The Event Planner
When it comes to your wedding...
"negotiation" should be considered a dirty word!
Budget-conscious brides- and grooms-to-be may have come across tips on blogs and in social media forums telling you to negotiate pricing with your vendors. Our take...don't do it!
Here's the logic behind it: When vendors hear the word "wedding," that $500 portrait shoot becomes a $5,000 wedding shoot. That $50 vase of flowers becomes a $250 floral arrangement…and so on.
So should you negotiate pricing with your vendors? Absolutely not!
Why? Ask yourself how you would feel if your boss came to you asking you to do more work or put in more hours for less pay or to give him or her a portion of your next paycheck. When you try to haggle or negotiate pricing, that is what you are asking of your vendors.
You're paying more ... for a reason.
Similar service may be priced differently for a wedding because that vendor is being asked to provide a different product and level of customer service. More calls, More emails. More attention. For example, you expect more from your caterer than they would deliver for a dinner party…right?
They are running a business, not a charity
Vendors base their pricing on
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Their experience and the work they produce
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What it costs them to cover all of their expenses (staff, materials, equipment, insurance, transportation etc.)
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The ability to generate a profit that they can use to support their business so they can continue to produce the product or service at the level consumers have come to expect from their business
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The income they need to produce to support themselves
The Vendor-Client relationship is important
The fastest way to essentially get fired or ghosted by a vendor is to start off the relationship letting them know you don't want to pay for what you expect from them. When you ask for a discount or try to negotiate with wedding vendors, the messages you unintentionally send are…
“I don't value your product or service enough to pay you what you're worth”
&
“I'm expecting a lot for a little, so I am likely going to be difficult to work with”
Kick off your client-vendor relationship on the right foot by showing you respect the price of their invaluable services.
SO WHAT'S THE SOLUTION?
Very simple, actually!
Manage your budget, not your vendors prices
Prioritize vendors based on how important that product or service is to you. It is your responsibility to budget for the vendors you want - it is not your vendors responsibility to set their prices based on what you can afford. This is where it's best to have the guidance of an experienced planner who can align you with vendors that are within your budget and can meet your expectations!
Don't shop like you have unlimited funds
It should be common sense that when you are working within tighter budget parameters, that award winning or high demand vendor is most likely going to be a long shot when it comes to affordability. This falls true for vendors that are located outside of your immediate area as well. Stick with local vendors that are a little less well known but more within your desired price point. This will prevent spending valuable time (for you and the vendor) seeking quotes that are going to be out of your financial reach.
Being Upfront About Your Budget will actually work in your favor
Couples think that vendors ask what their budget is, so they can inflate their pricing This is one of the BIGGEST myths in the wedding industry. They ask this so that they know if…well, to be frank….so they know if you can afford them before they spend hours building a quote for you. If you love a particular vendor’s work, you can reach out to them and be upfront about what your budget is for their product/service. Most will tell you up front if you are going to be a good fit for each other.
You will have the best chance to save, with your vendors if you have an experienced wedding planner!
Planner know what you don't and they have connections in the wedding industry that you don't! Most vendors also prefer booking and giving price breaks to clients that have a planner because they know that the planner will streamline the quoting, planning and communication process - what's more, the vendor won't have to worry about being asked to do things by the client that are outside of their scope of work or what they are being paid for.