I would say that the biggest misconception about wedding planners is that they are a luxury that is only feasible if your budget is ample. This is simply not the truth. A wedding planner, in my opinion, is just as important, if not more so, for a low budget bride as for a high budget bride. Open your mind, and listen up:

A wedding planner has something that no bride has – buying power! Most brides don’t plan on planning future weddings… after all, you want this marriage to last a lifetime! For this reason, your buying power is a little stunted because every vendor you come in contact with knows you are intending to be a onetime customer. There are exceptions to this rule (e.g. a photographer will probably want to get your maternity photos and family portraits, etc.), but for the most part, this rule stands strong. On the other hand, a wedding planner has buying power because he/she can refer brides to her preferred vendors time and time again. Therefore, these vendors are willing to negotiate and even add “freebies” to make that planner happy. And of course, a good planner’s #1 priority is to make her bride, groom, and their families happy, so it works out in favor for everyone. In addition, this keeps your vendors performing at their best because they don’t want the planners to see any imperfection in their work.

“Why would vendors discount for planners?” you ask. This is simple. Advertising is expensive and can be largely unsuccessful. The best advertising, word of mouth and referrals, is also the cheapest advertising. If that planner has potential to bring a few brides per year to that vendor, then they save tons in the advertising that it would have taken to fill those same spots. Savings are passed along in an effort to keep referrals rolling in, and voila!

For this reason, the money you spend on a planner can actually result in spending the less (when in all reality brides usually spend the same amount, just getting more for the money to make their wedding even more fabulous!). A good wedding planner strives to make her service fees a wash, saving you at least as much as he/she cost you. What a beautiful idea!

So, considering that a great amount of weddings that a good wedding planner plans result in a more fabulous, less stressful wedding for the same amount as the alternative, why not consider it?