Hi friends!
This week, we're diving into my 5 top reasons on why hiring a wedding planner can make your wedding day (and the months leading up to it) as stress free as possible!
Look, I know what you're thinking about hiring a wedding planner...
"I don't have room in my budget for that."
"Why should I pay someone for something I can do myself for free?"
"All I need to do is decide on the venue, music, food, flowers and photos...the pretty and fun things, right?"
Let's break these statements down.
"I don't have room in my budget for that."
Wedding planners will generally have good relationships with vendors and be able to negotiate better deals for you. They also have knowledge of a wide range of trends and suppliers and a have a whole lot of creativity. This means that when you come to your planner with an idea, he or she can make suggestions that you may not have thought of that can save you money. Your planner also has a great idea of what things should cost and can let you know if your vendors' prices are in line with comparable companies.
"Why should I pay someone for something I can do myself for free?"
Yup. You sure can spend hours researching vendors. Getting recommendations (because no one wants a party pooper of a DJ!). Making approximately 1 million lists. Wrangling all your vendors and getting all the details ironed out. Following up with guests to get their RSVPs. Remembering to pay everyone. Going back and forth with your venue about setup details. Decorating the reception. Setting out favors. You know, all the things that you COULD do yourself. But think about your time and how valuable it is. Hiring a wedding planner can give you back countless hours and remove tons of stress.
"All I need to do is decide on the venue, music, food, flowers and photos...the pretty and fun things, right?"
Of course those things are incredibly important decisions to make! But have you considered when to pick out your wedding dress? When should you get it altered? When should you design and order wedding invitations? How much do they cost to send? What about hotel rooms? How far in advance do you need to tell your caterer the final guest count? Did you get wedding rings squared away? Do you have a passport if you're honeymooning abroad? Are your flowers in season? Do you have any food allergies to consider? What is gratuity? Is there a service charge? What about tax?
These questions are easy to overlook and many of them have either a monetary or timeline cost. If you don't order your invitations far enough in advance, you may have to pay extra for a rush order. Waiting too long to order your passports will result in expedition fees, or may derail your honeymoon plans altogether!
I get it. Talking about money isn't the most fun on the best of days, but it is SO IMPORTANT when discussing your wedding. You don't want to start your life together with a ton of debt and having a wedding planner on board will keep your details and associated costs organized and give you a much more complete overall budget picture. So talk to your partner. Make sure you're both on the same page about your wedding budget and reach out to a wedding planner to learn how they can help keep your wedding budget on track!