What I Learned from Hurricane Sandy
By Caitlin Boshnack, Just Be the Bride, Voorhees, N.J. photography caitlin scott photographyJust imagine, you are a week away from a wedding and you get a call that the super storm coming in is expected to wash away every detail of the finalized wedding plan. After years of planning, the bride is not interested in postponing her big day. It is up to you to move the wedding to a safe location and hire a whole new vendor team. 
To say the week of Hurricane Sandy was a whirlwind would truly be an understatement. Even though our bride was located in one of the most devastated towns, she still remained upbeat that her wedding would be a positive reminder that there are still reasons to come together and celebrate—even in times of widespread sadness. Now that the wedding has come and gone, here are a few lessons I learned about planning a wedding when Mother Nature is having her way:A good planner is more proactive than reactiveThe safety net we put in place before the storm even hit made the difference between the wedding happening and being postponed. The day before the hurricane arrived, we toured venues and put out calls to vendors to secure a full back-up team. After the storm, almost all of the original vendors emailed saying they were severely affected by the storm and unable to fulfill their commitment. Instead of waiting until midweek to check availability of new vendors, we activated our safety net.Network, Network, Network!Your strength in an emergency situation is related to the power of your vendor network. Do you know whom you would call in a last-minute emergency? Thanks to my commitment to networking with the Association of Bridal Consultants and other associations, I knew I could secure trustworthy vendors with only a few quick phone calls.
Never underestimate the power of social mediaFacebook is your secret army. Twice during this frantic week, I posted a need for a vendor on Facebook. Within an hour, I had multiple people reaching out to offer help, a suggestion, or to share my situation with their colleagues. Information can go viral on social media faster than any other form of communication.You can plan ahead, but make sure to plan smart
Changing vendors is a tricky situation especially when it’s due to an act of God. Even though we had “Plan B” ready on the sidelines, we needed to do our due diligence by waiting until we received official notice from each vendor that they were unable to work with the bride before we had her sign a new contract and make deposits. By doing this, we ensured that the original vendors, who were paid in full, would not suddenly resurface the day before.Plan for the worst and hope for the bestWhen planning for the unknown, the safest strategy is to plan for the worst. No matter how the situation unfolds you must be either prepared or over-prepared. There is no room for doubt. No matter what the outcome, you will be able to reassure your client that you have everything under control.
