Listen to the Podcast About Stress-Free Weddings
Podcast Summary
In an enlightening interview hosted by Tina Naponelli, Brianne Ackerland, a seasoned wedding planner known for her company, Stress-Free Weddings, shared some insightful thoughts on her experiences in the industry. Ackerland’s vast experience in planning stress-free weddings across Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois, especially in the demanding setting of Midwest destination weddings was highlighted. Her accomplishments such as being named 2024 Wedding Planner of the Year and bagging WeddingWire’s Couples Choice for nine consecutive years underline her expertise in creating memorable, hassle-free wedding experiences.
Beginning her journey with event planning in high school, Ackerland humorously revealed that the madness of planning weddings for her brother and herself back-to-back ignited her passion for the field. She shared how dealing with details, budgets, and differing styles revealed the pitfalls in the planning process. From wrong cake colours to malfunctions with attire, these incidents demonstrated the dire need for professional assistance in wedding planning. Her decision to make a career out of her hobby marked the birth of Stress-Free Weddings.
Moreover, Ackerland emphasized the significance of education in this niche. She spoke about her master certification, highlighting how it differs from general event management courses, focusing strictly on wedding planning. Her endeavors even led her to the Bridal Society’s courses that ensure expertise is provided beyond just décor setting. Ackerland’s tale of her journey from a casual planner to a revered master certified wedding planner and certified wedding educator pro is truly an inspiration for those seeking stress-free weddings.
Learn more about Stress-Free Weddings
This interview was provided by Felix and Fingers Dueling Pianos
Podcast Transcript
Tina (00:24)
Hello and welcome. I’d like to welcome Brianne Ackerland to the podcast. She is a master certified wedding planner and certified wedding educator pro, and she is the owner of Stress-Free Weddings, Inc. Brianne has been helping couples navigate the wedding planning process for over 15 years in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. She specializes in couples hosting Midwest destination weddings. Some of her achievements include,
2024 Wedding Planner of the Year by Certified Wedding Planner Society, and most helpful wedding planner of the year in 2021. Additionally, she has consistently won WeddingWire’s Couples Choice for nine years and the Not Best of Weddings for the last seven years. And she is also in the Hall of Fame winner for the Not Best of Weddings, just to name a few, right? Well, welcome, Brianne. Thank you so much for being on. We’re excited to have you.
Brianne Ackerland (01:22)
Thank you for having me, Tina.
Tina (01:24)
Absolutely. First, I just kind of want to see, you know, ask why and how you started this business and why did you choose wedding planning?
Brianne Ackerland (01:33)
Well, it’s a great story. I actually started planning events in high school. Our club had to do like dances and things for fundraisers. So we kind of got the bug way back in high school. But my brother and I decided to get married six weeks apart and 20 years ago and just kind of saw the catastrophe unfold before us.
Tina (01:56)
I’m sorry.
Brianne Ackerland (01:58)
trying to plan multiple weddings for families with two different styles and budgets and things. It just kind of showed me how things can go wrong, even if you are a very detailed person or if they’re not and how somebody needs to help these people so that like my dad’s suit coat didn’t button for my husband, my, for my brother’s wedding and my cake showed up the wrong color. So when it came time to decide what I want to do after having two kids in two years, I was like, I would rather.
Tina (02:02)
I’m right.
Brianne Ackerland (02:28)
do something I enjoy, then go back to the corporate world. And it just kind of snowballed from a hobby into a career path. Once I found some good education, that would kind of help develop my wedding planning hobby into a business.
Tina (02:32)
Mm -hmm.
Love it. Awesome. Well, let’s chat about kind of your education then and this certification as well. So tell me about the master certification and the educator pro certification. I don’t hear this very often to be totally honest.
Brianne Ackerland (02:48)
dog barking
Absolutely. There’s a lot of, excuse me, event management courses or hospitality programs like in Iowa at the University of Iowa and Iowa State, but they don’t focus primarily on weddings. So when I was looking for something to focus strictly on how can I assist couples and make sure that I know what I’m doing and I’m not just offering, you know, extra help just to set out decor and things like that, I started searching online.
Tina (03:22)
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (03:24)
And at the time, the bridal society as it used to be called was actually offering the course in person. So I went to Chicago, they had it at the Hard Rock Hotel back in 2014, I think it was. And it was a two day all day and you left with your certification. Nationwide, they would kind of do it at different colleges and things, but this one just happened to be at a hotel because they were also offering venue certification for venue coordinators at the time. So.
Tina (03:32)
Okay.
very cool.
Brianne Ackerland (03:54)
Through their program, they offered continuing ed, and that’s how I got to the masters. And then a couple years ago, they were looking for educators, people that had a lot of experience that did this full time, but that could also share some insight into new planners that were kind of coming up. And how can we kind of just make sure that we’re elevating the standard overall in the wedding planning industry, since it’s not really regulated. People can say they’re a professional, they can say that they,
Tina (04:07)
Thank you.
-huh.
