Trusting Your Wedding Day Team
Your Wedding Day Vision
Everyone goes into their wedding day with a vision.
That vision could be as low-key as a courthouse elopement to tie the knot in a cost efficient way or as boujee as a multi-day, destination wedding with 5,000 of your closest friends and family that took a year of planning and prepping.
Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum of big-to-small celebrations of love, you are trusting someone in the process to aid you in some way. And if your wedding day involves vendors, you are trusting each of them to help you execute your vision with your priorities in mind.
How To Choose Wedding Vendors
The sad truth is that not all vendors can do this. Some people are just there to do a job, to work the hours they are contracted for, and get their paycheck. But what is really incredible is when a vendor can come alongside you and become a teammate, advocate, and guide for your wedding day. They are able to recognize that a wedding is highly personal, intimate and likely something you’ve been thinking about for a long time. They understand not only that they have an important job to do, but that they can contribute to it by being mindful and sensitive to your unique love and needs as a couple.
If you’re currently in the process of searching for vendors for your wedding day or elopement, here are a few tips to recognize if a potential vendor is going to be for you on your wedding day:
They give you the time of day before you pay them anything.
They use their expertise and experience to help you navigate things you are unsure of or don’t understand.
They listen to you before they give you suggestions and recommendations.
They don’t have a “My Way Or The Highway” mentality.
Other people speak highly of them. (People who actually hired them, NOT their friends and family)
Their brand and language contains more “You” and less “We” and “I”.
They are clear and concise about what they offer and how they operate day-of.
They are helpful in ways unrelated to their “job description.”
Now, this teammate thing isn’t a one way street with your wedding vendors bending to your every whim. It’s a collaboration that requires a lot of communication, mutual respect, and most importantly trust from you, the couple.
Collaboration Is KeY
It’s amazing how the words “I trust you” can lift a spirit up and put wind in someone’s sails. Nine times out of ten your vendor will be ready to do her best work for you because she won’t want to negate that belief you placed in her. If you’ve done your research and spent many painstaking hours looking for the perfect vendors for your wedding day, why would you want to stifle the potential of those individuals to make your day the very best it can be?
Most of your vendors have probably worked on and been to far more weddings than you. If they’ve been in the business for even a year, it’s safe to say they’ve worked twenty to fifty weddings depending on their field. We’ve personally filmed close to two hundred weddings and let me tell you, as exhausting as it was, the experience gained and lessons learned were invaluable, because it only made us better teammates and advocates for our future couples.
If you’re wondering what trusting in your vendors looks like, here are some examples:
Your coordinator/planner sends you some super sweet vendors recommendations. She’s worked with these people in the past and it went well, otherwise, she wouldn’t be sending you those names. You know she gets your style and has heard your vision, so instead of relying solely on a wedding website or a five star review to make a decision, you trust her suggestions.
Your caterers inform you that where you want the buffet set up will cause a lot of congestion and keep guests waiting too long for food, so they suggest putting the food in a spot that alleviates that. You understand that they want your dinner to go as smoothly as possible and know what it takes to serve your guests well, so you trust them.
Your videographer and photographer have picked out a first look spot that is different from the location you had in mind. You ask them if they can use your location, and they let you know that the lighting in that area is very harsh and creates shadows on faces that will keep you from seeing the expressions in the photos and video. If well composed and well lit photos are important to you, trust them.
You want some specific flowers for your winter wedding, but those are not in season and your florist gives you some alternative options that are in still in your color scheme and will save you some money! If having beautiful blooms that don’t look half dead is important to you, trust her.
You create a playlist of music that you like and give it to your DJ. He lets you know that while the songs you chose are great, they may not be hype enough to get people out on the dance floor, so he asks if he can sprinkle some others in and runs them by you. If you recognize that he knows how to start a real party and that is a priority to you, trust him.
There are a million ways this trust can play out before and on your wedding day, but to sum it all up, don’t be afraid to give up control to vendors who are ready to serve you and your vision with excellence. You’ll be more relaxed and create far more memories when you aren’t occupied with micromanaging every detail of the day. If you are frequently feeling frustrated with a specific vendor before your wedding day, don’t be afraid to cut ties and go with someone else. You may lose a little money from a deposit, but I can guarantee you will never regret working with someone who vibes with you and shares your heart.
Invest in a wedding team that is communicative, thoughtful and experienced and place your trust in them wholeheartedly. You’d be amazed what beautiful things can happen when your vision and a vendors expertise and guidance coexist. Your wedding day will be better because of it!
If you’re currently planning a wedding and looking for some stellar vendors to partner with, click here to see some of the best in the business that we have loved working with!