You’re engaged. Congratulations! If you’re like most couples, the wedding planning begins almost immediately; reserving the right wedding venue, hiring a caterer for the wedding dinner, booking the right entertainers for your wedding ceremony music, reception music and wedding entertainment. It’s a lot to take on with no room for failure; your big day needs to make a BIG impact and leave you—and your guests—with memories that last well beyond the wedding day. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the biggest wedding entertainment faux pas that we’ve seen from brides and grooms over the years:
- Thinking you have to do it all: selecting, booking and confirming your wedding musicians. A typical wedding requires a lot of entertainment and entertainers, adding another level of work to your already busy wedding planning schedule. Consider hiring a booking agent for several good reasons, most notably as a time-saver. A booking agent can locate the right, quality entertainers for your wedding, and handle any needs the entertainers might have—decreasing your wedding planning workload and ensuring that your guests enjoy your wedding.
- Choosing the cheapest entertainers. You don’t want just any hack musician setting the mood for your special day. This is the time when you are committing to your wedding partner formally, and you shouldn’t have to settle for amateur musicians who haven’t touched an instrument since grade school or an inexperienced musician who has never played at a wedding before. Do your research when selecting string quartets, orchestras, bands and any other wedding entertainers for your event, or contact a booking agent familiar with local wedding entertainers.
- Putting too many songs on your ‘must play’ list. Be realistic when compiling a list of special songs for your wedding day, and be open to recommendations from your band. You don’t want to give your band a list of wedding songs that they can’t play, too many songs for a typical wedding reception or not enough time for them to play their best songs that your guests enjoy.
- Not listening to the voice of experience. Be open to advice from your wedding planner, wedding venue consultant or booking agent. You’ve hired these wedding professionals for their experience; listen to them when setting a schedule, wedding entertainment line-up and placement. Remember, they are trying to make your vision a reality and work for you; now you need to rely on their experience for wedding entertainment success.
- Not booking wedding entertainment until the last minute. Booking your wedding entertainment should be done as early as possible, right after you have your wedding venue reserved. Quality wedding entertainers’ calendars fill up early, so don’t procrastinate when calling a booking agent or band.
If you have any questions about wedding entertainment, contact an experienced booking agent. We’ve got 25 plus years of experience with event planning and wedding entertainment, and can assist with selecting entertainment for any size wedding, any style, at almost any venue.
