How to Help Your Clients Save Money on Their Wedding Budgets

One of the main reasons a bride will choose to hire a wedding planner is because they expect the wedding planner to save them money to make their budget go further. In fact, great wedding planners are able to save the bride and groom more than they charge for their planning fee, making for some very happy newlyweds!

Here's a few tips you can use to help your clients save some money:

-Suggest they hold the wedding during the "off-peak" season-
Months like May, June, July, September, & October are VERY popular wedding months. That means venues and vendors often charge premium prices for weddings held during these times. Many times venues or vendors will have off-peak specials that can save the brides hundreds (sometimes even thousands) of dollars. Since weddings are hard to come by during months like December, January, and February, vendors are willing to greatly lower the prices of their packages just to fill up their schedule. If a bridal couple has a tight budget, being flexible on the actual wedding date can help them save a lot of money and make their wedding budget go further.

-Ditch the liquor-
Hard liquor, especially top shelf liquor, can cost a pretty penny by the time the final bill arrives. Instead, the bride can opt for a wine & beer bar which can help trim a large cost from the budget, especially if the guest list is quite large. If the bride and groom still wish to serve hard liquor but their budget is pretty tight, suggest having them simply serve a signature cocktail. This means guests can still indulge in a drink with hard liquor, but in a much more affordable manner for the bride and groom.

-Choose decor wisely-
The floral budget for a wedding can quickly get out of control, but if you help the bride and groom choose wisely, the wedding bouquets and centerpieces can still look amazing without costing an arm and leg. Here's the key: choose flowers that are in season and grown locally. Tropical or out-of-season flowers can cost a lot more due to the need to ship them in from another location. Instead, opt for flowers that are grown locally to help save hundreds on the floral bill. Also, focus mainly on the centerpieces because that is what the guests will see most of the night. If the budget is tight, opt for clusters of piller or votive candles placed on the gift table, staircase, or window sills instead of extra floral arrangements to help save money.

-Choose a venue that offers all-in-one services-
If the bride and groom choose a venue that offers a ceremony site along with all of the linens, plates, flatware, glasses and basic decor for the reception can help save more money than choosing a banquet hall where the bride and groom will have to supply all of these items themselves. Not only is it less work, but it can help their budget go further.

Before you take on your first clients, research the best ways in your area to help save your clients the most money without cutting out their style or theme.

Selling Your Services to Modern Brides

Most of the brides you will be serving are in their twenties or early thirties, and are considered those of Generation Y. This is a generation filled with the desire for instant gratification, uniqueness, and ease. Here are a few tips on how to market your services to brides of today:

1) Make it easy to do business with you.
Most research a bride will perform when attempting to find wedding planners and/or wedding vendors will be done on the Internet. Having an easy to use and informative website, blog, or social media profile can go a long way in getting you potential clients without you actively seeking them. List your website on local wedding directories or purchase small advertising spots on sites like The Knot, Wedding Wire, etc. Have multiple ways available to connect and contact you: phone, email, website submissions, etc. This will let people choose which means of communication will work best for them.

2) Provide a unique experience for each bride.
Bridal magazines these days are filled with informative articles on how to "personalize" the big day and make it unique to the bridal couples interests and personalities. When marketing your services, make sure you highlight your desire and ability to create a unique and personalized wedding for each client so they can truly feel special instead of just attending another cookie-cutter wedding.

3) Show them everything they will get with your service upfront.
In the age of instant gratification, it's extremely important to let a bride know everything she will get if she buys your services BEFORE you start going into details about how you will turn her dreams into reality. This lets her see all of the benefits and details she will get by hiring you and will often catch her attention before she loses interest.

4) Show them examples of weddings you've done for couples just like them.
Brides will want to see examples of weddings you've done. Show them photos of weddings you've done for couples that shared their similar budget or style. (Outdoor weddings for couples who are interested in an outdoor ceremony) This will help them envision what you will be able to do for their wedding.

The great thing about Generation Y-ers is that they love to share their good experiences with other people. Do a great job and you will receive great recommendations and references which can go a long way with finding your next clients.

Vendor Contract Negotiation

One of the biggest reasons a couple chooses to hire a wedding planner is because the wedding planners can use their industry connections & relationships, and an excellent ability at negotiating to get the couple a lower price on vendor services and packages. Here's a look at some tips for contract negotiation to help get your clients the best price possible:

Negotiate with the Right Person:
If the general manager of a venue is the person in charge of setting prices and making decisions on discounts, go straight to them. Even if you have established a good relationship with the venue design coordinator, it's harder to say "no" directly to a wedding planner who may indeed bring in more business than it is for the general manager to have the venue design coordinator just pass the "no" message on to you.

Be Knowledgable:
Before you enter into negotiation with a vendor over package and service prices, make sure you have a good understanding of the industry standard and the quality of work/amount of experience the vendor has. This will help you get a better understanding of if the price the vendor is suggesting is fair or not. Compare prices of other local vendors providing the same service and go from there.

Get Creative:
If the vendor seems to be stuck on the price they are offering, you may need to get creative. Try to get them to "throw in" something that won't cost them much for free. Or ask for a off-season discount- many vendors have special seasonal discounts during winter or the slower months of wedding season.

Be Ready to Deal:
You may have more negotiating power if you have something to offer in return. You can offer to place them on your "Preferred Vendors" list which may be displayed on your website or in your brochures/marketing materials. You may also say you can partner with them for a Bridal Show booth which will help you split the costs.