Gone are the days of organizing the workflow via emails – and we couldn’t be happier about that! In the digital age, it feels almost like a crime not to take advantage of the myriad of websites, apps, and programs readily awaiting the exhausted user to change her life once and for all. Alas, the wisdom of crowds says too much choice is not a good idea either. How does a busy wedding planner make sense of everything the market has to offer? Since a planner is usually a jack of many traits, successfully juggling accounting, inventory management, business photography, social media management, etc., their toolbox should be ready for anything. Here are our top software picks to make a wedding specialist’s life a ton easier!
Honeybook
Designed as an all-in-one project management tool for busy SME owners, this app incorporates all the functions necessary to streamline workflows (which are customizable and fully automatic by the way). This helps create templates that are reusable but still personalized for each client. Apart from that, HoneyBook also helps keep track of payments, proposals, packages, etc. Starting at $39 per month, this sounds like a sweet deal to us! Here is a full list of what this potent tool can do:
- Project Pipeline
- Proposals
- Contracts
- Brochures
- Calendar
- Reports
- Task Managers
- Payments
- Contact Forms
- Time Tracker
- Bookkeeping
- Workflows
- Lead Capture
- Opportunities (to find employees, partnerships, and/or job opportunities)
Flodesk
This one is in for a serious game in email campaigning and newsletter design. Branding itself as “the world’s most intuitive email builder”, Flodesk’s interface is almost ridiculously easy to use, which is perhaps why it won the hearts of so many marketing managers and business owners. The in-built stunning templates are customizable, letting the planner stay on brand and make sure the subscriber realizes whose email she is looking at within milliseconds. Among other features are website-integral forms helping you convert leads and marketing insights to keep your finger on the pulse of the latest trends. The price – $38 per month for unlimited use.
Aisle Planner
If the software above is somewhat a generic set of tools applicable to any business, our next darling was created specifically for the wedding industry. Thanks to Aisle Planner, the days of searching through stacks of emails to relay what the caterer originally quoted are over. Instead, planners can now attach all the proposals and copy-paste relevant communication under the vendor’s tab for all the project participants to see. Additionally, the wedding checklist option lets the planner assign specific tasks to each person (planner, bride, groom, mother of the bride, etc.) and keep track of progress in a format akin to a Gantt chart. The pricing is based on the number of active projects your team needs per month, starting with $39.99 for 10 projects. Here are just some of the features Aisle Planner has to offer:
- Lead Captures
- Proposals
- Design Style Guides
- Vendor Lists
- Client Management / CRM Tools
- Collaborative Workspace (sends email notifications in real-time)
- Task Lists
- Wedding Planning Checklist (fully customizable – by category & by timeline)
- Wedding Day Timeline
- Calendar (syncs with phone and allows you to set reminders and alarms)
- Guest Lists
- Layouts/Floor Plans
Planoly
Last but not least, Planoly lets you stay on top of your social media game. Given its widespread popularity, chances are you already heard of this app, so without further ado, here are some of its most prominent features (which come at no cost in the personal plan – oh joy!)
- Plan Instagram Posts Visually
- Discover Content in your Community
- Schedule Content and Post Directly to Instagram
- Analyze your Content and Audience
- Manage and Reply to Comments
- Draft Multiple Grids before Planning
- Plan, Draft and Schedule Stories and Post Directly to Instagram
