We recently asked a couple of the wedding coordinators in our group the following question:
What is the role of a wedding coordinator?
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I believe a Wedding Coordinator, should be your guide and confidant. Wedding coordinators help you pull all you thoughts together and then translate those ideas into real workable plans, we focus on budget and being as cost effective as possible.
We bring ideas and proven resources to the table. A good coordinator/planner is helping her bride by building towards a unified consistant vision (That BIG picture) so the result on the wedding day are beautiful and perfect.
We take the stress and confusion out of the planning process, and we are the couples liason with the other venders on the wedding day.
When the big day arrives, we take over so the Bride and Groom, and their families can be free to enjoy and relax as their day unfolds beautifully the way its was planned.
Contributed by Puget Sound Wedding Professional Member -
Colleen Melott of Twice as Nice the Bride
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Unlike what you might see on the TV shows and movies about Wedding Coordinators, our job is not as glamorous as one might imagine. It is exciting, however, and an honor that we get to spend more time with a bride than any other vendor for her wedding.
Most Wedding Coordinators will offer three basic variations of planning packages with a few more that are a blending of those basic packages. This is just to give you a picture of what a Wedding Coordinator can do for a client and everyone involved in her wedding.
The first level of of planning packages is more than likely just to help a bride in choosing vendors/venues in which the Coordinator will offer a selection of 3 or so for a set price per vendor category search.
The second package is probably along the lines of a Day-of- Coordination (DOC). These packages are popular when a bride has chosen the vast majority of her vendors. This bride feels that she needs some help pulling everything together, is somewhat overwhelmed thinking about her wedding day and has concerns about how everything is going to come together on her wedding day.
The third basic package would be a Full Coordination in which the Coordinator helps a client choose a vast majority of her vendors. It could even include assistance in choosing the wedding gown, attire for the bridal party, reviewing a venue, meeting together with the bride and different vendors and anyone who might be closely working with the bride.
With the two previous planning packages mentioned, a Coordinator will work closely with all of the vendors and a bride to develop a timeline for the entire wedding day so that things stay on schedule. This can save a bride a lot of money because if you have to pay for an extra hour for a DJ or a limousine that's sitting outside the building because things are behind schedule those extra dollars can be significant. If a venue charges you extra for an additional hour, pretty soon you could have hundreds of dollars added to your venue bill.
Sometimes it's the little things that make a difference when there is a Coordinator on the scene. We realize that your guests are the most important people in your life and will go out of our way to make sure everyone is comfortable. If you have a grandmother going through a particularly hard time who you think could use a hug, we'll be glad to get acquainted and give her an extra smile and a hug.
At one wedding that I accompanied my husband to that he was officiating, the mother of the bride said that they wouldn't need me to bring a bridal emergency kit but I always do anyway. Perhaps she was thinking it would cost money, but I wouldn't do that because I thinks it's just good customer service. Within five minutes of arriving, I was helping a bridesmaid get makeup off of her dress and also making repairs to the bride's dress so that the bustle would stay in place. Again, it's the little things that make your day easier. Each Coordinator will have his or her own special ways of dealing with everything to set their client at ease.
Back to the unglamorous part of being a Wedding Coordinator, we handle other types of emergencies or situations that come up. Since are usually the first to arrive on the day of the wedding and the last to leave, we make those discoveries that have appeared overnight. Imagine surprise graffiti, someone took off with the garbage cans, the city employee didn't unlock the restroom doors as promised and so forth. Think of Murphy's Law. We do our best to make you unaware that Murphy ever showed up! We like to take care of problems in such a way that you might not even know that there was a problem.
One more thing! When do you think we hear the statement from a bride or her family that they wish they had hired a coordinator? It is just before a wedding and right after a wedding! By hiring a Coordinator early on you can save yourself a lot of stress, save money through discounts we can pass on to you, and save some relationships. Yes the latter is sad but true when nerves get raw, emotions run high, and when anyone in particular feels overworked or even exhausted from someone constantly changing their mind.
Contributed by Puget Sound Wedding Professional Member Janis Flagg of Greatest of Days Event & Wedding Planning.
