Selecting Your Vendors:
You want to create the Party that your family and friends will remember for a lifetime. The decisions you have to make in regards to selecting the right vendors will ultimately affect the quality of your party. Take your time to find the perfect fit for your needs. There are lots of way in which to select your ideal DJ, Photographer, Videographer, Decor Designer, and your invitations. Listed below are some of the places to look for quality vendors that will produce the party you are looking for.
Event Planners:
It can be a full-time job planning your son or daughter’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah, call an event planner who specializes in Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. They can recommend to you a variety of vendors that they regularly work with. Once the day of your party arrives you will want to relax and enjoy yourself and entertain your guests. The party planner can manage your event on the day of the party, so you won’t have to worry about all the details. As mentioned earlier, make sure the event planner specializes in Mitzvahs, it's a specialty very different from planning a wedding or corporate event. They should understand all the rituals involved and the characteristics special to a Mitzvah party. Call Bonnie, The Mitzvah Maven, for advice in planning your child's upcoming Bar/Bat Mitzvah at 973-927-1588 or email her at [email protected].
Referrals from Friends and Family:
Call your friends and family and ask them for referrals for vendors that they have used in the past. They should be able to provide you with the pros and cons of each vendor. Keep in mind that you may not have the same taste as your friends, but they can provide you with a good start, especially if you were impressed with the performance of their vendors at their own event. You may feel uncomfortable asking for prices, so you can wait to ask for prices when you call the vendor.
Referrals from other Vendors:
Ask the other vendors you have already selected who they like to work with. If they have been in business for a long time, they have probably established relationships with a wide variety of vendors, and can point you to qualified people they like to work with. These recommendations can be provided to you with a list they hand out, on their Internet site or simply by word of mouth. But keep in mind that they may be receiving what would be referred to as "kickbacks" from certain vendors to recommend them. For example, there are several catering halls in New Jersey that require a substantial fee from their vendors to be recommended to their potential clients. Often, these recommendations have nothing to do with the quality of the vendor, it is the amount of money that the catering manager gets to put in his/her pocket. So be sure to ask them for specifics as to why they are making these recommendations.
Eyewitness Impression:
If you attended friends or family members' Bar/Bat Mitzvah parties and were impressed with the performance of one of their vendors make sure you make a note of this for your future planning. Perhaps you were impressed with the liveliness of the DJ or the friendliness and professionalism of videographers and photographers, ask them for a card at the event or call your friend and ask them who they hired. Make sure you at least walk away with their name and when you get home look them up on the Internet.
Your Budget:
There are a wide variety of vendors whose prices may vary greatly. The first step is to prioritize: What are the most important elements you desire in your party? Do you want to impress your guests with a top notch catering hall and over the top decorations? Is quality of the food your most important consideration? Do you want the best entertainment money can buy? Do you want to make sure that this event is memorialized for history, if so then spend top dollar on photo and video.
Very often the price determines the quality of the product or service you are getting. You usually get what you pay for. If you are having your event at a Five Star venue, do you want a one star photographer? A great analogy would be to compare planning your child's Mitzvah with purchasing a car. You know implicitly that purchasing a Mercedes is going to cost you more than buying a Ford Escort. The question is why is one more expensive than the other: It has to do with the materials they use and the amount of labor involved in producing it. Don’t assume that all work is the same.
Make sure you make educated choices. Just asking prices on the phone will not guarantee you that this is the vendor for you. If hiring a photographer or videographer, examine samples of their work either online or in person. Once you have a few vendors in mind compare and contrast the low end vendor with the high end vendor.
It is also absolutely essential that the vendor has experience in working in the Bar Mitzvah market, these events are quite different in tone and ritual than weddings or other parties. You will want to hire vendors that totally understand and appreciate the importance of this incredible milestone in your family's life.
Very often the price determines the quality of the product or service you are getting. You usually get what you pay for. If you are having your event at a Five Star venue, do you want a one star photographer? A great analogy would be to compare planning your child's Mitzvah with purchasing a car. You know implicitly that purchasing a Mercedes is going to cost you more than buying a Ford Escort. The question is why is one more expensive than the other: It has to do with the materials they use and the amount of labor involved in producing it. Don’t assume that all work is the same.
Make sure you make educated choices. Just asking prices on the phone will not guarantee you that this is the vendor for you. If hiring a photographer or videographer, examine samples of their work either online or in person. Once you have a few vendors in mind compare and contrast the low end vendor with the high end vendor.
