By the time that most couples start looking for their wedding flowers, they have already made a lot of important and expensive decisions...

Flowers are often one of the last items you consider for your wedding. Yet, flowers play such an important role throughout the wedding, it's important to start thinking about them early in the planning process. Not only is it important, but in the long run, may save you time and money.

Naturally, when planning your event, you are concerned about costs. You want to have the best you can afford, and that includes your flowers. The key to saving money on your flowers is understanding what a florist is charging you for in the first place. Contrary to what you may think, florists provide a service first, and a product (flowers) second. No different than most other service professionals you deal with. Think about it, an insurance professional assesses your needs, then provides you with a policy designed to cover those needs.

It's the same with wedding flowers. Once your florist has determined your needs, he or she will be happy to suggest appropriate choices for you that will fit your personality, style, and budget.

But the real key is service. What you really should be willing to pay for is the service and experience a professional can provide. Today, people are relying more on the help of outside professionals in many areas of their busy lives.

Floral design is only one facet of the service a professional florist can provide. However, the best reason to choose an experienced professional florist to provide your wedding flowers goes beyond their creative talent. Blending their experience and ability, they can coordinate every aspect your wedding flowers in a way that will make your wedding beautiful and memorable. This frees you of the worry about the floral details, and allows you make the planning process an enjoyable one.

So how do you go about getting the best value for your money when choosing a florist? Here are a few tips that will help:

Reputation

Many professional florists have built strong reputations over their many years in business. Reputation is important, but you should understand that reputation can be enhanced through advertising. Check with other vendors you are using. Ask for their recommendations. Ask other couples you know for their recommendations. You might find some surprises. You're paying for results, not reputation.

Service

Your wedding day is the most important day of your life. The details can be overwhelming. This is why many people choose to hire wedding planners. Because flowers can be utilized in every facet of a wedding, it's important to make sure that your florist is contacted early enough in the planning process to put their experience to work for you.

Be sure that the florist you are considering has the capabililty and resources to handle the size and scale of your wedding. Some large events may require extensive on-site set-up. The florist you choose needs to be properly staffed and equipped to handle it.

If your wedding falls into that category, chances are you may already be using the services of a wedding planner, who can recommend florists that have that type of event experience.

But even smaller weddings may need special servicing, especially when the ceremony and reception may share the same venue. Knowing that your florist has experience and is capable of providing the necessary services will make your event planning much easier.

It's essential to work with a florist who you're comfortable with. Most florists will share ideas and provide solutions for you, often resulting in bottom line savings to you. If you wait too long to make your florist part of your planning process, you're likely to waste a lot of time and probably wind up spending more than you have to. Relying on the advice of friends is fine, but seek the advice of professionals as well...and do it early on.

Pricing

Prices for wedding flowers are based on several factors including design choice and flower content, delivery, set-up, and servicing. Some florists charge separately for these services, others factor this into the price of the flowers. Be sure you know how a florist figures these costs so you can compare "apples to apples", when it comes to comparing prices.

Flexibility

One method often cited as a way to save money on wedding flowers is to select flowers that are "in season". Good advice? Yes...but usually given by someone not familiar with today's flower business. Advances in both the speed and reliability of transportation and communications make today's flower market worldwide, so many flowers once considered "seasonal", can be found year round at reasonable prices.

With that said, working with color, rather than a particular flowers, will save you money and possibly disappointment. If you have your heart set on using a particular flower, market or weather conditions can force up the price, or worse yet, make that flower unavailable. Allowing your florist to use a variety of flowers within your color scheme will allow you to stay within your budget, and avoid having to make a lot of unplanned, last minute changes.

Those are some of the tips, from my experience, that will help facilitate the process of your wedding planning.

About the Author

Greg Johnson is the owner of Greenfield Flower Shop, Milwaukee's online flower source.

You can also find valuable additional wedding and wedding flower resources here.