Planning Your Wedding? Here Are 3 Things You Need to Know

The proposal was a success, you’re now newly-engaged, and you’re on your merry way to plan for your very special day! Oh, did you hear from a friend that planning for a wedding can be extremely stressful? Well, while it may be true, it doesn’t have to be your reality. Here are the top 3 takeaways that we think you should keep in mind as you go about those plans.  

1.  Automate your wedding savings

Here’s how it usually goes: we arrive at the end of the month, thinking it would be wise to put aside some money, only to find out that we’ve already overspent. So here’s the first wedding planning tip that will change your game: automate your savings. Save yourself (pun intended) a big headache and focus on planning for your big day while your bank account does the work.

How do you get started? Just set up an automatic recurring transfer that happens immediately after your salary is banked in. This is a powerful strategy for meeting your saving goals, because instead of saving leftovers at the end of each month, you are now saving upfront before your money flows out to other expenses. And since this is all done automatically, you won’t even feel the pinch of having to put aside money.

These days, it’s common for banks to have an in-app automated savings account, where you can easily set this up in less than 5 minutes. Just pick a start and end date, and it will automatically calculate exactly how much you need to save within the specific time period to hit your saving goals. For example:

• Wedding Planning Funds - goal of RM100,000
• Start date - 3 Oct 2024
• Completion date - 2 Nov 2027
• Save RM2,702.20 per month

Some apps even include an auto deduction option, so you have absolutely zero excuses to “forget saving”! Remember, establishing systems means the same amount of work can be done so much more efficiently.

2.  Assemble your wedding vendor dream team

The next part in your wedding planning journey is looking for all the right vendors. There are two parts to this: what vendors to look for, and how to choose the right ones. Let’s begin!

a.    What vendors should you have for your wedding?

Somewhere between choosing a caterer and hiring a local band to play at your wedding is a long list of wants and needs. You may want a larger-than-life floral arch with fresh hydrangeas for your ceremony, but you will definitely need a venue to place that arch in.

Let’s be a honest, a wedding, essentially, is made up of just these: 

1. Bride
2. Groom
3. Venue
4. Officiant
5. Witnesses
6. Invitations
7. Guests

Everything else is technically a nice-to-have. Culturally, here in Malaysia, we’re so used to having food with every occasion. But the truth is, a wedding without food isn’t impossible either. At the end of the day, it really depends on what you want.

Start with a list of non-negotiables and a solid budget for your wedding planning. Having both these things will help keep your priorities straight. Your non-negotiable list could include items like wedding bands, caterers, a photographer and many more. Keep this list under 10-15 items, if possible. Anything that goes beyond this list is a nice-to-have, and if it still fits your budget after you’re done reserving those non-negotiables, then you can consider it.

Plenty of wedding deals will be shouting for your attention, so try your best to stick closely to your budget. Check out what packages suit your needs the most, instead of settling for the cheapest deals immediately. For example, affordable venues may have older sound systems, which may lead you to rent better equipment for the reception. When this happens, the initial discount you thought you had scored is now cancelled out by that additional expense you made. So be extra careful, do your research, and don’t make any hurried decisions when you don’t have to.

Don’t know where to start? Here, we prepared a reference list of key wedding vendors and their estimated costs for you:

This is just a list to get your brain going. You may not even want to have everything on this list, which is completely alright too! Also, do note that your final costs will differ from this table, depending on the packages and vendor discounts you eventually go with.

b.    How do you choose the right vendors?

Now that you have a list of vendors you’re considering, it’s time to choose the ones you’ll go with. But the question is, who? When two florists provide you similar rate cards, which one do you choose?

Budget aside, it’s incredibly important in your wedding planning journey to find vendors who will work with you to give you what you need. We’ve compiled a list of qualities you should look out for, as well as some helpful tips on how to recognise them:

• Works well as a team
  • Ask your vendors to recommend people they’ve enjoyed working with. This will help you build a great vendor team.
• Easy to get in touch with
  • If your vendor is taking too long to get back to you, it’s a sign that they may not handle last-minute changes well.
• Knows it’s about you
  • An on-the-fly song request for the DJ or an impromptu programme shift with your wedding coordinator, great vendors should be flexible enough to handle minor changes if you really need it.
• Experience
  • Ideally, you don’t want to be someone’s training ground. Look for vendors who are familiar with what they do — for example, a caterer who’s used to serving big parties, instead of one that is more well-versed in small, private events.
• Reputation
  • If you think you’ve found a decent vendor, don’t go entirely by one or the other, always cross-check with different sources. If they have extremely mixed reviews, then you might want to reconsider.

Online reviews, trusted recommendations, or even a face-to-face meeting for that chemistry check — do whatever it takes for you to find trustworthy vendors with great track records. Because at the end of the day, you’ll want to choose vendors who will help ease your planning process, not the other way around.

We know: research might be overwhelming and it may take a while. But when you land terrific once-in-a-lifetime deals that match your expectations, half the wedding planning is already done.

3.  Don’t compare with others

Finally, the cheesy advice that we must all walk away with: don’t compare. When you get into that wedding planning mode, there’s going to be Pinterest boards full of pinned ideas, endless Instagram reels and TikTok videos of grand gestures, and well-intentioned opinions from friends and family.

As you’re trying to balance all of that, it can be easy to fall into the comparison trap. Will your wedding live up to the Instagram aesthetics? Will your wedding hashtag be punny enough? Will your family secretly complain about the venue?

There is no end to pleasing others. So, remember this: your wedding is your special day. Whether it’s a lowkey wedding with your closest friends & families, a big celebration in your dream hotel’s grand ballroom, or something else entirely, do it your way. Wedding planning shouldn’t be the cause of conflicts between loved ones, or a stressor that puts way too high of an expectation on yourself.

The key is to create a budget based on what your day best looks like to you and your partner! Feel free to refer to another couple’s wedding costs and see what’s a comfortable range for you.

Communicate often with your partner during the entire process and make the best out of it. You might have to compromise sometimes, but having a non-negotiable list and a firm budget will anchor you through it. Plan smart, budget well, and do it your way!

If you need a little help to plan for your big day, we have something that might help.

Check out these helpful links to kickstart your wedding planning journey with ease.

• Personalised financial solutions for weddings to start your thought process
• A handy foreign exchange rates guide for any international bookings
• A list of travel essentials to get you ready for your honeymoon trip

💡 The information provided above is purely for educational purposes.