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.
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