How to Communicate With Your Wedding Vendors?

The preparation and execution of a wedding require the efforts of many people. All over the course of your wedding preparations, you will have to interact with a wide variety of service providers. At first glance, this might not appear to be a particularly daunting assignment. After all, the whole reason you're paying them is so that they can relieve you of some responsibility. But it can be stressful to talk to wedding vendors if you feel like they aren't getting your vision or are confused about key details.

Having to deal with a long list of potential wedding vendors is just one more thing that could go wrong. Instead, remember these guidelines for communicating effectively with anyone, from the event rental company to your stylist.

Preparing for a wedding can bring equal parts happiness and stress. Let's act as if you're alone for a moment. In that case, you'll have to coordinate with a large number of vendors to ensure a successful event. Possible new experiences coordinating with caterers, graphic designers, florists, and event rental services await you. Every professional you hire will have their own way of explaining things to you, but by the time you're done with the planning process, you should have nothing but good experiences, gorgeous results, and original works of art.

Too busy with life to really plan your wedding in detail? Have someone else do it for you and check out our list of Wedding Planners in Melbourne to help take the stress away.

How to Successfully Communicate with your Wedding Vendors

Conduct research.

Although it is a crucial phase, you are in charge of how it unfolds. Research wedding vendors just as you would a major purchase like a house or a car. Compare at least a few of the local rental companies before making a choice. Find out how the costs of the three choices compare to one another. Is there one that stands out as the most inexpensive option? Do you think the costs are comparable between the two? Is one of them significantly more expensive than others?

Unless doing so would result in extreme hardship, it is preferable to ignore the extremes (the extremely cheap or the extremely expensive) when comparing prices. It's possible that the costly business is overcharging you for services you won't use or using excessively pricey supplies for your special day. It's possible that a compromise solution would be the best way to meet your needs if you're trying to find a happy medium between cost and quality.

Research Your Options

Gaining knowledge is another great way to simplify interactions with your wedding's service providers. Get a feel for what things cost, how much you'll need, and what's doable within your budget and the available space at the venue by doing some preliminary research on your own. As a result, there will be less need for the circling back and forth that often occurs when starting to educate a bride from scratch. Plus, you'll have more leverage to get the specific elements you want at your wedding.

Hire Your Wedding Vendors Wisely

Pay close attention to the vendors' communication styles when conducting interviews. Does everything they say and do make sense, both in writing and in conversation? Do you get the sense that what you're saying is being taken into account? The success of your wedding planning depends on your ability to communicate effectively with the people who will be helping you execute the event.

Don't Assume Anything.

The people you've hired for your wedding are just getting to know you, and that means they're also getting a sense of how you communicate. Communicate in a way that is both clear and complete. Don't take it for granted that your suppliers will read your mind.

Set up a Communication System

Make a special wedding email address for all correspondence related to the big day. Planning a wedding means receiving many emails; you don't want the special news from Aunt Hilda to get lost in the shuffle.

Organize your email into subfolders for each project. Emails (both incoming and outgoing) should be filed in the appropriate folder for quick retrieval.

Follow-Up to Your Phone Calls With an Email Message

Send a brief email message to your wedding vendors after your call to recap your conversation and make sure everyone is on the same page. A lengthy message isn't necessary, but you should definitely confirm your agreement before too much time passes.

Call or send an email You shouldn't tweet, text, or DM.

Many sellers are happy to share their prefered methods of communication with you ("No D.M.s please"). Why? In a situation where a supplier receives between one and ten inquiries per day, it's easy for one to get lost inside the shuffle. There is a sudden direct message in your inbox. An observation is simple to overlook.

Email is the most popular means of communication. By doing so, the vendor can more easily keep track of your conversation, respond thoroughly from their desktop, and attach any necessary files or links. There's a good chance you'll get a response if you make a phone call and then follow up with an email.

Make Your Emails Count. 

Write down your daily questions for a wedding vendor instead of bombarding them with emails. Instead of sending six separate emails about the same issue, compile your questions and send them all in one. This, however, is not an excuse to be as vague as possible. All of the vendors for your wedding want to make sure that no messages get lost in cyberspace.

Ask Questions

You only get married (hopefully) once, but your wedding vendors do it over and over again. If you have a question that seems ridiculous to you but not to your vendors, don't worry. You can never ask a dumb question.

Be Visual/share Pictures.

Your wedding vendors are probably artists or designers because that's what it takes to succeed in the wedding business. Find an image that comes close to what you want in a magazine or online and send it to your florist instead of trying to describe the flowers you want at your wedding.

Save Your Difficult Topics for Face-To-Face Conversations.

Misunderstandings are common in email exchanges, which makes communication challenging. It's best to have a one-on-one chat in person if you need to discuss something complicated. If that isn't possible, then pick up the phone.

