Making the Most of Bridal Shows in the Hudson Valley

Whether you are recently engaged and just starting your wedding planning, or you have set a date and are looking for professional vendors to make your Hudson Valley wedding truly unique, a high quality bridal show can be an important–and fun–part of the wedding planning process. 

 

DJ Bri Swatek and a Bride at Her Hudson Valley Wedding

As the owner of Spinning with Style, your professional wedding DJ service in the Hudson Valley, I, DJ Bri Swatek, have participated in a number of bridal expos over the years.  I would offer the following tips to brides and grooms planning to spend a few hours taking it all in at their next local wedding expo:

Bring Your Wedding Team! 

Bridal shows can be very overwhelming, as you will meet a variety of vendors offering many different services in different ways.  Bring along friends and / or family members who you know will enjoy the experience with you and be helpful to you throughout the show. 

Take Notes. 

Assign one of your Wedding Team members to take notes for you, especially if you are already keeping a wedding journal or notebook of some kind.  Spend your time as a bride or groom talking with vendors directly, and ask your family and friends to write down responses that you found interesting, so that you can review these notes later when visiting vendors’ websites or setting up meetings.

Protect Your Privacy. 

Most bridal shows will ask you to register in order to win a prize.  In addition, many of the vendors at the wedding expo will also ask you to register at their booths for their individual prizes.  Decide in advance what phone number, address, and / or email address you want to provide, as vendors will be contacting you after the show to discuss your wedding plans further.  Many brides and grooms set up a unique email address just for their wedding planning process, to keep emails with vendors separate from their work-related or personal messages. 

Stickers Save Time. 

Bring two types of stickers to bridal shows.  First, prepare labels in advance so that you do not have to fill out vendors’ cards for further information and / or prize giveaways.  Be sure to provide information on these labels that directs vendors as to how you want to be contacted.  If you prefer a certain email address or phone number be used, make sure to include it.  Second, bring along a fun or silly sticker (such as a gold star or smiley face) to note which vendors you felt you connected with when discussing your wedding.  After visiting with a vendor that you particularly liked, ask one of your Wedding Team members to place a sticker on the vendor’s brochure, business card, or other provided information.  This note to yourself about your first impressions will be invaluable in the weeks to come when you are deciding which vendors from the show you want to speak with further.

Ask Questions. 

Most wedding vendors are prepared at a bridal expo to answer your questions about pricing, packages or options, and the availability of their services for your wedding date.  However, one of the most important questions you can ask a vendor at a bridal show is “who will I be working with on my wedding day?”  If the sales representative at the booth is not the actual wedding professional you would be working with, find out how and when you would be able to meet that person prior to your wedding day.  As always, insist on the best for yourself—hire and work with full-time wedding professionals who will provide personal attention to you throughout the wedding process.

Buyer Beware. 

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  If a price is too low, find out what is (or isn’t) included.  Don’t feel rushed into making a decision simply due to a special offer or prize.  Don’t be afraid to ask if the vendor is a full-time wedding professional.  Don’t be afraid to ask for references from a vendor’s previous customers.

Enjoy the Show!  

Most wedding expos provide food samples and a fashion show.  Make sure to see and experience what you want that day, and make sure to have fun!

In the Hudson Valley, the many venues offer excellent bridal shows throughout the year.  In particular, I would recommend that you check out the following venues’ websites on a regular basis to get the latest on their upcoming wedding expos:

Anthony’s Pier 9

The Grandview

The Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel

The Links at Union Vale

Rolling Greens

The Villa Borghese

In addition to going to the show, you can also create your own online bridal show experience (minus the cake samples I’m afraid!) by browsing an Internet wedding planning site.  These sites offer profiles, reviews, and more about local Hudson Valley wedding vendors.  One local site that I would highly recommend to my brides and grooms is Best Hudson Valley Wedding Ever located online at http://www.besthudsonvalleyweddingever.com/  This site is run by local Hudson Valley wedding professionals, and offers a variety of resources for planning your big day.  Finally, “DJ Bri’s Blog:  Your Unique Hudson Valley Wedding,” continues to feature links to highly recommended Hudson Valley wedding venues, caterers, photographers, videographers, florists, transportation, and more.  All of the vendors recommended on my blog are professionals that I have worked with closely over the years, who I know will provide the very best in service for your wedding day.

Congratulations,

Bri

________________________________________________________

DJ Bri Swatek, Spinning with Style
Your Professional Disc Jockey and MC Service
in the Hudson Valley of New York

Email:   briswatek@aol.com
Phone:  845.235.0080
Online:   www.djbriswatek.com