Getting married? 4 tips to ensure your wedding day goes smoothly

Getting married is one of those big moments in your life.

You’ve found that special person to spend the rest of your life with, to share your dreams and aspirations, and to support one another and be each other’s cheerleader.

A wedding is a celebration of the formal commencement of the next chapter of your life, so let’s look at the important things you need to consider when making sure that your wedding day goes according to plan.

1. Planning is important

By planning all aspects of your special day, it allows you to reach out to suppliers and venues at an early stage to ascertain if they have availability on your chosen wedding date.

Planning also allows you to determine your wedding budget and gives you a clear prospective of how you can spend it adequately to ensure your special day is all that you wish for.

If you’re time poor, hire a wedding planner to assist you, and if this is not viable, consider delegating some of the tasks to trusted family members and friends. You do not have to do it all alone.

2. Have clear expectations

The average Australian wedding costs $36,200. That’s a lot of money for a one-day celebration, so it’s important that you put the processes in place to ensure it all goes smoothly.

Venue costs, styling, florals, the all-important wedding dress, and photographer or videographer costs are often the more expensive wedding items, so it’s prudent that when you book your wedding providers you have a really in-depth conversation to ensure both parties are on the same page and you’re both clear on expectations. For brides looking to save on attire, renting a wedding dress can be a budget-friendly option without sacrificing style.

Often, disputes arise between brides and their wedding dress designer because the dress wasn’t made correctly or the designer was taking too long. Often, these designers have watertight agreements in place with the bride in which the bride only paid attention to when a dispute arose.

These disputes have often centred on mismatched expectations, which is why it’s crucial to take time at the engagement stage to adequately address all elements of the design, fabric and fitting process.

3. Always read the fine print

The wedding service providers should be documenting the services they are providing to you in an agreement so that is transparent.

Before signing, read the fine print closely so you can raise any matters you do not agree with or understand. The fine print often includes information about cancellation policies, and it’s particularly important that you read these so that you fully understand the consequences if you change you mind regarding a particular supplier after engaging them.

If you find an alternate wedding venue that you’d prefer to have your wedding at subsequent to booking a venue, your initial wedding venue may allow you to cancel your booking. However, they are likely to exercise their right to retain your deposit, as their agreement is likely to stipulate that the deposit if non-refundable. If you paid a 25 per cent deposit and the wedding venue cost $20,000 this would result in a loss of $5,000. That’s a lot of money to lose for a simple change of mind.

4. Wedding insurance

You’re investing a lot of money in one of the most important days of your life. Wedding insurance can be put in place to protect any money you invest in your wedding, in case something unexpected happens and you need to reschedule or cancel your wedding.

A parent could fall ill and you cannot fathom getting married without them or your wedding venue may suffer some damage so you have to move to a more costly venue. Having wedding insurance in place means the extra costs you incur could be covered. Like all insurances, there is no one-size-fits-all policy, so read the product disclosure statement to find the right policy for you to ascertain exactly what you’re covered for.

Getting married is a momentous occasion. It’s your special day, so take the time to savour your special celebration, and the joy and special connection that it brings to you and those in attendance.