DOC?

jonesma204

I am meeting with a DOC tomorrow. I keep going back and forth about hiring one or just having the bridal party and parents take care of all the little details. What is everyone else planning to do?

PetalPockets2012

My venue comes with a full time wedding coordinator. I'm not sure if I would hire someone if it didn't or not. I think I would want to have someone though if it was in my budget.

brainybrunette

At first I wasn't going to hire a DOC.  I thought that it wasn't in our budget and I that I could handle everything myself.  Then, a few weeks ago, I realized that I might be writing my Ph.D. thesis around the time of the wedding, paniced (lol), and then started emailing DOC's to get more info.  

I emailed 3 DOCs to see what their packages/prices were like.  They were priced at $1,500, $1750, and $1,400.  The one that was $1,400 has the best reputation in town!  I almost didn't contact her because I thought for sure she'd be over $2,000.  She didn't tell me her price until the end of our phone conversation, so the entire time I was like "OMG, she sounds wonderful but she has to be at least $2,000!  I was pleasently surprised that she came in the cheapest!  

I've noticed that everything is much more expensive in upstate NY (especially the Albany/Saratoga area) compared to a lot of the other posts on here, so DOCs may be much cheaper in your area.

She's taking care of all the wedding details in the last few months of wedding planning, coming to our final meeting with our venue, running our rehearsal, and has 2 assistants the day of the wedding.  She'll bring breakfast/lunch to the bridal suite, make sure that everything is set up properly, and keep everything flowing on time/cueing things to happen. She's also available to answer any questions and give vendor suggestions any time before the wedding.

Our venue has a banquet manager, but they are not a DOC.  

reagane02

We are having a DOC because it came as part of Wedding Package. When we had our 1st meeting with her, she went over everything that she will do, like intial set up last payments to vendors. Maintaining the Time line, ect I thought it would be really worth it so that my WP or family had to worry about it. 

music11

Bridal party and parents are going to help.  An extra $1000+ is not in the budget.

StephLove12

I wasn't planning on having one at all, until a bunch of people on my local board recommended someone that only charged $350 for the entire day. Now I'm considering it, but I do have a ton of family and friends that keep offering to help in anyway that they can that day. So I will probably just save a couple hundred bucks and let the people who want to help.

minionlover

None for me.  I can't see spending the money to coordinate a wedding that will have 20ish guests with the reception being at my parents house.  I think that I can handle it.  At my first wedding, which was about 120 guests, I did not have one and everything went smoothly.  I have to say in the past 5 years, DOCs have become huge.  My feeling is if you want one and can afford one, go for it.  If not, I am sure that things will still be fine.

achiduck

At first I wasn't going to hire a DOC because I didn't think I could afford it, but as I started planning and all the little details were coming out (and I am super detail oriented) I knew I would probabbly make the wedding more stressful then it needs to be. I found a DOC who is relatively new to the business but who has a fabulous reputation and booked her and just in time too. She ended up raising her prices a few months later as she's gotten so much more experience, etc.

She'll be there to supervise and assist the decorators and make sure eveything is done to the way I want it, deal with any emergencies, stay until the end of the wedding and help with the tear down. She's also going to pick up the flowers on the day of so I don't have to assign a family member to do that.

The way I see it, your wedding party and family already has enough to do. Why assign them more stuff if you don't have to?

brainybrunette

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_october-2012-weddings_doc-2?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:56b9bcef-1e34-456e-81f5-cfaa107456b2Discussion:6ef0ee17-902f-48b7-b1b3-f49a75274b60Post:d8fa2e62-d0ee-4a80-b7a6-694510b9d88e">Re: DOC?</a>:
[QUOTE] The way I see it, your wedding party and family already has enough to do. Why assign them more stuff if you don't have to?
Posted by achiduck[/QUOTE]

<div>This exactly!  I know our mothers would not relax and enjoy the day if we didn't hire someone to pay attention to all of the details.  Quite a few members of our bridal party are coming in from out of town, so I didn't want to give them any more tasks to worry about either.  I just want everyone to enjoy the day and not have to worry about the details.  Plus, writing a Ph.D. thesis is stressful enough, let alone trying to deal with last minute wedding details at the same time!    We saved some money on a few other areas, and our DOC was much less expensive than we thought she'd be.</div><div>
</div><div>If it's in your budget, I think it's definitely worth it.  If not, then it's no big deal.  If you're organized about everything, the day should be stress free : )  You should do what's right for you and your budget.</div>

MJandDL

I would shop around for a good price (Craigslist, event planning major at local school, etc) or have an organized friend or relative (who is not a parent or bridesmaid) be your DOC. My sister did not have one and the last day/day of got very overwhelming for her. As her maid of honor I ended up prying her phone out of her hand so she could relax but that resulted in me being sweaty and tired from having to make multiple half mile long trips back and forth unloading and setting things up and not having time to do my hair before the wedding!

BlingBride12

Jonesma204- who are you meeting with? I've also been considering hiring one too. Let me know how it goes!