Brianne Ackerland (04:23)
they do this or I have experience with this, but what supports that in relation to whatever business florist, DJ, you know, I love it, but how do I make sure that I’m a professional or a, you know, entrepreneur at this and not just a hobby. So that education was just kind of a key fundamental source. I wanted to make sure I had in my business since I was only going to offer planning assistance, logistics, organization and execution, not.
Tina (04:24)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Absolutely.
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (04:53)
a lot of the decor or other things people think of when they think of a wedding planner.
Tina (04:58)
Okay, all right, cool. Now how do you feel like that certification, both of those certifications kind of make you stand out as a business?
Brianne Ackerland (05:06)
100%. you know, again, not all wedding planners offer the same services, but for me, the education part, when I can tell that I’ve invested in myself and my experience and I can talk to them about the network and the continuing ed that I provide, for myself and my team, it makes the, I, hopefully the clients that are looking at my services over someone else who’s like, well, I have experience with my cousin’s wedding. Not that that’s a bad thing.
Tina (05:23)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (05:36)
But if you’re looking for someone that can help facilitate any logistical issue, cover any hurdle that might come their way on their event day, you want someone that has experience and education behind them as opposed to, everything’s going to be OK. Well, that’s not realistic with weddings and having that continued ed. And I do it through the not as well. There’s a couple of just.
Tina (05:48)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah. Never.
Brianne Ackerland (06:05)
high mainstream wedding industry only groups that provide continuing education for this industry. And I just try to take advantage of all of it. So that way when they’re, again, if I’m only selling myself and my services, I have no tangible goods, then I have to make sure I stand out from everybody else because I don’t have a product to show them other than a well executed event, which you can see by the awards and.
Tina (06:08)
Mm -hmm. Nice.
Mm -hmm. Right.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (06:33)
the additional education that I want.
Tina (06:35)
Yeah, that’s a great point for sure. I feel like it just builds that trust, right? Like right off the bat for sure. Everyone’s got to start somewhere, but yeah. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (06:39)
Mm -hmm.
100 % and I was that person. I was like, okay, I’m gonna help you because I love doing this, but it was how do I take that from the hobby to the business? How do I become, hey, how do I make this a viable full -time business and support myself? And that was the educational part, just pushed it right over the top as far as that element of it.
Tina (06:52)
Sure.
Absolutely.
Right. And like an industry that has to continue education, like everything is changing every other week, I’m sure. Right. So definitely. Right.
Brianne Ackerland (07:09)
Mm hmm. And it’s not just track, it’s not just trends. You know, I think that’s with weddings, obviously, trends change from season to season. And obviously, I look at that. But again, that works for wedding designers. You know, I guess I need to know what the trends are. But for me to do my job effectively, I need to know what tools can make me more efficient. What can I you know, what can I do to help my couples collaborate better on their timelines?
Tina (07:37)
Mm -hmm. Yeah. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (07:38)
Yes, now there’s sources for people to write speeches and their own ceremony vows because everybody’s having their friends marry them, but they’re afraid of what’s going to come out of their mouth. So, who’s got a product or who has understand there’s a need for that? And then is it something that I need to share with my clients so that way I’m filling the needs that they have.
Tina (07:45)
Ha!
Mm -hmm.
Yeah. Now for listeners, so you mentioned wedding designers and you’re more on like the other side of wedding designer, right? So what would those two sides look like or if there’s a third side too?
Brianne Ackerland (08:05)
Correct.
There’s actually there’s kind of like three avenues. There’s wedding planners who can help from, you know, start to finish vision boards, da da da da. You know, and then there’s wedding planners that do offer specifically like I do where it’s let’s make sure we’re partnering you with the right vendors. We’re not looking at just price point and date availability, but personality. Who do I think would mesh well with my clients? And that means I have to get to know them on a personal level. You know,
Tina (08:13)
Okay.
I’m in here.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (08:38)
than in regards to the timeline. I’m contacting all of their vendors to make sure what time hair makeup is, what time does photography need to be done by, what time is that wedding bouquet arriving so that it can be part of the detail shots. So all of those logistical elements to kind of help facilitate the wedding day is my job to make sure all of that is happening and that all of the vendors are working collaborative as well. You know, again,
Tina (08:51)
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (09:08)
If you don’t have kind of like an event manager of any kind, they’re going to come to you as the person getting married, you know, bridegroom, whatever our situation is. So if you don’t have a point of contact who not only knows what your choices were, the conversations that happened at the meetings that you had during your planning process, how can they advocate for you? How can they enforce contracts that have been signed? I keep a copy, a physical copy because I’m…
Tina (09:15)
Yep.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (09:38)
old, so I like paper. And I’m like, yes, I have it on my phone. But if I need to reference something, I have printed it out and I keep it with me on the wedding day if we need to double check something. So coordinators typically are just handled just the event day, as opposed to a wedding planner who kind of helps through the planning process. And now your wedding planning designers, they not only kind of
Tina (09:39)
Hahaha!
Right.
Okay.
Brianne Ackerland (10:04)
help with the overall vision, floral color palettes, all of that. But usually they source the vendors that are helping create their vision. That doesn’t include typically what time is hair and makeup? What time does the cake get delivered? Who’s putting the flowers on the cake? Is the shuttle showing up? So these are all elements outside of that, but they’re usually focused on just the vendors that are helping them put together the design aspect of it.
