It is not even their own website, it's their daytime employee's email address and it is in America and not Europe!!!!
They claim to be wedding planers but can't afford €50 per year for their own domain and email hosting!!!!!
I check with the venue :-
Yes. The venue has heard of them, but they are in another country! Ok, I'm in Europe, so it is a small continent - nothing new...
Wedding planners charge at least €500 minimum for their basic service plus commission from vendors for their recommendation, basically because the B&G can't be bothered to use Google!!!
So I have to add on: Venue Commission + Planner Commission + Sales tax + Cost of albums + Design time + Fuel + Cost of assistant + Plus cost of doing business = High Price
....... And then I'm to blame for being too expensive!!!!!
Sorry for the rant but I had to vent. There is really no point in doing the job.
I don't mind venue associated planners as they rarely get in my way, but I absolutely loathe planners calling me with a barrage of insinuating questions before I ever get a chance to even meet the bride/groom.
I've never been asked so I can't say for definite, but I don't think I'd ever pay someone commission to recommend me, there'll always be someone else willing to pay them more, I'm not going to get into a bidding war.
Last week I agreed to go on a planners vendor list, it's just me and one other photographer who's way above my target market. I offered up some watermarked images for her site and i'm not paying a commission, I did however say if she could bring me weekday bookings, particularly at short notice I would discount them. She's happy, i'm happy, shame this isn't the norm.
Chris Beaumont wrote:
Hehe not me, never been to Spain in my life unfortunately, although I plan to rectify that soon!
Hey Chris although my parents are Polish I'm actually a Slough Boy but through work I have ended up in Spain, If you'd like to second shoot out here give me a PM and hopefully I could do the same for you during my off season in the UK?
They can only bring you business. I have never taken or asked for compensation from a vendor, some do it - I don't. I can tell you I only ever refered a bride to a photog if I thought they were worth it. Brides have everyone breathing down thier necks on who to hire from a pro that did a friends wedding to uncel Bob. Almost all of the brides I worked with hired the person I recommended. I had plenty of people asking to be on my referral list but I did not want the reputation of refering just anyone. When a vendor did great, I looked great!
summer19 wrote:
Speaking as a former wedding planner...
They can only bring you business. I have never taken or asked for compensation from a vendor, some do it - I don't. I can tell you I only ever refered a bride to a photog if I thought they were worth it. Brides have everyone breathing down thier necks on who to hire from a pro that did a friends wedding to uncel Bob. Almost all of the brides I worked with hired the person I recommended. I had plenty of people asking to be on my referral list but I did not want the reputation of refering just anyone. When a vendor did great, I looked great!
If you worked for a burger chain like Maccy D's for example and you were a part time wedding planner you wouldn't send an email such as [email protected]?
No, you would spend a few dollars on a domain name and be [email protected] or something along those lines. My point is that the person has not made any effort whatsoever yet they claim to be a wedding planer.
Just to clarify the Venue gave the wedding planner my details, the wedding planner is in another country and I'm the preferred vendor for the venue so the B&G could have just Googled me.
I, for one, will not pay a commission to anyone sending business my way. I don't care who they are. That's just shady IMO. If they want to charge their client a percentage of what each vendor charges, that's their deal, but it's not getting tacked onto my invoice.
The only wedding planners I have ever met that are worth their salt were from very high end weddings $150K+. I have yet to figure out why most couples even bother to hire them since we have more to do with the bride and groom planning their day then they do.
Many of the usual locations have "wedding planners" but all they really are is catering managers.
It is not even their own website, it's their daytime employee's email address and it is in America and not Europe!!!!
They claim to be wedding planers but can't afford €50 per year for their own domain and email hosting!!!!!
I check with the venue :-
Yes. The venue has heard of them, but they are in another country! Ok, I'm in Europe, so it is a small continent - nothing new...
Wedding planners charge at least €500 minimum for their basic service plus commission from vendors for their recommendation, basically because the B&G can't be bothered to use Google!!!
So I have to add on: Venue Commission + Planner Commission + Sales tax + Cost of albums + Design time + Fuel + Cost of assistant + Plus cost of doing business = High Price
....... And then I'm to blame for being too expensive!!!!!
Sorry for the rant but I had to vent. There is really no point in doing the job.
You forgot to mention corrupt priests and their commissions.
You know - the one's that operate an exclusive photographer to the church scam. Resulting in crap photography and unhappy couples that can't even choose their own photographer because the priest won't accept that access to the church must by law be available to all professionals and not just the one's that pay him backhanders.
ugh. sweeping generalizations based on a single email?
there are lame wedding planners - just like there are lame photographer - and lame DJs - and lame nurses - and lame burger flippers - and lame garbage collectors.
don't like their business models or their attitudes or their breath or their chihuahuas? don't work with them. but there's no need to devote an entire thread to trashing a profession that's full of truly wonderful people.
ksmahgrts wrote:
ugh. sweeping generalizations based on a single email?
there are lame wedding planners - just like there are lame photographer - and lame DJs - and lame nurses - and lame burger flippers - and lame garbage collectors.
don't like their business models or their attitudes or their breath or their chihuahuas? don't work with them. but there's no need to devote an entire thread to trashing a profession that's full of truly wonderful people.
I've met plenty of wedding planners that I think are doing a great job. Most of my clients are middle or upper middle class folks, so some really nice places, but not a ton of Monster budgets. There are times when I have to wonder "why?", but I can see a need in most cases.
My brother is getting married in October, and he and his fiance don't really know which way is up with the wedding planning. I've been fielding an aweful lot of questions about what works, what doesn't, what is better, ect? My experience alone means a lot for them. So, I guess I can see where a planner would bring, at the very least, a similiar level of advise because of the number of weddings they attend, if for nothing else. (Note: they do a lot more, but still?)
Not sure why people here are disregarding the original poster's comment :
" Sorry for the rant but I had to vent. "
It is a public forum and the internet allows that freedom of speech. So i say Carry on brother!
"trashing a profession that's full of truly wonderful people" WILL NOT hurt anyone. It might annoy a few people who lurk the forums and stuff, but if they have anything to say they will come out and say it.
TTLKurtis wrote:
I, for one, will not pay a commission to anyone sending business my way. I don't care who they are. That's just shady IMO. If they want to charge their client a percentage of what each vendor charges, that's their deal, but it's not getting tacked onto my invoice.
I am with you for being brave on this forum! 