Is Your Wedding Coordinator WPIC Certified?

    

If not, why not?? 
by Danielle Andrews Sunkel 

(As seen in the Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter 2009 Today's Bride Magazine)

Before the Women’s Right Movement, when a woman got engaged she would quit College and start to plan her wedding with the help of her mother.  Thirty years ago, that all changed.  Women started to wait until they finished school and had a career before they said, “I do” and more importantly they weren’t quitting their job to do so.  This posed a scheduling problem, they knew what they wanted for their wedding but they were working and so was their mother, who was going to handle the details?  Enter the Certified Wedding Coordinator.

Photo courtesy of Red Umbrella Photography 

The Wedding Planner (or Coordinator) used to be seen as a luxury of the rich, now thanks to the Media couples know that anyone can afford a Wedding Coordinator and most can’t afford not to!  One in twenty couples utilizes the help of a Wedding Coordinator somewhere along the course of planning their Wedding.

 

 A Wedding Planner/Coordinator is a trained professional who lives and breathes the Wedding Industry.  They have the inside track on things and ideas you didn’t even know existed.  He or she knows whom the best Vendors are, where to get things, where to save money and how to make it all come together beautifully.  A Wedding Coordinator won’t take over your wedding, they will simply guide you in the right direction while saving time, stress and probably money.  A good Wedding Coordinator’s mission is for you to have the best wedding for you.

 

How do I hire a Wedding Coordinator?  

When searching for a Wedding Coordinator, make sure that they are a true professional, that they are Certified, are active in an Association and are continually upgrading their skills through education and attending Industry Conferences and meetings.

 

What services do Wedding Planners provide?  

A Wedding Coordinator can be hired for one-time Consulting, for Month-of Coordination (also called Day-of) or for Full Coordination/Planning.

 

Consulting is just that, you would meet with the Coordinator to consult about certain aspects of your wedding.  They will help guide you in the right direction, answer all your questions, give you great solutions and help stretch your budget.  They will usually cost about $200 per session.

 

You would hire a Month-of/Day-of Planner if you want to ensure everything you have planned goes perfectly.  They will help you with the actual timeline for the day, add any details you may have over-looked and be the “Go To” person on your big day.  A Day-of Coordinator costs between $600-1500 depending on their experience and what part of the country you live in.

 

A Full Coordinator/Planner will be your lifesaver.  Think of them as your best friend who just happens to know everything and everyone to do with weddings!  They will narrow your choices down to vendors who fit your style, your theme, and your budget.  They will take care of the legwork so you only need to meet with real possibilities for your wedding.  All final decisions are yours, (it is your wedding after all!), they help make your dream come to life and help to make it better than even you could have imagined.  Look for a Wedding Coordinator who charges based on a percentage so you are being charged fairly.  10-15% of your total budget is normal.  They usually cost about the same amount as your Wedding Photographer.

 

Why is it important that my Coordinator is Certified?    

In North America there is no government Regulatory body over Wedding Coordinators.  In Canada, only one Institute is licensed to certify Wedding Coordinators, The Wedding Planners Institute of Canada Inc. 

 

Only a WPIC Certified Wedding Coordinator is trained specifically in Weddings and has to adhere to guidelines and ethics, or face action from a Regulatory Body.  A certified Wedding Coordinator is not allowed to accept “kick-backs” or Finders-fees from vendors, so you they are always acting in your best interest.

 

Being certified is also the only way to be a part of Canada’s only Association for Wedding Coordinators (WPICAlumni), which provides on-going learning, tools, networking, education and emergency back-up for your Coordinator.

 

For more information about Wedding Coordinators or to find a certified Planner in your area visit The Wedding Planners Institute of Canada at www.wpic.ca.