With the amount of money generated within the wedding industry, you may unfortunately come across some vendors whose intentions are just to fleece you of your cash & leave your wedding dreams in tatters.

It can be easy to be sucked in to what seems like a good deal. You are hopelessly in love, swept up in the excitement of your impending nuptials & they probably saw you coming a mile off! But a good wedding directory should be able to direct to you those vendors that are genuine & will give everything you wanted on your special day. Make sure you use one when trying to find potential vendors, most will vet those that advertise with them & will discount vendors that don’t come up to the mark. Use two or three paper or web based directories to get a good cross section of vendors in your area & also research the internet for any information or press coverage on vendors you are considering using. You may be surprised what you uncover!

When you have finished researching the vendors in your wedding directory, then it is time to draw up a short list & arrange appointments with them. Before you meet them here are a few hints & tips to help you find the best vendors.

First, establish a contract. A no-brainer really, before you hand over any cash, make sure you have some form of binding contract which states exactly the products &/or services they will provide you with. If the business is reputable, then a contract will be standard procedure, if they won’t issue you with one, then don’t take any chances – walk away.

Always read the fine print & all the terms & conditions. Yes it’s boring & time consuming, but knowing exactly what your rights are & what is expected of you will prove invaluable should something go wrong later. Also keep in mind the old saying ‘if it seems too good to be true, then it probably is’. Be wary of someone that offers you something at a third of what other vendors have quoted you; you may be stung later on. Do not sign anything until you fully understand the contents, if you don’t then seek clarification.

Ask about cancellation policies. What happens to your deposit if your have to cancel a service or even God forbid the entire wedding? Find out if you can reschedule their services at a later date or if they will refund your money because of the circumstances. If you won’t get your money back make sure you can afford to take the hit. In these circumstances wedding insurance may be a wise choice.

Check out additional costs. Will your venue’s or caterers charge you extra to set up &/or clean up before & after the wedding? What about costs for cutting the cake, corkage charges & breakages? Ask that all extra charges are itemized in the contract so that nothing can be added after you have signed it, unless by mutual agreement later on.

Also, be sure to ask about overtime fees. Running into extra time can happen so ask all time based vendors about any additional charges for running over your allotted time frame. These include transport hire, reception venue, DJ & any other services you’ve hired for your big day. Most weddings will run in to overtime so make sure you are not slapped with a massive overtime bill & ask about your options.

Again, be wary of anything that seems too good to be true. Use your wedding directory to shop around & with some research you will have a good idea of what things will cost. If something is so cheap it arouses your suspicions ask why, it may be a special offer running at the time or you may not be getting what you think you are, for instance you ordered French champagne but you get cheap sparkling wine.