What Does A Wedding Planner Actually Do?

You would have heard a lot about the Wedding Planners and also would have heard fascinating stories about the wedding they managed somewhere in Rome and other parts of the world. But have you ever wondered what does a Wedding Planner actually do? Have you ever aspired to be one? There is an inside story to this and this blog will open up all the untold aspects of what actually a Wedding Planner does and how you can start your own wedding planning business.

How did the“Wedding Planner” originated

Let’s understand it with a simple example. In the older days there happened to be big joint families. We had Fufaji to handle RSVP and all the guest arrivals. We had Mamaji (maternal uncle) to take care of catering and Chacha (uncles) to handle the venue bookings. Then we had big brothers and sister to look into decoration, light sound and choreography part. In all we had an in-house team to handle all our wedding preparations with Fufaji(who claims to have done 200 such weddings) heading the team. This may seem very obvious but with time the situations have changed, the families have become smaller and our relatives have got too busy with their own business. Moreover, they would now like to attend a wedding as guest and want to have a 2-3 days enjoyment (kind of a fully sponsored family holiday). When they will enjoy who’s gonna take the responsibility of conducting a flawless wedding? So, the “Wedding Planner” came into picture. And if you’re considering starting a wedding planning business this is what you have to be “A family member” of an unknown family.

The Role of a Wedding Planner

In simple words, Wedding Planner is the person who weaves what you have actually dreamed off. He will put his heart and soul to put up a perfect dream-day for you. You may think it’s all about some venue visits and getting some vendorstogetherbut there are quite a few aspects of the job you may still not know about. Here are some of the crucial responsibilities of a wedding planner.

Venue Selection

As soon as a wedding date is finalized and a wedding planner is hired, venue selection is the first responsibility of the planner. For this, a planner has to be a pro. He must know all the venues in the location with their capacity and amenities. He must also have a fair idea of the cost of a two-day wedding. Along with this he must have a good rapport with the venue. In this process 2 things are important, Clients Budget and Requirements.

Vendor Recommendation

As soon as the venue is finalized a good wedding planner should hand over a wedding checklist to the client to shortlist all requirements. This checklist has to be intensive though. As the requirements are shortlisted the next step is to line up good, reliable and reasonable vendors and get them blocked.It’s not just about managing the logistics so that the day goes off without a hitch, it’s about connecting couples with the right suppliers who will bring their vision to life.

Budgeting

You will be the permanent accountant for the family till the wedding. Everything which is proposed must a have a “REASONABLE” price tag. You must stay within the budget which was stated to you and to your surprise nothing which is budgeted will be liked by the family.

Technical Knowhow

When it comes to planning a Big Fat Wedding, you have to be technically equipped with the sound and lights. Big wedding means big artists and big artists means bigger technical setups. Be well versed with the technical so that you need not cut a sorry figure in front of anyone.

Seamless Coordination

A good wedding planner is the one who plans in advance. Give schedules to your vendors beforehand in writing, have a countersigned document if needed. Regular follow-ups before the event can any day save you from a big goof up.

RSVP

Every guest in a wedding is important and it is necessary for a wedding planner to have a polished team to take the travel and other details in a very proper way. Multiple calls are made and every detail related to no. of people, travel, time and food are recorded.

Travel and Logistics

Movement of the guest is very important, it may be arrivals and departures or venue transfers, everything has to be in time. A guest who had arrived on the airport expects that his transport to the venue is available at the first step that he takes out from the airport. A well picked up guest may turn out to be another testimonial for your future reference

Hospitality management

“Atithi devo Bhava” As stated earlier a wedding planner is already a family member so he has to take utmost care in receiving the guest at the venue. As the family members are busy with the rituals, proper welcoming, luggage tagging, room allotment, key handover and escorting if needed is all done by the wedding planner. He and his team are liable for the total comfort of the guest

Food & Beverages Management

Menu finalization, plate count, food tasting, menu lay outing, and monitoring the food is a crucial part which the team of the wedding planner does. Everything is noted and reported to the client at the end of an event. Here a wedding planner or a member of his team should have a good knowledge of food and should also possess good taste buds.

Artist Selection and Management

Whether it’s a makeup artist for the bride, traditional artist for a Mehendi function, playback singer for the Sangeet or international musicians for a reception, everything has to be suggested by the wedding planner according to the budget and occasion. Post finalization it’s a duty of the planner to do a proper contracting and he is the one will make sure about all the technical rehearsals and timely performances

Conclusion

If you’re liking what you have read above then wedding planning might just be the perfect career for you!Not everyone employs a wedding planner and those who do will be expecting a skilled and knowledgeable professional

“When it comes to getting clients to sign on the dotted line, university recognized certification can be the reason clients may employ you over another planner”

To become a professional wedding planner or to read more such topics log on to http://www.alphainstitute.co.in/