10 Things About Being A Wedding Planner

December 1, 2019
pmweddings
Weddings

Have you ever thought about how wedding planners live their lives?

From depictions of rom-com movies to our fantasies about all the glamorous occasions a wedding planner gets to manage, it is not easy to comprehend what actually goes behind the scenes of organizing a wedding.

Talking to our senior wedding planner – Ms Evan Chee, here are 10 Q&As we gathered about all there is to know about the industry and ultimately her tips on how to successfully run smooth, sweet weddings for her clients.

What’s a day in your shoes, a wedding planner, look like?
In every wedding event a wedding planner has to be the first person to arrive. In some occasions, I have to start organizing with the vendors and venue owners on all the details of the setup a day prior to the wedding. I am also often the last person to leave the venue, it is quite normal that I would be bustling around without having a chance to sit down until very late in the evenings. Although it sounds exhausting, it is always my duty to ensure that everything is under control, while maintaining a presentable outlook as my wedding couple’s planner.
What’s the best part about your job?
It has to be those happy looks I get to see from the couple’s faces during the wedding. As cliché as it sounds, the satisfaction of bringing my clients’ dream weddings to life is what fuel me all these years.
And the worst?
There are indeed many challenges in organizing a wedding, but with an optimistic outlook and a calm head, we normally would be able to resolve issues rather smoothly. If I need to pick a really bad experience, it might have to be for a wedding that was called off. Even though the couple has paid for everything but it was rather sad to see the couple went their separate ways.
Helping couples plan a wedding, being surrounded by such gorgeous things, sound like a very fun job. But there’s probably a lot of challenges that people don’t know about. What are those challenges you’ve faced?
• Managing work-life balance – There are not really “working hours” for us, therefore it is rather important to be able to keep an open mind while maintaining a balanced lifestyle.
• Managing vendors – We do not restrict our customers on which vendor they should be hiring. However, dealing with non-familiar vendors opens up unknown possibilities of hiccups and issues. We will need to often prepare a checklist and ensure all vendors adhere to them as we move along the planning timeline.
• Keeping on top of wedding trends – Wedding trends are changing fast in this day and age especially being in the digital era. This also means couples can quickly change their minds. When things change, and we will need to communicate with them frequently to keep everything in check.
• Bridezillas – A bride has a lot on her mind, and understandably, she can feel great pressure. About 1 in 30 brides-to-be undertake a miraculous transformation into a character we called ‘Bridezilla’ and we just need to be patient and stand by them throughout the process.
How did/do you overcome those challenges?
As a wedding professional, we need to stay calm and have the emotional intelligence to solve issues without causing a scene. We also need to be the source of comfort for others in high-stress situations and always be patient while communicating with all parties at all times. We don’t really have defined working hours – after all, every detail along the planning and organizing stages determine the success of the wedding.
What has been your proudest moment as a wedding planner? Tell us the story!
Wedding planners are, in other words, professional event organizers. We keep composure and positive demeanour in all situations, no matter how bad things turn out. We can’t break down in panic, we need to know what to do next and always have plan B, even plan C in mind. My proudest moment will be when my client remembers me and no matter what the occasion is, they will call to have me plan for them again or invite me to any of their special occasions to introduce me to their close friends and relatives. Moments like this validate all my hard works.
Three important tips for brides wanting to plan their own wedding on their own.
• The bride needs to prepare to multi-task and juggle between their day-job and the wedding’s preparation.
• The bride should spend some time to do research and create a mood board before putting their hands into the actual organization.
• As they will need to tend to every detail, it is recommended to start surveying and planning for the wedding 24 to 18 months ahead.
What’s something couples tend to forget about planning for their wedding?
Most of the times, couples tend to forget the necessity of having contingency plans. Not familiar with event organizing, couples often overlook certain contractual terms and conditions or technical requirements that would unexpectedly put them in a pickle. Having an experienced person by their side providing advice would save them many unforeseen hurdles.
Based on your experience, where is the most popular wedding venue in Malaysia, and why?
Venues set within hotels like their ballrooms or outdoor reception areas are still the most popular options for wedding couples. This provides the couple, their families and friends with different alternatives in one place for their various ceremonies, and of course the convenience of accommodation offerings for their invited guests.
Why do you think people should hire a wedding planner? What are some of the magic wonders a wedding planner can do that a bride on her own can’t?
We highly recommend to-be-wedded couples to hire a wedding planner, not because I am a wedding planner. One of the biggest reasons to hire a wedding planner is to save yourself time and money.

A seasoned planner, knowing exactly what you want (and need) will lead you directly to the right vendors, saving you a lot of research and negotiating hassles. A couple can definitely plan their own, but one thing they cannot do is to have all these exclusive perks and discounts from being in the industry.

Sometimes, it is not about the money, but about being given special treatments for the trusts and credibility you receive through your wedding planner.