Choosing The Right Planner For You

Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan ~ Tom Landry


Any city you live in will host a variety of event planners. We are a unified body of organized, detail-obsessed individuals and are part of an industry that will forever go on, as long as people are getting married! And as each year blooms new engagements, planners will develop new services as well as new planners entering the scene as a whole. Brides will see words ranging from consulting, to coordination, to design. Some planners are designers, some designers are only that. No matter what, in each of our own ways, we are all planners. How do you tell the difference, and which type of planner is right for you? This post is derived in part from talking to brides this past weekend and hearing how overwhelmed they were to take on their weddings, and part from just wanting to clarify the differences between a coordinator and a designer, and/or both:

Designer:

A designer will offer services ranging from concept design ( think sketches, pictures, ideas, and a blueprint plan for making it happen) to full-scale design (initial concept design and then full implementation of the design, such as decorating the event).

Coordinator:

A coordinator is often described as an event manager or even a project manager. This person is hired to coordinate the various vendors and to distribute the plans and wishes of the client. They are in effect, coordinating the entire team of vendors to make the wedding or event as smooth as possible.


Planner:

Some may differ from my opinion, but I believe a planner is slightly different from a coordinator. For instance, I see a coordinator as someone who takes the plans and implements them; and a planner makes the plans. Hence the "Day of Coordination" packages- the bride has effectively planned the event, and is now handing the plans over to make sure they are implemented properly- and the On-site Coordinators at many venues.

Planner/Designer:

Some planners have the unique ability to be creative and extremely logistic- a little mixture of left brain/ right brain tendencies. These are the individuals that will not only help creat the plans of the wedding, but will design the decor and theme of the wedding as well.

So Which Is Right For You?

If you're looking for someone strictly to design the theme and decor elements of your event, look to a designer. However, oftentimes a design firm is paired with a planning firm to round out the effects of the event.

If you're looking for strictly coordination or a little combo of planning/design, keep these tips in mind:

* Make sure you click with this person. I guarantee you will see your planner as much, if not more than your groom on your wedding day. You have to be comfortable and feel this person gets your vision perfectly.

* Ask them whether or not they will be handling only the plans or helping to design the concept of the wedding as well. It is perfectly fine for someone to tell you they will only handle the plans- after all, it's best for them to do what they do best.
{As a side note: Soiree is considered a planning & design company- we have the resources and capabilities to do both.}

The more in-tune with your planner's services and capabilities you are, the better your planning process will be.

Do you have any other questions you'd like to ask regarding the differences between planners and/or planning in general? Post them here and we'll answer them for you.

Happy Planning!