Wedding Industry News: Can Technology Match Human Touch?

In this episode, we will be discussing new Certifications and Membership through the CWP Society, as well as how couples are trying to use AI as wedding planners, and how it can all go terribly wrong.

Tune in to hear Laurie Hartwell and Krisy Thomas from the CWP Society as they reveal the secrets behind the new Wedding Ministry Team Certification Program. This initiative is more than just a certification; it’s a comprehensive effort to foster better collaboration between wedding planners, church coordinators, pastors, sound technicians, and janitorial staff. Discover how customizable templates and thorough education are breaking down barriers to create a respectful and harmonious environment for everyone involved in a wedding at a church. 

Join us as we explore the CWP Society's cutting-edge certifications and premium memberships, designed to simplify and enhance wedding businesses. 

Can AI ever replace the nuanced expertise of a human wedding planner? Laurie and Krisy weigh in on this HOT topic, sharing real-life examples where AI tools like Provenance can certainly assist with tasks such as customizing toasts and generating wedding setup images, but it falls short when it comes to personalization, emotional support, and managing real-life logistics. We discuss the irreplaceable value of experienced planners who handle last-minute changes and vendor negotiations with ease. As we conclude, we reflect on the power of unity and collaboration in the wedding industry, leaving you with an inspiring quote from American poet, Maddie Stepanek, on the strength of teamwork.

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

Transcript

Wedding Ministry Team Certification Program

Speaker 1 0:00

You're listening to the Wedding Pro Podcast brought to you by the CWP Society.

Speaker 2 0:15

Welcome to the Wedding Industry News, where each episode covers something old, something new, something borrowed and some news. It's June 2024, and I'm your host, aisha Garnett, owner of Sharia Moore Weddings and Event Planning Master, Certified Wedding Planner and Certified Educator with the CWP Society an industry membership for planners, venues and pros. Let's jump right into our first segment. If you're a wedding professional, then I'm sure you already know about the nation's leading wedding professional membership and certification program. If you haven't heard of the CWP Society, well, in my humble opinion, you may need to be stripped of your wedding pro card.

Speaker 2 0:53

And yes, you heard me say that. Right, I digress From wedding planners, venue managers and all other wedding pros. The opportunity to take advantage of the many resources offered by the CWP Society is basically at your fingertips. Just recently, they've incorporated another certification program, and I'm here to bring you all the details. The Wedding Ministry Team Certification is the latest education program, making the collaboration between wedding professionals and churches that much more cohesive. Here to tell us more about this long overdue certification is none other than Lori Hartwell and Chrissy Thomas, our team executives and educators for the CWP Society. So glad to have you here with me today, ladies.

Speaker 1 1:39

Welcome. Well, thank you so much. We're so excited about all of these new things that are happening within our organization.

Speaker 2 1:46

Okay, so am I, so let's jump right into it. Can you tell us more about the Wedding Ministry Team Certification Program and what it offers through the CWP Society?

Speaker 1 1:55

Absolutely, and, as you kind of touched on already, it talks a lot about that push and pull that a lot of times wedding planners feel when they are doing weddings at their local churches, and many times there are some misconceptions, misunderstandings, miscommunications between the wedding planner and the church's wedding coordinator.

Speaker 1 2:19

Then sometimes it's even a little bit deeper than just the wedding coordinator there at the church.

Speaker 1 2:24

Sometimes it's because of the sound team or some of the auxiliary staff that the church has.

Speaker 1 2:32

And we felt here at the CWP Society that it would be a really wonderful, magical thing to put education out there where we could all get on the same page out there where we could all get on the same page.

Speaker 1 2:46

Because I know that even with the main wedding planner certification, we talk about how important it is to be incredibly respectful of the church and all of the church staff, but we want to make sure that we're also providing the right education for the church staff, and so this is a really cool program because not only are we educating the church coordinator and all of those additional team members, but we're also having one of our family friends who's a pastor talk to and educate pastors on some of the tips and tricks that they've learned over the years too. So it's really been quite interesting. So we're really excited about it. And we've got a few educators We've got Pastor Ken, we have our very own Vice President, chrissy Thomas. Then we also have one of our certified educators, emma Cockerham, with Infinity Events, and so it is a really great program is the way that we have created.

