Photo Credit: The Big Affair
Think Small
The hardest part of delegating is letting go of control. But when your to-do list is a mile long, it’s time to let go of some of the smaller tasks — the ones that are hard to mess up. “Ask you friends and family to help with the small tasks — alphabetize your place cards for the venue, wrap the favors, deliver the guest baskets and itineraries to hotel, etc.,” recommend the experts at Michelle’s Catering. “Your friends, bridesmaids, family, and young cousins will all be willing to do a task each — just think about how many errands you need. Each person will feel special and involved with even the smallest task.”
Everyone Else’s Wedding-Day Attire
“Take one more wedding planning task off your plate and have your wedding party and your VIPs (mother of the bride, mother of the groom, father of the bride, father of the groom, etc.) handle purchasing all of their wedding day fashion and accessories. But you want to make sure they know all the pertinent information, like colors, styles, and where to purchase, to delegate this to each person,” says Matt Ramirez, SVP of Marketing, Generation Tux. “You and your partner can design exactly what you want everyone to wear, assign their roles, and send them a link to do everything on their own. They can just input their fit info, shipping address, and check out — easy for them and for you!”
Preliminary Research
“Finding your wedding venue can feel like a monumental task, but don’t feel like you have to do it alone! Researching venues online is a duty you can delegate — and it’s something that anyone can do from the comfort of their couch,” says Jenna Miller, Creative Director of Here Comes The Guide. “Give your venue-hunting helpers some guidelines including geographic location, a budgetary range, an estimated guest count, and anything that’’ high on your priority list (do you want an outdoor ceremony space? In-house catering? On-site accommodations? etc.). And of course, you’ll need to let them know what style of venue you’re looking for — whether it’s rustic farmhouse or modern industrial. Once they have this shortlist of criteria, they can help you zero in on the venues that fit.”
DIY Projects and Assembly
One of the most common mistakes we see is taking on too many DIY projects, without realizing how much time and effort really goes into each project. “You don’t need to be the one assembling 100 invitation suites at midnight — or stuffing 85 sets of marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolates into s’mores favor bags!” says Miller. “These types of ‘piecing together’ projects can be delegated to your crafty friends and family members. Just give them the instructions on how to assemble the paper goods or other DIY undertakings, and trust them to bring those projects to fruition. If you don’t want to delegate these things entirely, simply recruit a bit of extra help! Because there’s nothing more fun than a wedding craft party with a couple bottles of wine.”
Tracking RSVPs
“If you’re using snail mail for wedding RSVPs, you’ll need to track them manually. But who says you need to do this yourself? If you have a trusted friend or family member that wants to help, ask if they wouldn’t mind keeping track of the responses. Write their address on the return envelope, and trust them to organize accepts and regrets into a shared Google Sheet,” says Miller. “This way, you’ll have eyes on the responses without the added stress of having to keep track of them yourself.”