Are you a new wedding planner looking to create a pricing guide to send to new customers? If so, you’re in the right place. Creating a strategic wedding planner pricing guide is important for your business growth and profitability. It’s one of the first (and last!) things your couples see before they decide to sign the contract and officially book you! Today, I’m sharing the six must-have items you should include in your wedding planner pricing guide (that I often see missed as a business coach!).
And in case you’re looking for a pricing guide template to use, I have one for sale in my shop with tons of other wedding planner tools! Click here to check it out.
1. Show the Transformation You Provide
First, remember that you aren’t selling the “what”. Nobody cares about your 18 bullet points of included items, really. They care about what it’s like to work with you (compared to NOT working with you). It’s your job to paint a vivid picture of the transformation that your wedding planning services can offer to your clients. By highlighting real stories of past clients, showing your best wedding portfolio pictures and more (which we will get into), make sure to keep the transformation you provide at the forefront of your wedding planner pricing guide.
Crafting Your Unique Value Proposition
While we are talking about transformation, I also want you to take a moment to consider what makes your service stand out. I know it can be exciting to start designing a pretty pdf (and trust me – I get it), but pausing to think about this to make sure that you can reflect this uniqueness in your pricing guide, will make a BIG difference in how well this pricing guide SELLS for you. You need to highlight your strengths, style, and approach in a way that resonates with engaged couples.
2. Detailed List of Services with Starting Price
Like I said, nobody cares about the 18 bullet points really, but people do need to know what they are buying. As you put together your wedding planner pricing guide, remember that providing a detailed list of services and their starting prices can really help sway a client’s decision in your favor (especially if they are comparing two of your packages – which we will talk about next!). Being transparent about your rates is key—it lays down clear expectations and nurtures trust from the get-go (especially with Gen-z!)
A la carte options
Offering services à la carte can be a great idea because it allows your clients to tailor their experience to their specific needs. But better yet? It can help make you make more money. By separating certain services from the package and charging for them individually, you can not only appeal to clients who may not require all services included in the package but also highlight specialized offerings, such as venue research.
Want an easy way to showcase your a la carte options? We have a few different options for laying out your packages in our Canva Proposal Template!
Not Sure How Much to Charge?
Listen, pricing your wedding planning services can often feel a lot like a game of pin the tail on the donkey, right? You close your eyes, spin yourself around, and hope you’re pointing in the right direction. But let’s be honest, relying on guesswork, intuition, or even sneaky peeks at what the competition is doing just doesn’t cut it. That’s exactly why I poured my heart and soul into creating the “Pricing Your Wedding Planning Services For Profit” guide. This blog post might not dive into the nitty-gritty of numbers, but believe me, that guide is where the magic happens. I’m laying out the three pricing models you could use, and spoiler alert: I’ll let you in on which one’s a goldmine for more profitability.
3. Side-by-Side Comparison
When I set out to create a Canva Proposal Template, I knew I wanted a way to display packages side-by-side. In my opinion, this is one of the biggest things wedding planners miss in their pricing guide.
The truth is, while listing your different package options is great, having a side-by-side comparison can help you showcase the distinct advantages of your full service planning package compared to your event management offerings (which will help you BOOK the higher end packages you want).
4. Testimonials and Social Proof
Testimonials are HUGE when couples are deciding to book their wedding planner. Adding to kind words from past clients, sharing where you’ve been featured, such as in “Brides” or “Style Me Pretty”, brings an additional layer of credibility and excitement, which draws in clients who are looking for that level of recognition for their events.
Interested in getting your work featured? Grab my Ultimate Guide to Styled Shoots That Get Published for how to create captivating styled shoots!
And hey, here’s a little extra nugget of wisdom from my years of experience: sprinkling testimonials throughout your pricing guide, rather than relegating them to a single page, can be a game-changer. Think of these testimonials as little seeds of trust you’re planting on each page, every time they turn the page and see another glowing review, it’s like a reaffirmation of how wonderful it is to work with you. Trust me, it’s a small tweak that can make a big impact!
