You’re engaged!! The big question has been asked and the champagne has been popped. You’ve basked in the moment and celebrated with family and friends. Now that you’ve been able to take a moment and breathe, you’re ready to start the exciting process of planning!
You’re engaged!! The big question has been asked and the champagne has been popped. You’ve basked in the moment and celebrated with family and friends. Now that you’ve been able to take a moment and breathe, you’re ready to start the exciting process of planning!
But here’s another big question… where the heck do you start?!
There are A LOT of details that go into planning a wedding. So aligning a dream team of amazing vendors is super important to ensure your wedding vision is created and your big day goes smoothly.
So here’s my tips on how, when and where to go about finding your dream wedding vendors…
+ Start your search as early as possible: Wedding vendors, especially venues, photographers and wedding planners, tend to book up 12-18 months ahead of time. Say whaaaat?! To make sure your dream vendors are available for your big day, it’s best to start as early as you can. Especially if you are getting married on a Saturday in prime wedding season (typically May – October).
+ Discuss and decide on your dream vision BEFORE searching for vendors: Talk to your fiancé about not just the colors or theme you want for your big day, but also the vibe and feeling you want your wedding day to have. There are so many options when it comes to creating your perfect day. And it’s good to be on the same page and have an idea of what you’re looking to create so you can effectively communicate to your potential vendors ahead of time. This will make sure you not only click but also have similar values and visions as well!
+ Ask your friends or family members for recommendations: Sometimes it’s difficult to know if you truly vibe with vendors you find online if you’re not able to meet with them in person before booking. But if you have friends or family who have either recently gotten married (or even been to a wedding as a guest) this is such a great place to start. I mean, who better to recommend awesome vendors than the people you already TRUST! They can give you an honest opinion on their experience. And if it’s someone who recently attended a wedding as a guest, you can get a truly unbiased opinion on the venue, food or DJ since guests always have opinions on these 3 aspects of a wedding!
+ Ask your wedding planner/coordinator: If you hired a wedding planner, one of the main portions of their job is to connect you with other vendors who will be a perfect fit for your wedding day. And in many cases their recommendations will be for vendors they’ve previously worked with and already trust.
+Ask your venue for recommendations: Chances are your wedding venue has worked with many vendors and may even have a “preferred vendors” list. One of the biggest benefits to this is that not only do you already know your venue works well with that vendor, but those vendors already have experience working at that specific venue as well! And it’s always reassuring to know your venue has a good relationship with your vendors.
+Start a Pinterest Wedding Board: Not only can you create and pin all aspects of your dream wedding, but you can also FIND the vendors who helped create that wedding vision! Most pins will link back to the vendor who originally pinned it. It’s such a fun and visual way to simply browse and create your dream vision, then connect with the vendors who can truly bring it to life! If you’re planning an elopement in Yosemite, then a search for #YosemiteElopement is a good place to start. You could even broaden it to something like #bohoelopment to get more of an artistic style as well!
+ Start stalking Instagram: Seriously, Instagram is such a great resource for vendors. Especially wedding photographers and videographers. It’s a visual platform which allows them to display their work in one concise place. And typically you’re able to connect with a vendors website or email right through their profile page. There are quite a few ways to find wedding vendors on Instagram, I’m going to break down the best ones for those who aren’t overly familiar with how to navigate the app:
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- General Search – Just like with Pinterest (or really any search engine), typing in the location and type of vendor you are looking for such as “Cleveland Wedding Photographer” will bring up a long list of wedding photographers who you can then search through to find who has a similar look and vibe to what you’re looking for!
- Search through who other vendors are promoting or following- I can’t tell you how often couples find me through another vendor that is either following me or has “tagged” me in a post. It may be a bit of a rabbit hole, but it’s easy to find others in the industry just by simply clicking on those links or going to a vendors “following” list on their profile.
- Hashtags – This is a similar to a general search but will bring you to the individual post instead of a vendors full page. If you’re getting married in Cleveland, Ohio, Navigate to the “hashtags” section of Instagram and search something like #clevelandweddingphotographer. Planning a destination wedding? Try a hashtag like #DestinationWeddingPhotographer or #DestinationPhotographer. Pro tip – the more narrow the search using a location based tag, the easier it will be to find local vendors.
- Geotags – This is a search of the places or venues people get married. So you can find vendors who post often in the area you’re getting married at! It’s also super helpful if you’re looking for locations for engagement session as well!
+Google Search: Don’t forget about good old google! Most businesses have Google listings with their website, contact info, photos and even reviews! Doing a simple search such as “wedding photographer near me” or “rustic wedding venue in Ohio” will give you tons of great options to start!
+Use an online wedding planning database like The Knot or Wedding Wire: Both The Knot and Wedding Wire were actually made to connect you with all types of wedding vendors! You can simply search the type of vendor and location you’re looking for and see photos of their work, get prices, and other info about all of their services. You can even read reviews from past clients and contact them right through the site! Easy peasy.
+Ask Your Dream Team! – Typically after you book your venue, the next step would typically be to book your planner or photographer. Now keep in mind is no “right or wrong” order to book your vendors. But once you bring a new vendor onboard, feel free to ask their opinion and if they have other vendor recommendations as well! Especially those who work closely together! Photographers especially can be super helpful with recommending videographers. And the same goes with hair and makeup artists. Many vendors often work with others with a similar style and will be able to give you the top recommendations to fit your style and budget!
So those are all my top tips on where to find your wedding vendor dream team! I know it can seem like a lot, but I promise YOU GOT THIS. Start doing some research and then reach out to those vendors to start a conversation, see if you vibe and request their availability and prices. You’ll know pretty much right away if they are a good fit for you and if their values, priorities and visions align with your own.
Still unsure of where to start? Click here to grab a copy of my FREE wedding planning checklist to guide you through the wedding planning process from start to finish!
