We all have seen pictures of wedding planners touching up the napkins or the tableware, and while that looks cute, it’s very deceiving of what the actual job of a wedding planner is. Let’s be real: a picture of a wedding planner on their phone wouldn’t make the cut.
In this article you will learn about the wedding designer, wedding coordinator, wedding stylist, bridal assistant and travel agent, all of which are usually associated with the wedding planner. Oh yes, and we will also answer one of the biggest questions: what is the Antigua Guatemala wedding planner cost?
As you read this article, you will understand why these are separate roles that must be seen as such for quality control. After all, all wedding pros are here to help you elevate your wedding experience to something you can cherish for ages, and as your Guatemala wedding planner and designer, we want you to have the best of the best.
What is the difference between a wedding designer and a wedding stylist?
Is an egg the same as a chicken? Well, that's the wedding designer to the wedding stylist. One of them is the artist who creates the conception of the overall appearance, anything from paper goods and color palettes for the wedding party (bridesmaids, groomsmen, or best persons) to tablespaces, lighting, and more. The other one is the producer of those dreams, manages the inventory, and provides the labor and tools for the setup and teardown.
But who do you recruit for those jobs? Now that we have clarified the roles, let’s shake things up and spice them up a bit more. In the international luxury wedding industry, you can find these roles completely separate in specialized companies or even have one or both roles taken care of internally by the wedding planning company (separate bills, of course).
This last detail is very important to know because this can cause a lot of confusion on who you should pay to produce your wedding. At Zeeba, we have often had this question: “Should we pay all the vendors to you?” And the answer to that is always “no.” You should only pay your Guatemala wedding planner a portion of the overall cost if they are the stylist for the wedding, meaning they will be the “general contractor” for all the decoration. We highly recommend staying away from this option if you want to stay within budget. We will tell you why in a second.
What is the Guatemala wedding planner's role?
So now that we are talking about Guatemala, who do you recruit to be your wedding designer and stylist in Guatemala? Well, here is where this starts to get blurry since you won’t find a one-fits-all answer. A wedding planner is essentially an industry-specialized project manager who keeps track of the budget, timelines, human resources, and deliverables. Learn more about the traditional wedding planner vs the destination wedding planner Guatemala
Anything a wedding planner does outside this description is basically another role.
Some wedding florists in Guatemala take on portions of the wedding design and styling on their own hands but leave other aspects outside their scope; this creates inconsistencies and expectations that the wedding planner will take on the orphan chores. A good wedding planner should be able to inform you of any design/styling discrepancies and pay close attention to how this could affect your bill if there is any overlap of roles with another wedding pro.
The planner should refrain from automatically assuming these duties. Let’s be honest: not all wedding planners have an eye for design. Ideally, a wedding designer would have a background in architecture, interior design, industrial or graphic design, plastic arts, scenic design, and other related fields. If you were wondering about us, we have them! That's why we can offer you a one-stop shop for wedding design and planning. This combo is extra convenient since you will have a cohesive and bespoke design that is achievable within your budget target without back-and-forths or miscommunications between many vendors.
Other professional roles in the wedding industry
You might think we are forgetting a few of the roles we mentioned earlier, and you are right; we left it last to provide more context. So, who is the wedding coordinator, and what do they do? The wedding coordinator supervises the vendors and executes the technical agenda that has been prepared for the day of the event. When hired with your full-service wedding planner, it is okay to call it a wedding planner, but when hired without the prep process, this person should only be called a day-of coordinator. But we cannot call a venue coordinator a planner or wedding coordinator because the venue coordinator won’t step up for all your needs.
So, does your wedding planner or coordinator help you retouch your makeup, put on your dress, and fix your hair when needed? The answer is simple, no. This is not part of the role and whoever does it is doing it out of their heart or out of inexperience. The wedding coordinator should not engage in activities that take their main focus away from supervising, this is the reason why is recommended to have a wedding party or hire a bridal assistant who can hand you the help you need when you need it.
The same goes for travel coordination. While the planner possesses hospitality experience, this doesn’t mean hotel and flight booking are their niche. To do so, they would need a special license to get an IATA number and bypass intermediate booking platforms like Booking.com or Expedia. This step requires a huge investment that wouldn't make sense without pushing volume. Believe me, you don’t want to work with a wedding planner who pushes more than 6 to 10 weddings a year.
Antigua Guatemala wedding planner cost
That said, you might be wondering how much it actually costs to hire a Guatemala wedding planner. And again, we won’t be able to provide a one-fits-all answer. It will all depend on how many roles the wedding planner is taking on, the logistics of the job, and the depth of planning you desire. An easier way to look at it is to calculate 10% to 22% of your wedding budget on your wedding planner alone. Your wedding planner will let you know the minimum budget they work with according to their expertise and wedding niche.
Yes, your wedding planner should always be your most expensive vendor because they work the most hours on your wedding.
Now, when it comes to fee structures, you can find many forms of structuring them. As we learned from our previous blog, “Are Wedding Planners Scammers?” there are five types of structures in the wedding world; understanding each is key to “comparing apples to apples” when vetting your future wedding planner. Just remember, now that you know about all the different roles that could be combined into one person, be sure to think about the unique value each professional brings when deciding how much they should be paid. You know, to compare apples to apples.
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