Crunching Numbers, Hidden Prices: Why do New England Wedding Vendors hide their rates?

Why don't wedding vendors like to display their prices? Boston Wedding Photographer Ryan Richardson Photography explains

One frustrating thing that couples encounter when planning a wedding is a lack of pricing transparency - which can make a monumental-seeming task feel even more daunting, adding an extra step and more time to finding the vendors that can make your wedding dreams into a reality. So what’s the deal?

There are a few different rationales to explain the phenomenon.

First - weddings are bespoke events and it requires some background information to provide a useful quote. There can be a lot of different factors that go into pricing - the size of the guest list, the day of the week, or even the time of the year can all influence rates. Second is that vendors often find that there’s less sticker shock if they can couch the quote in a conversation or provide context that couples often don’t have when they’re first looking at wedding vendors and likely to eliminate vendors that are more expensive than they’d expect rather than revising their budget.

All of these are real concerns for vendors. It can be hard to pin down a number if you offer an array of services with flexible price points, and there can be sticker shock when couples get their first few quotes. Starting with a conversation can ease couples into the situation, especially with those who are just starting the process.

But the real driver of this tactic is about sales - getting a prospective client to reach out to you is about making them take one step closer to booking with you. Once they’ve taken that first step it’s easier to get them to take a second or third step, saying yes to that meeting and eventually saying yes to the sale.

It’s a tactic that has diminishing returns, especially when every vendor is doing it (a doorway gets pretty crowded with 20 feet trying to get in it). Couples are also bristling against it, hoping to see more vendors at least put a starting price up on their websites so they can see if things are in the right ballpark but the wedding industry has a lot of inertia.

Have you run into secret pricing during your wedding planning? What do you think is the best way to help people planning their weddings? Want to find out more about our pricing?

Ryan Richardson is a wedding and engagement photographer serving Boston and beyond; including Cape Cod Weddings, New England Weddings, Massachusetts Weddings and Rhode Island Weddings.