Planning your dream wedding in Jacksonville is truly a team sport—you can’t do it alone. That’s why hiring a fabulous vendor team is an absolute must.
Did you know the average couple hires 13 vendors for their wedding day—that’s 13 enquiries, interviews, contracts, follow-up meetings and all before your wedding day even happens; a daunting process, but it doesn’t have to be.
Here is some of the most common mistakes couples make when researching and hiring wedding professional and how to avoid them, from White Knight Entertainment!
Rushing into the wedding vendor search
It can be really tempting to start researching and booking vendors as soon as you’re engaged. Our advice, wait…
White Knight recommend finding your venue first, this effectively locks in your wedding date, then starting to search for the rest of your vendors using an appropriate timeline.
Set your wedding budget, so you’re aware of exactly what you can spend on each vendor. If you don’t have a firm budget, you run a greater risk of overspending.
Not checking the venue’s approved vendor list
Some wedding venues have lists of “approved vendors,” or vendors that are allowed to work at their venue. For some couples, this is a big help in narrowing down all of the wedding professionals out there, but other couples prefer more flexibility and the venues choice is not always the best available on the market.
When researching venues, be sure to ask if they have an approved vendor list, or run the risk of falling in love with a vendor who isn’t cleared to work at your wedding site (most venues will allow exceptions!).
Skipping over the reviews
One of the first steps of researching wedding vendors is checking out reviews from other couples. You’ll be able to read about other couples’ experiences, and the particular vendor’s personality and work even before talking with him or her. And because the reviews are online, you can research vendors anywhere —at home, on your lunch break, while waiting in line at Starbucks…
Check availability first
Yes, we know that wedding vendors are kind of magicians, but they can’t be in two places at once! If a wedding vendor isn’t available on your date, it’s pretty much a deal breaker.
Fortunately, every wedding vendor will have a contact form on their website or live chat available through their social media to check your date from the offset. This will save you a lot of time, and show wedding professionals that you’ve done your research.
Make that first contact count
Your first message to a wedding supplier shouldn’t be a list of questions for him or her to answer – Share a few important pieces of information about your wedding day!
In particular; your wedding date; venue; and guest count, to help the vendor decide if he or she is a good match for you.
Don’t withhold budget information
Couples are often a bit, shall we say, hesitant about sharing their budget with wedding professionals. It can seem like a bit of a touchy subject, but in fact, it’s extremely important to be upfront with vendors about your wedding finances.
Yes, you should absolutely ask a vendor to share their pricing or package information, but be open to sharing your budget as well. Of course, if a vendor’s pricing is way out of your range, it’s probably time to move on, but if there’s only a slight difference, the vendor may be able to find a way to adjust their package so you can work together.
Have an in-person meeting
We can’t say this enough—meeting with wedding vendors in person before booking is crucial.
Sure, there are some exceptions (you’re planning a destination wedding from abroad, you’re constantly traveling for work, etc.), but if it’s at all possible to meet face-to-face, do it.
You’re going to be communicating with these people alot in the months leading up to your wedding and on the day of, so it’s nice if you actually build a relationship with them.
Always ask about next steps
While signing a contract with a wedding vendor is a huge accomplishment, it’s only the beginning of your relationship—and it isn’t always clear what comes next.
Be sure to ask each of your wedding suppliers what their specific timeline is for example: When will you talk again? What specific details do they need from you?
Some vendors might want to start working together right away, while you might not hear from others until shortly before your wedding—and that’s totally okay.
White Knight Entertainment offer a full wedding entertainment package including: Wedding DJ, wedding up lighting and photo booths and more contact our team for some inspirational wedding ideas.