Do you think Wedding Planners are useful?

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Permalink Reply by Peggy Wiltz on July 21, 2009 at 6:18am

I am a wedding photographer and my daughter got married 3 years ago. If I had it to do all over again, I would have found the most expensive wedding planner I could find. Even if she didn't get discounts for you (which that is their goal) it would still be worth the money in stress releif on the bride and the entire wedding party (familiy and non-family members). At the end instead of saying, "Thank God that is over!", you will be saying, "What a wonderful time was had by all." My opinion is not influenced by a wedding coordinator. I don't know any. I'm just speaking from experience from planning one and shooting at them, with and without coordinators. It is a huge difference! If they weren't so importrant then when there is a problem, why does everyone say, "Go to the coordinator!"? When there isn't one, the answer is, "Go to the bride" or "Go to the mother of the bride." STRESS at the end keeps you from enjoying those precious moments and that is when you realize how important a coordinator is, when it is too late.

Peggy Wiltz
Peggy Wiltz Photography

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Permalink Reply by Wendi Hroncich on January 20, 2010 at 10:45pm

Great post Peggy! Congratulations on your daughter 2006 wedding!

It is really unfortunate that many Brides, Grooms and family members feel the same way AFTER their/the wedding. I find that 40 to 50% of a wedding coordinator's job is education about how much stress relief and time saving we actually provide. It is so nice to hear a first hand account of the value a wedding coordinator provides. We just need to continue spreading the word to everyone until a planner is not considered a luxury item, but a necessity! Thank you for helping us planners do that!

- Wendi
ethereal events

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Permalink Reply by Janis Flagg on June 18, 2011 at 5:19pm

Yes!  We also need to help vendors know how to best educate brides that they come in contact with about how we can help them.  Many vendors suggest that brides hire a coordinator, but it doesn't get beyond that.   If we spend some time educating vendors on how we really can help brides, it puts vendors in a little bit stronger position to recommend coordinators.

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Permalink Reply by Elite Wedding and Event Planning on March 27, 2012 at 11:46am

I am also a planner and you are so right on planners being looked at as a luxury when that really is not the case. It's ashame that most brides realize that in the end they wish they had hired one. 

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Lewis on July 22, 2009 at 8:14am

As a wedding photographer planning my own wedding next year, I know all too well what it takes to throw the kind of wedding I envision (simple & elegant!) - hiring a wedding planner was the second thing I did, after booking my venue. Being in the industry, there's a lot of stuff I can do myself, and am enjoying, however, there's also a lot of stuff I don't want to deal with! I also know that I don't want to deal with any issues on the day itself! I'd rather hire a professional so I can really enjoy the day, and maximize my energy with my family and friends, instead of worrying about why the flowers are late etc etc etc ...

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Permalink Reply by Panache Event Group on July 22, 2009 at 2:57pm

I can understand the mentality of scrapping the wedding planner if budget is tight. After all, a wedding can be pulled off without a planner, but not a photographer, caterer, baker or officiant. So in the bride's mind, the planner is perceived as more of a luxury than a necessity.

However, the job of a wedding planner is not just to help the day of. A good planner will identify money saving areas, as well as let the bride know when she is paying too much. Recently, I met with a mother of the bride who is considering hiring me. I took one look at her catering contract and noticed that she was being charged twice as much on the rentals than she should have. That savings alone paid for my services. So in reality, brides can actually save more money in the end by hiring a planner versus not hiring one.

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Permalink Reply by Elite Wedding and Event Planning on March 27, 2012 at 11:53am

I agree with you. I have a bride who insisted on giving me a check to bring to a photographer to book him when she never met the man. I told her it is against my policy to book someone that way. I had never worked with the person and she just looked at picutres on the internet. She did end up meeting with the photographer and then had him forward his contract to me. After reviewing the contract and finding so many issues with it and things she had not anticipated she decided not to use the photographer. In the end she thanked me for not allowing her to make that mistake and end up with a bad photographer. Fortunately for her she had a planner and didn't end up stuck with him. 

