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Savvy June 2020

“Investment”

Willbe, on January 17, 2020 at 12:15 PM Posted in Planning 0 13

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Mini-rant:

I hate it when I go on the website of a florist or a photographer, and their pricing section is called “Investment”. A wedding is not an investment! A marriage is (the whole rest of your life with your partner), a wedding is a single day party that does not determine the quality of your relationship in the future unless you go into a lot of debt for it and it puts a strain on your marriage for several years after!
I find it ludicrous that everything should be expensive because everything else was expensive (well you want to pay for hair and makeup because your photographer was 3k and you want to look good in those expensive photos! You want to spend a lot on decor and your dress because your photographer was so expensive!)
Please keep things in perspective, and don’t let those marketers make you spend more than you actually want to. It doesn’t have to be a once in a lifetime thing. You could have a vow renewal every few years and it can also be gorgeous and meaningful. Spend wisely on things you actually feel are worth it, so your marriage doesn’t suffer because of your wedding. Buying a house is an investment. Sending your future children to a good school is an investment. A wedding is not an investment.

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13 Comments

Latest activity by Jennifer, on April 21, 2021 at 10:58 PM

Devoted September 2021
Erin · on January 17, 2020 at 12:20 PM
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Yes well said!!!
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Master February 2020
Amber · on January 17, 2020 at 12:26 PM
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Investment - "The action or process of investing money for profit or material result"
I agree that you should only spend money on things that are worth it to you, but my wedding photos are incredibly important to me and they are an investment. By investing in a talented photographer, my profit is memories forever captured that I could otherwise never relive and the material result would be the actual photos that I'll get to see in my home everyday. Sure, industry prices can be pretty outrageous all around, but such is life.
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Master September 2019
Sherry · on January 17, 2020 at 12:36 PM
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Perfectly said!
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Legend July 2019
MrsD · on January 17, 2020 at 12:41 PM
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To me, it is an investment. Especially pictures & videos. You are investing in the memories & physical pictures & videos you'll have for the rest of your life, and investing in a day that marks the beginning of your entire marriage. If you don't feel the need to spend money on a wedding, that is totally fine, but this probably isn't the right group of forums for it because 99% of the brides & grooms are planning weddings and "investing" in venues and vendors...
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Master January 2021
AshleyR · on January 17, 2020 at 1:13 PM
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Everything you spend money or time on is an investment. When you buy a pair of pants you’re making an investment in your wardrobe, when you “invest” in lunch you’re expecting the outcome is to be full and satisfied, etc. Weddings are also investments, you’re spending time and/or money on something with the expectation of a certain outcome. All that matters is what you personally see as a “good” investment or a “bad” investment. For some people a photographer is a good investment, If you think photography or hmua is a bad investment then don’t invest in it. Just like finances there’s no right or wrong, it’s all very personal to individual goals.
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Devoted May 2021
Lena · on January 17, 2020 at 1:15 PM
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I agree with MrsD... pictures and videos are definitely an investment. You can't redo those and you'll have them forever. and you'll remember your wedding day forever.
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Legend November 2019
Caytlyn · on January 17, 2020 at 1:18 PM
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Couldn’t have said it better.
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Super September 2021
Sharon · on January 17, 2020 at 1:32 PM
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I totally get what you're saying. Prices of everything gets jacked up as soon as wedding is attached to it. They try to guilt you if you don't want to spend a ton of money on something. "Its your special day, once in a lifetime...." true but why should they expect you to go into debt for one day? I want to have a nice wedding and we both have large families so cutting the guest list isn't feasible. We decided the two things that were important to us, and yes felt like an investment were the venue and photographer/videographer. We're also cutting back on things that aren't important and not an investment to us which includes flowers. That's not an investment. Who really remembers flowers or centerpieces from any wedding you've been to? I don't.
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Master May 2020
Kari · on January 17, 2020 at 2:01 PM
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Counterpoint: I think of an "investment" as being a long term good use of my money. I feel that a good photographer is an investment because those photos are going to last far beyond your wedding day and those are going to be what you refer back to over and over again to relive memories of your wedding or share them with others.

I probably wouldn't call bartending services an investment, but when I tell kids about my wedding I'm not going to be giving them details of our signature cocktail. However I am going to be showing them photos, letting them look at our rings, etc so to me those things and any part of our wedding we want to last long enough for the generation(s) after is an investment.

Also I know people get annoyed by prices getting jacked up for weddings but I don't think couples often consider the level of attention, detail, and customer service that goes along with quality wedding services. A good wedding photographer is providing a much higher level of customer service than a family portrait photographer, other event photographer, fashion photographer, stock photographer, etc. Wedding photographers invest considerable time and money into making sure they perfectly capture your big day - from meeting with the couple ahead of time to reviewing schedules, setting up and reviewing questionnaires, answering emails quickly, providing preview photos, guiding you through the process, helping keep you and your wedding party organized, etc. They also spend a lot of time behind the scenes building a network of other photographers, have detailed backup plans in the case of an emergency, editing your emails, providing previews ahead of time, and communicating back and forth. I'm a published freelance photographer and photography instructor (I don't photograph weddings) so maybe I have a better appreciation for everything that goes into it and place a higher value on photography than most couples, but in my book photography is certainly an investment, and I'd prefer to find a photographer that is as passionate about photography and takes it as seriously as I would so I think "investment" is the perfect term to use.
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Savvy June 2020
Willbe · on January 17, 2020 at 2:04 PM
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I think that’s my precisely my beef with the terminology. Investment and spending are two different things. I’m not saying you shouldn’t spend your money how you want for things you enjoy. I’m saying it’s not an investment. Memories are wonderful, but having/not having a video of your wedding should not change the success of your marriage.
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Savvy June 2020
Willbe · on January 17, 2020 at 3:08 PM
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Also, to be clear - I am not saying weddings are not a lot of work for the vendors involved to make sure everything goes smoothly, and I completely recognize there are varying levels of quality you can bring to a wedding that make a difference.

Nor am I saying that they are not bringing expertise that has actual value. I am in complete awe of how beautiful some of these vendors can make a space. Creativity, aesthetic, attention to detail has value. The vendor is certainly making an investment in their own business when they refine these things.
I am saying an investment has a return in the future. If I pay $5 for a designer macaron with the most exquisite crisp outside and slightly chewy bite in the texture and uniquely balanced flavors, no one can say the baker didn’t put a lot of work into perfecting that recipe, or that I “shouldn’t” have spent that much on a macaron. But that macaron is not an investment, it is a splurge, a brief enjoyment that I will remember fondly. I just want us to be able to tell the difference.
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Veronica · on January 17, 2020 at 3:57 PM
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I think that the word investment has been substituted for fee in order to make people more comfortable with spending a lot of money. I agree with you, an investment implies future returns. Other than the utility I get out of fondly looking through my wedding album, I am not getting a return on those photos. The photos will not be worth more in a few years. I think that vendors are selling themselves short by not using the term fee or cost. I don't make an "investment" when I go to the doctor; I pay the cost or fee. A talented wedding photographer also has a specialized skill set that I am using, so own it, and call a fee a fee.
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Beginner August 2022
Jennifer · on April 21, 2021 at 10:58 PM
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I completely accept that photographs and videos are an excellent investment. Wedding is the precious moment in everyone's life and it can't come again. But if we properly invest on our finances or save our money properly then we not need to worry about money and saving on the wedding day. Enjoy your wedding day by making a best financial plan with best financial planning app .
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