Spot the Difference: Coordinator Types

One of the most common vendor team confusions for many couples is the difference between a venue coordinator, a day-of coordinator, and a month-of coordinator. Let’s chat through the differences and clear up any confusion!

Venue Coordinator

Many couples think having a venue coordinator is the same thing as having a day-of coordinator, but in some cases that couldn't be farther from the truth.

A venue coordinator is typically just onsite to ensure safe use of the venue and prevent any damage to the property. In some cases, they may run your ceremony processional or handle other small details of the day such as setting up personal decor, but in a majority of cases they are only there to oversee use of the space and setup of rentals acquired directly through them. The bottom line is that the role of the coordinator at each venue will differ, so you can never assume you'll have the day-of support you need just because someone from the venue is onsite.

Day-Of Coordinator

A Day-Of Coordinator is someone who comes in just the day of the wedding (or, in some cases, to run your ceremony rehearsal the day before) to set up personal decor, coordinate vendor arrivals and setup, send your family and bridal party down the aisle for the processional, and keep your timeline on track. The benefit of bringing in an outside Day-Of Coordinator is that you know you have someone onsite to take care of tasks such as setting up and taking down your personal decor, starting your ceremony, and acting as a middle man between you and your vendor team so you are not responsible for problem-solving on your big day.

However, the challenge of Day-Of Coordination is that coming in the day before the wedding doesn’t give the coordinator much lead time to learn the ins and outs of your unique wedding, and it doesn’t give the rest of the vendor team much of an opportunity ahead of time to establish the coordinator as their day-of contact (read: if they don’t know to look for your coordinator on the day-of and they have a question, they may still be looking for you).

Month-Of Coordinator

The roles and duties of a Month-Of Coordinator will look very similar on the wedding day to those of a Day-Of Coordinator, but the key differences are when the coordinator comes into the planning process, and how much organization they will take care of for you in the lead-up to the event. This is why Adoration offers Month-Of Coordination packages rather than simply Day-Of Coordination - we want to make sure your day is as smooth and carefree as possible, and the month lead time to establish a relationship with the vendor team and make sure we know the details of your wedding inside and out helps us ensure that the day is easy-breezy for you!

The Month-Of Coordination process begins with a questionnaire to give us as much information about your event as possible, and an email to your whole vendor team introducing Adoration as the coordinator for the event and the day-of contact. We will then create detailed day-of timelines based on the needs of your venue, DJ, and photographer, and disseminate final floor plans to the entire vendor team to make sure everyone has the details of the day they need to execute their jobs flawlessly.

Once the event day comes, we will run your ceremony rehearsal to ensure everyone is comfortable with where they will be walking and where they will be standing during the ceremony, and then we will see to it that every detail of your day is as smooth as can be (and since the relationships with the vendor team will have already been established, you don’t have to worry about your DJ asking you where they should set up while you’re in the makeup chair!)

If this sounds like the kind of support you would like to have on your wedding day, reach out - we would be honored to help ensure a lovely, stress-free day for you!