Thursday, April 21, 2011

Do I Need Event Day Coordination?

My answer to this questions is always, 100% of the time Absolutely, YES! Doesn't matter if you are hosting a fundraising gala, corporate event or wedding, you need to have one person who can be behind the scenes solely dedicated to running the logistics, set-up, trouble-shooting problems, directing vendors and volunteers and answering last minute questions. Have you heard the phrase "too many cooks in the kitchen"? Without an Event Day Coordinator, you will be assured problems, conflict and stress if you leave to many people in charge to handle the execution whether it be friends, family and volunteers.

"Day Of Wedding" or "Month Of Wedding" coordinators can be hired for your wedding day at any time during the planning process and will generally begin working with you as early as 90 days to the week of your wedding or event. At this point the coordinator (or Event Director as I like to call myself) will assist you in pulling together a customized itinerary, confirm vendor commitments, discuss set-up details, and cross check outstanding balances, last minute decisions, and services that you have already contracted for. The coordinator will be working with the information you give her by providing copies of the vendor contracts, banquet event order, and any information collected during the planning process to formulate a master plan for the entire wedding day, so that you can rest assured that the details are in place and the event is being managed by a professional. Because these services are not as extensive as a planning package that covers all the planning from beginning to end, "Month Of" and "Day Of" is very helpful way to get peace of mind on your wedding day. Brides hire "Month Of" and "Day Of" coordinators for many reasons; 1. They enjoy planning and wanted to do it on their own, but knew she couldn't execute on the day of wedding, 2. Their budget wouldn't allow for a more extensive planning package, 3. They are having their ceremony & reception in the same location and their venue required them to hire one, 4. Solely for the peace of mind to know that the time and money investment would not go wrong in any way.

Secondly, you may be wondering what is the difference between the catering manager at the hotel and a personal wedding coordinator? Wedding coordinators offer a different range of services than those whose sole interest is on the venue. Specifically a coordinator is working for you, not the hotel or location, and he/she is there to see that your wishes and requests are carried out as well as to assist in planning that is not related to the hotel or location.

Catering hall manager / assistant works only during the time of the reception and does NOT coordinate with all your vendors or make sure that your ceremony and reception itinerary is acted out the right way. Catering hall manager's tasks task is to make sure the halls duties are performed but for the rest of your wedding days itinerary - they do not have any obligations.


Ask the staff at your wedding location what they will and won't do to determine your additional needs. "Month Of" and "Day Of" coordinators will work interface with all vendors at your wedding/event to ease the planning process and provide you peace of mind. It's truly their responsibility to run quality control checks to ensure that the exact flowers are delivered and set-up exactly as you've requested, oversee that the bridal party names are being pronounced correctly during introductions, move the ceremony decor to the reception and most importantly run the behind the scenes logistics throughout the event to ensure the evening is flawless without missing a beat. By hiring a professional, they will handle all the emergencies as they arise leaving you to kick back and enjoy the day with your friends, family and guests.

For me, this is one of my favorite aspects of events; event day execution and logistics. I thrive on the energy and thrill of seeing the details come together.



Samantha Darr
Lead Event Director


Photo Credits:


Studio563


Serendipity Photography

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