Do I Need a Wedding Coordinator?
So What's The Scoop on Wedding Coordinators
There might be a few reasons why you think you DON"T want or need to hire a wedding coordinator; you didn't even think of it, you don't think you need one because "it's just a small wedding", you're afraid that it will take you out of the planning, a friend offered to do it for you, you think you want to do it all yourself! Or maybe it's just a budget thing, or perhaps you did sincerely consider it and decided it wasn't necessary for your wedding. These are all very reasonable thoughts, I had these very same thoughts and reasons in my head when I got married a few short years ago. I have learned SO much since then!
So, we have considered all the why not's, now it's time to consider the reasons maybe you DO want to hire a wedding coordinator. There really is only one main reason I want you to hire a wedding coordinator. I want you to have a stress free, perfect day that you get to fully enjoy from start to finish. You still get to do all the planning yourself, but you team up with your coordinator a month or so before the big day, fill them in on your vision and all the details that YOU have planned, then their job is to execute the day your way so that you get to sit back and enjoy seeing all your hard work and passion fall perfectly into place. All of the little reasons why a coordinator is such an important part of your day fall into under this main reason why you want a coordinator on your wedding team.
This is one of, if not the best, day of your life, but it's just one 24 hour day, just like every other day and I'm telling you, it is going to fly by in a blink of an eye. The one thing you can do to ensure you get to enjoy every moment of this perfect day, is hire a wedding coordinator. Otherwise, you might be stuck running around making sure things are in place just the way you planned them to be. This is also a special day for your family and friends, I encourage you not to stick this job on them, they want to be enjoying the day watching you marry your love, not be stressing out over whether they're executing your day perfectly for you or not.
I made the silly mistake of not hiring a wedding coordinator for my wedding. Why - because "I thought I wanted to do it all myself"! I didn't want anyone stepping on my toes in my decision making, I was on cloud nine planning my own wedding and knew what I wanted and I didn't think I needed any help. I also was very naïve to think because it was a small wedding with not too many details that it didn't require someone there to "execute" the day. Boy, was I wrong! While I was planning my wedding, I decided I loved it so much that I wanted to do this as part of my career. What I learned - after I got married, when I started my wedding planning course - was how wrong I was to think that hiring a wedding coordinator meant giving up any of my planning duties or ideas, or that anyone "didn't need" a wedding coordinator. Looking back at my wedding, there were many things that a wedding coordinator could have done to help execute my day. Was my day perfect - sure, it was an amazing day that I'll love for the rest of my life - but there were things that got missed, things I forgot about in the excitement of the day that I spent time and effort on planning and dreaming about having at my wedding and it's a day you never get back. What I wish now, was that I knew what a wedding coordinator was all about before planning my own wedding.
Here's what you should know about wedding coordinators to help you make your decision:
- YOU control the vision, they execute it
- They oversee all the details throughout your wedding day
- They are on site the entire day as the go-to person and the trouble shooter for you, your guests and your vendors so that you don't have to be
- They keep things on schedule (they also help you make this realistic and very detailed wedding day schedule!)
- Emotions will be running high and they help keep your stress levels down and keep you calm throughout not only the wedding day but also through the last few weeks of planning!
- They coordinate your vendors and make sure everyone is where they need to be, when they need to be there, doing what they should be doing!
Here's what you should know about wedding coordinators to help you make your decision:
- YOU control the vision, they execute it
- They oversee all the details throughout your wedding day
- They are on site the entire day as the go-to person and the trouble shooter for you, your guests and your vendors so that you don't have to be
- They keep things on schedule (they also help you make this realistic and very detailed wedding day schedule!)
- Emotions will be running high and they help keep your stress levels down and keep you calm throughout not only the wedding day but also through the last few weeks of planning!
- They coordinate your vendors and make sure everyone is where they need to be, when they need to be there, doing what they should be doing!
Every coordinator has a different package but the above listed are 'basic things' that would be included in any wedding coordinator package.
To give you a better idea of what else a wedding coordinator does, here's what is included in your wedding coordination package if you choose to work with me:
- Free consultation to discuss your wedding details and vision
- 2 in person wedding planning meetings
- Unlimited phone call/email communication
- Venue walk through before the wedding day
- Ceremony and Reception layout and design assistance
- Custom Wedding Day Detailed Itinerary Creation
- Distribution of (Printed & Digital) Wedding day itinerary to vendors and other key members
- Ceremony and Reception Set Up + Styling & Fine Tuning of all details
- Tear Down
- Details items (shoes, invite, rings, flowers, attire, jewelry etc...) organized and ready for your photographer
- Rehearsal Direction
- Point of Contact for Vendors starting 2 weeks prior to wedding (if desired)
- Vendor Contract Reviews and Confirmations to make sure everything looks to be in order
- Wedding day coordination (point person for all guests, vendors, wedding party and bride and groom for the entire day)
- Dessert Bar/Charcuterie board/App bar etc.. set up
- Bathroom Baskets supplied and set up by Melissa V.
- Distribution of final payments/gratuities on wedding day
- Use of Melissa V. 'Reserved' signs
- Vendor Recommendations
- Photography of the details of your day
