Hiring the RIGHT wedding vendors: 3 Things to Do + 3 Things NOT to do before you inquire

The first steps of wedding planning can be so overwhelming. You are trying to budget, finalize your guest list, tour venues, and so much more. You’re constantly filled with decisions that rely on one another (ie. I can’t book a wedding photographer until I have my wedding venue or I can’t finalize my budget until I know my guest list which I can’t know until I have my venue). The list of decisions goes on and on! Today, I want to talk you through a little bit about that “discovery” process and share a few tips that will (hopefully!) make it easier for you to navigate the “information-collecting” stage of your engagement!

In case we haven’t met yet though, let me extend a huge welcome! I’m Alane – the woman behind the ink here at writeprettyforme.com. I’m always sharing my latest work on Instagram while you are still in the inspo-finding phase, but my blog is a great place to find info and wedding-planning tips, too! If you are wondering what it’s like to work with me, head here – or skip straight to my contact form and let’s get started!

Reach Out to Vendors That Match Your Style

When you first get engaged, it can be tempting to reach out to many, many different vendors. Trust me – I understand the desire to have all the information before making a decision. But it can get overwhelming fast. Many vendors will want to hop on a call before sending a proposal, and will likely spend a considerable amount of time creating a proposal and will likely follow up with you after the fact as well! Although not everyone you reach out to will end up working out (which is to be expected and is understandable!), you owe it to them (and to yourself!) to do as much vetting as you can before you reach out.

So my recommendation to you would be this:

✅ Do become familiar with a vendor’s style and make sure it aligns with your vibe before reaching out.

🚫 Don’t ask a vendor to replicate or imitate someone else’s work to fit your vibe please.

Create your Wedding Budget First

Whether your wedding budget is $30,000 or $300,000, it’s likely a little flexible in the beginning when you don’t really know what to expect. Maybe you’ve been trying to stick to those online budget calculators telling you what to spend where. Those budgets often don’t even include calligraphy! So just know, you don’t need to have a “perfect” budget before you reach out to your vendors, and in fact, it might serve you to remain a little bit flexible. And if you are on a tight budget, be honest. Your preferred vendor may just have some ideas on how to stretch your budget further if you are open to different possibilities!

Wondering what to budget for wedding calligraphy? Head to this post for some tips!

When navigating your wedding budget, here’s my recommendation:

✅ Do have a general idea of what you’re able and willing to invest in a vendor’s services. Be open to adjusting your wants or expectations to better align with your ideal budget.

🚫 Don’t try to negotiate with a vendor, ask for a discount, or tell them they’re too expensive.

Please Don’t Ghost Your Vendors!

This last one might not be what you want to hear, but like I said in the beginning: your wedding vendors have likely invested time (and emotion!) into your wedding day from the moment you reach out. That does NOT mean you should ever feel pressured to book someone who is the wrong fit, but please do let us know when you’ve gone a different way. We know it’s part of the job and trust me – we will appreciate not having to follow up with someone who has gone a different way!

When you book your vendors, do this next:

✅ Do send an email to any vendors that you’ve chatted with, but won’t be hiring, to let them know that you’ll be going in a different direction.

🚫 Don’t ghost a vendor who has invested time in you, whether that be through emails, calls, creating proposals, etc.

What questions do you have about hiring the right vendors?

As I said before, our blog is chockfull of wedding planning tips and inspiration! If you have more questions, come find me over on Instagram and we can always chat too. Ready to start planning your wedding decor? We are allll about the details over here so if you want our complete wedding decor guide (which is a lot more detailed than a Google search!), grab your free copy below!