Have you considered using a wedding website? We often recommend them as a great way to convey information to guests. There are many advantages to using them; one of the benefits is that extra information can be communicated without excess enclosures in your invitations, saving you money and protecting the environment at the same time.

There are a few approaches to setting up a wedding website:

If you are technically savvy, you can build a site from scratch. A blog is another option - easy to set up using blogger or wordpress. Both a personally built site and a blog require some serious set-up time, but those who invest the time into it are often most pleased with the finished product. For the non-technically inclined couples out there, there are free templates available from sites like the knot and mywedding. Template sites with more options are available for a minimal cost from wedding window and other sites like it. Template sites are extremely user-friendly and require little to no long-term commitment from you - upload photos and information about your event and you’re done!

Don’t take my word for it though - a few of this year’s brides have agreed to weigh in on the issue. Introducing: the experts.

top right photo (Audrey) and bottom left photo (Kelly) copyright John and Joseph Photography.

What motivated you to use a wedding website?

Kelly: We are having a destination wedding, so the convenience of having all the necessary information in one place for our guests was appealing. We also liked the idea of creating a medium for our guests to learn more about us and our relationship leading up to the wedding.

Audrey: I’ve personally had a website since 1999 and a blog since 2000 so it was totally instinctive and natural for me to create a wedding website after we got engaged. Our domain name purchases were actually the first wedding-related thing we did! Ha! Even before we booked a venue—guess I just steered toward familiar territory. I immediately knew I wanted to have a blog and that I wanted to put as much information as possible on this site.

Mariana: I created the website in order to consolidate all the information I wanted to share with my guests, especially my out-of-town guests. I also wanted to avoid mailing an RSVP card and envelope with my invitations. A lot of my guests have not met my wedding party; the website is a great way for the guests to get familiar with everybody who will participate in the wedding. This is also useful because I am not handing out programs at the ceremony.

Heather: We wanted to have a forum to tell our story and post pictures to get people involved. We also wanted pictures of friends and family so people could see other sides of the family. It’s also a great way to communicate details to people who are out of town, like the calendar of events and travel information.

How did you get the word out about your site?

Hailey: I let my guests know via the RSVP card in our invitations and also by word of my mother-in-law’s mouth - she was so excited to show it off to everyone!

Kelly: Primarily through our save the date card, and also through word of mouth.

Did you set the website up yourself or are you using a template site?

Mariana: I am using mywedding.com. It’s a great site with tons of different options so the bride and groom can customize their webpage. It is also free, which I really appreciate.

Heather: We are using a template site which was super easy to set up. There were lots of options to personalize it.

What information are you including on the website?

Heather: We have pages on how we met, how we got engaged and pics of friends and family. In addition, we have information on car rentals, maps to wedding site, hotel info and calendar of events.

Hailey: It had to be extremely organized so guests of any age bracket could
navigate easily. I broke it into 6 different pages:

• Home Page with our picture and a countdown of days until the wedding
• Event Details
• RSVP
• Registries
• Photo Gallery
• Guest Book

Mariana: My website includes location, date and time, pictures of the wedding party (currently under construction), two photo galleries (one of me and Dan and one of our dog Lola), a link to our registries, an RSVP page and eventually I will post more details such as rehearsal dinner info, parking info, etc. There is also a guestbook page where people can leave comments and a link so our guests can contact us if necessary.

Have any of your guests mentioned appreciation for the wedding website?

Michelle: Everyone loves the website. A lot of my family have not met Scott and have really enjoyed seeing photos of us together. The photos have given them the chance to get to know us a bit better as a couple. People have also appreciated the easy links to lodging and activities around the area.

Audrey: Oh yes! We hear about many guests and family members who love getting updated on the wedding planning process from reading the blog. A lot have found it to “look very professional” and really enjoy the information I’ve put in there. It surprises me to hear which family members keep up with the blog!

Kelly: Most of them have shared that they love the site and really appreciate how easy it’s been for them to book accommodations and travel needs.

Mariana: So far I have received lots of good comments regarding my website. My guests have reacted positively to the RSVP option.

Hailey: The website was a big novelty with the guests, especially because it gives for those that are out of town or that have not met the bride or groom and want to see pictures ect.. and the idea of what to look forward to. The pictures of the wedding party were a big hit as well.

Do you spend much time maintaining and updating the site?

Michelle: It took a few days to set it up. It is really easy, but it just takes time to plug in all the information. We don’t spend very time maintaining the site.

Thank you Hailey, Audrey, Michelle, Mariana, Kelly and Heather for your insight!