One of the most challenging things about getting married is finding and hiring the wedding vendors. However large or small their roles may be, they will have a significant impact in the overall outcome of your wedding day. Because of this, it is imperative to take your time and follow some very simple steps to ensure you are hiring quality and reputable wedding professionals that you can trust.

As you will soon discover, there is really no shortage of wedding vendors in any given category. The goal is finding the professional that is right for you, not only with product, service and price, but with personality as well. The search for wedding day vendors can begin in a number of places. Knowing where to look and what to look for will assist you in your search. The following are suggestions as to where you may begin the search for your vendors.

Bridal Shows

The greatest value in bridal shows is the opportunity to meet with a large number of wedding vendors and view many products at one time, in one location. There are many categories of vendors represented at the shows, making it an invaluable tool for doing research and for gathering wedding-related information. When you find vendors you are particularly interested in, make a note of it and call soon after the show to book a personal one on one appointment. The “Northwest Georgia Bridal Showcase” is your first step to planning your perfect wedding.

The Internet

The Internet is an easy access, easy to use, anytime resource. You can find a wealth of vendors on the web. Checking out a vendor’s web site can give you a good idea of pricing, packages, and type of work they do before making a personal appointment. The “Northwest Georgia Vendor Directory” provides web links to all the great wedding services throughout the area.

Ceremony and Reception Location

The locations you select for your wedding day are quite familiar with particular vendors, and usually have a preferred vendor list. The vendors on this list have worked at that site many times before and are familiar with the logistics and rules of the location. Be sure to review the ceremony locations listed in the “Northwest Georgia Vendor Directory“.

Friends and Family

You will usually get honest no nonsense answers and opinions regarding products and services when you ask married friends and family members (even co-workers) about their own weddings. Ask them about their vendors, the services they used, what they liked and didn’t like, would they hire them again, etc.?

Local Bridal Magazines

Using local wedding magazines and directories can at first seem overwhelming, as there are a large number of advertisements in these publications. You can, however, find excellent vendors in the magazines, but it will take some calling around to acquaint yourself with these vendors.

Wedding Planners/Consultants

Wedding consultants have several pre-established relationships with local vendors. If you are working with a consultant, she should be able to provide you with a preferred vendor list. However, if you are not working with a consultant, you can still benefit from this knowledge, as most consultants will share their preferred vendor list with you for a fee.

Conclusion

Once you have made your final decisions, you must get a written contract. Call the vendor to confirm the details and ask for a contract to be sent to you. A contract is the best way of ensuring you and the vendor understand what is expected, as it should outline specifics such as dates, times, names, and types of services/products provided. It will also spell out payment plans, refund and cancellation policies. It behooves you to read and understand the contract. Do not assume you have secured a vendor for your wedding day until you have a contract that is signed by you and the vendor. And finally remember, part of getting the most from a vendor’s service is also being a good client and providing the vendors with the payments and other requested information in a timely manner.

If you are a wedding related service or business and considering participating in the 2008 Showcase, here are some the highlights from last year’s event:

The 2007 Showcase was Scott Productions’ first year organizing and producing the event. The Showcase resulted in 228 registered attendees and 50 exhibitors.

An incredible honeymoon package to St. Thomas courtesy of “I Do For Brides” magazine was given away to one lucky bride along with round-trip ground transportation and airfare provided by “Corporate Travel & Transportation”. Thousands of dollars worth of great door prizes were also given away by the exhibitors.

“Sincerely Yours” was awarded “Best In Show” by our panel of judges and received a certificate for a free booth for the 2008 showcase. “The Harvest Moon Cafe” was voted “Bride’s Choice Award” by the attendees and received a 1/2-off certificate for their 2008 booth.

The beautiful stage design was created by “Action Rent All” and “Horseleg Plantation Country Club”.

After the glamorous fashion, show made possible by “Top Hat Formalwear” and “The White Dress”, the showcase concluded outside in front of The Forum with a dove release coordinated by “Lovely Doves of Rome”.

It’s not too often we monitor our Web Stats for RomeWeddings.com since most of the information is skewed and inaccurate, but recently we reviewed the data and discovered some very interesting facts.

By far the Northwest Georgia Vendor Directory is the most popular area of our website with the statistics indicating that it gets the most visits.

Next, the report indicates the most popular pages requested. We examined the results for the “Vendor & Services” pages. Here are the top ten most requested pages:

10. Rentals & Party Supplies
9. Invitations
8. Limousines
7. Formal Wear
6. Florists
5. Catering
4. Cakes
3. Ceremony Locations
2. Photographers

And the number one page visited in the Northwest Georgia Vendor Directory:

1. Reception Locations

We’re excited that brides are using RomeWeddings.com to plan their wedding. The best way for any new wedding related business or service to get listed in our directory is to participate in the annual Northwest Georgia Bridal Showcase. All exhibitors are automatically listed in the directory as a “Gold Listing”. Sign up today!

One last interesting fact provided by our website report is where most visits originate. Besides a direct request (visitor goes directly to romeweddings.com), the top referring sites are Google, Yahoo, and the MSN search engine.