From the Experts, Wedding Planning Tips
4 Bridal Clients Every Wedding Planner Will Meet
QC tutor Regina Young is the owner and creative director of Meant2Be events, a top Arizona wedding planning firm that manages 30-40 weddings a year. Regina shares her experience with different wedding planning clients and gives her advice on the bridal clients you want to look out for!
As a planner you will see your fair share of personalities and quirks. It comes with the turf. I hear so much that a major part of my job is actually “therapist”. It’s true. The event planning process may only be a piece of your role for your clients. While each one is unique, you start to see a few patterns of behavior with the client’s you attract.
And that’s the real truth of the matter. You will attract certain types of brides. From the super busy professional that just writes you a big check and trusts you with everything, to the overbearing grooms, you might need to take a look at what you are doing! It’s best to consider what marketing or networking may be attracting the wrong or right clientele.
Here are few types of bridal clients you hopefully have, or might want to, steer clear of!
The Busy Professional
This is my favorite. They are hard clients to book because they know their wedding planner will make or break their wedding day. Essentially, once they trust you they will write you a check and tell you what their vision is. They want to just show up on their wedding day and celebrate. They know there are a million pieces to make that happen, so they are not unrealistic, but they also know they don’t have the time to manage it! These weddings are always super fun and incredibly elegant!
The Groomzilla
Yep, that’s a thing. And we get a few super involved grooms every year. They are the main contact, the final say and the one all the wedding planning details go through. It’s hard to imagine a bride giving up so much control, especially when so many of the choices affect her experience so greatly!
The DIY Bride
We don’t see these. It’s not our demographic. But, they do exist, in droves!
In the era of Pinterest, many brides get their glue guns out thinking that the details are just that easy. Well, for us, we just need to show them a Pinterest “fail” blog and that’s the end of that conversation. It may be your client however, so tread lightly.
These clients don’t usually spend a fair amount on a planner – I mean, why pay if they can do it themselves? Be wary of someone who is just booking you to set up her crafts and clean up at the end of the night. No one has really made a career as an event janitor…
The Unrealistic Bride
For us, this is what we classify as the Bridezilla. This will be an emotional process with a large price tag – and that can make anyone a little stressed out. The difference between stress and insanity is how down to earth and realistic the bride is about the bottom line.
Vendors cost what they cost, especially the good ones. Amazing details cost more. If you don’t invest, you cannot expect it to look like what you saw in that magazine.
The unrealistic bride is constantly questioning every price, every suggestion, and feels entitled to have the Pinterest wedding of her dreams without the understanding of what makes that event or photo shoot spectacular. She can be angry, disappointed and non-trusting of your expertise.
Run. Very fast. And if you are in too deep, refer back to my post about business insurance for event and wedding planners!
That being said, no one clearly fits in a box. But keep in mind that if you find yourself not able to service your couple, let them go. It’s never a win/win situation if you are not in a good relationship throughout the wedding planning process!
