The Wedding Planner Pt. 2. Is a Wedding Planner For You?

This is a question newly engaged couples ask themselves.  This is a very loaded question due to the fact that contrary to popular belief, wait for it, wait for it, the decision to hire a wedding planner is not a financial decision.  Whether or not to hire a wedding planner is too important a decision to be based solely on money.  

Ask yourself these questions….
1.  Do I have unlimited time to plan?

2. Can I visit vendors when they are open during the day?


3. Am I comfortable negotiating contracts with vendors?

4. Am I prepared to deal with disagreements about the details?

5. Can I deal with last minute details that come up on the day of the wedding?

According to weddingstats.org, the average bride spends about
250 hours organizing her wedding.  That is equal to 6 full time work
weeks!

The bride of today is rarely a lady of complete leisure with not
an issue in the world with the gift of endless time to do as she pleases all
day.  Today’s bride works, goes to school, maintains a social life online and in the world.  She is confident, vibrant, driven and most of all busy.  

95% of brides work a regular job.  If you are lucky you carry regular hours during the day. The downside to this is that while you’re at work, 
so are the wedding vendors you want to sit down with and hash out your
special day details.   Your most important vendors like the photographer and caterer don’t usually keep weekend hours due to a large percentage of events are held during Friday thru Sunday. 

Once time is finally squeaked out to spend some time with that
fabulous vendor all your girlfriends love for their weddings, sitting through
the endless amounts of services and amenities can be daunting. 
Finding the line between want and need can get very blurry when all the
offerings are feast for the eyes, which can run up a pretty price tag right out
of your budget.


The beauty in the details can get ugly quick when it comes to deadlines.  Linens have to be ordered in a certain time manner in order to secure them for the ceremony and or reception.  The final payment must be received by caterer and final head count two weeks before the event.  The linens for the table cloths do not match the chair covers.  Do we change the covers to sashes because they match the linen on the tables or do we cancel the order for the linens and just buy fabric cut to fit the table to save money and match the chair covers?  
  
On your wedding day, you are in your full length mirror getting
your hair brushed by your mom, getting your makeup professionally done, your grandmother is putting her pearl bracelet that she wore in her wedding on your wrist for something old and borrowed, then your cell phone rings. 
The photographer is sick; he is sending a substitute whom you have never
met in his place.  The flower girl threw up from too much candy the night before and is huddling in her dress over the toilet.  The caterer was on
vacation the week before the wedding and did not get your email of the ten
additional guests and does have enough food for your guests and it’s
raining.  Your ceremony in the botanical gardens starts in five minutes. 
What do you do?

These five issues can drive a sensible bride insane if not
prepared.   To help you exhale, there is one thing that can solve all five wedding issues……..Your Wedding Planner.   No need to carve out a hefty slice of your life completely dedicated to planning and don’t become one of those women planning alone but wants to talk and ask question to anyone who will listen about every single detail of their upcoming nuptials.  
 
A Wedding Planner Saves You Time.
With just a few carefully planned meetings, your wedding planner
can correctly communicate all the details of your wedding dreams to your
potential vendors.  Discussing your wants and needs in order to establish your unique and personalized look is the mission of any good planner.  Going
from here to there is eliminated as many planners are already associated with
wedding vendors in order to quickly zero in on the vendor that will best fit
your needs.  This will not only stop the running from here to there, a wedding planner can put you in touch with your top five vendors needed for your wedding and comprehensive meetings that are efficient and productive.

A Wedding Planner Saves You Money.
Setting a realistic wedding budget based on how much you have to
spend is top priority for your wedding planner.  A famous parable for wedding planning goes, “Don’t spend all your money on the house then have no money left to buy curtains.” Controlling your wedding
budget is the most important job for your planner.  For most brides, trips to meet with vendors are an experience like a kid in a candy store.  Everything is
beautiful and sparkly and you must have it all.  A professional wedding planner is able to pull back the purse strings and make sure you have everything you need and don’t pay too much for any service. 
The naivety of negotiating your prices is completely elevated by your
wedding planner. They are expertly aware of the cost of wedding vendors and are trained to get the best price.  It’s like having your own personal
professional haggler.   For example, your planner with know the best floral arrangement that will be both beautiful and in the budget.  
 
A Wedding Planner Is a Friend and Teacher
Your wedding planner can talk about weddings forever and stay
captivated.  This is the perfect person the call, email, text, Pinterest or Facebook any and all of your wedding inspirations.  Your planner wants
to know that you can’t decide between silk and real flowers, between fondant and butter cream, between maid or matron of honor.  This is a much better audience then your friends and family members whose attention span for wedding talk is not near as long on your fifth month of planning it was during the first month of your engagement.  Your wedding planner can break down the overall cost of silk flowers vs real flowers and help you make an educated decision. Help with the arrangement of your ceremony and the activities of your reception are carefully taught to the bride so that she is able to make clear choices on the festivities.  
 
A Wedding Planner is Always Prepared
In the above example of the bride in the full length mirror getting ready for her special day and the mishaps start to occur, your wedding planner is always prepared for mostly 99% of all last minute downturns in advance so if they happen your planner already has a plan B,C, and D.  Firstly, the bride’s cell phone would never have rung.  Wedding vendors are in constant contact with you planner.  There would be no issue of the caterer not having enough food as the planner meets with each vendor for a final run before the wedding two weeks before the wedding.  While receiving news of the photographer’s sudden illness, the planner has met and previously worked with the substitute photographer and is confident in his services of has at least five replacements on speed dial.  The queasy stomach of the flower girl is settled by some soda crackers a quarter teaspoon of baking soda with some warm water. The dressed can be cleaned with an emergency stick of tide. 
As for the rain, your wedding planner has a contingency plan for you
ceremony and as if planned, the entire ceremony, including chairs, alter and
floral are moved inside to the chapel as confirmation of the cloud accumulation was confirmed.  
   
As you can see there are many aspects to consider when deciding
if a wedding planner is for you. 
Here are some questions to ask yourself when meeting a potential
planner.

1. Will this person push me into making decision I don’t want or can’t afford or will they commit to my budget

2. Do they have a good rapport with the best suppliers in the area? 
Are they in the position to negotiate discounts on my behalf

3. Will they be there on the day of the wedding to oversee the entire event from supervising vendors to handling emergencies

4. Does this co-coordinator seem excited about my special day able to make educated decisions and remain calm under pressure

For more information on the right wedding planner for you
contact Elite Event Planning to schedule your free consultation
today!


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