I found this article by Dallas event planner Ruth Spirer and wanted to share it. I think that has always been so much confusion over this topic. It can be confusing, and should really be called ‘Month Of’ coordination because that is what it truly is.
WEDDING “DAY OF” COORDINATION
Sil Azevedo Photography
You have been engaged for some time and have been working diligently on planning your wedding. You have hired all the vendors, signed the contracts and made most of the planning decisions. Now, how do you put it all together?
At this point you may want to consider a professional to handle the logistics on the day of your wedding and to ensure you a totally stress-free wedding day.
Contrary to popular belief, a “Day of” coordinator does not just show up on the day of and magically manages everything. A professional planner actually enters into the wedding planning during the final month of preparation or even 6-8 weeks before the wedding, so they can understand your overall vision, review your vendor contracts, create timelines and confirm all vendor commitments.
You may get a price quote that may seem very attractive, but beware of anyone who says they can handle the “Day of” only. Any reputable professional will agree that there is no way to understand your vision in a few quick meetings. It also doesn’t make sense for a planner to show up on the wedding day and be expected to run the show without knowing a lot of the details and without preparing for it.
All the “meticulous research” in the world won’t be able to help you deal with the inevitable issues that occur the day of the event and more importantly, make the right choices in the planning stages. Every piece of the puzzle must fit together and there is only one chance to make it right.
The same way you use an accountant to prepare your taxes or work with a lawyer to prepare contracts, you use a trained wedding planner to help you with your wedding.
On average, a planner may work 30-40 hours before the week of the wedding arrives. This would include answering questions, creating the timeline, final meetings with the venue and the vendors, reviewing floor-plans, coordination of deliveries, set-up, break down, confirming final payments, going over every little detail to ensure nothing has been overlooked.
The professional planner will schedule all that needs to happen on the wedding day including pre-wedding/post-wedding formal pictures. They will let everyone know where to be and at what time including ushers and wedding party. The more preparation is done before and the more is anticipated and taken into consideration before the wedding day, the better and smoother the day will flow.
More and more vendors (photographers, videographers, caterers etc.) are encouraging brides to hire a professional planner and some vendors even offer brides a discount if they do have a planner. This is because without a wedding planner, these vendors end up doing more than they were hired for and often need to resolve a last-minute problem that came up on the wedding day, which has nothing to do with the services these vendors offer. They would much rather be able to focus on doing what you hired them to do, because they are good at what they do! Your planner will take care of the smallest details and will work alongside all your vendors as a team to make your wedding a memorable event!
Be a guest at your own wedding and hire a professional to handle the logistics leading up to your wedding day and on the actual day itself.
Give yourself the gift of relaxation and enjoyment on your special day!
You deserve it!
Ruth Spirer
Marty Perlman Photography
Jennifer Lipshy Photograpy
Amy Herfurth Photography