More Than a Vendor: Becoming a Venue’s Trusted Planner

Ever wondered what venue coordinators really think when wedding planners walk through their doors? In this eye-opening conversation, Nikki Rodgers, Master Certified Wedding Planner and Certified Educator, joins Krisy Thomas, COO of the CWP Society, to pull back the curtain on both sides of the planning experience.

With over a decade of experience managing venues, sometimes coordinating up to six events in a single day, Nikki transitioned into wedding planning with a perspective few others possess. She reveals the behind-the-scenes realities of venue management, including the relief coordinators feel when they can trust a planner to handle their role with professionalism and precision.

What sets Nikki apart is her approach to building relationships. Rather than assuming all venues operate the same, she stresses the importance of tailoring communication to each property. Even with her extensive background, she takes time to learn every venue’s unique processes, from load-in procedures to staffing structures. This humility and adaptability have helped her forge strong partnerships that benefit venues, planners, and couples alike.

Nikki also shares why what she calls “over-communication” should actually be the industry standard. From proactively gathering requirements to keeping coordinators in the loop on every detail, these small, intentional gestures position planners as trusted partners. And when planners take the extra step to consider what moments venue staff may want to share with couples, the relationship becomes not just professional—but truly collaborative.

The conversation doesn’t shy away from tough lessons either, including the mistakes that can get planners blacklisted from venues. Nikki explains how certification elevated her business, even after years of experience, proving that education and growth are ongoing for every planner.

Ready to transform your venue relationships and elevate your planning career? Visit cwpsociety.com to discover how certification can give you the skills, credibility, and confidence to thrive

www.cwpsociety.com | info@cwpsociety.com | IG: @cwpsociety | FB: @cwpsociety

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:00

You're listening to the Wedding Planner Society podcast brought to you by the CWP Society. Welcome back to the Wedding Planner Society podcast brought to you by the CWP Society, the world's largest membership of certified wedding planners and professionals Society the world's largest membership of certified wedding planners and professionals. I'm Christy Thomas, the COO of the CWP Society, and in every episode, we dive into real strategies, lessons and experiences to help planners thrive in this incredible industry. Today, I'm so excited to be joined by Nikki Rogers, a master certified wedding planner and certified educator, and Nikki's journey is such a unique one. She started on the venue side of the industry before becoming a wedding planner, and now she specializes in building strong venue relationships. In today's episode, she's sharing the lessons she learned from managing a venue, how that perspective has made her a stronger planner, and the strategies that other planners can adopt to strengthen their own venue partnerships. Welcome back, nikki.

Speaker 2 1:06

Thanks, Chrissy. It's always fun to be back here.

Speaker 1 1:08

So, nikki, before you became a certified wedding planner, you were actually part of a venue. Can you share a little bit about your journey and even like what first drew you to the venue side of the industry?

Speaker 2 1:23

So, of course, definitely Thanks, chrissy. I actually started back in 2003 for a luxury resort down in South Florida and I really just started to love the wedding industry. I wanted to find my way in, find what was going to fit best for me, and I did find a planning firm and, you know, started pretty low. I was counting dirty linen napkins on Monday morning after all the parties sorting them out, and through that I got to know some of the vendors that we use as well as the clients. I worked my way up to doing fabric, sealing, installations, invitations, save the dates with the clients directly and I really just found a love for all things wedding planning as a child and even an adolescent, I was always really interested in. I was always really organized, I should say, which is, of course, key with this, but I never really thought about I want to be a wedding planner until I kind of found that niche in the industry.

Speaker 1 2:24

Yeah, and I love that your journey, I love how your journey covers all aspects of it, like from counting linens, doing ceiling installations, helping what say the dates. I feel like to me, that journey and that path has probably really laid a good groundwork for you making that decision to, okay, now I want to become a wedding planner and with that, when you finally, you know, kind of thought, okay, I can actually make this a career, at that point is that what motivated you to gain your certification? Or what was your certification journey like? Like, how did you find CWP?

Speaker 2 2:57

So I was actually working as a venue coordinator at that point up in Illinois. That's where we are based. Now is my company is in Illinois. However, at the time, you know, I was working for a venue. I was starting to look to get back into wedding planning. I had done a little bit of it in the past and I really just missed that as a venue coordinator. So I wanted to get back into wedding planning and I did. You know, just like we all do start Google. I'm a big researcher. I always do my research on everything. I'm the type of person who I'll go on Amazon to buy something and I will look at the bad reviews before I look at the good. That is just how I am. So I mean, it was kind of a no brainer. I do have a couple of other certifications, but to me personally not just because I'm on the podcast with you but this is by far the one that I have found the most valuable and truly the one that has had the largest impact on my company and myself.

