How to Use Aisle Planner Like a Pro: Ebook

HOW TO USE AISLE PLANNER LIKE AN Expert Wedding Planner

HANDBOOK WRITTEN BY Hey There! I'm elated you now have your hands on this great handbook! Professional Wedding Planners all over the country are using Aisle Planner to plan their client's weddings. This is the actual management software our team uses!

Now, not only can you access Aisle Planner for free (or super low cost for no ads) you have this handbook to guide you through the main aspects and planning tools. While using AIsle Planner and this handbook you will focus on your budget, timeline, guest list, to do list and wedding website creation. Plus I've added bouses at the end of this handbook!

Create your very own Aisle Planner account now, click here. Need more expert help? Join us on Facebook in our Online Wedding Planning Community. A free group for engaged couples to get rid of the stress and enjoy planning their wedding!

Click here to join us! Cheers!

3 . W E D D I N G T I M E L I N E

4 . B U D G E T E X P E N S E S

8 . G U E S T L I S T

1 2 . W E D D I N G W E B S I T E

C R E A T I O N

1 5 . V E N D O R D A T A B A S E

1 7 . B O N U S : S E A T I N G &

L A Y O U T Getting Started

The very first step is signing up for your Aisle Planner account and setting it up!

Once you are signed up, sign in and click Start Planning! That will take you here to begin your profile:

After registration take the time for the tour of Aisle Planner. then start utilizing the rest of this handbook to navigate it like a pro!

3. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Wedding Timeline As details begin to come together and vendors are getting booked it's time to begin working through your Wedding Timeline.

We recommend starting it early and thinking of it as a draft. Revising it to fit how you envision the day to flow and what is needed by the vendors you book. Be sure to bring it to every vendor meeting and ask for their input along the way!

BUILDING YOUR TIMELINE

1Aisle Planner starts you off with all the essential milestones of your wedding day! 1. Go line by line and remove what you know 100% you won't have on your wedding day 2. As you plan add in times things are set in stone (make sure to check AM and PM) and everything will be listed in chronological order

Adding days to your timline: You can add days before and after your wedding day by clicking the left button circled above. This is great to do for your vendor's load in and setup details. Also for your family that may be doing returns of rentals or pickups for you.

Exporting your timeline to share: Click the button we have circled on the right corner above to export as a PDF. Then share this with all your vendors and needed family members.

3. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Budget & Expenses The Budget Tool is your go-to place to manage your expenses and the payments.

First, you will determine your budget. This is a great time to pop into our community for tips and real budget examples. You will create a line item budget for each vendor or service.

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Second, as you are booking vendors will be able to input their total contract amount and payments paid. Be sure to input all your infomration to stay organized and most importantly within your budget.

SETTING UP YOUR BUDGET TOOL GUIDE Step One: Click budget on the toolbar

4. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Budget & Expenses Step Two: Click Manage Categories

Step Three: Create Budget Estimates for all Vendors

1. Enter your total budget in the top field 2. Keep "Enable per-category budgets" checked to ensure you have our expert estimates in place. You can always uncheck and recheck this to see the difference 3. Delete any vendors you do not plan to use by hovering to the left and clicking the trash can 4. Reorder vendors to your preference and importance 5. Add any vendor categories not already included 6. If you already know an exact amount for a vendor input it and the "locked" box will auto select. This will allocate remaining funds to other vendors. 7. Keep an eye on the bottom numbers to ensure you are utilizing all your budget and not exceeding it 8. Click close when you complete this.

Keep in mind you can always pop back in and make updates, getting initial numbers in is a great start!

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MANAGING YOUR BUDGET TOOL GUIDE

When in the budget tool there are a number of areas that will vary based on your wedding. The numbers and items shown will be based on how you setup your budget.

