Even though it is unpleasant to contemplate, funerals and memorials are actually an “event”. One that is filled with sadness, anger, confusion, stress, pressure, tension and many other outpourings of grief. Why is it considered an “event” in my eyes? Because funerals and memorial services frequently have people invited to attend. Often, even, people show up unexpectedly to show their respects after learning about or reading a death notice in the news or obituaries. There are many details which require direction and management.

I’ll apologize, in advance, for the rant:

The Fairy-Wedding-Father™

An OP/ED by Marcinho Savant,

The Fairy-Wedding-Father™

Now all of our vendors know how highly I respect them and how much I treasure our relationship, because without them, I am not able to assure my clients’ joy and amazement on their day!

But at this moment, I’m outraged at the, seemingly increasing, lack of concern and professionalism I’ve encountered of late!  Today’s affront comes out of an attempt to book a, last-minute, event rental order of  $1,000 or less for a private soiree at a client’s home tomorrow.

Yesterday afternoon, I called ******** party rentals for linens, table runners, Roll-top Chafing trays, tables and chairs for a client’s event for +/-70 guests.  I requested delivery for this morning, if possible.

The person who answered the phone had all the finesse and business style of a Mannequin.  She was terse, bored, disinterested and more concerned that it was almost quitting time.  The sales person I was connected to was equally rushed, ill-exposed, incapable of claiming ownership of the requests and utterly paralyzed when it came to thinking outside the box to make something difficult, something achievable in the circumstances.

She made blind procedural demands “I can’t do this or that because…”, instead of devising a way to overcome the challenges. She acted as though ******* was doing me a FAVOR by filling the order.  When I told her I was unable to provide, at the moment, the client signature she demanded prior to releasing the order— I even offered her a reason for my inability to immediately comply.  ”The client is unavailable to sign or fax anything right now, because she is hosting foreign dignitaries at a Tea in NYC at the moment.”  She giggled as though the entire concept of high-end clients, their particular situations or realities was as silly as “The Loch Ness Monster” or “Beetlejuice”!!  Is tea with high-level politicos FUNNY???  Inconceivable?  Really?  really.

Even forgiving her lack of exposure to anything other that the “norm” of her day-to-day, she clearly didn’t believe my explanation, nor did she have the slightest inkling how to conquer and overcome an unusual situation.  She showed zero initiative and zero concern.

All that said, vendors have the nerve to complain that they are not making any money?  Really??  Well HERRRRRRRE’S yer SIIIIIIGN!”  Here are just a few ideas one might consider implementing when working in customer service:

1. FORGET that ‘no’ is a word you’re EVER allowed to use… before even TRYING to be of help.  You couldn’t even reach out to a supervisor to ASK if rule 98457 could be bent a tiny bit to help me help my (and by extension, YOUR) client?
2. Recognize that when you’re contacted by a go-between like myself, we’re representing the needs of a client, but get a HUGE vote, because they trust us, in to whom their money goes.
3. Bear in mind that your behavior toward me as a go-between, reflects on your entire operation.  If you’re ineffectual and disinterested with ME (???), how on Earth will you treat my client?  Not going to risk subjecting my client to that sort of surly disinterest on the day-of.
4. Remember that yours is not the only “game in town” and that you still have to WORK to earn a job.  There is no free-lunch on earth, but rest assured, the vendors that are EATING, are the ones providing exceptional, innovative and accommodating customer service and finding ways of “feeding’ themselves by making it work! Whatever it (the challenge) is.

So, as a result of the treatment and lack of care I received, I chose to go with another supplier.  They were BUSY, but pleasant, concerned, willing, helpful, accommodating, out-of-the-box solution-finding TEAMMATES, who were CLEARLY all about making it work!  Period.  They aren’t “hungry”.

Something to ponder:  The only person who is ANGRY as a guest at a buffet, before whom ALL the world’s fineries are laid (such as an order that is waiting to be fulfilled), is the idiot who REFUSES to pick up the fork and EAT!

Some vendors need to remember to pick up the FORK!  Find a way to make the “impossible” … POSSIBLE.  We can’t do it without each other, can we?  We each thrive because of one another.  Some of you are expecting to “thrive” without doing your share.  So please, either, come to practice, run your laps, come to the game, do your best… or get off the FIELD!  There’s work to be found out there in this business!  Perhaps it’s that you aren’t working as though you’re hungry?

I guess we’re still here because our customers KNOW that we’re not just going to spend THEIR money just ANYWHERE with just ANYONE!!

The rant has ended.  The Peace of the Tribe be with you!

Go with ColiDaviSamiPresto CowiTuterGoldberailey! Ahh-men.

Asked how he felt about his upcoming appearance, Kroell eMailed: “Step aside Martha Stewart, SavvyLiving is what it is all about! I’m so pumped to spend my afternoon with Marcinho and his loyal listeners. No topic is off limits, so let’s get Savvylicious.” The star will discuss many facets of his life with the host.

Will this wedding have ANYTHING by way of impact on the business of weddings going forward? What? And for how long?

I know none of us like to talk about filthy lucre (isn’t it stressful enough to discuss the wedding budget?), but a major part of married life is navigating financial togetherness.

