Difference Between a Wedding Planner and Event Management

Are you planning a wedding, and you're getting confused about whether you should hire a wedding planner or an event manager? We're explaining the difference between a wedding planner and event management, so you'll know which one to hire for your big day.

Difference Between a Wedding Planner and an Event Management

Planning an event can be overwhelming. Wedding planners and event management professionals are among those who can help create a memorable and successful event for you. Here is a simple overview of their roles in events.

Overview of a Wedding Planner

A wedding planner is responsible for planning and coordinating everything from the proposal, engagement, bridal shower, wedding ceremony, and reception. Their expertise lies in the intricacy of their knowledge of the wedding industry. 

Overview of Event Management

Event management is a broader aspect of creating, preparing, and executing an event. It can be the umbrella term for planning events, including weddings. This has a wider coverage, especially regarding logistical, technical, and creative aspects.

Comparing a Wedding Planner and Event Management

Planners and event managers commonly share the same goal. Knowing their similarities and differences can help you better understand their strengths in executing an event.

Similarities

Since their jobs focus on events, you will see that event managers and wedding planners have these similarities.

• Communication skills: Event planning involves working with different people, including clients, vendors, sponsors, and speakers. Organizers must have excellent communication skills to interact and build rapport quickly.
• Organizational skills: Running an event can be chaotic. Planners and managers are among the most organized professionals in the events industry. They know how to follow timelines, work within budgets, and keep everyone on track with their responsibilities.

Differences

You need to understand the difference between planners and event managers because they have distinct specializations, tasks, and strategies. There are many reasons why events fail, including not finding the right person to oversee them.

Specialization

Wedding planners and general event managers vary greatly in their specialization.

• Wedding planner: Planners have subspecialties, including luxury, destination, and same-sex weddings. Others also have teams for elopements.
• Event manager: Managers can handle weddings, if necessary. However, they may mainly focus on other types of events like parties, corporate gatherings, social functions, parties, trade shows, conventions, concerts, and charity galas.

Task List

The task list is another major difference between planners and event professionals. Planners tend to spend more time working on their roles before the event, whereas event managers can work from start to finish.

Event managers can focus on conceptualization, research, and meetings. They can then pass the nitty-gritty details on to wedding planners. 

• Wedding planner: Planners for weddings focus on the logistics of the event. They cover everything from vendor suggestions to contract negotiations and even on-the-day coordination at times.
• Event manager: Managers for events can oversee the conceptualization, set-up, and overall execution. They have a bigger responsibility and may work hand-in-hand with planners.

Strategies

Event strategy is crucial because it dictates an event's plan of action. There should be a clear goal to make an event successful.

• Planners: Strategies can be similar in every wedding, with some customization depending on the couples. They focus on the needs of a couple, which is why their strategies mainly involve planning the wedding theme, coordinating with the wedding entourage, and overseeing the preparations in the lead-up to the wedding day. This is why planners are worth the money.
• Managers: The strategies are often data-driven and measured, aiming to achieve a target, whether it's profitable or not. Teams have a broader skill set in coming up with events. This may involve getting virtual reality entertainment, hosting online events, and deploying marketing strategies.

Major Distinguishing Factor

Events management can work on a broader scope of events, including weddings, social gatherings, live shows, and virtual events. On the other hand, wedding planners mainly focus on weddings, engagements, and elopements.

Wedding planners and event managers are both creative professionals. However, they differ in specializations and approaches to planning an event.

Planners often use a standard timeline or template to organize, design, and arrange a wedding. Meanwhile, full-service event managers like Thomas Bui Lifestyle use varying strategies when leading and supervising various events, whether a wedding, social gathering, or corporate event.

When to Use a Wedding Planner

Hiring planners for a wedding is worth it if you need superb planning and organization skills. If you're struggling with managing your budget and timeline, a planner can do every part of the work for you. This includes significant aspects such as vendor communication, location scouting, and guest management.

When to Use Event Management

Working with an event management professional would be better if you need to work on a large-scale or multi-day event. Opt for this if you want to gather crowds for brands, services, or products. This is perfect for social gatherings and corporate events where you may need post-event strategizing.

Which Professional Event Service is Better?

Hiring a wedding planner is better if you're looking for someone to help you plan, prepare, and oversee a wedding. Meanwhile, an event management team is preferable if you need a broader range of event producing, especially those that involve marketing elements and post-production evaluations.

Related Questions

What is the Difference Between Planning and Managing an Event?

Planning an event focuses on preparing every necessary aspect for an event. In comparison, managing an event involves the overall implementation of the event.

Can an Event Management Company Serve as a Wedding Planner?

Yes, an event production or management company can work as a planner for a wedding if they have the professionals for it. Most event production teams have subspecialties consisting of wedding planners, designers, and coordinators.

Can Wedding Planners and Event Managers Work Together?

Planners and managers can work together to run an event smoothly. However, you should analyze if a full-service event production company can handle everything. Otherwise, adding a different planner for a wedding may be counterproductive.

Final Verdict

Event managers can plan a wedding, although they may not be as well-versed as wedding planners. Meanwhile, wedding planners may not have every technical skill or necessary resource to handle other kinds of events. As a full-scale event production company, Thomas Bui Lifestyle can work as wedding planners and event managers.