15 questions to ask a referee before booking your wedding supplier

In our blog “3 easy ways to carrying out your own supplier due diligence” we emphasised the importance of obtaining at least three independent supplier references as one of the three ways to carry out your own supplier due diligence.

Who is a referee?

A referee will be someone who is a previous client to your potential supplier. Therefore, the referee would have used the services of the supplier so as to be in a position to evaluate the services they received.

What is the purpose of obtaining a reference?

To ensure your wedding supplier can deliver to the standard that you expect for your wedding day. To obtain as much information as possible about the supplier so you can make an informed choice as to whether you should sign a contract and pay a deposit.

How to obtain a reference?

Ideally obtain the phone number of a referee who used your potential supplier but failing this an email address will suffice. The aim is for your to make direct contact with the referee without interference from anyone else.

15 questions to ask a referee?

General questions:

1. When did you last use the supplier?
2. What was the nature of the event?
3. How many guests did you have at your event?
4. How easy was it to work with the supplier during the lead up to your event?
5. What were the supplier’s strengths and weaknesses in assisting you with the preparation for your event?
6. Did the supplier meet deadlines and attend/set up at your event at the time stipulated?
7. How well did the supplier interact with the other suppliers when setting up for the event?
8. How well did the supplier interact with guests who attended the event?
9. Did the supplier meet your expectations?
10. If yes, how? If no, where did the supplier fall short?
11. How was the supplier’s interaction with you after the event? Was there any communication or correspondence? Were there any delays in delivery of products (e.g. if your supplier is a photographer or videographer)?
12. Were there any unexpected payments that the supplier requested to be made?
13. Do you feel you received value for money in using the supplier?
14. Would you recommend we use the supplier for our event?
15. Is there anything else we should know about the supplier that you would like to add?