"I am looking for a day of coordinator for my Arizona wedding" is something that we hear often from potential clients. Truth be told, there is really no such thing as a "day of" wedding coordinator, although most wedding planners will use that phrase when describing their services. What it really means is at minimum a month-out of wedding planning to ensure there is a proper knowledge transfer from the client to the planner. Here are five reasons why we do not offer "day-of" services without planning involved, and why buying a comprehensive package is actually in your best interest.
1. Vendor Communication: It is extremely important that your wedding planner be in constant communication with your vendors the last month before the big day. This helps in a number of ways: The planner will be the main point of contact for those last 30 days so you don't have to be. Communicating with vendors allows the wedding planner to be knowledgable about what to expect when the wedding vendors arrive, what they will need for set-up, any remaining balance due, etc. If you were to have a "day of" coordinator show up on wedding day without ever having spoken to your wedding vendors, they would certainly uncover a number of issues, gaps in communication and misunderstandings. Your wedding planner will flush those out far in advance.
2. Order Confirmation/Contract Review: Prior to the wedding, we carefully review all of the orders and contracts with a fine tooth comb. We will make sure that everything is updated to reflect your current guest count, that the time of delivery/pick up is correct (and works with the wedding schedule and all the dependencies) and that the balance is reflective of the final quantity and guest count. We also review all of the contracts within a week of the wedding to make sure each of your wedding vendors has the most updated information.
3. Timeline Management: Although a "day of" wedding coordinator would likely be handed a timeline from the client on wedding day, it doesn't ensure that the flow of the evening is the best that it could be. Part of what we do as wedding planners is evaluate the timeline for the wedding day based on factors such as the venue space itself, sunset time, photography, timeframe that your vendors are contracted to be there that evening, number of wedding party members, etc.
4. Familiarity with key people/venue: It is really important (and fun!) for us as planners to get to know you as a couple. We also love becoming familiar with family members and even wedding party members if possible! We get to know all of these important people in your lives throughout the planning process, and we would miss that if we were not involved in that piece. This is not only important to us personally, but professionally it is a good idea to be able to recognize your certain people if we need to grab them for photos or ask them a question, in a pinch.
We also love getting familiar with your venue. We always do a walk-through ahead of time to get a feel for the space and guest count, and clarify for you what is and is not provided. Your wedding planner will create floorplans based on the venue's dimensions, and map out diagrams of how your entire reception will be laid out in the venue space.
5. Save your stress level! You (or your Maid of Honor, Mom, Aunt...) will inevitably have to do much of the planning and coordination leading up wedding day. Hiring a planner and handing over all of the wedding details to one company is going to lower your blood pressure and ensure that your day is going to be flawlessly carried out in a harmonious fashion so you can savor your wedding day and focus on looking gorgeous!
Contact Sip & Twirl about your Arizona Wedding plans today!