Virtual Wedding Planning: Everything to Know

If you’re already busy in your life as it is, adding wedding planning to your to-do list may seem like a complete nightmare. That’s where wedding planners come in. Depending on what service you select (from day-of coordinator to full service), wedding planners research, organize, confirm and coordinate everything that goes into your wedding day. But this specialized and complex service usually comes with a hefty price tag. That’s where virtual wedding planning comes in.

Explore everything you need to know about virtual wedding planning:

What is virtual wedding planning?

These services are usually offered by traditional wedding planners, but for a fraction of the cost. The services that are offered vary depending on the planning company but usually cover all the time-consuming tasks and money-saving tricks. Such services include vendor research and confirmation, budgeting, timeline writing, RSVP follow ups, and more. 

How does it differ from traditional wedding planning?

Depending on the service you select, traditional full service wedding planners are with you from start to finish. From unlimited calls, emails and face-to-face meetings, to design planning, catering tastings and day-of coordination, full service event planners really hold their client’s hands through the entire process. But this comes with a price tag, with planners costing anywhere from $3,000 to $12,000 on average. 

Virtual planners offer similar services at a fraction of the cost, anywhere from $200-$500. Since a lot of wedding planning is behind the scenes work (i.e. lots of research and reaching out to request proposals), you as the bride/groom don’t have to be a part of that process. That’s what makes virtual planners so great. They handle all of the vendor research, proposals, and budget stuff. 

They also usually offer unlimited email exchanges and a set number of Skype and/or phone calls. The one thing that they do not offer (usually) is day-of coordination for your actual wedding day. For some brides, this could be a deal breaker, but for others it’s perfect because many venues come with a day-of coordinator, making an additional in-person planner not necessary.

Why choose virtual wedding planning?

1. Cost effective

If you’re on a budget but still feel overwhelmed or like you could use the advice and help from an expert in the events industry, virtual planners are perfect for you.

2. Reduces stress

Wedding planning is a full-time job, and if you already have your hands full, it’s a lot to juggle. If you feel lost in the planning process or burnt out or like you can’t enjoy your engagement because the wedding planning is stressing you out, virtual planning is perfect for you. With a virtual planner, you will sleep easier knowing the leg work is being done by an expert.

3. Professional guidance from planning experts

If you’ve never planned an event on this scale before (and most of us haven’t), how are you magically supposed to know how to do it? A lot of brides end up feeling confused and anxious because they don’t know how much to spend (and tip) on which vendors, where to find them, how to style a space, what the fine print in contracts means, the etiquette of invitations and thank-you cards, and more. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But with a digital planner, you have a professional to do most of the tedious and time-consuming tasks and a point of contact to go to for all of your wedding questions.

4. Convenient

Virtual planners are especially good for busy couples who don’t have the time to travel to face-to-face meetings, but still need assistance planning. These planners are also convenient because they handle the sourcing of rentals in addition to the back and forth of negotiations and confirmations closer to the big day.

5. Customized to you

It’s important to note that virtual planners are not just apps with checklists or blogs with blank seating charts for you to fill in. Virtual wedding planners are actual professionals who guide you every step of your wedding planning journey.

What are the responsibilities of a virtual wedding planner?

Responsibilities truly vary depending on the individual or company you’re using. To get a list of everything that’s included, be sure to ask the virtual planners you’re considering so you can choose the right expert for you. Some virtual planners offer a la carte phone or video sessions that are one hour in length while others offer much more. Some things that can be covered include:

• Planning documents 

• Design inspiration

• Budgeting

• Vendor referrals, contract review, and confirmations

• Personalized wedding checklist

• Timeline planning

• Preparation of wedding weekend itinerary 

• Access to an expert for questions, concerns, and support

Is a virtual wedding planner right for me?

They can be great for many different reasons, but we recommend them (as opposed to traditional in-person planners) for couples if:

• You’re on a tight budget 

• You’re just too busy as it is

• You travel a lot for business or are just too on-the-go to have face-to-face meetings with a traditional planner

• You’re pretty confident with what you want for your wedding, but just need some extra help organizing and executing throughout the planning process

Recommendations for virtual wedding planners

If you’ve done some research and know of a traditional wedding planner you’d love to work with, reach out to them to see if they offer virtual planning services. They may not actively promote this service, but still might be able to offer it to you at a steep discount compared to their traditional full-service planning. That being said, here is a list of some wedding planners who offer virtual planning on their websites:

1. Chancey Charm Wedding Planning & Design

This team offers one-on-one a la carte virtual planning that includes a 60 minute video session with one of their expert planners and one follow-up email that includes notes from the session and next steps.

Price: $124.50

2. Lisa Presnell Productions

Professional online planning tools to track your wedding details complete with a personalized checklist, timeline, design studio, guest tracker, seating assignments, vendor contract review, budget planning, payment tracking, and more. Also included is email correspondence during business hours and three Skype/FaceTime/phone calls.

Price: Contact for pricing

3. The Wedding Assistant

The Wedding Assistant gives you direct access to your virtual wedding planner, Joan Nilsen, who has over 20 years of event planning experience and is there to help you every step of the way with unlimited email exchanges. In addition, they give you 30+ helpful planning documents, a month-to-month planning guide, unique ceremony plan, and customized wedding day agenda.

Price: $500

You can find more virtual planners with just a simple Google search. A lot of amazing (and pricey!) event planners offer a more affordable virtual version of their incredible services. In addition, there are many amazing wedding planning apps out there that have a ton of great planning docs, budgeting sheets, timelines, and more to help you create the wedding of your dreams.

Create the wedding of your dreams!

Virtual planners are incredible because they handle the tedious and time-consuming behind the scenes work, are cost effective for couples on a budget, can be utilized on-the-go and in any location, all while still giving you a fully customized wedding planning experience so that your big day is uniquely you. Now that you have a few options, get some wedding day inspiration before your first call with these 25 wedding experts to follow on social media.