Speaker 1 4:00

With your experience in Manage a Venue. Since you've got both and to me, god, that's phenomenal. That to me just what the groundwork that is for your career as a wedding planner. What lessons have been the most valuable in your transition to being now a full-time wedding planner?

Speaker 2 4:16

I'd say as far as the lessons that have been the most valuable, truthfully, as a venue coordinator, I saw many planners and some were phenomenal and I aspired to be like them, and others definitely could have used a little education. Because of that, I just truly feel like it did inspire me to look into education. Of course, but those lessons are just things that I learned along the way, hands on, just from the real life experience of it.

Speaker 1 4:47

Yeah, and I'm sure too, like you've mentioned, being as a V&E manager, you get to see a lot of different wedding planners and, like you said, you can see what they did wrong, what they are probably doing really well at, and I feel like that probably really helped, motivated you into how you mold your own business and like, no, I don't want to do that. I do know that much for sure and I know something we talked about during our last podcast episode together was all about communication and how, as a venue manager, that was the biggest thing for you when you look for planners who knew how to communicate with you, and I love how that definitely transitioned into your career as a wedding planner, because that's all we do. Our job is like 90% communication, so I can imagine that that really helped you kind of mold your company.

Speaker 2 5:32

Yeah, a hundred percent agree that, and I mean truthfully. I got to know so many vendors just being at the venue. I got to see who were the best of the best. I got to see every aspect of vendors. I got to form relationships with all these vendors as the venue coordinators, so they all knew me, I knew them, and when I did decide to branch off and, you know, open my company, it was something that did certainly benefit me because I already knew most of the vendors in my area.

Speaker 1 6:02

Yeah, and I'm sure they thought like we know what Nikki does on the wedding day at the venue. Can you imagine, when it's hers, when it's something that she created, when it's a business that she's proud of, like she poured this much into the venue. Imagine what she's going to pour into within her own company? I'm sure that a thousand percent thought that. And I do want to talk about and we actually mentioned this during our last podcast how venues are often juggling multiple couples and events. You mentioned during our last podcast sometimes all at the same freaking day, not just all in the same day. How did that teach you about time management and organization as a planner? The same time?

Speaker 2 6:41

the same day I think my busiest day I had six events in one day. It was a banquet hall with multiple rooms, of course, and we had showers and brunches in the morning, very quick room flips and went right into the weddings that evening, or birthday parties or whatever they were, and there were times that between Friday, saturday and Sunday we had nine events you know possibly more. So it was a lot. Organization obviously becomes super key in instances like those, so I had to find what worked for me as the venue coordinator and a lot of the times when there was a very organized planner. I think we did talk about this in our last podcast as well, but it just helped so much to know that even a little fraction of the planning could be handled by that wedding planner who I trusted.

Speaker 2 7:36

It was a relief, truly, because when you're managing that many weddings or special events, you don't want to let anything fall through the cracks. That's, you know, just like for us, how these are like our clients days, there's like our biggest day in a way. Right, yeah, because they're big day and we take it all so seriously that the venue coordinators do too, and and I think that sometimes you know is something that, unfortunately, they can get really busy with. You know, talking to the chef, talking to the wait staff, making sure that everything's being followed and procedures, and loading in and loading out multiple events simultaneously. It's a relief to have someone who knows what they're doing, that you can trust when you're a venue coordinator, for sure.

Speaker 1 8:20

A thousand percent. And I'm wondering, nikki, with knowing that, knowing like the working well with a planner who is just as passionate as you are as a coordinator, how has that impacted the way that you work with BDUs now as a planner?

Speaker 2 8:35

Definitely I probably over-communicate. I want to make sure that they know what's going on. Right, I mean, I will. One of the very first things and sometimes venues are like what do you mean Is? I'm like what are your load in and load out procedures? What are your guidelines? Like, tell me everything. What do you need for COIs? I will help you get those from all of the vendors because to them, they have to do that for just this one event plus all the others. So when I can help them take that kind of off their plate or at least present it to them in a very orderly fashion, I think it definitely does help. And, just like I said, I call it over communication, but truly it's just constantly, not constantly, but making sure that we're all in the loop together and collaborating perfectly with it all.

