Do You Need a Wedding Planner?

by Brooke Showell, Posted Feb 7th 2011 1:30PM

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The short answer: It depends. A lot of couples find it a thrill to plan their wedding and want to be hands on with every little detail. Plus, with wedding magazines, books, blogs, checklists and organizational tools at the ready, there are plenty of ideas out there to keep you going throughout the process. Not to mention that many venues already have an in-house coordinator to help with logistics, timelines and vendor suggestions.

What to Expect and Do the First Month of Planning Your Wedding

Know Your Style

To determine if you need to enlist a professional, consider your needs and expectations for your wedding, suggests event planners Katie Smith and Devra Glauberman of MarieMerin Productions in New York City. A wedding planner, the pair says, is ideal for "brides who are looking for more personal attention" – some women crave the one-on-one attention of an expert who is available for late-night seating chart freak-outs and cake chat. A wedding coordinator is also a must for couples who don't want to be bothered with the details. A planner can deliver the wedding of your dreams armed with only the basic idea of what you want, and keep it within your budget (Old Hollywood glamour and blush tones, for instance). In that case, all you have to do is show up.

How to Choose Your Theme

Find the Right Fit

Before choosing a planner (otherwise known as your new BFF), have a lengthy discussion with her to make sure your personalities fit. "When you sit down with a planner, find out what they can offer, how they typically run things from A to Z, and what their team is like," Smith says. "Some are more personal; others are not. You'll get a first impression as soon as you sit down with them."

Questions to Ask Potential Wedding Planners

Determine Your Budget

Wedding planners are not just for celebrities and no-expense-spared blowouts. Working with a planner can actually help you stay within your budget in part because they can often help you get vendor discounts. Before you meet with a potential planner, determine your budget, including the areas where you want to spend the most money. If you know a wedding planner is a must for you, put that in the number one slot. A detailed breakdown of expenses will make it easier for a planner to help you stay within your budget. Smith and Glauberman say that a wedding planner should cost no more than about 10% of your total budget.

How to Determine Your Wedding Budget

Consider the Options

Couples who choose to go it alone may decide to call in backup at the last minute. Even if you've planned most of the wedding yourself, many coordinators offer their services a la carte. Many couples will work with a planner during the month before the wedding, in order to hand off tasks like confirming vendors, finalizing the menu and making sure the setup runs smoothly. "You're still in control, but you have a support system for the last-minute details," Smith says. Another option is day-of coordination, in which a planner makes sure everything from your walk down the aisle to the cake cutting goes according to plan.

Tags: wedding planner, wedding planning

Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

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2-08-2011 @9:36AM

Kristin @ Bella Bridal Consultants {BonaFideBride blog} said...

As a wedding planner, I like the examples you gave in support of having one (late-night freakouts and cake chat tend to become second nature!). I just wanted to add that if you do decide to go with a wedding planner, make sure you do your research. A good place to start is the Association of Bridal Consultants, the oldest and largest group of accredited wedding professionals in the world. Thanks for posting!