Speaker 3 3:44

certification is like Lori said, it's not just for the church coordinator or the pastor, but we can also leave it open to where other members of the church so the sound tech, maybe the janitorial staff if anyone wants to get that additional education on how to operate a wedding day they can. And even if the turnover rate let's say that we get a new church coordinator in we're leaving that membership open to where the new church coordinator can also then gain their certification as well.

Speaker 1 4:09

Exactly so. We're actually certifying the church. Now. Normally we certify people and not organizations or companies because of such turnover, but with churches, our way of giving back and our way of donating our time and our energy and all of that is to make sure that they have what they need. So a one-time fee covers it all and they can have as many of their team members take that church certification program and so, once they complete the program, the church will have the title of the Certified Wedding Ministry team.

Speaker 2 4:46

I love it and I'm so excited for this certification and I love how you're including pastors and their expertise and also you know our other certified wedding planners expertise in creating this certification program. So I'm looking forward to just hearing how churches can benefit from it and also how easy it will make our lives when we come together and collaborate.

Speaker 1 5:10

I hope so. I hope so Because, I mean, I want churches to know that we're not trying to show up and control the whole situation, that we truly respect their facility. We respect who they are, we respect their faith, we respect everything. What we want to make sure is that we know how to communicate and which things to communicate. So within this program, we also offer templates for the church to use as well, downloadable, fully customizable templates so that they know what the right questions to ask a couple would be.

Speaker 1 5:41

We talk about misconceptions, we talk about terminology, we talk about different ways to communicate with the wedding pros, and mostly we're talking about remembering that, you know, the whole point of a church is to be a ministry to their community right, and to maybe make sure that they are the best representation of their faith. What happens is wedding couples, their wedding party, the family members complete strangers. Then you've got the entire wedding pro team coming in and a lot of times there is this strange wall that's been built up and there's tension and that's not going to minister to the general public very well and so it's not as good of a representation. So we want to make sure that that we're kind of showing them from an outside perspective what's being seen, and that way they can maybe make whatever changes inside. Just like we as wedding planners need to make sure we're not showing up like bullies and like bulldozers, we have to make those changes as well within ourselves, and so it's just a way to kind of look at the entire thing, but from more of a zoomed out feel.

Speaker 2 6:53

I'm glad you brought that up because it also speaks to my next question, which was going to be you know why it was so important to create a certification program such as this, and you've made some really key points, you know, yeah.

Speaker 1 7:08

For me. I mean, I've got 30 years of planning experience right. Chrissy has almost 11 years of planning experience. Aisha, you have, you know, a little bit, maybe a smidge more than that, like 12 to 13. And so I think it's important that you know all wedding planners.

Speaker 1 7:27

I guess it's important to know that all wedding planners have experienced planning weddings and coordinating weddings that have been at churches, and most of my experiences have not been incredibly pleasant, and I'd like to change that, because it can be pleasant, it should be pleasant, it should be the most pleasant as far as I'm concerned, and so but of course it's a two-way street right Me, as the wedding planner has to come at it from the right angle and from the right perspective, with the right attitude.

Speaker 1 7:58

But that can only get me so far. What I found was I was hitting a lot of roadblocks, and if I didn't have my own faith, would that have turned me off? And that's what I'm thinking, and and I can tell you that all of the thousands of wedding planners I've talked to over the years have said it is a gigantic turnoff to them, and so I want to make sure that we can maybe put a stop to this as soon as possible. How can we work together, how can we collaborate, how can we foster a sense of love and community and just an openness? And I think that it's possible, but we all have to be on the same page first.

New Certifications and Premium Memberships

Speaker 2 8:36

I agree. Now what's the first step for pastors and churches to get involved and take advantage of this certification?

