How wedding websites can make your life easier
Posted
Our editor Brandy made a wedding website for her wedding this year.
While it’s certainly not traditional, a wedding website is very often a part of the 21st century bride’s toolkit, and if you use it to its full potential it could make your planning life much easier.
What to include in your wedding website:
Your story – You can tell the story of your relationship or the proposal - or both! Your guests will love reading about the things that lead up to them attending your wedding. It's a great way for people who haven't met your significant other to get up to speed on the details.
Photos - This is a no-brainer. People are very visual, so cut down on the words and fill the space out with photos. It'll be easier for you and fun for them!
Ceremony information – This will give people an easy-to-access place to keep the location, time, and directions at hand. It can also help you establish expectations for guests – Will it be a traditional ceremony or have you made it your own? How should people dress? Are kids invited? Put it out there and get everyone on the same page.
Reception information – Where, when and how to get there. A google map is always helpful.
A page for updates - And, if possible, the option for people to sign up for a subscription. That way if something major happens and you need to let everyone know, you can send a blast and be sure that people are seeing it.
Information for out of town guests – If you’ve booked blocks of rooms in hotels, include all the information people will need when they’re contacting those hotels. Be sure to include pricing and the date they must register by to receive their deal. And, since out of town guests most likely won't know much about your town, it's helpful to give them a list of suggested activities and places to eat.
Online RSVP – Whether or not you decide to send out physical invitations, have all but your least tech-savvy guests RSVP on your website ( but, it's probably best to still include that special return envelope in your great aunt Ida’s invitation).
Honeymoon – If you know the details, post them here. People will ask you about what your plans are, especially if you’re asking for contributions to your honeymoon as part of your gift registry. If you want to make it REALLY easy, include a link to honeyfund.com, where guests can make online donations for your post-wedding plans.
Address - Are you moving after you get married? Be sure to include your new address so your gifts end up where they belong.
Contact form – No matter how much information you’ve provided, people will have questions, and if you’d like to avoid a million calls, put a contact form on your site. But make sure that it sends an email to your current address. The last thing you need is another place to check.
Bear in mind, the more this website keeps track of for you, the less you have to remember!
A helpful hint: It might feel like you’re excluding people, but make sure you can put a password on at least parts of your site. According to CNBC, there’s a new kind of wedding crasher – the hotel crasher. These crashers use your wedding website to find a cheap block rate, so if you want to make sure that your wedding guests are the only ones staying in your hotel block, password protect your site.
Your story – You can tell the story of your relationship or the proposal - or both! Your guests will love reading about the things that lead up to them attending your wedding. It's a great way for people who haven't met your significant other to get up to speed on the details.
Photos - This is a no-brainer. People are very visual, so cut down on the words and fill the space out with photos. It'll be easier for you and fun for them!
Ceremony information – This will give people an easy-to-access place to keep the location, time, and directions at hand. It can also help you establish expectations for guests – Will it be a traditional ceremony or have you made it your own? How should people dress? Are kids invited? Put it out there and get everyone on the same page.
Reception information – Where, when and how to get there. A google map is always helpful.
A page for updates - And, if possible, the option for people to sign up for a subscription. That way if something major happens and you need to let everyone know, you can send a blast and be sure that people are seeing it.
Information for out of town guests – If you’ve booked blocks of rooms in hotels, include all the information people will need when they’re contacting those hotels. Be sure to include pricing and the date they must register by to receive their deal. And, since out of town guests most likely won't know much about your town, it's helpful to give them a list of suggested activities and places to eat.
Online RSVP – Whether or not you decide to send out physical invitations, have all but your least tech-savvy guests RSVP on your website ( but, it's probably best to still include that special return envelope in your great aunt Ida’s invitation).
Honeymoon – If you know the details, post them here. People will ask you about what your plans are, especially if you’re asking for contributions to your honeymoon as part of your gift registry. If you want to make it REALLY easy, include a link to honeyfund.com, where guests can make online donations for your post-wedding plans.
Address - Are you moving after you get married? Be sure to include your new address so your gifts end up where they belong.
Contact form – No matter how much information you’ve provided, people will have questions, and if you’d like to avoid a million calls, put a contact form on your site. But make sure that it sends an email to your current address. The last thing you need is another place to check.
Bear in mind, the more this website keeps track of for you, the less you have to remember!
A helpful hint: It might feel like you’re excluding people, but make sure you can put a password on at least parts of your site. According to CNBC, there’s a new kind of wedding crasher – the hotel crasher. These crashers use your wedding website to find a cheap block rate, so if you want to make sure that your wedding guests are the only ones staying in your hotel block, password protect your site.
There are so many options out there for wedding website services that it can be hard to choose. We did a little research, and here are a few we like:
Wedding JoJo: Free or $14.99/month
Wedding JoJo: Free or $14.99/month
Wedding Window: Five options ranging from free to $99/year.
Wedshare.com: Six options ranging from free to $14.99/month
Weduary: Free and one-time $20
Find a hosting site you like and start making it your own!
For more great wedding planning tools, visit our Worksheets page!
Do you use a site you love that we haven't listed? Tell us about it in the comments!
