How to Choose a Wedding Planner

Before you start looking

Decide roughly how much help you want. Full planning, partial planning and on-the-day coordination are very different services at very different prices, so knowing which you need makes comparing planners much easier. See full, partial or on-the-day planning.

Experience and fit

1. How long have you been planning weddings, and roughly how many have you delivered?
2. Have you planned weddings like ours: our size, style, culture or type of venue?
3. Have you worked at our venue, or venues like it?
4. Can we see examples of weddings you've planned, or speak to past couples?
5. What's your planning style: do you lead with ideas, or follow our lead?

What's included

1. Exactly what does your fee include, and what would cost extra?
2. How many meetings and venue visits are included?
3. How do you share the plan and budget with us?
4. How quickly do you usually reply to messages?
5. How many weddings do you take on the same weekend?

On the day

1. Will you personally be at our wedding, and for how long?
2. Do you bring an assistant for larger weddings?
3. What happens if you're ill on the day?
4. How do you handle problems with suppliers or the weather?

Suppliers and budget

1. How do you choose which suppliers to recommend?
2. Can we use suppliers we've already booked or found ourselves?
3. Who pays the suppliers, and who holds the contracts?
4. How do you keep the budget on track?

Fees and contract

1. How is your fee structured, and when are payments due?
2. What are your cancellation and postponement terms?

Get everything in a written contract, including the services included, dates, fees, payment schedule and cancellation terms.

Warning signs

• Vague answers about what the fee includes
• Pressure to book before you've had time to compare
• Only one way of doing things, regardless of what you want
• No contract, or one that doesn't match what was promised
• Slow or patchy replies before you've even booked

The first meeting

Chemistry matters. You'll share a lot with your planner, from family dynamics to budget worries, so notice whether they listen, whether they ask good questions, and whether you'd trust them to make decisions when you can't.

Nelle holds a Master's in Events Management & Hospitality, has planned events professionally since 2018 and has delivered over 110 events. She plans and runs every wedding herself. Ask her any of these questions when you enquire.