Speaker 1 8:51

So the best thing to do would be to go to our website, cwpsocietycom, and when you click on Explore Memberships and Certifications, it will ask you who you are. It'll ask you are you a wedding planner, Are you a wedding venue, a wedding pro or are you a church? And you just click on the church and it will give you all the information right there. You can sign up, you will have it on your dashboard for the rest of the church's life and anybody and everybody who is working at a church who has to touch a wedding in any sense of the word, can take this certification program and really get on the right page and know exactly what's happening on all levels. But it's really a great way for churches to really streamline their process as well as onboarding their couples knowing what to say, what not to say. We talked a little bit about. You know all of that, so it is a really important thing that I think all churches should absolutely have.

Speaker 2 9:45

It's so great to hear. Is it a go at your own pace certification program, or how does that work?

Speaker 3 9:51

Yeah, it's exactly like our other certification programs where it's all online, where you can pause it so you can take notes, but it is definitely that go at your own pace so that way you can really take the time to take those notes and really understand the information.

Speaker 2 10:07

I love it. Now, with this new certification, I'm sure the CWP Society has some more products and certifications up their sleeve and, if I might add, this could be a very exclusive conversation to have now, very exclusive conversation to have now. So can you tell us what you'll be releasing soon, if there's anything else you've?

Speaker 1 10:33

got in the works. Yeah Well, chrissy and I just released a brand new membership called the premium membership. So let's kind of like, look at what we were offering before that we had. We started off with only a, we were only an organization for wedding planners and what I found over the years is that there's a lot of uh, disconnects, and so we wanted to open up a membership for every single wedding professional so that we can all kind of jump back on the same page, have that better communication and I get again have that sense communication and again have that sense of community. So we opened up a membership called the free pro wedding pro membership and we've had that since January 2024. So we're entering into almost our sixth month of that and it has been amazing. I cannot even begin to tell you how many people have signed up for that membership. So it's been spot on Wonderful, but thank you.

Speaker 1 11:30

Then there was this like large gap between the free membership and then our certified membership. So anybody who goes through our one of our certification programs pays a one-time fee and then it is lifetime free membership and it includes a plethora of amazing benefits, including which is one of Chrissy and I's favorite, to be honest is the weekly workshops for wedding pros, and they're not mandatory but they're there if you need them, and they're on a variety of different topics. But what we were finding is that there was a lot of professionals that say I may not be ready to invest in the certification yet, but I would really love to get some of that education that you guys have in the certified member benefit. You know the certified membership that you guys have in the certified member benefit. You know the certified membership. What can I do? How can I tap into that? And so Chrissy and I put a lot of thought, same with my husband, who's the president of the CWP Society. We put a lot of thought into a middle ground and so we developed the premium membership where you get all of those weekly workshops and the quarterly business coaching and all of these amazing, amazing member benefits for a really low monthly fee. It's $25 a month.

Speaker 1 12:47

But one of the fun things about and, aisha, you might not even believe what I'm about to say, but the fact that you've known me for 13 years, you'll probably go yeah, that tracks what we ended up doing, because I wanted to make sure that we are making it attainable for people because ultimately I want them to get that certification. That's where all of the knowledge and all of that power is going to come from, and of course, I want to empower as many planners and pros as we possibly can. So every penny that you spend in the premium membership well, a hundred percent of that will be applied to any certification of your choosing at any point in your membership journey. So if you want to do it, six months, two years, five years, that whole amount can go toward any certification program that you want to take can go toward any certification program that you want to take.

Speaker 2 13:35

I've never heard of anything like this.

Speaker 1 13:40

Yeah, well, it's because it doesn't exist until now. So so there's that. So we have the premium membership and then we have um coming out. Uh, we have the wedding venue manager certification. Uh, we have a wedding pro certification. Chrissyissy, what else do we have coming out?

Speaker 3 13:56

coming out an associate planner and planner assistant certification that's going to be geared specifically towards them. And then also we have the floor plan certification and I got the sneak peek of being behind the scenes and helping produce that floor plan certification program. It is so good. We've partnered up with mary, which is a phenomenal 2D and 3D software program, so it's going to blow people's minds. But as you can see, aisha, we have a lot in the works for education and just overall. You know that's our goal. It's really make a lasting impact and be able to educate not just our planners but our pros, as well as our churches and also our venues. So we have a lot coming up.

