How to Become a Wedding Planner Without the School
Wedding planning can be a financially and artistically rewarding career, but you cannot succeed as a wedding planner if you enter the profession unprepared. Like any vocation, wedding planning requires training and some degree of financial sacrifice. However, it is possible to earn the experience you need to become a superb wedding planner without attending a traditional degree program. Instead, you can build a well deserved reputation by self-directed study. You can learn by doing, but you must be willing to forgo a salary as you learn.
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Instructions
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Research every element of the wedding industry as much as you can. This means reading wedding websites like The Knot and Offbeat Bride. It means studying the latest issues of "Martha Stewart Weddings." It means going to every jewelry store and bakery in town and taking notes about what they offer and how their prices compare to others in town.
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Order business cards. It is best to hold off on most paid advertising until you are certain that wedding planning is for you, but you must have business cards. They do not need to be fancy, and you can order them from paper supply and printing companies like FedEx Office, Staples, or Vistaprint. You will leave these business cards with each of the local business contacts you make.
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Reach out to local business. Let them know you're entering the industry and ask them to offer discounts to couples you work with. Don't be shy about making a pitch. After all, you'll be encouraging couples to do business with those places most likely to give them the best deals.
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Market free planning services in exchange for positive reviews, references and photos for your portfolio. Market yourself aggressively using online classified advertisement sites and social networking sites.
Take every job you can do well. Do not overextend yourself, and do not think smaller-budget weddings might be a poor use of your time. They will not. In fact, smaller budgets make for the kind of challenges that will sharpen your creative-thinking skills and serve you well in your career.
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Work as though you're getting paid. Be available to your bridal couples at all hours, and keep meticulous track of appointments and budgets. Be willing to do every job that has no one assigned to it, and make sure that everyone assigned to a job gets it done. With every step, you're reference building.
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Build your portfolio physically and online. Make beautiful scrapbooks using positive letters from the couples you've helped and clear, beautiful photos from their weddings. Use the same materials and build an easy-to-navigate website.
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Register your business name. This can be done locally for a small fee and is necessary if you wish to have a business name. You can get more information about registering a business name at Business.Gov.
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Invest in your business by joining professional organizations and advertising. With several weddings behind you and the glowing references of all the couples you've helped, you're now ready to make a financial risk and begin expecting financial compensation for your services.
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Tips & Warnings
If you do decide to take classes to further your event planning education, invest first in a business course or two. An understanding of business principles will be invaluable as you learn to navigate the wedding industry.
Do not become a wedding planner for the wrong reasons. Planning can be creative and fun, but it is also a demanding business that requires you to meet firm deadlines and interact with people whose emotions may be running high.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit wedding flowers image by pixelcarpenter from Fotolia.com
