How to Choose a Wedding Planner (and What Good Ones Actually Do)
In brief: Most couples compare wedding planners on price and portfolio photos. Neither tells you whether the person can actually run your day. This guide covers what a good planner does that a bad one doesn't, the questions worth asking before you sign, and why the cheapest quote is rarely the cheapest outcome.
Planner, Coordinator, Or Designer? They Are Not The Same Job
These three titles get used interchangeably and they shouldn't be. A designer styles the room. A day-of coordinator runs the timeline on the day itself, having joined the project weeks before. A full planner is involved from the first venue visit to the last guest leaving, managing budget, suppliers, contracts and logistics the whole way through. Know which one you are actually hiring before you compare prices, because they are not the same product.
What A Good Planner Actually Does
Budget management across every supplier, not just a spreadsheet at the start. Contract review, so you are not the one reading the small print on a marquee agreement at 11pm. A realistic timeline that accounts for the things that always go wrong. And on the day itself, someone whose full attention is the event, not divided between your wedding and three others that weekend.
The Questions That Actually Matter
Ask how many events at this scale they have run in the last year, not ever. Ask who is physically on site on the day, them or a junior you have not met. Ask how they get paid, a flat fee, a percentage of spend, or a commission from the suppliers they recommend. Ask what happens if a key supplier cancels a week out. The answers tell you more than any portfolio.
The Red Flag Most Couples Miss: Supplier Kickbacks
Some planners earn commission from the suppliers they recommend. That is not disclosed, and it means the florist or caterer suggested to you might be the one paying the planner the most, not the one right for your day. We work on a transparent cost-plus model. You see the real cost of every supplier, and we charge our fee on top of it. No hidden margin, no incentive to steer you toward the wrong vendor.
What Good Costs, And Why Cheap Is Expensive
We are not the cheapest option, and that is deliberate. Our fee is tailored to each project, guided by scale, complexity and how much of the day we run, typically 15% to 20% of your budget, with fees starting from £15,000. We do take on smaller projects on a case-by-case basis. That fee buys judgement under pressure, not just a checklist. The couples who choose the cheapest planner are usually the ones who end up doing the planner's job themselves by month three.
What JustSeventy Brings
Founded in 2011, JustSeventy has delivered over £15 million in events across fifteen years. We are a six-person studio, which means the person who scopes your project is the person who is there on the day, not a name handed off to someone junior once the contract is signed.
For the fuller service overview, including cost ranges and a realistic planning timeline, see our guide to hiring a luxury wedding planner in London.