Keep Everything Organized

Being well-organized is crucial right now. Binders, files, and planners are great places to store documents you need to keep track of (like contracts).

You and your team members will likely need to refer back to these several times during your discussions. This is not only true for paper copies, but also for electronic correspondence. Check your inbox (and spam) on a regular basis, and then file away any relevant correspondence with your wedding vendors into a separate "wedding" folder.

Have Realistic Expectations

Unlike your best friend, the venue coordinator probably won't respond to your text message within the allotted forty seconds. The vendors you hire for your wedding should respond to your inquiries as soon as possible, but it's understandable if they need a few hours. Make sure you know what to expect from the beginning by inquiring about their prefered mode of contact (and the expected response times). It's important to remember that communication works both ways, so you should answer their questions as soon as possible.

Keep Things Concise and to the Point

A vendor you have a great working relationship with still has a job to do and probably doesn't want to sit and talk with you for hours. Don't waste their time with fluff; be specific about what you need in your communications. Keep things upbeat and remember that "brief" does not equal "rude."

Use Visual Aids

It is common knowledge that a picture is worth a thousand words. Now is the time to pull out the visual aids if you're having trouble communicating with one of your wedding vendors (this is where Pinterest comes in handy). Providing specifics about what you're looking for will speed up the process.

Assign a Point of Contact

Assigning a single point of contact with each vendor reduces the confusion that comes from having to deal with multiple people. Remember that you don't have to handle everything on your own; if you need assistance, your fiancé(e), mother, or maid of honour can handle the florist and the photographer, respectively.

Be Aware of Your Timeline

Since your wedding is still months away, you and your vendor probably won't be exchanging many words when you first hire them. Initiating contact may require a few planned phone calls, but subsequent contact should be less frequent than once per week. You can feel free to increase the frequency and intensity of your interactions with your wedding vendors as the big day draws near.

Actually, Communicate

Trust in the expertise of your wedding professionals. However, it's perfectly fine to enquire about a charge or item that seems unusual. Use caution when expressing yourself; you want to come across as friendly and positive, not accusatory.

Pay Attention to Your Vendor's Initial Communication Style.

The planner I contacted didn't get back to me for a whole week, and there was no out of office message. How come the stationery store I called never got back to me? Have you requested a quote but heard nothing back until you sent a follow-up email? All of these point to the person's communication style as you work together on your plans. Follow your gut instincts. It could work out fine if you don't mind waiting a while for a response. You want a more deadline-driven vendor if you tend to fall behind on your own commitments. Looking for a Wedding Event Planner? Look no further, Vines of the Yarra Valley have you covered.

Read Your Contract Thoroughly.

Don't put your name on something you haven't read, as obvious as that may be. However, when it comes to the iTunes user agreement, we can be prone to signing without fully reviewing the terms and conditions. Regardless of how long or simple the contract your vendor sends you may seem, it is still important to read it thoroughly and ask questions about anything that isn't clear. Possibly, if something were to happen to the photographer, the warranty would require them to provide a replacement.

You should feel safe with both the person blocking you and the person you're considering hiring as your wedding photographer. Before working with a stationer, make sure you understand and agree to any clauses in the contract that may pertain to multiple revisions or edits. While this may seem unimportant at first, you should be aware that there will be an additional cost for each revision after the first two.

Be Very Clear About Your Budget.

It's a common misunderstanding that disclosing financial constraints will force vendors to revise their quote or guarantee that the chosen option will cost no more than the specified limit. To tell the truth, most businesses have their own secret pricing structure. Those are the prices from which you draw your costs. A customer with a $100 budget will receive the same form of quote as one with a $5,000 budget. The price is fixed and will not adjust to fit your financial situation.

Know What You Want

Knowing exactly what you want before meeting with your wedding vendors is one of the most basic but effective ways to improve your communication with them. We know that saying that is easy, but executing on your perfect wedding day is another story entirely. We not necessary have every detail of your linens, venue setup, and day-of schedule worked out, but knowing the general direction you'd like to move in is helpful. To help bring your vision to life, we can suggest a variety of options, but first, you need to have a general idea in mind for the big day.

Set Realistic Expectations

The stakes are high for this one. Keep in mind your timeline and financial constraints when communicating with wedding vendors. If you're hoping to dine on steak and seafood for $35 per person, you'll be disappointed. A wedding on a tighter budget need not sacrifice aesthetics. Although, don't expect your wedding vendors to go above and beyond. We can provide you with appealing substitutes, but please be aware that they may differ slightly from the pins you pinned on Pinterest.