Client’s Raving About the Experience But Not Leaving Reviews?
If so, it’s probably your offboarding process (or let’s be honest, lack of one!). If you just gulped a little, our offboarding playbook includes swipe files to help you gather impactful testimonials that actually capture the essence of your services (even if your clients never know what to say!).
5. The Best Portfolio Images
Are you guilty of never getting around to updating your proposal pages (or website)? Remember, your portfolio is your visual resume. It’s your opportunity to showcase your talent, style, and expertise to potential clients. You want every proposal to feature your absolute BEST work, not your best work from five years ago (chances are – you’ve gotten better since then!).
When selecting images, look at the emotions they evoke. Aim for a mix of candid moments, detail shots, and overall event photos to create a well-rounded portfolio to truly showcase the scope of your services. Remember, you want potential clients to envision themselves in every moment.
Lastly, make sure your images are high-resolution, well-edited, and cohesive in style. Consistency in visual presentation will help reinforce your brand identity and attract the right clients who resonate with your aesthetic.
6. Calls to Action & Next Steps
When you send off your proposal guide, what are you hoping they will do next? When it comes to your wedding planner pricing guide, having CLEAR calls to action (CTAs) is important for driving potential clients to take the next step. Effective CTAs prompt action, whether it’s scheduling a consultation or heading to the contract to BOOK and pay your deposit.
And if you find navigating sales to be a challenge, don’t worry—I’ve got you covered. You can always pick up my Plug n’ Play sales script guide from my shop. This guide is designed to help you effortlessly guide clients through the booking process, ensuring you never miss a beat in those precious last moments when your custom is deciding whether or not to trust you with the most important day of your life.
Creating a Wedding Planner Pricing Guide That Has Your Couples Excited to Work Together
Ready (and excited!) to start updating your proposals? By incorporating these six things, you’re well on your way to establishing a strong foundation for communicating your pricing to your future customers. And remember, you can grab my wedding planning pricing guide Canva template right in my shop!
We hope this guide has been helpful in your journey to create an effective pricing guide. But remember, our shop is FULL of templates designed to make your life as a wedding planner easier! But hey – before you go, if you’re looking for support as you grow your wedding business, I would love to invite you to join the Planner’s Playbook. Each month, I’m releasing one new Playbook where we go DEEP into one aspect of planning, design, or coordination to help you grow a profitable wedding planning business. Plus, each month you’ll get access to office hours with me where you can ask me anything, and you’ll be added to our community of the most supportive new wedding planners on the internet! Hop on the waitlist here!
Explore More Wedding Industry Resources
- How to Start a Wedding Planning Business
- How to Become a Certified Wedding Planner
- A Complete List of Wedding Planner Expenses
- Creating Wedding Planner Packages for Your Business
- Here’s What Every Wedding Planner Needs To Include In Their Wedding Design Proposals
- Wedding Planner Pricing: How Much Should You Charge As A Wedding Planner?
- Pricing Mistakes You Can’t Afford To Make In Your Business As A Wedding Pro
- 6 Ways Wedding Planners Leave Money on the Table
- 5 Ways to Make More Money As A Wedding Planner
- Why Honeybook Is The Best CRM for Wedding Planners
- How Much Does It Cost to Become a Wedding Planner?
- Wedding Planners – Should You List Your Wedding Planner Pricing Packages On Your Website?
- Day of Coordination: The Pros and Cons as a Wedding Planner
- How To Sell Your Wedding Planning Services: The 7 Stages Of The Sales Cycle
- 5 Contracts Every Wedding Planner Must Have To Be Legally Set
- How To Get Wedding Clients When You’re Just Starting Out
- Are Your Wedding Industry Sales Down? Here’s How To Figure Out What’s Wrong
- 9 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting Your Wedding Planning Business
- How to Book Destination Weddings And Elopements In Your Wedding Business
- Why You’re Not Attracting The Right Clients and How to Fix It
- How To Become A Wedding Planner With No Experience
For More Wedding Planner Business Secrets Follow Me On Instagram
12 years of being the luckiest girl on the planet.💜 happy anniversary to the person who makes everything about this beautiful life we have possible.
