Monday, May 12, 2014

Questions to Ask a Wedding Coordinator


Hello readers!

According to my wedding checklist/binder, Kelvin and I are supposed to book our wedding planner and photo/video this month. Last month I started looking for a wedding coordinator and have also started interviewing a number of them. For those of you who are still in the market looking for a coordinator, here are some helpful tips and questions that you can ask yourself and your coordinator to help you choose:

Before interviewing potential wedding coordinators, you first need to ask yourself the following questions:
1.     How much are we willing to spend on the entire wedding?
2.     How much are we willing to spend on a coordinator?
3.     What is the approximate headcount for the wedding?
4.     When is our wedding date?
5.     Which suppliers have we already booked?
6.     How do we envision the wedding?

These are some of the information that you should already have before you meet with your prospective planners. Your coordinator will need to know these things before they can offer you a specific package or service. The rates and number of people in the team will have to change depending on the date, headcount, your needs, etc.

Once you have your baseline data, it’s now time to interview your prospective coordinators. Here are some questions to get you started:

1.     Tell me about your team/company. – Ask your coordinator about their team, personality, vision, mission, and experiences. You may also touch on the following:
a.     Services – on the day, full coordination, semi-coordination
b.     # of personnel on the wedding day
c.     Type of experience – how long have they been in the business
d.     How do they choose/deal with vendors
e.     Cost of services – negotiable, installment, down payment, final payment, etc.
f.      What made him/her decide to be a wedding coordinator
2.     How do you keep in touch with your clients? – It helps if you can reach your coordinator through Facebook, twitter, text, email, fax, call, etc.
3.     What are the inclusions and exclusions of each service type?
4.     What was your most challenging wedding and how did you handle it? – This will give you not only a glimpse of how he manages him/herself in stressful situations, but also give you an idea as to how he resolves challenges while on the job
5.     Is wedding planning you full/part time job? – This will let you know as to how much time your coordinator can dedicate to your wedding. Part time coordinators may have as much time as a full-time coordinator does.
6.     What are your ways in helping a client stick to a budget? – If you and your fiancé are on a budget, it helps if your planner lets you in on his/her secret in managing a client’s budget. Talk to planners about your budget, and make sure they're willing to work within these financial parameters. Ask about their experience negotiating vendor contracts, and have them describe any great deals they've secured for previous clients.
7.     Are we required to book only the vendors you recommend or do we have the freedom to hire someone even if you haven’t worked with them before?
8.     Will you be present at all of the vendor meetings and will you assist us in reviewing all of the vendor contracts and making sure everything is in order? – This depends whether you are booking an OTD or full coordination. Usually, if this is OTD, then your planner will just review the contract after you have signed it.
9.     In case of an emergency that prevents you from being at our wedding, who will be the backup planner? What are their qualifications?
10.  Will you stay on site after our wedding to make sure everything has been broken down and all vendors have left the location?
11.  Will you provide us with a timeline of the wedding and a floor plan of the wedding venue?
12.  How many meetings and phone calls are included in our package?
13.  Do any of your packages include assistance with finding my wedding dress and wedding party attire? If not, would you provide that service and what would be the extra cost to include it in our contract?
14.  What is your refund or cancellation policy?
15.  Can you provide a list of references?
16.  Can you provide us with a portfolio and/or video of weddings you have done?
17.  With everything that we have talked about, what do you will is the service that we will benefit the most from?
18.  What do you offer that other coordinators don’t?

After meeting with your prospective coordinator, here are more questions that you can ask yourself:

·         Will we enjoy his/her company? Was there a connection between us? – No matter how great a person’s skills are, if you and the coordinator will not get along, then things might not go well and you might not get the wedding that you have been dreaming of
·         Did the coordinator understand our wedding needs? – Some couple’s priority are the photos, while others are the reception. If your planner understands all these, then he/she knows which aspect of the wedding will he/she place an importance on
·         Was the coordinator able to answer my questions satisfactorily? – Were the answers spot on or scripted?
·         Does the wedding planner seem to have a set idea in mind for the wedding or does she/he seem open to suggestions? – A great wedding planner is always open to new ideas and constantly aims to improve him/herself and their services
·         Does the planner seem willing to work within our budget?
·         Was the rate provided to us within our budget?

To wrap things up, there are THREE things that you need to consider before closing in on a coordinator:

1.     CONNECTION – Remember that you will be working with your coordinator for months and the whole day of your wedding day. You want to make sure that you and your coordinator will have that connection that will allow you to work well together and come up with innovative and memorable things together. This connection will also allow the both of you to understand the needs of all sides (the couple, the planner, and the suppliers) which will ultimately lead to mutual understanding and drive to achieve unforgettable results.
2.     BUDGET – Both the couple and the coordinator need to be on the same page when it comes to the budget; this way, both will be guided as to what to book, who to book with, and both can find ways to work around the finances.
3.     TRANSPARENCY – Both parties should agree to constantly/regularly communicate with each other and to always update each other with regard to plans, schedules, and deadlines. This will ensure that both are informed when it comes to important details of the wedding, from the planning, down to the littlest detail of the wedding day. Both parties should understand the goals of each other and commit to working together to meet goals. Apart from this, both parties should also commit to resolving conflict and challenges in a timely manner to make sure that all timelines are followed to avoid further inconvenience and problems.
So there it is, folks! I hope that these guide questions will help you in choosing your wedding coordinator.

What about you, what do you think? Did I miss anything? What else should I ask my coordinator?

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