Bride & Groom Tips | Wedding Planners vs. Venue Coordinators

This blog is all about Planners and Coordinators and what they both do for you and your wedding day! Thank you to Samantha from A Stylish Soiree  for doing this blog with us – we are so thankful for your input & willingness to help brides know more about this area in the wedding planning process!

The Main Differences between Planners & Coordinators

Planner – They help you through the entire wedding planning process. They will even give you advice during your planning process from linens to menu, to florists & more! When it comes to finding the perfect vendors for your wedding day, wedding planners will go through their lists and find the perfect match for your price point and that have the perfect personality for you! They are there for you every step of the way!

Coordinators – They are more geared toward day-of preparations. Coordinators can be very helpful when making sure you’re on time, but they are more venue based. So, they will give you their preferred vendor list and then you get to decide off the list they give you or find your own vendors. Their main job is to take charge of all the planning work you’ve completed leading up to your wedding day, verses helping throughout the entire process.

Timeline

Planner – Timelines are so important for not only you as the couple, but for your vendors & family as well. Planners save YOU time by creating a very detailed timeline for you & the entire day or weekend. It’s usually so detailed it might even include putting your veil on to taking a breather! Wedding planners make sure you are staying on time and take the stress off of you worry about things and when they’re suppose to happen!

Venue Coordinators – while they create timelines, they are much more simplified & generalized. It’s more generic to when to start getting ready, when the ceremony begins/ends, when apps/dinner begins and when you’re supposed to be out of the venue. Venue coordinators are still there to make sure everything run smoothly, but it’s much more simplified and catered to the venue’s standards. 

Pre-wedding day  

Planner – Before the wedding day, you have a lot of vendors to talk to. Planners will help you with this! Depending on what planning package you get, they might go to meet with vendors with you or do it all for you based on your style and preference of how involved you want to be – they take the pressure off and help you through this whole process! They make sure other vendors know their time to arrive and departure & where to set up, etc!

Venue Coordinator – Venue coordinators are more venue based. Venue coordinators take care of venue things and gets stuff ready for ceremony and reception. They are there for you, but are primarily working for the venue and making sure it’s internal operations are running smoothly.

Wedding Weekend

Planner – A planner the day of your wedding is focused on your wedding alone. It is all about your wedding and your love for eachother. They have no other wedding but yours that day and will focus solely on you! They will also run an errand for you if something was forgotten! They have the freedom to leave the venue if needed.

Venue Coordinator – Since they work at the venue, they may have multiple weddings that weekend and while your weddings are not at the same time, they will still be working on things for other weddings! They can’t leave the venue if their is an emergency Walmart run, or forgotten bouquet at the hotel! They may be able to make some phone calls, but then a family member or wedding party member might have to run that errand to pick up whatever didn’t arrive. They do everything for the venue because that is where they work & have to stay at all times.

Fit for You

Planner – You get to know the planner before you hire them. You get the opportunity to form a relationship and make sure click before hiring them!

Venue Coordinator – Venue coordinators work at the venue and work your wedding through the venue. You don’t get to pick who your coordinator is, and turnover is very common, so you may wind up going through 3 coordinators before your wedding day! This can be stressful & overwhelming.

Uh-Oh’s

Planner – Bride is the last person they go to when problems come off. If something with a vendors comes up, they will protect the couple and make sure the couple is treated the way they deserve. Normally the bride is informed of everything going on before the wedding day in case something happens that needs to change. For example, a planner is most likely to find out first if one of your vendors goes out of business (this RARELY happens), but it is something to consider as the planner is going to be on top of things, make all those phone calls and send out those emails and have other vendors ready to take their place just in case!

Venue Coordinator – Sometimes they can’t take care of the issues that appear and will come to the bride for her to take care of it. Or, sometimes the venue will overlook things and not even tell the bride. You just never know!

We hope you enjoyed this blog and that it gave you some insight as to what the difference is between wedding planners and venue coordinators! Don’t forget to check out Samantha at  A Stylish Soiree !