Can you afford to hire a wedding planner?
or, perhaps the question is, can you afford not to?
Hiring a wedding planner doesn’t have to be some luxury item reserved only for the rich and famous. Actually, I’d like to throw myself out there and say that if you can afford to throw a wedding, you can afford to hire a wedding planner.
I know, I know. I am a wedding planner… so of course I’d say that. But hear me out here. The average wedding in Aotearoa, New Zealand costs $30,000. Now, I’m not saying that yours will cost that much, but just for a second imagine that the business you work for was throwing an event with a budget of $30,000. Would they give it to the ‘best suited’ staff member to organise in their spare time while still balancing their usual workload? Or would they hire a dedicated professional planner specifically for the event?
Not convinced yet?
What if I told you that the average wedding in Aotearoa takes upwards of 200 hours to plan. That’s 5 weeks of full time planning. 5 weeks!
Still feel like it’d go to the most suitable staff member?
Chances are, if you’re reading this blog post, you’re that ‘most suitable staff member’ for your wedding. Firstly, congratulations!! I still remember the excitement of getting engaged like it was yesterday and I’m genuinely grinning just thinking about yours. Secondly, please, please, please, put aside your budget constraints for just one moment (we’ll talk about those soon enough) and think about your mental health.
Can you manage 200 hours of planning, spread over how ever long between now and your wedding, while still maintaining all of your current and previous commitments? Whether you work full time, or part time, or perhaps you’re a stay at home parent. Whether you go to one kick boxing class a week, or spend your weekends away camping, hiking and hanging out with family. Whatever it is that makes you tick. Can you maintain that, while committing 200 hours + to your wedding?
Why do I ask?
Because giving up on those every day things is NOT the answer. Your wedding, although incredible, shouldn’t be taking up your entire life. That’s a sure fire way to burn out and end up hating every minute.
But if the answer is truly and honestly, yes. Then that is absolutely awesome and I commend your efforts! You’re about to have the time of your life (and probably some of the most stressful moments too!) and I’m so excited for you.
Embrace it! Have fun, and don’t let it get overwhelming or too much. Remember to rest, take breaks and always – do what makes you feel like you. If you need some more help along the way – please do check out some of my blog posts and IGTV videos, I hope that I can help make it a ‘not-too-stressful’ reality for you!
If your answer was no, then please read on. I’ve got you.
Although it’s hard to believe when you see the price tag of a wedding planner, I’ll go right out there and say it – your wedding planner will save you money. Your wedding planner knows where it’s okay to cut corners and where it really isn’t. They’ve done this all before and they’ll prevent you from making the mistakes that someone less experienced inevitably will – mistakes in the wedding planning industry can cost thousands…
But did you know that you don’t have to hire Wedding Planners to take care of every last piece of the entire event? Did you know that there’s actually a scale of services they can offer, each one tailored to your specific needs and budget?
Not only that but planners are literally trained in working within budgets. And not just elaborate budgets! I know it seems counter-intuitive to spend some of your budget on a person to plan when all of your friends, family and the random strangers on the internet are telling you you can do it yourself. But trust me on this one, your wedding planner will work within your budget and create the best possible outcome for you. They’re certainly not going to up and leave you with some half-done budget wedding that looks and feels like a Pinterest fail.
A planner can also double as a bit of an accountability buddy for you and your partner. They’ll keep you on track and stop you from making unnecessary purchases that don’t align with your vision or values. They’ll be able to help you find work-arounds and alternative options and they’ll spend endless hours tweaking budget sections to make it work out just right. They really do have your best interests at heart.
So let’s wind it back to that scale of services.
Are you someone who’s been dreaming of planning your wedding since day dot and you’re so so so very excited but just not too sure where to start? Or maybe you leapt right on in there and you’re knee deep in the planning with no idea which way to turn next? Perhaps you’ve ticked off all those checklists you downloaded from the internet and while you’re pretty sure everything’s sorted, you just can’t shake that feeling you may have missed something?
A wedding planner can help with literally any wedding planning situation. From one-on-one consultation calls to taking care of smaller sections or just simply having a general oversight. Wedding planning doesn’t have to mean that full all-inclusive – you sit back and watch it happen – kind of package.
It’s the reason I custom quote every. single. wedding.
We work together to cut out all that additional stuff you don’t need, and incorporate only all the pieces that you do need. Because planning your wedding should be fun, and I’m all for you taking on as much or as little responsibility as you like. And for those on a tighter budget, it’s the best of both worlds! – creating a lower value DIY wedding, while still having a professional there every step of the way to lean on and guide you through the process.
At the very, very least, I’d recommend hiring someone for on the day coordination. That way you’ll be able to relax on the day (and day/s before, and day/s after) knowing that it’s all taken care of and will fall into place perfectly without you even lifting a finger.
So what do you want to look back on and remember about your wedding?
Do you want to see that years worth of planning, logistics juggling and organising that went into making it amazing? Or would you rather remember being there on the day.
All of the fun you had coming up with ideas and letting someone else do the hard yards to pull them together. All of the time you got to spend with friends and family while your planner ran around like a headless chicken making sure that absolutely every detail was perfect. And all of the beautiful ‘wedding planning date nights’ that you and your partner shared, with zero pressure and the knowledge that an expert was just a phone call or email away.
I know which one I’d chose… 😉 (promise you won’t regret it!)
Still got reservations?
Let me hear ’em in the comments!
Liked what you read? Keen to hear more?
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Thank you for sharing these tips, you are a lifesaver. It has been a genuine hassle to plan a wedding during this pandemic. Your ideas will surely help me innovate my wedding plans.
You’re most welcome! Good luck 🥰 it’s certainly no easy time to be planning – you’ve got this! 😊