir. He's his podcast. I listen right now. It's a it's called the audio experience. And also Simon Sinek leading with purpose. So they're, they're both basically you know, Gary Vee talks about the hustle. And I love his story of his life where he documented everything from day one, all the way to being a super successful entrepreneur, multimillion dollar, you know, revenue from a guy that came in from overseas who came in from a poor family so I can I can relate to his story. And that has been a huge mentorship for me just to listen to his story and to take whatever you can out of someone's life or someone that has had the same stepping stones as you as you do. But smaller, obviously, you know, like he's, and he always says the same thing. As I mentioned, you know, where we don't think about where you want to be in 10 years, you just work hard and you hustle, and then that can that will take you to where you have dreamed about even though you didn't write a paper where you didn't have this like goal written down. I'm laughing because back on the farm, we have a saying that says, some people learn when you tell them some people learn by reading. Other people have to pee on the electric fence all by themselves. And I love that other people's knowledge and learn from that and that's so important. Absolutely, absolutely. I love that. I'm gonna use that. So, a couple of podcasts that you like, but you listen to audiobooks. Yes. Well read on there that somebody has to listen to the one that changed my life. It was a Which one was it? Let me just double check to make sure he was by Dale Carnegie. How to How to Win Friends and Influence People? Oh, yes, absolutely. That was that was a really good podcast, I mean, a audio book that I've listened to I think everyone in the world should listen to that. It's it's super basic human interaction and something that makes you a better person. It doesn't matter if you're in a business or not. It's just makes you a better person. He makes you just just understand and get into your your consciousness about the things that you've done in the past where you can say, Okay, I remember this, I did this, I'm gonna fix this. You know, it just makes you an overall a better a better person. Interesting. I have not read that. I've heard about it 1000 times, but I have not read it. And I need to put it on my list. Yeah, absolutely. There's so many books. It's crazy. But like I said, I not really the reading type of guy, I just drive a lot. So I love to listen to audiobooks. I listen to audiobooks, as well. And recently, I listened to traction. And I thought that was a really powerful tool, I got to put that the law of attraction or the attraction, traction to ctio. And it's a Detroit based book. And it's just about getting the right people in the right places and getting the blacks out of the way. And it was great. So yeah, it's, it's amazing. Yeah, there's a lot of information out there. Hmm. All right. Well, I'm gonna wrap this up, but is there anything else you would like to promote anything, we got to know something new you're doing? I'm not really. I mean, at the moment, like I said, we're focusing more on smaller sessions. So we're really hoping that 2021 we're going to start going back into our wedding routine, because we can't wait. It's been so long, and it's just, uh, I really wish that, uh, you know, things go back to normal and everyone, it's safe and healthy. And, and 2021 is the date that we thought 2020 was gonna be like, the best year. So that's, that's pretty much it. That would be wonderful. But I see this spring sort of disappearing as well. And things are moving back to summer. But people are concerned about summer and fall, and I'm thrilled, and I my phone's been ringing. Yeah, 2020 definitely, it's, it's gonna be it's gonna be a good season of weddings. But 2021 we're still we're still holding on, you're holding on. We haven't had a ton of cancellations. But just just really hope that the next couple months, it picks up and everybody gets vaccinated. And we're back to normal. Here here. All right. Well, listen, thank you very much for being on this podcast. I appreciate your support, always. And you're just such a terrific guy. And I love working with you and your team and done a great job of training your team to take care of people the way that you take care of them. And thank you so much, but I appreciate it. And we love working with you as well. And can't wait. Can't wait to us to just start back again and be normal. Terrific. All right. Thanks, I was taken. Well, I hope you enjoyed this episode. It's really inspiring to listen to someone who does very well because he chooses to keep learning and hustling. It's all about the hustle and ever says the master of the hustle. I know how difficult it can be to learn the traditions so important to Jewish parties. Who are you going to ask your client, a local Rabbi? Not likely. The main reason I created the Jewish party Maven is to coach vendors to honor those customs. You can learn all of this stuff online. I'm not inventing anything new. Everything I teach in my courses can be found online. But how long will it really take you to do all that research? My Courses and my coaching are designed to provide a shortcut to this valuable learning. We'll focus on the traditions found in the Jewish party world, primarily weddings, but also bar and Bat Mitzvahs. You can get more information on all of these options at the Jewish party maven.com. This podcast is all about how we can help each other better serve our Jewish clients. Are there some specific words or customs that you don't understand in the Jewish party world? Send me an email or join the Jewish party Maven vendor rockstars private Facebook group. I want to hear from you. Alright, let's wrap this up. You know the drill. Remember your freebie, download this powerful cheat sheet. 12 Jewish words the best vendors know just click on the link in the show notes. Go to Jewish party maven.com. If you'd like to learn more, follow me on Facebook or Insta at Jewish party Maven. I really truly appreciate your thoughts and your feedback about this show, and learning lots about how this podcasting world works. And I'm telling you, reviews are like gold in the party world where they're like gold here too. So all of you rock stars, leave me a review. Go out there and remember what ever says, You can't learn on wedding day. You don't get to do over. Then join me next week and you'll be one word closer to booking your next Jewish party to chain. Thank you for listening. See you next week.