I have heard the same thing this week from 2 planners and a florist: When they asked a bride about the floral and décor budget for their wedding the brides said, ”Well I don’t really have a budget.”
Grrrrr. Let me tell you what wedding professionals hear when you say that, “I don’t want to tell you because you will spend it all.”
Here is what they think. ”OK babe, is it $500
or $15,000.
Give me some direction so I know where to go”
When you approach a planner or florist or a designer of any kind, they can work with in your budget if they know what it is. Even if you don’t have a firm budget you have to have some idea of a ballpark dollar figure. Be honest with your vendors, lowball a little if you feel you must, but, good grief, give them some idea.
It doesn’t matter if your budget is tiny; a small budget stretches the talents of a true creative; it makes us think harder. Don’t get me wrong, everybody prefers working with a lavish budget but it isn’t always the case. If you are honest from the beginning you will be much better served by the professionals you choose. Believe it or not; we really do want to make your day special.
I find that my clients usually say they don’t have a budget, until I give them a quote, then the price is out of their budget…we do need some sort of direction!
I totally agree! I would much rather know a client’s budget up front…so that during our consultation I would be able to guide them to a look that would be within
their budget, and not let them choose expensive flowers, etc. I spend approximately 3hours after a consultation (a consultation lasts 1 to 2 hours), designing the
look of the event, the type and amount of flowers in each bouquet, arrangement, number of candles,etc,etc….then type and send to a client…only to have them
tell me “we only have X amount of $$ to spend”….OK…so why didn’t they tell me that right off?
Am I ever with you on this! Even after explaining why we ask for a budget, they still look at each other and say “We don’t really know. Why don’t you give us a quote for what we have discussed and we can add or cut from there.” What I tell them is that I will calculate their wedding once. Any major changes or re-calculations are at $50 per hour, for a minimum of 2 hours. When you tell them that, they tend to be a little more forthright. Others clearly have no idea how much this part of their budget should be. This is when I give them guidance, according to the number of attendants, average cost per centerpiece, etc.
Pam that seems like an excellent strategy. We all spend way to much time writing and rewriting proposals.