What to look for in a wedding planner
Think back to the moment when your fiancé professed their love, possibly down on one knee, and you said, “Yes, of course I’ll marry you”. Fast forward to the present where you’re running around like a headless chicken trying to plan a wedding but not exactly knowing what you need to do or how to do it. Or you may find yourself somewhat organised with all the “big things” ticked off the list but you’re missing the “small things” list completely. The point? Remember what the goal is. Oh, and don’t blame your fiancé for things going wrong, it’s really not their fault.
Planning a wedding is a huge task and while you have friends and family to “help” you, they usually tend to confuse you more than anything. You’re supposed to enjoy the wedding planning journey and not be a bundle of stress the entire time. And the reality is that there are people out there who are qualified and plan weddings for a living.
In the moments where you start considering a courthouse wedding, call up a wedding planner and don’t give up. Now, before you choose just anyone to plan your wedding, there are a few things to look for in a wedding planner to ensure you can trust them with your special day.
A planner with vision
If you don’t have a clear idea of what it is you want your wedding to be like, you’re going to need to find a wedding planner with vision. Someone who can piece together the two or three ideas you do have in mind and create your dream wedding.
Even if you think you know what every detail of your wedding needs to be on the day, having a visionary wedding planner will bring some of your ideas back to earth. They will be able to match the image in your head with your budget (something that is extremely important and not always easy to come to terms with). It’s easy to get carried away and take advantage of low-priced items but, the truth is, it’s all going to add up in the end and you’ll be over your set budget. And that’s something you can’t afford to do.
Present your ideas and what you want to your wedding planner, and trust them to achieve it accordingly.
Someone who has experience in the industry
Another thing you should look for in a wedding planner is experience in the industry. Yes, everyone needs to start somewhere and have their first client at some point, but it doesn’t have to be with your wedding. You need someone who knows exactly what they’re doing, but also someone who doesn’t have too many clients at one time (because you need to feel prioritised).
Wedding planners who’ve been in the industry for a while have, by now, made a long list of connections for venues, flowers, wine, laser cutting, DJs, photographers and more. So you’re bound to get the best deals and work your overall quotes down in order to stick to your budget. It will also be quicker, then, for them to arrange with vendors and book with them before they reach capacity for the month.
Experience means wedding planning comes as second nature. And that will reduce any stress you have about the planning aspects of the wedding. While on the topic of experience, try to find yourself a wedding planner who has a project management course qualification behind their name. They’ll be even better at working with vendors and handling the wedding project as a whole.
A communicator
The next thing you need from your wedding planner is for them to be able to clearly communicate with you. You need them to be willing to keep you updated throughout the entire process. More importantly, you need them to understand what it is you want and be reassured that every step they take is in the right direction.
Wedding planners who don’t easily or honestly communicate with their clients only encourage stress and bridal freakouts. Communication leads to trust and you need to trust your wedding planner because they are the ones who will either make or break your wedding. They have to be great communicators.
What’s all included?
And the last thing to look out for has to do with the fine print in a wedding planner’s service package. Not all wedding planners provide the same extent of planning services and some tend to have a variety of packages with different levels of “services included”.
You know what you’re capable of handling and an all-inclusive package may or may not be necessary. But, for yourself, you need to make sure you know exactly what the wedding planner will be taking care of and what you’ll be responsible for. That way, nothing gets left out and you can even save a few bucks on the planner too.