Speaker 1 9:25

Exactly Because I can imagine as a venue coordinator you probably ran into planners who did not keep you in the loop and we've given you stories about that last time, like the last podcast episode about day up, and you probably were like I would never do this to a venue coordinator ever. So you over-communicate, as you say, but of course, to me as a planner there's no such thing as over-communication. I can imagine they appreciate that so much. I bet their mouth drops when you ask these questions. They're like you want to help little old me, like thank you. And on that note, nikki, I feel like that type of over communication, that type of understanding their role and wanting to respect it, opens the door to building really good relationships with them. How do you approach communication with the venue so that way it does feel like it's a true partnership rather than just discussing logistics?

Speaker 2 10:18

So, honestly, it's not like we're sitting there for coffee ever, while I would love to have the time to do that with them and I'm sure they with us. You know, oftentimes it is just about finding a way for the communication preference that works for both of you. You know, sitting down in person and going through the venue, doing a walkthrough and seeing where some of their pain points might be, that we can help take off of them. Or even, you know, over a phone call, you know, and kind of going over the logistics of how they handle things. It all really does help so much on both sides when we are communicating that way.

Speaker 1 10:59

A thousand percent. What's one common mistake that you see planners make when they're working with venues, and how can they avoid it?

Speaker 2 11:07

I really would say it's probably just not including them in enough information. There were plenty of times where there was a planner whether they were a professional planner or a friend helping out or whatever it may have been and I was just not in the loop on things and it made it really difficult for me to execute the wedding day the way it should be. You know, keeping my timing on track, if I don't have a timeline from them, I don't always know what their thought is on when speeches are. Are speeches during salad? We don't want the staff to be clearing salad and someone walks up to do. You know, dad walks up with a speech or something I mean.

Speaker 1 11:46

And I think too, what a lot of planners their mistake that they're making is they're not communicating enough at all. To me, like you call it over communication, to me, that is how we should all be communicating. It should be overly communication, should be just the standard and the norm, because there are so many details that we know that's going to impact the venue. And I'll say even from a personal stance there is a local venue that I help in their bookings. I do tours, I get them books, things like that, but I don't do anything day of because I don't have that kind of time, but because we have would day of manager, however, I have to provide my day of facility manager with information. I have to provide them with the floor plan, I have to provide them with the timeline. So I'm reaching out directly to the planner and saying, hey, these are the details that I need to give to my facility manager to make sure they know what's happening.

Speaker 1 12:35

And I'll never forget I've had multiple planners send me over the photography timeline, which is not the wedding timeline. Yeah, like, okay, this is somewhat helpful, thanks, but we need to know what time is the catering arriving? Okay, when are the rentals arriving? When is the bartender arriving? What's all these details that impact the venue staff? The photos don't impact him hardly any, but he needs to make sure the space is ready and the doors are unlocked when the caterers get there, making sure that the ramp is cleared and access when the DJ arrives All those details he needs to know.

Speaker 1 13:09

But what I found, nikki, is that planners don't understand that, because I think their problem is and this shouldn't be an issue if they're certified, they would know better. We have to know everything. So a lot of the times these planners, who don't have their base education, didn't realize the venue has to know all of this information as well. So I think a lot of planners make the mistake in realizing that they're just not communicating enough and not communicating with all the details when it comes to their venue, for sure.

Speaker 2 13:40

Oh, definitely. I couldn't agree more. Every single aspect of what you just hit is exactly what the venue coordinator has to go through and what they're dealing with on the backside that we as planners don't always see unless we've been in their role and in their shoes before.

Speaker 1 13:59

Exactly, and even if you haven't been in their roles or in their shoes, like you mentioned, nikki, you need to get to know that you need to sit down with them, have a venue site visit, ask those questions what's going to impact you? How can I make your day better? That way, you can learn what they need in order to make the job and the entire wedding day go as smooth as possible. So, even if you haven't been in the role I've never like, obviously now, but pre-wedding planning, I've never been in that role of venue coordinator but I ask those questions so that way I can make sure they have everything that they need needed for sure, exactly. So, nikki, on that same topic, for the planners who don't have a venue background, what strategies can they adopt from your experience to really help strengthen their venue relationship?