Tina (10:17)
Mm -hmm. Right.
Right.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (10:32)
They’re not facilitating a lot of those extra elements in regards to the other vendors, the DJ, start time, you know, announcements, things like that. They’re only handling those parts of it. But again, everybody’s a little bit different on and that’s how it’s hard for couples to find, you know, the right vendor because they don’t know what questions to ask and what they will or won’t do for sure.
Tina (10:39)
Sure. Right.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, sure. Mm -hmm, yep, yep, that’s definitely all have, you know, an important role in wedding planning. Now, do you feel like there are a lot of people that try, that do all three, or is it becoming more compartmentalized these days?
Brianne Ackerland (11:08)
I think it’s more compartmentalized because there are vendors in our area that are kind of a one stop for everything. They offer rentals, they offer a DJ service, they offer a photo booth, they’ll offer floral linen rentals. And then sometimes they do have an in -house coordinator. But again, that person is there to coordinate all of the things that they’re bringing in. And so they’re…
Tina (11:17)
too.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (11:37)
for, I think it’s most of us just find the niche that we like to do. And then we kind of just remove back in the day, you might’ve had a planner that would set up table decor and run your timeline and do your rehearsal and tear your stuff down. But if we want to stay sane in this industry, we stick to the parts that we love to do because then we don’t get burnt out, right? If we kind of, you know, after quite a bit of experience, you realize, and I did at the beginning.
Tina (11:41)
Mm -hmm. Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Right? Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (12:04)
I was like, sure, I’ll do that because you wanted experience. Right. I said yes to everything, but I was like, that doesn’t make me happy on the inside. You know, looking at design boards does not know. I’m just like, that’s great. Wonderful. Who’s going to put it out? You know, I, I don’t care what you pick. It’s well, to a certain extent, but obviously, you know, it’s kind of. People could go round and round on colors on things, and I’m like, I just need to know what’s coming.
Tina (12:05)
Mm -hmm, sure. Said yes to everything. Yeah.
Sir.
Not my job.
Mm -hmm. I bet. Exactly. Sure.
Brianne Ackerland (12:34)
Right. And that because that doesn’t make me happy on the inside. Making sure the vendor sets up and does their job and that my client is happy. One hundred percent is what my job is. Exactly.
Tina (12:43)
That’s where you’re fulfilled. That’s awesome. Very cool.
So I just wanted to go back to that term that we have put in the introduction, that Midwest destination, kind of how you specialize in that. You don’t really think of the Midwest being a destination spot very often, but tell me a little bit more about that and how you help with that.
Brianne Ackerland (12:55)
Mm -hmm.
100%. Yeah, my very first wedding was actually a couple from New York City. The bride was originally from the Waterloo, Iowa area, and her fiance had contacted me through one of those websites. I think it was WeddingWire. And I was like, you know, after that event, I was like, I wonder if anybody else is traveling back home because it’s less expensive or they one of the spouses that you know, that once is coming back home.
Tina (13:09)
Okay.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (13:33)
And then I kind of just kind of started tailoring my wording, you know, on my advertising or, you know, bio stuff to kind of direct that way, because those are the ones that tend to value wedding planners more. They understand the value of someone who knows all of the right vendors, that’s going to value someone who has done the research for them. And honestly, at the time when I was starting, I had two kids in two years. So,
Tina (13:38)
Mm -hmm.
100%.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (14:00)
you know, video chats, even though they weren’t very common back then. That was really what I had most time for. Because it was hard to leave my kiddos, it was much easier to be able to do phone calls in virtual and only have to meet once or twice before their event. And then, you know, from I’ve had European basketball player, New York, California, Texas, South Carolina, DC, Virginia, like, it doesn’t matter, like,
Tina (14:07)
Right?
do.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (14:29)
A lot of people have either grown up here in the Midwest or like for those that are in the Chicago area, like I do like Galena area. So a lot of people are leaving the city to come out to the western side of the state where it’s a blip. There is nothing, you know, out here this direction from that area that as far as a vendor pool really to pull from with a certain level of education and experience behind them like they would expect.
Tina (14:36)
Mm -hmm. Yep.
Yep. Right.
in.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (14:59)
from a larger city. And so that’s where that credibility kind of comes in. They can see consistency with reviews, with the awards, with what my clients are saying. And so especially my couples that have come from outside of the area, I definitely encourage them, like, please just talk about your planning experience as a person that’s not local. Because that really just helps draw in those ones that are like, I definitely need a person. Who am I going to pick? Because they don’t.
Tina (15:20)
Yeah.
Thank you.
Brianne Ackerland (15:28)
You know, a lot of times maybe we’ve only met once in person over a year and a half experience and everything’s been virtual. How can I know I can trust them to fulfill my requests, make sure they don’t run off with my money, you know, or that it’s not just again, you know, someone that has a little bit more credibility behind them as opposed to someone that just does it occasionally as a hobby or a part time job because a lot of wedding industry people only do it part time.
Tina (15:31)
Right.
