The Wedding Planner
As a seasoned professional, well versed in the art of negotiating with caterers, venues and florists, wedding planners can save you valuable time, money and stress by helping you create the wedding you've always dreamed of, on time and on budget.
Before you choose your wedding planner there are a number of factors to review. Take the same care and diligence you would put into choosing any other important wedding accessories, into choosing your planner.
First, do some investigative work. Ask around to learn of other's experiences, visit local trade wedding shows, and extend your search into cyberspace. Joining a local wedding online forum is one of the best ways to find out about the goings on in your community and to learn of the reputation of any particular planner.
Once you have created a shortlist of potential planners, meet with them face-to-face to interview and get to know them better. Defying all logic, there are just some people that you instantly make that important connection with and some you do not. Use that intuition as a guideline to help in your decision making process, but remember to back it up with further investigation.
One of the easiest ways to do so is by asking the important questions. While references are important it is an unlikely event that a planner will put forth the name of anyone that experienced dissatisfaction. Instead do a little sleuthing on your own. Check your local better business bureau to see if any complaints have been lodged against them, check to see if they have any formal credentials, and ask to see a list of events they have previously been hired to cover. A well-rounded planner will have covered more than just weddings.
Another list you should ask for is one of duties they expect to fulfil. Go through this list carefully, adding any areas you feel would be best tailored to you and deleting those you feel unnecessary. By having them provide the list rather than drawing one up yourself, you may be surprised at areas they may include, that in your own inexperience, you would never have dreamed necessary.
While some brides will choose to hire the services of their wedding planner to take care of their entire event from engagement to gift opening, others will prefer, as a cost saving measure, to hire their planner for a particular portion such as the reception.
When assessing the cost of a wedding planner a number of different fee schedules can be applied. Some planners set one-time basic fees based on the number of guests invited, some base their fee as 15% of the wedding budget, while still others use an hourly rate. Whichever method they choose, make sure you get all of the details in writing, outlining clearly the expectations of both sides, including financial remuneration.
A Wedding Planner is a great asset to a wedding. You may have the dream and the vision, but it is their experience that will turn that dream into a reality.
©2007 Weddingstar Inc.
