Wedding Vendor Archetypes (in Melbourne)

The Baby Beginner

Pros:

The thing about these types is that they’re most likely going to give you a low price. Yay for you if that’s the main thing you care about!!! Another thing about booking an up-and-comer is they’re probably still going to be oozing with enthusiasm about your wedding. This is a good thing. Most likely they’re a creative person who managed to start a business and now they’re flat out channelling that passionate energy into their upcoming bookings. Passion goes a long way as we all know, and they’re probably going to be very eager to please you. This might be your jam, and if it is, go for it. I would recommend not smashing your up-and-coming vendors with your anxiety and expectations, because you can jade people fast with all of that.

Cons:

The thing about booking someone based on a low price is this. Number one if you’re booking a year in advance, most likely they would have brought their prices up to a market rate by the time your wedding comes around. Yes, they probably will honour the rate that you booked in at, but there’s a chance they might be mentally poo pooing your wedding. Especially if you booked at never-to-be-repeated-low-prices 18 months before the wedding rolls around.

Another risk factor if you’ve booked someone at an ultra low rate is, they may realise they’ve accidentally “”double booked”” you, if they get a higher paying wedding before the date. Sorry, it’s an unpopular reality.

With Baby Beginner vendors, they’re also more likely to have a lot of anxiety about your wedding. So if they email you every day or keep asking a lot of trivial questions, don’t be surprised. They might also accidentally ask you semi annoying questions on the wedding day, just because they want to double check they’re doing the right thing. They might be still getting used to their own equipment, so there’s a chance there could be an equipment fail with these types. Also be prepared for them to literally hound you for a Google Review. Two messages, two emails and phone call anyone!? No seriously, whether the job was good or bad you HAVE to leave a 5 star review if you hire this type of vendor. So make sure you do 😉 Finally, one other consideration is the Baby Beginner may not be able to predict many wedding day situations ahead of time. This is what you pay for with experienced vendors. The Baby Beginner may not have been in many situations, so they might not be mentally prepared for every possibility that might happen on the day.

The Social Media Famous Vendor

Pros:

Lots of social proof. Lots of pics of other couples, happy wedding fun and entertaining content.

Cons:

A lot of this Hoo Ha could be fake. Here’s the things about social media, it’s too easy to go buy a bunch of followers on Instagram and make it look like your gram has blown up. This is why ya’ll need to check the COMMENTS under every post. This will show you how much engagement the person/ business is getting on their socials. So next time ya’ll are impressed by the Follower number, make sure you’re counting those comments MMMMMkayyyyy…!!!

Side note about being Youtube/ Instagram/Facebook famous is that it doesn’t always equate to dollars in the bank. As in, just because you have a lot of followers does not mean you’re monetising that thing. Social media presence should only be one part of the equation when you’re booking you’re vendors. Look at the whole package- website, socials, reviews, videos, actually speaking to the main person, ensuring the quote is consistent and there’s not many loop holes in there. That quote is what you’ll be using to measure that you actually get what you paid for.

The Booked Out Vendor (that was available on your date by a fluke)

Pros:

Ahhhhhh the super busy booked out vendor- I love these people. I know so many of them. The good things about these guys are they tend to be pretty good. They have their services down pat. These guys have top prices, and on their website it says things like “My packages start at $2200” so ya’ll know not to waist your time if you’re on a budget. Another good thing is that these types barely have to do any prep for your wedding day. They already have everything so organised they’re like a well-oiled machine. They’ll probably arrive on the day in a converted Kombi van singing ‘kumbayah’. Okay I made that last part up, but it could happen. Another good thing about these guys is that with their wealth of experience, they can probably guide you a LOT. If you like that kind of thing. The more experienced the vendor, the more likely they’re going to tell you how to it is. And potentially decline your ideas if they don’t like them.

Cons:

Some of the pitfalls of this type is that you and your wedding is probably just going to be a number. Yes, you might have booked a superstar. BUT. If that superstar is doing 3-4 weddings on your week, maybe you’re a number Boo..!? Sorry I said it. I recently booked a superstar photographer for something, and I LOVED his work. On the actual day though, I did feel a little rushed. On the morning of the shoot, I began to get a psychic vibe that maybe I was in fact…. a number. To his credit he chilled right out across the course of the day, but you get what I mean.

Another con with these types is that they might try to guide and decide things for you, when you actually want to run the show. Perhaps you’re feeling micromanagy, well with a super experienced/ ultra-busy vendor, they might not let you Gustapo!

The Hobbyist Vendor

Pros:

Ah the Hobbyist Vendor, how cute. With these types, normally their social media is going to be up the wahzoo. It will be a completely unrelated account name, and it will be mostly pictures of their kids, with the odd wedding shot in there for good measure. The Hobbyist may or may not be more expensive than the Baby Beginner. Depends if they like well paying hobbies I guess.. The Hobbyist may not have a fancy website and they might not be very specialised. They might be a Jack-of-all-trades-hobbyist, who just happens to be coming to your particular wedding, lol.

Cons:

The cons of the Hobbyist is that similar to the Booked Out Vendor, your particular wedding many not be the top of their priority list. Their priorities might look like this:

• Family
• Day job
• Medical appointments
• Walking the dog
• Collecting dead butterflies
• Ad hoc tasks around the house
• Everyone else’s Bat Mitzvah
• Your wedding

Therefore, don’t be surprised if you cop a cheeky phone call on the night before, or the proverbial “morning of” saying all their camera lenses are broken. Or if they’re a DJ hobbyist, that they can’t find any of the music you wanted. Or if they’re a flower seller, that there’s no more yellow flowers growing in Melbourne now… Ya feel me?

Conclusions About Wedding Vendor Archetypes

Anyways, when it’s all said and done, you can book anyone you want for your special wedding. Like they say in the dating world “there’s a lid for every pot”. Another good saying I heard recently was “it takes all types”. Which is so true, not every couple wants a person running around asking their permission for things on the wedding day. Not every couple can afford the most expensive vendors. Some couples might prefer to book a vendor in by email, then not speak to them at all until the wedding day. SOME people even like to book vendors they perceive as being a little bit sh*t so THEY can be the star of the show…. You know who you are….

Everyone is different and that is a good thing. I’ll stay over here attracting my couples just based on my first and last name only thank you very much. Hope ya’ll have a nice wedding! If you’re still looking to book the entertainment for your wedding day, consider us, Ms Lexi & Celestial Band. We’re a full-time wedding band and DJ service based in Melbourne. We play acoustic music and can provide up to a 6 person traditional cover band for your wedding day. Yes, we learn songs and all that jazz too. Which archetype of vendor are we you ask? Good question, well we’re probably a weird conglomerate of the first 3 types listed in this blog. We go alright. Enquire via the Contact Form lovers!!!!!!! Xoxoxoxox

Written by Lexi Ross on 13/9/22

Updated Postponement Policy