Wedding Planners vs. Venue Coordinators

Alright ladies, let’s talk about the differences between venue coordinators and wedding planners. As a wedding planner, one of my biggest pet peeves is when a venue sells their in-house coordinator as an actual wedding planner. I’ve learned that unless you’re in the wedding industry, the differences between the two aren’t commonly known.

Education is key in our industry. If we all educate correctly, it can help keep brides from feeling stressed out and angry when they are ‘in it’ and experiencing the waves of planning their wedding – therefore protecting the ‘life’ of being a small business owner in the wedding industry. If ‘vendors’ with other focuses are telling their brides in a ‘trying to be helpful way’ that they really don’t need a planner because they (let’s pretend they are a florist or a DJ)  will handle that for them – but they don’t really handle all the different hats a planner wears,

The very vendors that you, the planner, has referred and worked with for years is now veering into your lane, making it seem like planning and coordinating a wedding is something that can be just factored in to the actual service they offer.  Do we make it look so easy that they feel they can do it too?

But back to the venue coordinator vs. planner:   Here are the basic differences

At the Venue:

Venue Coordinator- They are responsible for everything that specifically deals with the venue. Tables, chairs, linens, food, etc. If the venue provides catering, their focus is to make sure that the kitchen and wait staff are scheduled according to their needs.

Wedding Planner- They are responsible for everything that comes with your venue AND making sure that your vendors know where and when they’re supposed to be. If the venue provides linens, it is the job of the wedding planner to choose the color based on the design of the wedding and to keep the quantities correct.

Vendors:

Venue Coordinator- The venue coordinator will most-likely provide a list of preferred vendors and that’s the extent of their involvement when it comes to interacting with the vendors.

Wedding Planner – Your wedding planner will schedule and attend your meetings with your vendors. They are the main point of contact between you and your vendors. If a vendor is lost or running late or is having an emergency, they’ll contact your wedding planner who will then put out the fire. Your wedding planner gives recommendations based on vendors they’ve worked with previously. They also review contracts; set up hotel room blocks, etc.

Timeline:

Venue Coordinator- Hotels that provide catering will have a timeline solely for their catering staff. Their timeline will center around when the food will be prepared and served. That’s it.

Wedding Planner – The wedding planner’s timeline details all aspects of the day from the time that the bride wakes up to the moment that the doors close. As a wedding planner, I have to know every single that is happening with every single person involved in the day. I schedule arrival times for all vendors, when the photos will be taken, what songs will be played for each dance, when the cake will be cut and when and where the sparkler send-off will be. We do it ALL.

Accessibility:

Venue Coordinator – You’re most likely sharing your venue coordinator with at least 100 other brides. This means delayed responses to phone calls and emails. This also means that you have to try to catch them during business hours.

Wedding Planner – Fortunately (and unfortunately), wedding planners are available almost 24/7. Of course there are exceptions but if you’re having an emergency, you can pick up the phone and send a quick text message. Your venue coordinator isn’t giving you their personal cell phone number.

Design.

Venue Coordinator – They’re not designing your wedding. Period.

Wedding Planner – They’ll design your ceremony and reception. They’ll choose your colors, linens, flowers, table set-up and design and so on and so on.

Brides, do not make the mistake of not hiring a wedding planner because your venue, DJ or florist has a “wedding coordinator”. Planners do drastically different things and they’re more hands-on. Believe me, spend the money on a planner at the beginning so that you don’t have to find out in the middle of planning that you don’t actually have a planner, but a venue coordinator.

Stay Up to Date

Sign up below to receive post notifications & more!

Copyright © 2024 Faithfully Yours Wedding & Event Planning · Theme by 17th Avenue