One big decision you’ll need to make at the beginning of wedding planning is whether or not you’re going to hire a wedding planner.  Is it worth it?  Do you have enough in the budget?  What are the pros and cons?  Well, after running a wedding venue for the last year, I can tell you that it is definitely worth it – not just to the bride, but to your family, fiance and your vendors as well.  So here are the reasons to hire a wedding planner:

Get Rid of the Stress

Wedding planning should be fun, not stressful.  The last thing your friends and family want is for you to turn into bridezilla during your engagement.  Hiring a wedding planner will take so much stress out of the entire process – from day 1, they will be able to guide you when it comes to picking vendors, sticking to your budget and keeping everything on track.  You have a full-time job and not enough time to do everything that needs to be done.  The great thing about wedding planners?  Your wedding is their full-time job!

Selecting Vendors

This is one of the biggest reasons to hire a wedding planner.  Picking all your vendors comprises most of the decisions you have to make while wedding planning.  There are so many to choose from – who fits in your budget, who is the best, who should you stay away from?  Wedding planners know most of the vendors personally, and they can point you in the right direction from the get-go, saving you a lot of time and phone calls.  It’s important to find vendors that you can trust, and a wedding planner is the best way to ensure that.

Communication with Vendors

As a venue manager, it is so easy to communicate with a bride’s wedding planner.  They understand the policies and procedures, they are easy to reach and it takes a lot of time and energy off the bride’s hands! There are so many details you need to know when it comes to your photographer, florist, venue and caterer – many details that you don’t need (or want) to mess with.  But your wedding planner knows the right questions to ask and they’ll take care of it for you!

Turn Your Vision Into Reality

Most brides have an idea about the style of wedding they want, but many get overwhelmed at the thought of implementing those ideas.  Where do you even start?  Wedding planners can help you turn those ideas into your dream wedding.  They are a wealth of knowledge – they can tell you what’s trendy right now, proper etiquette, best practices and what ideas are even possible!  And even better – if you don’t have a clue what kind of wedding you want, they can brainstorm with you and help you form the vision for your big day!

Day-Of Activities

Another one of the most important reasons to hire a wedding planner is for day-of coordination.  If you hire any planner at all, it should be a day-of coordinator.  Your wedding day will be crazy and hectic – trust me, you want someone to keep everyone on time, make sure all the tiny details get taken care of and allow you to sit back and enjoy the day.  They also take care of clearing out at the end of the night, so you can ride off into the sunset and not worry about a thing!

Don’t Use Your Family

As much as you want to assign one of your friends or family-members wedding planner duties, don’t do it.  First of all, they want to enjoy the day as well.  They don’t want to be so caught up in coordinating things that they forget to be present at your wedding.  Second, working with your family can be stressful and tense.  They sometimes see a different vision than you and don’t understand that it’s your day.  But a wedding planner is there to make sure you get exactly what you want – they will give you advice and tips, but they will not overstep their bounds and try to make it about their vision instead of yours.

Your wedding planner is your hands and feet throughout the planning process.  If you have a question, they are your go-to person. If they don’t know the answer, they’ll find out for you.  They take care of the minute details that can become so overwhelming.  Your wedding will go so much smoother with a professional in the mix.  At the end of the day, one of the most important reasons to hire a wedding planner is so that you can enjoy the wedding planning process and maintain your sanity through it all!

Brandi Mikula runs The Fayetteville OPO, a classic and unique wedding venue in the heart of downtown Fayetteville, Arkansas.  Feel free to reach out, she’d love to hear from you – [email protected].