Episode 9: How Wedding Planners Price

Episode Summary

This episode explores how wedding planners charge for their services and why pricing in the wedding industry can be complex. On this episode we cover 4 types of pricing models for wedding planners: Flat Rate, Percentage Only, Flat Rate Plus Percentage, Flat Rate Plus Commission. Ultimately, this conversation is not about right or wrong, it’s about the importance of transparency and clear communication, so clients understand exactly how and why they are being charged.

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Full Episode Transcript

Hello friends and welcome back to Mind Over Matrimony. Today’s topic is really about how wedding planners bill for their services. And this is a topic I feel like, we’re not all in agreement on exactly how this should be.

In a wedding, the scope of the project varies in an insane way from a 20 person backyard wedding to a five day 500 person, multi-coast extravaganza. And so different planners have figured out whatever kind of model works best for them.

There’s really four different types of ways to charge for a wedding. The first is just a flat fee. You know what the flat fee is at the beginning, and then you pay the same flat fee on the backside. Nothing changes from point A to point B.

Number two, flat fee plus vendor commission. So this is a flat fee that the client is paying directly, and then vendor commissions that are coming from the vendors that have been selected who are then paying a commission to the planner.

Number three, flat fee plus percentage. So we do a flat fee up to a $250,000 spend. So it’s our base package starts at $30,000 up to a $250,000 spend. Anything over $250,000 is subject to a 20% percentage. That is all paid by the client.

The last one is just percentage, again, just paid by the client, based solely on the invoices and the contracts that the client has paid.

At Julian Leaver Events, we started really with a flat fee. We did a flat fee for a very long time, and then we really moved into this flat fee plus percentage model a few years ago, and it’s made it a lot easier for all of our clients to understand how we’re charging and it’s very consistent.

In terms of flat fee plus commission, in Europe almost all of the planners use this model. In Mexico, almost all of the planners use this model. In the Caribbean and the tropics, almost all of the planners use this model. Where this sometimes doesn’t work for the client is that you don’t get the freedom of choice. The freedom of choice has been taken away from you by only working with a certain subset of vendors.

The options that include percentage are by far the most transparent. You’re really getting a good look at everything. Usually it’s not being run through the business. It is the client pays, the client signs the contract. The planning and design firm is managing that contract for the client.

All of these models work as long as you are being transparent. As long as you are just being upfront with your clients, as long as you are giving access to the budget with your clients, as long as you’re willing to tell them, I only work with this little pool of vendors, or I will work with really anybody.