5 Tips To Take Your Reception From Good...

To GREAT!!!

1. Delegate! Delegate! Delegate! The bridal party wants to help you in any way that they can. We are seeing an emerging trend in which Brides and Grooms are doing more and more themselves, including staying late to help clean-up and organize things that need to be removed from the hall. This is YOUR big day - the only day in your life (other than your birth day, but I bet you don't remember that) that is ALL about you! Don't be afraid to ask for help!
    
2. If you are going to opt to have disposable cameras on the tables, be sure to create a list of the photos that you want! Guests will only be too happy to try and get the photos that you want, if they know what those are. You can do this by placing a simple list on card stock, right on the table beside the camera - be sure to have your MC mention it, and perhaps have the DJ announce it part way through the night. 
    
3. Trust your DJ! We recently had a client come up to us part way through the night and mention that one of her younger nephews had complained that we had not played his requests. Once we pointed out to the Bride that the requests were for songs like Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Foghat, she completely understood and appreciated our censorship. As it turns out, her nephew knew of these songs through a game called Guitar Hero - this was not danceable stuff, and we knew that it would kill the dancefloor.
    
4. Is your photographer leaving early? In most cases, there is no need to miss out on having professional photos of things like your cake cutting or first dance. We will show you how to maximize the time that you have with your photographer to get all the important shots. For instance, in cases where the photographer is not staying for dinner, why not perform the 1st dance immediately upon grand entrance, followed immediately by the cake cutting?
    
5. Want to be organized and avoid stress? Create a spreadsheet (simple Excel will do). Have columns for Guest Name, Guest Addresses, Date Invitation Was Seent, Has a Reply Been Received, Attending/Not-Attending, Gift Given & Thank-You Card Sent. This will allow you to track the date of each milestone and ensure that nothing is forgotten.