Have you ever had an honest conversation about why you should hire a wedding planner? A lot of couples begin planning their weddings and soon begin to feel overwhelmed with all of the details, different vendors they need to hire, determining a wedding budget, and planning their wedding… all while maintaining their sanity!
My top reasons you should hire a wedding planner…
There is a reason why wedding planners exist!
Event planning is a very detail-oriented process and requires significant knowledge into what vendors offer, contract negotiation, logistics, and overall people and event management skills. The average person has never planned an event; especially not one as complex as a wedding. Most weddings require at least 7 major contracts and months of logistical planning. Wedding planners can help you simplify the process and help you to feel confident in all of your decisions. They will not only bring you the best vendors within your budget and narrow down the infinite number of choices you have, they will also use their vast vendor networks to find unique vendors tailored to your needs and help you cut costs by securing best value contracts.
Wedding planners create a cohesive vendor team that can execute events flawlessly TOGETHER, which is huge!
Most couples select vendors as one-offs, but as a wedding planner I always advise my couples to make sure the vendor team can and has worked together before. Not only does this take some stress off of you but it can ultimately help you cut costs. For example: your cake baker may have a great relationship with your florist, so instead of asking them to create sugar flowers (which are super expensive), they may reach out to your florist to see if they can provide the real thing to adorn your cake, thus cutting your costs drastically. Another example: your DJ has worked at your venue hundreds of times, so they know what in-house sound equipment the venue already has, and will use that equipment to save you money. They will also coordinate with the venue to reserve the equipment. These two examples may seem like small things, but in the long run they can add up and save you tons of time, stress, money, and confusing emails back and forth with multiple parties. A wedding planner can help you find these vendors who work well together and execute events as a cohesive unit.
A wedding planner acts as the captain during your planning and on your actual event day.
They will lead the entire wedding vendor team from contracting and communications leading up to the wedding, and the actual event execution on the day. Your wedding planner is the one who will be making sure all of the vendors are on time, setting up the event to your specifications, handling any issues without contacting you or your spouse, and generally advocating for your best interests. They also run the entire timing of the ceremony and reception. Most planners will create a minute-to-minute timeline of your entire day from the moment you wake up to your wedding exit, and have contingency plans in place for every element throughout the day. They will send this timeline to all of your vendors and ensure they understand the flow of the day and work through any questions or concerns they may have. They work with the vendors to ensure the right song is playing as you walk down the aisle and that the cocktail hour food is ready the moment the ceremony ends. They also ensure that at the end of the night, everything is broken down, cleaned up, and any items owned by the bride and groom are returned to them safely and securely. They can also handle final payment and gratuity distribution to vendors.
Wedding planners can help you find that venue of your dreams, as they have worked at most venues in your area and will have knowledge of all of the hidden gems!
Your venue will really drive the entire cost of your wedding, so this is one of the most important aspects in your wedding planning process. A venue may seem like an unbelievable deal, but do you know all of the hidden costs? Some venues may seem like a great deal, but do they offer necessities like chairs or do you have the rent every single thing? Do they require you to buy an insurance policy? Do they ONLY work with the most expensive vendors in the area? Is the venue already beautiful and aesthetically pleasing or will you need to spend $10,000+ on draping and lighting elements? These are all things a wedding planner can advise you on before you sign the contract and realize your $30,000 budget has grown to $60,000.
Wedding planners can help you achieve your desired look and feel with the help of powerful collaboration tools.
Most couples have a distinct vision of what their wedding will look like, so they don’t feel they need the help of a planner to create the overall look and feel. I totally understand! As a wedding planner, I don’t want to change your wedding design to something that is not uniquely you! Instead, taking your unique vision into account, I can point you in the direction of the best rentals, design pieces, and vendors that can achieve the exact look you are going for. Wedding planners also commonly use software that includes collaborative features like built-in design boards that will save photos of your inspiration in a logical and easy to use format. This will allow you to really envision how all of these pieces and different elements will look together. Did I mention these tools are collaborative? These boards can also be sent to all of your vendors so that everyone is 100% aligned on the overall look you are going for!
I’d love to help you make your wedding the best day ever! I consider it an honor to be able to help couples have the wedding day they have always dreamed of. I truly never feel like I work a day in my life because I absolutely love what I do. I’d love to meet with you and talk through your wedding vision. Let’s get planning contact me today!!
With love,
Kolena Thomas
Owner, Lead Wedding Planner
Blue Sapphire Events
Email: bluesapphireplanner@gmail.com
Phone: 607-221-2367