Keep an Open Mind

Having a flexible mindset will allow you to explore countless options when collaborating with your wedding suppliers. Coming to us with a clear idea in mind and refusing to budge makes it difficult for us to suggest alternatives that could be just as good, if not better. We enjoy working with brides and grooms who are willing to collaborate in order to find novel and creative ways to celebrate their wedding day.

Respect Your Due Dates.

As soon as you've decided on a vendor, it's important to get a timeframe for when their services will be ready to go into effect. Then, be prepared to follow through on your promises and observe their progress. It's important to remember that if you're supposed to give your stationer your guest list by a certain date and you don't, they may delay or charge you more for your wedding invitations. They might not be able to continue working on your project if you ask them to wait past the original deadline you set. Costs for expedited services like shipping, printing, and design could even add up quickly if you procrastinate.

The timeline should be mutually agreed upon by the vendor. Don't be shy about checking in with them after a missed deadline to see if they can give you a new shipping estimate. If a vendor misses a deadline, the only good news is that they'll be responsible for covering the cost of any rush orders or expedited shipping.

Select a vendor you can rely on.

If you pick a vendor or a based on a single criterion, you're asking for trouble in the planning phase. While their location may have been ideal, the lack of variety in their offerings likely forced you to look elsewhere to fulfil your wedding day needs. Poor coordination or missed deadlines were the price of potentially saving money. Your time is better spent developing your business, rather than spending a year pursuing a vendor for delivery of promised goods or services. Possibly you were in such a rush to book a room that you didn't give them a thorough examination. You might learn that they didn't have enough experience.

If you take the time to find and hire vendors whose work, communication styles, and business ethics mesh well with your own, your wedding will go off without a hitch. With this team at your disposal, you can rest assured that your plans will be carried out precisely and efficiently. When you've put together a great team, you can trust in their abilities and just watch things take off. Need help planning your wedding? Check out our list of Wedding Event Planners here.

Conclusion

Talking to wedding vendors can be difficult if you feel like they aren't understanding what you want. Keep in mind these tips for enhancing your interactions with anyone, from the event rental company to your stylist. Do as much homework on your wedding vendors as you would on the dealership that will be servicing your new ride. Get the word out to the people who will be helping you pull off the event. When conducting interviews with potential vendors, pay close attention to how they express themselves.

Make sure all wedding-related correspondence is sent to a dedicated email address. Create new folders in your inbox for each individual undertaking. The most widely used method of electronic communication is email. This does not justify being intentionally evasive. Making a phone call and then sending an email to follow up is likely to yield results.

Don't bring up the Tough Stuff unless absolutely necessary. Vendors for your wedding should get back to you as soon as they can, but a delay of a few hours is understandable. In order to speed up the search, it is helpful to provide as much detail as possible about what you're after. Single-point-of-contact assignments with vendors help avoid the chaos that can arise when dealing with several different people. Be sure to read the contract in its entirety and clarify any questions you may have before signing.

Make sure you are comfortable with the stationer's policy on revisions and edits before beginning work with them. Most companies, however, employ some form of exclusive pricing. One of the simplest but most efficient ways to improve communication is to go into meetings with vendors having a clear idea of what you want. If you approach working with your wedding vendors with an open mind, you'll find endless possibilities. Hold yourself accountable by meeting deadlines and delivering on commitments.

Rush orders and expedited shipping costs will be covered by the vendor if they miss a deadline. The vendor should be in agreement about the schedule. When a shipping deadline passes without a new estimate being provided, don't be reluctant to contact them.

Content Summary

• All over the course of your wedding preparations, you will have to interact with a wide variety of service providers.
• Communicate in a way that is both clear and complete.
• Make a special wedding email address for all correspondence related to the big day.
•  Write down your daily questions for a wedding vendor instead of bombarding them with emails.
• Check your inbox (and spam) on a regular basis, and then file away any relevant correspondence with your wedding vendors into a separate "wedding" folder.
• The vendors you hire for your wedding should respond to your inquiries as soon as possible, but it's understandable if they need a few hours.
• Assigning a single point of contact with each vendor reduces the confusion that comes from having to deal with multiple people.
• Read Your Contract Thoroughly.
• Before working with a stationer, make sure you understand and agree to any clauses in the contract that may pertain to multiple revisions or edits.
• Be Very Clear About Your Budget.
• The price is fixed and will not adjust to fit your financial situation.
• Knowing exactly what you want before meeting with your wedding vendors is one of the most basic but effective ways to improve your communication with them.
• Keep in mind your timeline and financial constraints when communicating with wedding vendors.
• The timeline should be mutually agreed upon by the vendor.
• Select a vendor you can rely on.
• Your wedding service providers should now be speaking to you in a unified language.
• However, you should be responsible with your own money and keep up with your wedding vendors' correspondence.