5 things to ask potential wedding vendors before you hire them | Photo by Benjaminrobyn Jespersen on Unsplash
Yay, you’re engaged! Now it’s time to start finding the right wedding vendors and putting together your wedding vendor team. You’re likely going to check out a lot of websites and read a lot of reviews in the next few months. You’ve narrowed down your list and you’re ready to reach out to potential wedding vendors, but what exactly do you ask them? Maybe you’ve never hired a band or a caterer before, what sorts of things do you need to know?
Remember, many times, you’re hiring a person, not just a company, so you want to get to know the person behind the brand.
Vendor-Specific Questions
For each type of wedding vendor you’ll need specific questions, for example, you’ll need to ask your caterers about who is responsible removing trash at the end of the night, and you need to ask your florist what flowers are in season around your wedding date, and you need to ask your officiant if they manage the rehearsal…you get the idea. But there are some general questions you can ask any vendor other than price and availability. Remember, many times, you’re hiring a person, not just a company, so you want to get to know the person behind the brand.
#1 What kind of wedding experience do you have?
This is the first thing I think I’d ask a potential vendor. If I’m looking for a good deal, I might want a vendor who is brand new to the market and is offering portfolio-building pricing. Or, I might want someone with many weddings-worth of experience so I can let them guide me. Either way, you’ll get a range of answers, all of which will be interesting.
#2 What do you love about weddings?
I think you’ll find the answer to this question very interesting. This answer will undoubtedly give you insight into who you’ll potentially be working with and why they chose to work in this incredible industry!
#3 What can your clients do to make your job easier?
So often when you’re looking for vendors for your wedding, you’re thinking about what they can do for you, but don’t forget that they’re also looking for couples who will be a good fit for them. If you plan on working with this vendor, the answer to this question could be the difference between a good vendor experience and an outstanding one (assuming you do what they ask of you).
#4 How do other vendors feel about working with you?
This is a bold question, but I think it would be such a good one to ask. I’d love it if a potential client of mine asked me this, because it would give me an opportunity to point them to the endorsements (scroll down to bottom of page) I’ve received from fellow vendors. Weddings are produced by a team, and the better that team works together the better wedding you’ll have, it’s that simple!
#5 How, and how often, will you communicate with us leading up to the wedding?
Communication leading up to the wedding is so important. Because each vendor has their own process, you’ll want to make sure you understand clearly how much, or little, communication you’ll have with them. Maybe you want a vendor who will check in weekly, or maybe you only want to talk to them when you’ve initiated the connection, either way, knowing how they prefer to communicate will give you a good feel for if they’re a good fit.
See? There are so many other questions you can ask aside from “how much do you cost?” and “are you available on my wedding date?” I hope these questions give you inspiration to ask some of your own, so you get to know your potential vendors and find the ones that are just right for you!
