Sarah Lizabeth Barker - Planning A Wedding For Dummies

Mostly, be resourceful if you need to save money on your budget. It’s easy to fall in love with a vendor online and then find out there’s no way you can possibly afford them. I don’t want that for you, so determine your budget, figure out what’s most important to you, start plugging in those numbers, and then get resourceful!

The biggest budget buster is not setting limits on your guest list and budget. It’s important to make sure you have determined how much you can spend so that you avoid scrambling in the end, trying to come up with money you simply don’t have.

Your budget is often determined by how many guests you’re having at your wedding. Whether you have 50 guests or 200 guests, your budget will have to include everything you need to put on the size of a wedding that you planned. When you tell a vendor you’ll have 100 guests and you end up with 150 guests, that will be a big budget buster.

When I’m discussing a guest list with a client, I often say to them, “Can you hand each person on this list $200, and say, I want you to come to my wedding?” It’s easy to get caught up in who should and should not be invited. It’s a train that you can’t stop. You invite one person, then you must invite another person, then another, and another, and all of a sudden, you have 50 people on the invite list who really shouldn’t be.

I know, we’ve all been there and it’s easy to fall into this never-ending cycle. Therefore, it’s very important to put limits on how many people you invite. The more people you invite, the more budget you’ll need. It’s just that simple. In a wedding there are variable costs and fixed costs. The variable costs are anything that has to do with goods such as your food, bar, or rentals. If you have more people, you need more food, alcohol, or chairs. A variable cost is a service such as a DJ, photographer, or videographer. Those costs will not change based on how many people you invite.

I always encourage my clients to divide the list between their parents’ friends and their friends. It can be frustrating to feel like you need to invite someone because they’re friends of the family. You don’t really know them but now you must pay for them to come to your wedding. Set those limits early in the planning process. Consider your friends being 50% of the list and then divide the remaining 50% between both sets of parents. Make sure those limits are set and stick to it to avoid additional costs that weren’t originally factored into your budget.

Another train easy to get on is the “add-on” train. Here’s how this one goes. You met with a vendor; you locked in what you want included and what you don’t want included. Then here come the add-ons! “Why yes, we would love an extra floral arrangement that we don’t need.” “Yes, let’s do another signature drink.” “Yes, let’s add another band member. I just love a good trumpet player.” This train will never stop, and you’ll add what seems to be a simple thing every time. Before you know it, you have increased your budget by 5% in things you didn’t know were important to you. Stick to the plan. After you have everything in place and know that you have additional money in your budget, then add away!

Setting your limits, and sticking to them, will help avoid the dreaded scramble for more money. You have only what is in your budget. It isn’t magic money, so stay within what you have, and your planning process will be much more enjoyable.

There is a very important fee you should be aware of. Often, this fee goes unnoticed until the final bill. When you’re aware of it, the vendor may have whispered it or maybe said it in the middle of a cough. It’s what I call the “Service ++ Fee.” Often, you won’t know what the “++” is. Is it 5% or 50%? Because we don’t know, it’s very important to talk with your vendors about it. Each state has different rules and regulations on food and alcohol tax. It’s important to find out what yours is in the location where you’re hosting your wedding.

These fees will sneak up so fast you won’t know what hit you. I once had a client who received an initial quote from her caterer with a teeny, tiny line at the very bottom that said, “Service Fees,” but that line was empty. Later, when she submitted her final guest count and received her final invoice, the bill went from $25,000 to almost $40,000. I don’t know about you, but that’s what I call a big difference!

I also had a client who had a friend read a scripture at their wedding. The friend saw a podium sitting over in the corner of the room and pulled the podium over so that she could place her reading in front of her. Well, after the wedding, the client got a final bill with a $250 service fee. When she inquired about this mysterious charge, the ceremony location said it was for the use of the podium. You know, the one that her friend moved over by herself? Now the client had to pay for a podium she didn’t even want.

Service fees are the “catchalls.” Often vendors don’t know how to categorize something, so they call it a service fee. Be aware of these fees so that you don’t get caught off guard and again wind up searching for magic money to appear. When you meet with your vendors, make sure to discuss these mystery fees. Request an invoice, not an estimate. An estimate is always changing, but an invoice is locked in.

Tips and gratuities are often forgotten when determining your budget. If you want to tip your amazing team of vendors, don’t forget to include them in your total budget. In this section, we’ll discuss whom to tip, what to tip, and how to deliver your tips.

Tips are never expected but always appreciated. Most of the people who receive tips on your wedding day are being paid by the hour and tips help offset the costs that occurred for them to be at your wedding. If you feel like a vendor has done an amazing job for you, then give them a tip. If you feel like they have not measured up to your expectations, don’t tip them.

Table 3-6is a cheat sheet to help you figure out how much to tip each vendor. This is only a guide. Anyone you tip will appreciate the additional cash in their pockets, no matter how much you tip.

TABLE 3-6Vendor Tip Percentages

Delivering your tips to the appropriate person is a great task for your parents, best man, maid/matron of honor, or wedding planner if you hire one. This is something that you need to prepare before the day of the wedding. Determine your tips per vendor and get out those envelopes. On the envelope, write the name of vendor receiving the tip. Then include the cash and seal the envelope. (Your tips should be cash only.) Make sure to tell the person you’ve asked to distribute the tips to check in with you first to see if you’re happy with the service prior to giving the tips to the vendors. The last thing you want is to distribute the tips and not be happy with the service and have to try and get that cash back.