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Alright—so you're a wedding design queen, you're totally on top of RSVPs (color-coordinated spreadsheet and all), you hand-lettered your invitation envelopes using those super sharp calligraphy skills, AND you've already got your wedding party outfitted to the tea. So why, in the ever-loving wedding world, would you need to hire a wedding coordinator? Well, we hate to break it to you, but even the most organized and on-top-of-it brides and grooms are in for a massively unpleasant surprise if they try to head into their wedding day sans professional help. Today, then, we're breaking down four major reasons you need to hire a wedding coordinator. Read on—and get ready to save yourself some serious sanity. (Cheers to that!)
First off, what is a wedding coordinator?
Ah, great question! We break down all you need to know about the difference between the types of wedding planners here—but the biggest thing to note is that a month-of coordinator won't be involved in wedding design or recommend vendors like a full-service wedding planner would. Instead, a wedding coordinator typically comes on board in the month leading up to your wedding, focusing on logistics and organization (fine-tuning your timeline, jumping in with vendor communication when needed, etc.).
1. You don't want to end up working on your wedding day.
No matter how on top of it you are, you don't want to be the one organizing vendor setup and tear-down on your wedding day. Think you can skirt this by having a trusted friend or family member oversee vendor setup and tear-down on your behalf? You'll need someone who knows design well (they'll need to tell your vendors where and how to place those rental items or florals), who is willing to show up hours early, who—rather than dancing and drinking and photo-booth'ing the night away—is willing to stand in the corner of the reception space and manage bartenders, caterers, and speeches...and who is willing to stay long after everyone leaves to manage the vendor tear-down process as well. It's just not a job you want to stick any of your wedding party or family members with, as it leaves them no time to actually enjoy the celebration. Plus, you need someone with a specific skillset who can put out last-minute fires, rearrange seating at the eleventh hour if need be, throw together a forgotten place-card at the last minute, stay on top of the timeline, direct your wedding party, and more. (It's exhausting just thinking about all of those things!)
2. There are lots of loose ends to tie up in the 30 days before your wedding.
First off, kudos to you for those incredible organization skills! You've made it this far without a professional coordinator—but the 30 days before your wedding can be, by far, the most stressful. This is when you're collecting the last of RSVPs, starting in on your seating chart (don't even get us started on the difficulties of seating charts!), touching base with all of your vendors, etc. It can turn even the most cool, calm, and collected bride or groom into a frazzled (and forgetful) mess who's bound to let a few important details slip through the cracks. There's nothing like the peace of mind that comes along with getting to hand those overwhelming details over to a professional and spend the month leading up to your wedding focusing on what's actually important: you and your spouse to be!
3. You don't know how to create a timeline. No really, you don't.
Ok, so you're good with technology and you know how to throw together something that resembles a timeline, sure. But do you really know how to create an accurate, wedding-specific timeline? Do you know which areas needed to be padded in order to ensure you don't run out of time for them? Do you know when your florist should be setting up versus when your tables should arrive versus when your photographer will show? Do you know that, typically, beauty services/getting ready are the number-one area where even seasoned pros can mess up the timeline? Wedding day timelines are an art form in and of themselves, and they're best left for professional coordinators. It's not you—it's the timeline!
4. You need someone to make sure your ceremony goes smoothly.
Wedding ceremony mistakes are super common—and, unfortunately, they're often the most cringe-worthy. A month-of coordinator will be there for your ceremony rehearsal to run through things with your wedding party and ensure everyone knows where they need to be, when. She or he will also be there on the day-of, directing guest traffic, corralling your wedding party, fixing the groom's crooked boutonniere, providing copies of your vows to your officiant, and making sure you're tucked away and kept out of guests' sites all the while. Even with family members or friends helping, there's really no way to ensure a smooth, seamless ceremony without a professional coordinator on-hand playing figurative Tetris with all of the many moving parts that go into a successful wedding ceremony.