Skills A Wedding Planner Must Possess!

By Author: Sanya Midha Arora
Total Articles: 1
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If you do an amazing job of planning big parties, enjoy working with people, have extraordinary skills when it comes to negotiating and has good network then you must consider becoming a wedding planner. Though wedding planning sounds like a fun-filled, glamorous and compelling career and yes, often it is. But it's not a stress-free job to do. You need to be extremely driven and resolute in order to succeed.
People working in this field are also acknowledged as Bridal or Wedding Consultants. There are two types of consultants some are self-employed and others work for wedding planning or event planning companies. However, in both the ways of balancing your customer’s vision and budget is the most challenging thing.

Successful wedding planning requires you to be a man-of-all-work. The role of the wedding consultant is that of an implementer, facilitator, money manager, crafts-person, and builder of dreams.
Although the job of a wedding planner involves a wide variety of responsibilities, certain tasks and duties are involved in the daily life of a wedding planner, such as the following:
• Meeting ...
... with clients to understand their vision for their wedding.
• Plan and discuss the scope of the wedding event, including the time, dates, location, venues and the cost.
• Negotiating the contracts on behalf of the clients.
• Scrutinize the venues to ensure that they fulfil the requirements of the clients.
• Finding vendors, invitation designers and printers, professional photographers, bands DJ’s and caterers and obtain proposals for their services.
• Deal with some difficulties that may occur before, during, and after the event, ensuring things go effortlessly.
• Manage additional amenities such as accommodations for the couple and guests, also handling the transportation, and catering services.
• Ensuring the satisfaction of wedding event activities for the couple and guests.
• Evaluation of wedding event invoices and approving the vendor payments.

Skills and Qualifications to become a Wedding Planner
There are no specific qualifications necessary to become a wedding planner - it's considerably more important to gain experience. You can’t get hired to plan somebody's wedding if you don't have a history of organising successful events.
• Staying calm under pressure is the most essential skill one must possess. Clients often take the stress and they may take it on you, in such situations you need to know how to deal in a professional manner.
• Though you will be juggling with different elements of the wedding and surely it isn't an easy task to do. Being spontaneous and organised all the way through is important.
• Handling your own finances, and handling the client’s budget you'll be holding both the responsibility. Staying in the budget provided to you is vital.
• Negotiating is one of the most unnoticed skills in this business. One must know where your negotiating skills can actually lustre.
• Being resourceful and possessing good networking skill holds utmost importance and it comes up with a good amount of experience in this industry.
No matter what, how well you plan a wedding beforehand, things are going to mess up on the occasion which can really make things grim. For instance, a nasty storm might come ripping through on the day of the wedding and you might have to play the hero. A decorator won’t show up on the day and you’ll need to figure out how to decorate the place or find a wedding decorator on a shoe-string budget at the last moment! Through all of this, you will have to stay calm and compose and remain positive throughout or it will further hinder the Bride and Groom’s special day.

Your role is to be “on top” of the whole thing – every finite aspect of the wedding. Wedding planners can do just about everything – from organising a budget and timetable to memorising to bring bobby pins for your veil. Duties can include arranging appointments, proposing etiquette advice, mailing invites and recording responses, negotiating contracts, managing the decorations, and attendance to several other details. However, various planners also establish their parameters as to what they are able to and what they cannot do.
Weddings, being awfully emotional events, can often try the tolerance of a saint. The wedding planner must be able to “handle” any circumstances that will arise. You will be dealing with not just the couple (bride and groom-to-be), but everyone else from their respected families and friends circle. Even the most well-organized, exquisitely orchestrated event has some sort of responsive twist and turns that a consultant must be able to capably negotiate.
Many wedding planners are their own boss means they are self-employed or some do freelancing, so it's not strange to set up your own practice early in your career.
However, wedding planning companies exist in the market and often advertise openings on their websites where you can send your speculative job application. You can land on your first job as an assistant wedding planner. You can take the help of internet and search to find relevant companies existing in your region.

Of course, no new wedding planner carries all of the expertise to the table instantaneously, but if you’re approaching into the career with some diverse event experience, hospitality or an event management qualification which has comprised of wedding planning and work experience with a recognized proficient wedding planner, you will be able to offer perception which may empower you and permit you to cultivate your skills in the role, as well as deliver your professional best to the clients.
A background in events is very beneficial to the job but not necessary. If you try to get some experience in this field it will certainly help you to land a job. Learning from a proficient planner means you can see what will work and what doesn’t without tarnishing your reputation from the very first day. It is wise to work at some of the events before determining to go out on your own. You can also offer your services to a local wedding planner or to a wedding venue so that you can get your foot in the door. Illustrate to them what you can do and in a short time, a permanent position might be yours.