How to Get More Wedding Cake Clients

You make beautiful cakes. Your flavours are spot on, your designs are original, and every client who's tried your work has loved it. But your diary isn't as full as you'd like.

Sound familiar? You're not alone. The wedding cake market in the UK is competitive, and being talented isn't enough — you need to be visible, strategic, and proactive about getting your work in front of the right couples.

This guide walks you through proven strategies that working cake makers use to fill their order books. No gimmicks, no expensive advertising — just practical steps that build a sustainable pipeline of wedding cake enquiries.

Step 1: Build a Visual Portfolio on Instagram

If there's one marketing channel that matters most for cake makers, it's Instagram. Wedding cakes are one of the most visual products in the wedding industry, and Instagram is where couples go to find inspiration and discover makers.

Post Every Cake

This sounds obvious, but so many cake makers only post their "best" work. Post everything. A simple buttercream birthday cake shows your range. A towering 5-tier wedding cake shows your ambition. Behind-the-scenes shots of you piping sugar flowers show your craft. Couples want to see volume, consistency, and real work — not just a handful of perfect shots.

Optimise Your Profile

Your Instagram bio should tell people exactly what you do and where you're based. Include:

• What you make (wedding cakes, celebration cakes)
• Your location (couples search locally)
• A link to your website or booking page
• Your email or contact method

Use Hashtags Strategically

Mix broad and specific hashtags. Use location-based tags (#WeddingCakeSurrey, #LondonCakeMaker), style tags (#ButtercreamWeddingCake, #SugarFlowers), and general wedding tags (#UKWedding, #2025Wedding). Aim for 15–20 relevant hashtags per post.

Stories and Reels

Static grid posts build your portfolio. Stories and Reels build your personality. Show the process: levelling cakes, mixing colours, assembling tiers, loading the van for delivery. Couples don't just buy a cake — they buy into a person. Let them see the human behind the buttercream.

Engage With Your Community

Follow and engage with local wedding venues, planners, florists, and photographers. Comment on their posts genuinely. Share their work in your stories. The wedding industry runs on relationships, and Instagram is where many of those relationships start.

Step 2: List on FolkAir

Wedding directories and marketplaces are where couples actively search for suppliers. Unlike social media (where you're hoping to be discovered), marketplaces capture couples who are already looking to book.

FolkAir is a UK events marketplace where couples can browse cake makers by location, view portfolios, read reviews, and send enquiries. Listing is free, and it puts you in front of couples who are ready to book — not just browsing for inspiration.

Your FolkAir profile works alongside your Instagram and website. Think of it as another shopfront: keep it updated with your latest work, respond to enquiries promptly, and collect reviews from every happy client.

Why Marketplaces Matter

Your Instagram following might be 500 or 5,000, but a marketplace like FolkAir is seen by thousands of couples searching specifically for cake makers in their area. It's targeted visibility that you can't easily replicate on your own.

Step 3: Do Styled Shoots

Styled shoots are one of the best-kept secrets in wedding cake marketing. Here's how they work: a group of wedding suppliers (photographer, florist, venue, cake maker, stylist) come together to create a beautiful mock wedding setup, purely for portfolio content.

Why Styled Shoots Work

• You get professional photos of your cakes in a real wedding setting
• The photographer edits and shares the images (free marketing)
• You build relationships with other suppliers who can refer you
• The images are usually far better than anything you'd capture on a wedding day
• Blogs and magazines sometimes feature styled shoots, giving you press coverage

How to Get Involved

• Follow local wedding photographers on Instagram — they often organise shoots
• Join Facebook groups for wedding suppliers in your area
• Offer to provide a cake for a shoot in exchange for professional photos
• Reach out to venues that are newly opened or recently renovated — they often want fresh imagery

The cost to you is ingredients and your time. The return is professional imagery, industry connections, and potential press coverage. It's one of the highest-ROI marketing activities available to cake makers.