It is also absolutely essential that the vendor has experience in working in the Bar Mitzvah market, these events are quite different in tone and ritual than weddings or other parties. You will want to hire vendors that totally understand and appreciate the importance of this incredible milestone in your family's life.
The Internet:
You may want to do a search on the Internet to give you a list of vendors for your upcoming Bar or Bat Mitzvah party. Make sure you look for vendors in your specific geographic region. This is a good place to start, but not necessarily to end. It is probably a better idea to start with recommendations from event planners, friends, family, and other vendors to narrow down your list. Yet, the Internet is a great source to learn more about the vendors you are considering. Photographers and videographers should have samples of their work online to help you make decisions about the quality of their work. Your dj should also have some video samples online to give you a feel for their personality during a Bar Mitzvah party. The decor designer should have samples of centerpieces and balloons that he/she used to decorate a Mitzvah party. You might even be able to select your invitations online.
Yet, there are some warnings you should heed in regards to utilizing the Internet for selecting your vendors. There are certain questions you need to ask: Are the samples that are online actually from the person or persons who will be servicing your event. Use the Internet as an aid, not for your final decision. Be sure that you get a chance to at least talk to the vendors on the phone or in person. Along the same lines, you would never want to choose the venue for your party simply by looking online. The Internet might give you a feel for what your party might look like, but you want to meet the staff and most importantly get a chance to taste the food in person. The Internet should never replace the need for human contact!
Yet, there are some warnings you should heed in regards to utilizing the Internet for selecting your vendors. There are certain questions you need to ask: Are the samples that are online actually from the person or persons who will be servicing your event. Use the Internet as an aid, not for your final decision. Be sure that you get a chance to at least talk to the vendors on the phone or in person. Along the same lines, you would never want to choose the venue for your party simply by looking online. The Internet might give you a feel for what your party might look like, but you want to meet the staff and most importantly get a chance to taste the food in person. The Internet should never replace the need for human contact!
Mitzvah Expos or Showcases:
At several times during the year, there will be showcases that highlight vendors who specialize in Bat or Bar Mitzvahs. Many temples in the area will have their own showcases to assist their congregation in selecting the vendors for their upcoming simchas. Some individual party venues offer their own expos to not only highlight their services, but usually there are other vendors in attendance. Even if you are having your party at a different location you might gather a variety of great ideas from attending these showcases.
Between November and March there are a variety of party showcases throughout New Jersey that are held at various temples, JCC’s, catering halls, hotels and Powerhouse Entertainment Studios. They have a website that lists their showcases and also provides links to a variety of vendors. Check out their website at www.partyshowcases.com, and find a showcase close to you.
Between November and March there are a variety of party showcases throughout New Jersey that are held at various temples, JCC’s, catering halls, hotels and Powerhouse Entertainment Studios. They have a website that lists their showcases and also provides links to a variety of vendors. Check out their website at www.partyshowcases.com, and find a showcase close to you.
Jewish Style Celebration Publication:
The same organization that sponsors the Party Showcases mentioned above also publishes an ad book for the Bat and Bar Mitzvah market. It is called Jewish Style Celebration: Your Party Planning Resource, a party planning guide for all events Jewish. It is published twice annually and is distributed throughout New Jersey in temples, JCCs, retail stores, other locales that service a Jewish clientele, and directly to households throughout New Jersey. If you are interested in receiving a free copy of this planning guide, simply email [email protected]
What to look for in your vendors:
- Professionalism: Are they capable of providing the service you are looking for?
- Experience: How long have they been in business?
- Full-time: Is this their primary occupation? Will they have time to focus on your needs?
- Enthusiastic: Do they love what they do?
- Organized: Have they provided you with paperwork (contract) that is clear and concise?
- Friendly: Do you feel comfortable in their presence? Do they take the time to explain things to you?
- Reliable references. Ask the following questions: Was it a pleasurable experience dealing with this vendor? Did they deliver everything they promised? Would you use them again?
- Experts in their field (Make sure that you hire a photographer to do photography, a videographer to do video, a florist to do flowers etc.) Do not rely on a dj company to provide all of your vendors. You wouldn't go to a car mechanic to cook the food!
- Avoid the vendors that appear overly greedy and are constantly trying to upsell you with products you are not interested in, especially after you have signed the contract.
- TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS!
Call Bonnie Durkin, The Mitzvah Maven,
for assistance in selecting the perfect vendors for your
Bar/Bat Mitzvah party:
973-927-1588
[email protected]
for assistance in selecting the perfect vendors for your
Bar/Bat Mitzvah party:
973-927-1588
[email protected]
