Here’s How A Solid Wedding Website Means Less Stress
I’m gonna let you in on a little secret today. Besides choosing your wedding vendors, creating (and culling) your guest list and choosing your dress, the most important decision you make is actually an easy one to tackle: building a solid wedding website. Now wedding websites are nothing new, but they often fly under the radar with just how crucial they are and just how much they can save you in the long run. So today we partnered with Wix, KING of intuitive wedding websites that use drag + drop wedding website builders, to share some key points you may never have considered before.
Photo by The Poffs from this vibrant Palm Springs wedding
The RSVP Trail
Having a wedding website that’s jam-packed with all the important details for the day – from addresses, timelines, room blocks, transportation schedules (the list goes on!) – will already help you set a solid foundation for informing your guests. One snazzy feature that’s on the up + up is online RSVPs. Translation? You can potentially save extra fees on reply cards, envelopes, digital or hand addressing and postage! It all adds up, and that’s money you can put towards your top priorities… even if that’s the honeymoon 😉
An online RSVP feature is already built into the wedding website templates on Wix. This can be a great way to get quicker replies from guests, without requiring 8 follow-ups because they “couldn’t find time to run to their mail box with their snail mail.” And heck, if you wanted to go paperless altogether, you can easily send out digital wedding invitations through your Wix website too.
Bonus: Wix allows so much customization with their templates that you can consult with your stationer about design release file options so that you can plug your custom graphics from the paper goods into the website to continue your individual wedding aesthetic seamlessly.
Susie Saltzman from this engagement ring roundup
Time
Time is money, right? You’d think your guests, especially those who have been married before, would understand the golden rule of not texting the couple with questions about the wedding in the 72 hours before they walk down the aisle because they accidentally misplaced their mailed invitation…. You’d think. The sad truth of the matter is that people will prod. Unless they have another outlet to conduct their research. A simple search through their emails can lead them straight to your wedding website, and if you opted for a custom domain, finding your website can be even easier!
Having all the FAQ’s answered in one easy to access and easy to read place translates to a stress-free week leading up to your wedding for both you and your guests so that everyone can enjoy in excited anticipation. No worrying about the fine details here!
Photo by Gaby J Photography from this desert chic wedding
Post-Wedding Gift Exchanges
Modern wedding websites can basically be your Registry Tzar, housing all your registries at different stores in one comprehensive place. And in return, your guests have an easy alternative list to shop from if all the items from one store have been purchased already. Are you still with me? This ultimately means you won’t be returning or exchanging “guess gifts” after the wedding because they didn’t know what else to do… you’ve got them all covered this way!
Photo by Ed & Aileen Photography from this New Orleans wedding
OK, How Do I Start?
So there’s no excuse not to have a wedding website on your master checklist, I think we’re all agreed. They’re so much more than a paperless way to share information, and they’ll save you so much in the end. There’s a variety of beautifully designed wedding website templates, ranging from classical and elegant to modern and bohemian, so you can choose the perfect template for your style. Each template comes with all the fixin’s, including an RSVP widget, a PayPal button for cash gifts, Google maps so guests can see the exact wedding location and opportunities to share your wedding hashtag! Looking for inspiration? Check out these gorgeous wedding website examples!
Photo by Sarah Ingram from this elegant Atlanta wedding
The drag and drop editor allows you to move and change items in a truly instinctive way, so you don’t have to be a web developer to craft something that looks the part! Feel free to include as many pictures and videos to make your website feel the most “you and you can preview in both mobile + desktop views to make sure nothing looks wonky on one end.
On top of all these, you can invite your guests to opt-in with their email addresses so they receive updates when changes are made to the site or new information is added. This can come especially in handy when you want to get the word out but don’t have everything quite figured out yet, like hotel room blocks, which you’d want to add later. Not to mention sudden changes due to unforeseen circumstances like weather.
Photo by Mary Claire from this Newport Beach wedding
But what about the bridal party? If you’re wishing there was a way to share the pertinent deets for them in the same place without all your guests seeing (such as where to get ready before the wedding), Wix is way ahead of you, friend. You can set special permissions page by page, and have password-protected content for the relevant parties. Hello, bridal party portal!
Photo by The Ganeys from this Kestrel Park wedding inspiration
The cherry on top might just be the privacy barrier at your disposal for everyone through the use of password encryption or search engine disabilization. That way, you don’t have to fear sneaky wedding crashers trolling your site on the world wide web! We’d say it’s a pretty nifty bundle all in all. Check out their wedding website templates now and start editing your favorite one immediately – it seriously takes minutes!
Great planning tips!