I’m sure you’ve probably already guessed this, but planning your only wedding is a fairly personal thing. You don’t really want to get it wrong and if you choose a professional wedding planner to help you, you don’t really want them getting it wrong for you. So, how do you find the right wedding planner for you?
I’d love to say it’s simple, but I can’t. It’s not easy, there are quite a few of us and we will all give quite different advice. Yes we all have your best interests at heart, but it’s like clothes. There’s maybe one or two of your girlfriends you’d trust to buy clothes for you, the others, it’s a bit of a risk, then there’s one or two, well, you get what I mean.
So what’s the first step to finding your new BFF (best friend forever).
1. Check out their website: These days every modern business is online. For our industry it’s a way of showing the style of wedding we like, giving some personal information about us and a display of our experience. Most planners will maintain some form of blog with advice articles, real weddings and inspiration. Their website may not be the only way, but its a good and easy start.
2. Send and email or phone: How long it takes to get a response is often a very good indication of how frustrating your planning experience is going to be. If your prospective planner emails or calls back promptly, chances are they’re going to stay that way. If they take a while, or don’t respond at all, watch out, trouble’s about.
3. Face to face: Can you really ever beat a one on one? From the moment you met your planner, you should have a pretty good idea of whether you will work well together. Do you like her style of clothing, does she present professionally, do you share the same sense of humour. In other words, could you share the intimate and sometimes very stressful process of planning a wedding and still be friends afterward…
Getting a planner was the best thing I ever did. I started planning my wedding myself, but found that it wasn’t long before the stress of it was taking away the fun.
To anyone out there tempted to get a planner, I’d say make sure you meet up and that you like each other first, but then go for it. Having someone to help with such a big event is priceless.
Another thing you can do is check the net for reviews – alot of sites have them nowadays and this can really help in identifying which wedding planner will be the best for your wedding!
Great idea, thanks Sarah. Forums can also give you a good head start
Really great points here- look forward to reading more of your posts