You can create a Pinterest board for every single part of your wedding day, but the outcome doesn’t always live up to the images you pinned – we’ve all heard about Pinterest fails! So how do you ensure that your wedding day vision comes together beautifully? When you hire a phenomenal team of wedding vendors to make your dreams a reality, the sky is the limit and the final result will put your Pinterest boards to shame!
Photo by Cody Hurtz Photography
Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you begin your dream vendor team search!
1. Hire a Vendor who’s a Great Communicator
Make sure that the vendors you ultimately hire are great communicators all around! From your initial inquiry through your wedding day, a quality wedding vendor will be prompt and attentive. Questions? They’ve got answers. Hesitations? They’re here to qualm your fears. Aside from emails, make sure that your vendors are able to communicate in-person, too! Professional communication goes a long way, especially on the wedding day! Trust us, great communication doesn’t just mean great email communication!
Photo by Foolishly Rushing In
2. No reviews?! Stay away!
Good reviews from past clients, in addition to testimonials that vendors share with you, are extremely important in determining a vendor’s professionalism. If you come across a vendor who lacks reviews or is not listed on review platforms – be wary! A great vendor will have past clients who shower them with glowing reviews. A sub-par vendor will do their best to hide the negative reviews they’ve received over the years.
3. Search for Recent Work!
An out-of-date website or social account can be a sign that a vendor is no longer offering their services. But more importantly, you’ll want to be sure that you can see recent work before contacting a vendor to ensure that their style matches your wedding day vision!
Photo by Alexandra Cohen Photography
4. Review Full Real Wedding Galleries
Quality vendors will be eager to show you entire real wedding galleries in an effort to showcase their craft throughout a wedding day. If a vendor, especially a photographer, is only showing you galleries of 5-10 images for each wedding, you can’t be sure what the full scope of their wedding work entails. Also, keep in mind: wedding vendors sometimes orchestrate what we in the industry refer to as “styled shoots” or wedding editorials. A styled shoot is a styled wedding with models dressed as the bride and groom. Sometimes new vendors will showcase styled shoots on their website and social accounts to hide the fact that they haven’t actually worked many real weddings. While there isn’t anything inherently wrong with styled shoots, we think it’s something that couples should keep in mind as they’re reviewing a vendor’s work. Make sure that the vendors you hire have worked actual real weddings and that your wedding isn’t their first rodeo.
5. Go with your Gut Feeling!
You know when you meet someone and you “click” with them and feel comfortable? This is a gut feeling that you should be searching for as you meet with potential vendors. You’ll want to feel comfortable working with your vendors, especially on your wedding day, so make sure that you click with the vendors you end up hiring.
Photo by Cara Mia Photography
6. Utilize Industry Resources
The best way to find vendors is through industry recommendations like a vendor directory on a wedding planning website. Finding a trusted vendor directory that includes professionals from Dallas to Iceland to New Zealand and beyond is paramount in getting connected to the right vendors for your day. The wedding industry is a pretty remarkable place when it comes to accolades and recommendations for vendors. However, not all vendor directories are discerning when it comes to the professionals they list. In fact, most companies don’t even screen the vendors they list in their directories. While vendor directories can connect you to the best of the best in the industry, double-check that there is an application or review process to be listed. At Junebug Weddings, we limit the number of vendors we recommend and we analyze each vendor placed in our directory. We take pride in providing recommendations that couples all around the world can trust. All of the vendors included in our directory are vetted personally by our team!
While there is definitely a range of ways for you to find vendors, making sure that the vendors you’re hiring are respected in the industry is a big plus!
Photo by Isaiah + Taylor
7. Trust your Vendors!
Our final tip to you is probably the most difficult tip to follow! Now that you’ve got a dream vendor team, it’s time to trust your vision to your wildly talented group of wedding professionals. After you’ve done your best to communicate your vision – rely on your vendor team to make that vision a reality.
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