How to choose a wedding planner? Choosing a wedding planner is a significant step toward having a worry-free and enjoyable wedding day. Keep in mind that you’ll be spending lots of time together with this individual or group.
This is undoubtedly the essential thing to consider when meeting planners-does a person feel at ease spending the next six months speaking with this individual every day?
When you quarrel with your significant other about the budget, when a family member has a meltdown over your seating chart, or when suddenly you have cold feet and begin to doubt all of your life decisions, your wedding planner will be there beside you.
That is why you must be able to imagine yourself in each of these situations while your wedding planner is there.
Finding that person is difficult. Here are some suggestions to make this operation go more quickly for you:
Harmony and skill are necessary
Your wedding day planner should be able to communicate your vision and priorities, work with you to polish and fine-tune the concept, provide expertise when needed, carry out a wedding day that exceeds your expectations. Do you feel at ease discussing lengthy meetings with her, expressing your concerns-whatever they may be-openly? Throughout the entire procedure, she should keep you in touch with your plans.
You want her to be an excellent fit for your personality and style while also being experienced and seasoned enough to execute the type of event you desire at the level you want. In-person, if feasible, face-to-face initial consultations are always suggested. Your planner should be asking you a lot of questions and showing interest in your style and ideas. She may not be the right fit if she isn’t doing so. After all, you’ll be spending a lot of time together throughout the coming months or year, preparing for one of the most incredible days of your life!
Make sure they know what they are doing
Check out their online portfolios to get a better idea of who they are as planners. Read reviews from other couples to narrow down the list of potential planners. Ask them who their suppliers are. A competent planner should be able to provide you with a list of vendors without much trouble. Another essential piece of advice is to avoid going with the cheapest option. You get what you pay for, as it relates to anything in life.
Ask the right questions
If you’re not sure whether or how to use a life planner, we recommend making a list of the five most essential queries so you can see whether this is the right plan for you. Whether you choose to interview wedding planners over the phone or in person, you’ll want to ask the appropriate questions.
What are some of your most common questions? Here are a few examples: What is the typical price range for weddings you plan, and how much does it cost to hire you as my planner? What is the standard planning timeline with you as my planner, considering all of your services? Tell me more about your firm and what you want it to communicate my goals and important issues effectively. Talk about the overall cost of the project.
It is decisive to get in touch with money beforehand
You need to ensure that your planner’s fees are within your budget and that you provide them with enough money to do their job correctly and make your dream wedding a reality. A competent planner can work with any budget to bring ideas to reality. Still, if everything in their portfolio is far beyond your means, it will be difficult for them to deliver the same results as the photographs you are double-tapping. Make sure you discuss your budget upfront and ask to see samples of work done in the same range to ensure that you’re not disappointed with the result or shocked by expenses later on.
Understand what their services entail
A wedding planner is concerned with the practicalities of a wedding. They can help you make site selections, provide vendor recommendations, assist with contract negotiation, and offer day-of-wedding services. Nonetheless, you must be aware that there are various wedding-related occupations, such as wedding consultants, wedding coordinators, wedding stylists and designers, and wedding producers. It’s essential to get a good understanding of what they do and the services they provide. Otherwise, you could get someone excellent at negotiating contracts but less skilled at creating a lovely wedding.
Spend Intentionally
Weddings aren’t cheap, and neither are wedding planners. According to a poll of over 18,000 brides married in the United States in 2015, the average couple spends $1,996 on a wedding planner and $32,641 on a wedding as a whole, excluding the honeymoon. Therefore, the average couple spends $32,641 on their wedding. The cost of a wedding planner is variable, ranging from a fixed fee to an hourly charge to a percentage of the overall wedding budget.
Wedding planners may charge either a flat price, an hourly rate, or a portion of your overall wedding expense. Location is one of the many elements that influence the expense of a planner. On average, hiring a planner in Palm Springs, California, costs $4000, followed by Boston at $2,982. In Lansing, Michigan, an event planner costs $900 per month; in West Virginia, it costs around $1000 per month.
Know the types of wedding planners
You’ve found the ideal companion in life; now it’s time to narrow down your search for the perfect wedding planner. You have alternatives, just like you do when it comes to dating. The following are some of the most common types of planners you may hire.
A full-service wedding planner that can handle all aspects of your wedding
If you want assistance in every step of the wedding journey, from developing the initial concept for the event to ensuring everything goes smoothly on the day of, a full-service planner is an ideal option for you. Your Pinterest board will come to life, but it’ll set you back a significant amount of money. A full-service planner costs at least $3500.
Wedding planner for the day of the wedding
A wedding planner will be on hand to ensure that everything goes smoothly for the day of the big event, but they will not be overly involved in the preparations. This may be a good fit for controlling freaks.
The wedding day is split into two segments: the morning and the afternoon. The day-of coordinators are the wedding planners who handle everything on the big day. They plan out the wedding day schedule, deal with suppliers and vendors, and set up weddings. Day-of coordinators charge between $900.
Wedding planner on demand
A la carte services are also offered by wedding planning firms, allowing the happy couple to pick and choose which aspects of the wedding they want assistance with. If you know exactly what type of cake you want, whether it’s a classic tiered cake or a more modern-style one, and what flowers you’d like to use but don’t know where to start: This is a great option. If you’re having trouble coming up with the theme, contact the planner when you’re stuck. This sort of planner usually charges an hourly rate or a fixed fee.
Pay special attention to the fine print
Don’t sign a contract until you’ve gone over every word in the document with your chosen vendor. There may be an extra charge for extra labor, such as security or coat check, or a service charge hidden in the contract. Many spaces impose a service fee. Many contractors also include their profit. On top of the contract fee, they may charge anything from 18 to 23% in profit. As a result, it’s critical to comprehend (and compute) how those extra costs will affect your budget.
Get the floor area of your wedding space
This may sound technical, but many locations claim to accommodate a more significant number of individuals than the space can comfortably accommodate. For cocktails, keep it simple with 10-15 sq ft per person. To allow for bars and a sizable dance floor, plan 20-25 sq ft per person for dinner and a dedicated dancing floor.
Your ceremony location, like your reception area, is equally vital. If you can, revisit potential ceremony sites the day of the wedding or during the time of day when you have it. This way, you can be sure there aren’t any trains roaring by as your ceremony begins or significant traffic on the road outside that might be inconvenient.
Make it seem like you’re talking to just one person
You’ll want to make sure that your wedding reflects who you are as a couple and what kind of relationship you have. You don’t want it to be an obligation on their side; instead, they should walk away feeling like it was a fun event. If you’re going to entice your guests for the big day, include a fun question on your card, in addition, to accepting/declining and meal selection.
For instance, consider the following humorous inquiries. What is your impression of our wedding location? What song would you prefer to hear during our ceremony? ‘What tune would you want to listen to during your wedding?'”
Conclusion: How to choose a wedding planner for You
Even if you get a bargain-basement wedding planner, the cost is still high. There are several things to think about when looking at various marriage planners and their services. After that, of course, double-check to see whether your wedding planner is available on the big day and ask if they’ve done weddings in your price range.
It would be best if you first determined what they are capable of doing and unable to do. They should be available for every service you require, whether it’s just day-of or full service, and they should substitute for you at vendor meetings if necessary. Will they accompany you to every tasting and fitting and stand-in for you at vendor meetings if necessary? Overall, we recommend that you seek out the planner’s qualities, vision and style so that you may ensure it is in sync with your perfect day.