Woo Hoo – I’m not on the top 100 Celebrants list.

I have to admit that l was disappointed to read that l didn’t make the Easy Weddings top 100 Celebrants in Melbourne list.
 
Until I realised that I was not eligible!  Yes, I’m a celebrant, yes I’m in Melbourne, yes I am Top 100 material!  (let’s be honest I’m Top 10 material! )
 
To be eligible for this list I needed to be advertising with Easy Weddings  (my ad is here), and I needed to be advertising in the Melbourne category.  I’m not.
 
Don’t get me wrong, there are a heap of great celebrants in this list. Some of whom are really good friends of mine who l recommend.

Some of my awesome celebrant mates: Fiona, Meg, Ally and Sarah :)

​What disappoints me about a list like this, or the various Industry Awards and the advertising surrounding them is that there is limited transparency of how the recipients got there. How are the general public (that’s you) meant to know if it is a genuine list.
 
Now it might sound like I’m just spitting chips because I’m not on this list.  That’s not what’s getting my goat – the thing that annoys me most is that it’s not clear how they come up with these lists.
 
Who votes?
How much did they pay to be considered?
Did they also pay to attend the award ceremony, cough up for their own little statue and A4 print?
How big was the pool of competition?
 
According to the Attorney General’s website, there are currently 2106 celebrants in Victoria and the best thing about that number is that EVERYONE can find a celebrant that suits them. There are fun, serious, traditional, wacky, comedian, young, old, male, female, local or recommended.  Your top 100 celebrants is going to look a lot different to someone else’s list because everyone wants someone different to make their day unique.

​So for me, more important than paying to be on a list or hassling you for votes to win an award, is that l am on your list. ​

 l want to be on the list of celebrants you contact.

Then after your wedding, once that confetti has been vacuumed up and the champagne is all popped,

 l want to be on your list of the best 10 decisions YOU made for your wedding. 

A contributor to your special day who did exactly what she said she would and exceeded your expectations by creating YOUR perfect ceremony.
 
So next time you are reading a Top whatever list – stop and think:
 
“What are you going to do to get on my list?”