Yeah, right. That was scary.
Sir. Yeah.
Absolutely, yeah. So it kind of turned that necessity that a lot of people, a lot of other people didn’t see into, you know, what works for your lifestyle and now kind of something that you specialize in, right?
Brianne Ackerland (16:04)
Mm -hmm.
Absolutely, and I love it again because it opens up a lot of other cultures. Like I’ve gotten the opportunity to do Southeast Asian weddings and Asian weddings, Jewish weddings. I have a couple right now that are originally from Togo. You know, and so I’ve got my first African wedding coming up here next month. So I love the opportunity to work with other cultures and they love to party. They know how to party, it seems.
Tina (16:11)
Yeah. Wow.
Wow.
Absolutely.
Brianne Ackerland (16:37)
So I’m like, I’m all on this. I’m like, this is not only can I make sure everything runs well, but you know, I love to have a good time. So when that part, that dance floor is open, you might see me out there.
Tina (16:42)
Love it. Love it. Absolutely. Another thing to just kind of add to education as well, right? Well, great. I kind of want to switch a little bit and just kind of talk more about weddings and trends that you’re seeing and whatnot. I feel like a lot of couples are kind of trying to stand out a lot right now, do some more non -traditional things or, you know, get that the pic or the video for the Instagram, right?
Brianne Ackerland (16:52)
Absolutely.
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Tina (17:12)
So what are you currently seeing right now that you’re loving in the wedding industry?
Brianne Ackerland (17:17)
I love that because of the Bridgerton show, everybody’s about florals. Everything was for, you know, for a little pocket there and it’s still kind of trendy, the white and black and the baby’s breath and maybe some of that dark green. And I have a few of those, but we’re kind of, kind of transitioning out of the boho. So except like very pinpointed boho into that floral kind of springy summer look. and I,
Tina (17:22)
Okay.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (17:45)
I love that just because aesthetic wise it allows for more freedom as far as the look. Cause when you have a specific style, it really is hard for venue. Not every, there’s a very finite, you know, industrial vibe here in the Midwest. There’s only so many that offer this type of vibe and it’s hard to, you know, people are fighting over those types of venues because there’s not that many, right? So when you kind of create more of a looser,
Tina (17:52)
Yep.
Okay.
Yeah. Okay.
Brianne Ackerland (18:13)
you know, floral kind of warming feel, I guess a good way to put it. It it’s easier to do in a lot of the venues. And then our my job is trying to help find the right spot. Not again. You know, I don’t want to have to pick one place and then us invest a bunch in decor because it doesn’t look anything like what you’re hoping for, because there’s only so many places with brick exposed walls. There’s only so many places with high ceilings. There’s only so many white barns. You know, so I appreciate that trend.
Tina (18:16)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Right.
Yep.
Brianne Ackerland (18:41)
I had my first request for a wedding content creator. I was talking to my couple about video because I’m a strong, you know, encourager for video. As somebody again, 20 years ago, didn’t have a video, had one of my coworkers taking video on the old digital cameras. They had the floppy disk. That’s all I have of my vows is on a floppy disk. And who’s got something to read a floppy disk now. So.
Tina (18:46)
wow.
my gosh.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (19:11)
You know, I always speak from my own personal experience. I’m like video is something you need to have in some sort of shape or fashion. And then the content creators I’m appreciating are getting those behind the scenes because again, I don’t have time to do the TikTok video recording for you and your bridesmaids. I love you to death. But number one odds are I’m going to screw it up because I don’t. It’s not my jam, but but, you know, that’s what they’re looking for. I understand who my.
Tina (19:18)
Right.
Right.
Right? Not what you specialize in. All right.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (19:41)
future clients are and what they’re looking for. And so that was one of those things. I was like, we have to add that to kind of our approved vendor list. We have to find a couple of folks because if they’re definitely not going to invest in the regular video of any kind, at least I know for sure they’re going to want some sort of content creator. It still doesn’t for me, you know, I, you want to capture those vows. You want to capture that first look that you can’t get in photo. So I’m still a strong proponent of video, but I,
Tina (19:43)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (20:09)
Honestly, video is just one of those hard sells. They’re like, if I have budget for just like a wedding planner, like we’re the ones like if you have budget for us or a live band, if you have budget, then they’ll they’ll make room if they have it in the end. And as a, you know, for my full service clients, I’m like, after you’ve booked your priorities, here’s who I’m going to tell you is your next priority. And here’s the reasons why for that. I don’t.
Tina (20:13)
Right, yeah.
Right.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
All right. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (20:39)
The other thing I am starting to see is the in the cake thing. That’s the third one I wanted to bring up is that a lot of people are still kind of doing that two tier cake with extra desserts on the side type of thing. And they’re not cutting it. About half half my couples are not cutting their cake. So I’m like, if you’re not even going to cut it, then save your money and put it towards the open bar. Right. Exactly. You know, like, well,
Tina (20:51)
-huh.
Great.
Mm -hmm.
Why do you even need it? So true. That’s what people remember.