Step 4: Build Venue Relationships

Getting onto a venue's preferred supplier list is one of the most powerful things you can do for your cake business. When a couple books a venue, the first thing they receive is a recommended supplier list. If you're on it, you get a warm introduction to every couple who books that venue.

How to Get on Preferred Supplier Lists

• Deliver cakes to the venue — even once. A great delivery experience, where you set up beautifully and leave the kitchen spotless, makes an impression on venue coordinators.
• Introduce yourself — email or visit local venues. Bring samples. Venue coordinators eat a lot of cake samples, so make yours memorable.
• Be reliable — venues recommend suppliers they trust. Being on time, communicating well, and producing consistent quality matters more than having the fanciest designs.
• Offer a referral incentive — some cake makers offer venue staff a small gift or discount code for referrals. Check that the venue is comfortable with this first.

Wedding Planners

Independent wedding planners are equally valuable. They work across multiple venues and often have strong opinions about which suppliers they recommend. Build relationships with planners in your area — invite them to a tasting, send them your portfolio, and always deliver impeccable work when they refer a client.

Step 5: Collect Reviews

Reviews are your most powerful conversion tool. A couple might love your Instagram, but reviews are what give them the confidence to book. After every wedding, ask for a review — and make it easy.

Where to Collect Reviews

• Google Business Profile — essential for local search visibility
• FolkAir — reviews on your marketplace listing build trust with browsing couples
• Facebook — still relevant for some demographics
• Your website — testimonials on your own site support your brand

How to Ask

Don't be shy. Most happy clients are delighted to leave a review — they just need a nudge. Send a follow-up email 1–2 weeks after the wedding with a direct link to your review page. Keep it personal: mention their wedding, thank them for choosing you, and ask if they'd mind sharing their experience.

A simple template:

"Hi [Name], I hope you had the most wonderful day! I absolutely loved making your cake and I hope it was everything you wanted. If you have a moment, I'd be so grateful if you could leave a quick review on [platform] — it really helps other couples find me. Here's the link: [URL]. Thank you so much! 💛"

Beyond the Five Steps

Once you've nailed the fundamentals above, there are several more channels worth exploring:

Google Business Profile

Set up and optimise your Google Business Profile. Add photos of your cakes (lots of them), respond to reviews, post updates, and make sure your contact details and service area are accurate. This is free and directly affects whether you appear in local Google searches.

Pinterest Strategy

Pinterest is an underrated goldmine for cake makers. Wedding cakes are one of the most-pinned categories on the platform. Create boards for different styles (rustic, modern, floral, minimalist), pin your own work alongside inspiration, and link back to your website or FolkAir profile. Pins have a much longer lifespan than Instagram posts — a single pin can drive traffic for months or even years.

Local Wedding Fairs

Wedding fairs put you in front of couples who are actively planning. A table typically costs £100–£400, and you'll want to bring:

• Sample cakes or cake dummies that showcase your range
• A portfolio book or tablet with photos
• Business cards and brochures
• Flavour samples (this is what draws people to your table)
• A booking form or QR code to your enquiry page

The key to wedding fairs is follow-up. Collect email addresses and contact every interested couple within 48 hours. The couples who don't book on the day are still warm leads.

Referral Incentives

Your past clients are your best salespeople. Consider offering a referral incentive: a box of cupcakes, a discount on a future order, or a small gift voucher for every couple they refer who books. Word of mouth is still the most trusted form of marketing, and a little incentive keeps you top of mind.

Collaborate With Florists

Florists and cake makers are natural partners. Many couples want their cake flowers to match their wedding flowers, and florists are often asked for cake maker recommendations. Build relationships with local florists — offer to provide cake for their shop events, share each other's work on social media, and consider joint styled shoot participation.

Consistency Is Everything

The cake makers with full diaries aren't necessarily the most talented — they're the most consistent. They post on Instagram every week. They respond to enquiries within hours. They follow up after every wedding. They maintain their online profiles. They show up at networking events.

Marketing your cake business isn't about one big push. It's about showing up, being visible, and building trust — one cake, one review, one relationship at a time.

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List your cake making services on FolkAir free → folkair.com/join