October 16, 2007 at 10:18 pm - Joni

Everyone knows that weddings are a time filled with love and joy- for most of us… For some couples though, there exists a much harsher reality. It’s easy to get lost in the emotional and personal aspects of planning a wedding and forget that the wedding industry is very popular these days.   As a result, couples have many choices when it comes to videographers , DJ’s, photographers and all the other wedding vendors out there. Unfortunately, it also attracts scammers, bottom feeders, misguided individuals or whatever you’d prefer to call them.

We usually try to keep our advice here upbeat but a recent article we saw online reminded us of the other side of this industry. A young couple in Oregon was looking for an officiant to preside over their wedding and turned to Craigslist, where they found a nice woman who agreed to perform their wedding ceremony for them - everything seemed to be falling into place. The couple had asked their guests to bring Home Depot gift cards in lieu of the normal gift fare so that they could work on building a home together - a nice idea if you ask us. Imagine their surprise when they only had a handful of gift cards from a guest list of over 100 people. It turns out that their wedding officiate had stolen the bulk of the gift cards while at the wedding! This from the person that’s guiding you through your vows?! Check out the article for the details, but rest assured that the story ultimately has a happy ending. But there’s a lesson to be learned here…

It’s understandable that couples are trying to stretch their wedding dollars as far as possible these days but it pays to be smart about selecting your wedding vendors. Classified ads like those in local newspapers and online sources such as Craigslist can be good sources but as the saying goes, “you get what you pay for”. Most reputable businesses and vendors will belong to trade associations or local networking groups.  Being associated with other local vendors goes a long way in validating someone as a trustworthy addition to your wedding since businesses aren’t going to want their name and reputation associated with others that can’t deliver a quality product.

Another useful tool to use when separating the scam from the glam are reference checks. Any legitimate wedding vendor will be more than happy to provide you with statements from previous couples that have used their services and perhaps even put you in direct contact with them so you can ask questions at your leisure. Be cautious with anyone that is hesitant or unwilling to provide references.

Lastly, trust your instincts. Not only will your gut feeling be a good indicator of how well you and your wedding vendors get along and relate to each other, but it’s usually good at telling you when things don’t quite add up - even if your brain hasn’t realized it yet. Trust your instincts!

With these simple tips in mind, you’re well on your way to finding professional wedding vendors that you can feel comfortable with - which goes a long way to ensuring that you, and your guests, enjoy your wedding day!

Safe planning!

April & Joni

(An article from 425 wedding video blog)