Brianne Ackerland (21:06)
Yeah, like if mom says you have if you aren’t planning on cutting the cake, then let’s find another dessert option that you are interested in, whether it’s a Sunday bar or, you know, candy or whatever, you know, save it for a late night snack if you feel that’s more needed than your dessert. But I think maybe out of the last six weddings, I’ve done only one cut their cake. So it’s just not something that they don’t feel that that tradition as.
Tina (21:23)
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (21:35)
you know, because the ones that are getting married now are from the group that are just like, we don’t care. So it’s, you know, it’s just a different phase of life. It’s the ones that are maybe a little bit further out generationally that felt that strong push to have to do the cake cutting. And now the next generation of parents are very much more neutral on tradition because they didn’t like being forced into them. And so now they’re like, we don’t care if you cut your cake because we didn’t want to do it either.
Tina (21:40)
Right, yeah. Yeah.
Okay.
Right.
Sure, I’m not going to force anything. Yep.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (22:04)
And we did it just because we felt like we had to. So definitely one of the none of those trends that we’re starting to see go besides the bouquet garter toss, which has been gone for a bit. You know, those were those. Yeah, those were two for a while that, you know, have gone. But the cake cutting has is definitely the new one that kind of not feeling like it’s necessary or they have to feel guilty if they don’t do it. Embarrassing yourself there. That was easy to cut.
Tina (22:07)
Yeah.
Yeah, yes. thank God.
Yeah.
Totally.
Sure. Yes, thank God. True. So funny.
Brianne Ackerland (22:33)
You know, the parents were like, it got too raunchy or whatever. So they were like fine. The people didn’t do the cane garter toss, but the cake cutting, they just really felt strong about. So I’m glad to see again, I don’t want anybody doing anything they don’t want to have to do. It’s, it’s their day, you know, and, and the majority are paying for it themselves or a large portion of it themselves. So unless mom’s saying I’m buying this cake and you have to cut it and feed it to each other, then it’s a non -issue.
Tina (22:46)
Sure. Right.
huh.
Mm -hmm, sure.
Absolutely.
Brianne Ackerland (23:02)
for me as far as whether it’s in the schedule or not.
Tina (23:05)
Absolutely. And that’s why planners are so important too, to give insights like that and to make their couples feel comfortable and tell them what other people are doing these days too, for sure. Awesome. Yes.
Brianne Ackerland (23:12)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah. And sometimes just advocate for the couple. Like if you need that neutral third party with our family members. And that’s where it’s helpful. Cause I can say, well, I can share with you this detail. We’ve only had so many do this element or what, you know, it’s when there’s, you know, some information behind it and the choices that they made on feeling or emotion. A lot of times it’s a lot easier to sink in or translate over. And that’s.
Tina (23:22)
Yeah.
Mm -hmm. Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (23:43)
again, kind of one of those benefits of hiring, you know, an educated wedding planner is that if you’re having a hard time as a couple, trying to navigate that family dynamic when you bring in a third neutral party whose job is just to advocate for you, but also can help provide solid reasoning besides I just don’t want to. It makes such a huge difference in just kind of putting to rest some of those maybe contentious items because.
Tina (23:47)
All right.
Yeah. Right.
Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (24:12)
there’s some facts behind why we do or don’t do a certain element logistically or financially because it’s not an emotional element for me. It’s all about how do we make this more cost efficient? How do we make it a lot easier process overall for guests, that type of thing.
Tina (24:15)
Mm -hmm. Sure.
Mm -hmm.
Sure.
Yeah, and someone who’s not afraid to say those things too, right? Yeah. Yeah, too funny. So what is one thing that you’ve seen, like just one super unique, fun idea that you have seen recently that you like?
Brianne Ackerland (24:30)
Mm -mm. Nope. They’re not my parents.
I really like the idea of having the officiant stand in the aisle. I have tried to talk my couples into doing this. So instead of them facing their backs to everybody, they have the officiant, you know, kind of step into the aisle after everybody’s processed down and then they look out towards the guests. I really would love a couple to do that because number one, how much better would it be for photos?
Tina (24:51)
I haven’t seen this.
Okay?
Yes.
Yes.
Nice.
Mm -hmm. Every photographer will love you.
Brianne Ackerland (25:16)
for everybody because then they can, you know, every photographer will love you because they’re not trying to do a side angle or things like that. But then, you know, it’s just you invited those people to be there for a reason. You know, why not? Some have started doing swapping the sides. So like though the bride’s on one side, the parents are on the opposite side of the aisle so that they can see them. So I have had a few weddings do that, you know, because if it’s not in a church, they’re not restricted to.
Tina (25:23)
Right.
Mm -hmm.
Okay.
Sure, that makes sense.
Brianne Ackerland (25:45)
roomside bright side situation. But I really would love to have somebody, you know, stand in the middle, have everybody staring at them, you know, while they listen to their officiant, you know. But I think sometimes it’s a security thing. They feel better, like with their backs to the crowd. But it would be, I think it’d be awesome. It would be such a different experience for everybody involved. They would be like, they don’t know what to think to not look at the back of a person.
Tina (25:45)
Sure.
Yeah.
Sure. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
I love it.