1. Your Overall Budget Amount 2. The actual categories listed 3. The actual dollar amounts listed in the columns

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Inputting Your Vendor Expenses & Payments

For each vendor you can customize it as follows:

Red Circled Items are changed by you:

1. Title of Item (great place to put the vendors name)

2. Actual amount spent

3. Payments made

Blue Circled Items are automatic:

1. The difference will auto populate based on the expert averages you created your budget with

2. The amount due will auto populate based on the payments you have entered

7. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Guest List The Guest Tool is your place to collect all your addresses and manage so many details for each of your guests. First you need to create your guest list within Aisle Planner. 1. You can import a spreadsheet you may have already started. 2. Or manually enter your guest list at its current state. Click "add guest" and an information window will pop up to enter details.

CREATING YOUR GUEST LIST

In the next few pages will cover the following guest list features: 1. Adding and managing guest details Viewing a snapshot of your guest list for quick reference 3. How to download your guest list +++ what all those reports really are.

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ADDING & MANAGING GUEST DETAILS Once you have added a guest they will show up in your list. From there click their name for more details.

In the above pop up detailed window you can view and add lots of important items. The more you input the more you will have on the reports that are created based on your guest list. This can be very handy when sending thank you notes and determining your final guest counts for vendors.

1. Your guest's plus on and any children

2. Their address

3. Their group *this is very handy to ensure your guest list is evenly spread out among the two families

4. Track their communication

Out of Town, Gift Received and/or Thank Your Notes Sent

5. Event details:

B List Guests

Special Needs for the Guest

Even track when you mail their invitation

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GUEST LIST STATUS SNAPSHOT By clicking "EVENT INFO & OPTIONS" you will open up a handy status snapshot of your guest list. How many guests you are considering to invite, how many have RSVPed and even helpful tips when ordering your invitations.

DOWNLOAD GUEST REPORTS By clicking the arrow button as circle you will see the pictured pop up window and options.

There are 3 report downloads available to navigate through your guest and utilize for your planning.

Final Guest List Report: this is a PDF file that features your total guest count, guest's names and their table numbers. It is ideal to provide to your venue and or caterer for day-of use.

VIP Guests: this is a PDF file that will include any guest with a role such as bride, groom, etc. If you take the time to put in roles for your wedding party and immediate family then this is a great tool to provide all your day-of vendors. This will give them a quick reference to those "in charge" or ones with authority to make decisions. Many times vendors will know your name, yet not your wedding party or parents. This report brings that all to one place.

Guest List Spreadsheet: this is an EXCEL file and when opened the first worksheet gives you a description of all the great ways to utilize it. This is your main database outside of the tool for your guest list. After your wedding be sure to download this one last time for future use on Christmas cards and such.

10. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Join our Facebook community!

#EverythingAboutWeddingPlanning

11. Wedding Website Creation Designing a wedding website is a great way to get additional details to all your guests at once!

You can add as little or as much information as you would like. We recommend at least adding the location and time of your ceremony and reception. Then accommodation and travel details if you have them. Last would be the personal items - your engagement story, registry information and more.

WEDDING WEBSITE DESIGN GUIDE

Step One: Click website on the toolbar and then "Create Website"

12. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Wedding Website Creation Step Two: Complete the first four steps

1. Edit your name, if needed. Sometimes couples change to nicknames or shorter version here (for example: going from Robert to Rob) 2. Publish Website, check this box so you don't forget later. No worries without guests having the URL nobody will see this till you are ready. 3. Create a custom URL. Play off your names or utilize a wedding hashtag you have created 4. Add an image to be your cover image, this can be changed at anytime

Step Three: Add in the details

1. Your Story: great please to add hometowns, education background , how you met and hobbies 2. Your Engagement: it's so fun when couples do both sides of the story here, both Bride and Groom sharing how the engagement happened 3. The Wedding Day: this is a great area to give guests a heads up on special aspects to your wedding day. Attire, anticipated travel, weather, etc. 13. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Wedding Website Creation

Step Four: Add in the details

For each of these area click the "+" to add information.

1. Events Page: We suggest adding Ceremony and Reception separately in this area. Be sure to add addresses and the map feature will enable for easy use for your guests.

2. Travel Info. Page: This is a great place for accommodations (hotel room blocks) and travel details. Add each separately for easy accessibility. BE sure to include any booking codes and phone numbers too.

