Wedding Planner vs. Onsite Coordinator

I try to use this blog as a place to share ideas, share our work but most of all share tips and information from my experience as a planner. This particular post is based on something that wedding planners deal with quite often so I felt the need to share from a planner's view point on the subject. 

There are some wonderful venue onsite coordinators out there and I love working with them. It makes the whole process of planning and coordinating a wedding much easier if everyone is on the same team with the same goal: to make the couple's wedding day great. The problem is that there is a misunderstanding that wedding planners/coordinators and onsite coordinators do the same thing. Brides are often told by an onsite coordinator that wedding planners are not necessary because of what they are able to do for you.  While they are an important part of the process, there are some potential challenges you could run into that you should keep in mind as you make your decision whether to hire a coordinator or not: 

 - As a wedding planner, I work for you and my primary objective would be to look out for your interests.  Having an impartial third party, such as me, involved can help to protect you, the client, by making sure everything that you need is being taken care of and deal with any issues involving the venue or their staff. The o/c works for the venue and therefore has the venues best interest in mind, so if any issues arise they may look to protect their own interest first. 
 - As your wedding planner I would be the person you would be working with throughout your entire planning and coordinating process. On the day of the event my goal is to know as much or more than you do about the details to ensure all of the plans you have made will come to reality. Sometimes the person that you work with throughout the planning process when you use an o/c may not be the person on duty for your wedding weekend. So the potential would exist that important details you have relayed may not be communicated properly with the person actually working your wedding. 
 - As your wedding planner I will contact all of your vendors and confirm your contract details to ensure everyone is on the same page, this includes arrival and set up times. I will then take all of this information and prepare a wedding weekend schedule to be distributed to the vendors as well as the bridal party.  This is typically not something an o/c would handle, and most likely then would be something you would have to do yourself. 
 - Hiring a wedding planner comes with the ability to email or call them with any wedding questions that pop up from the moment you hire them until the event is complete. Whether it is on timing, logistics, etiquette, decor, etc., I would be available and willing to help you. While I do work with other clients, I purposefully try to limit the number of weddings I handle during the summer in order to ensure superior service to my brides.  Onsite coordinators typically have a wedding they are working for almost every weekend during the summer and therefore have a lot more clients to juggle at a time. 

My intent is definitely not to disparage what an onsite coordinator does, as I said before I believe they plan a pivotal role on the event "team".  However, I do truly believe that having a wedding planner ensures your interests are always a priority and I want to make sure that you have as much information as you can to make an informed decision. Consider the reasons that are behind your decision to hire or not hire a planner; if you are looking for someone to help you with the things listed above consider hire a third party consultant. 

*This post is based on my opinion and experience over the last 8 years, it does not reflect on any particular venue or coordinator.