Sure, absolutely. What a concept. Right? Yes, we love that. Very cool. And what is one just like total cringe worthy thing that you’ve been seeing lately?
Brianne Ackerland (26:14)
During the wedding! Yeah. Let’s just move one person and all of a sudden it’s a whole new game.
I only get one. Honestly, the easiest one is when people do their seating chart by table number. Again, it’s a logistical nightmare for a planner because I’m helping facilitate these guests find their name. And I, it’s in fancy script or whatever. And you know what I mean? It’s like, I know that a lot of the like,
Tina (26:33)
No.
Okay.
Okay.
Mm -hmm.
always, yep.
Brianne Ackerland (26:59)
Pinterest pictures or the Etsy’s are all set up by table one, table two, table three. But you can’t find your name for your life. So please do them alphabetical. It’s stream, you’re bottlenecking up the entrance area. People have to look twice, you know, and sometimes there’s so many names that we’re literally like down, crouching down, trying to read their names on the bottom because, you know, it’s on a tall mirror.
Tina (27:04)
Yeah.
Right. Okay. So you’re, yep. I see.
Yep. So true.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (27:29)
or whatever, you know, and it’s like it goes all the way to the floor. So please do it alphabetical. It just makes way more sense for your guests to find their name by first name. They could do it by first name. I had a wedding last summer that did it alphabetical by first name. You don’t have to do it by last name. Please just don’t do it by table number. It’s a nightmare trying to find your seat.
Tina (27:31)
Right. huh.
Yeah.
Yep.
Sure.
Yep, yep, great advice. Very great advice. Things that we don’t think of, right? This is why we have you. Reason number 700, we need you. What other advice can you offer couples, like just starting out, what are the important questions they should be asking as well?
Brianne Ackerland (27:58)
It’s logistics. It’s like, how do we make it easy for everybody?
Absolutely. So the three tips I always tell a couple before they even start calling vendors, venues, whatever. First of all, they have to know how much they can afford. What is their not, because budget’s not a bad word. I’m like, everybody has a budget, but what is your heart attack number is what I call it. What number do you not want to see when this event is over? And then let’s back that off by, you know, like a 0 .5 % or something. So that way you feel a little bit more comfortable.
Tina (28:21)
Mm -hmm.
Sure.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (28:40)
Number two, they have to know their guest count. And that goes back to your budget. If 40 % of your event is going to be your food and beverage and venue rental, and you only have, say $10 ,000, you can’t invite 200 people. There’s no way. You can’t afford a venue and feed people and et cetera, et cetera. I know it’s not fair. I know there’s a lot of pushback on what the arm and the leg phrase, but.
Tina (29:03)
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (29:09)
You know, it’s just not realistic. So if our budget is this and our headcount is this, then before we proceed onto a date option, even, we need to figure out how to make those things kind of come together. Because then when you have a date, which would be your third item, you know, or a month or whatever that you’re thinking that you want to get married, then when you start reaching out, it funnels a lot. It clears out a lot of the chaos.
Tina (29:22)
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (29:39)
because just sending out, what do you charge? Or, you know, do you have my date? There’s so many other questions that you should be asking vendors to make sure that they’re the right fit for you. But if you don’t have those three basic things, you’re wasting your time and you’re wasting the vendor’s time and the venue’s time. So don’t call anybody until you know that. And if you need help with that, that’s why a wedding planner can help you.
Tina (29:47)
Yeah.
Okay. Yep. Totally. Yep.
Awesome. Yep.
Brianne Ackerland (30:09)
Like if you don’t know where to start or what questions to ask, that’s exactly what our job is, is to help you figure out. I don’t know how much you can afford or what your budget is, but there’s a lot of things to take into account or just kind of get an estimate on what things realistically cost that I can help you with, whether it’s somebody who thinks they’re gonna save money by having a tentative event at home.
Tina (30:09)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (30:38)
or, you know, I’m going to go with this venue that costs X amount of dollars, but they don’t include any sort of food and beverage. So you could be better off at this nice hotel because it includes at least that includes the food and beverage and you’re spending the same amount of money. But, you know, it’s again, how do we want to allocate our funds more effectively type of scenario? Is it more that I want the look of the place or is it I really just need a place?
Tina (30:48)
Right.
there.
Brianne Ackerland (31:07)
but the food is more important to me. So, you know, our job is to help figure out what that is. Cause you don’t know, most couples don’t know the answers to those questions, but they also don’t know what questions to ask themselves to narrow the search. So that way they’re not emailing 20 people on a Saturday and they’re not hearing back because wedding planners work the weekends or vendors work weekends. And then they’re waiting for four days for a response.
Tina (31:10)
Right.
Absolutely.
Mm -hmm. You’re right.
Yeah.
Mm -hmm. Yep, totally.
Brianne Ackerland (31:36)
and then they don’t have any positives and then they’re frustrated. So there’s lots of ways to make the planning process stress free if we just check those boxes first.
Tina (31:38)
Yep. Yeah.
There you go. Nice. Now that was kind of perfectly segwayed into my next question is how, what would you explain or describe your planning process as?