Speaker 2 14:36

I'm not surprised at all. I mean, I know you ladies stay busy. I know how busy you are. Okay, I've got an insider on that and I definitely have to bring you back on so that we can discuss all of these certifications in depth, because I know it's going to be so beneficial to the industry as a whole. Yes, I know you ladies, you know we're we're very close, so I I'm just going to put it out there and thank you in advance for everybody who is. Yeah, thank you. Okay, you're welcome. I said it for everybody.

Speaker 1 15:15

Well, thank you and thanks for asking us to talk a little bit about this, because we are really excited. It's been a lot of work, a lot, a lot of love poured into all of these new programs and so much thought and effort, and so I'm I'm personally grateful for for Chrissy and because she has just been pouring her heart and soul into helping me with all of these, and so, of course, I'm incredibly grateful, but I'm grateful to everybody involved.

Speaker 2 15:42

So, thanks, thanks for talking about it, no problem Anytime, and we'll have you back, I'm sure. Thank you, ladies. Now switching gears to something borrowed In this segment, we feature information from an alternate source that sparked my interest and I'd like to share it with you. We are all too familiar with artificial intelligence and how it's becoming more and more popular and, in most cases, being the go-to for just about everything. For those of you who don't know, artificial intelligence, or AI for short, is all about creating machines and software that can do things that usually need humans. Think of tasks like learning from experiences, spotting patterns, understanding and talking in human languages, solving problems and making decisions. Ai is popping up everywhere In health care, helping to diagnose diseases and providing personalized treatments, In finance, spotting fraud and making trading decisions, In transportation, even driving In customer service, powering chatbots that answer all of our questions.

Speaker 2 16:47

According to NBC News, one bride posed one simple question using AI and in return, she received generated information to save her between $5,000 to $10,000. Maria Cortese says she enlisted the help of ChatGPT to help her plan her wedding, set to take place in Poughkeepsie, New York, this upcoming summer. She took a chance and typed in a question in regards to weddings and, to her surprise, received an outline of details ranging from wedding bouquets, centerpieces, eliminating the need for her to enlist the help of a physical wedding planner. Cortese says she was able to find a photographer to provide services for her engagement, wedding shower and wedding day for half the price that it would have been if she would have hired one just for her wedding. She even used AI for invitations and received specific wording and tips on getting those out to her guests.

Speaker 2 17:40

Now, although AI tools and resources are helpful, even in the wedding industry, does it truly take the place of hiring a physical wedding planner? I know the answer to this. However, joining me to weigh in on this topic is Lori Hartwell, founder and CEO of the CWP Society, and Chrissy Thomas, our lovely VP of the CWP Society. Thanks for joining me again. Ladies, Welcome back. Thank you. Now. You know I had to bring you in on this discussion. You know I'm not biased when it comes to AI. I mean, I use it for my own wedding and event planning company. However, while AI is making our lives easier in a sense, what's your take on it being a full on replacement for the wedding planner?

Speaker 1 18:31

Well, you can't. You can't replace a wedding planner with AI. I mean, I want us to kind of like think about that for just a second. Let's say I needed to change my battery in my car. Obviously I could look up online or through AI, like how to change battery in my car, change battery in my car.

Speaker 1 18:57

That doesn't mean that the process is going to go smoothly. It does not mean that I'm not going to want to just quit and run away from home, right, like most likely I would want to, and in most cases, even if I struggled through it and was able to get it done, it certainly would have taken me longer to get it done myself than if I had hired a professional to take care of it. Same would be true if, like, I needed a tooth extracted. Yes, I could look up how to extract a tooth and what tools would I need. That doesn't mean I should do it that way, right?

