Today is something we’re so excited for! Our dear friends Emma Seitz and Sarah Bond have taken a giant leap and opened up their own business, Grace & Gold Events!! They are offering a range of wedding and event planning services for Southern California and beyond, and we are so thrilled to be part of this new adventure.
To celebrate such a momentous occasion, we asked Emma to help us with a guest blog explaining the difference between a full wedding planner and a day-of coordinator because it can be a little confusing.
What is the Basic Difference Between a Wedding Planner and a Coordinator?
A planner is literally planning your wedding with you–helping you pick your venue, your vendors, sometimes your date, the design elements, the decor, all the little details.
With a day-of coordinator, we are just pulling together all of the planning details and work the couple has already put into it. They have already picked everything, signed contracts, designed, decided how everything is supposed to come together. We then come in to “coordinate” it all into place with deciding the timeline, when vendors arrive, making sure they set up everything, when major events occur, etc. That’s why you see “month-of” commonly because we really are coming in at the very end of things.
What is the Difference in Price?
There can be a significant price difference, because there is a lot more labor and time involved with planning. With day-of coordination, you can expect your coordinator to put in 8-15 hours of time into the timeline, and another 12-14 hours running the rehearsal and the actual day. Planning is a lot more depending on the package you purchase or arrangement you have with your coordinator.
What are the Different Responsibilities?
A day-of coordinator is expected to know all of the major details of your vision for the day and how it is supposed to run. I pride myself in taking the time to get to know my clients and what they want for their day so I can literally take over and run it – I don’t want a couple freaking out that something isn’t being done correctly, I should already know!
A planner will have a much more involved “feeling,” for the day as they have been integral into the design, vendor selection, etc. So much of it comes more naturally, and to be honest, can end up being more important to the planner because the planner has most likely been working on it for so long! Planner is expected to be involved with nearly everything from the get-go, attend meetings, get to know you as a couple. A day-of, as previously mentioned, sort of just comes in at the 9th hour.
So, let’s break it down!
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COORDINATOR
– Vendor referrals if you haven’t already hired them
– You like doing all of the work involved with planning your wedding
– Need someone else to run the wedding the day-of
– Smaller budget
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PLANNER
– Help finding and negotiating your vendors
– Budget guidance
– Timely reminders for when to make major decisions, make payments, send those invites
– Designing the decor and artistic elements
– Someone to make major decisions for you prior to the wedding
– If you have a venue that requires rentals, external catering (blank canvas venues), you definitely need a planner
– Have no time to plan a wedding
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The one weird in between place is a bride who has done all of the planning, but has a TON of DIY elements. Those are tricky because DIY decor can take up so much time to explain, move and setup. It’s maybe not worthy of a planner, but you might need to expect to pay for additional hours or labor from the coordinator/planner to set all of it up. ALSO, if your wedding is in 2 locations (separate ceremony and reception), a coordinator is crucial.
If you have questions for Emma about the differences or responsibilities, ask in the comments!
This post is so helpful!
This is such a great explanation of the difference! I think either aspect is definitely an added bonus on wedding day!