📷 @c10ike
DAY TWO // WPI Spring Retreat 💜
If Day 1 was about getting closer to the question, Day 2 was about getting honest with the answer.
We came back together over mimosas and morning hugs (a WPI staple at this point 😉) and got right back into refinement — this time turning the lens inward. What are you actually building? And are your standards, your pricing, and your daily reality all telling the same story?
The member gives went THERE. We talked about how a systems strategist can help you untangle your process, and how saying no (A LOT) helped two photographers book better weddings.
I spoke about two important topics: setting standards and nervous system – two topics that have become very important inside WPI!
In between these conversations was room for the good stuff: small group breakouts, real talk, a few happy tears, a homemade Caribbean lunch (those pressed sandwiches 🤌), and an afternoon of feet in the pool and brains fully stretched.
Not pictured was the homemade Guac I whipped up and other poolside treats!
All these gorgeous moments captured by our retreat photographer + my business bestie @c10ike 💜💜💜
You might see the highlight reel and think ending up here was always my plan all along but you’d be wrong.
Like any good career, there have been lots of pivots and hiccups, and lessons that had to be learned the hard way.
Not seen here? The time…
- I forgot to add chairs to a rental order and ended up footing the $2,000 bill
- A client sat across from me crying that I ruined her wedding because her parents table had a low centerpiece
- I had to borrow $4,000 from Grandma Vera to make payroll, because I didn’t pay attention to my numbers
- About a hundred “dream clients” hired a different planner than me and I felt like an absolute failure
- I cried in my car before a wedding because I was completely and totally overwhelmed with the amount of responsibility on my shoulders (OK, maybe I did this more than once)
- My seasonal launch of The Planner’s Playbook completely bombed and I felt like my entire business was falling apart
…and roughly 700 other moments I’ve chosen to leave off the highlight reel.
So if you’re at the messy, nothing’s-working stage right now? Just know that if you have been to one wedding in your life, you are starting with more experience than I had.
I’m getting ready to embark on an exciting new chapter that I cannot wait to share with you… it’s big, and scary, and I’m sure in another few years I’ll have a lot more lore to share… but in the meantime…
Cheers to all the ups and downs I’ve experienced over the last 19 years!
And a special thanks to the photographers who made a lot of this lore possible: @c10ike @allanzepedaphoto @stevedepino @withincreative @robertandkathleen @thebrandedbosslady 💜🫶🏼😘
I’ve come to realize that many of us want to have a village, but we don’t recognize that we have to be a villager first.
My friend carla @c10ike is one of those rare exceptions and I want to introduce you to her!
When I started my planning business, I had no contacts and no real idea what I was doing. I was so green it makes me laugh to look back on it now!
And somehow, I got lucky enough to be taken under the wing of this incredible woman who showed up for me then when I was a little baby business owner, and has kept showing up ever since in more ways than I could possibly count.
She’s taught me so much over the years, and I don’t mean in the traditional sense of teaching someone something. She simply lived her life, and I paid attention.
She modeled what it means to be a friend.
A sister.
A daughter.
A wife.
A mother.
A business owner.
A boss.
I learned generosity by watching her be generous.
Compassion, connection, leadership… none of it came from advice. All of it came from the way she carries herself and the way she treats the people around her.
She has taught me more than she will ever know by the sheer act of living loudly and joyfully in every corner of her life.
I am so lucky to call her my friend. So lucky to be one of the many, many people she has been a villager for.
Carla thank you for letting me grow up right beside you. I love you. 🤍
All, Ideal Clients, Landing the Sale, Making Money, Starting a Business, The Client Experience, Things to Do Better, Wedding Industry Marketing, Wedding Planning Advice
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