Getting ready for the most magical, special, unforgettable day of your life? There’s no better way to share the details with your loved ones than to make a website. One that would be as special and unique as the unity you’re about to celebrate. If you’re wondering why your wedding event needs an online location in addition to the offline one, wonder no more. In this article we’ll explain not only the benefits of a wedding website, but also the best web design practices and ideas for making it as perfect and as easy as possible (we know you’re a busy bee!).
From collecting RSVP’s in a breeze, to sharing real time photos with ease, here’s how you can create a wedding website that will make all your guests wish they had one as well.
1. Design with simplicity
Between the catering, the capricious DJ and the flower arrangements, you have tons of things to take care of for the wedding. Creating a layout shouldn’t be one of them. Why? Because you only have one click to make, in order to find ready-made and gorgeous wedding website templates. Advantage #1: They’re created by leading web designers, who took into account every possible need the happy couple might have, and integrated them into a sleek design. Advantage #2: They won’t cost you a penny. All the features that make a wedding website shine are given absolutely for free, from the event planner to the social photo sharing app.
2. Organize without the pain
Apps to a website are like abs to a workout – activate them correctly and you’ll have stunning end results. There are some wonderful features out there that will both enrich your website and show your guests you truly care:
- Who has time for phone calls and messages? Collect RSVP’s from guests directly on your wedding website and save everyone (but mostly you) some precious time. With Wix Events, for example, you can even customize a beautiful invitation, email it to your contacts, and follow up with automatic confirmation and reminder emails. The best wedding planner, for free.
- Bringing the magical day closer with every tick-tock, a countdown clock widget will display the exact amount of days, hours, and seconds left. Can’t wait already!
- No one can promise you it will not be raining, but having a weather app on your website will assure that everyone arrives to your celebration with the right expectation for precipitation.
- Make it unique
Every wedding ceremony is unique, and so is its website. Whether you’re using a template or creating a website from scratch, you’ll be making it all about you and your other half. On top of uploading beautiful photos of the happy couple (even better if you have engagement pictures), you can dedicate a whole section to sharing your love journey. An “Our Story” page can include a beautifully designed timeline, a touching collage of photos, or a funny story of how you met. It will get your family and friends into that magical atmosphere, even if the wedding is miles and months away.
4. Don’t lose your guests
Have you ever been stuck on the way to a wedding, desperately looking for that paper invite you received months ago for the directions to the venue (whose name you barely remember)? Avoid the last minute, unnecessary phone calls, and make sure your guests have all the event details just a click away. Ensure that the date and venue address are the centrepiece of your homepage and are visible above the fold. Adding a navigable Google Maps app is also highly recommended.
5. Be gifted
Starting a new life together with your chosen one is an exciting journey. And what’s better than receiving the exact items you dreamt of as wedding gifts from your family and friends? Just like you don’t want to leave your guests stranded without directions to the venue, you won’t abandon them when it comes to bestowing you a perfect gift. Include your gift registries on your wedding website, and let people make you happy, just the way you wanted.
6. Pay less – go paperless
Remember that paper invite we were talking about, the one you can never find when you need it? Aside from often turning out as useless, physical invitations are also not very environment friendly. Worry not, you can still have a beautifully designed invitation without harming the flora and fauna of our planet. Whether you’re working with a designer, or walking down the DIY aisle – your wedding invites can go completely digital (and save you some money on the way). Send your ‘e-vites’ manually, or use a free service like Wix Events to share the news with all your guests in a couple of clicks.
7. Keep the memories alive
The long awaited day has finally arrived! Share the excitement with all your guests (and the loved ones that couldn’t make it) and stream photos and videos from the wedding directly on your website. How? Using a social stream app and a hashtag. Notify guests in advance that they can use a specific hashtag at your wedding – adding it to the header or footer of your website is a good way to go. On the day of the event, the social stream app will collect all relevant posts and display them in one magical location – your wedding website. This is also a great way to keep the memory alive with no effort, as the captured moments will be displayed on your website for eternity.
Ready for the Big Day? Start with these free and gorgeous wedding website templates!
