Hiring a Wedding Planner

While you might think that using the services of a wedding planner might be something of a luxury you should stop to consider the possible benefits. A professional wedding planner will know the business inside out, which are the best venues & suppliers in your area, what the likely costs will be and what discounts can be had.

When you think about the cost of the average wedding these days, achieving a reduction of just 10% could save you at least £1,000 and, possibly, a lot more!

Before employing a planner you should ask for references of clients they have worked for and make a few calls to local venues to check upon her reputation.

There are things to be aware of when employing a wedding planner! There are four different types of planner, as outlined below.

Commission-Based Wedding Planners

Some planners claim that they don’t charge you a thing because they are taking a commission from their suppliers.

While this may seem like a good idea at the outset it may mean that the chosen suppliers are charging you more in order to cover the planner’s commission.

You will also be limited to choosing suppliers who will pay a commission, plus your planner may naturally prefer to use the supplier who pays the most commission, rather than the one which offers the best service.

Percentage-Based Wedding Planners

Some wedding planners will offer to charge a percentage of your overall spend.

This means that the more your wedding costs, the better it is for your planner. It may even be that they still receive a commission from the supplier as well as the fee they are charging you.

Venue-Based Wedding Planners or Coordinators

Most venues employ their own wedding coordinators and this may seem ideal.

Remember though that they work for the venue and will receive bonuses based on sales. Their interest is to get you to pay more money – not less. They may also insist upon using certain suppliers or providing services such as catering ‘in-house’. And, again, there is always the opportunity for them to do deals with suppliers who they use frequently which benefits the coordinator or the venue and not you.

Fee-based Wedding Planners

A reputable and independent planner should be employed by you, the client, and you alone. They should talk to you in depth to determine your requirements and produce a fixed price quotation based upon those requirements, and nothing else. This way you will have a firm idea of the final cost and the quality of service to expect. If you think the price is too high you can get a quotation from another wedding planner and compare like for like.

Any commissions they receive should be used to reduce the amount you have to pay. You should also agree at the outset how changes to the arrangements will affect the total cost so that there are no nasty surprises.

Bear in mind that this a generalisation, and just because a certain wedding planner insists upon working for a percentage or commission it doesn’t mean that she will be worse than someone who doesn’t. The most important thing is that you have a good rapport with your chosen planner and have confidence in her ability to make your big day special.

At present, you do not need any formal qualifications to become a wedding planner, past experience, personal contacts and general business skills are more important. Some individuals and companies involved in event planning may be members of The National Association of Professional Wedding Services or the Association of Event Organisers