Wondering If You Should Hire a Wedding Planner? Here's 7 Reasons to Consider

​Assumed to be sunshine, bunnies and rainbows, planning a wedding is a task underestimated by many. 

The wedding planning process can be stressful from start to finish and those who decide to undertake the job themselves can easily get overwhelmed and forget the occasion at hand: To celebrate them as a couple.

It could be worth exploring why a Wedding Planner might be suitable for you as a couple and your upcoming celebration.

Have you been wondering... 
          ‘Why should I hire a wedding planner?’ 
          ‘My venue has a coordinator, surely that’s the same thing?’'
          ‘My budget is already tight, would it not just be a waste?’'

Venue coordinators are a great tool to utilise, but they only assist in areas relating to the venue and venue management. Their job doesn’t necessarily span any further than the requirements of the facilities you are hiring.

Contrary to popular belief, Wedding Planners are generally a great tool for getting the most out of your budget. From inside tips and tricks, to discounts with trusted vendors, your Wedding Planner might actually be the best thing to happen to your wedding fund.

To celebrate the relaunch of Melt Weddings, here are 7 reasons why you should consider hiring a Wedding Planner:

          1. You don't know where to start
The very simplest of reasons why you might consult a Wedding Planner is that you don’t know where to start.

And once you do see the list of things to do, you may find yourself engulfed in a feeling of dread (which obviously isn’t what we want).

Your Wedding Planner will not only be able to get you started but will keep you going and make the long list of things to do seem manageable. 

          2. To live in the engagement
One of my favourite reasons why you may decide to involve a Wedding Planner is to make the most of your time as an engaged couple. 

The time between being nearly-weds and newly-weds flies by. Most couples who employ the services of a Wedding Planner get to pass a large chunk of the stress and worry, allowing them to really live in the moment between the engagement and saying ‘I Do’.

          3. To bounce ideas off someone
From the Pinterest boards, to the Instagram saves and deep-dives into Wedding-Tok, hopefully, you have started to build a mental image of your big day. 

A huge benefit of having a Wedding Planner is the opportunity to brainstorm and bounce ideas off someone who has, hopefully, a love of the creative process. Whilst you’ve got the inspiration, they have the knowledge and experience to execute your vision and build upon it - tailoring it to you as a couple.

​​          4. Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork
Glamorous, I know...

Part of being a professional in the events industry is knowing a thing or two about the boring (but all-important) paperwork that goes into an event. 

Budgeting and scheduling are part of our day-to-day role (and we tend to be quite good at managing them too).

Whilst you could easily be aware of your overall budget, there may be things you haven’t yet considered, contingencies you haven’t planned for, and hidden fees that only someone with experience might be able to spot.

Alternatively, it could be that you’ve allotted a huge portion of the budget to an area that doesn’t require as much attention.

And once you finally think you’ve gotten to grips with the budget, you realise you have a timeline and function sheet to master, and upcoming deadlines for which you need to make decisions. 

          5. Their contacts
Think of your Wedding Planner as your personal directory; the 'Yellow Pages of Weddings' for those of us that are old enough to remember… 

Hopefully, they will have worked on a number of events in their time and have a host of contacts to recommend. They should know who is within your budget, fits your theme, has a good reputation, and, most importantly, who to avoid. 

Having experience with a number of vendors and suppliers can be a massive benefit of using a Wedding Planner. Their relationships can often get you the best deals and most bespoke packages.

Your Wedding Planner will also be the main point of contact for your suppliers. This way, there’s no need to worry about missing a call from the caterer whilst you’re at work or having to liaise between the caterer, the venue, and the coordinator every day in the lead up to your big day. Instead, your Wedding Planner will cut you out of the little conversations and involve you in the big decisions - meaning you can focus your time and attention on other things.

          6. The fun of contracts 
Not only will your Wedding Planner have experience when dealing with contracts and know what to look for in the fine print, they may also be able to negotiate you better deals and additional extras of which you weren’t aware. 

Because of their experience, your Wedding Planner should also be able to spot potential areas of concern before they come about and resolve any issues that may arise with suppliers and vendors - ideally before they become something that should concern you too greatly.

          7. To find calm through all the storms
In the weeks before your wedding and on the day itself, any number of things could go wrong. 

From something small like running behind schedule, to the bigger issues of a drastic turn in the weather forecast, or celebrant sickness, your Wedding Planner will be prepared to put out the fires (hopefully, not literally).

Not only this, they can be your sense of clarity on the day. With so many emotional people around you, the day can quickly become overwhelming and you can forget the most basic of things. Having your Wedding Planner there (who, by now, has gotten to know you well as a couple) can remind you to ground yourself and really live in the moment.

(They might also remind you to hold your bouquet low, take your time walking down the aisle and hold your kiss for longer than 2 seconds for the photographer)

Your guardian angel on the big day might also be someone to lean on beforehand. Most Wedding Planners understand the stress you are under as a couple and are more than happy to listen to you moan about your Mother-in-Law-to-be who has decided to start a new fad diet the week before the wedding and wants to change her dinner choices at the very last minute.

This isn’t to say that everyone needs a Wedding Planner. Some people want to take the reins (and thrive off it too!). 

Whatever you decide, we would absolutely recommend a coordinator to run things on the day. There would be nothing worse than the bride and groom having to take time away from their celebrations because the cake delivery got lost en-route, or they have to repair a bridesmaid's dress after she put her heel through it (as I’m sure you didn’t remember to pack your emergency sewing kit). 

The most important thing to remember is that your wedding day should be one to enjoy with friends and family as a couple; and the use of a Wedding Planner or Coordinator will aid this greatly.

Written by Siobhan Tinnion
Event & Marketing Manager