How to find wedding vendors
The right wedding vendors are crucial to the success of your wedding day. If you just start the planning process, you might be wondering where you can find vendors for your wedding. You can refer to this wedding vendor list in order to know what types of vendors you would need for your wedding. And you can refer to the following tips to know where to find them:
Any local business could be your wedding vendor
This is the simplest way to find wedding vendors. If there is this little flower store with exotic flowers that draws your attention every day on the way to work, visit it first. Drop by and ask for their rate for wedding flower supplies. Or there is a restaurant in town whose food you really love. You can always ask to meet the restaurant manager and ask if they offer private catering service.
Ask friends and family members who have wedding planning experience
Anyone who has once been a bride would know a thing or two about hiring wedding vendors. Ask friends or family members who have had their wedding or have some wedding planning experience. This is the most trusted source of referrers. Your friend or family member might already have some established relationship with the vendors that you can benefit from. The vendors might even give you discounts or go some extra miles to help you.
Featured wedding vendors on magazines (bridal, lifestyle, food, flowers, etc)
Magazines are great source for wedding inspirations and also sources for finding good vendors. Bridal, lifestyle, food and flower magazines usually feature businesses that offer high quality or cutting edge services. You might already see a glimpse of their work through pictures on the magazine and decide if the style of the vendor is suitable for your event. Magazines are trusted sources as they have to keep their reputation and avoid featuring vendors with bad reputation.
Through the internet
The internet is the easiest and most available way to look for a local wedding vendor. You can use Google to search for anything under the sun. Just a few simple keywords such as “catering services” + [your city] will result in pages of related information. However the information on the internet cannot be trusted all the time and you will have to do to the vendor place to see it yourself.
Through other wedding vendors
One of the great ways to find vendors is through some other vendors. Vendors usually have been in their business for many years and have established good networking with other businesses in the same industry. You can ask from the wedding venue manager which caterers he or she has worked with and would recommend. As the vendor already knows what you want and your wedding style, they can recommend suitable vendors for your wedding.
Through wedding consultants
The fastest way to find suitable wedding vendors is through wedding planning companies. Wedding planners usually have the service to consult part of the wedding planning for the couples. Even though there is a fee, you would save a lot of time and effort as the wedding planner is very quick to understand your need and style and can recommend suitable vendors. Wedding planners also have the service to shortlist and negotiate the prices and service packages with the vendors for you. You can save a lot of money from the vendors that are the wedding planner’s network as they usually offer discounts for the wedding planner’s clients.
Through yellow pages / business directory
Through yellow pages or business listings in your area, you will have an idea of how many vendors are there in your area. Even though there is not usually deep information about each business in the yellow pages, the list of businesses in yellow pages is quite comprehensive and up to date.
Finding the right wedding vendors is a big accomplishment in planning your wedding. However to get the best deals from them requires some negotiation skills. Learn how to negotiate with vendors and get the most values for your money in our next article.
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