When to hire a wedding planner

I recently met with a couple who's getting married in a year. They have their venue contracted, and they're clear on what they want in terms of colors, cake, menu, invitation, timeline, etc. I was impressed. Their venue also comes with a coordinator, catering and rentals. Why would they need me?

When it comes down to it, everyone needs some kind of coordinator to supervise set-up and manage the day-of so that the couple can actually enjoy their wedding. If something goes wrong (and trust me, after 5 years of event planning something always goes wrong), the last thing you want is to have the bride troubleshooting!

So why would this couple want to hire me when it would seem that everything is already taken care of?

• Personalized Attention: the site coordinator is the advocate of the site rather than an advocate of the couple. He/she will ensure that the wedding goes off without a hitch, but won't necessarily be there to bounce ideas off of during the year of planning. In addition, your wedding planner will get to know you, the family, and the bridal party and will be to efficiently give direction and answer questions on the big day.
• Expert Resource: you can consult every checklist and every wedding magazine, but each wedding comes with its own unique flavors. Think of all the variables from hosting international guests, to turning the wedding into a weekeng event with golf, to choosing unique color combinations (what flowers do you choose if your colors are turquoise and brown).
• Neither Seen nor Heard: a good wedding planner will be invisible. The bridal party, family and guests won't come away remarking about the "pushy or loud wedding planner." They'll come away thinking the event was smooth and effortless. Why? Because the planner should be able to direct everyone through a natural progression of events. For example, the planner should not be the one on the microphone calling the father of the bride up for his speech. Instead, there should be an emcee or guest of honor who serves as the emcee and the planner will let him/her know when to invite the father of the bride to speak.
• Chemistry: you can pick your wedding venue, but you can't pick your site coordinator. How well you get along with your points of contact will directly determine how much you enjoy the planning process and day of.

You hire a wedding planner to be your advocate, to do your negotiation, and to be a hard-ass when you don't want to be. This same person will graciously ensure you and your family are taken care of and enjoy themselves.