Speaker 1 19:30

So, while AI can be an incredibly helpful tool, relying solely on AI to plan a wedding and replace a human wedding planner is just not advisable, and for a lot of reasons. First one, personalization. So AI will struggle to understand and incorporate the unique and personal touches that kind of make a wedding really unique and special to a specific couple. A human wedding planner can much better do a much better job kind of grasping the couple's vision and their style and their preferences and really tailor the wedding accordingly. That's the first one off the top of my head. I know Chrissy probably has one.

Speaker 3 20:15

I'm thinking about that emotional support that we provide. Planning a wedding it's stressful, it can be stressful, and when you have that actual human wedding planner, we can provide you with that emotional support, that guidance, that listening ear throughout the entire planning process. And obviously AI, you know, is going to lack that empathy and that personal connection that a human planner can actually offer.

Speaker 2 20:40

You mean you can't just talk to a computer and get I mean you can you?

Speaker 1 20:44

can?

Speaker 3 20:47

I don't think you're going to get a lot back from I don't think you're going to get a hug back when you're crying to your AI planner about the information not being sent out in a timely manner. You know.

Speaker 1 20:58

I agree, but then you have to think about how adaptable is it going to be? You know, weddings often involve a lot of last minute changes, a lot of unexpected issues, complex, problem solving Human wedding planners are much better equipped I would say maybe the only ones that are equipped to adapt to these challenges and find creative solutions right on the spot, whereas AI is not going to help you. Like, if your florist calls and says we're running behind, how's AI going to help solve this problem?

Speaker 3 21:27

Another thing that pops in my head is the vendor relationships that we have Like, yes, you can put in AI, find me a Tennessee wedding photographer, but experienced wedding planners have those established relationships with these wedding pros and with that we can often secure better deals. You get priority service. Any issues that pop up that will pop up, they can handle. Ai is obviously going to lack these personal connections and also negotiation skills.

Speaker 1 21:54

They're not going to be able to negotiate for you on your behalf, right? I don't see the computer calling up the florist and saying so? Here's the deal, here's the situation with them. Like that's not going to happen. You also have to think about the attention to detail. So, while AI can be programmed to handle certain tasks, a human wedding planner is more likely to catch all of those small, really important details and sometimes those really big mistakes. They look small but they can really get big over time. That's all going to be overlooked by an AI system.

Speaker 3 22:26

Exactly, and one of the huge benefits of hiring an actual human wedding planner is going to be that creativity that we bring to the table. Like we are able to draw from our own personal experience from the weddings that we plan, think outside the box to create something unique and memorable that's customized to our couples. You're not going to get that with AI. With AI, you're going to get some of those general tips that you can find online anywhere, whereas with your human wedding planner we can get really creative and think outside of the box for your wedding.

Speaker 2 22:54

I love that and I also love, to your point. We have those vendor relationships. So, even though this particular bride found a photographer that could provide all these services, do you really know what you're getting? Have you worked with this photographer before? No, we have. You know, we have those relationships. We can tell you what you're getting. They're great. These are our approved vendors, so it's a little bit more personal, you know. And yeah, we just can't be replaced, let's face it.

Speaker 1 23:22

That's it. And here's my other issue. Wedding planners are rated number three of the most stressful job. Not because this is the easiest thing we've ever done, right? Not because we can like throw in a couple of words into AI and have an entire magical thing. No, weddings are tough. This is a tough industry. This is a tough job, and a lot of times our couples are not just planning their weddings. That's not their only gig, right? A lot of times they are also working or also going to school and they're trying to plan a wedding on the side. And so when you are skipping a professional, that is sort of like saying, yeah, I know my car is broken, it's the check engine lights on, but I think I'm just going to pop into AI real quick and I'm going to see what I can do and manage that myself, because you know, everybody has so much free time to just magically do all these things. But what a lot of couples are missing, aisha, and here's my biggest problem. They are yeah, you can find on some of these big sites some wedding professionals, but to your point, are they really good? Because anybody can put an ad someplace? You even the terrible ones, in fact, a lot of times, the terrible ones have to put those ads because they're not going to get referrals from anyone else. So there's that problem.

