| Planning a wedding? Whether you're a wedding | | | | this decision to your friends. This is your |
| planning pro or a do-it-yourself bride, I | | | | big day. It deserves a little research. |
| know one thing you don't: you aren't using | | | | |
| the web enough. | | | | Bridal fairs. If the vendors at bridal fairs |
| | | | were so great, why would they be trawling for |
| The web has become the dominant way to shop | | | | business? Do you want an in-demand wedding |
| for electronics, travel, cars, housing, even | | | | vendor, or one who has to set up a booth and |
| education. But you can just as easily use | | | | hand out free samples? |
| the web to find caterers, event halls, | | | | |
| dressmakers, DJs, photographers, | | | | Yellow pages. I remember the time my mother |
| videographers--even a wedding planner if you | | | | used the Yellow Pages to find a contractor to |
| decide to take a break from doing it all | | | | install some new doors. During the holiday |
| yourself. | | | | season, the draft would blow out the candles |
| | | | in the window if they weren't electric. |
| Here's how the web helps you plan a wedding: | | | | Anyone can get in the yellow pages--and |
| | | | believe me, anyone does. |
| Local search. No, you don't have to sort | | | | |
| through vendors from here to Timbuktu. Local | | | | Web Wedding Planning Advantages |
| search technology now makes finding someone | | | | |
| downtown as easy as finding someone anywhere. | | | | Selection. No offline source will ever have |
| If you use Google, you only have to enter a | | | | as many options, whether it's songs for the |
| place name along with your keyword to get a | | | | wedding reception or fabrics for the gowns. |
| list of local businesses. Try "wedding | | | | |
| planner fargo" (without the quotes) and see | | | | Ready information. As soon as you see an |
| for yourself. | | | | option you'd like to consider, you can find |
| | | | out all you'd ever like to know as easily as |
| Real people. The people you are buying from | | | | copying and pasting into Google. |
| online aren't "virtual." They're as real as | | | | |
| the people you'd meet in person. In fact, | | | | It's All in Writing. By their very nature, |
| especially with local business, the website | | | | websites put a lot of information in writing. |
| is just a first contact. You can always call | | | | The written policies regarding shipping, |
| them up or arrange to meet in person. | | | | warranties (if any), returns, and service |
| | | | will almost always be easy to access. (Hint: |
| Dedicated wedding information websites. | | | | look for links to policies at the bottom of |
| There are now websites solely devoted not | | | | each web page.) The fact that everything is |
| just to planning a wedding, but to catering, | | | | written down gives the vendor much less |
| wedding cakes, even dying shoes for weddings. | | | | wiggle room to change the terms of the deal. |
| These same websites often have directories | | | | Almost as good as the paper trail is the |
| of wedding vendors arranged by location. | | | | photograph trail--at least when it comes to |
| | | | merchandise. Save any relevant images along |
| Message boards and customer reviews. You | | | | with the text. |
| wouldn't buy a book on Amazon without reading | | | | |
| a review a customer had left. Now you don't | | | | Better Business Bureau's Convenient |
| have to buy decorations that way, either. | | | | BBBOnline. On the web, it's easy to check |
| | | | for Better Business Bureau membership. The |
| Web Wedding Planning Alternatives | | | | site should have the BBBOnline logo displayed |
| | | | prominently on the order page. Click on the |
| The web has a lot of advantages over most | | | | logo to be taken to the BBB.org profile for |
| other ways of discovering and evaluating | | | | that business. The BBB page should say that |
| wedding vendors. Just look at what your | | | | business is a member in good standing. With |
| other options are:Recommendations from | | | | the BBBOnline, the Bureau's ecommerce |
| friends and colleagues. How much do your | | | | program, you can dispute a sale without |
| friends and colleagues really know about | | | | having to go to the local Bureau where the |
| wedding planning? Very often, one person's | | | | store is headquartered. |
| idea of wedding elegance is any sane person's | | | | |
| idea of bad, bad taste. Just look at | | | | In short, the web makes it much easier to get |
| anyone's wedding pictures. You can't trust | | | | a perfect wedding. |