A few months back, savvyplanners.com™ South Asian/Indian Weddings Division created the wedding of “American Desi” star, Purva Bedi to American Writer David Stoler in NYC!

Our division’s designer, SONIA DHALIWAL, crafted an exceptional and client-thrilling wedding weekend for the starlet and her Romeo!

You can check out the whole 5-PART series, posted on the leading South Asian Wedding Resource: Indian Wedding Site!

We are thrilled, proud and honored to have been celebrated by Indian Wedding Site’s inclusion and feature!  You can follow them at @followIWS on Twitter.

Pictured: Sonia Dhaliwal (Second from L), Clients: Purva, David and the team from the savvyplanners.com™: South Asian/Indian Weddings Division.

So you are planning to have a destination wedding or vow renewal and discover that a great number of your intended guests just can’t swing the cost!?

For Immediate Release to all Media

Contact: Nico Pelligrini

e-Mail: nico.pellegrini {at} savvyplanners (dot) com

Telephone: 318-402-4697

Bossier City, LA – January 25, 2011 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, is thrilled to announce savvyplanners.com™ has been selected to receive the prestigious annual WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards™ 2011 for Wedding Planning/Unique Services (Other)!

Recognition for the Bride’s Choice Awards™ 2011 is determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 750,000 WeddingWire newlyweds. Our past clients are among those that shared their experiences on WeddingWire, the largest wedding review site in the nation.

savvyplanners.com™ stands among the top five percent of wedding professionals in the WeddingWire community, representing quality and service excellence within the wedding industry. Awards were given to the top wedding professionals across 20 service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, and were based on the overall professional achievements throughout the past year.

“WeddingWire is honored to celebrate the success of the top-rated wedding professionals within the WeddingWire community,” said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “With the annual Bride’s Choice Awards™ program, WeddingWire has the unique opportunity to recognize the best wedding professionals across the US and Canada. We applaud savvyplanners.com™ for their professionalism and dedication to enhancing the wedding planning experience last year.”

We are happy to announce that savvyplanners.com™ is among the very best Wedding Planners within the WeddingWire Network, which includes leading wedding planning sites WeddingWire, Martha Stewart Weddings, GayWeddings.com, Project Wedding and Weddingbee.

According to Senior Event Designer and General Manager, Marcinho Savant, “It is a pleasure to have been awarded this distinction for the third year in a row!  With all that we do and embrace, it is the client and their happiness that is at our core.  It feels amazing to have that effort recognized in such a way!  We would certainly like to thank our past clients for nominating us to receive the Bride’s Choice Awards™ 2011. We do it all for them.”
For more information, please visit our WeddingWire Storefront today.

For more information on the Bride’s Choice Awards™ 2011, please visit www.WeddingWire.com.

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About savvyplanners.com™

savvyplanners.com™, LLC is America’s first full-service, bespoke, GLBTI-specific Wedding and event planning & concierge firm.

They proudly fulfilled the role of being the ground breaking, international, first-mover providing exceptional event planning services especially meeting the event planning needs of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex (GLBTI) community. They have been selected to orchestrate many traditional ceremonies as well.

While they are GLBT owned/operated, their staff and affiliates are made up of persons from many different backgrounds making them reflective of the diversity of the world community. They do not discriminate against non-GLBT couples. With teams in New York, Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, San Francisco, Hawaii, Dallas, Atlanta, New Orleans, Key West & the ArkLaTex, they serve clients in those areas with ease and will travel the world to be of service.

In January of 2011, their company has been mentioned in articles with more than 13,500 outlets and publications worldwide.

Their Core Values:

Client Protection • Integrity • Ethics • Respect • Punctuality • Service • Quality • Commitment • Innovation • Professionalism • Joy

About WeddingWire, Inc.

WeddingWire.com, the nation’s leading technology company serving the $70 billion wedding industry, is the only online wedding planning resource designed to empower both engaged couples and wedding professionals. For engaged couples, WeddingWire offers the ability to search, compare and book over 200,000 local wedding vendors, from wedding venues to wedding photographers to wedding cakes. WeddingWire also offers an online community and a suite of cutting-edge planning tools for weddings, including wedding websites and wedding checklists, all at no charge. For wedding professionals, WeddingWire provides free online management tools creating the only market opportunity that gives local businesses control over their clients, reviews, leads and performance. Businesses that join the WeddingWire Network appear on WeddingWire.com and other leading sites, including MarthaStewartWeddings.com (NYSE: MSO), ProjectWedding.com and Weddingbee.com (both part of eHarmony), and Celebrations.com (part of the 1-800-Flowers family of brands, NASDAQ: FLWS).

According to Savant, “I am TRULY humbled by her endorsement! She’s a KILLER in the biz!”

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VIA LinkedIn

“Marcinho is one of the true creative talents in our industry. I have long valued him in my network as the go-to on sales, business and all things GLBT. I have watched with joy as he has worked tirelessly to expand the reach and scope of Savvyplanners[.com]. From weddings to events to travel, you could not find a better resource. His deft touch and caring nature never lets a client down.“

January 24, 2011

Christine (Owner at Think Like A Bride ) was a consultant or contractor to Marcinho at savvyplanners.com™, LLC

Check out some of our client reviews on WeddingWire:

Read all of our Unique Wedding Services, Wedding Coordinators Reviews at