Speaker 1 24:39

Second thing is, on wedding day has anyone thinking about the wedding day and how AI is not going to send in a little wedding planner robot to keep track of how things are going and what order things need to be done and be able to talk to people and put fires out? That's where all of the fires take place. When 5,000 details are coming in all at once, right, and it all has to be done seamlessly, perfectly. Everybody has to be in the know. We send out text reminders to different people the wedding vendor team and the wedding party and family members. We are talking. Wedding planners are talking to literally everyone that day, making sure that everything is on point.

Speaker 1 25:24

So if that is not done, because you thought you could use that GPT to replace a human being, then I want you to ask yourself, like, how would that work in your job? You know so it's a very I'm not saying this because this is my job. I'm saying this because I've done this job for over 30 years now and I can tell you this I can guarantee that the wedding day is not going to go smooth. Okay, it's a guarantee. So you need to have that human touch. That's what's going to prompt you. Now, if you're the type of couple that says, fine, I, I, you know, I don't really know if I need help planning, then you need to at least have someone set up as your wedding day manager, because that's the person who's going to come in at the tail end of the planning process and really ensure that you've got to. You also have to like book that person well in advance, because they've got so many other things going.

Speaker 1 26:26

So it scares me. This scares me because I love AI. I love it, but I don't think it should replace professionals. I mean, are you going to? Is what's next for our mental health? Are we going to go to AI and get mental health treatment from from an AI system as well? We're going to replace psychologists, psychologists and therapists, mechanics, dentists all of these? No, yeah, Professionals are professionals for a reasons, because you can't replace experience, hands on experience in the field. So I'm sorry that I went on that rant, but it bothers me.

Speaker 2 27:01

No, I wanted that rant because I want here, okay. Well, you got the rant, you got it, thank you. And let's face it when, when couples feel like, oh, I'm saving like she mentioned, five to ten thousand dollars, you may be saving it, what it looks like on the front end, right, and once your wedding day comes, here you go Needing to spend that.

Speaker 1 27:24

Because did you hire? I mean, the photographer may have given you a great deal, but is that photographer going to actually give you their finished product? I mean, how much do you really know? See, that's the problem. Couples don't know these people. We in the industry know all about you. We have studied you, we have followed you. We've heard all the stories good, bad, the ugly. We've seen it and heard it all.

Speaker 1 27:48

I know who to recommend, who definitely not to ever recommend. Even if my life was on the line, I wouldn't. I would know not to recommend certain people. It's because I care so deeply about the couple and I want the couple to have such an amazing day that that making sure that I am curating a specific team of wedding professionals just for them their personality, style, their budget, their, as well as like the theme and overall look that they're going for for the wedding this is not something that I would utilize. I, even in my own company, I would not do that. I know who's good and who's bad. I know who can communicate, who's terrible at communicating. I know who's going to provide and follow up on the product that they promised to give and which ones are going to leave town. So I really feel as though we cannot make this point strong enough. You cannot, under any circumstances, replace a human wedding planner with AI.

Speaker 2 28:52

Listen, thank you. Now to give a little bit more information to our listeners out there, especially our couples what are some additional ways that AI can be used as it relates to the wedding industry? The proper way to use AI as it relates to the wedding industry.

Speaker 3 29:12

I would say using it for things such as, like your custom vows and say that the couple wants to write their own vows, toast for the best man, the maid of honor, father of the bride, whoever's speaking can utilize AI for that and also maybe helping them write their ceremony. Let's say that they have their best friend who's going to be officiate the wedding and he's never done that before. Using AI is going to be a really smart tool to use for that. But I think it has to be a very specific tool because we're partnered with here at the CBP Society Providence, who they provide that special AI feature.

AI vs Human Expertise in Weddings

Speaker 3 29:46

But what's so different about them compared to, let's say, chat GBT is it's super customized, so you can plug in there your love story. You can plug in there your personality, quirky traits about your significant other. If the officiant wants to write in a story about the couple and how they met that, you can put all that in there, even down to what your religion is, what custom eyes, things. You want to be a part of the ceremony and it will write this beautiful crafted toast or ceremony or vows for you. But it's it's smart in that way. I don't think you're going to get that same experience with something like Tatooineique. Providence was specifically made for the wedding industry and to customize these things.