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Permalink Reply by Mariana Leung on July 23, 2009 at 3:13am

Depending on what functions the coordinator or planner does, they are absolutely beneficial. I planned my own wedding, detail for detail. The coordinator/planner I hired may not have contributed creatively, but certainly facilitated my plans and saved my family and me hours and hours of extra legwork and phone calls. The coordinator can also be the 'bad guy' in contract negotiations and be the stern one to keep things on schedule.
Financially, a vendor may have worked with the planner before, and has a long-standing relationship to give better quality work or discounts. (It also works the other way, the planner may or may not push their own vendor). Reputable planners don't take kickbacks from vendors though. If you source a vendor that gives you a certain price for things you are not comfortable with, the planner could tell you if it is reasonable or not. The planner could also help you figure out different solutions that reduce your cost you wouldn't think of.
My planner, and every planner my friends/family have worked with, worked their A**es off! Each and every one of them said they were well worth the money, no matter what budget they had. Most also went above and beyond as far as service, and they do it out of love for the job for the most part, not profits.
Weddings I have been to that didn't have a coordinator on the day of at least, have always been a disorganized mess. Lots of people running around crazed, not knowing where people are, where transportation is, losing things. The guests standing around annoyed and waiting for some direction or information.

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Permalink Reply by Celestial Event on October 26, 2009 at 5:32am

I’m a DJ (I prefer wedding host).
Planners are great, depending upon their expertise and people skills. I spend a lot of time with my clients; develop a schedule, time line, play lists learn about the brides style choices and colors as well as copious amounts of information about the B&G, the bridal party, their friends and family. Armed with that information, I produce/design a program/performance specifically for them.

Good planners will work with us to make it even better. A few will pigeonhole us and treat me like an interloper during the run up to and the day of the event.

On one occasion, an issue arose, when a planner reviewed our contract and would not work with us because of a clause holding the client somewhat responsible for damage caused by them of their guests.

Lou

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Permalink Reply by Elite Wedding and Event Planning on March 27, 2012 at 11:57am

As a planner it's our job to look out for our client's legal interest. I work for attorneys as well and although we seem like the bad guys if you were on the other side you might see it differently. There are limitations though and I wouldn't make that be the deciding factor. There is always room to negotiate. A DJ is one of the most important parts of the reception because they keep the night flowing and people enjoying themselves. While a wedding planner may be one of the most important I would say the DJ is equally as important. You guys help to run the show as well. 

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Permalink Reply by Karen Lynn on October 26, 2009 at 9:20am

Not only can planners get couples discounts with their vendors, we can let couples know where it's important to spend their money and where they can save. When a couple is dealing with each vendor on their own, the vendor is 'selling' them everything possible and the couple doesn't have the benefit of an expert letting them know what they really need and what they can do without.
Also, many vendors charge more when they have to deal with a bride directly, rather than with an experienced planner, because it's so so much more work for them.

Couples who hire wedding planners are guests at their own wedding and they have FUN!
Couples who plan their own weddings usually can't wait for it 'to be over with' before the day even arrives.

When DIY couples are asked, after their wedding "what would you have done differently"? The answer is usually "hire a wedding planner".

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Permalink Reply by Elite Wedding and Event Planning on March 27, 2012 at 12:01pm

As a planner I constantly see vendors trying to up sell and sell other vendors as well. There are places to be cut when you are on a budget. One of things I see a lot is brides and grooms trying to cut the cost of their photographer. This is one place I don't recommend cutting corners. This is what you will have at the end of the day to remember your day. One of my recent brides wanted to rent a church and hire a limo for a 30 minute ceremony which would have costed her $800 for the church since she wasn't a member and $700 for the limo. I encouraged her to have the ceremony at the receiption location and saved her $1500. I think that right there is worth having a wedding planner. 

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