Making the Most of Online Wedding Registries
Wedding registries are an important part of wedding planning and wedding organization, and require a couple’s time and effort to create the most productive wish list. Wish lists for your wedding seem to be never ending; from making catering plans, to booking hotel reservations, the thousands of tasks before the big day can be overwhelming! Making sure your guests know what gifts to buy has traditionally been left in the hands of a few key department stores. Couples simply tell their relatives, friends, and acquaintances where they’ve set up a registry, and the potential guests can browse and select specific gifts where they can be confident will be well-received.
Traditional wedding registries have gained speed with convenience and internet capabilities, making it easy for couples to point and select the items they need. Finding that perfect glass vase and adding it to your wish list can be as fun as window shopping. At least guests and wedding participants can come to the event with more confidence than a ‘blind’ gift, that will either be duplicated or returned. Since today’s social etiquette generally frowns upon the ‘re-gifting’ process, couples can turn some to new and exciting options available online.
Online wedding registries that serve as a portal and individual site from a specific store or line of goods are a great idea to coordinate your wish list. Sites such as TheBigDay.com offer couples the ability to make a comprehensive list of complete ‘gifts’ that can include the honeymoon trip itself, big-ticket items such as cars or vacations, or even down payments on the first home! TheBigDay.com allows wedding guests to register and submit their ‘donation’ towards any of a couple’s particular choices. Instead of saving up for that trip to Maui, the couple would simply list it on their wish list portion of the site, place a value on it, and have guests apply their gifts towards the final item. By using this strategy, both the wedding couple and the guest will know where their gift is going, and the couple can arrange for a formal thank-you card to be sent to the gift-giver as proof of the gift contribution. It’s similar to donating for a cause, and TheBigDay.com offers discounts and packages to couples who use the service and book their complete vacation or honeymoon through the site. TheBigDay.com is free to register and use, and even provides the couple with an ‘@thebigday.com’ e-mail address to direct wedding participant contributions to one easy place. It makes it easy for several guests to pitch in for one larger group gift, and also offers options on different price structures. Not much of a heavy spender? That’s fine too, since couples can organize their wish list in increments of $10-$25 ranges, making it simple to target a wide range of products.
Sites such as TheKnot.com offer a starting place for many couples, with partner sites including Target and exclusive boutiques that offer one-of-a-kind gifts. TheKnot.com is a great place for tips on how to setup a gift registry, as well as planning, ordering party items, and participating in an active discussion board. Its partner site, TheNest.com, is a portal for couples after the big day, to share stories, and find unique tips and suggestions on financing for a new home, lifestyle strategies, and other newlywed concerns.
Felicite.com is a very easy wedding registry setup service, giving couples a place to create a simple webpage-style layout, add pictures, and post away with their wishlist needs! Links to the site can be e-mailed to all wedding participants and potential guests for easy viewing, and the site is a one-stop shop for a variety of wedding needs and services. Felicite.com also lets you create an online RSVP system and Guest List right on the platform, so it works very well as an organizational tool.
There are a multitude of online wedding registries available today, especially as couples can shift away from the department store debacle of setting up profiles and staying within one area. Comprehensive online sites can give you a full listing of choices, as well as define what you really want. Avoid the awkward and time-consuming efforts of ‘de-gifting’ and hop online to stay organized and make the most of your wedding guest’s contributions with the right tools!