Speaker 2 14:44

Honestly, get out and talk to them. That's, I mean, that's what I've always done. It was almost, in a way, more of a challenge when I opened up my own company because I had, to a certain degree, I had, an understanding of what I thought venues were like and I knew that there were other venues that were my quote, unquote competition back then, you know, and I've had to learn how they work differently. Most of the venues that I worked for had in-house staff, in-house catering and in-house bar, or had in-house staff, in-house catering and in-house bar.

Speaker 2 15:18

That being said, I'm in a market where there are so many venues that require staffing. There's some that do BYOB versus go through a bartending company catering, you know. So learning a lot of the ins and outs of that was just kind of, you know, brand new for me. So I really think that the way well, I know, the way I did it was I got out there and talked to them. I went out and talked to all kinds of caterers, all kinds of venues, and that's what I would say, you know, to gain that, the strength of that experience, truly, for, you know, planners who don't have that type of a background go out there and talk to everybody, go to some networking events or just call them, email them, make an appointment and get to know them and how they work Can.

Speaker 1 16:01

I say I'm so glad that you mentioned that, because you have 12 years of venue experience and instead of walking into your wedding planning career, I know it all about venues Like. This is how we did things, so this is how everybody is going to do things. You didn't have that mindset and unfortunately, a lot of planners do, especially planners who've been doing this for so long. They have the mindset of I've been doing this for so long, I know exactly how things operate and how things should work.

Speaker 1 16:26

You took the time to learn about each and individual venue in your market that you're going to work at consistently, because every single venue does things differently, and I think that's a mistake that a lot of planners make is the assumptions of well, this is how it's done here. Well, and to me, even if it's under the same umbrella let's say, it's the same hotel they may do different things differently in this hotel compared to this hotel. You still have to make sure that you're getting that information as planners in order to understand and know how to work with that venue, and it's a mistake if you don't. So I'm so glad that you mentioned that, that despite even your background, you still took the time to educate yourself about the venues in your market. I love that, yeah. What are some little things that planners can do that venues really appreciate but not might not think to ask for?

Speaker 2 17:15

You know, some of it for me was always are there any special moments that your venue coordinator might want to have with that client? They've been working with them just as long as us, if not longer. You know, sometimes they book the planner first, but sometimes they book their venue first and that venue. When I was a venue coordinator, I loved opening the doors and I think I talked about this in my last podcast, just briefly, but it was one of those moments that I really appreciated having with the bride and groom, or, you know, the couple, right before they walk into the reception, and it was one of the only times I got half a second to say congratulations, good luck, have so much fun. Everything's going to be perfect for the rest of the night and you know I'll, I'll see you after tonight.

Speaker 1 17:58

Basically, you know because I had a similar experience with a venue catering manager at a at a big hotel where she, like, obviously I was the wedding planner and the designer, but she was very much heavy into that Like our design meeting. She was there when we'd come to see the venue. She was there. I showed her floor plans and the design board and she was so excited and she was very much a part of that process, with me thinking, okay, this is what we traditionally do the uplights, but I think it would look really cool here, let's play around with it when we get there. Like she was so involved in it.

Speaker 1 18:31

So I wanted to make sure that she was part of that room reveal. So that way, because I want her to see it and it's all full and glory but because she was so much a part of it and we worked side by side for a lot of these design details, I wanted her to have this moment also. So I love that you mentioned that, because I think sometimes as planners, we forget that it's a partnership and they're probably just as invested in the couple as we are, and so letting, asking what those special moments are, I think I think that's something that they would really really greatly appreciate, for sure.

Speaker 2 19:02

And truly it's not even always something that you know or remember until you're a little bit closer. So, keeping those lines of communication open all the time with each other, like you said, you know, you kind of felt like you were collaborating and partnering up on this wedding and that's kind of how it should feel every time, whether they want to be involved with certain aspects or not. Those are the little things that I really do think could make all the difference in your very new coordinator relationship as a planner.

Speaker 1 19:29

A thousand percent and, like you said, between that, the communication, making them involved in these special moments, all it does is just open up the door to, like you said, a really great relationship.

