An easy explanation for any bride on a budget who needs a little help along the way.

The world of wedding planning can often be confusing and stressful. There are a lot of options out there for brides looking to have a stress free wedding planning experience but cannot afford a full service wedding planner. When looking at different wedding planning packages we always suggest considering the cost of the service, your budget, and what you may be giving up to include this service. If you have a $15,000 wedding budget a $4,000 wedding planner is going to take a big chunk of that budget right away, are you giving up a non-negotiable? At this point you may be thinking, but I still need some planning help though! This is exactly where Partial Wedding Planning packages come in. The only tricky part is how to make sense of Partial Wedding Planning, and determine if this is the right option for you.

So What is Included?

Each wedding planner will have different package options for ‘Partial Wedding Planning’ and this can be a key factor in choosing what planner you want to work with. Most partial packages will include day of wedding management, but may differ from there:

• Some will offer a set amount of hours of planning assistance, so for example you may have 10 hours of planning help. This can be used for consultations, phone calls, or vendor meetings but will all be tracked. We suggest being wary of this option. Typically you either have a couple who uses up time on topics they didn’t really need to and had no help for other more important planning items. Or you have a planner who will pick and choose when they want to help. Overall we think this is not a clear option as so many aspects of planning cannot be broken down by a simple time frame.
• Other planners will simply organize the planning process for you. They will set your budget, timelines, calendar reminders and may offer light support via phone or email throughout the journey. If you are lacking organizational support this can be great option. 
• Or packages similar to ours where a planner will combine a-la-carte services. This can include setting a budget, wedding design options, vendor recommendations, and monthly consultations. The nice part here is that a planner will typically build a custom package based on your exact needs. It is a great way to ensure you have help where you need it and you’re not paying for help when you don’t.

Sounds Great, But Somethings Missing…

There are many added benefits to hiring a partial planner, having help of any kind is always going to be welcome. But, as you might have noticed most planners will not offer vendor sourcing, negotiation, or contracting in partial planning packages.

You may remember the “Wedding Tax Breakdown” where we explained the added work for vendors when it comes to weddings and why there is typically an up charge for wedding services. This same rule applies to most wedding planners.

Finding, securing, and finalizing details with vendors is a huge workload and can be very time consuming. Especially when you consider that a planner is a “middle man” between you and the vendor. They have to go back and forth between the vendor and client throughout the planning process. Most planners thrive in helping couples design and execute magical weddings, which is why they offer these less expensive partial planning options. But again there is so much work to be done on the vendor side of things, and this cannot be easily tracked and managed using set hours. You cannot do monthly consultations to book vendors, and negotiating pricing and details is one of the largest projects in wedding planning. 

So Is a Partial Wedding Planning Package Right For Me?

This really depends on where you need the most help or support on your wedding journey. If you really need help staying organized, or making decisions, day of wedding management with added consultations is a great option for you. If you feel comfortable working with vendors, but need some design help and expert consultations an a-la-carte package will be perfect. However if the thought of researching vendors, going over contracts, making decisions, and managing payments is all a bit too much you may want to consider adjusting your budget to include a full service planner. Vendor management is one of the biggest jobs in wedding planning while not hard for some couples to do it is time consuming and you will pay for that time.

Again most wedding planners really enjoy designing weddings, working with couples, and bringing an event together. If these are the areas you need help in Partial Wedding Planning does make sense for you. You can bring in an expert to really add the professional touch and will enjoy helping you.