Wedding Vendors: What's the Difference Between a Service Provider and a Product Provider?

Earlier today I shared an article from Huffington Post entitled “The Most Common Wedding Emergencies, and How to Deal with Each”, and while their advice is spot-on, one of the underling, but unsaid ideas was to choose reliable and trustworthy wedding service providers. It made me think; do people know the difference between a service provider and a product provider? You need both when planning a wedding, but which ones are which? Well, in continuing the conversation started by the Huffington Post article, I’m gonna break it down for you!

Wedding vendors all fall into one of two large (and ever expanding!) categories: Service Providers and Product Providers.

Generally speaking, service providers are all of the vendors that you’ll actually see and work with on your wedding day. They are your:

• wedding coordinator/planner

• photographer and videographer

• caterer and staff

• location staff

• officiant

• D.J. and other Musicians

• Hair and Makeup Artists

Again, generally speaking, your product providers are the vendors that you buy finished products from. They are your:

• wedding attire boutiques

• stationary designer/printer

• cake artist

• florist

• jeweler

I say these are the general categories because there is always some over-lap. For example, as a photographer, I also provide finished products like wedding albums, prints, and canvases. Your Stationary Designer may provide addressing services. Your wedding gown boutique surely provides alteration services. Moving between providing services and products allows us to expand our income sources, as many of us are small businesses, but ultimately our main category determination comes from our main income source.

Why is it important to know the difference between a service provider and a product provider? You need to know the difference for budgeting purposes. Your service-based providers will ALWAYS cost you more, and they’re also the ones you shouldn’t skimp on because their time is worth the money they charge. You also need to know the difference so that you know who, what, when, and where everyone and everything should be on your wedding day. You should expect to see your service providers throughout the day. You may or may not see your product providers on your wedding day.

Each of your wedding vendors can- and will!- argue for the many reasons on why you shouldn’t skimp on either their products or services, and rightly they should! Your florist should argue that you need to pay for quality supplies to make your arrangements. Your cake artist should argue that you need to pay for quality ingredients so that you have a tasty cake and a piece for everyone. But, ultimately, it is your service providers that will surround you on your wedding day, actually bringing your vision to life and taking care of all of your guests. And, it is for this reason that I advise you budget accordingly, dedicating larger percentages of your budget toward your service providers.