I’m not sure I can really provide a fair opinion of whether or not a “Wedding Planner” is necessary or not because I truly don’t know what their actual job description is. I’ve never known anyone who used one (except on TV). I believe they are supposed to coordinate a bunch of different vendors and maybe help decorate. How will you measure their qualifications? They can get a certificate, but there are some things that just can’t be learned from a book. I’m obviously not going to say where, but I just saw people posting their aspirations of becoming a Wedding Planner. Several were saying that they’ve just become a “Wedding Planner,” but they don’t really know what they are supposed to be doing. I guess they just woke up one day and said, “I like weddings. I think it would be fun to be plan people’s weddings.” It’s not like they had to learn a trade or purchase equipment. Can’t anyone say they’re a Wedding Planner simply by just deciding it one day and making a business card? Many of these so-called-Wedding Planners also asked the group if they suggest having a questionnaire which the brides can complete prior to their meetings. That’s just weird to have to ask something like that. This all reminds me of the time when I was a year or two into my business, and all of my friends started asking my opinion on whether or not they should start their own business. When I asked them what type of business they would like to do, they all admitted they had no idea but just wanted to run a business. Enough said. Back to the Wedding Planners: When deciding whether or not to hire a Wedding Planner, ask yourself an important question: What do you expect this person to do? Are you hiring them for connections to vendors? Are you hiring them for their organizational skills? Are you looking for someone to actually design your wedding? Are you looking for all of the above, and if so, does this person have all of the above? How do you know? I don’t know; I guess you can rely on the recommendation of a trustworthy source. I can tell you that I’ve been approached by Wedding Planners who have asked me if I would like to be on their referral list. They don’t even know me or my company. And the vendors might give them a commission, but they’re not going to give you, the bride, a discount on their services simply for using a wedding planner. Why would they? Can you believe that according to the Association of Bridal Consultants, the average cost of a Wedding Planner is $3262? For that money, they’d better be doing something great because you are now adding that number to the average cost of a wedding, which is currently $35K (It’s not included.).
Let’s talk about the role of the venue now. Most people opt to simply rely on the Maitre D or Wedding Coordinator at the venue. That makes sense, but they are only there for the actual day of your wedding. They are supposed to know the way the formalities run and be able to execute each step properly. I’m not at liberty to say which ones are which, but some of these venues do it well and many do not. You would think it would be easy since they do these cookie-cutter weddings all the time. It’s really not that difficult. Don’t believe me? Ask your former-bride friends about their venue experiences. I bet at least seventy percent say the Maitre D was horrible. Word to the Wise Bride: Don’t expect miracles from your venue. More than half the time that I DJ a wedding, the Maitre D or coordinator is completely lost so I have to run the show. Remember, this person is simply an employee working his or her eight-hour shift and just wants to go home.
So either I’m contradicting myself here or you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. You can either spend money on someone who may or may not know what she’s doing or you can simply leave it to the venue whose staff and coordinator may or may not know what they are doing. Or…
You can call Music in Motion to discuss Creative Events and the Pop-Up Party Package, which not only saves you thousands of dollars but also treats each and every individual wedding as a separate project. How do you know we are qualified to help plan your wedding? Well, we do every part of the wedding ourselves with our family members and close friends. We never hire contractors to do any of the jobs; Michael and I have been DJs for quite some time. We’ve run many weddings because the venue can’t or won’t. One time, the Maitre D didn’t even show up. Also, we’ve run so many events for both our Performance company and Creative Events including but not limited to putting on our own plays. It’s a lot of work!! I am not going to lie. But we only take on the amount of events we can comfortably handle, ie 4.3 Pop-Up Weddings (one per week) or about nine single, double or triple packages such as just DJ or DJ/Photography/Photo Booth, etc. In addition, the price for you to hire my Team to Pop Up your wedding is $799. This includes not only the Coordinator who is with you from the day you book throughout your wedding (on and off-site) but also your linens, centerpieces and mood lighting and the Team who puts up your linens! How? Keep reading My Blog to find out not only how but why we provide this for you at such a reasonable cost.
I know I sound like a commercial right now, which I don’t mean to do, and I would like to offer you other options to help your wedding go smoothly. However, it’s difficult to do so when we are the only ones who offer such a service. I may sound very biased throughout this entire blog, but I am not. For instance, when I ask someone who calls up looking for a photographer if they need a DJ and they say they want a band, I don’t try to persuade them to have a DJ. If they want a band, they want a band. I’m not singing at their wedding. Keep following My Blog and Facebook Page, and I’m sure I will come up with many helpful tips on ways to make your wedding flow more smoothly even if you can’t hire us.