Coordinator vs. Planner

samwise1127 · July 2013

What's the difference between a wedding planner and a day of coordinator in terms of general cost and what they do? We're having a modest wedding, but I am afraid of having to do everything ourselves the day of and then being to exhausted to enjoy the event. A day of coordinator sounds like a great idea (esp. on the budget side of things), but what will they do and not do? Anyone have thoughts one way or the other?

QueerFemme · July 2013

A planner will usually help you find vendors, negotiate contracts, go and scout out locations with you, arrange for setup (if necessary), etc. A planner can help with finding budget minded vendors, and sometimes, will have pre-existing relationships with vendors, so you might get a discount. But, not always. Planners can cost anywhere from $1500-5000.00, depending on your location and what you are having he/she do.

A Day of Coordinator is just that. He/She will coordinate vendor deliveries, can assist with decor setup, help get everyone's corsages/bouts pinned on them, shuffle the wedding party down the aisle, load gifts into your car, etc. A DOC can run $350-1000.00, again, depending on location and # of hours you are having them work.

samwise1127 · July 2013

Will a DoC help if a vendor flakes or doesn't show the day of? That's my nightmare, that I'm stuck running to the grocery store for flowers and sheet cake after the vendors don't arrive.

QueerFemme · July 2013

samwise1127 said:

Will a DoC help if a vendor flakes or doesn't show the day of? That's my nightmare, that I'm stuck running to the grocery store for flowers and sheet cake after the vendors don't arrive.

Most of the time, they will help figure something out with you, and a contact person. (like, you should name one person that the DOC should contact if anything goes wrong). For example, if the cake doesn't show up, they can call your mom, or sister, or whomever you designate, and a decision can be made about how to remedy the issue.

samwise1127 · July 2013

Many thanks for letting me pick your brain! One final question: our site offers an on-site wedding consultant (we're using the same site for ceremony & reception and it's a site that specializes in weddings and events), do you know how that's different from a DoC (since that definitely sounds like the route we'd want to go)?

QueerFemme · July 2013

samwise1127 said:

Many thanks for letting me pick your brain! One final question: our site offers an on-site wedding consultant (we're using the same site for ceremony & reception and it's a site that specializes in weddings and events), do you know how that's different from a DoC (since that definitely sounds like the route we'd want to go)?

It really depends. I would talk to your venue to see what that consultant's services include. Sometimes, on site consultants will help you design things, talk to their preferred vendors, etc. Other times, they actually will act as a DOC. But, I would really ask some very specific questions, like "What time will you arrive at the venue? Will you do decor setup? Will you call all of my vendors the day before to confirm arrival times? Do you have resources for backup plans in case of vendor no-shows? Will you attend the rehearsal? Will you be responsible for paying vendors?

etc.

daria24 · July 2013

QueerFemme said:

samwise1127 said:

Many thanks for letting me pick your brain! One final question: our site offers an on-site wedding consultant (we're using the same site for ceremony & reception and it's a site that specializes in weddings and events), do you know how that's different from a DoC (since that definitely sounds like the route we'd want to go)?

It really depends. I would talk to your venue to see what that consultant's services include. Sometimes, on site consultants will help you design things, talk to their preferred vendors, etc. Other times, they actually will act as a DOC. But, I would really ask some very specific questions, like "What time will you arrive at the venue? Will you do decor setup? Will you call all of my vendors the day before to confirm arrival times? Do you have resources for backup plans in case of vendor no-shows? Will you attend the rehearsal? Will you be responsible for paying vendors?

etc.

You definitely need to talk to your venue and see what the consultant will be able to do the day of your wedding and especially find out if your event is the ONLY one occurring that day. My venue had a wedding coordinator but I saw her twice on my wedding day-she was busy with the other wedding happening at the same time, as well as a rehearsal for the following day's wedding.

But I've been a BM in weddings where the venue's coordinator set out favors, set up the escort cards, cued the musicians, packed up the gifts at the end of the night, etc. So it really varies.

cwaggoner07 · July 2013

Our DOC was great. The problem with a venue's coordinator is that they work for the venue, not you. That's absolutely not a bad thing, but just something to keep in mind. My DOC had a timeline, kept things running, and had every vendor's contact info and arrival time down to the minute.

I actually enjoyed planning our wedding, and it wasn't necessary in our case to have a planner, but a coordinator was essential to enjoying our day.

samwise1127 · July 2013

Thanks for all the helpful advice! I was beginning to feel like I needed a coordinator to help me figure out what coordinator I needed!

erinlin25 · July 2013

my venue came with a DOC and she was way more hands on that i expected. I thought she would just be helping that day while she actually helped me through the whole process. We met about 4x while planning the wedding, and pretty much anytime I had a question she would get back to me quickly. I "planned" everything but with her guidance and I pretty much just said who do you like to work with (in terms of recommended vendors) and just hired all of the ones she personally said to. She planned/coordinated the entire day (which obviously needed a lot of preparation) so it was not like we had never met nor knew about the wedding. The day ran so smoothly and was perfect. I highly recommend having someone like this.

Ven&Radio · July 2013

My DOC includes "ongoing consulation" in her fee (which started over $1000). This basically means I can email/call her to get her opinion on different vendors, etc. She's really been amazing - I can't imagine trying to do this all by myself. I've only been to a couple weddings, none in the area where I'm getting married, so I had no idea where to start.

Coordinator vs. Planner

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