Brianne Ackerland (32:00)
Absolutely. So for me, I absolutely want to meet with you first. I understand price is important. So is your date. But again, personality is a huge factor of this and I’m a little excited and intense. So if I’m too much for you, you know, I, you know, maybe I that’s bad salesmanship, but I want to know that we’re going to have a great time working together. I want you to feel 100 % confident in me because obviously you can read what I’ve done.
Tina (32:05)
Mm -hmm.
Hahaha!
No, no. Yep.
Brianne Ackerland (32:29)
You can Google me and see everything I’ve done and see like, okay, you know, based off of the reviews I’ve read or her experience or whatever, I think she might be a good fit for us. But maybe when we talk, you’re just like, nope, I can’t say that she doesn’t have an inside voice or, you know, or maybe my process for helping a couple isn’t what they’re looking for. So, you know, I have a certain, you know, process that helps.
Tina (32:29)
Mm -hmm, sure.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (32:56)
that I offer because it works well with my schedule and with certain clients. And so I try to tailor as much as I can to my couples, but sometimes maybe they’re looking for just a little bit more than I can offer them. So I will refer them to another wedding planner who does offer that. Again, I’m only gonna do what I love to do. And if that, and one of those could be like, will you help us create a vision board and do this and do this? And do I have a wedding design certification? Absolutely, I do.
Tina (33:01)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm. Sure.
Brianne Ackerland (33:25)
Does it make me happy on the inside? Nope. But if you need help logistically figuring out how much you need for a tent, you know, there’s certain elements that like that I need for that, from that design part to do my job effectively for my clients. But, you know, there’s other parts I’m like, no, thank you. Let somebody else do that. So I want to make sure I’m a good fit for you processes wise, personality wise.
Tina (33:28)
Nope.
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (33:53)
And then two kind of through our get to know you phase, you know, what are your priorities as a couple? That not just the things I talked about, but like, what are your top three must haves? What are the top three things you don’t want to see? If you’ve been in a wedding or attended a lot of weddings, what kind of, you know, provide some feedback? So it’s a really kind of, you know, yes, I want to hear about how you got engaged. You know, again, it’s not, those are all great stories, but for me to do my job effectively.
Tina (34:07)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (34:22)
I need to know what you hate, what you don’t, you know, what you love, because then I know how to tailor our working process together. The more I know about you as a couple, what your expectations are, then I know what to not waste my time looking at or waste your time providing information on. Because if I would have not, if I didn’t ask you that you hated, you know, line dancing, then I’m going to be like, well, the DJ is going to play the Cupid shuffle and he’s going to do this and he’s going to do that. And then.
Tina (34:25)
Mm -hmm.
Mm -hmm.
Sure.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (34:52)
And I never asked, you hate sing -line dancing. So it’s really kind of a, I like to call it a collaborative process. My goal is to make sure that nothing gets left undone, I guess is a good way to put it. Or just a lot of couples or brides I see on the forums and Facebook are like, what did you forget? The week of your event. My job is to get you to that last 15 days and you don’t even have to think about forgetting anything. We’ve already wrapped it up.
Tina (34:54)
huh.
Yeah.
Right. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (35:21)
We’ve already got a working timeline. We’ve already figured out your layout. All the vendors are confirmed. I’m their single point of contact and you’re floating. Like unless there’s some sort of major emergency or, you know, send me the people who are canceling last minute off your RSVP. I’ll take their names off the list. I’m not like, don’t even fuss with that. Like our goal is just for it to be a smooth, stress -free process the whole time. you know, from start to finish. Absolutely.
Tina (35:29)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah. Yep.
awesome. Yeah. And I’m sure a lot of people really appreciate that and appreciate your honesty from the beginning too. And most people. Yeah. We always say what is it? Under promise over deliver, right? So you don’t want to lie. You don’t want to make them think that you are somebody else just to get the business. So I don’t think it is bad salesmanship.
Brianne Ackerland (35:55)
Yeah, if you don’t want somebody honest, don’t call this a go.
exactly. Nope.
Right. No, or the expectation level of what I’m going to do. Because again, a lot of inquiries that I get, it’s like, well, will you provide this service or this service? And I’m like, no, I appreciate you contacting me. But again, there’s probably another planner for you. And that’s where it’s community over competition. I’m not going to take all the work just because they see me first because of.
Tina (36:14)
Yes, 100%.
Right. No. Absolutely. Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (36:35)
the reviews or the placement on the Google page or whatever. I may not be the good fit for them. The person on the second page might be. And I’m not, if they kind of meet the same level of standards as far as I do is work and things like that, I’m going to gladly refer them to another planner because it’s just the way this, it should work in the wedding industry in regards to fellow businesses that there’s plenty of work to go around.
Tina (36:39)
Right.
now.
Mm -hmm.
Yeah, I agree.
Brianne Ackerland (37:05)
Wedding planners are in short supply here in the Midwest. There is a niche. Find what you love to do and there’s space for all of us.
Tina (37:08)
Yeah.
Yeah.
