One of the biggest problems with hiring a vendor from afar is that you never know how reputable they are, or how responsive they will be once you have signed the contract to hire them. One of the biggest fears is that a disreputable vendor will go out of business and will walk away with your money, leaving you with little time or funds along with a major-league headache.

In order to avoid doing business with an incompetent destination wedding vendor, read the six tips below. Once you know what to look for, a bad vendor will stick out like a lemon in a crate filled with oranges.

Here we go.

Too busy to be hired

You know that guy at work that never gets anything done on time? The one who is always shuffling papers, extending deadlines, and complaining about his lack of time. If your vendor reminds you of this person, then don’t hire them because you are headed for a potential disaster. These kinds of people are always late, always disheveled, and will always be running behind. If they don’t know how to manage their own life, how will they manage a wedding for you?

Takes more than 24 hours to return your phone calls

There is no excuse for a vendor to take more than 24 hours to return a phone call. It takes all but 30 seconds to call someone back and yet we have run into a countless number of vendors who won’t call you back for days at a time. Whether you are asking for a proposal or have a signed a contract, a reputable one will always call you back within a reasonable amount of time. The only exception is if they have a voicemail that states that they’re going to be away for one reason or another. Any other excuse is simply unacceptable.

The best time to gauge whether a vendor is responsible is before you sign a contract with them. When you are looking for a proposal, or asking follow-up questions, see how long they take to answer each question and how thorough they are each time. If the responses are quick and the answers are satisfactory, then that’s your vendor.

Lack of a website

Creating a website is no longer an expensive venture. Vendors can create a simple website with a portfolio of their work for as little as two or three hundred dollars. So the question really is, “Why don’t you have a website?” Is it because they’re not making enough money to invest in the business? Does the vendor really have as much experience as they claim since they don’t have enough of the portfolio to put online? The only exception to this would be if the vendor has a spectacular page displaying their work on a website like Pinterest.

Afraid to give out references

The problem with most references is that they are glowing because the vendor is obviously not going to send you to a dissatisfied customer. So how do you get around that?

Before you even ask for references, ask how many weddings he/she did last month or last quarter. The vendor, to show you how busy they are, will give you the number of weddings they did. Then ask them to provide references from their last three or four weddings. At this point the vendor has a choice of turning down your request (that’s really not a good sign) or they can provide you those references.

How detailed is the contract?

Different vendors will have a varying amount of detail in their contracts. After all, an officiant may have a one-page contract, whereas a caterer may have five or ten pages. The trick is to take a look at how detailed each contract is. If the contract looks like it was created with the lack of thought, then this vendor is obviously not very detailed and it will show on the day of your wedding.

Reputation

This last one is very obvious but we wanted include it anyways so you remember to take it into consideration. As an example, if you are about to hire a photographer, consider asking the manager of the wedding venue if they have worked with this person before. And if they have, what is their opinion? Other questions to ask: Whether they were responsible? Were they on time? How is the quality of their work? How well does the person get along with other vendors? If the reviews from other vendors come back negative, then you have just avoided a potential disaster.

With the signs above, you should be able to determine the competency of the vendor. If you’re still unsure, then what? What if you still can’t tell if the vendor is good or bad?

That’s a fair question. It can be very difficult to determine the competency of the vendor from thousands of miles away. After all, a phone conversation or e-mail thread will only reveal so much about the person. The best way that we know of to protect yourself is to ask for a 90-day refundable guarantee in the contract. So in effect, you have 90 days from when you sign the contract to assess the work of the vendor, and if you are not satisfied, you have the right to get your deposit back.

You should be able to hire a responsible and competent vendor for your wedding using the six signs above along with the clause in the contract that protects you for the first 90 days. And if it turns out you got yourself a lemon of a vendor, then you can always pull the plug on the contract.

Have you ever dealt with a terrible destination wedding vendor? Tell us in the comments below.

This post was written by Nusair A Bawla, who runs a popular group travel website. Along with some great articles on planning a destination wedding, the website also provides an easy way to get group rates at hotels without making a phone call.

The post Guest Post: 6 Signs That Your Destination Wedding Vendor Is Terrible appeared first on Bridezilla.

This goes out to all the bridezillas who are tired of nudging, whispering and finally blatantly telling their guy they want a ring on their finger and they want it now!

Ritani is the leading designer of engagement rings, wedding bands and diamond fashion jewelry.  To help forge a beautiful new wedded relationship, Ritani is gearing up to give away one sparkling diamond engagement ring valued at $15,000.  The catch is that you must first nominate a “Reluctant Groom-to-Be” on Ritani’s Facebook Fan Page.  This shy guy can be anyone from your own hesitant future husband to your co-worker’s uncertain brother.  If you know of a man who should be proposing this very instant, but is holding back put him on the Ritani Facebook Fan Page and explain why he deserves to win a stellar engagement ring.

Nomination submissions will be accepted until 9pm PDT on January 6, 2011.  Everyone who visits the page is encouraged to vote for the guy they think deserves the ring.  At the end, Ritani will choose the Grand Prize Winner from the ten nominees receiving the most votes from the Facebook fans.  The best part of all, the winning “Reluctant Groom-to-Be” gets his fabulous diamond engagement ring and the person who nominated him wins a sparkling Ritani diamond pendant.

Everything comes down to you and your scared guy.  Channel your inner Bridezilla and take care of business.  Enter your favorite guy, explain why and vote, vote, vote.  You can do it all simply by liking the Ritani Facebook Fan Page.  Game on!

The post Ritani "Reluctant Groom-to-Be" Contest appeared first on Bridezilla.

8mm black tungsten wedding band

Rock Out With Your Ring Out Giveaway Details

Presenting Rock Out With Your Ring Out, a Larson Jeweler Giveaway. Your guy could win a slick 8mm black tungsten wedding band, engraved with the wording of his (or your) choice. And if that’s not enough, the ring is paired with an iPod touch so he can rock his wedding band and rock out to his favorite bands.
It’s so perfect. The wedding band is really a gift to you, as you won’t have to buy him one later and who doesn’t want an iPod touch?

One, Two, Three Ways to Enter

Entering this iPod touch and Tungsten Ring Giveaway is as easy as one, two, three:

• Your name gets 1 entry by going to the Larson website and filling out the contest form.
• Your name gets 2 entries for following Larson Jewelers’ twitter (@larsonjewelers) and tagging Larson in a tweet (example: you guys rock @larsonjewelers)
• Your name gets 3 entries for sharing the Larson Jewelers Giveaway on your blog! As a bonus to your trackback to the Larson site, a banner ad featuring your blog will be featured on Larson Jewelers!

Contest runs from February 17 through March 17. One randomly drawn winner will be announced on March 18.

The post Rock Out with Your Ring Out: iPod Touch & Tungsten Ring Giveaway appeared first on Bridezilla.