How Do You Politely Follow Up on RSVPs for a Wedding?

How to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs – Take Control of Your Wedding? Has everyone responded to your Wedding Invitation RSVP? 99% of the time the answer is “No”. So, be expecting that you will have people that do not respond and it is because they laid your invitation aside thinking they would take care of it tomorrow. Then they forget to respond.

I know you feel let down and a bit (perhaps a lot) irritated that people did not RSVP or send Regrets after you have worked so diligently on your wedding planning!  Some couples get really upset that their people do not respond.  Once again, please remember that this “no response” from your guests always happens, so expect it.  

Don’t panic! Do realize this is normal. It is easy to tell yourself that I am going to put this invitation aside and decide later. Well, “deciding later” never comes and they forget to respond. It is totally unintentional.

Follow Up with Guests with an Easy Proven Method to Get the Responses You Need

Do this – 30 days prior to final RSVP due date – send this:

Dear [Guest],

This is it, our wedding RSVP deadline is only a month from now, and we can’t wait to share our happiness with everyone of you!

We just wanted to remind you to reply – by post, by e-mail or by using the online response form on our wedding site (enter the URL here) and so that we can be sure that we have provided for everyone’s needs.

(If you have service at the table and Guest is to select a Meal Option, then list [Menu here] and ask for them to make a decision as to their meal.)

We hope all is well and we can’t wait to see you!

With love,

[Your Name and Your Fiance’s Name]

After RSVP date has expired do this:

The thing to do is to follow-up with guests who did not respond to your wedding invitation. Be persistent and polite at the same time. Here’s a step-by-step plan of how to make sure that you can get the responses that you need and tips from Palafox Wharf Waterfront and our top wedding planners on how to do it after the above email/text.

-Assemble a Follow-Up Team to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs:

Gather a small team of reliable friends or family members to help you reach out to non-responders. This will make the process more manageable and insure that no guests are overlooked.

–You Know Your Friends and Family: 

You know your friends and family and know who responds better to a Text or to a phone call or email.  Go right to that method of contact to save time. 

If you have no response, then use one of the other methods.  Some guests are embarrassed, don’t want to have to tell you they are not able to come, just forgot, or just plain bashful.  

One guest who never responded started crying when I was able to finally reach her on the phone. She said that the bride was her roommate in vet school. The guest just could not make the wedding but could not bring herself to tell the bride. The roommate was too embarrassed. You have to put yourself in their shoes and console them.

Initial Contact to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs:

• Phone Call:
  • Start with a friendly phone call. Call each non-responder and politely ask if they have received the invitation and if they are planning to attend. Explain that you need to provide a final headcount for the venue and caterers right now.

• Script Example:
  • “Hi [Guest’s Name], we hope you received our wedding invitation. We’re finalizing our guest list and need to confirm if you can join us. The venue and caterers are requesting final numbers, so we would appreciate your response by __(insert a few days prior to venue and caterer’s deadline)______. Thank you!”

Follow-Up Text and Email:

• Be Understanding and Making It Easy to Decline:
  • Acknowledge that some guests may feel embarrassed or uncomfortable declining the invitation. Make it clear that it’s perfectly okay if they cannot attend.
  • Think about who in your family or friends might approach the non-responder to be able to get the yes or no that you need for your guest count.
  • Reach out to that family or friend and bring them on board to help you with this situation. Ask them to reach out and call, text, email that individual that has not responded.

• Using Multiple Contact Methods:
  • Using Multiple Contact Methods: Persistence is key. If calls (and texts) and messages go unanswered, you can try to reach out from different phone numbers (remember caller i.d.) and from social media.

• Final Reminder:
  • On the final day of your RSVP or close to that date (hopefully that is five weeks before the wedding), send a final reminder. Firm, but still polite.
    • Example:
      • “Hi [Guest’s Name], we are finalizing our wedding plans and still need your RSVP. The venue and caterers are pressing for a final count and I am past my deadline to give them final counts, so please let us know if you can attend by [specific date]. Thank you so much!”

Handling Those Non-Responders:

• If after all attempts some guests still haven’t responded, you may need to make an executive decision, and send each non responder a text or email saying something such as:
• Example: “Hi [Guest’s Name that has not Responded], since we have not heard from you after many attempts, we are going to tell our catering teams and venue that you will not be attending my wedding and that they should take you off their list for your seating and food/alcoholic beverage catering. Since my vendors require me to give an absolute “final” guest count, this will be last time that I contact you regarding my Wedding.”

Using the Above Method for How to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs

Using the above method, you will be able to get a more accurate guest count for your wedding.

Persistence and politeness are important, and you also want it to be easy for guests to reply, whether they can come or not. So, follow these steps to insure that your wedding runs as smoothly as possible:

• It is important to be persistent but polite when contacting your guests. 
• It is also very important that it is easy for the guests to reply, whether they can come or not. 
• Be sensitive to the invited guest’s situation.

Once again, by using this approach, you will be able to have a more accurate count of guests at your wedding.

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After reading this blog above regarding How to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs from Palafox Wharf Waterfront wedding venue you might also enjoy reading –

Thank You for Stopping by our Blog about How to Politely Follow Up on Wedding RSVPs to learn about how to follow-up with non-responders to your wedding invitations and RSVPs for Wedding Planning

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