Weddings are typically very large events that are expensive and have a million moving parts involved. I am always going to encourage and suggest that you hire either a wedding planner or day-of coordinator no matter how big or small, how simple or extravagant, or how expensive or inexpensive you plan your wedding to be. Regardless of those factors, all of the decisions and coordinating between vendors, guests, and family members is reason alone to hire a professional! And the reality is, by not doing so, either someone in your family or you and your fiancé will carry the weight of all of those making your wedding a very stressful event. That’s not how it’s supposed to be which is why I am always going to recommend bringing someone in to help you that is a professional and has a lot of experience.
I can’t speak specifically on what one wedding planner offers over another because that isn’t my specialty but what I can share are some of the services they can provide and how beneficial those are to creating a stress-free wedding for you. So below I am going to talk about the general differences between a full wedding planner and a month-of/day-of coordinator but either way you definitely should hire one of the two!
A Wedding Planner: Depending on who you choose or hire, a wedding planner typically steps in and has a larger role in wedding planning. Of course, their goal is always to serve you but oftentimes, they stand in your place when communicating, hiring, and/or dealing with all of the vendors before during, and after your wedding. Just think of the long list of people you need/might want to hire such as the venue, DJ, florist, rental company, cake, photographer (me!), videographer, limo/bus service, hotels, bartender, and so much more! The list could go on but you get the idea. That is a lot of decisions to make and people to coordinate with and timing to get just right on your wedding day.
A wedding planner gets to step in and work with all of those people with your dreams and agenda in mind. Their experience allows them to breeze through communications and get you the best of what you want/need. And ultimately, that allows you, your fiance, and your friends and family to experience the wedding with joy and not as stressed-out individuals who can only focus on managing everything going on. Their timelines of working with you range depending on who you hire but they can assist and work with you from the moment you get engaged all the way to be happily married. It’s an investment that is well worth it!
Benefits of hiring a wedding planner:
- Can work with you from the moment you get engaged until after you are married
- Their experience gives them an edge in helping make your vision come to life
- They will deal with the majority of communication with vendors leading up to your wedding day which allows you to enjoy that time
- With their experience comes knowledge and skills to cover all of your bases allowing nothing to be forgotten on your wedding day
- They are organized and will keep everything in tip-top shape, including schedules, bills that need to be paid, people that need to be contacted, etc.
- They can bring a team of people to decorate, coordinate, and manage all of the things that happen on your wedding day so you and your family are freed up to have fun
- If something goes wrong, they will handle it better than anyone else and you might not ever even know about it
- They are an extra set of hands to help fluff your dress, grab a family member during portrait time, bring you something to eat while you are getting ready and so much more
- Their team of helpers will tare things down after the wedding allowing you all to enjoy your evening and go home rather than cleaning up in the late hours of the night
A Month-of or Day-Of Coordinator: This professional can be a wedding planner as well but offers a simpler service such as day-of coordinating. If budget is a huge issue for you, then at the very least I would highly recommend this option! They can do as much as a wedding planner but typically only work with you the month of your wedding and maybe even day-of only. Both are still very beneficial and help alleviate some of those stressful planning days that always seem to pop up right around your wedding day.
Once again, the beautiful thing about hiring a professional is that they are experienced and know what to do when things go wrong. They also allow you, your fiancé, and friends and family to enjoy your wedding rather than being so consumed by making sure everything is going according to plan.
Benefits of hiring a month-of or day-of planner:
- You (and your friends and family) will be freed up to enjoy your day rather than worrying about when the caterer will arrive
- All the last-minute decisions and managing will be covered by their services allowing for more free time and peace before your wedding day
- They will be able to decorate, move chairs, and tear things down on the day of so no one is stuck with that unfavorable task
- If something goes wrong, they are the middle man and will deal with it professionally likely without your knowledge
- They are an extra set of hands to help with all the last-minute details on the day of your wedding
No Planner: I don’t want to skip over this option because it certainly still happens but I will go ahead and share with you what often happens when you don’t have a professional to help coordinate your wedding. As I said before, wedding days are huge events full of lots of moving parts and different people having to be at different places at different times. Unless you are a wiz with timelines and can create a seamless coordinated timeline that includes every vendor, bridal party member, and guest it’s going to be hard to manage. Not only that but even if you can create that timeline (which is great!) someone will have to handle the application of it. What happens if a vendor doesn’t have the right address or a groomsmen’s tux ends up being 4 sizes too big? What happens if the DJ doesn’t arrive on time or the weather is making everything move inside? Someone has to deal with all of that and it can be very stressful. Oftentimes, that ends up being a close family member or maybe even you which is the very last thing we want to have to consider. Everything could go perfectly smooth and you could be the best planner in the world but 9/10 times that just isn’t the case. If you are prepared to handle that stress and management then it will be totally fine. If not, there is a chance that things could go awry and without the help of a professional, it lands on you or someone close to you.
Bottom line is that I highly recommend finding room in your budget to hire a wedding planner or month of/day of coordinator. The investment is well worth your sanity and you can count on the fact that your day will run smoother, be more stress-free, and ultimately fun!