Speaker 1 19:42

And when you have a great relationship with a venue manager, to me it's more than just you getting that, hopefully getting on their referral list and getting bookings, but it makes your job fun. When you're working at a venue where you have a venue coordinator, you're like that's my girl, that's my guy, like y'all work so well together. It makes it fun for you as a planner and then as the venue coordinator side of things. It also allows them to take some of that stress off, because if they're doing six weddings in one day or six events in one day, they know okay, nikki's, in that ballroom we are taken care of, I'll check in when needed, but they're good compared to probably another ballroom where it's not a certified wedding planner, it's someone who didn't keep them in the loop, timeline's changing, they're not being updated and it's so much stress. When you have a phenomenal relationship, it's just a beautiful two-way street where you get to work with people you love working with and both jobs can be seamless and as stress-free as we possibly can make it.

Speaker 2 20:40

And you can lean on each other when you need to. You know it just truthfully. That's such a big deal in that role, even in our role, knowing that we can fully trust the venue coordinator and they can fully trust us. We know that we all have the couple's best intention in mind and we know how we work together. So there aren't things you know here and there that give issue.

Speaker 1 21:01

Yeah, exactly, and I know there are some venues where I absolutely love working at. So let's say that I have a consultation with someone who's toward that space. I'm going to talk up that venue. I love working there. And there are some venues where I refuse to go back because of the way the venue manager treated me and treated my team. So it again that two-way street can become a broken street if you let it. Also, on the same token, a venue may not want a planner to come back If they disrespected their rules, if they didn't listen or adhere to their policies. You can easily find yourself blacklisted from a venue as a planner as well. Yeah, definitely keep that in mind. Now, nikki, looking back, how did becoming a certified wedding planner add to what you already knew from managing a venue?

Speaker 2 21:48

So the way that I had managed you know the venues that I was at was we added a layer of planning within them, naturally because what advice would you give to someone considering gaining the certification like you, who may have already had industry experience in, say, another role?

Speaker 2 22:07

Do it. Don't hesitate, just just find the button, click on the button pay the money and do it. Don't hesitate, just find the button, click on the button, pay the money and do it Truly. There's just so much to benefit. And not only that.

Speaker 2 22:19

When I first found the CWP, like many of us, I was like, okay, you know, sometimes it can look like a big expense, but truly the value of it and the different things that the CWP offers, it's just so much great information between you know. The free workshops every week, all of the other things that you and Lori put into the organization are just amazing and I would say don't hesitate for sure. But I mean, you know, many of us who've taken them will say that I did take the master certification. I ended up taking the design certification styled shoots, floor plans. I don't know that there's one certification that you guys currently have that I don't have, because it truly opened up my eyes to just there is always something to learn from every single certification, no matter if you just started last week or if you've been doing this for, you know, 20, 30 years.

Speaker 1 23:17

Yeah, exactly, and I, nikki. It's so funny because when people think about our certification program, a lot of people assume, oh, it's just for new planners, when in fact, the bulk of our planners who get started have years of experience and then gain their certification. And it's always usually the same where it's like, oh my gosh, why did I wait so long. So I'm so glad that you mentioned that, even despite the fact that you had been in this industry on the venue side of things for over a decade, you still valued education and even still to this day, nikki, you value education. You are constantly on all of our workshops. I know you're tuned into the podcast and that's because this industry is always changing and you know that, and you know that, in order to be the best version that you can be for your couples, that requires you to gain that education and continue to grow and invest in yourself as well. So I'm so I'm so glad that you mentioned that, because I do think a lot of people just assume well, why didn't you get certified? Like you already had 12 years in the venue, like I'm like, why didn't? Why did you get certified? Because it's so much more and you, you knew that. You knew that that was going to set the foundation up for your business. I'm glad that you mentioned that. Yeah, nikki, thank you so much for joining me today and for sharing your valuable insights on building strong venue relationships.

Speaker 1 24:35

I know planners listening are walking away with strategies they can apply immediately to strengthen their own businesses. Well, now it's your turn. If you are serious about elevating your career and standing out in this industry, do not wait. Join us here at the CWP Society. Through our membership and our certification, you'll gain access to continuing education, powerful networking and a community dedicated to raising the standards of the wedding planning industry. Certification isn't just a title. It's a proven path to transformation. Just like Nikki you'll find, it equips you with the skills, credibility and the confidence to grow a sustainable, thriving business. Credibility and the confidence to grow a sustainable, thriving business. Take the next step today by visiting cwpsocietycom and start building the career that you deserve.