Next time someone other than a friend or your planner offers to give you recommendations on what vendors you should use for your wedding, listen politely and then ask questions. Why do they recommend this vendor? Have they personally worked with them, do they know what they offer, what they charge? Why would this vendor be a good match for you? If they are on a “preferred list” how were they chosen for that list?
What a lot of engaged couples don’t understand about the wedding business is that it is a business. And as a business, many vendors are searching for extra ways to increase income. This leads to a dirty little secret known in the business as a “kick back”. Some vendors offer fellow vendors payment for any referrals sent to them, as in “I’ll give you $100 for every referral you send me that I book”, some offer a “preferred vendor list” that a vendor can be placed on for a price. Everyone has seen a preferred list given out by a site. Did you know that those vendors sometime can buy their way onto those lists?
Not every vendor recommendation is part of a “kick back” scheme; there are vendors that will recommend other really good vendors just to help you out. Not every vendor on a preferred list are bad vendors. Some preferred lists are just that, preferred excellent vendors. (I’m on some myself.) But before you spend your money you just need to make sure the recommendation is the right one for you.
Ask questions when you get a referral and then do your homework, ask for references on any vendor you consider using and check them out. A good vendor will offer you references from both wedding couples and other vendors they have worked with. You want to know if the couple was happy with the vendor and if other vendors enjoyed working with them. Nothing helps your wedding to run smoothly more than a team of happy vendors.
What a lot of engaged couples don’t understand about the wedding business is that it is a business. And as a business, many vendors are searching for extra ways to increase income. This leads to a dirty little secret known in the business as a “kick back”. Some vendors offer fellow vendors payment for any referrals sent to them, as in “I’ll give you $100 for every referral you send me that I book”, some offer a “preferred vendor list” that a vendor can be placed on for a price. Everyone has seen a preferred list given out by a site. Did you know that those vendors sometime can buy their way onto those lists?
Not every vendor recommendation is part of a “kick back” scheme; there are vendors that will recommend other really good vendors just to help you out. Not every vendor on a preferred list are bad vendors. Some preferred lists are just that, preferred excellent vendors. (I’m on some myself.) But before you spend your money you just need to make sure the recommendation is the right one for you.
Ask questions when you get a referral and then do your homework, ask for references on any vendor you consider using and check them out. A good vendor will offer you references from both wedding couples and other vendors they have worked with. You want to know if the couple was happy with the vendor and if other vendors enjoyed working with them. Nothing helps your wedding to run smoothly more than a team of happy vendors.
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