What Does a Day of Coordinator Do? An Hour by Hour Look

What does a day of coordinator do? Run the day. That covers the timeline, the vendors, the lineup, the cues and the problems, from the first delivery to the last guest out the door. Below is a sample Saturday with a 4:30 PM ceremony, hour by hour, so you can see what actually happens and who is doing it.

Your own day will look different. What your wedding needs decides when we arrive and how long we stay, so treat these times as an illustration and not a promise of hours on site. Ask us about yours.

What happens before the wedding day?

Most of the job is work you never see. Ours starts two to four weeks before the wedding, as we explain in our post on what a day of wedding coordinator is and is not. In that stretch we do the following:

• Build the wedding day timeline around your ceremony start time and your venue's hours

• Confirm each vendor's arrival time, contact person and what they need on site

• Make sure everyone knows where to be and when, from the wedding party to the families

• Run the rehearsal lineup, so the wedding party has walked through the ceremony once

• Settle the small questions nobody has answered yet, such as who takes the gifts home and who holds the rings

What does the morning and afternoon look like?

The early part of the day is mostly arrivals and checking. Here is the sample, with the ceremony at 4:30 PM:

• 11:00 AM: First deliveries and setup crews arrive. We meet them, show them where things go, and check each one against the timeline.

• 12:30 PM: We check in on the getting ready spaces and confirm the photographer and the hair and makeup team are where the schedule says.

• 2:00 PM: We walk the ceremony space. Chairs, signs, sound and flowers get a look, and anything that needs to move gets moved.

• 3:00 PM: We touch base with the officiant and whoever is playing the ceremony music, so everyone has the same start time and the same cues.

• 3:45 PM: The wedding party gathers and we do a headcount. Everyone has a place to wait and a time to move.

• 4:00 PM: Guests start arriving, and we help them find their seats.

So what does a day of coordinator do in the last ten minutes before a ceremony? Line up the processional in order, check that the music, the officiant and the couple are ready, and send the first cue. Then the ceremony begins.

What happens after the ceremony?

The ceremony is a small slice of a long day. So what does a day of coordinator do once the vows are done? Keep everyone moving in the right direction.

• 5:00 PM: The ceremony ends. We send guests to cocktail hour and gather the family members on the photo list for the photographer.

• 5:15 PM: While photos happen, we check the reception room with the caterer, the DJ and the florist, and fix anything out of place before guests walk in.

• 6:15 PM: Guests are seated, we line up the grand entrance, and the DJ gets the word that it is time.

• 6:30 PM: Dinner service begins. We stay the point of contact for the caterer and the other vendors.

• 7:30 PM: Toasts, then the cake, once the photographer and the DJ are ready.

• 8:00 PM: First dance, parent dances and open dancing.

• 9:30 PM: Last dance and send off. The cards and gifts go to whoever you chose, and vendors begin packing out.

Who breaks down the decor is a question to settle weeks ahead and depends on your wedding and your venue. Ask us what your wedding needs.

How does having two coordinators change the day?

Our team is Nick and Jasmine, a male and a female coordinator working together, and it includes the CSRA's only male wedding coordinator. In the hour before a ceremony, a lot needs doing in a lot of places, and between the two of them you have someone who gets people to the right place, someone who can lift the big, heavy things, and someone who can calm you down in a crisis. It sets the tone for the day. Couples get the best of both worlds, and you can read more about the team here. If you are still weighing whether you need help at all, our post on whether you need a wedding coordinator has an honest self test.

Questions couples ask about the job

What does a day of coordinator do when something goes wrong?

It comes to us instead of to you. A vendor running late, a chair count that is off, a guest who cannot find the entrance: we handle it, adjust the timeline if we have to and tell the people it affects. Small things go wrong at most weddings. They get fixed in a few minutes when someone is free to fix them, and that is much of the point of having someone who is not the bride, the groom or a parent.

Does a day of coordinator set up all of the decor?

We do not design your decor, and we do not promise setup or teardown of all of it. We do carry and move things. If you are counting on someone to set up a lot of decor, tell us early and ask us what your wedding needs.

Does a day of coordinator come to the rehearsal?

We run the rehearsal lineup and the ceremony cues. The rehearsal is where the wedding party learns where to stand and when to walk, so the real ceremony does not feel like a first try.

How long does a day of coordinator stay?

We do not promise a set number of hours, because it depends on what your wedding needs. Ask us when you reach out.

See what a day of coordinator can do for your wedding

And what does a day of coordinator do for your wedding in particular? That depends on the wedding, so tell us about yours. Day of coordination with us starts at $800 and goes up from there depending on what your wedding needs and how many staff we bring. We work across the CSRA, from Evans and Grovetown to North Augusta and Aiken. Start with the day of coordination page and then send us a note through the contact page.