b'Five tips for hiringa wedding plannerOn your wedding day, you can either be the bride orthe wedding plannerits very difficult to be both. Our advice: save yourself the trouble and hire a professional!The following five tips will help you find the perfectwedding planner!1. Go by the experienceThink of this as a job interview. Start withexperience! Short-list potential candidates Average wedding based on the kinds of weddings they havecan take up todone, types of families they have handled, 350 LAURA KELLY PHOTOGRAPHYand wedding venues they have decorated, Wedding planners vs.and go from there. HOURS2. Ask for recommendations to plan venue coordinatorsNo one can guide you better than your own friends and family. Ask around to see who hiredThere are several differences between a wedding plannera wedding planner for their big event, and ask for a list ofand a venue coordinator. Knowing what they do can help you recommendations. That way, you can get the real scoop frommake a decision on whom you should rely on for whatprevious brides. at your wedding.3. Set your budget Wedding plannersKnow how much youre willing to spend, and then manageYou can hire a wedding planners services to plan months before your budget thereafter. Keep in mind that a professional hasthe wedding, to prep the month of the wedding, or just to assist on established relationships with vendors and may be able tothat day. Not only will they recommend vendors, but theyll deal obtain discounts to help stretch your dollar even further. with the negotiations, communications, and timeline. Theyll4. Choose a theme handle any crises that arise so you can simply enjoy your day.Many wedding planners like to work around a certain Not sure how much food to order? How much cake to serve?theme. Have some ideas for themes, and then let the How many tablecloths youll need? Your wedding planner will wedding planner do the rest! For theme ideas, check out make those decisions while keeping you within budget.Todays Bride Real Weddings and Styled Shoots, as well asWedding planners can also help with designfrom conception our Pinterest and Instagram pages! to execution. If you have an idea of what look youre going for 5. Discuss openly but arent quite sure how to execute it, you can give your wedding Your wedding planner must know your dreams and planner some inspiration to go off of and trust them to create the expectations in order to give you your fairy tale wedding,wedding of your dreams.so be honest. Also, remember that a consultant should have plenty of questions for you too, in an effort to determine Venue coordinatorsyour wishes, needs, level of maintenance, budget, scope ofSome venues will offer the services of a venue coordinator when imagination, and more. Its a two way street! you book with them. This person will recommend some vendors from their preferred vendor list. If the venue also provides catering, they will help you choose a menu and bar options and will keep the kitchen staff on schedule throughout the reception. While they Visit TodaysBride.com to learn more about wedding planners. will set up your reception and can ensure that things run smoothly, they arent expected to help with all details of the wedding, like negotiating or communicating with other vendors or planning out the timeline. Typically, a venue coordinator doesnt cost an extra fee, as they are an added perk when renting venue facilities.14TODAYS BRIDE|12+ MONTHS UNTIL I DO|WEDDING PLANNERS'