Speaker 1 30:25

And I mean even down to how long do you want your toast? You want it to be three minutes, five minutes, it will. It will even customize it specifically to how long it would take you to say all of the words that they are putting down. But I mean because all of us have been in those situations where we're at weddings, the best man gets a hold of that microphone about to do his toast and we're like, oh Lord, he is, he's been drinking since 7 am. He is not trustworthy at this point, but we'd like to have like a pre-made toast for him that he worked on through Providence to make it like super clean, super wonderful.

Speaker 1 31:00

There's ways to do that. So AI plays a great role, but it's not to replace a human. But how many? Nobody like hires writers for weddings, right, like write my toast? Like nobody. Nobody does that really. Some of the high, high end ones do, but for normal, average wedding couples that you're not going to find that. So utilizing provenance, which is a tool that actually kind of harnesses the power of AI and makes it a lot easier to use, that's a really great way.

Speaker 1 31:35

But you know, ayesha, you and I were talking the other day and I remember we were having a conversation about AI and how we were talking about images, right, do you remember? And you know, because now you can have images like I want to see, create an image of a green tablecloth with gold chivalry chair, gold chairs, blah, blah, but it comes up with an image. Yes, but you're? You made such a good point. You're like okay, duplicating that's going to be hard because that chair doesn't actually exist in real life and you know, at rental companies and that that tablecloth, there is no such thing as that color that I can get that that fabric in. So it's, it's very difficult. Uh, so it's. It's one of those situations where you can't really just rely on all those things, but there's a time and a place to use it.

Speaker 3 32:23

It's funny. I feel like that could be a whole. Maybe for the next episode we can talk about in more detail those AI images, because I'm seeing it a lot on my social media and who's sharing it. Are these big wedding websites, where there should be sharing inspiration, and they're sharing these AI generated images and I'm like this physically cannot happen at someone's wedding. Why are we sharing it to a bunch of engaged couples who are looking for your at your page as a source of inspiration for their wedding? This wedding physically not take place, like it's an AI generated wedding? I think there was one where it was like on this train, or there was one where it was literally in the middle of an ocean and I'm like, okay, that seems approval. I mean it was like so a wave is going to take out all the centerpieces and grandma.

Speaker 1 33:05

Perfect, not to mention the wind, like hello wind. What I mean this is what I'm trying to say is, like, ai is great If you want to live in that fantasy world, right, and I think that's great. That's what novels are for. Maybe, read a book, okay. But I think that it's really important that when it comes to your wedding day your one and only day, because you don't get do-overs for this you want to make sure that you're doing it correctly and talking to a professional who's actually done it all before about a million times. So it's very, very important to not ever replace it, but to utilize it, where, if you were just trying to like, create an image to show your wedding planner the idea and then you give, she takes or he takes that image and go okay, so if I replace that with this and do this instead and do we at least have a general idea of what you want, but that's not the exact look that you're going to get, because it doesn't exist it's make-believe If you can help the people out a little bit more.

Speaker 2 34:04

What advice would you give to wedding professionals to share with their clients who have the idea to eliminate the expertise of a physical human being and solely rely on artificial intelligence?

Speaker 1 34:15

Everything we say and do and all the advice that we give is based on experience and our know-how. We have a lot of knowledge that goes into this and a lot of wedding planners that are incredibly good at their job. These are certified or master certified wedding planners, and so these are people that have dedicated their entire life to couples. Uh, so, uh, ai doesn't have that expertise and doesn't have those years of experience of knowing why we're doing the things that we're doing and how to gently because sometimes it takes a finesse like you wouldn't believe to solve some of these problems. Ai is not going to be someone or something that can solve a problem for you on your behalf, but a planner and a coordinator are going to do everything in their own power and their human capability to solve these problems for you on your behalf, whereas AI cannot possibly do that. So I don't know, chrissy, what are your thoughts here?