3. Gift Registries Page: If you haven't heard already it is against all invitation rules to include your registry there. That makes this part of your wedding website essential. BE sure to include links to all store websites for guests to easily see your registry.

14. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Vendor Database Keeping all of our vendors in one database is the easiest solution to staying organized.

Your vendor database, is referred to as "contacts" in AIsle Planner. We recommend adding vendors from the very beginning. Once you are seriously considering them so that you know where you stand in planning. A great feature of your database is checking the "booked" box when a vendor is official. This keeps you updated on their status throughout the entire planning process.

ADDING YOUR WEDDING VENDORS

1. Add your first contact, click through the steps to add initial information

2. Then you'll be directed to the home database page. Here click on any vendor to access all their data in a separate window

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Within the vendor window there are 4 key areas to keep updated. 1. Checking the "booked" box when you have officially signed a contract 2. Contact information: Must Have: cell phone, email, point of contact for day-of your wedding Additional: mailing address and owner's contact information 3. Additional information: we have given you great examples to fill in 4. Last, comments. To the left you will see an area to add notes. This is a great place to jot down phone calls you have and a running list of questions for your next meeting with that vendor.

EXPORT VENDOR INFORMATION

At any time in planning you may want a paper copy of all your vendors. Also one of the key pieces to ensure your day of contacts are prepared is providing them this list. It's easy to download by clicking the icon in the right hand corner.

16. © 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 8 A N N A B E L L E E V E N T S , L L C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D Bonus Material Now that you have your reception venue booked, budget set, design in the works...it's time to start your layout!

How you layout your room will create the first impression for guests and set mood of your entire reception. We've provided a example layout to reference as you design yours, plus loads of tips and tricks to consider for your layout! Initial Layout Tips: Flow throughout the space, literally how your guests will enter and experience your reception. Accessibility for guests to their seats, food and drinks Views of where the action will take place (dance floor, cake cutting, etc.)

Common Reception Elements are: Welcome table: guest book, card box, area for gifts, escort/place cards, engagement and family photos Guest tables Food service tables Bar tables or area Self-serve beverage stations Dance floor DJ/Band table or area Cake table Entertainment table (photo booth or additional entertainment) EXAMPLE LAYOUT

Example Layout Specs: Space is 80' x 40', Seating for 200 guests at round and rectangle tables, Seating for 14 guests at long head table Features: 20x20 Dance floor, 2 double length bar area, Self-serve beverage station, DJ table

TIPS IN PLACEMENT OF ELEMENTS AS YOU CREATE YOUR LAYOUT:

1. Place your dance floor in the center of the room

2. From there place your guest tables evenly on either side

3. Head tables placed on either side of the dance floor work great for speeches and to save on space

4. Your DJ should be near your dance floor with a straight eye line to the dance floor and venue entrance. Yet they do not have to be right on the dance floors.

5. A self-serve drink station with water, tea and coffee is a great way to balance your layout in the opposite side/corner of the DJ.

6. Your bar locations in prior example are on the top end. They provide a double length bar ensuring there is plenty of room for 2 bartenders per bar. Many venues have bars built into their space, so their specific location will be dependent on that.

7. Always make sure your dance floor is close to your bar so you are not losing guests on their way to another drink. Also this allows the mingling crowd at the bar to still engage with the crowd on the dance floor.

8. If you will have different types of guests tables then alternate them throughout your venue. This will eliminate any bottleneck areas of flow and be aesthetically pleasing at the first impression

9. The example layout does not include food service tables, making it a good fit for plated food service. That said if you have a buffet or stations for your meal then place those tables on the outside areas of your reception space. This will allow your caterer to breakdown those tables and catering supplies with little impact on your reception

10. A great location for your cake table is on the center of your dance floor, this is front and center. It will make it easier on your guests to focus on one area for the wedding traditions and can easily be removed prior to dancing

11. If you will have a good number of kids in attendance you may consider having them sit together, rather than with their parents (depending on their age). If that is the case locate those tables close to the dance floor to ensure the kids stay in the reception area and can easily get to the dance floor.