Listen up ladies! Everyone knows that this is your day and you want everything to go the way you planned. We get it, but make sure you check that attitude at the door when you meet with your vendor before your big day.
You have an initial meeting with your reception vendor for a reason – to go over the entire contract and fine print. You need to make sure you read and understand everything in your contract before you sign. Once you sign and make your deposit, there are no exceptions to their rules.
What do you do if for some reason you decide it would be fun to have a mini petting zoo with farm animals, monkeys and clowns swinging from the chandeliers for entertainment, smoke machines, or fireworks at your reception and the venue doesn’t approve? DON’T DO IT!! It’s as simple as that! You need to abide by the contract and not throw a hissy fit when things don’t go your way. The venue has the right to void the contract if you don’t abide by it on the day of your wedding.
Another big no-no that really irks vendors is when a bride-to-be suddenly feels the need to bring in an outside caterer to provide a dish or course that she can’t live without at her wedding. If the venue of your reception offers catering services and it is stated in your contract as part of the event, you cannot bring in outside caterers! So if you absolutely cannot live without that amazing smoked salmon croquette appetizer from your favorite restaurant, save it for another event.
To avoid mishaps like this make sure that you express your wishes very clearly to the vendor at the initial meeting. If they don’t provide something that you want, ask and see if it can be included in your contract. Ask them if it is okay to bring in outside entertainment, caterers or whatever else you might want that they don’t provide. It never hurts to ask and the worse they can say is ‘no’. Also, try to come up with everything you will want at your reception. Don’t overlook any detail, no matter how small it is. Once you have a good idea of what kind of entertainment, food and extras you’ll want at your reception, it will be easier to find a venue that can cater to your desires.
You obviously want your wedding planning day to go as smoothly as possible. So do yourself and everyone involved a huge favor, know what you want and plan for it. It is unfair to the vendors to try to change their policies when you knew what they were from the very beginning. This is just one way you can make your wedding planning process much easier and less stressful on everyone, including yourself!
Thanks for reading! If you haven’t, make sure you check out my how to become a wedding planner article on the front page 
This post was written by...
Ashley Orwitz+ – who has written over 100 articles on wedding planning in her career.
Ashley graduated from New York University in 2003 and she's been planning weddings ever since. Ashley started HowToBecomeAWeddingPlanner.net so she could help aspiring wedding planners achieve the job of their dreams.