“Happy marriages begin when we marry the ones we love, and they blossom when we love the ones we marry.”
—Tom Mullen
We couldn’t agree more… and we also know that happy marriages begin with happy wedding days. People pour their very best financial, emotional, and personal efforts into this event for a reason.
The big day often starts with a big idea. One partner or the other may have held this idea for years. If they’ve both embraced distinctly different ideas, coming together can be a challenge. And even when they do agree, making those ideas into a reality is another story. After all, it’s likely that….
- Neither party has planned a wedding before
- Both parties are very busy with other aspects of their lives and don’t have endless time to devote to wedding planning
As such, one of the first and most important steps of preparing for the big day is hiring a wedding planner. Investing in a wedding planner helps you manage your budget, your expectations, and a whole slew of logistics to ensure an event that’s as perfect as you dreamed it would be.
But why hire a planner when you and your partner are two able-bodied people with great ideas?
They’ll keep you on budget
This seems counterintuitive, right? How will spending money on a wedding planner help your bottom line? While it’s true that wedding planners are an additional expense, the right wedding planner can actually save you money in the long run. How?
First, wedding planners have inside knowledge and relationships in the industry. This can help you find the most reasonably priced vendors and get in on discounts and bulk contracts.
Second, wedding planners can help you stay within your budget. It’s common for couples to exceed their wedding budget, but your planner can help you prioritize so that you stay right on track. Where you might blur the line between wants and needs, they can keep a clear focus. They’ll know where you can skimp a bit—and where you definitely shouldn’t skimp—to balance things out.
And finally, a wedding planner is aware of all the potential variables that affect a wedding’s total cost. From peak and low seasons to the right flowers to the details of a certain venue, a money-smart planner will help you navigate the ups and downs of the market and avoid unexpected charges, too. Your wedding planner will know what is worth the splurge, what isn’t, and how to bring it all together.
Though the upfront cost of a wedding planner may be an initial concern, most people find that they easily pay for themselves while saving you untold amounts of stress.
They have the experience you lack
A wedding planner’s expertise will help you get your vision out of your head and into reality. A wedding planner can offer perspective, advice, and fresh ideas for executing your vision. If you have dreamed of a certain wedding dress since childhood but can’t find it anywhere, your wedding planner can point you in the right direction. They can also help in color selection and theme design and make sure you remember those easy-to-forget details like pre-wedding meals, specialty menus for guests with restricted diets, and a back-up copy of the wedding dinner speech. They can also relieve you of unnecessary responsibilities because it is their job to make time for you.
There are so many new decisions to make with a wedding that couples often end up frayed or frozen (analysis paralysis). But what’s new to you will be “old hat” to your wedding planner. They know what works and what doesn’t. They’ve seen the consequences of key decisions play out in many directions, and they know what works best.
They’re masters of “crunch time”
Perhaps the biggest benefit to having a wedding planner is their event management on the big day. As your coordinator, your wedding planner is responsible for the schedule, movements and transitions, vendors and staff, and communications with guests. In this role, a wedding planner will know who should be where—and when they should be there. You can be sure they’ve got the whole plan taken care of.
Keep in mind that there will be details that your wedding planner will handle for you that you may not consider. Wedding planners are prepared to manage RSVPs, schedule your vendor meetings and consultations, keep track of wedding gifts, or crunch the numbers for the right amount of food and drinks.
Additionally, they will have thought of and prepared for weather or other complications. A wedding planner is ready to handle last minute guests, dress mishaps, too-long best man toasts, melting cakes, snags with vendors, and more. Rain, wind, or snow, they’re on it. Having walked the entire journey with you and imagined everything before, during, and after the event, they will make sure the whole day goes smoothly so that you can revel in the moment.
Remember, investing in a wedding planner isn’t only about money. Of course, they can help with that too, but a wedding planner’s value is that they can offer you peace of mind and ensure that one of the most important days of your life turns out just as you had hoped.
Your wedding planner is there for you and your guests to keep the party going and the memories flowing. Given the right wedding planner, you should be able to show up and enjoy your special day with the focus on you, your partner, family, friends, and the start of a beautiful life together with the one you love most.