Our top 3 tips: Mistakes to avoid when hiring a videographer

Avoid costly mistakes when hiring a videographer by following our expert advice. Our top 3 tips will help you find the right professional for your project and ensure a successful outcome.

MISTAKE #1 TO AVOID: Not investing enough money on a wedding videographer

Allocating 90% of your budget for wedding memories on photography and 10% for video

“When you buy something cheap and bad, the best you’re going to feel about it is when you buy it. When you buy something expensive and good, the worst you’re going to feel about it is when you buy it.”

Sasha Aickin

That’s a quote from James Cleary quoting Sasha Aickin quoting financial advice from his grandmother. And if you can’t trust some real estate broker’s grandma’s advice—whose advice can you take, really?

I’m very serious when I say, don’t spend 90% of the budget you’ve allocated for your wedding memories on photo and leave 10% for video (or the other way around).

Why not?

Because you’re not getting a good deal, you’re pairing your massively expensive venor with a massively inexperienced vendor—disrupting how the wedding day works which can make everything HARDER, it can ruin the lovely expensive vendor’s process.

Documenting a live event is not for the faint of heart. It’s a very very delicate balance that is easily disrupted when you try to jam someone in there who is not of the same skill level. Level that playing field and set everyone up for success.

“If you think good [videography] is expensive, you should look at the cost of bad [ones].”

Ralf Speth, ok he originally said “design.” But close enough.

What do I mean by good and bad?

Bad looks like feeling like you “wasted a couple of grand” because you don’t watch your wedding film while good looks like “it was worth every penny” when you spent $9,000 because you can’t believe of freaking AMAZING you look—this film makes you feel incredible!

Bad feels like “everyone said that videographer was obnoxious” and good feels like “no one even KNEW we had videographers there!”

Bad feels like “I never heard from my videographer and even felt like they forgot about us” when good feels like, “They helped us prepare for being in front of the camera and I felt SO confident.”

MISTAKE #2 TO AVOID: Investing in a videographer that’s FINE

Oh, they’ll do. They’re fine.

Would you want to buy a wedding dress you felt “fine” in?

Do you want to bite into that wedding cake and feel, “meh, ‘s ok.”

Hire a band that does a pretty OK job at getting the words mostly right? Hell, no!

Then why would you settle for a company that’s FINE for your wedding film? You don’t.

You want to hire someone you’re confident in. Someone who makes you excited about your film. Someone who makes you excited about being in front of all those cameras. You want these people to make you feel f*****g fabulous!

MISTAKE #3 TO AVOID: Waiting until the last minute to book a wedding videographer

Especially if you have a popular wedding date.

“Ugh, I’m so stressed. It’ll get done eventually.”

Yes, it will. But if you wait too long someone else will be getting filmed by YOUR videographer. (When Harry Met Sally—anyone?)

Couples are booking wedding videography sooner and sooner in the wedding planning process each year. And I mean we’re one of the first 4 vendors booked now.

If video is at all important to you, don’t wait until that industry standard 8-10 months rolls around. 12 months before your date has been too late for a lot of the couples we’ve turned away.

What’s the reason to wait, anyway? Lock those beautiful people down ASAP and check it off your to-do list.

These three tips will help to make hiring a videographer for your wedding a success

I hope you found this article helpful. You can find more helpful articles and tips on wedding videography by clicking here.