How to Avoid “Wedding Markup” When Planning Your Big Day
If you’ve ever planned a wedding, you’ve probably heard that using the word “wedding” can get expensive. In this video, a wedding videographer explains why vendors charge more for the same service on your big day. They also offer some ideas on how to get around this.
This is called the wedding mark-up . For example, in a video, subjects receive two quotes from the same location, one for a “family gathering” and one specifically for a wedding. The cost is $ 15,000 versus $ 17,000. Wedding markup is nothing new, but the video points out several reasons why it exists. First, people are unfamiliar with the market, so they are more willing to pay higher prices. There is also a once-in-a-lifetime mentality: it’s a big day, so it’s worth spending money on.
On the other hand, wedding clients tend to be more demanding and expect more from suppliers, so this also translates into cost. Here’s what they have to say about it:
As a result, the emotional weight of weddings usually means more work for the salespeople. This means that the prices are higher. And the most demanding customers are those who set prices for everyone. Therefore, the best thing you can do to avoid being scammed is to ask for a price range before you hear a quote. We sellers may hate this, but it’s fair to do.
Thus, before accepting your requirements, suppliers will give you an idea of what you can expect. In short, they suggest asking for a little transparency. To learn more on this topic, watch the full video.
Why are weddings so damn expensive? | Vox (YouTube)