Speaker 3 35:17

immediately think of. I had a mother of a bride who I randomly ran into. Her daughter got married three years ago and we ran into each other and she said being a wedding planner is take such a talent. And I never really thought about it like that, but she was like all the thousands of pieces that go into a wedding day. You having to put that all together while on top of that managing the wedding party me as the mom, and then the couple, all the vendors, while all keeping a smile on your face is a talent. Now I was like that's a really good point. Ai is not talented. Ai doesn't have a talent that a professional, certified wedding planner will bring to your wedding day.

Speaker 1 35:56

And think about this to your wedding day and think about this. You know, anytime that any of us have used AI, there has not been one time where I haven't had to adjust what it spit out. I've had to adjust it like, well, that's actually, that's false. So because of that, I have to put, I have to, like, make sure I'm putting the truth into my own words here and spin it. I've never once been able to do a copy paste and not changed or updated or tweaked any of what AI spits out. So think about all of the things. If you're using it to plan a wedding, think of all the things that you don't know to tweak All the things that it might be spitting out. That's wrong, that you don't even realize that it's wrong and you're trying to do it anyway and that is going to put a damper on your wedding and is going to really affect the planning process as well as your memories during this time.

Speaker 2 36:47

Thank you so much, lori and Chrissy. This was a wealth of knowledge definitely needed to be shared, and I appreciate you, ladies, for joining me today and sharing your actual intelligence on this topic. There's an AI for you there it is Mic drop.

Speaker 1 37:08

Good, I like to see AI drop a mic, but okay, thanks for how you shared. Thanks, ladies.

Speaker 2 37:16

Next up is our old and new segment. Next up is our old and new segment. This is where I usually discuss a few of the older trends we are familiar with and what's replacing it. However, today I'd like to jump right into a few options you can share with your couples to better prepare them for their summer celebration. Halfway through 2024, which means summer is near. That means beautiful weather and a few more guaranteed sunny days for wedding ceremonies and receptions to take place outdoors. With those outdoor festivities, you want to make sure you're educating your couples on incorporating ways to make sure their guests not only enjoy a beautiful wedding day experience, but do so safely.

Speaker 2 37:57

Here are a few things for your couples to consider Make sure the blazing sun doesn't take over your client's day, and think about those additional elements that you may have to rent, such as tents, fans, large umbrellas to help provide shade and create a more cool and comfortable environment. But be sure to discuss details on space for these items, as they will be on a much larger scale and you want to make sure the venue can accommodate them. Don't forget about the hydration stations. Please make sure your couples know the importance of keeping their guests hydrated throughout the event. They can include water stations infused with fruit if you want to make it a little bit more fancy, or they can simply provide iced tea and lemonade to include a much more refreshing beverage option. When it comes to those wedding favors, suggest to your couple the option of including a fan station. Or, if they want to take it a step further, they can give their couples a mini, handheld, portable air conditioner. This will be sure to keep them cool, cool, and their guests can use it even after the event is over.

Speaker 2 39:02

Now to my favorite, the element that makes the wedding day not so sweaty but sweet. I'm referring to those enjoyable treats. Of course, the guests will be patiently waiting for the wedding cake, but who said they couldn't serve an ice cream cake? Or even consider having an ice cream bar equipped with all the favorite toppings, of course, ensuring that all of them can withstand the warm weather. Either way, the possibilities are endless. Just make sure you are discussing with your couples all the options that will be suitable for them and their guests. By starting with these suggestions, your couple's summer soiree will be a comfortable one, and they'll know that you took the time to care for them and their guests on one of the most important days of their lives.

Speaker 2 39:47

Wedding pros, as we bring this month's episode to a close, I'd like to leave you with an inspirational quote to keep you all encouraged in this demanding wedding industry. It's a quote by American poet Maddie Stepanek and it reads unity is strength. When there is a teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved. Wedding pros, keep this in mind when you set out to execute the most wonderful wedding day for your couples. That wraps up our June 2024 wedding industry news. As always, we appreciate you for joining us, whether you are listening via a streaming platform or tuned in on our YouTube channel. We look forward to you joining us here next month on the Wedding Pro Podcast.