Ahem...
I'm interrupting our Faces of Williamsburg Weddings series (which I'm loving and has more good stuff on the way) to touch on a subject of general wedding planning interest that is too important too ignore.
Amber's Story
I first wrote about this topic in July of 2008. Unfortunately, due to some broken links (my fault!) only a part of that article appears on our former blog The World According to Weddlady (weddlady.com) today. I was incited to write (not riot) again by a great article written by a California colleague, Amber Gustafson, and posted yesterday, which you can read on her blog, entitled: The Difference Between Venue and Independent Coordinators.
Amber was prompted to write when she received the (sadly too often repeated) message: "thanks for your follow up, but we booked Venue X and they provide a wedding coordinator and so I don't need your services."
Amber's article is a must-read.
My Take
I have been, and remain, passionate about this issue. I have no malice towards venue coordinators - in fact, I adore some of them so much that I have previously and will again profile them by name on my blogs. The ones who get it - the ones who understand that different clients need different levels of help, and that teamwork is the best way to achieve superior results, are worth seeking out, identifying and treating like gods among men.
The Good
Like Amber, I believe their role is critical to the success of a wedding day. Working in tandem with a professional venue coordinator can make an event seamless and dream-like no matter how many unforeseen issues arise. I work with two venue coordinators in particular who, through their knowledge of their facilities and incredible commitment to cooperative effort and the best possible outcome have helped pull events through the most trying of circumstances, with happy clients as the result.
The Bad
However, I also believe that many venue coordinators are under so much pressure to appear to be all things to all people in order to land accounts, that they are forced to in some cases mislead clients into believing that they do what an independent planner does. Unless they are staffed like some of the world's more exclusive full-service resorts (which very few Catering/Sales department budgets allow), they can't, even when they really want to.
It's Not Just Me Folks
I was speaking with a professional photographer friend this evening, and brought up the issue. The photographer insisted that I write about the subject again, and noted this about the shiny, detailed weddings you see in magazines - almost none of them are credited to venue coordinators. They all have independent planners and designers listed (or should be listed depending on the publication).
Roles and Responsibilities - Theirs
It's not because venue coordinators aren't creative, helpful, caring people. It's because their JOB is different. Their responsibilities are to the integrity of their venue, the safety of their clients, and the sanctity of their product. They have to be available at least five days a week when you want things like specs, diagrams, booking availability, site tours, sometimes catering quotes, delivery restrictions, and behind-the-scenes stuff like staffing and site repairs. They travel to promote their facilities, field many times more inquiries than they will ever book events, and contribute to marketing planning. Sometimes their roles are divided - they not only coordinate weddings, but conventions and corporate events; they may have multiple sites that fall under their responsibility. They may have membership responsibilities, seasonal building usage to consider or any number of sales demands. They very often have the full-time job of more than one person.
And when they do deal with independent wedding planners, they don't always get the pick of the litter. Our segment of the industry is plagued with under-educated upstarts and drama queens. Too many start as really cruddy wedding planners and do damage to the reputations of the great planners of this world. Venue coordinators get stuck with the results, and that is unfair to them.
Wonder why turnover is high in their segment of the industry?
Roles & Responsibilities - Mine
And then there's the PROFESSIONAL independent planner's job. My job. Needless to say, I don't sit and blog all day (sometimes I sit and blog all night). I keep crazy busy doing what I do, and can not even imagine adding the responsibilities of a venue coordinator to my own for every event.
The fact is that very, very few facilities are equipped to provide the kinds of attention to detail that a professional, independent, client-focused planner provides.
What Should Be Done
I love the great venue coordinators of the world. I don't want to see the position go any more than I want to start taking wedding photos or baking cakes (both would end disasterously, I assure you). What I want is for venue coordinators to aknowledge that:
a) they cannot provide all of the same services that an independent planner can provide, and that there are many clients who need some amount of help from an independent planner
b) we are not forces that need to work against each other - mutual, coordinated, cooperative efforts will actually increase the quality of weddings that we execute, which will naturally increase the demand for both of our services, which will lead to more opportunities to serve together, and so on. This "grab every last penny no matter who you have to grab it from" mentality doesn't help our clients, and definitely does not help our industry.
What Will Nirvana Look Like?
How can they practice this? Well, adding wedding planners to their lists of recommended service providers would be a nice start (seriously - many won't) - and then having frank discussions with their clients (and their management) letting them know that independent wedding planners enhance their services in invaluable ways. I'll settle for NOT claiming to be wedding planners, though, as a start.
In return I promise to respect their venues and recommend lots of appropriate clients to them - clients best suited to their style and strengths with the best potential to be deliriously happy with their product. Win-win-win for all.
Why You Should Care
If you're planning a wedding, you're making an investment in a day that you can't, as Amber points out, do over. Educate yourself about issues like this, and protect your investment by hiring the professionals who best meet your needs, and not just those who try to be all things to all people. You deserve the best. Demand it.