I love it. Yep. And that’s kind of our main thing too, that we were talking about even before, was to pay it forward and kind of just lifting other people up too, right? There’s no reason not to, so that’s awesome. Awesome. Now, just one kind of final question. Do you have any packages that you offer as well to couples?
Brianne Ackerland (37:21)
Yeah. Mm -hmm. Mm -mm.
Absolutely. So what during our consultation process, we tailor it to fit you. So yeah, we kind of on our website, we kind of a basic like we can help you just do the ceremony or we can help you with full planning.
Tina (37:40)
Okay.
Brianne Ackerland (37:50)
The term day of coordination, you don’t hear planners saying it anymore. It’s event management. It just makes sure that everything is wrapped up and done and checked in on. So there are still some planners that just do specifically day of coordination, but I found I couldn’t do my job effectively. If I was coming in 30 to 60 days out, I was putting out all kinds of fires. I’m like, did you read through this section in the contract? Did you notice this part?
Tina (37:55)
right. Yes.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (38:20)
And it was too late, you know, to change some of those things that maybe if they would have had more time. And I understand, and again, it’s budget, not everybody can afford that. But with the event management, not only do you just get monthly check -ins to see, hey, how are things are going and some planning tools, but then I attend all of the final vendor meetings with you and your vendors. So I know what you guys said. I know what I need to make sure is enforced. And, you know, I can’t do that with just only a 30.
Tina (38:22)
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Brianne Ackerland (38:50)
kind of day window. One of the things I know I, you know, am offering, you know, through our special today is the wedding coaching package. So it’s not just a consultation for us to get to know each other. But if you already are working on certain things or you have contracts and you want me to look them over, you know, during that, you know, free wedding coaching package, I’ll absolutely do that. You can, you know, take pictures with your phone and email them to me or whatever. And then we’ll together we can even put together a rough timeline.
Tina (38:51)
Mm -mm.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (39:18)
just to kind of make sure you’re on the right path. You know, just seeing kind of what a planner can do for you, you know, within just an hour or two can make such a huge difference as opposed to you trying to maybe figure out those things on your own. Usually most couples, when I’ve talked to them, they’ve already been planning on their own and they’re struggling. They’re like hitting a wall and that’s why they’re calling me. So, and the goal,
Tina (39:21)
Nice.
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Yes. Yep.
Brianne Ackerland (39:48)
And I always tell them that this is like, you’ve walked away, number one, knowing more about the planning process. So even if you don’t hire me, you’ve got something to go forward with. And number two, I’ve already answered the questions that you’ve been stressing out for, you know, for months on, because you didn’t know what to do. And if I can do that within a 30 to 40 minute conversation, just think about how the rest of this process can go. When you have an educated…
Tina (39:54)
Mm -hmm.
Wow.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Brianne Ackerland (40:15)
you know, experience source to ask your general questions to. And it could just be as simple as how do I put the wording on save the save the dates? You know, there’s many, there’s all kinds of wording on save the dates for no kids and whatever, but they still want another confirmation that this is the right wording or, you know, that’s that just level of security that they are making the right choice. That’s exactly what a good wedding planner will help you do is just make sure that you feel confident in your choices.
Tina (40:22)
Right.
Yes.
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Brianne Ackerland (40:44)
and that when you get to your wedding week, it’s gonna have smooth sailing. And so through that wedding coaching package, that’s, you know, we can get just started off at least on the right foot with some extra tools.
Tina (40:55)
Very cool. Thank you. Thanks for offering that. That’s awesome. Now, where can everybody find you? Socials, website. What’s the best way to reach out?
Brianne Ackerland (41:01)
100%. So website is planstressfree.com It just got a fresh update that is launching tomorrow morning. so yep. So I’m super excited about that. Instagram is Stress-Free Weddings, Facebook plan stress free. I apologize. I am not on TikTok. It’s, it’s hard enough to do the reals. but you know,
Tina (41:07)
Ooh, awesome.
That’s what I hear everybody say. It’s a lot. It’s a lot. Exactly.
Brianne Ackerland (41:30)
One of the things I always like to make sure anybody knows is that when you visit my website or you visit my social media, it is my content. I do not post anything that isn’t my own clients or details from their weddings. If for some reason I am sharing something, I always make sure that that vendor is tagged because there’s a lot of other educational programs and things that have good tips and things. And I always share those.
Tina (41:40)
Mm -hmm.
Yep.
Mm -hmm.
Sure.
Brianne Ackerland (41:57)
But if it’s in my feed, it’s my work. And I think that’s important because that’s not always easy to tell. There’s a lot of places that people can source content these days. And so if you see that couple on my website, they have been my clients. If you see that decor thing, I may not have, that’s not my vision, but I can make sure that that looks like the way it’s supposed to.
Tina (42:03)
Mm -hmm.
Yep.
Sure.
Brianne Ackerland (42:25)
in regards to maybe the florist made a change or whatever. Like I can make sure that your stuff looks the way that you expected it to look, even if it’s not, you know, personally something I put together.
Tina (42:28)
Yeah.
Well, awesome. Thank you so much for hopping on today, Brianne. We will talk to you soon.
Brianne Ackerland (42:44)
Thank you, Tina.
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