Being prepared for the wedding day is the most important part of being a planner. You have been hired to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch!

No matter how many weddings I plan, I always follow the same checklist to make sure I am 100% prepared.

Here 5 Key Tasks to Prepare for a Successful Wedding Day:

Confirm the Timeline

About two weeks before the wedding, I have a meeting or phone chat with the couple to review the wedding day timeline I have prepared (you can find timeline templates in the Wedding Planner’s Toolbox). This allows me to make sure that they are happy with the flow of the day and it usually brings up last minute things that they may not have communicated to me.

After this meeting, I create a final timeline that is sent to the couple for final approval no later than a week before the wedding.

Confirm with Event Professionals

I generally start working with couples 6-8 weeks prior to the wedding if I am doing Wedding Day Mangement service. As soon as I get copies of all their signed contracts, I email each vendor and introduce myself. About three weeks before the wedding, I contact each vendor to confirm what has been agreed upon in the contracts such as arrival time, set-up details, tear down, etc. After I have all of that information, it is put into the wedding day schedule.

Once the couple has approved the final schedule, I send it to all participating vendors.

Prepare your Emergency Kit

A few days before the wedding, I pull out my emergency kit and make sure all the items have been replenished from the last event. My kit has a checklist in it that I can glance at and see what is there and what is missing. You can find a complete list of wedding day emergency kit items in the Wedding Planner’s Toolbox.

Prepare Your Personal Items

I have a separate tote that goes in the back of my vehicle that is full of items that I like to have on hand for myself. I always bring an extra outfit, a clean up outfit, extra shoes, toiletries, water, pain reliever, snacks, and my cell charger.

Review Everything with Your Assistant(s)

After the rehearsal (usually the day before the wedding), I sit down with my assistant(s) and go over the timelines, what I am delegating to them during the day and any special instructions/circumstances that we need to be aware of. This will make your assistant(s) more helpful and productive on the wedding day.

After doing all of these things, I feel calm and ready for a fabulous event! You might also like to see my wedding day checklist for wedding planners and the 10 things that wedding planners do on the wedding day.

This is a guest post from Amber Peterson. Amber is the owner of Cheers Wedding & Event Planning in western Washington. She has a Masters Degree in Integrated Marketing Communications and previously worked as a marketing consultant for wedding industry professionals. Amber is also the co-founder of the Skagit Wedding Society.